In the blink of an eye, the name of the old restaurant that had almost been buried in the sands of time was now known throughout the entire capital.
The song that had been sung on the day of the opening, ‘Song of Heroes’, spread through all the roads and alleyways of the city. The sounds of little children singing ‘The great rivers all run to the east’ were heard often by the people passing by on the streets.
The little courts in the back of Guilin Restaurant had been practically booked full by the famous, powerful officials of the capital. Furthermore, the price to reserve a court increased day by day. Even though the customers knew very well that Guilin Restaurant was doing it on purpose to earn their precious silver, there were still people who had money and were willing to spend it.
On the other hand, the main hall in the front of Guilin Restaurant was open to all regardless of status. The prices were also much more fair. Unfortunately, in order to have a meal there, customers had to reserve a seat at least one month in advance.
Seeing that the demand for a table at Guilin Restaurant far outstripped the supply, the majority of the capital was waiting with bated breath for Guilin Restaurant to expand their business or even open up more branches. However, there was no movement at all on the part of Guilin Restaurant, just like an old monk who had already settled into meditation. The number of available tables per day remained the same as well, and they refused to add even just one more to the main hall.
Before the sky would even turn dark, Guilin Restaurant would close its doors for the night. This frustrated many of the foodies waiting to have a taste of its novel dishes.
However, even so, Guilin Restaurant wasn’t forgotten by the masses; rather, they became even more famous instead. The more scholarly customers who had managed to have a meal there would even lament: “If you travel to the capital and leave without having a taste of Guilin Restaurant’s food, your trip was completely wasted!”
Those with money to burn would spend great amounts of silver to eat at Guilin Restaurant everyday, thinking that they would eventually be able to wean themselves off of this addiction. However, before they could even get tired of eating the dishes currently available, Guilin Restaurant would bring out brand new dishes every month, without any repeats.
The rich, the noble, and even the despotic would eat the dishes here with tears of joy; unable to escape this heavenly trap.
The daily flow of customers to Guilin Restaurant brought new life to the old west market, making the whole street much more livelier. In just two months, the normal residences around Guilin Restaurant had already opened up shopfronts and began to do business on the street. The old west market was now bustling with noise and excitement-a far cry from its comparatively silent streets not too long ago.
It had been a whole month since Guilin Restaurant had opened. Today was the day that Manager Qin would meet Chu Lian to check over the account books.
Xiyan was even more anxious than Chu Lian was. Early in the morning, while on duty to serve by Chu Lian’s side, she was so nervous that she even accidentally spilled some honey water.
When Chu Lian saw this, she found it funny. “Xiyan, why are you so absentminded today?”
Xiyan thought that she might as well set down the teapot in her hands. She walked over to Chu Lian’s side and took a light purple outer coat with a pattern of entwined branches from a young maidservant standing by, and then helped Chu Lian put it on. “Third Young Madam, aren’t you the slightest bit worried? Manager Qin will be sending over the account books today.”
Chu Lian let Xiyan help her with her belt before reaching out for a teacup and taking a sip of the warm water. She nodded and said, “I know. What’s there to be worried about?”
After Xiyan finished dressing Chu Lian, she felt a sense of helplessness rising within her. “Third Young Madam, don’t you want to know if Guilin Restaurant has made a profit or loss this first month? If the restaurant didn’t manage to turn a profit, then you’ll be two thousand taels in the red! That’s all the money you have at hand! Won’t your heart bleed?”
Right after she said that, Xiyan visibly became even more tense. This little brat, why was she acting as if the money used to renovate Guilin Restaurant had come from her own pockets?
Chu Lian still found this funny. “There’s nothing to be worried about. There’s no question that we’ll be able to earn it back.”
Ah? Xiyan’s mouth gaped wide open in disbelief.
“Third Young Madam, did you know this… even before you renovated the restaurant?”
“Of course I did; otherwise, why would I have gone ahead with my plans?”
Xiyan hurriedly shook her head and kept quiet. No one else would have that sort of confidence.
There was no one else who knew better than she what Third Young Madam had sacrificed to open Guilin Restaurant. In order to get the funds for the renovation and opening, Third Young Madam had taken all the gold accessories she had and gave them to Senior Servant Gui to melt.
Two thousand taels wasn’t a small sum. Even the most experienced merchants wouldn’t have the spirit to put all of their eggs- their entire fortune- in a single basket.
Xiyan was speechless with amazement. The only thought she had in mind was that her Third Young Madam was incredible.
Actually, Chu Lian wasn’t as incredible as Xiyan thought she was. She simply didn’t treat money as all that important. In her eyes, even if she lost the two thousand taels she had invested, it wouldn’t matter too much. She would still be House Jing’an’s Third Young Madam and be able to eat good food all day. Furthermore, she wasn’t all that bad at business in the first place, at least not to the point that she would lose all her capital.
If Xiyan were to find out that the master she greatly admired had thoughts like that, she would definitely roll her eyes.
