Chapter 199 Rescue! Dare you sell raw twice-cooked pork to me and try it!

Wait until everything from Lu Qin is sold out?

Then it’s our turn?

Is that even something a person would say?

Several stall owners were immediately angry, with the urge to rebel. They had secretly checked the Lu Qin food truck earlier. The ingredients were stacked in boxes, one on top of the other.

Sell out?

By the time Lu Qin sells out, it’ll almost be closing time.

So, what’s the point of even trying?

Looking at the dissatisfied looks of the other stall owners, Qin Hui thought for a moment and said, “If it’s really not working, you could try offering some promotions—like buy three, get one free, second item half price, or giving away drinks with the purchase. There are always ways to survive!”

What Qin Hui suggested was indeed a solution. But the long-time vendors had already thought of it.

Why wouldn’t they have tried promotions? The small lobsters, which normally sold for 40 yuan per jin, were now 75 yuan for three jin!

Grilled skewers were discounted in set meals, with Happy Fatty Water thrown in for free!

The lamb spine, normally 79 yuan a serving, was now only 19.9 yuan, at a huge discount!

The lemon tea—buy one, get one free!

These promotions had already been rolled out, but the profit margins were slim, hoping for increased sales with low margins. Yet, it was still ineffective!

The dominance of Lu Qin’s food stall was too strong. The business just wouldn’t pick up. Additionally, the herd effect—no one would visit the stalls with no customers, and the crowded stalls became even more popular!

Those in drought perished, and those in flood perished as well. At this entire food festival, only Lu Qin had any business, the other stalls had turned into mere background scenery.

It was really frustrating!

“Leader, you’ve got to help us! We can’t even make back the cost of the stall rental at this rate!”

“We are all from Lianhua District, but Lu Qin is from An’nan District. How can we let them dominate like this?”

“Exactly! We have so many famous eateries in Lianhua District. How can we let one outsider trample all over us? It’s humiliating for Lianhua District! As president of the Lianhua Food Association, you’re going to bear the brunt of this!”

Hearing these words, Qin Hui’s face changed slightly.

They weren’t wrong.

Lu Qin’s food stall came from An’nan District, yet it was dominating in Lianhua District, especially during this crucial food festival. It was being broadcast live online.

If the public picked up on this, it could have a major impact on the food culture of Lianhua District. If that happened, wouldn’t Qin Hui, as the president of the food association, be in big trouble?

A cold sweat trickled down his forehead. He looked up, narrowing his eyes at the distant Lu Qin food stall. The popularity was so high, it could easily become a trending topic!

Damn it!

It was like inviting trouble into the house!

Although this food festival had recruited food vendors from all over Jiangcheng, most of the stalls were chosen from Lianhua District. After all, Lianhua District was the host, and its local stalls had priority.

Jiangcheng frequently held food festivals.

One reason was to promote the food culture of Jiangcheng, facilitating communication and development in the food industry. The second reason was to bring a memorable food feast to citizens and tourists.

In previous food festivals, there were always crowded scenes, with customers lingering in front of their favorite stalls, eating, checking in, and taking photos.

During this period, there would always be a few popular stalls that attracted more customers and had long lines. But never before had there been such a situation—except for the prominent Lu Qin stall, all other stalls were deserted.

It was an exaggeration!

This phenomenon must be stopped, or it would become a serious issue. Qin Hui furrowed his brows, his mind racing.

“Leader, how about we kick out Lu Qin’s food stall?”

One stall owner suggested.

“That won’t work!”

Qin Hui waved his hand. Lu Qin had been invited by him personally. There was no reason to kick them out for no reason. Moreover, even if they were driven out, they could just move to the next street and attract all the customers there, leaving this side with no business.

After thinking for a while, Qin Hui suddenly had a flash of inspiration. He motioned for the stall owners to gather around and whispered a few words to them.

The stall owners hesitated for a moment, then nodded. They had no other choice, they would have to make some sacrifices. Qin Hui’s strategy was shared among the stall owners, and most of them thought it was a good idea.

The solution was—find “plants”!

The vendors contacted their friends, relatives, and acquaintances to come and queue in front of their stalls, creating the illusion that their stall also had good business.

In this way, new customers would not mindlessly queue at Lu Qin’s stall. Otherwise, the desolate scene at the other stalls would continue, and no one could save them. The method worked!

Half an hour later, other stalls, except for the “plants,” had gained some new customers. The food festival finally started to look a bit more normal. However, Lu Qin’s food stall was still unusually crowded, continually attracting many new customers.

Although Qin Hui’s strategy was effective in bringing customers to the other stalls, the business wasn’t booming. At best, they might cover the stall rental fees.

Damn it!

The bulk of the profit was still going to Lu Qin’s food stall, the outsider. Qin Hui sat in his office, his fingers tapping on the desk. Lu Qin’s food stall was proving to be a tricky problem.

They were hosting a food festival in Lianhua District, but the An’nan District stall was making a killing here. The stalls from their own district could only scrape by with a little profit to cover the rent. This couldn’t continue.

The first two days of publicity for this food festival were already done, and in the coming days, even more customers would flock in. If they allowed Lu Qin’s stall to continue raking in profits, everyone would know it came from An’nan District, and Lianhua District would end up a laughing stock!

“It looks like I need to call for reinforcements.”

Qin Hui thought for a long time before muttering to himself.

As president of the Lianhua District Food Association, he had some influence in Jiangcheng’s food scene.

He pulled out his phone and called Old Zhan from Niuwai Hutong, the head chef of Siwei Ju, and Chef Qian from Chuanman Lou. After the calls, seeing that they all agreed to help, Qin Hui let out a sigh of relief.

Lianhua District wasn’t short of capable people; now, he would see if Lu Qin could still act so arrogantly tomorrow.

Meanwhile, Boss Lu had no time to care about the operations of other stalls. He was too busy with his own stall. A customer had been waiting for a long time, losing patience, and kept urging Lu Qin to cook faster.

This middle-aged man had been in the queue, smelling the strong aroma, nearly drooling. He watched other customers get their orders and immediately sit down to start eating, which made him even hungrier.

Finally, when it was his turn, he was an impatient person and urged Lu Qin several times to hurry. Normally a patient person, Lu Qin was starting to get annoyed and said, “Sir, if I cook it half-done, the taste won’t be as good. Would you accept that?”

“I accept nothing! Try selling me half-cooked twice-cooked pork, and see what happens!”

This customer was clearly the unreasonable type, and Lu Qin furrowed his brow slightly.

“Sir, you haven’t paid yet. I’m not serving you. Next!”