Divorced and Determined: The CEO's Ex-Wife Fights for Love - Chapter 85

Chapter 85 Diagnosed three issues! He’s raising the stakes!

Shen Muyan turned on the speakerphone, and both Maidejun and Fang Ya leaned in closer.

After looking at the picture of the liver paste soup, Lu Qin quickly pointed out three problems. This stunned Shen Muyan, Fang Ya, and Maidejun.

Even Maidejun could only spot one issue, yet Lu Qin found three right away!

“First issue: the surface of the liver paste is pitted, which suggests it was steamed using an electric steamer.”

This matched what Maidejun had already observed.

“Second issue: the pork liver is incorrect. To make liver paste soup, you need to use fine sand pork liver.”

Maidejun’s heart skipped a beat. The pork liver had already been minced into a paste, yet Lu Qin could tell from the picture that the pork liver was wrong? How did he figure that out? Even with reading glasses on, Maidejun hadn’t noticed a thing.

“Fine sand pork liver?” Shen Muyan asked.

Lu Qin explained, “Fine sand pork liver, also known as yellow sand liver or powder liver, is a special variety of pork liver. Its texture is delicate and tender, making it ideal for liver paste soup.”

“Third issue: the broth is slightly too oily and yellowish. This likely means older chickens or ducks were used to make the stock, or the pork was not lean enough. Such broth tends to be too rich and overpowers the flavor of the liver paste.”

After Lu Qin’s analysis, the trio on Shen Muyan’s end were left in stunned silence.

It was as if Lu Qin had diagnosed the  symptoms of Hu Zhijun’s liver paste soup with pinpoint accuracy, like a doctor feeling a pulse.

Maidejun felt a bit ashamed. He hadn’t noticed the detail about the broth being too yellow and oily. No—he hadn’t even thought it was a problem, he considered it a normal color.

“Sigh! Xiao Shen, now it’s clear your husband isn’t just capable of making liver paste soup, his skills go far beyond that,” Maidejun said with a sigh.

Shen Muyan nodded, turned off the speakerphone, and then walked to the corner of the room.

After a few moments of hesitation, she spoke, “Could I trouble you to come and make this liver paste soup? It won’t be for nothing, I’ll give you a red envelope.”

“Sure,” Lu Qin agreed readily. Not for Shen Muyan’s sake, but for the red envelope.

“Can I ask what’s going on? Doesn’t your hotel have plenty of chefs? None of them can make liver paste soup?”

Shen Muyan briefly explained the situation.

“Is it a big investment?”

“Why do you ask?”

“To determine my worth—it affects the size of the red envelope.”

Shen Muyan furrowed her brows slightly.

Did this man love money that much?

“How much do you want?”

Lu Qin turned to the car salesperson.

“How much is this new M7 Ultra?”

“Sir, this new M7 has four versions…”

“Just tell me the price of the highest configuration.”

“Sir, the top-spec six-seat, four-wheel-drive intelligent driving version is priced at 329,800 yuan. This month’s first batch of buyers can enjoy up to 35,000 yuan in purchase benefits, including a 12,000-yuan upgrade package for interior and exterior accessories…”

Lu Qin put the phone back to his ear.

“President Shen, did you hear that?”

Shen Muyan’s beautiful eyes widened slightly. “You want a car?”

A car worth 330,000 yuan!

“A car in exchange for a major investment—you should come out ahead.”

Taking a deep breath, Shen Muyan recalled that she had mentioned offering Maidejun a handsome reward earlier, which would have been at most 100,000 yuan. Maidejun was a national banquet chef, after all.

But this man was asking for 330,000 yuan right off the bat!

“How can you guarantee that the liver paste soup you make will satisfy them?”

“I can’t guarantee it. But if my liver paste soup can’t satisfy them, no one else can either.”

Lu Qin’s confident tone wasn’t just to reassure Shen Muyan—it was to ensure she would buy the car for him.

What he said was also the truth. With his system-provided, max-level liver paste soup skills, any criticism would be nitpicking at best.

“Alright, it’s a deal. When are you available?”

“Anytime. I can start now.”

“Good. Come to Ourei immediately.”

“I need to buy ingredients first.”

“The kitchen has…”

Shen Muyan’s voice trailed off as she remembered Lu Qin mentioning fine sand pork liver earlier. The kitchen definitely didn’t have that.

Lu Qin asked, “Can I get reimbursed for the ingredients?”

With a cold expression, Shen Muyan transferred 1,000 yuan to him.

“This should be enough. Anything extra won’t be refunded, and if it’s short, you’ll cover it. After buying the ingredients, come to Ourei. The broth will take at least two hours to prepare, so set the meeting for 1 PM.”

After hanging up, Lu Qin immediately paid a 5,000-yuan deposit for the car.

On the other side, Shen Muyan promptly asked Song Xuanxuan to contact Ouyang Lin’s secretary.

Fang Ya walked over.

“Sorted? Yaoyao’s dad agreed to make the liver paste soup?”

“Yes.”

Fang Ya clapped her hands, smiling brightly. “See? I told you he’d help you out. This means he still has feelings for you.”

Shen Muyan shot her a glance and said, “The fee is 330,000 yuan—just enough for a car.”

Fang Ya froze.

“What?”

Meanwhile, Ouyang Lin’s secretary received the call and immediately reported it to Ouyang Lin.

Ouyang Lin was surprised. He had just informed Ourei hotel in the morning, and they had already found someone capable of making liver paste soup?

Tapping his fingers on the desk thoughtfully, he instructed his secretary to respond to them.

Lu Qin took a cab to the East City Farmer’s Market, known for its expensive but high-quality and diverse produce. After purchasing all the ingredients needed for the liver paste soup, he headed to the Ourei Hotel by taxi.

At the hotel entrance, Manager Wang from the F&B department was waiting personally. As soon as Lu Qin got out of the car, Wang eagerly took the bags of ingredients from him.

“Mr. Lu, this way, please. President Shen and the others are waiting for you in the kitchen of the Bauhinia Restaurant.”

“Got it,” Lu Qin replied calmly.

Despite his young and striking appearance, which didn’t fit the typical image of a chef, Manager Wang didn’t question him.

When Lu Qin entered the kitchen, it was bustling with people.

Among them were Shen Muyan, Fang Ya, Maidejun, Xiong Tianmin, Song Xuanxuan, and Hu Zhijun, along with a group of chefs Hu had brought. Even other kitchen staff from different restaurant departments had shown up, either to learn or simply to watch the spectacle.

As Manager Wang escorted Lu Qin in, every gaze immediately turned towards him. Many were surprised to see such a young man being brought in to make liver paste soup, especially Hu Zhijun. Even he hadn’t expected Maidejun to join this event.

Shen Muyan stepped forward and said, “If you need anything, just let Chef Hu know.”

Placing the ingredients on the counter, Lu Qin glanced at the crowd in the kitchen and said nonchalantly, “I need everyone who isn’t involved to leave.”

“…”

Hu Zhijun promptly ordered his team and the other curious onlookers out of the kitchen.

The result was a hallway outside the kitchen becoming clogged with people.

Fang Ya approached Lu Qin with a professional handheld camera and aimed it directly at his face.

“Boss Lu, can I record your process of making the liver paste soup?”

“Feel free, it doesn’t matter to me,” Lu Qin replied indifferently.

Then he turned his gaze towards Maidejun and asked, “Mr. Mai? Why are you here too?”

A few people blinked in surprise.

This young man actually knew Maidejun? Impressive.

Even Hu Zhijun, who had initially dismissed Lu Qin, now took him a bit more seriously. What they didn’t know was that Lu Qin wasn’t fully aware of Maidejun’s prestigious background. He only knew him as an acquaintance through an introduction from Uncle Ge, a fellow culinary enthusiast.

They had exchanged contact information, and to Lu Qin, Maidejun was just a retired elder who often went to the market with his grandson and occasionally stopped by Lu Qin’s noodle stall.

Shen Muyan glanced at the ingredients Lu Qin had brought.

“So this is the fine sand pork liver you mentioned?”

Hu Zhijun froze.

“Fine sand pork liver?”

The term caught him off guard—he had never even heard of such an ingredient before.