“The signboard of Ruchun Restaurant was indeed personally inscribed by the Crown Prince back in the day. Afterward, it was mounted and framed, with the words ‘Unparalleled Culinary Skills’ written on it.”

Abigail Grant seemed to recall something, furrowing her brows in deep thought, and said, “Go on.”

“There’s a shopkeeper in the restaurant, a real bookworm…”

“A bookworm…” Abigail Grant frowned again. She herself was a talented woman, the granddaughter of Prime Minister Edward Grant. Because of her intelligence and literary talent, she was highly valued by the Empress and had overseen the drafting of imperial edicts in the palace for many years, earning the title ‘Female Prime Minister’—truly a woman of extraordinary talent. But that didn’t mean she liked bookworms. A scholar and a bookworm were different: the former was elegant and charming, the latter simply annoying.

“Why is he a bookworm?”

“I heard he’s been reading since childhood, hiding in his room every day reciting the Four Books and Five Classics, reading and writing, but he has no talent for business. After his father died, he still made no effort to improve himself, spending his days bobbing his head and reading for pleasure. As a result, Ruchun Restaurant’s business plummeted, and it’s now deserted. They say the restaurant is so poorly managed it can’t keep going any longer.”

Abigail Grant couldn’t help but get annoyed and said, “Such a person—incapable of carrying on the family business, unable to secure his own livelihood—truly laughable, just a fool, not a real scholar at all. Anything else?”

“There’s more…” The eunuch hesitated, not daring to speak for a long while.

Abigail Grant had already lost all interest in Ruchun Restaurant, but seeing the eunuch hesitate, she couldn’t help but press, “If you have something to say, just say it.”

“There’s also the food there—it’s terrible. I asked around with the neighbors and nearby diners, and they all said starving to death is a small matter, but eating the food made by that Qin fellow is a real sin. It’s not even as good as pig slop. Last month, someone took a risk and ate there, and from inside the food… they found…”

“Enough.” Abigail Grant didn’t need to hear more to know what the eunuch was about to say. She couldn’t help but feel nauseated and snapped, “You really don’t know what’s appropriate. Even things you shouldn’t say, you say.”

The eunuch looked aggrieved and said, “It was elder sister who told me to say it just now.”

Abigail Grant couldn’t help but feel stifled. She sighed and said, “This is truly a hardship. His Majesty is asking about Ruchun Restaurant, and that restaurant… is just a nuisance.” She impatiently waved her hand at the eunuch in front of her, “Leave.”

Immediately, she furrowed her brows, propped her chin with her jade-like forearm, her face full of distress.

She was like a worm in His Majesty’s belly—knowing his every thought. Since His Majesty had asked about Ruchun Restaurant, in reality, he was asking about the Crown Prince Benjamin Thompson. That made the matter far from simple. No matter what, she would have to make a trip to Ruchun Restaurant.

“Hmm, I’ll go tomorrow. Better fill my stomach before I go.”

……

Perhaps the previous reputation was too terrible, but even after reopening for several days, there were still no customers.

The only customer was a freeloader—William Clark. This guy cared a lot about Brian Carter’s business. He fancied himself as loyal and righteous, and had given Brian Carter plenty of ideas. For example, he had dozens of good-for-nothing friends and wanted to bring them all over to freeload as well. Brian Carter was so scared his liver trembled. After a long while, he realized that despite all his reading, he couldn’t find a single word to describe this shameless fellow. In the end, he bobbed his head and said, “I have never seen anyone so brazen and shameless.”

David Carter followed Brian Carter every day to learn how to cook. Since there were no customers, they practiced dish after dish repeatedly, and gradually, the results started to look decent. Especially the minced pork with eggplant—aside from not quite mastering the heat and cutting the eggplant a bit too thick, it was passable.

But all this practice wasted a lot of ingredients. Brian Carter didn’t mind. He couldn’t cook personally every day—good knives should be used for important tasks, so David Carter needed to be trained up.

Today was bright and sunny, the sun warm and pleasant. It was said that in March, there would be a temple fair at the Confucian Temple by the Yi River, making the area lively. As a result, business at the restaurant was even worse. Brian Carter leaned against the counter, dozing off. Such a decadent life was truly annoying, but… might as well take a nap first.

By mid-morning, in a daze, Brian Carter’s sharp ears caught the sound of footsteps.

Brian Carter was excited. Yesterday, he had dragged a merchant inside, even promising him a 20% discount. Beside him, William Clark with his fierce face, had hidden a stick up his sleeve, letting the tip show just a little. The merchant was so frightened he trembled, nervously entered the shop, ordered two small dishes, but before the food was served, took advantage of Brian Carter being busy in the kitchen to slip away! This left Brian Carter frustrated for quite a while.

Now, these footsteps signaled the second customer at Ruchun Restaurant. No… judging by the footsteps, there was more than one customer—there were many, many of them.

Brian Carter couldn’t help but be moved to tears. Ancestors, bless me! The incense I burned last night has worked—real customers have finally arrived.

But he told himself not to panic, not to get excited, not to show any unusual reaction. Don’t scare the customers away. Stay calm, be composed, act as if nothing is out of the ordinary. With business at Ruchun Restaurant ‘this good’, would he care about just one customer?