Chapter 151: The Matter of Money

Soon, the waiter served the second portion of Mianyang Steamed Dishes. This time it was a small portion, but the contents were identical.

Bai Renzong nodded at Wang Bei and Han Jiayi, and then the three of them simultaneously picked up a piece of the same item to taste.

After a brief silence, Wang Bei replied, "I feel like... the flavor is still that flavor, but something just feels slightly off, though I can't quite put my finger on what it is."

"Because the details are vastly different," Bai Renzong answered. "First of all, this steamed pork with rice flour—even though the pork is still steamed quite tenderly, the potatoes underneath... are overcooked to the point of turning into mashed potatoes, making them impossible to pick up with chopsticks."

With that, Bai Renzong turned his attention to the steamed fish with rice flour. "The main drawback of the steamed fish lies in the seasoning. The steamed fish we ate at the restaurant earlier had the aroma of the taro underneath permeated into the fish meat, carrying a faint sweet fragrance that blended with the inherent sweetness and savoriness of the fish, creating a uniquely profound depth of flavor. But this steamed fish... not only was it insufficiently steamed, but too little oil was used as well."

"Mm, the taro tastes so dry..." Han Jiayi murmured with a frown.

"The pearl meatballs too," Bai Renzong said flatly. "The meat inside is cooked, but the glutinous rice on the outside is overcooked and mushy, turning into a limp puddle in the mouth. It's simply not on the same level as what the old master steams himself."

At this point, Bai Renzong turned to the manager standing nearby. "So, as you can see, with this level of quality, I'm terribly sorry, but I cannot use this as material for the television station. A restaurant's standard isn't determined by the special treatment you give to a few select customers; it's determined by your average, consistent quality."

"Can't you show some discretion and understanding?" The manager furrowed his brow. "Look at how my father went out of his way to ask this of you. He is so old, and if this culinary craft isn't passed down soon, it might be lost forever. How can you bear to watch such a wonderful steaming technique vanish into history like this? If something like that happens, it will entirely be your responsibility, won't it?"

At this, the manager shifted his tone. "Money matters are easily resolved. At worst, we can add another two hundred thousand. Four hundred thousand—that price is on par with the top-tier UP hosts on Station D. That should be fine now, right?"

Had the other party not uttered those words, Bai Renzong might still have been conflicted.

For indeed, as the manager had stated, Chen Duofu's culinary skill was truly remarkable. Although the Mianyang Steamed Dishes prepared by these apprentices were not absolute perfection, relative to their price, they still fell into the category of "value for money," well worth out-of-town guests coming to experience.

Given time, as the apprentices' skills matured day by day, they would draw closer to the steamed dishes crafted by the old master himself.

Therefore, Bai Renzong had been hesitating between "telling the truth" and "helping someone achieve a noble goal."

Yet, the manager's words made up Bai Renzong's mind once and for all.

"So, the esteemed young master is actually Old Master Huang's son?" Bai Renzong asked with a amused smile.

"That's right, my name is Chen Shaonan," the manager nodded. "This matter is truly important to us. Doesn't providing material for the television station come with compensation for you? You could say this is a win-win situation; there's no need to make things difficult for money, is there? I guarantee you that when the television station sends people over, I will have the old master personally step into the kitchen. I assure you there will be no problem..."

This remark only fueled Bai Renzong's anger further: Did this mean he was expected to treat the television station like a gullible fool and deceive them, so that the television station in turn would deceive out-of-town tourists into coming here to eat these inferior Mianyang Steamed Dishes made by apprentices?

Bai Renzong narrowed his eyes and checked Chen Duofu's attributes: "Single-mindedness" accounted for forty percent, "overprotectiveness" for twenty percent, and "straightforwardness" for ten percent.

Meanwhile, Chen Shaonan's attributes consisted of thirty-five percent "crafty and old-seeming," twenty-five percent "pathological lying," and twenty percent "opportunism."

Bai Renzong inwardly shook his head and sighed: How could such a wonderful man like Old Master Chen raise a son like this?

To put it bluntly, wasn't all of this caused by that attribute of "overprotectiveness"?

Bai Renzong cleared his throat. The next second, his expression turned serious as he pointed at his shirt. "Manager Chen, it would indeed be a great regret if the old master's craft were lost, but that is not my fault—it is yours. Why did you fail to inherit the old master's mantle and instead run off to study finance? You thought studying finance would make you rich, only to venture out and realize you simply weren't cut out for it. At that point, you noticed the old master's restaurant had picked up, so you came back to pretend to help the old master and reap the ready-made rewards, didn't you?"

"You—you, how can you speak like that?! People have different aspirations! I'm not interested in cooking, you can't possibly force me to study it!" Chen Shaonan's face instantly flushed crimson, clearly hit right where it hurt by Bai Renzong.

"Then why did you come back now?" Bai Renzong pursued.

"Naturally, for the old master's sake!" Chen Shaonan said righteously. "My father is getting old, and someone has to help run the restaurant, right? I am the only son in the family. If I don't help, are you expecting decades of family legacy to be ruined in my hands?"

Good grief! What a realistic performance! Bai Renzong frowned internally and sighed: Had he not seen the other party's stats through his attribute glasses, he might genuinely have been fooled.

Yet, upon closer reflection, there were glaring loopholes in this statement.

"Your story contradicts itself, Manager Chen," Bai Renzong frowned. "If you truly didn't want the family legacy to perish in your hands, you should all the more be learning the art of steaming from the old master. To put it bluntly, it still boils down to money—you want to make money without enduring the hardships the old master did."

"This..." Chen Shaonan stammered for a moment, then snapped angrily, "Is this how you treat your financial benefactor?!"

"I told you from the very beginning, I am a man who speaks the plain truth," Bai Renzong replied calmly. "And my truth is that if your restaurant could reach the old master's standard, I would recommend you to the television station even without compensation. But judging by this very portion of Mianyang Steamed Dishes you've served me right now... I can only say it still lacks seasoning and refinement."

This double entendre caused Han Jiayi and Wang Bei behind him to applaud softly: That was brilliantly said.

"Then, then..." Chen Shaonan's face flushed red. "Then refund the money! This business cooperation is off!"

"As you wish." Bai Renzong was also filled with pent-up frustration. Under normal circumstances, the other party unilaterally terminating the business collaboration like this would require them to pay a certain breach-of-contract penalty. However, the other party could easily seize upon ambiguous clauses in the contract to entangle them in endless disputes—such as claiming that the videos filmed by Bai Renzong failed to meet their expectations or damaged their restaurant's reputation.

Bai Renzong had no desire to bicker with a restaurant for months over a mere two hundred thousand. So since the other party wanted to terminate the collaboration, then let it be terminated. After all, he had other ways of making money.

"Sigh, forget it—" At that moment, Old Master Chen suddenly let out a long sigh, interrupting them.

Although his voice was deep, it carried a resonant strength. "Not a single word he said is wrong. You lot simply lack the requisite refinement and heat." With that, the old master turned to his son. "Shaonan, I've told you since you were a child: as long as you push a single craft to its absolute limit, even if you're just making steamed buns, you will eventually achieve greatness. And look at you?"

Shaking his head, Chen Duofu continued, "You insisted on going out to study finance, and even played the stock market like others, only to lose all your money and come home. I originally thought you could calm your mind and learn this steaming craft from me, but instead you partnered with the Fantasy World Group, set up a restaurant like this, and brought back a whole mob of apprentices. What use is that? No matter how large the restaurant gets, your old man cannot do all the cooking by himself..."

Listening to Old Master Chen's words, it was abundantly clear that previously, although their family restaurant had been small, Chen Duofu could manage the customer volume himself, ensuring every single guest could taste the steamed dishes made by his own hands.

Ever since the restaurant joined the Fantasy World Group and underwent a well-funded expansion, the customer volume had indeed increased, but Old Master Chen could no longer personally cook every dish, relegated instead to merely instructing his disciples.

Although business in the restaurant remained robust, to the old regular customers, it was undoubtedly a massive disappointment.

"How good our business used to be back then! Although there weren't as many customers as there are now, which of the arriving guests didn't praise your father's culinary skills to the high heavens?" Chen Duofu sighed with regret. "What a pity... those patrons who had eaten your father's cooking for decades haven't seen their faces in years. And those were the very people who watched you grow up from childhood!"

Chen Duofu's heartbroken and deeply remorseful appearance caused Chen Shaonan to lower his head in shame.

"Sigh, I have truly let down my ancestors. This culinary craft of our family is going to be cut off right here with me..." Old Master Chen looked up to the heavens with a long sigh, then shook his head as tears fell.

That poignant sight made Bai Renzong feel somewhat guilty himself.

"Um, you don't need to be so discouraged..." Bai Renzong consoled him. "Your family's restaurant is still quite good; it's just that the apprentices need to hone their skills a bit further. I've memorized your restaurant, and in a year's time, I will come back. Have the apprentices in your shop work diligently, and by then, as long as your establishment truly reaches that standard, I guarantee the entire country will know of this 'Youlong Manor'."

Old Master Chen turned his head to fix his gaze on Bai Renzong, then suddenly chuckled with a wistful sigh, "You rascal, you're exactly like I was in my youth—stubbornly and unflinchingly upright. But people like you and me can never make big money, simply because we have too much conscience. You should mentally prepare yourself for this. Don't end up like this good-for-nothing son of mine, bowing your head to reality when the time comes."

"Yes," Bai Renzong smiled and nodded. "I don't have overly grand desires, so it should be fine."

"Sigh, go on, go on." As Chen Duofu turned and walked back toward the kitchen, he sternly reprimanded the people around him: "This 'steaming' business has no shortcuts; it relies entirely on years of accumulated experience. I've told you all along: cook more and learn more. Do you really think your little tricks can fool an expert just because you can fool ordinary people? Today's spectacle will serve as your embarrassment—from now on, all of you had better show some real improvement..."

Nevertheless, despite Old Master Chen ultimately appearing at peace with the matter, his son remained furious and definitively terminated the business collaboration.

This meant Bai Renzong's busy efforts throughout the entire evening had essentially been in vain.

Yet, his mood felt remarkably light and refreshed.

"I'm sorry, I'm just the kind of person who can't make big money," Bai Renzong patted Han Jiayi's head with a sigh as they rode in the car back.

"I happen to like you just the way you are," Han Jiayi said with a sweet smile, leaning her head against his shoulder.

"That's right, that's our old Bai," Wang Bei said as she drove, glancing at Bai Renzong through the rearview mirror. "Just stay like this for the rest of your life. As for money, spend a lot when you make a lot, and spend a little when you make a little. Business collaborations are a dime a dozen; if this one doesn't work out, we'll just switch to another."