Chapter Thirty-One: An Unexpected Encounter with a Master

Wu Min thought for a moment; perhaps his son really did have a point. Who knew, maybe their business would end up doing much better than Chen Huajiang’s. Right now, he had no means of countering Chen Huajiang at all, nor could he reclaim any of the rooms he was currently using. His own disappointing son had ended up working odd jobs at the snack bar, losing 2,500 yuan in the process. Wu Min couldn’t swallow this humiliation, so he immediately decided to find a way to secure a few rooms nearby for his son.

With this in mind, he summoned Liang Yuanchao to his office.

“Aren’t there a few rooms to the east of the snack bar? Arrange for those to be rented to Wu De. As for the rent, do as you think best, just make it the same as what Chen Huajiang pays.”

Hearing Wu Min’s words, Liang Yuanchao was a bit troubled. There were still some old, broken-down pieces of equipment stored in those rooms. If he was to clear them out, he’d need to find somewhere else to put them.

“That won’t be easy. There’s stuff in those rooms, and if the factory director finds out, he’ll probably blame me.”

Liang Yuanchao tried to shift responsibility onto Director Liu.

“Don’t try to scare me with Director Liu. I’m telling you, you have two days to clear that place out. Otherwise, your position as head of security will be at risk.”

Wu Min issued a direct ultimatum. Liang Yuanchao had no choice but to return to the security office. He certainly wouldn’t bring this matter to Director Liu—since Wu Min had come to him, he’d just have to find a way to clear the rooms out.

When he told Liang Long about this, Liang Long grew anxious.

“That Huajiang—of all times to leave, he had to choose now. If they open another snack bar next door, it’s bound to affect our business.”

Liang Long was at a loss. Both Chen Huajiang and Daguang were away in Yunnan. All he could do was wait for them to return.

“It’s hard to say. If their food doesn’t taste as good as yours, no one will go there. I think Wu De is just jealous that you’re making money here, so he’s trying to set up shop elsewhere to compete with you.”

Liang Yuanchao understood the situation clearly.

“If that’s the case, then it’s not a problem. There’s no way their food will taste as good as ours. Besides, not just anyone can do barbecue well—Huajiang has the secret recipe.”

Liang Long was quite confident about that.

“Don’t worry, I’ll stall for time. Normally, I could have it cleared in three days, but I’ll tell him it’ll take five. That way, Chen Huajiang should be back soon.”

Although Liang Yuanchao couldn’t prevent the rooms from being rented to Wu De, he could at least delay things.

“That’s all we can do.”

Meanwhile, Chen Huajiang and Daguang had been on the road for a day and a night. Travel was slow in those days, but they had no other choice. Early in the morning, after waking up, Chen Huajiang took out some tea eggs he’d brought and shared them with Daguang.

Sitting across from them was a man in his thirties, holding a cookbook. Chen Huajiang thought the man looked familiar, but couldn’t place him.

“Would you like an egg?” Chen Huajiang offered him a tea egg. He knew that if someone looked familiar, it must be someone he’d known in his previous life, before he crossed over. And if he remembered this person, he must be someone important.

The man looked at them, smiled, and accepted the egg.

“Are you heading to Yunnan?” the man asked.

Chen Huajiang and Daguang nodded.

“And you? Are you going to Yunnan as well?”

“Yes, I’m going to have a look. My name is Yu Ping. What about you?”

The moment the man introduced himself, Chen Huajiang realized who he was. Yu Ping had been the chairman of Jiangnan Catering Group—an extremely famous figure, whose company later even went public.

“I’m Chen Huajiang, and this is Daguang,” Chen Huajiang said quickly. If he could get acquainted with such a prominent businessman, what did he have to worry about in the future? Judging by the timeline, this year Yu Ping should have just opened his own restaurant in Shencheng. Now that he was heading to Yunnan, could it be for the same reason as them—to look for herbs?

“So, what brings you to Yunnan? We’re going to source some medicinal herbs for our little restaurant,” Chen Huajiang volunteered, since they weren’t from the same city and wouldn’t be competitors.

Yu Ping was taken aback for a moment—he, too, was going to Yunnan in search of herbs. His restaurant was doing well, but to secure better future prospects, he was personally seeking unique ingredients unavailable locally.

“Is that so? Then we’re in the same business. I’m also heading to Yunnan for herbs; I have a small restaurant back home.”

People back then were still very sincere, and upon hearing Chen Huajiang mention a small eatery, Yu Ping was interested in chatting.

“I doubt our place is as big as yours. We mostly do braised pork and grilled lamb skewers—not much else. You probably focus on stir-fried dishes, right?” Chen Huajiang grinned at Yu Ping.

“Braised pork and grilled lamb skewers? You actually combine the two? That’s quite an original idea,” Yu Ping said, surprised at the pairing.

“We serve braised pork at lunch, and lamb skewers at night.”

“Then you didn’t need to go all the way to Yunnan for herbs. In my case, a lot of the meat needs to be stewed, so the herbs are essential.”

Being in the restaurant business himself, Yu Ping was familiar enough with grilled lamb skewers to know that few people made them at the time, and no one knew if they’d make money.

“Adding more herbs just makes the flavor better.”

“How long have you been in business, young man?” Yu Ping’s tone grew warmer.

“It’s been a month or two, but we’re planning to expand. One day, we want to be nationwide.”

There was purpose behind Chen Huajiang’s words. What he lacked now was capital, and if he could secure some from Yu Ping, it would be critical for his snack bar.

“Such ambition! What kind of model do you think restaurant chains should develop?” Yu Ping had always pondered this question, but hadn’t found a viable solution.

“Franchise chains—let others who want to open their own restaurants use your brand, pay you a fee, and learn all the techniques from you. That way, you can expand rapidly.”

Chen Huajiang held nothing back, knowing full well that even if he didn’t say it, Yu Ping would come to the same idea in another couple of years.