Chapter 20: Chapter 16.1

Holy fuck, how could there be a stunning beauty in this kind of shady restaurant?? (Part One)

The afternoon is quiet.

Sitting in a small, air-conditioned shop, watching the occasional passers-by through the glass, I could hear the rustle of store clerks sorting out shelves.

It was as if time had stood still.

Such leisurely time is rare, and Ren Xingliu did not feel bored. Instead, he took out his mobile phone, opened a stand-alone game page, handed it to the person opposite, and said with a smile: “Brother, help me pass this level.”

The afternoon’s bright shade was peaceful.

Sitting in the small store with rich air conditioning, observing the occasional pedestrian passing by through the glass and hearing the rustling sound of the staff organizing the shelves.

It felt as if time had come to a standstill.

Such leisurely time is rare, and Ren Xingliu did not feel bored. Instead, he took out his mobile phone, opened a stand-alone game page, handed it to the other person, and said with a smile: “Brother, help me pass this level.”

This kind of leisurely moment was rare, and Ren Xingliu didn’t feel bored either. Instead, he took out his phone, clicked open a single-player game and handed his phone to the other person, saying with a smile, “Gege, help me pass this level.”

He deliberately raised his voice pitch, making his teasing more pronounced.

Bai Juanqiu: “…”

The young master certainly didn’t get any psychological burden from selling good behavior at all.

“Sure.” Bai Juanqiu took the phone and said, dragging out his words, “But there will be an additional cost.”

“What’s that you said?” Ren Xingliu sucked in a cold breath upon hearing this and strongly denounced him, “I didn’t expect you to be this kind of person. What a sordid merchant you are!”

Bai Juanqiu: “…Ahem.”

In terms of the skill to act, Young Master Ren had it by a death grip.

He held his forehead. As he was about to concede, his opponent suddenly reached out with his palm upward, revealing a silver-colored coin.

“As luck will have it, I have money.” Ren Xingliu blinked at him with a smug look. “Will this be enough?”

Bai Juanqiu chuckled and really reached out for the coin, saying seriously, “You’re short, but for you, I’ll give you a discount.”@@novelbin@@

“I’m touched!” Ren Xingliu exaggeratedly covered his mouth with his hand, acting like a female lead in a Korean drama.

Bai Juanqiu was speechless once more. Feeling amused, he shook his head and poked on the female lead’s forehead, starting the game.

The two of them stayed like this, one playing the phone game, and the other one thinking of something to say without paying much heed to what he was saying, most of them were unimportant, topics that didn’t mean much.

“Alright.” The boy looked reluctant to leave, but he nodded and the two of them started packing up.

Ren Xingliu also stretched and said, “We should head out as well.”

Only then did Bai Juanqiu notice that the sky had darkened and was somewhat surprised, saying, “It’s this late already?”

He always has a strong concept of time, so it was rare for an afternoon to pass without him realizing it.

Ren Xingliu patted his shoulder and said solemnly, “This is what it means for trifling destroys the will!”

Just take a look, his rankings in the game have soared to the top five among his friends.

They even have to use a power bank midway!

It was evident how much they had wasted their afternoon away!

Bai Juanqiu, however, didn’t agree with his words and countered seriously, “That’s not true. I clearly earn some money.”

Ren Xingliu mumbled, “…True.”

One yuan was still money.

Xiao Bai Logic Test √

It was a rare occasion for Bai Juanqiu to see Ren Xingliu speechless, which significantly improved his mood. He poked the other’s forehead again and said, “Let’s go.”

However, Ren Xingliu stayed seated and clicked through his phone. “Wait.”

Bai Juanqiu was puzzled by the situation. “Something wrong?”

“I’m looking for a restaurant nearby with a high rating.” Ren Xingliu said, “It’s about time to eat.”

Bai Juanqiu: “…”

Was this the legendary rice killer both in form and soul?

He smiled and said, “Many online ratings are brushed. I know where the good food is around here better than the internet.”

“Oh right!” Ren Xingliu leapt up. “Then what are you waiting for!? Lead the way.”

…

The place where Bai Juanqiu took him was a stir-fry restaurant located a few streets away from Lingde Secondary School.

The owner’s name is Lao Shao, a local aboriginal. The store is his family’s ancestral house. It has little decoration, but it has good taste and affordable prices. He has been in business for more than ten years.

This place was owned by Lao Shao, a local. The restaurant was an ancestral house with little decoration, but the advantage rested in its good food and affordable price. It had been in business for more than a decade.

At this moment, it was dinner time, but Lao Shao was idling his time away, sitting at the cash register by the door and browsing on his phone. When he saw guests out of the corner of his eyes, he shouted like usual, “Welcome… Oh, Juanqiu?”

Recognizing the visitor, Lao Shao’s eyes lit up and he welcomed him, feeling pleasantly surprised, “Why didn’t you tell me you’re in the area?!”

“It was a last-minute decision.” Bai Juanqiu smiled. “I came here with a friend today and brought him along to try your handy work.”

Ren Xingliu showed a standard professional smile. “Hello.”

“Welcome, welcome.” Lao Shao warmly led the two of them inside, sighing with emotion, “In a blink of an eye, it’s been years since I last saw you. You look much more mature.”

“Almost seven years.” Bai Juanqiu said, “I had been kept busy ever since college, so I haven’t had time to come back and visit…”

Lao Shao waved his hand. “I understand.”

During the interval between their pleasantries, Ren Xingliu casually scanned how the restaurant was doing, and he felt somewhat puzzled.

He noticed that the restaurant seemed too deserted and quiet. Logically, this should be the peak hours. Even so, there were only a few elderly customers scattered in the restaurant.

Bai Juanqiu had just told him that during his school years, this restaurant was the most popular one in the neighborhood. But looking at it, had it gone on a decline?

There was a pretty girl with a phone holder in front of her at the corner. She talked to her phone while eating, and occasionally, lifted a plate in front of the camera.

Ren Xingliu immediately judged that this was a liverstreamer, doing her livestreaming right now.

Short-form videos and livestream platforms were fire popping nowadays, with various small content creators everywhere. Many places also hired people to come to their restaurant to promote.

This phenomenon was actually quite common.

What is strange is that this girl looks young and fashionable. It is said that the audience should be biased toward people who like exquisite Internet celebrity shops. She is somewhat incompatible with the temperament of small fry shops. I don’t know why she is doing a live broadcast here.

What was quite strange was that this girl had a young and fashionable appearance. Normally speaking, her target audience would be those inclined to like people promoting exquisite restaurants populated on the internet, making this small stir-fry restaurant somewhat out of place. He wondered why she was livestreaming here.

Her dialogue was also very simple.

“Family members, believe me, this is really delicious!”

“All the ingredients were purchased fresh from the market this morning. Absolutely the freshest.”

Ren Xingliu: “…”

This young lady was really something.

As he was wondering, Bai Juanqiu also noticed the streamer. He seemed somewhat surprised. After looking at her for a while, he asked, “Old Shao, is that Shao Wei?”

“Huh.” Lao Shao confirmed, “Who else?”

Shao Wei was Old Shao’s only daughter. When Bai Juanqiu went to college, Shoa Wei just started senior high school. To suddenly meet again, he almost didn’t recognize her.

“The eighteen changes of a grown woman.” Bai Juanqiu said with a smile, “Shao Wei is a livestreamer now?”

“Can you even call her that?” Lao Shao gestured with his hands and showed a frustrated face, “If you want to put it in a nice way. She is actually just wasting her days away, because she doesn’t have that many viewers.”

He sighed and added, “This child is also stubborn. I have told her many times that if she wants to live broadcast, just go broadcast something else. Things in the store have nothing to do with her. She feels that it is her responsibility.” …”

He sighed and continued, “This child has dead-heart eyes. I have told her many times that if she wants to go into livestreaming, she should go livestream somewhere else. What happened to my restaurant has nothing to do with her, but she insisted on making it her responsibility…”

“Speaking of which.” Bai Juanqiu caught the keyword and asked, “I was just about to ask. What happened to your restaurant?”

He went to school here for many years and knew Lao Shao’s skill very well.

Lao Shao’s craftsmanship is not only top-notch, but also one of the best in the area. Business has always been very good in the past. Even though it’s not as good as it used to be, at this point in time, business shouldn’t be so deserted.

Lao Shao’s chef skill wasn’t top-notch, but it could be counted as first or second in the area. His restaurant had always been blooming. However, even if business wasn’t as flourishing in the past, with the time right now, business shouldn’t be this bleak.

Ren Xingliu also listened curiously.

At the moment of this, Lao Shao’s face turned black like the bottom of a pot. He spat angrily, “This matter, the upcoming talk will have long words…”