Courtyard House: I Rely on Time-Space Trade to Build a Nation

The tasting event lasted for seven days.

On the first day, Anna and Zhao Ping'an had lunch together. The dishes were made by the Chinese chefs using the ingredients they brought, including truffles, ham, and the boiled cabbage in clear broth that left her stunned.

The second and third days were still spent tasting and refining. The chefs cooked, discussed, and adjusted the recipes as they went. Anna sat beside them, watching them taste the dishes again and again, taking notes in her notebook.

On the fourth day, Zhao Ping'an invited several French chefs.

"I invited you here because I want to hear your honest opinions," Zhao Ping'an said. "By your standards, tell me what's good and what's bad about these dishes."

The French chefs were equally forthcoming, tasting each dish and offering their comments on everything from plating and seasoning to cooking time and texture. The Chinese chefs listened attentively, some nodding, some taking notes, and some even asking on the spot, "How was this sauce made?"

Anna watched from the sidelines, finding the scene quite amusing. The chefs on both sides didn't speak the same language, but their eyes lit up whenever they talked about the dishes.

That night, Anna wrote an article after returning home.

The title is "When Chinese Chefs Meet French Cuisine".

She wrote about the chefs who came from the East, about the truffles and ham they brought, about their earnest attempts to learn from her, about the comments from French chefs, and about the boiled cabbage in clear broth that shocked her.

After finishing the article, she hesitated for a moment, but still sent it out.

On the morning of the fifth day, before Anna had even gotten out of bed, the phone rang.

He is an editor at the newspaper.

"Anna! Your article has been getting a flood of calls from readers! Everyone's asking where that restaurant is and what the Chinese chef's name is!"

Anna paused for a moment.

She didn't expect such a big reaction.

At noon, she had lunch with her father—Zhao Ping'an had invited people from the political and business circles over the past few days, and her father was among the invitees.

Her father looked at her, a hint of surprise in his eyes.

"I read your article. It's well-written."

Anna smiled but didn't say anything.

On the sixth and seventh days, more and more political and business figures attended the tasting event. There were representatives from the Ministry of Foreign Trade, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Chamber of Commerce, and several faces that Anna had seen in the newspapers.

Zhao Ping'an stood in the crowd, talking to them with a calm and composed demeanor.

Anna noticed that those people were much more respectful to him than they had been a few days ago.

Anna's food column has become a hit.

She started writing an article every day, introducing restaurants in Paris. Which restaurant had good steak, which desserts were worth ordering, and which had poor service.

Readers started following her columns. Restaurants she recommended were fully booked the next day.

A savvy restaurant owner came to their door.

"Miss Anna, would you like to try our restaurant? It's free, order whatever you like. If you enjoy it, you can write a few words for us."

Anna thought about it and agreed.

She knew what it was. In later generations it was called GG, but that term doesn't exist now. But since they invited her, she figured she might as well try it.

In her column, sentences like "a certain dish at a certain restaurant is worth trying" began to appear occasionally. Readers tried it as she suggested, and it was indeed delicious.

Anna's fame grew.

On the other hand, the attitudes of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Foreign Trade toward Zhao Ping'an also changed.

It all started with a small incident involving dairy cows.

At first, they just treated Zhao Ping'an as an ordinary trade representative.

Buying canned goods, textiles, and daily necessities—these are all small businesses, and France is the client.

But Zhao Ping'an suddenly became interested in French dairy cows.

"We want to import French dairy cows," Zhao Ping'an suddenly said, pointing to a cream cake at a food exchange meeting one day.

"I really like this kind of cream cake, and I believe my country's people will like it too. However, our country doesn't have a high number of dairy cows, so I hope we can import dairy cows from your country. How about 5,000 cows for the first batch?"

The French Foreign Trade Minister paused for a moment.

Five thousand heads? That's a big deal.

The foreign minister was also nearby, his eyes lighting up.

France is currently facing rebellions in its African colonies and desperately needs funds. Previously, it purchased supplies from the Republic mainly because they were of good quality and inexpensive, which could quell anti-war sentiment within the country. Now, suddenly, a large deal has come along? This is a timely boon! Moreover, 5000 dairy cows, a contract worth over 500 million francs (old francs, total contract value, approximately 5 million US dollars).

Zhao Ping'an continued, "It's not just dairy cows; I also hope to import other advanced livestock products from your country. For example, I've heard that the United States has a very developed chicken farming industry, and I hope your country can act as a middleman or facilitate trade. There are many other examples as well; for instance, I've also heard that Ireland has excellent cattle and sheep..."

The Minister of Foreign Trade and the Minister of Foreign Affairs exchanged a glance.

This deal is worth doing.

After several rounds of negotiations, as the first cooperative project, Zhao Ping'an proactively increased the quantity to eight thousand heads.

The remaining three thousand heads were sold by Xu Zhongyi, who received the news.

Yes, Xu Zhongyi in Warsaw received instructions from Zhao Ping'an to contact the railway transportation in advance.

After realizing they needed to buy cattle, they briefly discussed the matter with the ministers of foreign trade in Eastern Europe and sold them 3000 head at a high price.

The dairy industry in Eastern European countries is also in its early stages. Since Xu Zhongyi was able to obtain high-quality seeds, they naturally wanted to get a share of the profits and increase their own dairy product production, which would also be a political achievement.

This made Zhao Ping'an feel even more that Xu Zhongyi was suitable for his current position.

"The first batch, eight thousand heads." With this, Zhao Ping'an became even more adept at negotiations. With sufficient strength, the client truly held the upper hand.

"If transportation is stable, the number of head will exceed 20,000 in the second year. Thereafter, the number will increase by 10,000 to 15,000 head each year."

Of course, we also need to have the right to request an increase in the purchase quantity at any time.

For example, if all goes well, we might need 5 heads the following year.

We need your assurance that this trade can proceed smoothly.

The Frenchman was increasingly pleased as he listened.

They did the math: a high-quality dairy cow, even with bulk purchase prices, would cost $1000 (approximately 20000 Swiss francs).

Selling from France to China, including distribution costs, can generate at least $100 in profit.

That's not all. According to the rules of routine transactions previously agreed upon by Zhao Ping'an's representative, Lou Bancheng...

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Foreign Trade each receive one percentage point of the total trade volume.

If we can negotiate an even lower price, we can split the savings in half.

For example, Ireland, a major dairy exporter, has equally excellent breeds of dairy cows, but at lower prices.

—This money goes straight into my own pocket; it's real profit.

Moreover, this is only the first batch. It will happen every year thereafter, and the quantity will even increase year by year.

The Frenchman's gaze towards Zhao Ping'an immediately changed from that of a "partner" to that of a "god of wealth."

The negotiations proceeded exceptionally smoothly.

Zhao Ping'an finalized a 10-year long-term agreement, with the French side promising to assist in resolving transportation and technical support issues.

Before he left, the Minister of Foreign Trade personally saw him to the door.

"Mr. Zhao, please let us know in advance next time you come to France," he said with a smile. "We have many great things to offer and are looking forward to collaborating with you."

Zhao Ping'an smiled and said, "You see, when you are rich and powerful enough, the world is friendly, isn't it?"