They've all separated, so what does it matter to me if they get poorer and poorer?

Chapter 169 spread too fast
The workload of making ice jelly almost doubled all of a sudden. Zeng Xiaoyan and Aunt Zhu'er both felt that Xu Zhichun might be working too hard. "Why don't we take turns going over to help?"

"No, no, really."

"But this is too much."

"I'll give it a try first. If it works, then it's fine. Actually, it doesn't take much effort to do this, really."

Xu Zhichun tried his best to convince Zeng Xiaoyan and Aunt Zhu'er that he really could do it, and it took a lot of effort to dispel their ideas.

If they don't come, she can cheat without restraint, and her workload won't actually increase much. On the contrary, if they come, cheating will be inconvenient, and she'll have to work hard, which will be even more tiring.

In just one day, the ice jelly made by Xu Zhichun became famous throughout the entire county.

They hadn't been setting up their stall for long when people started asking about it as they came to buy konjac tofu and konjac noodles. Some of the people who had tried it before suddenly remembered it, slapped their foreheads, and exclaimed, "I thought that ice jelly was delicious back then, and I was even thinking of buying some. But when I saw you weren't selling it anymore, I thought you were out of stock. Then I saw that Biyue Tea House was selling this, and I just assumed that Manager Tang had given you a little bit to see if it would sell well, so I didn't ask any more questions. I never expected that it was also made by Madam Xu!"

Xu Zhichun smiled and said, "Yes, this is a complicated dish to make, and the quantity produced is not large. Manager Tang gave us a good price and paid it all, so we gave it all to him. We have a contract with Manager Tang. If you want to try it, go to Biyue Tea House or Lianhua Restaurant."

She spoke so frankly that others couldn't really say anything.

Who wouldn't want to earn more money?

We can't just ignore the high price offered by Manager Tang and try to sell it at a lower price instead, can we? That doesn't make sense.

In such a large county town with a huge population, only a handful of people were lucky enough to try the food, and only a few mentioned it.

Many people were unaware of the story, but were very familiar with the name of Bingfen (a type of jelly dessert). Upon learning that it was created by Xu Zhichun, they couldn't help but ask questions out of curiosity and express their feelings.

Many people have asked them when they will start selling this ice jelly at their stall. They said they would definitely come and tell them in advance if they were going to sell it again.

The ice jelly is delicious, but the one sold at Bishui Tea House is more expensive. It's definitely much cheaper to buy it from a street stall.

Xu Zhichun and the others could only laugh and explain again and again.

People are probably going to be disappointed; it won't sell.

Everyone was indeed quite disappointed, but they still held onto hope, thinking that maybe one day they would be able to sell it. No one said anything to tell them not to sell it to Manager Tang or that they could just sell it at a small stall.

Zeng Xiaoyan couldn't help but sneer: "Everyone understands this principle, but Young Master Zeng and Manager Fang just don't."

They immediately asked Sister Zhichun to sell it to them, and oh, they even wanted the recipe, offering a hundred taels of silver to buy it out—truly an astronomical price!

When Sister-in-law Zhichun refused, they became enraged and immediately bribed people to spread the news throughout the city.

If they weren't involved, how could the news have spread so widely in just one day?
Zeng Xiaoyan was both angry and guilty, and didn't know what to say to Xu Zhichun.

Xu Zhichun had already received instructions from Granny Ji yesterday, so why was she afraid of this? She secretly thought how lucky she was that she had gone to see Granny Ji yesterday.

If we are any later, we will be at a disadvantage.

I never expected the Zeng family to be so ruthless and impatient.

Since the Zeng family had spread the news throughout the city, it couldn't have ended there. And now, something discordant has finally happened.

Two men in their early thirties, dressed in blue and looking sharp, finally made their appearance as supporting characters.

"Was that ice jelly really made by Madam Xu?"

"Correct."

"That's good. It seems we brothers have come to the right person. Madam Xu, please have a word with me."

Zeng Xiaoyan warned, "What are you trying to do? Say what you have to say here."

The tall man in blue chuckled strangely, "We want to discuss business with Madam Xu. Won't it be a disturbance if we do this here? Would Madam Xu be willing to speak to you privately?"

Xu Zhichun winked at Zeng Xiaoyan and gently shook her head, "Okay, please." The market is crowded with people; we need to go outside to find a quiet place.

Aunt Zhu'er, Zeng Xiaoyan, and Liang Mingliang exchanged glances and quickly reached an agreement.

Aunt Zhu'er was tending the stall, while Zeng Xiaoyan and Liang Mingliang were keeping Xu Zhichun company.

"Since Sister Zhichun has hired us to do this job, we should of course accompany her. Let's go together."

Xu Zhichun thought for a moment and nodded: "That's fine too."

The two men in blue looked at each other with disdain, their lips curling into a contemptuous twitch, but they didn't say anything more.

Finding a secluded spot under a wall, Xu Zhichun raised an eyebrow: "You want to buy my ice jelly recipe?"

The two looked at each other and smiled.

One of them, with a smirking grin, gave Xu Zhichun a thumbs-up and said, "As expected of Madam Xu, you guessed it right away. It's a real pity that this ice jelly recipe hasn't been very useful in Madam Xu's hands. We'll offer you fifty taels of silver, and Madam Xu can give us the recipe."

Liang Mingliang blurted out, "Fifty taels? Why don't you just rob me!"

Both men laughed.

"We are law-abiding people, and we can't do things like extortion or plunder."

"That's right, we've always valued amicable business dealings."

"you--"

“Xiao Yan,” Xu Zhichun held Zeng Xiaoyan’s hand and sighed softly, “They could have easily taken it by force, but they were willing to give fifty taels of silver. That’s enough. They are truly respectable people.”

The shorter man, enraged, retorted, "What do you mean?"

Xu Zhichun sneered: "Isn't that right?"

The tall man said, "Is Madam Xu unwilling? No way. We brothers are very sincere and will keep trying to persuade Madam Xu until we win her over. If this affects Madam Xu's business or ruins anything for her, then we are truly sorry."

Zeng Xiaoyan: "Did Young Master Zeng and Manager Fang of Sifang Restaurant send you here? You are truly despicable and shameless."

The tall man chuckled, "You must be Miss Zeng San. Don't you think it's a bit inappropriate to talk about family like that?"

Zeng Xiaoyan scoffed, "You snakes and rats are all in cahoots; you're more like family than relatives."

Xu Zhichun: "Go back and tell Young Master Zeng and Manager Fang not to spend so much money hiring people to cause me trouble, otherwise all the money will be wasted. Do you know where I went yesterday? I visited Madam Lu yesterday, and I have already given her the recipe for the ice jelly. So, I'm really sorry."

To present the prescription to Madam Lu and then sell it again—isn't that a slap in Madam Lu's face?

Where does this leave Madam Lu?

The two men in blue found it amusing and quite strange.

The two quickly went through the idea in their minds and exchanged a glance.

They couldn't even remember who Madam Lu was.

Since they can't remember it, it must be unimportant.

"Aren't you going to ask who Madam Lu is?"

There was nothing else to do; since they wouldn't respond, Xu Zhichun had to speak up himself.

(End of this chapter)