All the heavens begin with the love in the courtyard.

Grandma Wang's father only managed to develop nine flavors in his entire life, and the taste of Grandma Wang's braised soup is still vivid in my memory.

He himself, relying on the inspiration of his predecessors, finally broke through the ninth flavor and found the tenth flavor. This flavor is tasteless in the mouth but flavorful in the heart. He has already applied his research results to the seasoning recipe. However, this seasoning has not yet been released to the market. He plans to open a mala tang restaurant and use this unique flavor to make the soup.

Only after discovering the unique flavor did Zhang Peng finally decide to implement his idea.

Zhang Peng redesigned the menu, using only the best, and of course, the most expensive, ingredients available on the market.

His catering company has officially changed from "Master Zhang's Secret Recipe Casserole Noodles" to "Master Zhang's Secret Recipe Spicy Hot Pot".

All former franchisees have cancelled their franchises and refunded all franchise fees themselves.

The first few franchise stores were completely baffled by Zhang Peng's actions. Boss, you can't just say one thing and do another!

But Zhang Peng didn't care. He wasn't very interested in making money now. Perhaps his dream was influencing his reality. Zhang Peng's personality was also greatly affected. Even though he was worth over a million, he was extravagant and didn't seem to care about money at all.

Many franchisees who had made money in the past still wanted to join Zhang Peng in opening new mala tang (spicy hot pot) shops. Zhang Peng didn't refuse them; he just smiled and gave them new franchise standards.

The franchise fee is one million, and the decoration must be high-end. The location must be in a bustling, upscale area. Adding the decoration and other rent costs, it would be impossible to run a franchise without two or three million. Zhang Peng's new franchise policy shocked everyone.

Are there really fools in this world who are rich but stupid?

Perhaps Zhang Peng himself has already considered this; he doesn't care about these things now, and in fact, he has never even thought about opening another franchise store to make money.

Having experienced the simple and unpretentious lives of several of the world's wealthiest people, Zhang Peng no longer has any particular expectations for the future.

Life is like a dream, and a dream is like life. With the personalities of several worlds intertwined, Zhang Peng can no longer distinguish what his original personality was like.

Making money had long lost its appeal for him; he wanted to find something new in his life.

After Zhang Peng returned the franchise fee, he had less than one million yuan left. Apart from a few long-time employees, he dismissed all the other employees.

Zhang Peng rented a 70-square-meter storefront with a kitchen in Guangzhou's most upscale and bustling commercial district. The rent was 58,000 yuan per month, and with other food purchase costs, his monthly expenses exceeded 100,000 yuan.

This place was originally a restaurant, but Zhang Peng was still not satisfied with some of the decorations, so he spent another 300,000 yuan to renovate it again. After purchasing ingredients and making other preparations, he was penniless once again when he was ready to open for business.

To be honest, even Chen Ling didn't quite understand Zhang Peng's actions. Zhang Peng's changes over the past year made Chen Ling feel that something was wrong, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it.

But Zhang Peng wanted to do it, and she didn't want to interfere. After all, they had been through times of extreme poverty together, and at worst, they could just set up a roadside stall again.

This newly opened mala tang (spicy hot pot) restaurant opened quietly without any advertising or promotion, simply by hanging up its signboard.

It's not unusual to open a mala tang (spicy hot pot) restaurant in a high-end commercial area, but the prices at this particular mala tang restaurant are ridiculously high, as the sign at the entrance says that the average cost per person is 1,000 yuan.

There are many upscale restaurants and Western restaurants around here, with prices ranging from several hundred to over a thousand yuan per person. However, there is absolutely no place where you can find mala tang (a type of spicy hot pot) for a thousand yuan per person. There is an upscale hot pot restaurant up ahead where the average price is 180 yuan per person, which is already considered a very high price in Guangzhou.

The sudden appearance of a mala tang (spicy hot pot) restaurant with an average spending of 1,000 yuan per person has indeed surprised everyone. The interior decoration is quite high-end, but the price makes people stop. All the restaurants around are packed with people, but this unique mala tang restaurant is quiet.

Many people passed by taking pictures, but no one went in. They probably have a big opening sale, or they're doing a lot of promotion.

But this store was quiet on its first day of opening. The few waiters inside stood at the door and didn't come out to greet the customers, which was a bit creepy.

But Zhang Peng didn't care about any of that. He was in the back kitchen, simmering a pot of soup. He looked down at the soup in the pot with great focus.

The golden broth in the pot was bubbling. He closed his eyes, gently opened the lid, and a faint aroma wafted into his nose like a thread.

A smug smile appeared on Zhang Peng's lips as he muttered to himself.

"That's the taste!"

Just then, a waiter suddenly entered through the door and called out nervously into the kitchen.

"Boss, we have a customer!"

Chapter 21: Dude, this is a rip-off!

"A guest has arrived?"

Zhang Peng glanced at his watch. It had only been an hour and a half since they opened, and the first customer had already arrived.

Are there really people who are foolish and have too much money?

"Alright, we have a fat sheep coming to our door, no, we have a distinguished guest coming to our door, we must treat him well."

Thinking of this, Zhang Peng washed his hands, straightened his white chef's uniform, and slowly walked to the front hall.

"Hey guys, look at this place! It says everyone has to order a soup base. Wow, that soup base costs 888 yuan! That's outrageous!"

And these dishes? They're outrageously expensive! A plate of beef costs 88 yuan, a serving of tripe is 78 yuan, even vegetables start at 28 yuan! Tsk tsk, folks, what's a rip-off? This is a rip-off! I'm begging for your attention, everyone. If this post gets over 10,000 likes, even if I go bankrupt, I'll show you just how deep this rip-off restaurant really runs!

Zhang Peng stood in front of the fat man with a dark face, watching him ramble on while the man pointed his phone camera at the menu on the table. The fat man's face, which was as big as two adults' buttocks, made Zhang Peng want to stomp on it.

After the fat man came to his senses, he noticed Zhang Peng standing in front of him. He immediately broke into a big smile, pointed the camera stick at Zhang Peng, and said with a grin.

"You're the owner here? I was saying your business is terrible! Boss, I'm a famous local livestreamer with over 50,000 followers. How about this? I'll bring out all your most expensive dishes for you to try, and I'll promote your place. If you like it, I'll invite my fans to come and support your restaurant!"

Zhang Peng stared at the camera with a dark expression, then coldly rebuked him.

"No need! Besides, taking photos without permission is not allowed in this store. Didn't you see the notice on the wall?"

Zhang Peng gestured to the fat man to look at the most prominent spot on the wall, where it clearly stated: "Photography is prohibited in this store."

The fat man was speechless for a moment, and was about to say something when his face suddenly lit up with joy, and he quickly shouted excitedly into his phone.

"Thanks to Brother Bing for the rocket, and thanks to the old man selling cucumbers for the 666!"

The fat man never expected that a fan would send him a rocket; the joy in his heart was indescribable!

He leaned closer to the screen and saw the comments on the public chat.

"This boss is so arrogant, let's confront him!"

"This boss hasn't experienced the harsh realities of life! Fatty, let's smash his place up, we support you!"

"Support Fatty Dragon's attempt to test this shady business! We'll crowdfund to support you!"

"666, this shop is really shady, this is blatant robbery!"

The rocket and the comments below gave the fat man enough confidence. His face lit up with joy, and then he raised his chubby face and shouted at Zhang Peng.

"How can you run a business like this? The prices are outrageously high, and the service is so bad. No wonder your business is so bad. I don't think you'll last a month before you go out of business!"

While speaking, he also moved the camera around, filming the store's environment for his fans in the live stream.

Zhang Peng stepped forward with a gloomy expression, grabbed the fat man by the neck without saying a word, and with a little force, the fat man cried out in pain. With a slight push, the fat man staggered and stumbled towards the outside, running seven or eight meters before stopping.

It wasn't until he was several meters away from the store that the fat man regained his balance. After a while, he came to his senses, touched himself up and down, and found that he was neither in pain nor itchy. He breathed a sigh of relief, looked back at the signboard at the store entrance, and shrank back with a look of lingering fear.

He just felt himself being pushed forward involuntarily by the other person. With the slightest movement, a pain that started in his neck spread throughout his body, making his head feel dizzy.

"Was that the boss? How scary!"

The fat man's heart was pounding. Unbeknownst to him, the entire scene had just been broadcast live on his phone. The live stream showed Zhang Peng casually placing his hand on the fat man's neck, causing the fat man's face to turn a deep purplish-red. With just a slight push from Zhang Peng, the fat man stumbled and ran towards the door.

No matter how you look at it, this fat guy's acting seems so fake. In the live stream, countless comments appeared, all with contemptuous emojis. Countless people scolded the fat guy for acting so fake, saying, "How can we support you if you act like this!"

The fat man felt a nameless fire burning inside him as he saw the comments in the live stream. He never expected to be so humiliated today. He was determined to blacklist this store!

He strode to the shop entrance again and immediately saw Zhang Peng standing inside with his arms crossed. He shrank back and stopped in his tracks, feeling a bit scared.

He glanced at the live stream, which was filled with disdainful expressions. The number of viewers had already reached nearly 10,000, which was quite high. He steeled himself, mustered his courage, and went into the shop again.

Seeing the fat man come into the store again, Zhang Peng got angry. Why are live streamers like leeches these days?

Zhang Peng strode towards the fat man, who also walked towards him.

The two had just met, and before Zhang Peng could even speak, the fat man immediately lowered his body slightly, looking timid, and spoke first.

"I want some mala tang (spicy hot pot), I'll take it to go!"

Zhang Peng gave him a cold look, then glanced at the location of his phone. The fat man quickly put the camera stick behind him.

Out of consideration for his own business opening, Zhang Peng didn't mind these things and casually picked up a menu from the side and handed it to the fat man.

The fat man stretched out a hand, took the menu, quickly glanced at it, and when he saw the prices, his heart seemed to bleed. Finally, he pointed at the menu with a slight tremor and said...

"Give me one serving of beef, one serving of fish balls, one serving of cabbage, one serving of spinach, that's all!"

Zhang Peng took the menu from the other party and said casually.

"The soup base is 880 yuan, the dishes are 232 yuan, and the packaging fee is 58 yuan, which is 1,178 yuan in total. It is our store's rule to pay in advance. Cash or QR code?"

When the fat man heard the price, his hand trembled slightly. As a small-time streamer, he only earned a hundred or so yuan a day from gifts, and if he was lucky, he could earn a few hundred yuan a day. But spending more than a thousand yuan on a hot pot meal was too extravagant. However, in order to avenge the humiliation he had just suffered, he had to try it and thoroughly smear this hot pot restaurant. He was quite well-known in the local food streamer circle.

Scan the code!

"Beep! Payment successful!"

Seeing that the money had arrived, Zhang Peng turned and left indifferently. He didn't care how the fat man was planning to rip off his shop, but as long as they were his customers, they had to pay first. He was selling taste, not service, and he was happy as long as he was happy.

Zhang Peng turned and went to the back kitchen to prepare. After Zhang Peng left, the fat man breathed a sigh of relief, quickly took out the camera stick on his back, looked at the screen, and saw that it was still full of contemptuous expressions. He was a little unhappy and quickly shouted into the phone in a low voice.

"Hey guys, it's not that I don't want to stand up for myself, you guys don't know! Just now, that boss grabbed me by the back of the neck, I felt like I was going to die. That bastard is so strong! A wise man doesn't fight a losing battle. I'll pack it up and take it outside later so you guys can try out this shady place. Guys, you guys better remember the name of this shady place: Master Zhang's Secret Recipe Spicy Hot Pot. They're blatantly robbing you, so remember to boycott them!"

Seeing that he was still live-streaming, several waiters came forward. The fat man quickly put the camera behind him again, put his hands behind his back, hummed a little tune, and looked at the waiters with a resentful expression.

Zhang Peng, who was in the kitchen, took out a clay pot, poured the golden broth from the main pot into the clay pot, put the clay pot on the fire to boil, then added fish balls, beef, and finally vegetables. He turned off the fire, put on the lid, tied the clay pot with a special packing rope, took out a set of tableware, placed it on the clay pot, and carried it out of the kitchen.

As Zhang Peng walked out of the kitchen, he saw the fat man standing at the door humming a tune, but he didn't bother to pay him any attention. He handed the packaged hot pot to the waiter and then turned around and went back to the kitchen.

Seeing Zhang Peng's arrogant demeanor, the fat man snorted, strode forward, took the casserole from the waiter, and turned to leave.

Once they left the store, the fat man finally regained his smugness and quickly pulled out his camera stick, pointing it at the casserole dish he was carrying.

"Hey guys, did you see that? This is the hot pot from that shady restaurant I just saw. Even the takeout costs 58 yuan. This little bit of stuff I have costs 1,178 yuan! That's outrageous! Today, I, Fatty Long, will test this shady restaurant for you guys and see how deep it goes. Let's go find a place to open it up for you!"

As he spoke, the fat man strode forward and finally found a spot on a public bench. He quickly placed the casserole on the bench, and impatiently took the camera pole in one hand and untied the packaging rope with the other.

The overall design of the casserole is quite nice, but faced with such a high price, the fat man's face was full of heartache. After taking a 360-degree close-up of the casserole with his phone, he kept muttering to himself.

"Hey guys, did you see that? This is just a broken clay pot, and that shady shop charged me 58 yuan. You guys think that's outrageous? But wait, there's something even worse. A bowl of soup base costs 888 yuan. Now, let me show you the true face of the most outrageous mala tang in Guangzhou!"

As he spoke, the fat man picked up the pot lid and slowly lifted it.

A burst of steaming hot vapor wafted over, and the fat man swallowed back the words he was about to say. He swallowed hard and stared blankly at the casserole.

At this moment, the fat man felt as if he had returned to that summer when he was a child. He went to buy popsicles with a group of friends, but everyone else had money to buy them except him. He would watch them slurp their popsicles in their mouths. He would remember that scene for the rest of his life. The saliva and the gurgling sound in his throat were so similar to what he was feeling now.

"Hey...buddies, this place is shady..."

Before the fat man could finish speaking, saliva was already dripping from his mouth. Fortunately, the camera was pointed at the clay pot, so no one saw it. He quickly wiped his saliva, suppressed his inner urge, pointed the camera at the clay pot, and continued speaking.

"Hey guys, did you see that? What's in front of you right now is that ridiculously expensive mala tang! Do you see that golden broth? There's only a little bit of it, but it costs 888 yuan. Today I'm going to show you what this ridiculously expensive mala tang tastes like!"

As he spoke, the fat man fixed the camera pole to the side, completely untied the packing rope on the casserole, and without any sense of public decency, tore open the disposable chopsticks, threw the packaging on the ground, picked up the chopsticks, and started scooping into the casserole.

He casually picked up a piece of cabbage, disdainfully threw it back in, then picked up a fish ball, placed it in front of the camera, gave it a close-up, and continued rambling on.