CHAPTER 819: CHAPTER 720: DISLOCATED LIVES 18

Deng Hao is a big businessman, making a lot of money but with few hobbies. He doesn’t enjoy gambling, doesn’t like brothels, and doesn’t smoke or drink. The only thing he loves is food. He has dined in all sorts of high-level restaurants both in China and abroad.

Originally, he didn’t expect much from this bowl of rice noodles, just hoping it would fill his stomach. To his surprise, the taste of the rice noodles was as good as a five-star chef’s creation, which truly amazed Deng Hao.

Chewing for a while, he relished the flavorful taste in his mouth. He sipped on the soup, finding it fragrant, smooth, and mellow. With his sensitive palate, he could tell the soup had been simmered skillfully for at least a dozen hours. The ingredients had distinct layers, with the seasoning just right, not overpowering or too subtle.

Although Wen Jianyun enjoys gourmet food, he isn’t a glutton and categorizes food into simply delicious, really delicious, or ordinary. Although he always finds his daughter’s cooking so good that he can’t get enough, he never had an experience like Deng Hao’s.

Deng Hao enjoyed the bowl of rice noodles tremendously. After finishing, he drank the soup to the last drop and, savoring the taste, told Wen Jianyun, "Jianyun, my brother, this rice noodle tastes amazing. Where did you get it? Share it with your older brother - such delicious rice noodles are too precious to have only once. Another day, I must take my wife and the old man from my family to try it."

Everyone in the local business circles knows Deng Hao loves food, and he is famous for having a picky palate. Wen Jianyun was surprised by Deng Hao’s praise for his daughter’s cooking, and a sense of pride welled up in him.

With a bit of pride, Wen Jianyun smiled broadly and said, "Brother Deng, it’s not that I don’t want to share, but you can’t buy this rice noodle anywhere. It’s made by my daughter, Shuangshuang, who is concerned about my and her mom’s health, fearing the unhealthiness of food from outside. This is unique to our family. Where else would you find it?"

Upon hearing that the rice noodles were made by Wen Jianyun’s daughter, Deng Hao looked disappointed. As a gourmet, encountering delicious food but not being able to enjoy it regularly is simply torturous.

Thinking about the delicious rice noodles, Deng Hao couldn’t get it off his mind. He felt half-full from that bowl because it wasn’t ordinary food. He kept reminiscing about the flavor.

The more he thought about it, the more he craved it. Deng Hao couldn’t help but consider offering some business concessions to Wen Jianyun, just to occasionally have a bowl of rice noodles made by his daughter.

Some might say Deng Hao is pathetic, but foodies can go to great lengths to indulge their cravings. It could be flying thousands of miles for a bowl of famous local noodles or traveling abroad just for a meal at a high-level restaurant.

Fortunately, Wen Jianyun only intended to boast a bit about his daughter’s culinary talent and filial piety. Knowing Deng Hao’s love for eating, he never planned to use this to make Deng Hao back down on business matters, so he quickly continued the conversation.

"However, you are her elder, and as her uncle, a niece should certainly cook a meal if her uncle wants it. If you truly love your niece’s cooking, why don’t you and your wife, along with the old man from your family, come to my house next Sunday? I’ll have my niece make you a fantastic dinner, and our families can have a nice gathering."

Hearing this, Deng Hao was immediately pleased, "Ah, you truly know me well, my brother. I just love good food. Then I won’t stand on ceremony. It will be quite a task for our niece."

Having had a delicious meal and even arranged for a feast, Deng Hao left in high spirits. That evening, Wen Jianyun happily shared this event with Liu Yun and Wen Shuangshuang during dinner.

Wen Shuangshuang wasn’t surprised at the acclaim for her cooking. In fact, she had restrained herself; if she had divine realm ingredients, she could prepare delicacies that would elevate one’s spirit.

As for cooking, it was a small matter, especially since she enjoyed it. She also had help with tasks she didn’t like, such as washing vegetables and dishes. Indeed, if Deng Hao loved eating so much, then if he particularly enjoyed her dishes, it would benefit the business dealings between Wen Jianyun and Deng Hao.

Time flew by, and soon it was the day for Deng Hao to come over for dinner. The meal was scheduled for the evening, yet early in the morning, Wen Shuangshuang went out, having the driver take her to select the ingredients.

Choosing a variety of vegetables, meats, and seafood, she went home and prepared a full table of dishes herself. In the evening, Deng Hao arrived with his wife and father, and they enjoyed the food immensely. From then on, Wen Jianyun would periodically invite Deng Hao’s family for a meal at their home.

These dinners were purely about enjoying the food, without any alcohol. The connections from the dining table made business matters easier for Deng Hao and Wen Jianyun in their collaborations.

Wen Shuangshuang felt these dining-table connections were fantastic, suggesting to Wen Jianyun and Liu Yun that they could invite their important clients home as well. She was confident that her culinary skills could keep anyone from wanting to leave, even forgetting to drink.

After all, drinking too much can harm the body, and enjoying good food is one of life’s greatest pleasures. Anyone, regardless of how much they care about food, can’t resist good cuisine and can find satisfaction and joy from it, which, in turn, can facilitate business dealings.

Wen Jianyun and Liu Yun accepted this suggestion but didn’t want to overburden Wen Shuangshuang. They established a rule: only one guest invitation per week, alternating between Wen Jianyun’s and Liu Yun’s guests each time.

They both loved and pampered Wen Shuangshuang, but after realizing the unexpected benefits she brought to their business, their affection grew to include respect.

Consequently, they no longer dismissed her opinions as unreasonable when she expressed them. For instance, when she wanted to skip grades and take the college entrance exams while just in her first year of high school, they discussed it and decided to go along with her decision.

Wen Shuangshuang also received ample rewards for her culinary help; each client brought a gift when dining. The most precious was a diamond necklace worth over a hundred thousand yuan, given by Deng Hao, the biggest food enthusiast.

He gifted it after Wen Shuangshuang assisted with a grand feast for Deng Hao’s father’s big birthday celebration, which earned Deng Hao significant face and helped him gain another big client who also loved food.

Besides this most expensive gift, Wen Shuangshuang also received numerous other luxury gifts, like various gold and jade jewelry. If she wanted, she could auction them off for enough money to start a business, but she had other ideas in mind for making money.