novelslam Chapter 25 Manman's Invitation
Chapter 25 Manman's Invitation
When Lu Xue left Lu Hua, she ran to Wei Yinghong's place and eagerly waited for the fried dough.
After receiving the fried dough, he carefully held it in his hands, waiting for Lu Hua to bring back the watermelon.
When there are customers in the shop, she sits in the shade under the eaves at the entrance, just like a "melon-watching girl"!
After finally getting the watermelon she had been longing for, little Lu Xue broke the fried dough into small pieces and soaked them in the watermelon juice.
In those days of scarcity, watermelon soaked in fried dough and tomatoes mixed with sugar were the best summer desserts.
The golden and crispy fried dough instantly transformed into a soft and glutinous pink dessert, which Lu Xue couldn't wait to pop into her mouth.
The refreshing sweetness of watermelon and the wheat and milk aroma of fried dough are combined into one, with a soft but not mushy texture, and the dough still retains some of its chewiness.
Little Lu Xue ate one bite after another, very seriously, while the others watching her drooled.
"I'll have one too!" Lu Hua picked out a watermelon and carried it into the kitchen to ask Lu Jie to cut it for him.
Lu Ying, who was behind the counter, also looked tempted and called out to the kitchen, "Brother, give me one too!"
Before long, the five siblings of the Lu family, each holding half a watermelon with a fried dough stick soaking inside, sat neatly in the shade under the eaves at the door and ate.
Wei Yinghong, her aunt, and her second aunt, the three sisters-in-law, were carrying a bag of fried dough cakes from the fried dough cake workshop, preparing to deliver them to Lu Yuan's grandparents, when they happened to see this scene.
The old lady was a bit sharp-tongued, and she clicked her tongue, saying, "Look at you all, grown men and women, still so young? Why are you as greedy as little kids?"
"Sister-in-law, they're different from when they were little. There's a little one next to them now," the second aunt said, covering her mouth with a smile.
The old lady laughed and said, "Yingying and Xiaoxue are such well-behaved girls. These three naughty boys used to cause us a lot of trouble when they were little."
"Mom, the chef and I are both respectable people now. If you want to expose our shortcomings, just talk about Lu Hua, don't drag us into it!" Lu Jie retorted, his mouth full.
"You have no shame whatsoever. All of that was earned by Xiao Yuan." The old woman glared at him irritably.
Lu Hua put down the melon in his hand and slapped Lu Jie on the head: "You're such a jerk, do you really want me to teach you a lesson?"
Unexpectedly, Lu Jie glared at him and said, "Don't call me a slut anymore, it's too insulting!"
Wei Yinghong felt happy watching the younger generation playing, and took out two more fried dough sticks to give them more after they finished eating:
"Alright, you guys eat and rest a bit, let's go check on the old man."
Just then, a Crown turned off the national highway and came to a steady stop in a parking space not far away.
The back door opened, and a chubby little girl got out first, followed by a middle-aged couple dressed in elegant and sophisticated attire.
Lu Yuan recognized them; they were the first customers after the business reopened—Manman's family.
After Manman got off the bus, she immediately saw the watermelon soaked in fried dough in everyone's hands, and instantly stood there, unable to move her legs or take her eyes off it.
Watching Lu Yuan and the others enjoy their meal, Manman couldn't help but swallow her saliva repeatedly.
Lu Yuan stood up and kicked Lu Jie, telling him to cut another half of the watermelon. Then he took another fried dough stick from Wei Yinghong.
After Lu Jie took out the watermelon, Lu Yuan placed the fried dough on top of it and waved to Manman, saying:
"Your name is Manman, right? Come and eat with us!"
Manman's eyes lit up instantly, but she didn't move. Instead, she turned back to look at her mother.
Manman's mother asked somewhat shyly, "Young man, is this convenient?"
"What's inconvenient about this!" Lu Yuan pointed to the seat next to Lu Xue and said, "Let's eat here!"
Lu Xue was very polite; she immediately put the melon down and placed a tissue next to it.
Manman's mother nodded gratefully and said, "Thank you very much. Manman, go and eat. Remember to be polite!"
"Okay, Mom!"
Manman ran to Lu Xue's side, picked up the watermelon, and imitated Lu Xue by breaking the fried dough into small pieces and soaking them in the watermelon.
"Take a bite of watermelon first, and make some room for the fried dough."
Seeing that Manman was having some trouble getting the hang of it, little Lu Xue used the watermelon in her hand to demonstrate for her.
Lu Yuan quickly put the melon away and said to Manman's parents, "Please come in if you'd like to have a meal!"
It's not mealtime, and there's no one in the restaurant.
After Manman's parents came in, they sat down at the table closest to the front desk and quickly ordered their food.
The woman's gaze remained fixed on Manman, while the man pulled out a business card and handed it to Lu Yuandao.
"Hello, young master, my name is Xu Jianjun, and I have something I'd like to ask you for help with."
Lu Yuan took the business card, which read "Saibei Shenglong Dairy, Xu Jianjun".
Lu Yuan had heard of this company; it was a company that specialized in dairy products.
Although it did not become an industry leader in later generations, it developed its own unique characteristics and gained a very good reputation.
Lu Yuan didn't have any business cards to exchange, so he introduced himself: "I'm Lu Yuan, the owner of Xiao Lu Farmhouse Restaurant. Mr. Xu, please go ahead."
Xu Jianjun spoke politely: "Young Master Lu is a promising young man. I'd like to invite you to host a family dinner. Would that be alright?"
Lu Yuan asked, "When is the family dinner?"
Upon hearing that there was hope, Xu Jianjun immediately added, "The family dinner is next Saturday, August 3rd."
Lu Yuan pondered for a moment and said, "Mr. Xu, to be honest, I am indeed preparing to start catering for banquets recently, but my fees are very high. You need to pay a deposit of 1000 yuan first, and I will only do it in my own shop."
Upon hearing this, Xu Jianjun frowned slightly.
Money wasn't the issue, but he wanted to invite Lu Yuan to the provincial capital, since the rural restaurants along the national highway were still in very poor condition.
Lu Yuan wasn't in a hurry. He went back to the kitchen to cook and let the other person eat while they considered it.
When President Wang first suggested hosting a banquet, Lu Yuan just laughed it off and didn't immediately agree.
Is it because if the restaurant only accepts banquets in the afternoon, it can't possibly rely on just Mr. Wang as a customer to keep things going?
If Xu Jianjun can finalize the arrangements today, then the banquet can proceed smoothly.
With two groups of high-spending customers, they can quickly bring in many more people.
Moreover, when hosting a banquet, you must set a high bar from the start; only in this way can you select the most suitable customers.
As a restaurant, the higher your level of sophistication, the more cooperative your customers will be, and they may even spontaneously offer explanations for your restaurant.
After all, when the money spent far exceeds the value of the ingredients themselves, customers will defend your value and thus uphold their consumption habits.
Lu Yuan quickly prepared two dishes, and after tasting Lu Yuan's cooking once again, Xu Jianjun immediately made the decision.
"Boss Lu, I'd like to book a banquet with you for next Saturday at 5 PM. Please help!"
Xu Jianjun spoke very sincerely, and Lu Yuan, with his own professional ethics, certainly wouldn't try to fool him.
He took a brand new notebook from the front desk, unscrewed the pen, held it in his hand, and asked:
"Mr. Xu, how many people are attending the banquet in total? How many are elderly, children, men, and women? Are there any dietary restrictions? What is the theme of your banquet? How long do you plan to hold this banquet? Will there be any alcoholic drinks?"
Xu Jianjun was slightly taken aback. He hadn't expected Lu Yuan to be so professional; there were many of these issues that he hadn't considered.
His reasoning was simple: Manman wanted to eat Lu Yuan's cooking, so he decided on a whim to invite Lu Yuan to be the head chef for this banquet.
Moreover, there's an even more picky old man in the family than Manman, who many master chefs can't handle, so he's also thinking of giving it a try.
As he answered Lu Yuan's questions one by one, he realized that there were many details he had not considered, and he felt more and more that Lu Yuan, this young master, was not simple.