Chapter 124: Two for You, Eight for Me—A Pleasant Partnership

Wen Yao’s lips twitched; this elder sister really was impatient, she thought with a laugh.

“Take a look first. If there’s anything you think isn’t suitable, we can revise it,” Qiu Rongrong said, pushing the document toward Wen Yao.

Wen Yao picked it up and glanced through it. The terms were standard, just as they had discussed on that day: Wen Yao’s creations would be supplied exclusively to Qiu Rongrong’s Drunken Immortal Tavern. Moreover, if Wen Yao came up with anything new beyond recipes, she had to give Drunken Immortal Tavern priority.

At the end, the document focused on the division of profits, but the numbers were left blank.

“Sister, I’m showing my sincerity here, so if you have any requests, just tell me,” Qiu Rongrong said. The popularity of a single dish had revealed endless possibilities to her. Though Wen Yao was young, she had awakened the fighting spirit in Qiu Rongrong that had lain dormant for years.

Otherwise, she wouldn’t have agreed to this collaboration with so little hesitation.

Qiu Rongrong was straightforward, and Wen Yao saw no need for evasions. She put the document down and said, “You’re forthright, and I’m not one to drag things out. I’ll provide your tavern with two new dishes every month. The profit split: twenty to me, eighty to you. What do you think? I don’t want any of the other earnings from Drunken Immortal Tavern, just the dishes I supply.”

Qiu Rongrong paused. Her initial plan was to pay Wen Yao a set amount per dish, which would have been simpler. She hadn’t considered that Wen Yao might request a share of the profits.

Eighty-twenty, with her taking the larger portion. If every dish Wen Yao provided could be as popular as yesterday’s, there’d be no worry about business for Drunken Immortal Tavern.

It made sense: between a one-time buyout and a steady stream of income, anyone would choose the latter.

But as a businesswoman, she needed to know what she would get by agreeing.

“Eighty-twenty seems to favor me, but all the labor and resources come from my side. I’m sure you know this, but since you’ve made this request, you must have your reasons. Why don’t you share them?” Qiu Rongrong smiled.

Wen Yao was prepared. She replied, “Dishes are easy to imitate. Any experienced chef can replicate them after a few tries.”

Qiu Rongrong nodded; she was well aware of this, which was why she’d questioned Wen Yao’s request.

Wen Yao smiled and continued, “But imitation only happens after you’ve made the dish. People only copy what sells well. Isn’t the basis for imitation your own success?”

“Furthermore, even if someone copies a dish, Drunken Immortal Tavern can launch new ones the following month. In this way, your tavern will always be ahead—both in reputation and flavor. Isn’t that enough to ensure you earn a fortune?”

Qiu Rongrong arched a brow. “You can guarantee my tavern will have new dishes every month? No repeats—since repeats wouldn’t count as new.”

Wen Yao responded confidently, “Of course.”

Qiu Rongrong seemed to still be considering.

“If you’re not convinced, we can try it for two months,” Wen Yao offered. She had discussed this with Wen Xiuyi and the others before leaving home. After all, asking for a twenty percent share right away was a big gamble, especially since she was only ten years old.

She had to give others a chance to see her abilities.

Qiu Rongrong, who had been hesitating, made her decision after hearing this.

“No need to try. It’s settled. Qiaoyan, bring the ink and brushes,” she ordered, her gaze steady on Wen Yao. “I hope you won’t disappoint me.”

Wen Yao hadn’t expected Qiu Rongrong to agree so readily; it caught her off guard.

Since the other party trusted her so much, she would not let her down.

“If you put your trust in me, I will not disappoint you.”

Qiaoyan brought the writing materials. The two of them filled in the missing terms and immediately signed and stamped the document, making it official. At the end, Wen Yao added a clause: if either party breached the contract, not only would they have to return all profits, they would also owe the other party triple the gains as penalty.

In other words, if Qiu Rongrong broke the agreement or ended their cooperation early, Wen Yao would be entitled to all the profits made from her dishes up to that point—tripled. The same applied if Wen Yao broke the contract.

The only difference was that one side stood to lose more money than the other.

Before signing, Wen Yao thought about her family. Wen Nong’s stall would probably continue, and she had to consider her relatives.

“By the way, Sister Qiu, if I let my family use the recipes, that won’t count as breaching the contract, right?” Wen Yao didn’t hide her intentions. She explained that if her family ever wanted to run a small business or set up a stall, it wouldn’t be fair not to let them use her creations.

Qiu Rongrong covered her mouth with a handkerchief and laughed. “As long as your family doesn’t open a tavern to compete with me, it’s fine.”

Wen Yao thought of her family’s current circumstances—opening a tavern? They probably couldn’t even afford to build one.

“Well then, to a happy partnership.” Out of habit, Wen Yao extended her hand for a handshake, but halfway through she remembered the customs here were different. She quickly pretended to smooth out the document and handed it over for Qiu Rongrong to sign and stamp.

There were two copies, one for each of them.

Wen Yao put away her copy, Qiu Rongrong gave hers to Qiaoyan, and seeing that it was still early, invited Wen Yao to look around her estate.

“Since you’re here, you might as well have a look around. I haven’t been back in ages. After marrying into the Xie family, I’ve had few chances to leave the house. The last time I ran into you and your brother was when I took Yier to offer incense at the temple—otherwise, things wouldn’t have turned out as they did.”

Because of that incident, the Old Madam Xie and Xie Yushan were even more determined to keep her away from Yier.

Wen Yao glanced at Qiu Rongrong’s brow, furrowed then relaxed. Now that they were partners, she felt she could give her a bit of a warning, so she wouldn’t fall victim to that little rascal in the future.

“Forgive me for asking, but why don’t you keep the young master by your side and raise him yourself?” Wen Yao’s face was all innocent curiosity, as if she’d merely followed the conversation where it led.

Qiu Rongrong gazed out the window and sighed. “It’s not that I don’t want to.”

Qiaoyan added, “Miss Wen, our lady would love nothing more than to have the young master with her, but the master and the old lady won’t allow it. They…”

She hesitated, glancing at Qiu Rongrong, and seeing she wasn’t stopping her, continued, “They say our lady comes from a merchant’s family and fear she’ll teach the young master to be worldly, causing the Xie family to lose face.”