Courtyard House: The Chef's Intelligence System

Li Jiuzhou only heard about the farce orchestrated by the Jia family in the courtyard from Sha Zhu when he returned home, because he had taken his family to his father-in-law's house.

The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law chatted about everyday matters, while the two brothers-in-law played with Shanhe and Jiaojiao in the yard.

Li Jiuzhou was taken to the study by his father-in-law to attend a class, where he was given a lecture on the history of the Ming Dynasty.

Li Jiuzhou listened with rapt attention, to all sorts of stories about imperial strategies and the art of governing subordinates.

This made Li Jiuzhou's heart surge with excitement. If someone were to bring him the Imperial Seal of the State and shout "Long live the Emperor!", he would immediately ascend the throne, he couldn't wait!

Then the first imperial edict was issued:

(By the grace of Heaven, the Emperor decrees: May all people throughout the land read the novels I have written. So be it!)

When Li Jiuzhou heard Sha Zhu recount the commotion in the courtyard while he was away, he just chuckled.

If No. 95 Courtyard wasn't noisy, would it still be called No. 95 Courtyard?

These three families definitely won't be able to hold a full moon celebration together again after they had a fight.

They could only do their own thing, and the Jia family and Yi Zhonghai continued to discuss the matter.

Without the three-price unification, Jia Zhangshi no longer wanted to ask for 88 to invite Li Jiuzhou to a banquet.

It's too expensive. Although I really want to buy it, I just can't afford it.

Yi Zhonghai didn't care; he could have paid for the banquet hosted by Li Jiuzhou.

But after this incident, Yi Zhonglu hesitated. Jia Zhangshi was too much of a troublemaker, and he couldn't just pay her money.

He felt that he and his wife were only in their early forties and had a long life ahead of them, so they needed to save more money so that they would have security when they got old.

When you get old, you can't rely on your apprentices alone; sometimes you can't even rely on your own son.

Yi Zhonghai felt that he should hold onto his money until the very last moment before handing it over, so that his apprentice's family would take good care of him.

At this point, his thinking began to change, and he would no longer make such mindless sacrifices.

Now that Madam Jia has no intention of having Li Jiuzhou host the banquet, that's perfect; it saves him money.

That's what Jia Zhangshi said, but her eyes and words were clearly implying that Old Yi should hurry up and hand over the money.

"Our family may not have money, but yours does," Jia Dongxu and Tong Jie said, looking at him expectantly.

Yi Zhonghai felt utterly disheartened. Damn it, they think he's being taken for a fool!

Suddenly he had an idea and said to them:

"You're right, sister-in-law. Jiuzhou is too expensive, so we won't be inviting them this time."

"I think Zhu Zi is a good candidate. He's also Chef Li Tielong's apprentice and Jiuzhou's junior brother. He's already the second chef at Fengzeyuan. Why don't we hire him? It's cheaper."

The Jia family thought it over and it seemed like a good idea. Sha Zhu's cooking skills were not bad; he was originally a master chef. It was just that Li Jiuzhou's brilliance overshadowed him.

"Then Lao Yi, go talk to Sha Zhu and see what the price is. We're neighbors, it can't be too expensive."

So Yi Zhonghai went to talk to Sha Zhu about it again. Sha Zhu was smart and didn't agree immediately. He only said that he would ask his master and senior brother for their opinions.

Yi Zhonghai didn't say anything upon hearing this, but told him to let him know if there was any news.

The next day at work, Sha Zhu told Li Jiuzhou about it.

"Senior brother, Yi Zhonghai asked me to prepare the full-month celebration banquet for the Jia family. I'd like to ask you for advice."

Li Jiuzhou laughed after hearing this:

"That's great! You've been my assistant for so many years, I know your skills very well, no problem at all."

"Just go for it, what's there to be afraid of?"

"It's no exaggeration to say that the Jia family was lucky to be able to invite you to their banquet."

"Otherwise, if we were living in the same compound, we'd really think hiring a chef was easy!"

"We're not chefs who specialize in preparing large banquets."

"We are chefs, renowned chefs from the famous Fengzeyuan restaurant, with a lineage and a master-disciple relationship."

"From now on, when you go out to host a banquet, you should be more respectful. We're not someone you can invite just anyone."

"Hehehe, Senior Brother, you're absolutely right, that's how it should be." Sha Zhu laughed so hard he scratched his head.

"How much should I ask for? This is my first time hosting a banquet, senior brother."

Li Jiuzhou stroked his chin and said, "A professional chef who prepares banquets for people usually costs 10,000 yuan per table."

"We won't charge by the number of tables, it's a fixed price. You're far behind me, so let's go for 38."

"38 is not a small amount, we can do it." Sha Zhu also agreed with the price.

He earned more than this for each meal he cooked for Lou Bancheng with his senior.

Of course, the Jia family and Lou Bancheng are not the same; their statuses are different, and they have different charging standards.

38 is enough for Sha Zhu to make a living for many years.

When Sha Zhu got home from get off work that evening, he was invited to the Jia family's house by Yi Zhonghai.

"Zhu Zi, what do you mean? Did your master and senior brother agree?" Yi Zhonghai asked.

Silly Zhu said:

"I agree, but they also set a price for me: 38. Not a penny more, not a penny less."

"It's not that I'm being unreasonable, but our sect has its rules."

"The prices I set are all based on my cooking skills."

"If the guests are not satisfied with the food, I won't take a single penny."

Sha Zhu said a lot, leaving Yi Zhonghai and the others, who had originally wanted to bargain, speechless.

But Sha Zhu's confident tone reassured them.

38 is not expensive; they know the price of a top-tier chef.

You could hire a regular chef; a meal would cost between eight and ten thousand, and there's a risk the food might not be good...

But it's really hard to find a chef like Sha Zhu who has a master chef's apprenticeship; it's extremely hard to find one.

After much deliberation, Jia Zhangshi made up her mind:

"That pillar, I'll be entrusting my grandson's one-month celebration to you next week."

Shazhu also had a smile on his face at this moment:

"Don't worry, Auntie, you've tasted my cooking before. How was the soup I made for your family last time?"

"Slurp...it was so authentic!" Jia Zhangshi recalled.

"That's settled then. Just leave it to me. As for the menu, should I draft it or what?" Sha Zhu asked, referring to the banquet menu.

Yi Zhonghai said, "Based on a budget of 5 per table, Zhu Zi, you give us a menu and we'll go shopping."

Shazhu stroked his chin and thought for a moment before saying:

"Get some paper and a pen, let's finalize the menu together."

"Okay, okay, I'll go get it right away." Jia Zhangshi was the most enthusiastic.

This is called participation; eating is the most important thing.

Tong Jie and Jia Dongxu exchanged a glance, both of them interested.

Soon, Jia Zhangshi brought over the paper and pen.

After receiving the order, Sha Zhu immediately started customizing the menu according to the price of 50,000 per table.

As a chef, he knows the market prices like the back of his hand, so it was extremely easy for Sha Zhu to order custom-made products.

A total of 16 dishes were ordered, and the Jia family members also participated in the process.

It took an hour to finalize the menu.

"Auntie, and Uncle Yi, how about these sixteen dishes?"

"There's fish and meat, and each portion is generous; guests will definitely feel proud to eat here."

"Alright, alright, that's settled then. Zhu Zi, thank you for your hard work. Here, have a glass of water and a cigarette!" Madam Jia Zhang personally poured tea and offered cigarettes, showing great politeness.

"Oh dear, Auntie, how could you pour me tea and light my cigarettes? I can do it myself."

Sha Zhu took the match and lit his cigarette.