Courtyard House: The Chef's Intelligence System

Yi Zhonghai was only angered by Jia Dongxu at that moment; his apprentice was still too young.

Jia Dongxu usually followed him around, and he was always a little reserved in his actions, but when he wasn't around, he would let his true nature show.

That's just unreliable, and Yi Zhonghai already knew that.

These kinds of people are only allowed to move forward when they are whipped; they need constant supervision, and if left to their own devices, they will definitely go astray.

Although Jia Dongxu is now married with a wife and will become a father in a few months.

However, he still inherited Jia Zhangshi's laziness deep down, which Yi Zhonghai could still see.

After the New Year, the Jia family made a fortune selling Sachima, but after the holiday, they had almost no orders.

The food is delicious, but you can't eat it all the time. Is this stuff even tastier than meat? No way.

It's one thing to have a special treat during holidays, but who eats these things normally?

Li Jiuzhou had already discussed this situation with the Jia family, and they had accepted it.

Anyway, now that the reputation has spread, residents in the surrounding area will come to place orders if they want to eat there, and Jia Dongxu can also receive some orders from his coworkers at the factory.

After the Jia family's Sachima (a type of Chinese pastry) stopped making much money, many neighbors in the courtyard breathed a sigh of relief.

Damn it, if the Jia family keeps making money like this, won't they surpass my family?

Why should you live a better life than me? It has to be about the same.

In the courtyard, the Jia family made Sachima (a type of Chinese pastry) and the Zhang family made tofu. They were both small businesses that didn't earn much, but they were enough to support their families.

Accumulating wealth little by little is not a problem, so the neighbors in the courtyard are all racking their brains to do some side jobs and earn whatever little bit they can.

The year had barely ended when some people were already itching to make a big splash.

Li Jiuzhou and his fellow apprentice returned around 3 p.m.

Fengzeyuan was booked out for a banquet today, only for lunch; they won't be open in the evening because they've made enough money.

With nothing much to do in the afternoon, Li Jiuzhou lit a stove at his doorstep to brew tea, enjoying a smoke and some peanuts and fruits – quite a pleasant experience.

Sha Zhu came running as soon as he smelled it, sat down, picked up a cigarette from the table, lit it, and started puffing away.

"Hey senior, this Zhonghua cigarette is really good! It's a bit mild, but it's really good for your lungs..."

"One pack isn't even enough for the two of us to smoke..."

Li Jiuzhou rolled his eyes at him. What do you mean it's not enough for the two of us brothers? They clearly gave him some, okay?

So I rolled my eyes at him:

"Brother, let's talk this out and we can still be brothers!"

"This gift was given to me by the old man during the Lunar New Year; even my second uncle, who is of a higher rank, wouldn't get one."

"Do you know what a special supply is? Going back to the previous dynasty, it was reserved for the royal family. The two of us, just cooks, are lucky to be able to smoke this good cigarette."

"Hehe, you're right, senior brother!" Sha Zhu didn't argue and responded with a smile.

Zhonghua cigarettes were produced in 51 and are still a special-supply cigarette. They are not yet fully available on the market, and only a small number of people can smoke them.

Just as the two brothers were chatting, a young man walked in carrying a bamboo basket filled with fish.

He is Wang Dahu, the eldest son of the Wang family in the backyard. He has a younger brother named Erhu and a younger sister named Wang Ling.

He had just returned from the countryside when he saw the two brothers sitting around a stove brewing tea. His eyes lit up and he immediately came over.

"Brother Jiuzhou and Zhuzi, wanna have a drink?"

Li Jiuzhou waved to him:

"Big Tiger, come here quickly and have a cup of hot tea."

Wang Dahu didn't refuse and sat down with a smile.

Seeing his smiling face, Li Jiuzhou knew he must have had a good haul, so he asked with a smile:

"Did Big Tiger have a good day?"

There was a reason why Li Jiuzhou asked him this: during the New Year's visit, he asked Li Jiuzhou to suggest a way to make money.

Li Jiuzhou had a good impression of the Wang family in his backyard; all five members of the family were reliable and capable.

Da Hu's father also works at the steel rolling mill as a boiler operator. Because he works there for a long time, he earns about 40 yuan a month.

His mother doesn't work; she stays home and takes care of the household chores.

Wang Dahu is one year younger than Li Jiuzhou and one year older than Shazhu, and he is still doing odd jobs.

His father tried many ways to get him a job in the factory, but his connections weren't strong enough and he was unwilling to spend the money.

Another reason is the fear of wasting money. This situation is not uncommon, and there are many precedents.

It's all hard-earned money, I can't afford to waste it...

Li Jiuzhou took a liking to Da Hu and gave him an idea: go to the countryside to collect wild game, then return to the city to sell it, earning a meager living in the process.

It's not that no one wants to do this kind of work; there are quite a few in Beiping (Beijing). Those remnants of the Manchu Qing dynasty enjoy eating delicacies from land and sea.

Li Jiuzhou promised him that if he had good goods, he wouldn't be afraid of them becoming unsellable. If he really couldn't sell them, he should go to Sha Zhu, who had plenty of ways to sell them.

Li Jiuzhou's questions and answers made Wang Dahu's smile even brighter:

"Hey bro, wait a minute, I want to show you something."

After saying that, he opened the bamboo basket at his feet.

Li Jiuzhou and Shazhu craned their necks to look, both showing surprise.

Sha Zhu exclaimed in admiration:

"Damn, Big Tiger, you're amazing! Three old turtles, and you got off to a winning start!"

"Not young at all, tsk tsk tsk, you're really something!"

Wang Dahu blushed a little in response to Sha Zhu's praise.

Sha Zhu suddenly said:

"Senior brother, this tastes wrong?"

"Dahu, where's your beat-up secondhand bicycle?"

Li Jiuzhou also turned his gaze to Da Hu.

Da Hu gave a wry smile and explained:

"I don't have enough money on hand, so I have to pawn the car and redeem it after the goods are delivered."

"Haha." Li Jiuzhou laughed.

"You're really something, kid. You've got a knack for seizing opportunities and you've got a good business sense."

"Tell me, how much did you pay for these three old turtles?"

"55..." Da Hu said in a low voice.

Upon hearing this, Sha Zhu stroked his chin and said:

"Hmm... the price is reasonable, considering old turtles are hard to find."

"If the shipment goes smoothly, you can earn 160,000 to 170,000."

"Holy crap, so many! I'm about to strike it rich!"

"This business is fucking amazing!"

Big Tiger jumped up excitedly.

"Look at you, so pathetic. A few hundred thousand yuan makes you this happy?"

"Silly Pillar said disdainfully."

Da Hu wasn't angry at all at the sight of Sha Zhu's mockery.

"Bro, you're my own brother, you're so awesome, aren't you?"

"I usually don't earn this much even if I carry sacks for a month. How could I not be excited?"

After a while, Da Hu calmed down and humbly asked Li Jiuzhou:

"Bro, how am I supposed to get rid of this old turtle?"

Li Jiuzhou smiled and said:

"Today is your first day doing business, Tiger, and it's a great start. As your older brother, I have to support you this time."

"Alright, I'll take the three old turtles and give you a round number, 20."

Da Hu was deeply moved upon hearing this and quickly waved his hand in refusal:

"No way, I can't let you lose out. 15 will do!"

"This deal was your idea. If you don't agree, I'll leave immediately and lose face."

The two brothers were quite pleased to hear Da Hu's words; their advice to the kid hadn't been in vain.

"Okay, brother, I thank Da Hu for his kindness. Zhu Zi, take the money."

"Alright!"

The silly pig took out a wad of cash from his pocket, pulled out 70 and handed it to the big tiger.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you Brother Zhu~" Da Hu was quite a character; he took the money and excitedly called out to the silly Brother Zhu, who was a year younger than him.

Li Jiuzhou rummaged through the bamboo basket, took out a relatively large one, and instructed Sha Zhu:

"Zhu Zi, kill this bastard later, then slaughter an old hen. Tonight we'll have 'Farewell My Concubine soup' to go with our drinks!"

"Oh, and Big Tiger too!"

"Alright, just you wait and see..." Silly Zhu happily grabbed the old turtle and went to kill it.