Transmigrating with a Five Million Dollar Retirement Life

Chapter 156 The Heir Apparent?

As soon as Song Jiaojiao arrived in the lobby, she saw Liu Xuewen and Manager Liu waiting at the counter with gifts.

"Brother Xuewen, Uncle Liu, you've arrived." Song Jiaojiao quickly stepped forward and greeted them with a smile.

"Sister Song, you've quietly opened another shop, and it's still so fresh and new," Liu Xuewen teased, looking at the shop's booming business.

"You flatter me. I was just craving something and thought I could have it anytime I wanted. Come on, let's go to a private room. I can introduce you to someone there," Song Jiaojiao said with a light laugh.

The two followed Song Jiaojiao to the private room. When they opened the door, Liu Xuewen was stunned for a moment.

Isn't this the general's youngest son? What's he doing here?

Wang Ziyi was also incredulous when he saw the newcomer, but then he remembered that Song Jiaojiao had just mentioned that she had partnered with the owner of Huichuntang to run a half-day business.

Unexpectedly, the person arrived in the blink of an eye.

"Brother Xuewen, please sit down. This is the owner of Sifanglou..."

"Wang Ziyi, nice to meet you." Before Song Jiaojiao could introduce Wang Ziyi, Liu Xuewen said it himself.

"Young Master Liu, I never expected to meet you in such a small place." Prince Yi respectfully rose to return the greeting.

The Crown Prince? What Crown Prince? Song Jiaojiao thought to herself, she had thought Liu Xuewen had a powerful backer, but she never expected him to be the Crown Prince.

"Master Wang, Brother Xuewen, do you know each other?" Song Jiaojiao asked doubtfully, but then she thought that since they were both from the capital and their families held official positions, they must know each other.

“Oh, I’ve seen you a few times at banquets,” Liu Xuewen explained.

"Oh, I see. I knew you were from the same place, but I didn't expect you to know each other. It's like we're old acquaintances. I won't go into too much detail about you." Song Jiaojiao said with a sudden realization.

Liu Xuewen and Wang Ziyi tacitly refrained from revealing too much information about each other.

"Yes, we're here today mainly to congratulate Sister Song. Sister Song, you really kept it a secret! If Manager Liu hadn't seen Mu Qing coming and going here these past few days and found out it was your shop, I would still be completely in the dark."

Liu Xuewen looked at Song Jiaojiao with a mournful expression, as if she were looking at a heartless man.

Song Jiaojiao said speechlessly, "Hey, I thought it was just a small matter, so I didn't say anything."

Wang Ziyi had never seen Liu Xuewen like this before. As the only male member of the Prince's Mansion, Liu Xuewen was still unmarried at the age of thirty. Empress Dowager Liu had introduced countless young ladies to this nephew. Later, she really pushed him to the limit, and it was rare to see him in the capital all year round.

“That’s right. Even if Madam Song didn’t say anything, not even Sifanglou knew anything about it. If it weren’t for this lucky day, they would probably still be kept in the dark,” Wang Ziyi chimed in.

"Alright, it's all my fault. I'll punish myself with three drinks." Song Jiaojiao was at her wit's end by the two of them, so she picked up the wine in front of her and drank three glasses by herself.

"Sister Song is so generous." Seeing that Song Jiaojiao was so straightforward, Liu Xuewen didn't press the matter further.

"Madam Song truly lives up to her reputation as a heroine; she's so straightforward," Wang Ziyi said.

The waiter brought out all the barbecue that Song Jiaojiao had ordered.

Song Jiaojiao quickly urged everyone to start eating, "Come on, try it and see how it tastes. This dish is cold-cooked rabbit, spicy and fragrant. It's a signature dish of the food stall and is perfect with drinks."

Song Jiaojiao pointed to the dish in the middle, which was bright red and almost submerged in chili peppers, and said.

Everyone took a bite, finding it fragrant and numbing, and very chewy – truly perfect for pairing with alcohol.

Shopkeeper Wang took a skewer of grilled pork intestines and asked in confusion, "This is...?"

"That's right, it's braised pork intestines. After braising, the intestines are grilled over charcoal to render out the excess fat, giving them a crispy and fragrant flavor that's quite unique."

Song Jiaojiao explained with a smile, pointing to the dark gray roasted sweet potato skin in front of her, "This is sweet potato skin, made from sweet potato starch. The outer skin is roasted until it's crispy and fragrant. It's served with fresh houttuynia cordata and tangy pickled radish to cleanse the palate. Everyone can try it."

Shopkeeper Wang never imagined that sweet potato starch could be made this way, and he didn't know how Song Jiaojiao managed to turn it into a noodle-like shape.

After the meal, everyone was so full they could barely move. They hadn't expected the barbecue to be so delicious, completely different from barbecued meat in the wild. They wondered if they could cooperate with Song Jiaojiao; they were certain this barbecue would be a huge success.

Song Jiaojiao asked the waiter to remove the table and bring out several pots of tea.

"Madam Song, I wonder if your barbecue restaurant is going to collaborate with me, Mr. Wang?" Wang Ziyi quickly asked, afraid of missing the opportunity.

"The collaboration with Mr. Wang is not about barbecue, but about another type of food, and I guarantee that the profits will only be higher than those from barbecue."

Song Jiaojiao spoke mysteriously, thinking that it wasn't enough to just talk about it; one had to taste it to know.

Something even better than barbecue? Wang Ziyi's curiosity was instantly piqued. Before he could even speak, he heard Song Jiaojiao say.

"Okay, I'll make the arrangements tomorrow. Mr. Wang will come to the food stall around noon. After we've eaten, we can talk about the rest."

Thinking that it would only take a day, Wang Ziyi nodded in agreement. Before he could speak, he heard Liu Xuewen speak up.

"Sister Song, are you interested in collaborating on this food stall?" Liu Xuewen quickly asked. Although he had never run a food stall before, he was willing to give it a try. Judging from how popular Song Jiaojiao's shop was today, the food stall would definitely not be less profitable than a half-day off.

Upon hearing Liu Xuewen's words, Wang Ziyi quickly asked, disregarding Liu Xuewen's status as a prince at this moment, "Yes, I wonder if Madam Song would be interested in cooperating with our food stall? As long as you cooperate with our Sifanglou, within half a year, our food stall can be opened all over the Great Jin Kingdom."

Liu Xuewen glanced at Wang Ziyi; this kid actually wanted to steal his business.

"Sister Song, we've worked together before, so you can absolutely trust her character. Let's split it 50/50. I'll provide the manpower and the money, and you just need to train the head chef."

“Madam Song, you and Sifanglou have a long-standing working relationship. Besides, Sifanglou is in the food business, so we are very familiar with the processes. You don’t need to worry about anything.”

Wang Ziyi quickly said, afraid that if he spoke too late, Song Jiaojiao would cooperate with Liu Xuewen.

Song Jiaojiao: ……

Originally, it was just to satisfy my own appetite, but I didn't expect these two to think so highly of it.

However, just thinking about the barbecue restaurants and stalls that were everywhere in the last century, one can imagine how popular it would be once it was promoted.

"Um, actually I didn't originally plan to open food stalls all over the Great Jin Kingdom. It was just an experiment, and I wanted to be able to eat whenever I wanted, but..."

Song Jiaojiao paused for a moment before continuing.

"However, grilling is not difficult. After eating it a few times, you will understand how to make it. Although it will not be 100% imitated, everyone has their own taste. In less than a month, grilling will probably be everywhere."

Song Jiaojiao thought that people with sensitive taste buds would understand how it was made after eating it a few more times. With careful study, it might not even take a month.