Chapter 18: Hot Sales

“Oh, the new grape set. Perfect, my girlfriend loves grapes. Quick, give me a set exactly like that,” the young man couldn’t help but say.

Wei Dehua didn’t rush to have the dessert made. Instead, he walked behind the counter and took out a price list, which he had prepared overnight yesterday. “Sir, because this grape set uses specially cultivated grapes, the price is a bit higher. Please take a look at the price list first.”

Clear pricing, fair to all—that was the most important standard for a shop. Even if anyone who tried this grape set would find it great value, it was still better to explain in advance.

The young man took the price list, and the others nearby gathered around. When they saw the prices on the list, their expressions changed. The crowd erupted, starting to talk.

“I’ve had this grape milk jelly here before, and now it’s almost twice as expensive. And this grape fruit salad—how many grapes could be in it? It’s also so much more expensive now.”

“Yeah, are you trying to cheat us? ‘Specially cultivated’—I think it’s just an excuse. You’re the shop owner, and you keep exclaiming over your own desserts. Isn’t that just praising your own goods?”

“I used to think this shop was nice, but I never expected it to turn into a scam shop.”

Doubts and accusations came one after another, just like when something you usually buy suddenly gets a price hike—it felt really uncomfortable.

The price increases for these grape desserts weren’t just by a little. Even the dessert that used the fewest grapes had gone up by ten or twenty yuan.

Faced with this wave of criticism, Wei Dehua still kept a smile on his face, without any change at all.

As for Zhou Yu, he was still battling with his dessert. He didn’t care about the crowd’s doubts, because only by tasting these desserts could you truly know how wonderful they tasted.

The young man who had first asked for the grape set now seemed a bit unsure. According to the price list, the exact same set in front of him cost more than twice the usual price.

Now he somewhat regretted what he had just said. Although he really wanted to try the grape set, that didn’t mean he was willing to pay such a higher price.

Just like some people had doubted, who knew if these “specially cultivated grapes” were just a trick to cheat people out of their money?

When the crowd’s shouting had mostly died down, Wei Dehua finally raised a hand, gesturing for quiet. “Although the price of the grape set is high, it’s truly worth the money. Talk is talk—what really matters is proof. Sir, you just said you wanted a set. Now, please try the dessert on our table first, then decide whether to buy or not.”

Hearing Wei Dehua’s words, the young man nodded at once. In his heart, he felt the taste of these desserts probably couldn’t make up for the price increase.

Seeing that they could try a taste first, the people nearby also quieted down, ready to see how this young man would find it.

Wei Dehua asked a server to bring a plate. He used a fork to pick up a piece of jelly and spread some grape jam on a cookie, then handed it to the young man.

After taking it, the young man began to taste. He first ate the beautiful grape jelly. When he put the jelly in his mouth and chewed, a strong look of surprise appeared on his face. He sped up his chewing a few times.

Then, without hesitation, he put that cookie into his mouth as well. Now, his face was filled with shock. “This… this grape dessert… the taste is simply unbelievable! So delicious! Give me the same grape set. This price—I think it’s worth it, totally worth it.”

“Okay, no problem, sir. The dessert will be ready soon. Please have a seat and wait a moment,” Wei Dehua said with a smile and a nod. He quietly instructed a server to tell the kitchen to start making the dessert.

The others nearby, seeing this scene, were all stunned for a moment. Were these grape desserts really that delicious? “Shop owner, can we have a taste too?”

Hearing these words, Zhou Yu pulled the plate closer to himself without any hesitation. The young man’s reaction had already given proof. Wanting another taste? No way.

Seeing Zhou Yu like this, Wei Dehua couldn’t help but chuckle. “Everyone, that gentleman has already given proof. Of course, if some of you still don’t believe it, you can wait until others buy the grape set and then decide.”

“However, it’s worth mentioning that these specially cultivated grapes are very scarce. So, the amount of such desserts we can supply each day is very limited. Once the grape ingredients run out, that’s it.”

Wei Dehua’s words left the crowd uncertain and suspicious. A few who couldn’t hold back ordered some grape desserts from the price list. Some only ordered one item, planning to taste how it was first.

Of course, there were others who resisted the urge to try, deciding to wait and see the reactions of those who tasted first.

Not long after, portions of grape desserts were delivered to some people’s tables. After they tasted them, exclamations of amazement echoed throughout the dessert shop.

These reactions made the onlookers unable to stay calm any longer. They came to the counter one after another to buy grape desserts. They were extremely curious inside, and there was also a strange force that made their desire to taste grow deeper and deeper.

However, Wei Dehua stood behind the counter and told these people the grape ingredients had already run out. If they wanted to taste, they would have to wait until the afternoon. At the same time, he explained that signing up for a membership card, depending on the level, could allow a certain number of reservations.

Using a membership card system to lock in customers was a trick many shops tried repeatedly with success. Naturally, they were no exception.

Seeing Wei Dehua’s moves, Zhou Yu felt emotional. There really were a lot of tricks in doing business. After finishing his dessert, he sat in the shop waiting a while until Wei Dehua freed himself from the busy work.

On the way back, Wei Dehua told him that just in that short while earlier, the grape sets had sold for several thousand yuan. And there was still nearly half of the grape ingredients left.

This made Zhou Yu sigh. How wise the decision to split the profits had been. This earned way more than dozens of yuan per jin.

On the road, Wei Dehua asked him if he could supply a bit more each day. Zhou Yu shook his head, saying this grape cultivation method was complex. At most, he could only supply twenty bunches per day.

Although the two grape vines at home could grow dozens of bunches each day, it was impossible to supply them all to the dessert shop. What’s more, the most important thing was that scarcity adds value. If people could eat this grape dessert every day, it would become ordinary.