in2ebook Chapter 299 Incident at the Grass Garden
Chapter 299 Incident at the Grass Garden
Shen Cao followed Zhang Jie to the Hundred Herbs Garden, and before they even entered, they saw that the entrance was crowded with people.
She had met several of the people in the middle; they were all restaurant and eatery owners in Xin'an County.
Shen Cao had already heard Zhang Jie explain the matter to her in detail on her way here.
She frowned as she looked at the people in front of her.
They seem to have ill intentions!
Zhang Jie looked worried. He was new to the area and didn't know much about things in Xin'an County, but even in the capital, he had never seen such a shameless person.
He's really seen it all in his lifetime.
Shen Cao waved her hand, telling him not to worry.
She looked up at the sky and walked up to the shopkeepers. “What wind has blown today that has brought you all to my Hundred Herbs Garden?”
When the shopkeepers saw that the owner of Baicaoyuan was such a young upstart, they looked at each other and realized that, sure enough, that troublesome guy surnamed Ji was no longer working at Baicaoyuan.
"Are you the owner of Hundred Herbs Garden?" asked one of the middle-aged men, who was about forty years old and had a large belly.
He looked disdainful, clearly not taking Shen Cao seriously.
Shen Cao smiled and replied, "Yes."
She was very polite and humble, and did not get angry because of the other party's disdain.
Sure enough, the onlookers began to discuss it amongst themselves.
What's going on? I have a feeling these people are teaming up to bully someone.
I also have a feeling that this young boss might have gotten himself into some trouble.
Aren't these people the owners of that restaurant or tavern?
……
The man's face turned dark when he heard the murmurs below.
"We've come to your Hundred Herbs Garden, so we're guests, right? Is this how you treat your guests?"
"Aren't you going to invite us in for a cup of tea?"
The others also turned pale at the murmurs below; they hadn't come here to listen to these people talking about them.
The young owner of this herb garden really doesn't know how to handle things; he didn't even bother to invite them in.
Shen Cao waved her hand, "No rush. It's almost lunchtime. Instead of serving customers in their own shops, why do you shopkeepers have time to visit my Hundred Herbs Garden?"
"Let's talk business first. If you still want to visit my Hundred Herbs Garden after we've finished, I'll personally host a dinner party in the best private room at Hundred Herbs Garden to apologize."
Shen Cao wasn't stupid; this group of people were clearly looking for trouble because they saw that Baicaoyuan was doing well.
She was going to invite them in, but if things didn't go well, how could she possibly argue with these people?
When the shopkeepers heard that Shen Cao was unwilling to invite them in, their faces turned as black as soot.
"Nonsense!" said the shopkeeper, who appeared to be the oldest, dressed in a brown brocade robe and looked to be around sixty years old.
Others treated him with great respect.
He seems to be called Manager Sun.
“We sent someone to Baicaoyuan to inform you that in order to better develop the restaurants and eateries in Xin’an County and maintain fairness in the industry, you should send someone to the guild to discuss the matter.”
“After that guy surnamed Ji went there once, we couldn’t get anyone from your shop to come back no matter how many times we asked.”
“Now your Baicaoyuan has disrupted the rules of the entire industry and damaged the interests of other restaurants and eateries.”
"As the president of the Xin'an County Restaurant Guild, I must come here today to demand an explanation for the sake of others."
Shen Cao remembered; it turned out to be that restaurant guild.
Ji Lingfeng seemed to have mentioned this guild to her before. It was said that the owners of every large restaurant or eatery had to join this guild.
The menu and pricing of each restaurant within the guild must be decided jointly by all guild members.
However, the guild leader has one vote of approval.
This forces many restaurants that join a guild to bribe the guild leader so that the leader can sell more dishes at more reasonable prices.
It is said that the chairman has a very powerful background, and it is said that his daughter is a concubine of the emperor.
Logically speaking, the rank of the "Ying" (a low-ranking official) is not high, but in the case of Xin'an County, the county magistrate is only a low-ranking official of the ninth grade.
The woman's family was considered a prominent and influential family in Xin'an County.
Therefore, over the years, many restaurant owners, though unwilling to join this guild, have had no choice but to do so.
"This must be Chairman Sun!" Shen Cao looked at him respectfully.
Clearly, the other party was pleased with her attitude, raising their head and nodding slightly as if in agreement with Shen Cao's words.
"I wonder how Chairman Sun intends to resolve this matter?"
When Chairman Sun heard that Shen Cao's attitude was good, he assumed that she was willing to do as they said.
“I’ve heard that your Baicaoyuan sells all kinds of hot pot, which has never appeared in Xin’an County before.”
"Logically speaking, if you want to sell this hot pot, you must inform me and I must give your consent before you can sell it."
"But considering it's your first offense, we won't hold it against you."
"However, if you want to sell this hot pot in the future, you must agree to one condition."
Shen Cao raised an eyebrow, but her eyes had already turned cold.
"Oh, what are the conditions?"
Upon hearing Shen Cao's words, these people all felt that there was hope, and one of the shopkeepers next to Chairman Sun spoke up.
"You need to hand over your hot pot recipe first. If you want to continue selling hot pot, you have to buy it from Chairman Sun and pay a fee every month. The fee is based on the number of types of hot pot you sell."
"By the way, we also need to decide on the types of ingredients for the hot pot. You can only sell them if we give you permission!"
"Yes."
Shen Cao's gaze swept over the faces of each shopkeeper, realizing that they were all up to the same idea.
The abacus beads were practically hitting her face.
She had a dark expression, but maintained a polite smile throughout.
Those who know her know that she is extremely angry.
Shen Cao turned to Chairman Sun and asked, "Is this Chairman Sun's intention?"
Chairman Sun straightened up and stroked his beard. "This was a decision made jointly by the important members of our tavern guild."
"Oh, you made the decision. Did you ask for my opinion?"
"What you mean is not important."
"Hehe," Shen Cao chuckled lightly, "I had no idea that I, who opened this restaurant with my own money and developed my own recipes, would have others decide what to sell?"
"What gives you the right to make the decision about my Hundred Herbs Garden?"
The other party was taken aback; they hadn't expected Shen Cao to refuse their request.
Hehe, with Chairman Sun around, she has no choice but to agree.
“I, Mr. Sun, can really make decisions for your Hundred Herbs Garden.” Chairman Sun stepped forward. “In the entire Xin’an County, let alone the decisions of the restaurant guild, even when the county magistrate issues an order, he has to give way to me, Mr. Sun.”
“His county magistrate is just a lowly ninth-rank official, while my daughter is a high-ranking eighth-rank concubine.”
"Anyone who didn't know better would think you were a concubine in the imperial harem," Shen Cao scoffed.
"How dare you!" Chairman Sun never expected that a mere brat would speak so disrespectfully to him.
"You won't listen to reason, so you'll have to suffer the consequences."
"Guards, smash this Hundred Herbs Garden to pieces!"