Chapter 426 - 210: Zhou Yan, Are You Free This Sunday?

Chapter 426: Chapter 210: Zhou Yan, Are You Free This Sunday?

’Wait, this is a restaurant, not a factory cafeteria, right?’

Kong Guodong stared, dumbfounded, as the textile factory workers flooded into the restaurant.

In just a short while, all nineteen tables in the restaurant were filled, almost entirely by textile factory workers in their uniforms.

"Mrs. Zhao, we’ll have an order of Explosively Stir-Fried Pig Liver and a Mapo Tofu."

"Boss, an order of braised pig’s head, an order of braised beef with dried bamboo shoots, and a fish-fragrant shredded pork."

The workers, in groups of three and five, sat down and started ordering without even looking at the menu. They had clearly decided what they wanted to eat before they even arrived.

’These are all regulars.’

A line had also formed at the braised goods stall by the entrance, with people buying braised meats and vegetables to go.

Steam billowed from the large stove at the entrance. Zhao Tieying stood before it, holding a bamboo strainer in one hand and tongs in the other. She’d grab some beef with the tongs, blanch it for a few seconds, then swiftly slap it into an earthenware bowl, ladle a scoop of hot broth over it, and a serving of Kneeling Beef was complete. Her movements were deft and swift.

Kong Guodong brushed the tea water off his pants. ’It’s over, it’s all over,’ he thought. ’This is completely different from what I imagined.’

The prices for the various dishes on the menu weren’t cheap. The Twice-Cooked Pork and fish-fragrant shredded pork were both two yuan a plate, and the Huo Xiang Carp was also two yuan.

Although it was more affordable than Le Ming Restaurant, the prices were already on par with restaurants in the city center.

At this price point, given current ingredient costs, the profit margin had to be over fifty percent.

There were even customers waiting at the door for a table to free up.

’They sell noodles in the morning, and then there’s the dinner service...’

’How much money are they making in a single day?’

As a restaurant manager himself, he couldn’t help but start calculating.

The more he calculated, the more his head ached. Even with a conservative estimate of the profits, they had to be making at least three thousand a month.

Three thousand...

After running the numbers, Kong Guodong himself was stunned.

Three thousand a month meant thirty-six thousand a year!

As the deputy manager of Le Ming Restaurant with over twenty years of service, his monthly salary was one hundred eighty-eight yuan, second only to the manager.

The manager had said to offer Zhou Yan the highest possible salary, but a state-owned restaurant had to follow regulations. With his authority, the most he could offer was one hundred and fifty yuan a month.

That wasn’t even two days’ profit for Zhou Yan’s restaurant, it seemed.

’How am I supposed to pull this off?’

Kong Guodong was both happy and worried.

As an elder of their culinary school, he was naturally happy that Zhou Yan could make his restaurant business so successful.

The worry was that if Zhou Yan was earning three thousand a month, he would never be able to complete his manager’s mission.

’Am I supposed to convince someone to give up being his own boss, to turn down all this money, just to be a Chef at Le Ming Restaurant?’

He found it difficult to even bring up the subject.

Just as he was stewing in his worries, Zhao Tieying came over with a bowl of Kneeling Beef, placed it in front of him, and said with a smile, "Master Kong, there are two young ladies outside. Would it be alright if they shared your table? They’re not ordering much, so they won’t take up much space."

"Of course," Kong Guodong replied with a ready laugh. "I only have two dishes myself, I’m barely using this space."

"Thank you so much," Zhao Tieying said, smiling. She turned, led the two young female workers over to the table, and took their order.

The square tables at Zhou Yan’s restaurant were full-sized, so two people sharing one side didn’t feel cramped at all.

Kong Guodong gave the two a polite, smiling nod, but his attention was already captured by the Kneeling Beef that had just been placed before him.

It was with this very dish that Zhou Yan had landed on the cover of *Sichuan Cuisine* magazine.

This was a matter of great significance for the Kong Sect, an event that brought them considerable honor.

Word was that the Chef circles in Rongcheng had already taken notice of this rising star, Zhou Yan.

The broth in the bowl was indeed as clear as it looked in the magazine photo, but the aroma wafting up with the steam was exceptionally rich.

Laid on top were six whisper-thin slices of beef, pink and tender. One look was enough to tell they had been blanched for an exceptionally short time to achieve the ultimate tenderness.

A quick poke with his chopsticks revealed tripe, beef intestine, and beef tendon underneath, all resting on a bed of cabbage.

The bowl was quite substantial. At sixty fen, it wasn’t cheap, but with those slices of beef on top, it couldn’t be called expensive, either.

Especially before the price of beef dropped. This was high-quality sirloin, which used to cost more than two yuan per half-kilo. If you didn’t have a good relationship with the butcher, you couldn’t get this cut at all.

Kong Guodong picked up his spoon and took a sip of the broth first.

The broth was ladled straight from a boiling cauldron, its steam hitting his face. The first sip was scalding hot and incredibly savory!

The contrast between the rich flavor and the clear liquid was startling. It was so intensely savory!

The rich broth, simmered from beef bones for a long time, had an exceptionally prominent umami flavor, accented by the faint fragrance of herbs and spices that added a new layer of complexity.

With just that one sip, he felt a warmth spread from his stomach to his limbs, putting his entire body at ease.

A bowl of delicious beef broth in the winter was truly a wonderful thing.

No wonder so many people ordered a bowl of Kneeling Beef right after walking in.

After a few more sips of broth, his appetite was fully awakened, and he began to taste the ingredients within.

The large, thin, soft slices of beef were exquisitely tender. The cooking time was controlled to perfection; one second more and they would have been tough.

The tripe was crisp and tender, the tendon soft and gelatinous. But the biggest surprise was the beef intestine. It was tender with a slightly chewy, bouncy texture. A dip into the side dish of dry chili flakes, and oh, it was divine!

That was it. The masterstroke of this Kneeling Beef was actually the dry chili dipping dish.

Coarsely ground chili flakes, fragrant and spicy, with a hint of salt and a subtle numbingness, transformed the originally light soup dish into something fiery and full of flavor.

Even the cabbage at the bottom, having soaked up the delicious beef broth, became crisp and sweet.

Kong Guodong nodded again and again as he ate. No wonder the deputy editor of *Sichuan Cuisine* magazine had been so impressed. This Kneeling Beef was truly delicious and distinctive.