Chapter 64 - 63: The Predicament of the Clearing Heat and Stopping Cough Pills

Chapter 64: Chapter 63: The Predicament of the Clearing Heat and Stopping Cough Pills

After lunch, Lin Feng randomly polled some of the tourists and found they weren’t opposed to this style of dining.

He learned from their conversations that they were most concerned about food hygiene, followed by price, and finally, taste.

Hu Zhiming explained, "It’s the same for me when I travel. My first concern is always hygiene. As for price and taste, that depends on the establishment."

"At a five-star hotel, the prices are high, so I have high expectations for the flavor. But with a roadside stall, I’m just trying to fill my stomach. If the food tastes good, that’s a pleasant surprise."

Zhao Shiyun added, "That’s right. You get what you pay for. You can’t pay bargain-basement prices and expect a gourmet meal."

"As far as the tourists are concerned, for this price and this style of catering, the quality is excellent. It’s clean and hygienic, and one or two of the dishes are even a pleasant surprise."

They had also eaten there for lunch. Most of the dishes were just average, though certainly better than typical home cooking.

But nothing was particularly stunning, which was to be expected for the price.

A meal cooked by a five-star chef certainly wouldn’t come at this price.

Lin Feng asked, "What do you all think? Could we run the Restaurant and this catering model simultaneously?"

Hu Xia said, "Absolutely. The Restaurant can cater to the high-end market, serving tourists who want a premium experience, while this model can serve the general public."

"I agree, it’s feasible," Zhao Shiyun added. "The Restaurant can’t handle that many tourists anyway. But we’d need to set aside a dedicated area for it; we can’t keep using that open lot."

Lin Feng looked at Ma Sandao. He still needed to get his opinion on the matter.

"Uncle Sandao, what are your thoughts? Would you rather work in the Restaurant or continue with this banquet-style catering?"

Ma Sandao thought for a moment before replying, "I’d prefer to stick with this banquet model. To be honest, my skills aren’t quite up to par for high-end cuisine."

He was very self-aware. His experience training as a chef elsewhere had taught him that some things really do come down to Talent.

Of course, when it came to an all-beef banquet, his skills were definitely considered among the best in Wuyuan County.

Outside of Wuyuan County, however, it was a different story. He’d never had formal training for that particular cuisine; it was all self-taught through trial and error.

"Then we’ll leave the banquets to Uncle Sandao," Lin Feng decided. "The only issue is finding a suitable location. Lin Xian Village doesn’t have a large enough open space right now."

To be frank, the terrain of Lin Xian Village was quite poor; otherwise, its residents wouldn’t have moved away in the past.

The village was essentially built on terraces. Construction was only possible because it was situated on a gentle slope of the mountain.

The only flat ground was the plaza in front of the village, which the villagers had leveled together long ago to have a place to dry their rice harvest.

Ma Sandao suggested, "What if we excavate a spot on the hillside west of the Arrow Tower? We could level it into a terrace, just like building a house."

Lin Feng thought for a moment, then turned to Hu Zhiming. "What about a steel-frame structure? A glass house?"

"That could work. It’s a great idea for a new venture and would be a very distinctive restaurant."

"I’ll find someone to draw up a design and see if we can make it look really nice."

"Alright, I’ll leave that to you. By the way, how did the guesthouses that opened today do?"

"All ten guesthouses were booked the instant they became available. I didn’t even have my sister promote them on her livestream. We still have a lot of tourists asking about them."

"Many tourists can’t experience the telescope on the mountain at night because of the lack of accommodation."

Lin Feng was well aware of this problem. Many tourists were resorting to camping in tents, while others were taking the bus back to the county seat to find a place to stay.

Of course, many tourists also chose to stay down in Mountain Ridge Town, but most of the guesthouses being renovated there weren’t ready for guests yet.

"There’s not much we can do about that. We’ll just have to wait for the next batch of houses to be completed."

Given the situation in Lin Xian Village, it was impossible to meet the accommodation needs of all tourists. However, a portion of them could choose to leave by bus in the evening.

"Daoist Feng, when is your master arriving?"

"He’s coming today, but he won’t arrive until tonight. Boss Lin, you don’t need to worry about it. I’ll handle everything myself."

"Nonsense. Let me know when he arrives, and I’ll send a car to pick him up."

"Anything else from anyone?"

Zhao Shiyun raised her hand. "The Clearing Heat and Stopping Cough Pills we’ve been making should be ready to be sold."

"How many have you made?"

"Between Daoist Feng and myself, we’ve made about ten thousand pills."

"Let’s hold off on that for now."

Lin Feng wanted to sell them too, but the approval process was complicated. It wouldn’t help even if the county authorities intervened.

Strictly speaking, he was selling the Medicinal Tea by exploiting a loophole. Like other herbal infusions, he never advertised any curative effects. That, combined with the fact that the ingredients were considered both food and medicine, was why he hadn’t been shut down.

As for its ability to treat coughs, that was something customers had discovered on their own. It had nothing to do with his sales tactics, since he never publicized that effect.

Even so, he had still been reported. The Food and Drug Administration had sent people to investigate, but they hadn’t found any issues.

According to information from Professor He, the people filing the complaints had likely been hired by pharmaceutical companies.

These companies had invested significant resources into analyzing the composition of the Medicinal Tea, but their efforts had yielded no results.

Furious and embarrassed, they had resorted to this method, hoping to force a discovery of any hidden ingredients in the Medicinal Tea.

According to the information Lin Feng had received, complaints hadn’t just been filed at the county level, but at the city and provincial levels as well. He had no idea if anyone had taken it to the national level.

So far, only the county officials had come to investigate. There had been no movement from the city or provincial authorities, and he wasn’t sure why.

Therefore, the situation with the Clearing Heat and Stopping Cough Pills was rather complex. The application for approval had been submitted, but a decision seemed to be a long way off.

The approval process for a new traditional Chinese medicine typically took one to two years already; his situation was bound to be even more difficult.

After signing the contracts with the two chefs, Lin Feng called Uncle Ma to ask about the people he was looking for.

He learned that the people would be brought over tomorrow. ’Looks like the village upgrade is happening tomorrow,’ he thought.

In the evening, Lin Feng picked up Feng Ziling’s master and brought him up the mountain. The old man was in his sixties but was as vigorous as someone in their forties or fifties.

The old Daoist’s name was Qi Yangming. He hadn’t actually come for the Land God Temple or the Mountain God Temple, but rather because his disciple had told him that Lin Feng’s place was magical, and he had rushed over to see it for himself.

Upon arriving in the village, however, he found that it wasn’t the picturesque, mystical place he had imagined.

It was just an ordinary little mountain village, and the ongoing construction even made it a bit unsightly.

Since it was getting late, he decided to take a closer look the next day.

The next morning, however, he saw the Well and was baffled. He couldn’t detect a water vein there.

After carefully examining the area around the Well, he was certain there shouldn’t be a water vein in this location, yet a spring had appeared.

Then, after witnessing the magic of the Arrow Tower, the old Daoist was more overjoyed than confused.

When he learned that a group of scientists nearby had been studying it for over half a month without finding an explanation, the way he looked at the Arrow Tower changed completely.

’Could this be the stuff of legends—a divine anomaly!?’

The old Daoist applied all his knowledge to carefully examine the flow of ley lines in Lin Xian Village, but he came up with nothing.

When Lin Feng saw the old Daoist return and sit there muttering to himself, he worried the man might be having a mental breakdown.

"Daoist Feng, is your master alright?"

"He’s fine. He’s just frustrated because he can’t find a reason for the strange phenomena in Lin Xian Village. He’ll get over it in a little while."

Lin Feng was left speechless. ’The scientists are trying to find an explanation through science, and the Daoist is trying to find one through the knowledge of the Daoist School,’ he thought. ’I hope they both find what they’re looking for.’