Chapter 97: Ramsay Master Chef

  All the truffles together weighed less than 100 kilograms, which was definitely not enough to meet everyone's needs. Pierre had to declare again and again that he would auction off the truffles as previously agreed upon, barely controlling the situation. Other Western restaurants were also affected by the shortage of truffle supplies, so the subsequent auctions were very lively. Many chefs were eager to bid, making Xiao Ping, who was watching from the side, laugh with joy.

  All the truffles were quickly sold out, and many chefs were delighted to have snapped up a few kilograms of truffles. Those who didn't get any surrounded Pierre with sad faces, asking him when the next batch would be available. Among them, Ramsay got the most, with six kilograms of white truffles and nine kilograms of black truffles in hand. He carried two small boxes filled with truffles, grinning from ear to ear as if he had picked up money on the road.

  Like Ramsay, Xiao Ping was also delighted. He had just secretly calculated that the black truffles sold for an average of $450 per kilogram in this auction, while the white truffles were sold for as high as $1,500 per kilogram. Although it did not reach the selling price of top-grade truffles, considering that there were only over a dozen chefs participating in the auction this time, such prices were enough to satisfy Xiao Ping. The two types of truffles together were sold for nearly $100,000.

  The most important thing is that through this auction, the reputation of these truffles has been established. It can be expected that next time's auction will definitely have more participants, and the price of truffles will also skyrocket. This is also why Ramsay and others who got the truffles are so happy - they really got a good deal, but they won't be so lucky next time.

  Pierre, who was also tired of being asked by his fellow travelers about the truffles that had not been found, suddenly pointed to Xiao Ping, who was quietly enjoying himself on the side: "Don't ask anymore! All the truffles belong to Mr. Xiao, if you want to know anything, just go ask him!"

  Those chefs were taken aback by his words and then suddenly rushed towards Xiao Ping, surrounding him in the middle and asking all sorts of questions.

  "Mr. Xiao, I am Chef Blake from Rose Garden Western Restaurant in the provincial city. May I ask if I can reserve ten kilograms of truffles first?"

  "Excuse me, Mr. Xiao, when will the next auction be held?"

  "Mr. Xiao, may I ask where your truffles are from? As far as I know, China doesn't produce high-quality truffles!"

  Xiao Ping also experienced the situation Pierre had just faced, and hastily raised his hands to shout loudly: "Please be quiet, I have a few words to say about truffles!"

  The head chef spoke up, and the other chefs quieted down to listen to what Xiao Ping had to say. Under everyone's gaze, Xiao Ping cleared his throat and said: "First of all, I guarantee that from now on, I will continuously provide truffles of the same quality. However, the specific date for the next auction can only be determined after the harvest, and at that time, Mr. Pierre will notify you all in advance, thank you for your support!"

  Xiao Ping's words were like a reassurance to everyone, and they still had the opportunity to buy such good truffles in the future. However, the price at that time would not be so cheap, and it would definitely increase by a lot compared to this auction. But foreigners are quite accepting of auctions as a relatively fair way, and no one raised any objections.

  There were several chefs who still asked Xiao Ping about the source of these truffles, but Xiao Ping just smiled and didn't say anything. After a while, the head chefs saw that they couldn't get any information from Xiao Ping, so they took their leave one after another. The irritable American, Ramsay, however, did not hurry to leave, but instead waited until all the other head chefs had left before coming over to Xiao Ping and saying: "The quality of these truffles is really good, I appreciate it! If you're willing, my magazine can do a special interview with you."

  "What?! Xiao Ping was momentarily stunned and stared blankly at Ramsay, asking: "Can you still do an interview? Are you a chef or a journalist?"

  Before Ramsay could speak, Pierre hastily interjected: "Of course, Mr. Xiao is willing! Chef Ramsay, actually, Mr. Xiao has more than just truffles to offer. His farm also produces many varieties of vegetables and eggs that are quite special!"

  Ramsay curiously asked: "Vegetables and eggs? These are all very ordinary ingredients, what's special about them?"

  Raffles Western Restaurant originally had vegetables and eggs provided by Xiao Ping, and Pierre immediately brought Ramsay to the kitchen, pointing out those ingredients to him. As soon as Ramsay saw these things, his eyes widened instantly. He didn't say much either, and very skillfully chopped up the clean vegetables and put them in a large bowl, then cracked a green-shelled egg into it, quickly making a vegetable salad.

  Ramsay took a bite of the salad and soon showed an expression of surprise, staring at Xiao Ping loudly asking: "Were these vegetables and eggs produced from your farm?"

  "That's right!" Xiao Ping nodded and said: "Many famous restaurants in the provincial capital and Su City have purchased food materials from our farm. Even people from Shencheng have come to seek fame and want to buy a large number of products from the farm. Unfortunately, the farm's production capacity is limited, so I haven't agreed with the other party for the time being."

  Ramsay asked with interest: "Are there also people in Shencheng who come to you to buy ingredients? What kind of people are they?"

  Xiao Ping thought for a moment and replied: "He's the manager of Shen City Dahua Trading Company, I think his name is... Ah yes, Ma Jie."

  "I know this company," Ramsay nodded. "They are famous in Shencheng for operating high-end food materials and have business dealings with the Red House Western Restaurant."

  Pierre chimed in from the side: "Chef Ramsay, if your Red House Western Restaurant needs it, Mr. Xiao can provide some ingredients, right?"

  The Frenchman's last sentence "right?" was of course directed at Xiao Ping. Xiao Ping had been worried about the farm's output not meeting demand, and originally wanted to reject Pierre's suggestion. But he saw the Frenchman constantly winking at him, so he immediately changed his mind and said: "We can barely scrape out a little, but the quantity won't be much, we can only ask Mr. Ramsay to be more forgiving."

  Ramsay also knew that the farm's products were in short supply, and it was already exciting to get a share, nodded repeatedly: "Good, then this matter is settled."

  Xiao Ping and Ramsay exchanged contact information, Xiao Ping promised to notify Ramsay as soon as he had fresh ingredients to pick up. Ramsay told Xiao Ping that he would arrange for an interview as soon as possible and would notify him in advance.

  After handing over these matters clearly, Ramsay hastily left. A famous chef like him is very busy and cannot waste too much time in one place.

  After Ramsay left, Xiao Ping finally had the opportunity to ask Pierre: "Who is this Ramsay? Why do we have to supply ingredients for his restaurant? And what's with the exclusive interview he mentioned?"

  "Ramsay is no ordinary person, he's a big shot in the culinary world. Not only does he have his own chain restaurants in Europe and America, but he also publishes a globally best-selling food magazine." Pierre envied, "Your interview will definitely be published in his magazine, at that time you and those ingredients will be world-renowned!"

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  This morning the network was a bit of a problem, just fixed it, this chapter is a bit late, please forgive me everyone.

  Thanks for "dingfengbo0328", "vanykuo"'s reward.