Wu Butong, under the task assigned by Wu Pingjiu, went directly to Zhang Ji Barbecue Restaurant.
Wu Butong, with his head held high, thought to himself, "Buying a recipe is such a trivial matter, I really don't want to do it myself. I should have sent a subordinate."
However, since his elder brother had finally given him a task, he decided to do it. Besides, this wasn't like being sent to the office for work.
Compromising a little, and gaining a bit more living expenses for the month, this seemed like a fair trade.
This humble little place was surprisingly clean. The other day, when he had a feast here, it was a mess. He hadn't expected it to be so tidy during the day.
He liked eating in such an environment.
Wait, that wasn't right. He was here to buy a recipe, why was he thinking about eating here? No wonder the boss here came up with the spicy crayfish recipe, he had to admit it was impressive.
But he couldn't blame himself; not wanting to eat when you're at a restaurant is a normal reaction.
Wu Butong signaled to his subordinate, who understood. The subordinate shouted loudly.
"Boss, boss, where are you? Come out, we have big business to discuss!"
Zhang Tianxing emerged from the back kitchen. He couldn't help it; he had been cleaning the floor earlier. He had to clean twice a day, once before closing to sweep up trash, and in the morning to clean the hard-to-reach spots.
Customers come to a restaurant to eat for two reasons: delicious food and a clean environment.
If these two points are met, it's hard for a restaurant to fail.
Wu Butong looked up. "Isn't this a typical high school student?"
"Go call your boss. I have big business to discuss with him."
Zhang Tianxing said neither subserviently nor arrogantly, "What is it? You can tell me directly."
"Nonsense, can you make decisions? I have important matters to discuss," Wu Butong said impatiently. This kid, barely eighteen, acting like the boss here.
This boss has good cooking skills, but his hires are not great, a bit lacking. If the boss is sensible later, I'll give him a word of advice.
Zhang Tianxing smiled faintly, "I am the boss. Just tell me what it is."
"Pfft!" Wu Butong almost choked with laughter. "You're the boss, little brother? Then I'm the richest man in China."
"Little brother, don't joke. I really need to see your boss urgently. If you delay your boss's matters, you won't be able to bear the consequences!" Wu Butong said with a face full of doubt.
"Big brother, if you have business to discuss, just say it. If you're just trying to play with me, go ahead," Zhang Tianxing made a gesture.
"Da Yong, bring a pot of tea." He called out to Zhu Da Yong. He was busy now, and Zhang Tianxing was preparing to marinate the crayfish to make them more flavorful.
"Young Master Wu, it seems this young man really is in charge. It was him who was cooking that night," a subordinate whispered to Wu Butong.
"Truly impressive. He's so young and already a boss. I'll get straight to the point. Are you selling the recipe for your spicy crayfish?" Wu Butong asked.
"Yes, for one hundred yuan," Zhang Tianxing answered frankly. This exclusive business wouldn't last long, and the profits were limited.
Zhang Tianxing was a man who planned to make a fortune in the crayfish industry, and promoting crayfish was his responsibility.
Teaching the spicy crayfish recipe for a fee was also part of Zhang Tianxing's plan.
Wu Butong was taken aback by the promptness. Just as he was about to say "deal," he paused and asked, "Will you sell the recipe to anyone for one hundred yuan?"
Zhang Tianxing nodded. "Naturally. The more famous crayfish becomes, the easier it will be for me to make money in this industry."
This wouldn't do. It went against their plan. Their plan was for crayfish to be more mysterious, to be valued for its scarcity. If no one else could make it except him, his business would be booming.
Wu Butong lowered his head and thought for a moment, then gritted his teeth and said, "How about this, I'll give you five thousand yuan, and you sign an agreement guaranteeing you won't teach any crayfish recipe to anyone else in any way."
Zhang Tianxing shook his head. "Five thousand yuan to buy me out? Dream on."
Not to mention far away, spicy crayfish was currently the most popular dish every night. It seemed this Wu Butong had a good eye.
Unfortunately, he wanted to keep it all to himself. In this day and age, those who try to keep everything for themselves don't go far. Moreover, the crayfish industry is too vast for one person or one group to monopolize.
Let everyone share the feast. Let the market decide through survival of the fittest.
"If that's not enough, I'll give you ten thousand. Not many people are worth ten thousand these days," Wu Butong said fiercely.
"I don't sell exclusives. I only sell this for one hundred yuan. If you want it, you can come anytime," Zhang Tianxing said nothing more. If they couldn't agree, then there was nothing to discuss.
"You dare to refuse me? Do you know who I am?" Wu Butong lost some of his composure.
He had offered ten thousand yuan, and he didn't expect this kid to still not budge.
Actually, getting this recipe was simple, but he was worried about Zhang Tianxing teaching it to others.
Wu Butong took a deep breath and said word for word, "How about this, tell me your conditions. The recipe is sold to us, and no one else can use it."
Zhang Tianxing waved his hand. "This is not an exclusive sale. There are many ways to make it, so there's no need for that. Besides, teaching it to others will also help improve the reputation of crayfish."
Zhang Tianxing's idea was simple: expand the popularity of crayfish. Once the popularity is high, making money will be a natural consequence.
However, Wu Butong's situation was different. He wanted to make money for himself, regardless of others. He just wanted to have good things to eat. Whether others could eat them or not was irrelevant to him.
Wu Butong understood his brother's intention: to build a high-end clubhouse that served only a select few, and thus create the high-end value for the clubhouse.
Zhang Tianxing waved his hand helplessly. "If we can't agree, then let's forget it. Do you still want the recipe? If you do, it's one hundred yuan. If not, you're free to go."
Wu Butong was so angry he gritted his teeth. However, he still needed the recipe, but buying it would only boost Zhang Tianxing's arrogance.
If he didn't buy it, he wouldn't be able to complete the task assigned by his brother.
Wu Butong had no choice but to have his subordinate take out one hundred yuan. "Give him one hundred yuan and hand over the recipe."
Zhang Tianxing took the money with a smile and took out the written recipe from a drawer. "Do you want to try it out here? The experimental fee is ten yuan, and I'll teach you until you master it."
Selling recipes was a skill. First, provide excellent service so that the customer is willing to pay.
"Make it twenty yuan worth," Wu Butong felt like he was bleeding money. This young boss was quick to collect money, but he wasn't rude to a smiling face.
"Got it! Please come to the kitchen!" Zhang Tianxing led the way to the kitchen. The wages for the five employees today were secured.
Wu Butong had to admit that although Zhang Tianxing charged a high price, his service attitude was impeccable. He had learned the method for making spicy crayfish.
He even made it himself once, and the taste was almost the same. Wu Butong thought, "I've never thought that the first dish I ever made in my life would be spicy crayfish."
"Forget it. To give my brother an explanation, I'll endure this. I'll find some thugs when I get home and smash this place. How dare he make me unhappy? I'll let this young boss see the power of money."
Returning home, Wu Butong, looking displeased, handed the recipe to Wu Pingjiu. Wu Pingjiu glanced at Wu Butong and said calmly, "You're holding a grudge. You don't need to bother with him now. There will be opportunities to settle the score later."
Upon hearing Wu Pingjiu say this, Wu Butong finally let go of his anger, allowing Zhang Ji Barbecue to remain open for a few more days. He thought, "Don't think that just because Wen Qing is there, I can't do anything to Zhang Ji Barbecue."