Chapter 176 - 166: Boss Jiang Gives a 2-Sentence Speech, and the Customers Go Crazy

"This is so unfair!"

"Brother Jiang, when are you opening? Is the beef ready? Why don’t we just start selling it now?"

Jiang Liu didn’t hear them.

The aroma from the kitchen filled the main hall and then wafted out through the window.

"GULP."

"GULP..."

Dozens of deep gulps could be heard all around, but they were drowned out by the din of the crowd.

At this moment, the number of people at Jiang Liu’s door was approaching one thousand.

If it weren’t for students having to go to school and office workers having to go to work, there would have been even more.

The shop owners on Yangzhai Street were ecstatic.

Boss Jiang was simply a lucky star!

The income they’d made in just one morning was equivalent to several days’ worth of earnings in the past!

Passersby who didn’t know what was going on were completely baffled.

Only after asking around did they understand: all these people had crowded onto Yangzhai Street so early in the morning just to eat... beef??

What kind of beef was it? Did it fall from the heavens?!

A delighted reporter recorded the entire scene with a small camcorder.

’I’ve got my story!’

「Seven o’clock.」

Tongtong lingered reluctantly by the kitchen door, waving goodbye.

She didn’t want to go to kindergarten; she just wanted to stay with her daddy.

"Daddy, your little sweetheart is leaving. Will you miss her?"

"Boyfriend, your kind and adorable girlfriend is leaving. Will you miss her?"

Jiang Liu, who was still wrapping the remaining five hundred buns, looked up and said with a smile, "Go on, you two. Of course I’ll miss you both."

"We’ll miss you too!"

"Love you."

Tongtong pulled Jun Qingmeng down to squat with her, and in perfect sync, they both formed a big heart shape with their hands before leaving, turning back to look every few steps.

「Ten past seven.」

Amidst the envious gazes of the crowd, Xue Guang walked into the shop, looking deeply honored.

Jiang Liu presented him with a large plate of Beef, Potato, and Mushroom Soup.

Strictly speaking, although "soup" was in the name, there wasn’t much broth, as Jiang Liu didn’t have any deep bowls.

Smelling the rich aroma of beef and the mellow fragrance of potatoes from the plate, Xue Guang’s stomach immediately started to growl.

"Jiang Liu, I’m just realizing now how you love to keep things under wraps. Why didn’t you bring out something this good sooner?"

Jiang Liu just smiled and didn’t answer.

Xue Guang asked,

"How much is it? I’ll pay you."

"No need. I told you yesterday this was on me for you to critique. Taking your money would be a slap in the face, wouldn’t it?"

Jiang Liu waved his hands dismissively, resolute in not taking the money.

As for the money for the pressure cooker, he naturally didn’t need to pay Xue Guang. In fact, even if he tried, Xue Guang wouldn’t have accepted it.

The two of them exchanged a knowing nod.

"Alright, I’ll head back to my shop then. My wife was nagging me all last night, just couldn’t stop thinking about your new dish."

"Alright."

Carrying the plate of incredibly tempting beef, Xue Guang happily walked out the door.

Another chorus of swallowing sounds erupted from the entrance.

Huang Yunfeng, who was munching on a cracker, found his gaze glued to the plate. "Is that the new dish? It’s just what you’d expect from Boss Jiang. It looks so appetizing! Hurry up, this is torture!"

The customer next to him deeply empathized.

「Seven-thirty.」

Jiang Liu wrote the price on the small blackboard.

1,900 yuan per serving.

Then he stepped forward, pushed open the glass door, and announced in a clear voice:

"If I could have your attention, please... The restaurant is now open for business. Because we’ve added a new item, we might change our opening time to 7:30 from now on. I hope you can all let each other know."

"Alright, alright, Xiao Jiang! A few more words from you and I’ll starve to death right on your doorstep!"

"Can we go in? Can we order now?"

"Yes, you can. Those dining in, please come inside. Those getting takeout, please form a line at the window. Oh, right, I also need to announce that because the ingredients are expensive, the Yak, Potato, and Mushroom Soup is priced at one thousand nine hundred yuan..."

"We know, we know! We’d buy it with our eyes closed even if it was three thousand."

"Don’t you worry, Boss Jiang. As long as you’re selling, we’re buying. We trust you."

The customers at the door were going crazy.

The loyal fans who had been waiting all night were on the verge of tears.

’Can you please stop with the speeches?’

’Can’t you see we’re about to starve to death from this aroma?!’

Jiang Liu scanned the crowd’s wolf-like eyes, clicked his tongue, and continued to block the doorway. "Ahem, just a moment, don’t rush. There’s one more thing I need to say."

"???"

"Is this ever going to end?! Just let me in to eat some beef, please?"

"Hello, 911? There’s an unscrupulous boss here who won’t sell me the food I want to eat!!"

"The beef is going to get cold!"

"If you keep this up, we’re going to get mad, you know!!"

Jiang Liu’s expression turned serious as he ignored them and made his announcement. "Listen to me. It’s like this: for the benefit of everyone, from now on, for any dish priced over one thousand yuan, the restaurant will implement a one-per-person limit. This means you can only choose one of these high-priced dishes to purchase. Does everyone understand?"

He had seen his base of regular customers growing, but most of them couldn’t get what they wanted, a form of sweet torment.

So he came up with a way to alleviate the issue and distribute things more fairly. This would also help prevent scalpers or individuals buying up large quantities.

The customers at the front were dumbfounded, while those at the back grew excited.

"Please don’t, Boss Jiang! I wanted to get a serving for my mom! Maybe you could start this rule tomorrow instead!"

"Brother Jiang, that’s a great idea! I support you! And for those of you at the front, don’t feel bad. Like Brother Jiang has said before, can you guarantee you’ll always be at the front of the line? Brother Jiang is just looking out for all of us."

As soon as this was said, many people nodded in agreement.

"That makes perfect sense. If Boss Jiang wasn’t thinking of us, he could just let people buy as much as they want. Then none of us would get to eat because one person would buy it all, right?"

"Brother Jiang, we all trust your character. We agree wholeheartedly! Now please, start selling! We’ve been waiting for so long."

"Alright." Jiang Liu nodded and opened the door.

The customers, like a pack of hungry wolves, rushed frantically into the restaurant.

In an instant, dozens of people flooded the small shop.

It was packed to the brim.

People squeezed together at tables, chatting excitedly.

The first person in line was a cheerful girl in her early twenties. She had fair skin, a round face, and her hair was up in a bun, giving her a charmingly innocent look.