Chapter 107: Falling for the Trap

The plan to deal a fatal blow to Fenglin Restaurant was progressing smoothly. In just two days, Huang Wanren successfully acquired a small restaurant at a high price. Once the family members and chefs from Lingnan County arrived in Xilan City, after another day or two of preparation, a sensational offer was launched: free meals for all scholars.

The news quickly spread throughout Xilan City, overshadowing Changlin Restaurant and quickly surpassing Linji Inn and Fenglin Restaurant in popularity. Scholars valued their pride greatly. At first, they were reluctant to accept free meals out of embarrassment. But once the first group of scholars tried it and realized that Changlin Restaurant’s food was indeed better than Fenglin Restaurant’s, they had an excuse to flock there in large numbers.

On the other hand, upon learning of Changlin Restaurant’s aggressive moves, Liu Chuanxiang went to the county office to see Zhou Zhengye. He was somewhat disappointed—Changlin Restaurant, seemingly out of nowhere, had substantial financial resources and even gave Zhou Zhengye 2,000 taels of silver as a gift.

According to Zhou Zhengye, Changlin Restaurant initially offered 5 taels to buy Fenglin Restaurant shut down. Considering his close relationship with Brother Liu, he only charged 2,000 taels to ensure Changlin Restaurant could continue operating.

To make Zhou Zhengye return the money and bring down Changlin Restaurant outright, the amount of money offered as a bribe would have to exceed the 5,000 taels Changlin Restaurant had initially paid. After some consideration, Liu Chuanxiang decided to leave.

It wasn’t worth it!
Changlin Restaurant mainly served scholars, while Fenglin Restaurant catered to the wealthy in Xilan City. He only had slightly over 40,000 taels left. If Changlin Restaurant increased its bribes, he might need to spend a large sum at once.

Scholars were a gimmick to attract the wealthy. Although he couldn’t afford to lose them, Linji Inn was his biggest competitor. To deal with Changlin Restaurant, although going through Zhou Zhengye was costly, there were other options.

Free meals weren’t a joke. Though it was just ordinary food, with a rule requiring ten times the price to be paid for any leftovers, Changlin Restaurant still needed at least 100–200 taels per day, given its scale.

No matter how strong Changlin Restaurant was, its original plan was likely to gain popularity through free meals for a few days.

If they wanted to compete with money, then he would go all out. The first floor of Fenglin Restaurant was roughly the same size as Changlin Restaurant’s, meaning their expenses would be similar. With thousands of scholars in Xilan City, if they offered free meals, both restaurants could stay fully booked every day.

If Changlin Restaurant dares not compete, Fenglin Restaurant can simply raise the prices of its dishes and drinks to cost level, forcing it to close down. If they continue to compete, spending four to five thousand taels of silver per month will determine who can sustain it. For Liu Chuanxiang, incurring a loss of four to five thousand taels per month is more advantageous than having to pay that amount all at once. By committing to a full-scale competition, it might only take ten or eight days to make Changlin Restaurant back down out of fear. After all, Fenglin Restaurant’s financial strength is well-known, and Changlin Restaurant, if it goes all out, would be like a bottomless pit. Considering Changlin Restaurant’s scale and its control over the scholars in Xilan City, it would take a year or two to recover even if it competed for a month—this alone would deter anyone.

While paying five thousand taels or more to Zhou Zhengye would solve the problem with Changlin Restaurant, it would significantly reduce the funds available to deal with Lin’s Inn. According to Liu Chuanxiang’s estimate, it would take only two to three months for him to take over as manager of a prefecture-level restaurant. His top priority was to bring Lin’s Inn down within that time. If he couldn’t do that, since it was already a laughingstock, he could leave it to the next manager. If all else failed, he could always turn to Zhou Zhengye later. If he could first bring Lin’s Inn down, dealing with Changlin Restaurant would be much easier—whether through Zhou Zhengye or by competing financially, with steady profits from the second floor, he could do as he pleased.

Soon after, Fenglin Restaurant took countermeasures, and the scholars in Xilan City spread the word among themselves. After more than ten days of intense spending, Huo Yuan brought good news to Lin Dong: the third elder who had gone to the Alchemy Sect to exchange for White Endurance Grass had returned, bringing a plant of it with him. Lin Dong was overjoyed. With the spending continuing without any sign of stopping, even if Fenglin Restaurant wasn’t worried, it must still be under great pressure. Since White Endurance Grass was crucial and valuable, Liu Chuanxiang would undoubtedly need to test its effects personally. The pressure would surely strengthen his resolve to obtain as much of it as possible. After carefully checking to see if anything was overlooked, Lin Dong sent someone to summon Chen Yeyuan.

That afternoon, while Liu Chuanxiang was lamenting that the owner of Changlin Restaurant didn’t know when to back down, an informant from Lin’s Inn reported that the ingredients for Stewed Turtle with Fengtong Leaves had been identified. A small piece of green grass leaf and some medicinal herbs—Chen Yeyuan swore he had seen these hidden outside Manager Lin’s window in the middle of the night and stolen them while he wasn’t looking.

As long as it’s ground into powder and applied to the maple leaf, using it to cook soft-shelled turtles will have miraculous effects. Upon hearing this, Liu Chuanxiang arranged for Chen Yeyuan to continue undercover at Lin’s Inn and find out the proportion of the powder needed. That very day, he personally took the grass leaves and medicinal herbs to Qiufeng Mansion to have them identified as specific herbs. Changlin Restaurant didn’t know how to handle the situation, and soon more ingredients that might cost a lot of silver were required. Liu Chuanxiang considered the possibility that this could be a scheme by Lin’s Inn, but after careful thought, he dismissed the idea. If it could be confirmed that these grass leaves and herbs were indeed the ingredients for cooking soft-shelled turtles with maple leaves, not only could Lin’s Restaurant be overwhelmed by price advantages, but the effectiveness of this dish, once reported to the headquarters, would also be a tremendous achievement. If it turned out to be fake, the loss would be just some travel expenses; by identifying the names of these herbs and buying a small amount first to test them, failure would only cost a hundred or eighty taels of silver. The gains and losses were worlds apart. If it really was Lin’s Inn’s scheme to trick him into spending a lot of silver on herbs, then Manager Lin was underestimating people—spending a lot to create pressure through Changlin Restaurant would only end in failure. In the small forest by the official road outside the western city, after witnessing Linlin Restaurant’s carriage disappearing in a cloud of dust, Lin Dong’s eyebrows raised slightly. After waiting a while longer, Triangle Eye rushed out of the city gate on a fast horse. “Boss, I’ve been following them the whole way. Liu Chuanxiang has been in the carriage the whole time.” “Keep following the carriage. If Liu Chuanxiang returns halfway, make sure to come back and inform me as soon as possible,” Lin Dong said seriously. “If Liu Chuanxiang is indeed arranging to exchange White Endurance Grass near Qiufeng City, find out how many spirit stones he bought there and how many are left in the box carrying them after leaving the sect. When he sets off on his way back, ride fast and come back to inform me within a day or two.” Triangle Eye nodded firmly. “Rebuild Changlin Restaurant.” “Don’t worry, boss,” Triangle Eye assured, patting his chest. “When it comes to stalking, no one in Xilan City can compare to me, Triangle Eye.” “Alright, go then!” Lin Dong urged. Triangle Eye mounted his horse and rode off at top speed. After watching the man and horse disappear on the horizon, Lin Dong turned and headed back into the city.