â`
The Qian Family knew their limits and retreated, so they hadnât troubled him for many days.
Mo Hua was happy for the break and started to continue with his own affairs.
The Refinery Shop and Alchemistâs Business had been established, so he didnât have to worry about them anymore, and there was another matter he had wanted to plan for a while.
One afternoon, An Xiaofu came over to eat again.
He was drinking wine, eating meat, and chatting with everyone.
Perhaps inheriting his motherâs talent, An Xiaofu had a strong ability to listen to gossip and to gossip himself.
When he listened, people loved to talk; when he talked, people loved to listen.
Mo Hua waved him over.
Seeing this, An Xiaofu was slightly taken aback, but then his expression brightened, and he scurried over immediately.
When he got close, he saw that there was nothing on the table in front of Mo Hua and couldnât help but look puzzled:
âNo food?â
Mo Hua felt helpless; it seemed An Xiaofu thought he had been called over for foodâ¦
âHave you decided what you want to do?â Mo Hua asked directly.
An Xiaofu sighed, âNot yetâ¦â
Mo Hua asked, âDo you want to open a Food Building?â
âFood Building?â An Xiaofu was stunned for a moment, âBut our family already has a Food Buildingâ¦â
âA different kind.â
An Xiaofu furrowed his brow, thought for a long time, but still couldnât figure out what could be different.
âArenât all Food Buildings more or less the same?â
âThe Food Building you open will be your own.ân/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
âMy own?â
After thinking about it, An Xiaofu had a sudden realization and jumped in shock, âAre you suggesting I kill my father and take over the familyâs Food Building for myself?â
Mo Hua also jumped in shock, âHow did you even come up with that ideaâ¦â
âA few days ago, a merchant passing by told me so after I treated him to a drinkâ¦â An Xiaofu whispered to Mo Hua:
âHe said that a son secretly killed his father and took over his fatherâs Tao Cultivation properties without leaving any trace. If it wasnât for the son spilling the beans while drunk, nobody would have knownâ¦â
Mo Hua sighed, âYou donât need to kill your father.â
An Xiaofu heaved a sigh of relief and patted his chest, âThatâs a relief, thatâs a relief.â
Mo Hua continued, âYou should open a Food Building according to your own tastes.â
âMy own tastes?â
An Xiaofu was still somewhat confused.
âDo you like eating here?â
An Xiaofu nodded.
âDo you like listening to stories?â
âI do.â
âDo you like the monster meat served here?â
An Xiaofu nodded even more vigorously.
âDo you understand now?â Mo Hua asked.
An Xiaofu sort of understood now, and his eyes gradually lit up, but he still expressed his doubts:
âBut I have nothing.â
âWhat do you need to open a Food Building?â
An Xiaofu counted on his fingers, âYou need Spirit Stone, a small building, Meal Masters, recipes, stoves, and staffâ¦â
âIâll handle the stoves, you can get recipes from my mother, and you can ask Old Master An for Spirit Stone, premises, and staff.â
âMy grandfather?â
âYeah.â
An Xiaofu timidly said, âMy grandfather might not agreeâ¦â
âHow will you know if you donât ask?â
âButâ¦â
âDo you want to open this Food Building?â Mo Hua asked.
An Xiaofu tried to imagine it as Mo Hua had described and nodded earnestly, âI do!â
âIf you want to do it, you have to put in the effort to make it happen.â
An Xiaofu felt a bit scared when he thought about his grandfather.
So Mo Hua said, âThe more you fear something, the less you dare to do it, and the less you do it, the more you fear.â
An Xiaofu mumbled something, unsure of himself.
âWill your grandfather hit you?â
âNot usually, but my father willâ¦â
âAre you afraid of your fatherâs glare?â
An Xiaofu nodded.
âThen pretend your grandfather has already glared at you and beaten you up, and then you go and talk to him.â
An Xiaofu was stunned.
âHeâs already glared and beaten you; what more is there to fear?â
An Xiaofu had an epiphany and suddenly felt less afraid, âIt does make senseâ¦â
Mo Hua patted him on the shoulder, âIf you donât work hard now for the things you like, you will regret it later.â
An Xiaofu felt a surge of boundless courage and nodded seriously.
But the courage dissipated as soon as he got home.
Thinking about his grandfather and father, he instinctively felt fear.
What exactly he feared, he couldnât say, but he was very afraid.
An Xiaofu couldnât eat and couldnât sleep at night; he wanted to go to Moâs restaurant to relax but felt guilty and too ashamed to face Mo Hua.
Mo had encouraged him so much, yet he was backing out, which made An Xiaofu feel very guilty.
An Xiaofuâs mother saw him like this and was very worried:
âI told you to eat less, not to stop eating.â
An Xiaofu whispered, âMother, itâs not thatâ¦â
âHave you been troubled by something these past few days?â
An Xiaofu couldnât bring himself to say it.
Unable to guess her sonâs troubles, she could only say, âYouâve got to eat up, you need strength to think.â
An Xiaofu had no appetite initially, but after a few bites, he suddenly regained it and ended up eating voraciously, filling himself up.
After eating, the vanished courage suddenly came flooding back.
An Xiaofu said with a tragic face, âMother, Iâm off.â
His mother watched, puzzled by her childâs behaviorâ¦
Filled with a resolve to face death, An Xiaofu walked down the long corridor and finally arrived at Old Master Anâs study.
That walk almost drained all his energy.
An Xiaofu stood for a long time, gathering some courage, before he gritted his teeth, closed his eyes, and crossed the threshold of the study.
Old Master An had known his grandson was coming for a while.
When he was little and carefree, Xiaofu often ran here to play on his own.