My Exclusive Dream World Adventures

Chapter 102: 102 Unlucky Fat Guy
 

Chen Xu was originally busy in the kitchen when he heard what Yanqing said; he suddenly realized.

He had felt something was off about the round-faced man from the beginning. The first time he came to eat noodles, his demeanor wasn’t like an ordinary customer’s—it turned out he was a competitor; no wonder.

In fact, when people talk about century-old soup, it doesn’t mean a pot of soup has actually been stewing for a hundred years. Water and fresh ingredients are added daily.

Every so often, the pot needs to be changed, and the residue at the bottom is discarded. Then, a new batch of ingredients is put in to simmer, and the crux is to add some of the old soup into it. That way, the new batch retains the flavor of the old soup.

It’s said that, in old times, when apprentices at similar noodle shops finished their training, they could take a pot of this old soup with them. When they opened their own shops, it became their foundation.

Of course, all this is something he read on internet forums, so he wasn’t sure about its authenticity.

That round-faced man obviously had his eye on Chen Xu’s old soup. He packed dozens of portions at once, using this soup as a starter to mix into his own freshly simmered soup to enhance its flavor—a rather opportunistic trick.

“Chen Xu, what are you spacing out for?”

Chen Ziqi turned her head and saw Chen Xu standing there, motionless, and she was almost hopping from agitation.

“What do you plan to do about it?” Chen Xu asked her, “Go make a scene at his shop? Or get someone to beat him up?”

“This…” Chen Ziqi paused, realizing that neither approach was appropriate, yet she still said with indignation, “Then we’ll expose him online, let everyone know he’s a thief, a swindler. Make it impossible for his shop to operate.”

Chen Xu shook his head. “That kind of news won’t make waves; it won’t catch on if we post it online, and it won’t really impact his business. Plus, we don’t have any proof. He might even turn around and sue us for defamation.”

“If this won’t work and that won’t work, are we just going to let it go?” Chen Ziqi looked at him annoyed, “Aren’t you even a bit angry?”

“Well, it doesn’t really affect us; we just keep doing our business.” Chen Xu paused before continuing, “Actually, the soup I make isn’t like the others, it doesn’t get better with age. After five days, it’s not fresh anymore.”

Chen Ziqi’s eyes lit up at his last remark. “What do you mean?”

“Let’s just wait and watch him get unlucky,” Chen Xu said.

Once the shelf-life was over and the taste of the soup changed, it would become hard for their business to continue. Even if they hurried to simmer a new pot, it couldn’t match the old soup and they would lose many customers. Once the reputation was damaged, it would be hard to recover.

Chen Ziqi quickly did the math with her fingers, then turned to Yanqing, saying, “You should swing by there more over the next few days, keep an eye on things.”

“No problem, I pass by there every day on my way to and from work anyway,” Yanqing readily agreed. He disliked that fat man from yesterday and was more than happy to see him fail.

…

In the following days, Chen Xu’s life didn’t change much; he went for morning runs, worked during the day, Luo Xiyun was still nowhere to be seen, and after making dinner for Chen Ziqi in the evening, they would open their shop together. They closed up and went home a little after eleven at night.

Everyday, when he ran home, he would pass through that alley, always encountering the schoolgirl who constantly crouched by the utility pole feeding the cats, sometimes using bits of noodles, sometimes small dried fish.

He was curious about the girl, wondering why she didn’t go home every night around seven or eight, preferring to stay there feeding the stray cats.

However, he never approached her to start a conversation, as from the one interaction they had, it was clear she was very cautious of strangers. He still remembered the way she looked at him, cautiously, with a trace of distrust and wariness.

Of course, it was just a mild curiosity, and he knew they were unlikely to have any interaction. Even if they saw each other every day, they would not greet each other, not even making eye contact.

Before he knew it, the weekend had arrived.

In the evening, just as Chen Xu and Chen Ziqi had opened their noodle shop, Yanqing arrived with his girlfriend, unable to wait as he exclaimed, “I’ve got good news, that fat guy’s in trouble.”

“Spill it, what happened?” Ziqi approached with a pot of hot tea, and for the first time, she took the initiative to pour him a cup.

This attentive service satisfied Yanqing, who smiled and said, “Fatso’s place almost got smashed; a bunch of people surrounded the shop. You should have seen the scene. It was truly gratifying.”

“Deserved it,” Ziqi said, feeling particularly vindicated. These past few days, she had been counting the days, just waiting for that fatso to run into trouble.

She eagerly asked, “What exactly happened?”

“It seems a customer found the noodles had a sour taste and insisted the owner explain. That fat lout was defiant, claiming he was just there to cause trouble, and they started arguing right there.”

“That fat lout really hit a snag this time. The customer owns a construction company and was dining with his girlfriend. They lost face and couldn’t let it go. He brought over a dozen people to block the entrance, demanding an explanation.”

Ziqi pressed, “And then what?”

“The fat lout caved in, apologized, and even paid compensation. But I think his troubles are far from over. When I left, I saw officials from the business and health departments there; someone must have lodged a complaint. If they find something wrong and he has to suspend business for rectification, that’ll be interesting to see.”

Chen Xu, listening in the kitchen, started feeling a bit sorry for the fatso.

The soup he brewed would also lose its freshness after a few days and taste slightly off but wouldn’t necessarily go sour. But running into a fussy customer was indeed unlucky.

“By the way, I even took a video; take a look.” Yanqing pulled out his phone, opened the video, and handed it to Ziqi. “Look, there were lots of onlookers too. Anyway, that shop’s reputation is thoroughly ruined.”

The three of them chatted animatedly, and after a few minutes, Chen Xu came over with two bowls of noodles.

Yanqing was surprised, “Hey, boss, we haven’t ordered yet.”

“It’s on me,” Chen Xu said with a smile. Seeing how enthusiastic the man was, he felt he had to show some appreciation.

Upon seeing the bowls full of shrimp and clams, Yanqing exclaimed, “Wow, this is lavish!”

Ziqi said boastfully, “Seafood noodles, deluxe edition, not something just anyone can get. You two are in for a treat.”

“Thank you, boss,” Yanqing told Chen Xu, picking up his chopsticks, “Well, we won’t be shy then.”

More customers arrived soon after. These days, the noodle shop had begun to build a bit of a reputation, attracting regulars. Seeing what Yanqing and his companion were eating, they asked, “Boss, is this a new flavor of noodles? Please give us a bowl too.”

“Sorry, that’s a special version for friends, not for sale.”

The other customers protested, “That’s not fair, you’re treating us differently.”

“Right, you should treat everyone the same in business.”

Ziqi was displeased, “It’s not that we aren’t selling them; they’re just expensive. Fifty per bowl, do you want them?”

“So expensive, are you robbing us?”

Ziqi glared at the person and said, “That’s the cost price. Do you know how much a pound of large shrimp costs?”

Someone couldn’t help but retort, “Little miss, with your kind of service attitude, no wonder your noodle shop is doing poorly.”

“If you dislike my attitude, why do you still come here?”

The person had no response, and everyone else burst out laughing. In reality, many people came here not just for the taste but also enjoyed watching her retort. After all, she was cute, and even though she liked to snap at people, you couldn’t really hate her.