Wang Youbao came to An Jing and Xiao Changyi’s house on the seventh day of the first lunar month. Neither An Jing nor Changyi had invited him, but he took the initiative to come over to their place for a meal and also told them to come to his house for a meal the next day.
Since Wang Youbao was still in his mourning period, An Jing didn’t prepare any meat dishes, they were all vegetarian.
Today the weather was very cold, so An Jing thought about it and decided to make three bowls of steaming hot and sour rice noodles.
After finishing a bowl of hot and sour rice noodles that didn’t have a single bit of ground meat, Wang Youbao actually wanted more. But seeing that there was none left in the pot, and considering he was still on a diet, he only fantasized about having more.
But his eyes suddenly lit up, and he asked excitedly, "What are these noodles made of?"
An Jing didn’t hide it, "Sweet potatoes."
Wang Youbao was extremely surprised, "Can something made with sweet potatoes be this delicious?"
An Jing was both speechless and amused, "Don’t think I can’t see what you’re up to. You’re eyeing these noodles, but I’m telling you, it’s no use. We only have a little left at home and I won’t let you sell them in your restaurant."
Wang Youbao still didn’t give up, "But if they’re this delicious, they should sell really well in the restaurant."
"We really only have a little left at home. If you want some, I can let you take a bit home later, but truly, there is no more to sell in the restaurant," An Jing sighed, a bit headache-riddled by Wang Youbao’s knack for spotting business opportunities.
"No, no, no, that’s not what I mean. What I mean is, you could make more noodles and then sell them at our restaurant; or alternatively, you could share the recipe with me, I’ll have people make the noodles and sell them at the restaurant. You want to make money, right? We split the restaurant profits fifty-fifty, you won’t lose out," he insisted.
An Jing knew she wouldn’t lose out, but said, "We don’t have sweet potatoes anymore, and even if we could buy some from others now, the flour made from these sweet potatoes wouldn’t produce many noodles. We need sweet potatoes that have been dug up not long ago, as they yield more flour, and the more flour we get, the more noodles we can make."
Wang Youbao was disappointed for a moment, but then perked up again, "Then when this year’s sweet potatoes are harvested, I’ll buy them from the farmers and make noodles to sell at our restaurant!"
An Jing was less enthusiastic, "We’ll talk about it when the time comes."
Yet Wang Youbao was still excited, "You never come to our restaurant to see – the business is really good. Business was a bit slower during the New Year, but compared to other restaurants in the county, we’re doing much better. Thanks to your secret spices, diners mainly order stewed chicken, duck, pork, and such because with your secret spices, the stewed dishes are incredibly fragrant. We have a lot of return customers."
An Jing wasn’t sure if she was listening, but just kept adding vegetables to Changyi’s bowl, urging her husband to eat more.
Wang Youbao didn’t care whether An Jing and Xiao Changyi were listening or not, he continued excitedly, "During the three days when the dishes were free, the restaurant was packed every day. People were ordering big dishes, and I was worried we’d take a huge loss. But now, I just went to the county the other day and the shopkeeper told me that we’ve already earned back what we’ve spent."
An Jing was startled, "That fast?" She had thought it would take at least three to four months, especially since just the building for the restaurant had cost a thousand taels.
"Yes, now any money the restaurant brings in is pure profit for us! By the end of this month, we’ll be able to split the money!" Wang Youbao looked as if An Jing couldn’t even imagine how good the restaurant’s business was.