Wen Jing glanced at Zhang Tianxing, "I heard you went to several restaurants in the county town this morning to deliver crayfish, and taught them how to make it?"
Li Fang was a little confused when she heard this. Their barbecue business was mainly crayfish, but after only a few days of opening, Zhang Tianxing gave away the recipe for crayfish.
In order to sell more crayfish, he even demonstrated on the spot, telling them how to make it delicious. Wasn't this helping the enemy?
Zhu Dayong and Gao Tianming also came over, asking Zhang Tianxing for an explanation: "Exactly, Zhang Tianxing, you need to give us an explanation, or we won't play with you anymore."
Li Fang was the most anxious among the four. This was the only way for her to earn enough for tuition. She couldn't see any other path forward.
What could a high school graduate do, especially with her family background?
Her parents favored sons over daughters and never intended to let her go to school. It was only because Li Fang was so capable that they allowed her to finish middle school.
As Li Fang's mother would say: "What's the point of girls going to school? It's best to get married and have babies early. School only costs money and doesn't earn any. This money-losing burden."
Zhang Tianxing waved his arm forcefully, signaling his presence: "You all call yourselves elites, but has crayfish really taken off in our county?"
"It seems so. So many people ate it last night, and you delivered quite a bit today," Gao Tianming thought for a moment and said.
"What are you thinking? Why would you let others do it when you have a good business? Wouldn't it be better if we were the only ones making money from such delicious and popular crayfish?"
Gao Tianming's question was exactly what Zhu Dayong, Wen Qing, and Li Fang were wondering.
Zhang Tianxing looked at the four of them and said slowly, "It's like this, our crayfish haven't made a name for themselves yet. Once they do, people will come to us for wholesale orders instead of us delivering. Once the chefs all know the recipe, there won't be a need for someone to teach it."
"Then what's your idea? Tell us," Wen Qing asked. This was completely different from textbook knowledge and felt so novel to her that she had to ask.
"My idea is simple: make the pie bigger. We can't do this alone. We need the entire county's catering industry to promote it. That way, crayfish will go further and further. Then, the crayfish industry as a whole will have great potential."
Wen Qing lowered her head and thought for a while. She understood the meaning of every word Zhang Tianxing said, but why didn't she understand when they were put together?
"Then are the recipes you taught them all the same? Will there be any problems?" Wen Qing asked with some concern.
"Don't worry about that. The seasonings I told them to add are different. The ingredients used to remove the fishy smell are not the same. Therefore, the final taste will vary, but they will all be equally delicious!"
Hearing Zhang Tianxing's words, the four of them couldn't help but look at him with newfound admiration. Just a few days ago, they were all taking exams together.
"Why did you think of making crayfish barbecue?"
"Why? Perhaps because I was greedy. My family was poor when I was young, and I never ate anything good. I grew up in the fields, and there was nothing in the fields I wouldn't eat. Fried grasshoppers, roasted wild rabbits, and of course, crayfish..."
"Oh, so you were always thinking about food when you were young? No wonder your cooking skills are so good." The four of them grudgingly accepted Zhang Tianxing's explanation.
There is always a reason for things. In the eyes of a starving person, nothing in the world is more important than food.
"I originally thought you were going to ask us to give up barbecue and deliver crayfish today. I didn't expect that adults don't have to make choices. Today, you carried the whole chef's workload yourself. That's great," Zhu Dayong praised without reservation. He admitted he was inferior to Zhang Tianxing in this regard.
"It's good that things are clear. I thought Tianxing was tired of it and was going to switch to exclusively delivering crayfish, which made me worry for nothing all morning."
"Exactly, you were so busy this morning, and you didn't ask us for help."
"That's different. Barbecue tonight is a joint venture for the five of us. Delivering crayfish this morning was my uncle's business. Each to their own, we can't mix them up."
Hearing Zhang Tianxing say this, Wen Qing nodded slightly. Perhaps successful businessmen were very clear about boundaries.
Wen Qing was not a businesswoman, so she didn't know if what Zhang Tianxing said was true or false. But she clearly realized that Zhang Tianxing was, in his own way, making his voice heard on the land of China.
If it were in ancient times, one would say: "Born like Sun Zhongmou, brave and resourceful, skilled in both civil and military arts."
Zhang Tianxing was undoubtedly that kind of person, capable in his actions, with a clear strategy for breaking through difficulties, and seemingly in good health.
Wen Qing secretly glanced at Zhang Tianxing. She really couldn't understand why she cared about him. They were just classmates, and during the holidays, they were just playing around and starting a business together, with no other particular relationship.
Following this, Wen Qing threw herself into the busy work.
As expected, there were still quite a few people there tonight, some of whom were returning customers from yesterday.
Looking at the county town's nightlife, although there weren't many cars in a county town at this time, there were quite a few wealthy people.
Normally, they didn't show off, but when it came to consumption, the difference was evident.
While Zhang Tianxing was busy, a beautiful silhouette approached him.
Zhang Tianxing was intently grilling skewers when he heard a familiar voice.
"Boss, give me twenty lamb skewers and a pot of spicy crayfish." The voice was extremely magnetic.
Zhang Tianxing looked up and saw an acquaintance, the beautiful woman Yan Ruyu who had bumped into him earlier. Truly, her name matched her appearance, like jade.
"Coming right up, please wait. Why are you here?" Zhang Tianxing asked casually.
"I heard that you have a new dish here, spicy crayfish, so I came specially to try it. I didn't expect it to be you. What a coincidence." Then Yan Ruyu told him her location and elegantly walked away.
Wen Qing curiously walked over, "Who is that beautiful woman talking and laughing with you?"
"Oh, we've met before. It was when I was hit by a car," Zhang Tianxing thought wishfully that Yan Ruyu hadn't appeared. Getting hit by a car while walking sounded so embarrassing.
Wen Qing was shocked when she heard this, "You were hit by a car? Are you injured?"
Seeing Wen Qing's panicked look, Zhang Tianxing couldn't help but find it a little funny. He then made a few gestures to show he was fine: "I'm perfectly fine, it's all in the past. Please serve her the crayfish first, and the skewers will be ready shortly."
Zhang Tianxing had taken a shortcut earlier in the evening and made a large pot of crayfish. He tasted it, and the large pot was also good, with an authentic flavor.
He wouldn't need to make crayfish individually tonight, and could focus on the barbecue.
Over there, Yan Ruyu looked at the fragrant and appetizing spicy crayfish. Following Wen Qing's demonstration, she successfully peeled the crayfish.
Putting a crayfish into her mouth, Yan Ruyu was utterly amazed. She had never eaten such delicious crayfish before.
After all, delicious food is an indispensable part of life. This pot of spicy crayfish awakened her yearning for exquisite flavors.
Since she became an adult, she had been working tirelessly for her career. How long had it been since she treated herself?