After the divorce, he took care of his child and sold fried rice; his ex-wife was filled with regret

As a restaurant investor, he knew all too well what this flavor meant.

All commercially available baking products must add large amounts of butter, shortening, and improvers in order to achieve a flaky texture and extend shelf life.

But this small piece of cookie is clean and simple, containing only the most authentic flavor of the ingredients.

The flour must be freshly harvested wheat; the eggs must be laid by free-range chickens; even the sweetness is not from sugar, but from high-quality natural honey.

This tiny animal cookie costs more than those French desserts on the table that are priced at hundreds of dollars.

The other parents in the classroom, seeing their children scrambling to eat, also took a small piece from their children's hands out of curiosity and tried it themselves.

The classroom, which had been bustling just moments before, suddenly fell silent.

A dozen or so well-dressed parents, who usually only eat at Michelin-starred restaurants, all had somewhat subtle expressions after tasting that tiny bit of cookie crumb.

They looked at the children who were happily eating cookies, then turned to look at the long table in the middle of the classroom.

Those beautifully packaged, expensive desserts that exude a strong aroma of vanilla and margarine seem utterly superfluous at this moment.

Just moments ago they were praising how high-class those cakes were, but now they look like a bunch of plastic toys produced on an industrial assembly line.

Teacher Liu also walked over curiously.

"Tuantuan's dad, these cookies..." Teacher Liu looked at the empty glass box and asked somewhat embarrassedly, "Are there any left? The children haven't had enough."

"That's all. I baked this one box." Lin Fan fastened the clasp on the glass box and put it back into the canvas bag.

Xin Xin's father strode up to Lin Fan.

He didn't put on any investor airs; instead, his tone was somewhat consultative: "Tuantuan's dad, your cooking is amazing. I'm in the restaurant investment business, and my surname is Zhao."

"Could you sell the flour and honey used in these cookies separately? I'll pay a thousand dollars for a box so I can take some home for my mother to try. She has a sensitive stomach and needs to eat clean food like this."

A box of animal biscuits costs 1,000 yuan.

Upon hearing this, the parents nearby not only didn't think it was expensive, but they all showed expressions of interest. In this circle, a thousand yuan is just an ordinary afternoon tea.

"Tuantuan's dad, I want a box too." Another male parent in a navy blue suit also came over.

"I'll offer two thousand. My wife is pregnant and has severe morning sickness; she can't eat anything. These cookies have a mild flavor, so she'll definitely be able to eat them."

Several parents gathered around, their attitude completely different from their previous condescending interrogation.

Lin Fan sat in the chair, looking at the business cards handed to him, but did not reach out to take them.

"Not for sale." Lin Fan's tone was completely flat. "It's made for kids as a snack; it takes a lot of effort. And there aren't many ingredients."

Mr. Zhao was given a cold shoulder, but he wasn't angry.

Business people are masters at tailoring their approach to different people.

Although Lin Fan was dressed plainly, he didn't even blink when faced with a price premium of several thousand yuan per box. This composure is something that ordinary people can't have.

"I understand, I understand. Good things really take a lot of effort." General Manager Zhao gently placed the business card on the small round table in front of Lin Fan.

"Tuantuan's dad, this is my business card. We're in the same class, so let's keep in touch. If you ever want to commercialize this craft, feel free to contact me; funding is not a problem."

Lin Fan glanced at the name on the business card: Zhao Haifeng, Chairman of Jiangcheng Dingshan Catering Investment Company.

Even when Lin Fan was still a child, the name "Ding Shan" was already renowned in Jiangcheng's catering industry.

This is a large venture capital firm specializing in high-end restaurant incubation and fresh food supply chain investment.

Almost all of the top-tier private kitchens and expensive restaurants with Black Pearl status in Jiangcheng are controlled by Dingshan Group.

Looking across the country, they have also invested heavily in hundreds of chain restaurant brands, holding a huge capital pool, mature cold chain logistics, and direct sourcing resources from top-quality origins.

This catering tycoon, who can easily control billions of dollars in cash flow, has now humbled himself and proactively offered his business card for a collaboration on a box of animal-shaped cookies meant as snacks for children.

Lin Fan remained calm, nodded, and without saying any unnecessary pleasantries, simply picked up the business card and put it into his jacket pocket.

On the outskirts of the crowd, a middle-aged man wearing a gray casual shirt, who hadn't said much, walked over.

His name was Chu Jianming. He usually kept a low profile in the parents' group chat, and today he was just sitting quietly to the side drinking water. He walked up to Lin Fan and glanced at the food container that Lin Fan had put in the canvas bag.

"Did you grind the noodles yourself using an old stone mill?" Chu Jianming asked, his voice not loud, but steady.

Lin Fan looked up and glanced at him. Many people can tell the quality of ingredients by taste, but few can pinpoint the exact processing method.

"Yes." Lin Fan nodded.

"No wonder." Chu Jianming smiled.

"The machine's steel mill rotates too fast, and the high temperature will destroy the active enzymes in the wheat, and the flour will die."

"Only by slowly grinding the grain at a low temperature with an old stone mill can the aroma of wheat be completely locked in. And the eggs, the egg whites are so well-coagulated, they can't be laid by caged chickens fed ordinary feed. These days, there aren't many people with the patience to go through this kind of trouble."

Chu Jianming took out a very plain business card from his pocket and handed it to Lin Fan.

"My surname is Chu. I usually enjoy researching food. This is my business card," Chu Jianming said politely.

Lin Fan took the business card. It only had three words on it: Chu Jianming, followed by a mobile phone number. There wasn't even a company title.

"Lin Fan." Lin Fan gave his name and put the business card away.

Chu Jianming nodded, didn't disturb him any further, and turned back to his seat.

The sharing session became somewhat dull for the rest of the time.

After the children had eaten those premium animal crackers, when they went back to the beautifully packaged cakes and chocolates on the long table, they spat them out after a couple of bites, complaining that they were too sweet and cloying.

The fancy desserts on the long table were hardly touched.

The event ended at 10:00 AM.

The expensive desserts on the long table were barely touched, and the parents could only awkwardly pack them up and take them away.

I have no classes today.

Lin Fan greeted Teacher Liu and then led Tuantuan away from the classroom.

As they stepped out of the kindergarten gate, the cold wind of early winter blew in. Lin Fan tightened the zipper of his jacket and carried Tuantuan into the child safety seat in the passenger seat.

The car drove off Xiangzhang Road and merged into the main road.

At 10:10, Lin Fan parked his car in a small alley behind Phoenix Golden Street.

He had sent a notification to the store's regular customers' WeChat group last night, saying that he would be taking his daughter to kindergarten this morning and that the store would have to open an hour later.

Pushing open the back door of Lin's shop, the hall was still empty, but the glass windows outside the front door were already packed with people queuing up for their turn.

Su Xiaoxiao was checking the call number at the cashier when she saw Lin Fan come in and breathed a sigh of relief.