Opening a Restaurant in Ancient Times

Lin Jiqing, who had trained under a master chef, wakes up in another body: a young man about to be sold by his own father and stepmother as a concubine to a wealthy family.

Certain he is straight, Lin Jiqing is furious. He asks the clan elders to witness his separation from the two heartless parents.

With his late mother’s dowry and his share of the family money in hand, he cracks the whip. His donkey cart rolls away from the prefectural city in a cloud of dust, bound for the maternal grandparents who adore him.

But the household is in chaos

His merchant uncle has been “killed by bandits.” His grandmother collapses in grief at the sight of her son’s body. A creditor has come to drag away his cousin, who isn’t even fifteen, to serve as a concubine. His aunt is torn between appeasing her mother-in-law and pleading with the creditor…

“Enough!” Lin Jiqing snaps, bringing the farce to a halt.

“Help Grandmother back to her room and find a doctor to examine her.”

“Since Uncle was ‘killed by bandits,’ the steward and I will go to the county yamen and ask the magistrate to see that justice is done!”

“Repaying a debt is only right. Show me the loan agreement or receipt. Even if my Lin family has fallen on hard times, we still have this house to sell. Why drag my cousin off as a slave? That’s robbery, and you can come explain yourself to the authorities too!”

After a trip to the county yamen, Lin Jiqing becomes the family’s mainstay. He arranges to sell the old house to pay off several hundred taels in debt, then moves the whole family into the shop his mother left him.

After getting everything in order, he opens Four Seasons Eatery.

For breakfast, he sells delicate soup dumplings and cloudlike wontons.

For lunch, he offers seasonal stir-fries: more than a dozen meat and vegetable dishes at reasonable prices, with customers free to choose what they like.

Scholars tend to order two meat dishes and two vegetable dishes. The colorful, glossy food looks elegant served on the fine Four Seasons porcelain plates.

Ordinary folk and traveling merchants prefer two meat dishes, one vegetable dish, and a soup. For the price of one or two dishes at other restaurants, they can get so much here, and every dish is more delicious than the last!

Villagers visiting the city never forget to bring home a meat dish and two vegetable dishes, delighted to treat their families to a better meal.

Wealthy households also hire Lin Jiqing to cook for their banquets.

Spring, summer, fall, and winter come and go, bringing sweet, sour, bitter, and spicy seasonal delicacies. This little eatery sees all kinds of customers come and go.

A household full of young men and elders is bound to attract attention.

After some thought, Lin Jiqing loads a cart with things for the county deputy: homemade vinegar, homegrown vegetables, and a hen he raised himself…

The county deputy smiles faintly. “Do you know how bribery is punished?”

Lin Jiqing blinks guiltily. “How could this be a bribe? I only want to thank you for your brilliant handling of the case and for punishing the bandits who killed my uncle. I know you’re an incorruptible man, so all I can offer is a few inexpensive tokens of thanks. Or is there something you’d like?… It’s not a bribe!”

“Something I’d like?” Lin Jiqing hears him chuckle. “I’ll take it myself. You may go.”

Before Lin Jiqing can figure out what he means, he heads off with another cartload of things: a goose, venison, and animal hides, the county deputy’s “return gifts.”

Later, on their wedding night, Lu Minzhou gazes at him with a smile and kisses him gently. “If there’s something I want, I’ll marry you for it.”

Lin Jiqing is so dazed by the kiss that it takes him a moment. W-wait! Is that what you meant by “marry”?

A deceptively cold, murderous top who is warm only to his beloved X a sunny, sweet-looking bottom with a dark side. Older top, one-on-one, both virgins, happy ending, and childbearing later on.

[Reader’s Guide]

① A slow-paced daily-life story about the protagonist making a living in an ancient setting and building a good life with family and friends.

② The dynasty is fictional. Please take all worldbuilding as it appears in the story and don’t overanalyze it.

③ There are side couples, mostly male-and-ge’er pairings. One-on-one, both virgins, happy ending.

④ The story expands from the county town to the prefectural city.

⑤ Maliciously taking things out of context, fabricating complaints, insulting the protagonist or author, and shipping characters in ways that go against the story will all result in comments being deleted.

Theme: Build a life with your own two hands