Chapter 3 must have faith

Ah... Qin Shou was taken aback, and said with a trembling voice: "You... you teach me how to cook"

Good brother! Qin Shou placed his hand on Qin Shaoyou's shoulder

Enjoying delicious food and drink ... ... Hmm ... ... Hmm ... ... Alright

Qin Shou was very excited; with such skills as his cousin possesses, if he were to learn even half of it, he would be a great chef wherever he went

The butcher Liu did not intend to take out a knife, yet it made him appear more affectionate, as if Qin Shaoyou were his long-lost brother. Of course, judging by his appearance, even if they were brothers, they would likely be of the half-brother variety.

The Great Tang ... No, it should now be called the Great Zhou. The customs of the people here, although Qin Shaoyou has only been here for two days, he has already witnessed them.

We aim to revitalize our family business and enjoy a prosperous life

Thus, upon seeing the short and stout butcher Liu, Qin Shaoyou could not help but shiver. He was a very confident person, but heaven had not granted him a body of steel and iron. If he were truly to be chopped up here, losing his life would be a minor issue, but losing face would be a major one

Qin Shaoyou nodded and said: "Yes, we are brothers, cousin. I have always valued this bond of kinship. In this world, I do not have many relatives left. If I were to truly drive you away, I would be all alone, feeling lonely and desolate, just like a person in a foreign land, looking up at the bright moon and thinking of home. Every time I lower my head, I will think of you, and my heart will ache, feeling as if my liver and intestines are being torn apart."

Qin Shaoyou could not help but exclaim that it was indeed difficult for the ancestors to establish a business, and they had finally laid such a solid foundation. Yet, this bookworm has managed to bring the business to this level, which can be considered a rarity in the catering industry

Upon arriving at the East Market, he directly sought out Liu the Butcher

A warm feeling suddenly enveloped Qin Shou's entire being, causing his sturdy body to tremble, and tears desperately welled up in his eyes: "Cousin..."

At present, what he needs to do is less about revitalizing the family name and bringing glory to his ancestors, and more about preserving his only asset, ensuring that he does not become homeless; the business of the restaurant must continue.

After signing the contract of servitude, Qin Shou appeared gloomy and dejected, clearly unable to fathom that he had been outwitted by his seemingly harmless bookish cousin. However, adhering to the principle of fairness and voluntariness, once he signed this contract of servitude, he no longer had the right to resist Qin Shaoyou from that moment onward

Qin Shou was immediately in tears, wishing he could cling to Qin Shaoyou's thigh, and cried out: "No, I must work like a horse or an ox, living as a person of the tavern and dying as a ghost of the tavern. Cousin, I have been blinded by greed..."

Cousin, are you tired? Come, let's go to the hall and sit for a while

Qin Shaoyou looked at him with great compassion: "You see, as I mentioned earlier, I am someone who values family ties greatly. The thought of you possibly leaving breaks my heart. Cousin, I cannot bear to part with you. In the future, I will teach you how to cook. If you were to run away, I would be unable to sleep at night, unable to eat or drink. However, if you sell yourself to me, it would be different. This way, I can sleep soundly, not fearing that you will run away. Even if you did run away, I could report you to the authorities. Let me think... I believe I have read the Tang Code, and the punishment for runaway slaves is quite severe. But rest assured, we are relatives after all. If you temporarily sell yourself to me, I will teach you a skill, and in the future, I will treat you well, allowing you to enjoy a good life alongside me. If you refuse, then I will have no choice but to send you away. After you return, you can only farm, but without land, you will have to rent someone else's fields. After a year of hard work, you may not even be able to make ends meet."

Qin Shou's tears finally began to flow uncontrollably, these are tears of regret

Qin Shaoyou took a sip, and to his surprise, the tea had a ginger flavor. He suddenly realized that he was now in the same era as Wu Meiniang, where tea was brewed not only with salt but also possibly with ingredients such as scallions, ginger, jujubes, orange peels, Chinese hawthorn, and mint.

Between the intertwining gazes, it seems as if sparks are colliding, and even the flickering candlelight in the kitchen exudes a warmth. At this moment, the power of familial love is like a raging fire, unstoppable and indomitable

Qin Shou could not help but say: "Selling oneself into slavery, who is selling to whom?"

Qin Shaoyou coldly laughed and said: "If you don't understand, you hit me; if you do understand, wouldn't you kill me? Let's go, let's go, I no longer want you."

Qin Shou quickly went to pour tea and said: "Cousin, please eat"

"Wait, prepare several boxes, ready to be filled with money, we are going to make a lot of money."

The East Market is not far from the restaurant. Along the way, Qin Shaoyou carefully observed and discovered that this restaurant is situated between the East Market and the West Market, right next to the "Red Lantern"... Ah, the term "Red Lantern" seems somewhat inappropriate; it should be referred to as a place of vibrant colors and indulgence, which is indeed an excellent location, with a high volume of foot traffic nearby

However, Qin Shaoyou did not truly intend to drive Qin Shou away, for he had run out of money. Without funds, he could not recruit any assistants; without helpers and partners, he could not manage this tavern.

Uh... Qin Shaoyou was momentarily taken aback, then looked at him meaningfully and said: "Cousin, one must have faith"

Li Erniang, who had fallen into a pit and added insult to injury by marrying an ugly wife, along with a cousin who had bullied him since childhood, left Qin Shaoyou with a very poor impression of the Zhou people. The notion of simple and honest folk is nothing but nonsense

Naturally, it is you who sold it to me

Not good! Qin Shaoyou said straightforwardly: "How do you account for the time you hit me before?"

Qin Shaoyou felt amused; this fellow indeed had a bit of his own style, being quite shameless. However, colleagues are rivals; with such a thick skin, aren't you just stealing my thunder?

Qin Shaoyou was momentarily taken aback, suddenly realizing that Liu the butcher's rather unappealing face bore a striking resemblance to Takeshi Kaneshiro, which made him seem somewhat endearing: "This... I usually rely on Brother Liu's support, and I truly feel quite guilty about it"

The first challenge at hand is not opening the door to conduct business, but rather restocking. Indeed, the ingredients in the building are running low; chicken, duck, fish, meat, and various fresh produce are all depleted. There is still oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar available, and there is a barrel of pickled cabbage in the backyard. Unfortunately, this is Luoyang, not Goryeo, and people here do not have a penchant for eating pickled cabbage at every meal. Therefore, he must procure some ingredients.

... ...

Cousin ... ... I have something to say that has been weighing on me. The wages you owe me, will you pay me back after you make some money? I need to buy myself a new set of clothes ... ... and ... ...

Ha... this..." Qin Shaoyou stared at the butcher knife placed aside, wary of whether Liu the butcher would suddenly erupt, while perfunctorily saying: "I apologize for making Brother Liu laugh.

That was when I was young and did not understand things

Butcher Liu angrily said: "What kind of talk is this? Family members do not speak as if they are from different families. Come, come, come, just say what you need. We can write an IOU later."

Qin Shaoyou looked at him affectionately and said, "Cousin."

Butcher Liu has already seen the hesitant Qin Shaoyou. A twitch of the flesh on his face revealed a smile, as he put down the butcher's knife in his hand, picked up an oily cloth to wipe the sweat from his face, and waved to Qin Shaoyou, saying: "Qin Ge'er, you are truly a distinguished person; it has been many days since I last saw you."

Oh... so enthusiastic

Qin Shaoyou's body trembled slightly, revealing that Qin Shou's palm strength was considerable: "Good brother!"

Whoever dares to obstruct his path to wealth, Qin Shaoyou will not hesitate to turn him into minced eggplant

... ...

Liu the butcher is considered one of the main suppliers for the restaurant. In the past, most of the chicken, duck, fish, and meat for the restaurant were sourced from him. However, recently, business has taken a sharp downturn, and now there is a debt of seventeen taels of silver owed to Liu the butcher. In the words of Qin Shou, every time he goes to ask for credit, Liu the butcher grips his pig-killing knife, the veins on his hands bulging, his eyes wide open like copper bells, seemingly wishing to chop Qin Shou into a thousand pieces.

Returning to the hall, Qin Shaoyou took a seat. After all, he was young, exuding an air of scholarly elegance. In this posture, he hardly resembled a master of the house; although dressed simply, he bore a striking resemblance to a refined young nobleman.

What a joke, who is Qin Shaoyou? This cousin is lazy and indulgent, with a silver tongue. He taught him the craft, but if he runs away, who will he cry to?

Qin Shaoyou had received the contract of servitude, and his spirits were high. Upon seeing Qin Shou looking as if he had lost his parents, he thought to himself that this was the right time to encourage him, to lift his spirits, and to work hard.

And now, Qin Shaoyou's tragic discovery is that the original fellow has squandered everything clean, leaving all the burdens on himself. If he does not take matters into his own hands, there are still the stars and the wintersweet, but there is also the northwesterly wind

Oh... the glory shines upon the doorframe

This matter was originally to be handled by Qin Shou. In the past, Qin Shaoyou spent his days solely immersed in reading, or elegantly gazing at the stars in the starry night sky. Occasionally, he would be inspired by poetic fervor, reciting a few light-hearted verses, or in winter, he would watch the snowflakes fall, gazing at the wintersweet in the backyard, moved to tears. Thus, when the spring thunder sounded, he would don his scholar's robe and cap, waving his fan, and set out of the city to enjoy the spring outing.

However, trouble arose; Qin Shaoyou was broke, not only without a penny to his name but also burdened with a mountain of debt.

"Who dares to laugh at Brother Qin? That means you are against me. When your father was around, we were old acquaintances; this is a friendship worth more than a thousand gold pieces. So, are you here to borrow some meat? Speak freely, speak freely. Whatever you want, just say it directly, and I will have the staff deliver it to the tavern later"

Then Qin Shaoyou, brimming with spirit, said: "I have suddenly gained insight now; this is the blessing of our ancestors, so we must certainly bring glory to our family name"

Qin Shaoyou instinctively sensed a conspiracy

Cough cough... Qin Shaoyou almost choked, and seeing Qin Shou coming to pat his back, he quickly raised his hand and said: "No need to rush, let us discuss the matter of selling oneself into servitude."

Ah ... cousin ... you ... what is this ...

I ... ... I ... ... '' Qin Shou was about to cry

Thus, in a world where villains prevail, Qin Shaoyou must be even more wicked than they are; this is known as fighting poison with poison. As for being thick-skinned and having a dark heart, Qin Shaoyou has considerable insight in this regard

The kitchen fell silent, and Qin Shou looked at Qin Shaoyou with longing, pleadingly saying: "Master, Master... I was wrong, please forgive me, will you?"

Thus he said leisurely: "Forget it, after all, he is my own brother. Blood is thicker than water, and I will teach you how to cook."

Early in the morning, after Qin Shaoyou had washed himself clean, he changed into respectable attire. He was already handsome by nature, and after some careful grooming, he appeared even more dashing. In high spirits, he instructed Qin Shou to clean the house, especially the stove and the pots and pans, which needed to be scrubbed three times. He then followed his memory and headed towards the East Market.

However, this does not pose a challenge for Qin Shaoyou, as he plans to continue extending credit. Extending credit, after all, is not difficult; one only needs to have a thick skin. Moreover, based on his memory, the restaurant has already accrued many debts for ingredients, so there is no worry about having too many debts. Furthermore, isn't it the case that the one in debt is a big shot?

However, he was still bold; if he was afraid of a mere butcher, how could he establish himself in the future's intricate power circles? Thus, he stepped forward, intending to perform a formal greeting and explain his purpose. The butcher Liu, however, patted him on the shoulder and said: "How is your reading, Qin? Ah, the moment I laid eyes on you, I knew you were a person of distinction, destined to rise to high office and eventually enter the Lingyan Pavilion."