The Restaurant Opens

He picked up a white plastic bucket and opened the lid.

"This is called soy sauce; it's used for coloring and enhancing flavor."

Then I picked up another plastic bag, which contained snow-white fine particles.

"This is MSG, used to enhance flavor. A pinch is enough; too much..."

He laid out the ingredients one by one: vinegar, sugar, cooking wine, star anise, cinnamon, and jars of freshly ground chili powder and cumin powder, filling the entire cutting board.

"Come closer, look, smell, and memorize their appearance and scents first," Shen Jingchuan said. "Once you've memorized them, I'll teach you how to use them and how much to use, one by one."

The crowd had never seen anything like it before, and they swarmed around it, sniffing and looking at it, marveling at it.

Ma Zaotou stared at these seasonings; putting everything else aside, just looking at the packaging, they were clearly not ordinary products.

"Master, these... these rare items, can we use them in our cooking from now on?"

"Not only will they be useful," Shen Jingchuan smiled, "Whether our Returning Geese Tower dishes can become a hit in Spirit Creek Market depends on them."

Next, Shen Jingchuan began to teach them one by one.

The instructions for each dish, including what ingredients to use, the cutting techniques, the cooking time, when to add the ingredients, the amount of each seasoning, how to enhance the flavor, and how to use different ingredients, even the technique for tossing the wok, are all broken down and explained in detail.

Having explained everything, he took out a large stack of neatly bound books from his Storage Ring and placed them on the table.

That was a recipe he had prepared long ago, written entirely in traditional Chinese characters, so that everyone could recognize it.

The amount of each ingredient, its order of preparation, and the cooking time for each dish are all clearly written on the label.

"Take them all, practice them, and memorize them," Shen Jingchuan said. "Once you've memorized them, you'll have the techniques."

After saying that, he directed the cook to prepare several dishes in front of everyone.

The moment the dish was taken out of the pot, its color and aroma were immediately different from those cooked by the horse-drawn stove in front.

Accountant Wu had been watching from the side. When he smelled the aroma, he couldn't help but swallow hard. He quickly carried the food to the table outside.

Shen Jingchuan called over the cook and several other cooks.

"Try them all."

Several people picked up their chopsticks, carefully took a bite, and their eyes widened as soon as the food entered their mouths.

"This..." Ma Zaotou stammered, "Master, can food really taste like this?"

They were seasoned cooks who had spent half their lives on the stove, and only now did they realize how bland their previous cooking had been.

Shen Jingchuan clapped his hands and looked at Accountant Wu.

"Tell Steward Wang to prepare for tomorrow, and we'll open the day after tomorrow to warm things up."

"The day after tomorrow?" Accountant Wu hesitated. "Will that be enough time?"

Shen Jingchuan said, "How can it be too late? I'll train them for a day today, and then they can practice and familiarize themselves with the equipment tomorrow, addressing any gaps in their skills."

"You guys shouldn't be idle over there either. Take some time to promote it, put up notices, and spread the word that Returning Geese Tower newly opened and they're having a special opening promotion for the first few days."

"You don't need to worry about that," Accountant Wu patted his chest confidently. "Leave it to me. I guarantee that within a day, the entire Spirit Creek Market will know that we're opening the day after tomorrow."

The tasks were immediately assigned. Accountant Wu, went to handle miscellaneous tasks such as publicity and material preparation, while Shen Jingchuan stayed in the kitchen and received two full days of training.

In fact, these chefs were all experienced veterans hired from various places. They already had the knife skills and control of heat, so there was no need to teach them from scratch.

These new seasonings were completely new to them, and the focus was on teaching them to recognize the ingredients, how much of each to use, and when to put them in the pot.

The three cultivators in the kitchen had even developed Divine Sense; they were sharp-eyed and meticulous, and learned incredibly quickly.

After two days, dozens of signature dishes had taken shape.

From the very first day of its opening, the shop assistants spread the word everywhere that Returning Geese Tower just opened and was offering special opening promotions, and all the passing cultivators knew about it.

On the actual day, the area in front of the restaurant became even more lively, with lion dance troupes leaping and bounding, and musicians playing drums and cymbals.

With the opening of the new restaurant, many passing cultivators, already curious, entered with a "let's give it a try" attitude.

This meal was quite something.

"Good heavens, what's that smell?"

"Don't even mention this small market town; even the grandest restaurants in the Capital couldn't make something like this!"

"I've never eaten such delicious food in the sect's market town when I lived with my elders."

Nine out of ten people Returning Geese Tower are cultivators; very few are ordinary people, and the few that are ordinary people are usually family members brought by cultivators.

These people usually rely on Grain Avoidance Pills to cope with their daily diet, so they've long been used to bland tastes. When they suddenly taste this delicious food made by modern industrial processes, they can hardly resist.

The word spread quickly, and by lunchtime, the building was packed with people, with no empty seats available for those who arrived later.

These days, cultivators from all over are arriving one after another, waiting for the annual auction.

Some people came specifically to check out the auction venue after hearing it was being held there; others stumbled upon the newly opened restaurant and wanted to join in the fun, as it was packed on the first day.

With the business newly opened and staff inexperienced, chaos was inevitable. There were instances of serving the wrong dishes, and instances of accidentally adding too much or too little seasoning. The kitchen and the dining area were constantly in disarray.

Even with these mishaps, not a single customer slammed the table or caused trouble.

Everyone knows that Returning Geese Tower is the property of that True Person from Spirit Creek Market.

Elsewhere, the cultivators would have overturned the table long ago; but here, they were all quite good-natured. A mistake? No problem, just get another plate.

Shen Jingchuan didn't participate in the pricing, but when he opened the menu, he couldn't help but click his tongue in amazement.

It's really expensive.

With little spirit beast meat available, and at most spirit rice, along with ordinary chicken, duck, fish, and seasonal vegetables, a meal for five or six people would cost two or three Spirit Stones.

A moderately priced meal would cost at least five Spirit Stones; if you added some spirit beast meat, the price would be insane.

Even at that price, the cultivators still ate with beaming smiles. Shen Jingchuan could see that these people were truly willing to spend money.

Upstairs and downstairs, there are more than a hundred tables, and they are all packed during mealtimes.

As dusk fell, at the height of the activity, a sudden commotion arose inside the building.

"It's the True Person! The True Person has arrived!"

No one knows who noticed it first, but all the guests in the room suddenly stood up.

But then they saw True Person Moxuan slowly walk in, accompanied by Steward Wang, looking completely at ease.

This Golden Core True Person is the true backer of Spirit Creek Market. We rarely see him on ordinary days, but tonight he actually came to show his support for a new restaurant.

True Person Moxuan went upstairs and entered a quiet private room at the very back, accompanied by Steward Wang and Shen Jingchuan.

He Grain Avoidance for many years and rarely touched worldly food. He picked up a few bites and nodded slightly.

"Not bad." He put down his chopsticks and, unusually, offered a compliment, "This skill is quite interesting."

After sitting for a while and chatting with Shen Jingchuan for a bit, he got up and left.

With the True Person gone, the atmosphere in the building actually became even more lively.

When the party ended at night and the doors were closed, the Accountant Wu, held the ledger, his hands trembling slightly.