The Prime Minister’s Little Wife

Chapter 30: Successful Contract Signing

Xu Zhizhi first served a bowl to Old Doctor Shangguan.

The old man took a bite and was immediately impressed. No wonder the boiled beef was so hard to get!

Actually, the old man was mistaken. The reason boiled beef was scarce wasn’t because of the recipe but because beef was harder to come by than pork or fish.

Next, she stewed the old duck with vermicelli.

She set aside half of the vermicelli to make steamed rice noodles.

She stir-fried some eggs with green onions, garlic, and ginger, then set them aside.

She mixed soy sauce, salt, green onion whites, and garlic into a sauce.

She poured the sauce over the vermicelli and mixed it well.

She boiled water in a pot, placed the vermicelli inside, and steamed it for ten minutes.

After taking it out, she mixed in the stir-fried eggs, chives, and chopped green onions, then drizzled a few spoonfuls of garlic oil over it before plating it.

The three dishes were prepared in large portions. She packed three big bowls into a basket for Old Doctor Shangguan to take back for Brother Xiao.

The old man left happily, turning back to ask, “Zhizhi, are you coming to the clinic later?”

“I won’t be visiting Brother Xiao today.”

She still needed to confirm with Nangong Yunhao whether the person he was looking for was Xiao Jingheng.

“Doctor, please tell Brother Xiao to take good care of himself. I’ve been busy searching for medicinal herbs. I’m only missing one ingredient now. Once I have it, I’ll visit him,” Xu Zhizhi explained.

“Alright, alright, I’ll definitely tell him,” the old man said excitedly, nodding repeatedly.

The front hall was crowded with people eating and waiting in line, so the old man quickly left through the back door. He needed to hurry home to eat—he hadn’t had enough after just tasting the dishes earlier.

She packed another portion, and Manager Li personally brought a bowl of old duck vermicelli soup for the young master to try.

She left some in the kitchen for everyone else to taste.

Sweet potatoes had just been planted, so it would be a few months before they could produce vermicelli in large quantities.

She decided to make two dishes for the head of the chain restaurant to try, increasing the value of her technical investment.

Otherwise, when she revealed the method for growing bean sprouts—something even a fool could do—she might be called a swindler.

Although embarrassment and being put on the spot weren’t major issues, she feared provoking retaliation, which would be a loss.

Xu Zhizhi was a calculated person. As long as others felt they were getting their money’s worth, she wouldn’t cause trouble.

Nangong Yunhao took a bite of the duck meat—it was delicious. Then he tried the vermicelli—it was heavenly.

He felt even more convinced that giving 20% to Miss Xu was the wisest decision he had ever made.

At that moment, a waiter brought in a bowl of boiled beef, and Xu Zhizhi carried in a plate of steamed rice noodles.

Nangong Yunhao said, “Miss Xu, please sit down and eat with us. We can discuss the partnership while we eat.”

“Alright. Manager Li, could you let my third uncle and cousin know to grab something to eat?”

“Of course, Young Master, Miss Xu. Enjoy your meal,” Manager Li said before heading to the kitchen to eat.

The waiter stayed behind to serve.

The aroma alone was enough to make one’s mouth water.

Nangong Yunhao took a bite of the beef and felt something was off. After another bite, he said:

“Miss Xu, I feel like this boiled beef tastes even better than what the chef made yesterday.”

Xu Zhizhi thought to herself: Of course it does.

But she humbly replied, “Young Master, it must be because you’re in a good mood today. Food always tastes better when you’re happy.”

“Is that so? No wonder it feels even more delicious.”

Nangong Yunhao’s spirits soared. After eating Miss Xu’s dishes, the fatigue of the past few days melted away.

So it was because he was in a better mood.

Xu Zhizhi told him that there were dozens of dishes in the sweet potato vermicelli series: sour and spicy vermicelli, ants climbing trees, cabbage stewed with vermicelli, pork stewed with vermicelli, ribs stewed with…

Nangong Yunhao’s mouth watered just hearing the names.

Xu Zhizhi continued, saying that new dishes should be introduced gradually, one at a time.

Constant innovation would keep the business thriving.

Nangong Yunhao thought to himself: This girl is truly talented. It’s a good thing she’s my partner now.

With such talent, was 20% of the profits too little? He felt like he was getting the better end of the deal.

After finishing his meal, he quickly handed the contract to Xu Zhizhi to review. This time, he was much more sincere.

Xu Zhizhi carefully read the contract. It was exactly as they had discussed, clearly stating that she would receive 20% of the total revenue from all new dishes she developed in every Drunken Fragrance Pavilion.

She felt that the ancients were truly honest—no word games here.

Both parties signed the contract happily and stamped it. Manager Li was sent to the government office to have it officially sealed.

Xu Zhizhi was now officially a shareholder of the Drunken Fragrance Pavilion chain across the Great Sheng Dynasty.

In her heart, she set off fireworks to celebrate.

She happily wrote down the method for growing bean sprouts.

In fact, growing bean sprouts was very simple. The basic steps were: soak the beans, put them in a basket, water them morning and night, and in a few days, they’d be ready to eat!

Nangong Yunhao’s mouth twitched as he read. It was so simple.

No wonder Miss Xu had insisted on signing the contract before revealing the method.

Fortunately, there were many new dishes to come. Otherwise, he would have felt terrible! Miss Xu was truly a clever person.

But even someone as brilliant as him hadn’t thought of something so simple before.

Xu Zhizhi said, “Growing bean sprouts isn’t technically difficult. You must use trustworthy people, or it will be easily imitated. But over time, it’s impossible to keep it a secret.”

Nangong Yunhao agreed wholeheartedly. He would definitely arrange things properly.

Finally, Xu Zhizhi took out a few pounds of sweet potato vermicelli from her basket and said:

“This is for you to try. The first batch of sweet potatoes was small, so we can only send some to your family to taste. We just planted a large mountain of them a few days ago. It’ll take over three months before we can produce vermicelli in large quantities.”

Nangong Yunhao wasn’t disappointed. With bean sprouts to promote now, as Miss Xu had said, introducing new dishes gradually would keep the business thriving.

Xu Zhizhi casually asked, “Young Master Nangong, you mentioned earlier that you came to Qingshan Town to look for someone? What kind of person? Do you need our help?”

Nangong Yunhao felt that since they were now partners, it wasn’t a big deal to tell Xu Zhizhi that he was looking for his cousin, Xiao Jingheng.

Oh! What a coincidence! It was the beggar she had saved.

Through Xu Zhizhi’s subtle guidance, she learned that:

Nangong Yunhao’s aunt, Nangong Xueqing, had met the heir of the Duke’s mansion, Xiao Xuanshen, by chance. The two had developed feelings for each other.

When Nangong Xueqing found out that Xiao Xuanshen was already married with children, she wanted to give up. But Xiao Xuanshen, deeply attracted to her, pursued her relentlessly. Under his intense courtship, she eventually gave in.

Xiao Xuanshen, as the heir of the Duke’s mansion, took Nangong Xueqing as his noble concubine.

Having finally won the heart of his beloved, it was no surprise how much he doted on her. Later, they had a son, Xiao Jingheng.

Xiao Jingheng had been a handsome child, and as he grew older, he became a dashing young man, full of charm and vigor.

Xiao Xuanshen, who later became the Duke, loved his son dearly, showering him with affection.

When Xiao Jingheng was fifteen, the Duke arranged for him to be engaged to Ye Wanni, the most beautiful girl in Luocheng and the daughter of the Grand Tutor.

The Duke’s love brought immense joy and benefits to the mother and son, but it also brought them countless troubles and harm.

If not for their resilience, they would have died a thousand times over.

Xiao Jingheng was a concubine’s son, with two older half-brothers ahead of him. Even with his father’s protection, the Duke couldn’t shield him at all times.

Although he lived as a carefree young master, he couldn’t escape the schemes of his stepmother and brothers.

Xiao Jingheng was betrayed by his fiancée and frequently hunted by unknown assailants, eventually disappearing without a trace.

Nangong Yunhao’s aunt begged her brother, Nangong Yunhao’s father, for help in finding him. He had traced the clues to this place…

(End of Chapter)