The saintess is pregnant, what does that have to do with me, a spoiled brat?

On the streets of the inner city.

Chen Yunfei covered his face, which was swollen like a pig's head, and spat out a mouthful of bloody water viciously:

"Damn it, this absolutely cannot be left like this!"

Qian Dafu stepped forward, his face contorted with a pained expression, and asked:

"Young Master Chen, what do we do now? That living devil has the Duke's mansion backing him; we can't beat him openly."

Chen Yunfei sneered:

"If open methods don't work, let's try covert ones. Isn't that simple? Go and spread the word that all of Zuixianlou's food supplies will be cut off!"

"This idiot is just doing it for the novelty. Once he can't keep it running, won't the Drunken Immortal Pavilion just obediently return to my hands?"

"Young Master Chen is brilliant!" Qian Dafu's eyes lit up. "I'll get on it right away!"

……

at the same time.

Drunken Immortal Pavilion, main hall.

Xu Nuo, fanning himself with a folding fan, strolled leisurely from the private room on the third floor to the lobby on the first floor.

This top restaurant in the capital is indeed magnificent, with carved beams and painted rafters, and a vast space.

At this moment, dozens of people were standing in the center of the lobby.

The accountant, the cook, and the waiters are all here.

They all lowered their heads, not daring to breathe, for fear that this notorious playboy of the capital might displease them and kill them all.

Xu Nuo walked to the front, pulled over a grand chair, and sat down.

"Raise your heads, everyone."

Everyone raised their heads tremblingly.

Xu Nuo glanced at the group of people and said calmly, "From today onwards, this Drunken Immortal Pavilion has a new owner."

"I'll double the wages Qian Dafu used to pay you."

Upon hearing this, a collective gasp filled the lobby.

Doubled?!

The cooks' eyes widened in astonishment.

Xu Nuo tapped the table with his folding fan, his voice turning cold.

"However, if you take my money, you have to abide by my rules. Anyone who dares to betray me or secretly tip off the Chen family..."

He didn't finish his sentence, but his ambiguous smile sent a chill down everyone's spine.

"I dare not! I swear to serve my master to the death!" A quick-witted waiter knelt down with a thud.

The others, as if waking from a dream, knelt down and shouted in unison.

Xu nodded in satisfaction.

"Alright, get up, everyone."

Xu Nuo leaned back in his armchair, closed his folding fan, and pointed towards the kitchen.

"Go, pick a few of your best signature dishes and make them for me to try."

The cooks, as if granted a pardon, scrambled into the kitchen.

Before long, several signature dishes, each with its own unique color, aroma, and flavor, were served.

Braised lion's head meatballs, steamed sea bass, and eight-treasure duck.

Xu Nuo picked up her chopsticks and took a bite of each.

He chewed a couple of times, frowned slightly, and smacked his lips.

"this one?"

Xu Nuo put down her chopsticks, looking disgusted.

"This tastes far too bland. It's like boiled food. What's the difference between this and what the cooks at my mansion make?"

The steward standing to the side listened intently, his eyelids twitching and his lips twitching involuntarily.

He kept his head down, inwardly cursing.

What else?

You are the heir of the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion!

The chefs in your household are all retired imperial chefs from the Imperial Kitchen!

Even if we claim to be the best restaurant in the capital, can we compare to the imperial chefs?!

Xu Nuo ignored the constipated look on the manager's face and fell into deep thought while touching his chin.

Ancient dishes, limited by a scarcity of seasonings, were prepared in only a few ways, making it impossible to bring out their umami flavor.

To expand the business of Zuixianlou, relying solely on milk tea is not enough; the menu also needs to be improved.

Let's make something to enhance the flavor.

Xu Nuo's eyes lit up, and he slapped his thigh suddenly.

"Got it!"

He turned to the steward and gave the order:

"Go and prepare a few old hens for me, along with some dried shiitake mushrooms, kelp, and rock sugar. The sooner the better."

The manager was stunned: "Master, what are you going to do...?"

"Enough nonsense, just go!" Xu Nuo waved his hand impatiently. "Today, I, this young master, will personally teach you what true deliciousness is."

The manager dared not delay and quickly instructed his servants to carry it out.

Before long, several prepared old hens, dried shiitake mushrooms, kelp, and rock sugar were delivered to the kitchen.

Xu Nuo rolled up his sleeves and took charge himself.

He first deboned the old hen, minced the meat into paste, and slowly roasted it in a pot. Then he dried the dried shiitake mushrooms and kelp, and carefully ground them into an extremely fine powder.

Several cooks stood to the side, staring at each other.

What kind of trouble is this living devil up to now?

The heir of a noble family, running around in the kitchen tinkering with these things, isn't that just making a fool of himself?

Half an hour later.

Xu promised to mix dried chicken powder, mushroom powder, and kelp powder in a certain proportion, and finally add a little rock sugar powder to enhance the flavor.

A small bowl of yellowish powder appeared before everyone.

As soon as Xu Nuo finished speaking, without waiting for anyone's reaction, he picked up a small pinch of powder, brought it to his nose, sniffed it, and nodded in satisfaction.

In truth, he knew that this thing was far from perfect.

The chicken wasn't dried enough, the shiitake mushrooms weren't ground finely enough, and the kelp powder still had some coarse bits mixed in. In modern times, it wouldn't even meet the passing grade.

But in ancient times when seasonings were scarce, even a half-finished product was enough to deliver a devastating blow.

"Alright." Xu Nuo patted the crumbs off her hands and pointed to the bowl. "Try putting a small spoonful of this in the stir-fry later."

He turned his head and saw the steward and a group of cooks still standing there staring at each other, and he couldn't help but raise an eyebrow:

"What are you all standing there for? The oil in the pan is almost gone. Do you expect me to personally toss it for you?"

The manager's eyelids twitched as he looked at the bowl of powder that had an indescribable appearance.

He steeled himself and stepped forward, his face contorted with distress as he offered his advice:

"Master, cooking is all about controlling the heat and seasonings; it's not that simple. Leave this rough work to our servants. You are a lady of high status, so please go to a private room."

The person in charge was very nervous.

This is the signature dish of Zuixianlou!

If this young master messes things up and drives all the customers away, causing Zuixianlou to go bankrupt, where will they go to eat the northwest wind?

The other chefs nodded repeatedly, their faces full of worry.

Xu Nuo rolled her eyes: "Stop talking nonsense, just try it."

Seeing this, the manager dared not offer any further advice. He turned his head, gave a wink to a fat cook next to him, and whispered instructions.

"Just play along with him, and whatever you do, don't go against his wishes. No matter how it tastes later, remember to praise him if you should."

"Once this young master gets tired of playing around and leaves, everything will be fine."

The fat chef nodded knowingly.

He walked to the stove, heated the oil in the wok, and skillfully stir-fried a plate of the simplest vegetarian vegetables.

Before taking it out of the pot, he followed Xu Nuo's instructions and sprinkled a small pinch of that yellowish powder into it.

Stir-fry briefly.

boom!

An extremely rich and savory aroma instantly exploded throughout the entire kitchen.

An unprecedentedly fresh and delicious aroma wafted straight into the top of one's head.

The fat cook dropped the spatula from his hand with a thud onto the ground.

The steward's eyes widened suddenly, and he sniffed the air forcefully.

What the hell is this taste?!

The chubby chef was originally cooking a very ordinary stir-fried shrimp dish.

But now, that umami flavor is simply irresistible.

"Holy crap! It smells amazing!"

Fatty Wang, with his big belly sticking out, rushed into the kitchen in a hurry, his eyes fixed on the plate of freshly cooked shrimp, his saliva almost dripping onto the floor.

"Brother Xu, what... what is this? Can I try some?"

Xu Nuo waved his folding fan and raised his chin: "Eat."

Wang Pangzi didn't care about the heat; he grabbed a shrimp and threw it into his mouth.

I chewed it twice.

Fatty Wang froze, his eyes widening like copper bells.

"Incredible! Brother Xu, this is fucking amazing!" Fatty Wang was so excited that his fat face trembled and he was incoherent.

"These shrimp...this taste...I've never eaten anything so delicious in my life! Compared to this, the imperial kitchen's cooking is practically pig swill!"

The cooks looked at each other in bewilderment.

Is it really that exaggerated?

The steward swallowed hard, unable to resist, and picked up a clean pair of chopsticks, taking one and putting it in his mouth.

The other chefs also rushed over, each grabbing a bite.

next moment.

The entire kitchen was completely quiet.

The steward and several cooks stood frozen in place, chewing mechanically, their eyes widening in disbelief, their faces contorted with the sight of a ghost.