Chapter 42: Simply Incredible!

Gu Changqing, usually composed and imposing, looked like a madman at this moment. Vases and jars lay shattered all over the floor. In his past life, Cheng An had seen his fair share of bankrupt business magnates, and they had looked much like Gu Changqing did now.

"Father."
"Cheng An is here."
Gu Xiaorou called out timidly.

"What is it? Is the money not enough?" Gu Changqing’s face was pale and cold.
"Greetings, Master Gu." Considering that the Gu family was on the verge of bankruptcy, Cheng An did not take offense. He spoke calmly, "Since the matter has already occurred, anger will be of no help. Master Gu should focus on taking care of your health so that you can protect this family."
"You..."
"Sit down." Gu Changqing restrained himself and did not lash out. After sitting, he added, "I heard from my brother-in-law that you have become famous in Pinggu County? Even Judge Wang went to the Cheng residence in person. You have a limitless future!"
"I wouldn't dare say that. It was merely luck."

After a few more exchanges of pleasantries, Gu Changqing clearly grew impatient. Cheng An finally got to the point: "I heard the Gu family started out by trading grain... Master Gu, would you be interested in pivoting to the catering business?"
"What do you mean?" Gu Changqing frowned slightly.
Cheng An took out a piece of paper and handed it over. "In my spare time, I puzzled out a few recipes from ancient books. If you are interested, we could cooperate."
"Recipes?" Gu Xiaorou was stunned. It wasn't that she didn't trust Cheng An, but honestly... could someone who had barely eaten meat a few times in his life really know how to cook? That was absurd!

"Young lad, don't get ahead of yourself!" Gu Changqing glanced at the paper casually and began to lecture him out of habit: "Just because the judge praised you a couple of times, don't think you know the height of the sky and the depth of the... Wait? This..."
Gu Changqing’s tone shifted instantly! He swallowed the rest of his sentence, feeling somewhat awkward, and stared at the paper in astonishment.
"These are really recipes?"
"Stir-fried meat..." Gu Xiaoyue crept over. She stood on her tiptoes to take a peek and asked curiously, "What kind of dish is this? I’ve never seen it before! And the method is so strange—why use an iron pan?"
"This is called stir-frying. You need specialized cookware to capture the essence of the dish!"

Current culinary culture was still quite primitive. Most people used pottery to cook, so naturally, they didn't understand the secrets of stir-frying. Cheng An had thought of this business venture back when he was at the Hundred Flavors Pavilion, but since the manager there hadn't been interested, he hadn't said much. Business was a matter of destiny. If you trust me, we can work together happily. But if you are half-hearted, even the most profitable venture will not last.

"Xiaorou, Xiaoyue," Gu Changqing looked at his daughters and said sternly, "You two go out first. I have important matters to discuss with Master Cheng. Also... have someone prepare dinner."
"Yes!" Gu Xiaorou gave Cheng An a surprised look before pulling her pouting sister away.

Half an hour later, Cheng An left the Gu residence. No one knew what he and Gu Changqing had discussed, but when the two emerged, they were both wearing smiles. Gu Changqing even personally saw him to the door.
"Father, can that stir-frying business really make money?" Gu Xiaorou stood by her father's side, her gaze lingering on the retreating figure in the distance.
"It’s not just business!" Gu Changqing took his daughter's hand and said softly, "The future of the Gu family will depend on you, so the Gu family’s son-in-law must be a man of talent!"
"Then do you think Cheng An is suitable?"
"Hahaha!" Gu Changqing threw his head back and laughed. His expression suggested that "suitable" was an understatement—he was more than suitable!

***

"Opening a restaurant?" Back at the Cheng residence, his parents stared at their son in shock.
"Yes. The deal with Master Gu is settled," Cheng An nodded, adding, "However, I am too young, and I still need to study, so you will need to be the one to represent us in the business dealings, Father."
"How do I ‘represent’?" Cheng Dashan looked bewildered. Seeing his son's wise expression, he felt a strange sense of inferiority.
"The Gu family will cover all initial investments. You only need to be a partner, hang your name at the Hundred Flavors Pavilion, and audit the accounts periodically." Knowing his father couldn't handle bookkeeping, Cheng An continued, "Don't worry, Master Gu is an upright man; he won't fiddle with the money."
"Oh. That’s a relief..." Cheng Dashan let out a sigh of relief, then asked in confusion, "Wait! They are putting up the money and the shop! Why would Master Gu want to partner with us?"
"We are providing the recipes," Cheng An explained simply.
"My son! You know how to cook?" The couple’s jaws nearly hit the floor.
Cheng An couldn't explain the truth, so he bluffed: "Life was too hard when I was little, and I was never full, so I spent my spare time thinking about food..."
It was a case of satisfying hunger by drawing a cake—in other words, deceiving himself.
"That’s all it takes?"
"Why wouldn't it be?" Fearing his parents would press for more details, Cheng An said, "I have my make-up exam the day after tomorrow. I’m going to study."
"Go, go! That’s the important thing." The couple finally dropped the subject.

***

Three days later, Cheng An boarded a donkey cart and followed Du Xiu to the county seat. This time, everything went smoothly. As soon as they reached the city gate, the patrolling bailiffs greeted them with smiles.
"Cheng An?"
"Greetings, officers." Cheng An jumped off the cart and bowed respectfully.
The bailiff hurriedly waved his hands with a smile: "Don't do that. You are the big celebrity of Pinggu County now; how could we rough men deserve a bow from you?"

This was what they called "arrogance before, humility after." Even though Cheng An was only eight years old and had no official rank, these bailiffs were no fools. Especially over the past few days, Judge Wang Shan had been sparing no effort to build up Cheng An's reputation. Anyone with eyes could see that this little boy was on the verge of a bright future.
"A child prodigy!"
"He’s worth his weight in gold..." Another bailiff chimed in with a smile, "Young Master Cheng, do you remember me? When you came last time, I was the one who took you to the county office."
"Thank you." Cheng An glanced at him, thinking to himself that if it weren't for your meddling, I wouldn't have had to take a make-up exam.

As they entered the city, people recognized Cheng An.
"He’s here!"
"Who?"
"Cheng An..." Someone in the know boasted proudly, "Judge Wang from the county office said he is a genius that only appears once in a century! He even wrote to the Prefecture specifically to reopen the academy exams for him!"
"Can the academy exams be reopened?"
"We have to see!" Many people were drawn over. Before long, dozens of people were following behind Cheng An. Because the bailiffs were present, the crowd remained relatively quiet, just trailing along from a distance like a student procession, with more people joining every few steps.

Du Xiu subconsciously looked back. His pupils contracted. Hundreds of people were swarming behind them; the momentum was frightening.
"Don't be nervous. Just stay calm..." He gripped Cheng An’s wrist, his palm slick with sweat.
Cheng An endured the pain and said with a wry smile, "I'm not nervous, Teacher. You're squeezing me too hard..."
"Oh? Oh!" Du Xiu’s old face flushed, and he awkwardly let go of Cheng An.

When they reached the entrance of the county office, the bailiff leading the way suddenly stopped.
"Young Master Cheng, please wait a moment."
"What’s wrong?" Du Xiu looked inside nervously, worried that Zhou Heng would try to cause trouble again.
Little did he know, ever since Cheng An had stunned everyone at the academy exams, Zhou Heng had been harshly criticized by all the scholars in the county! They called him "jealous of talent," "blind," and "burying genius"... The air was filled with insults! At this point, how could Zhou Heng dare to show his face?