Chapter 39 - Set a High Price and Refuse to Bargain

Chapter 39 Set a High Price and Refuse to Bargain

The customers could not believe their eyes. They rubbed their eyes hard to make sure that they were not hallucinating.

The meatball had jumped just now!

They instantly became excited. All of them stood up and craned their necks to stare at the remaining two beef meatballs in the bowl.

“How can those meatballs be so bouncy? It’s impossible, right?”

“The chef probably pounded the meat paste for two hours just for this effect. He’s awesome!”

“Am I seeing things? How can the gravy in it squirt so far away? Is there a water pipe in

it?’

“It smells so good. Why does it even have a hint of a seafood smell too?”

Xu Yuan had been waiting for someone to ask the question. He scooped up a meatball and used his chopsticks to cut it in half, revealing the filling in the middle.

“This is the filling made by top-grade grouper mantis shrimp. The taste is fresh, tender, and smooth. Everyone has seen the process just now. These Pissing Beef Meatballs were made by hand without any additives. I have simply used the simplest method to adjust the freshness of the beef and shrimp meat to the extreme!”

“Pissing?” Wei Heji mocked, “Why use such a vulgar name?”

Xu Yuan looked at Wei Heji as if he was looking at a clown and explained calmly, “Because the filling is made from top-grade mantis shrimps. Everyone must know that the mantis shrimp is also known as the pissing shrimp in some places. On top of that, the beef meatballs come with gravy. When you take a bite, the gravy splatters everywhere, hence the name.”

“Wow–” After listening to his explanation, the customers burst into thunderous applause.

The name of a dish that had meaning and reason was more compatible with the quality of a high-class restaurant.

The sweet and fresh taste of the meatball was still lingering between Zhan Long’s lips and teeth, and it was almost like he could feel the same tender texture at the tip of his teeth. As the previous head chef of the Royal Court Banquet Restaurant, he had eaten all kinds of delicacies, but he was still deeply impressed by the seemingly ordinary beef meatballs!

He nodded approvingly behind Xu Yuan, and saw the shadow of his Master in the latter. Knowing that he was not as good as Xu Yuan, Zhan Long lowered his head to wipe the corners of his eyes with gratification because he was sure that in Xu Yuan’s hands, the Royal Court Banquet Restaurant could definitely be restored to its past glory!

Just as he was looking forward to the future, some of the customers were eager to have a taste. They raised their hands and asked, “You’ve been saying so much, but just how much are your meatballs? Give me a bowl first!”

“I want one too! I want one too!”

“Give us a bowl with a few more meatballs too.”

The customers’ eagerness toward the meatballs was no less when compared to their eagerness toward the Beside-yourself Rice. On top of that, they had watched as the Pissing Beef Meatballs were pounded and made, which made them even more curious about the dish.

Their reactions made Xu Yuan very satisfied. The corners of his lips curled up slightly, and he stretched out a finger and said loudly, “188 yuan for each meatball!”

Hearing this price, Zhan Long felt as if a mouthful of blood was stuck in his throat, and he couldn’t help but cough due to choking on his saliva.

“Cough, cough, cough!” He walked to the side of Xu Yuan and asked in a low voice, “Ahem, young master, isn’t the price too high?”

The Royal Court Banquet Restaurant had sold meatballs back when it was at its peak too. Although the meatballs then were not beef, the Lion’s Head was also a traditional delicacy that was challenging to a chef’s skills. Even though the Lion’s Head took a lot of time and effort, it had only been sold for 200 yuan a bowl, where there were four fist-sized meatballs in each bowl.

Xu Yuan’s Pissing Beef Meatballs were only the size of ping-pong balls, yet to think they were sold by the balls! On top of that, each meatball was 188 yuan! Zhan Long did not even dare to think about such a thing!

“Of course,” Xu Yuan replied in a low voice. “You’ve seen how troublesome it is to make meatballs. If I don’t set the price higher, do you believe that my hand will be crippled at the end?”

Zhan long nodded thoughtfully. He felt that Xu Yuan’s words were very reasonable. The Pissing Beef Meatballs tasted really good, anyway, so it was only a matter of time before they would attract customers. Setting the price higher should not be a problem.

However, he still did not dare to face the surprised faces of the customers, so he simply silently retreated to the side.

Wei Heji was amused by the price that Xu Yuan had set. He held the spoon and scooped the last meatball that was in the bowl.

Suddenly, Xu Yuan appeared beside him and hit the back of his hand with his chopsticks, which made Wei Heji drop his spoon to the floor and shake his hands from the pain.

“Young master, what are you doing?!” Wei Heji said angrily.

Xu Yuan said coldly, “Why are you counteracting my effort? One is enough. Yet you want to continue eating?!”

Wei Heji was speechless. He pointed at himself and then at the bottom of the table.

He felt that Xu Yuan was probably blind. Everyone had seen how the meatball had rolled to the bottom of the table. He had not tried the meatball at all. How could Xu Yuan say such words without even batting an eyelash?!

Without waiting for him to defend himself, Xu Yuan turned around and said to the customers, “Dear customers, if you want to try it, please make a reservation with our head chef. The number of meatballs available is what all of you have seen today. First come, first served.”

It was the familiar hunger marketing and the familiar rigid rules again. No discounts and no gifts were offered. Not only was Xu Yuan full of confidence, but he had forcefully even set a frightening price for the beef meatballs. He was too willful!

The same scene played out again. The customers in the shop looked at each other, their faces full of desire for the Pissing Beef Meatballs, but no one dared to be the first to try it. After all, 188 yuan per meatball was beyond imagination, so they wanted to first observe with caution the reactions of others.

At this time, the people outside the door who had been watching the show entered.

They had stood at the door and watched the people in the restaurant eat the Beside-yourself Rice, and they had also watched Xu Yuan make the beef meatballs. After watching for two hours, the chaotic scene that they wanted to see did not appear, and they were tired and hungry. If they didn’t enter any time soon, they might not even be able to have a mouthful of soup.

A refined man wearing gold-rimmed glasses stretched out two fingers and said, “One portion of the Beside-yourself Rice and one portion of the Pissing Beef Meatballs, please.”

Then, under everyone’s gaze, the man carried his bag and sat alone in a corner, quietly waiting for his food to be served.

Once someone took the lead, the others seemed to have gained some inexplicable courage. They walked in with their heads held high and their chests puffed out. They ordered the same meal as the man as if they were ordering a set meal before sitting at different tables in the restaurant, looking calm as if they had not been the ones who had stayed at the door to watch the show just now.

The customers in the restaurant were unwilling to be outdone. Peng Chun and Guang Ni were more than eager to try the new dish of the Royal Court Banquet Restaurant before the other party.

“Uncle Zhan, let’s start serving,” Xu Yuan picked up the big basin containing the beef meatballs and called Zhan Long back to the kitchen to help. As they walked, they chatted, “I just found a few small bowls in the kitchen that are very suitable for the beef meatballs. The size is just right for one…” Wei Heji watched anxiously as the basin of beef meatballs slipped away before him. Not only did Xu Yuan not give any to him, he even used his status as a superior to suppress him!

This was the last thing he wanted to see. Once Xu Yuan started to feel that he could control the Royal Court Banquest Restaurant, it would not be easy to fool him again in the future!

He glanced sinisterly in the direction of the kitchen. While he was preparing the bowls for the new customers, he was thinking about how to deal with Xu Yuan. He could not let him do whatever he wanted!

After a while, the meatballs and Beside-yourself Rice were served. The customers couldn’t wait to taste the Pissing Beef Meatballs.

With his hands on his waist, Xu Yuan looked at the customers’ happy expressions with satisfaction. He couldn’t help but nod.

At this moment, he saw the man with gold-rimmed glasses who was sitting in the corner take out a lunch box from his bag. He then put the Beside-yourself Rice and the Pissing Beef Meatballs inside, closed the lid, and prepared to leave.