Chapter 311 - 140: A Chinese and Western Pastry Duel Initiated by a Socialite

Chapter 311: Chapter 140: A Chinese and Western Pastry Duel Initiated by a Socialite

As for what "good-looking" meant...

After returning to the company, Su Chen spent a long time thinking about the new order. He mulled it over and over until it was nearly midnight, when he finally had Bai Xiaobo log in to the product manager’s WeChat on the company’s computer (their only one).

To be honest, Su Chen didn’t quite grasp what "good-looking" really meant. What exactly counted as good-looking?

In Chinese cuisine, the term "good-looking" is roughly equivalent to the "color" aspect of "color, aroma, and taste." In other words, a dish must look appetizing at first glance. That’s what it means to be good-looking.

The simplest example would be one of the 30 home-style dishes Su Chen offered: Fish-Fragrant Shredded Pork.

This dish, it has to be said, is one of the rare ones where appearance is even more important than flavor.

When made by a good chef, one look at the finished dish makes you want to immediately order a serving to eat with rice. If it’s made poorly... the color is just... indescribable!

’So the first requirement is that it has to be "good-looking." Does that just mean the colors need to be appetizing?’

Su Chen went to the office area, logged into Bai Xiaobo’s work WeChat, and found the client’s information.

He wanted to find some clues in her Moments.

"Zhang Jiayi?"

Su Chen subconsciously read the name aloud. It was rare to see someone use their real name for their WeChat account. And although her profile picture had a bit of an "internet celebrity" vibe, he could tell it was really her.

’It’s a girl. Let’s check her Moments.’

Su Chen then opened the customer’s Moments. Fortunately, it wasn’t set to "Visible for 3 days only"; her entire history was public.

The first post that caught his eye.

[Ugh! This boss’s business is too good! Guess I’ll have to wait a little longer for the Stir-Fried Yellow Beef I wanted to eat today~]

Seeing this post, Su Chen couldn’t help but smile. As he’d suspected, she must have seen the sign hanging on the side of his food truck while he was running his stall. And, unsurprisingly, she was a "little rich girl." An ordinary person wouldn’t just order a custom five-thousand-yuan lunch, even if they saw the sign.

He continued scrolling down, and the subsequent Moments posts soon confirmed his suspicions.

It was a nine-photo grid post.

[Today’s afternoon tea: Flew to Shanghai with my bestie just for this... Best friends forever~]

The nine-photo grid was filled with a set of exquisitely beautiful pictures of an afternoon tea.

It was almost all pastries. Some were Italian pastries that Su Chen recognized, some were more common Western-style pastries, and then there were a few cups of reasonably well-made coffee.

A few of the photos also casually-on-purpose captured her Valentino shoes and stockings.

The last picture was ostensibly a shot of the restaurant’s interior, but in the bottom-right corner, the receipt for the afternoon tea was "accidentally" captured.

7,820 yuan!

’So she’s a socialite...’

Su Chen, who knew a thing or two about luxury goods, pretty much understood the situation the moment he saw those high heels.

When Valentino and a Bulgari restaurant appeared at the same time, it was without a doubt the classic style of a socialite.

A truly wealthy woman might go to Bulgari, but she definitely wouldn’t wear something like that.

’So for this customer, deliciousness is secondary. The top priority is that it has to be good-looking. And the real purpose of "good-looking" isn’t to be appetizing.’

After looking through a few more of her Moments, Su Chen finally understood. There was only one purpose for the food to be "good-looking": it had to be something she could take pictures of and post on her Moments.

That was all.

’In that case...’

Su Chen returned to his office, quietly settled into his lounge chair, and opened the Chinese Cuisine Collection—Remnant, which he hadn’t looked at in a long time.

Western desserts?

Coffee?

He had to admit, Western desserts were a cut above when it came to photography. Pictures of them just gave off a high-class vibe.

But he also had to admit something else.

In that respect... Chinese pastries were way more badass. It’s just that most of them were lost to time now, which was fucking frustrating!

But just Chinese pastries wouldn’t be enough.

In a country that had studied the culinary arts to the point of near-perfection, a trivial matter like appearance was never an issue!

Su Chen typed a message into the WeChat chat box and sent it to her.

"Hello, I’m the owner of Meiweilai Company. After careful consideration, we can fulfill your order. However, your budget isn’t quite enough, and neither is the amount of time you’ve given us."

Now that Su Chen fully understood the client’s needs, he had a general direction in mind.

If he wanted to achieve the ideal effect he envisioned, a five-thousand-yuan budget would mean the gains wouldn’t be worth the effort.

Unexpectedly, even though it was already eleven o’clock at night, she replied almost immediately after he sent the message.

[Zhang Jiayi: The owner? Okay! I waited for a really long time at the Pedestrian Street today, but the line was so long. Are you going to be at the Pedestrian Street stall tomorrow?]

Su Chen felt his brain shrink.

’I’m fucking telling you the budget isn’t enough, and you’re asking me if I’m setting up the stall tomorrow?’

’Is that a response a carbon-based lifeform would even come up with?’

Fortunately, she quickly realized her mistake and sent another message.

[Zhang Jiayi: Five thousand isn’t enough? If it’s not enough, how much do you think would be appropriate?]

「Meanwhile」

Zhang Jiayi, who was back home, was doing her comprehensive, pre-bedtime skincare routine.

She was a little surprised when she received the message, but when she saw it was actually from the owner, Zhang Jiayi practically leaped to her feet!

’The owner of Meiweilai Company is talking to me?’

Her mind couldn’t help but conjure the image of a figure she had only seen a few times but who had left an exceptionally deep impression.