Chapter 116: Stop the Car, Quick

Chapter 116: Chapter 116: Stop the Car, Quick

As it turned out, the almighty social media feed wasn’t so almighty after all.

It had been three days since Xu An posted his hiring announcement, but aside from a string of teasing comments like "Awesome!" and "Hahaha," no one had sent him a private message.

In the end, Xu An searched online and found seven human resources companies. After considering factors like reputation and distance, he registered with two of them—one large and one small—and tasked them with helping him recruit.

Besides requiring strong professional skills and an honest, reliable character, the most important thing was speed!

Judging by the actions of the Yipin Xiang Fast Food Restaurant owner yesterday, it was clear that many restaurants had already heard the news and were all rubbing their hands together, eager to make a move.

They might not necessarily be short on chefs, but what if?

Eleven o’clock.

The employees’ lunch break ended, and they all returned to their posts to get busy. Xu An also went over to the second storefront to load the boxed meals onto the small truck.

Suddenly, six furtive figures appeared at the entrance of Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant.

All six were wearing masks to hide their faces, with sunglasses perched on their noses. To top it off, their hair was wrapped up tightly in silk scarves.

Aside from what could be gleaned from their figures and attire—that they were middle-aged women in their forties or fifties—nothing else was discernible.

The woman at the very front looked up at the shop’s sign and slowly sounded out the name: "Xu’s... Fast... Food. This is the place! I’ve told everyone the plan, right? We have to be quiet. Don’t let... don’t let anyone spot us."

The five women behind her nodded in unison and followed their leader into the restaurant.

They had barely taken two steps when Granny Xu called out to them. "Are you here to eat? Come pay here first, then go over there to get your food."

The six women froze. After a moment’s hesitation, they changed direction and walked to the cash register. Leaning close to Granny Xu’s ear, one whispered, "Auntie, does a He Jiaojiao work here? We need to see her about something."

"He Jiaojiao? Who’s that? Never heard of her, never heard of her." The group already looked suspicious, and now they were saying they weren’t here to eat but to find someone. Granny Xu’s first instinct was that they were here to cause trouble for Nanny He, so she waved her hands dismissively.

"You don’t know her? Did we come to the wrong place? Sister He said it was Xu’s Fast Food!" As the group’s leader, she stepped outside again to double-check the address. It was correct. Just as she was about to call the others, she saw the other five women standing together in front of the hot food counter, muttering amongst themselves.

’What in the world are those five up to!’

The leader walked over, a little annoyed. As she got closer, she could hear what they were whispering about.

"Sister Zhou, look, what’s this dish? It looks like that sweet and sour meat... what’s it called again?"

"I think it’s called Sweet and Sour Pork, right?"

"Yes, Pineapple Sweet and Sour Pork! Look, you can even see the pineapple next to it! And what’s this preparation for the potatoes? I’ve never seen anything like it."

"Yeah, but it smells amazing. So savory."

"And this one..."

The leader stood on her tiptoes to peer ahead. She saw the hot food counter was laden with four dishes: Pineapple Sweet and Sour Pork, Shredded Pork with Green Peppers, Stir-fried Bok Choy with Minced Pork, and Crinkle-Cut "Wolf-Tooth" Potatoes.

’Ooh, these dishes actually look pretty good. Very appetizing.’

’No, no! We’re here to rescue Nanny He from her suffering, not to check out the food at this place!’

Just as she was about to call out to them, Zhou Qi suddenly spoke up. "Aunties, there’s soup over here too. Luffa and Pork Slice Soup, it’s really fresh and sweet!"

The moment the lid was lifted, the fresh, sweet aroma of the luffa wafted out, making their mouths water.

They had rushed over right after eating their own lunch, and now, smelling the aroma of the food here, their stomachs couldn’t help but RUMBLE.

"Why don’t we... try it first?" one of them suggested cautiously. "After all, as the old saying goes, ’you can’t judge what you haven’t tried.’ We haven’t even eaten here, so how can we persuade... her, right?"

The other four were already eager to try. Hearing this, they immediately nodded in agreement. Who would’ve thought that when they turned around, they’d see their leader behind them, standing on her tiptoes and craning her neck to get a look.

"I was just seeing what you were all up to! Have you forgotten why we’re here today? You see food and you’re completely mesmerized!" Seeing her chance, the leader immediately went on the offensive and scolded the other five.

"It’s lunchtime anyway, let’s just eat first. One meal won’t hurt anything." The women nudged their leader toward the cash register and asked in a soft voice, "Auntie, how much for a meal set?"

"Eight yuan for three dishes and a soup. Rice is all you can eat."

"Alrighty!" The group eagerly took out their wallets to pay. Suddenly, one of them sniffed the air and asked with a puzzled look, "What’s that smell? Why is it so fragrant?"

As soon as she said that, the others also noticed the wonderful aroma. Looking around, they spotted another table to the left of the entrance with four stainless steel basins on it. The fragrance was coming from there.

One of them went over for a closer look and said in surprise, "Aren’t these braised snacks?"

Immediately, the others forgot about eating and crowded around to see what was going on.

"Oh, they really are braised snacks."

"And the price is pretty cheap. Should we buy some to try?"

After a quick discussion, they each pitched in one yuan for a total of six. They bought a little over a pound of the vegetarian braised items—five yuan’s worth of the original flavor and one yuan’s worth of the spicy kind.

After getting their food, they looked up and saw a poster for apple cider vinegar on the drink cooler.

"Isn’t that that apple cider vinegar? I saw a poster for it at a bus stop. They say it’s good for you, and it’s only one yuan here. Should we get a can?"

Having gotten the full set of everything the restaurant had to offer, the six women sat down together contentedly and began their culinary journey for the day.

And oh, was it delicious!

Anyone sitting near them would have been tempted to eat an extra bowl of rice.

After they had eaten and drunk their fill, the women started chatting. But as they talked, they suddenly realized something was wrong.

’Weren’t we here to persuade Nanny He to mend her ways? How did we end up just having a feast?’

Just then, Liang Dani happened to come over to clear the dishes. The leader of the group stopped her and asked in a low voice, "Da Ni, does He Jiaojiao work here?"

’He Jiaojiao?’

Liang Dani was stunned for a moment before realizing they were talking about Nanny He. "She is, but she’s over at the second storefront."

’Second storefront?’

"Where is this second storefront?" the leader quickly asked.

"Go out here, turn right, and keep walking straight. It’s just a short walk after you go around the corner." Liang Dani finished speaking in a hurry, then took the dishes through the back door to the second storefront. As she handed the dishes to Nanny He, she asked curiously, "Nanny He, did you make plans to go out with friends this afternoon?"

"Huh?" Nanny He, who was washing dishes, looked up with a completely bewildered expression.

"I was just clearing dishes at the other store, and a group of five or six people were looking for you. They even knew your name!"

While Nanny He was still confused, the six women had already rounded the corner. They saw the small truck parked in front of the second storefront and Xu An and Xu Guosheng loading boxed meals onto it. ’This restaurant’s business is really booming!’ they thought to themselves.

Right after that, they saw Nanny He sitting at the storefront’s entrance, washing dishes. The six women looked at each other, stunned. ’So this is Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant’s second location?’

They had just greeted Nanny He when one of them noticed two boxes of fruits and vegetables stacked against a wall inside. They were so fresh and vibrantly green, an utterly delightful sight. ’The quality of this fast-food place’s vegetables is pretty high!’

"What are you all doing here?" Nanny He stopped what she was doing, rinsed the foam from her hands, and stood up to greet them.

Hearing Nanny He’s words, the six women finally realized they had forgotten to put their masks and sunglasses back on after eating! ’She recognized us in a single glance!’

"We were just passing by and remembered you said you worked around here, so we came to see you," they replied awkwardly, quickly changing the subject. "Sister He, are those fruits and vegetables behind you for the restaurant? They look incredibly fresh. Where do you source them from?"

Xu An was about to leave with the truck when he overheard their conversation. He took a few cucumbers from a basket, washed them, and handed them to the women. "These are from the greenhouses in our Xu Family Village. They taste much better than produce from other places. Please, have a taste."

After serving the women, Xu An got into the small truck and left with Xu Guosheng to make deliveries.

As the truck rounded the corner and passed the first storefront, Xu An saw a crowd of people at the entrance, filming with an array of cameras.

Seeing this, all sorts of terrible scenarios flashed through his mind. Xu An quickly shouted, "Uncle Guosheng, stop the truck!"

"Uncle Guosheng, you’ll have to make the deliveries by yourself today. Please ask the delivery riders to help you unload." With that, Xu An tossed his phone to Xu Guosheng, jumped out of the truck, and sprinted toward the first storefront.

As he got closer, he saw that the people were all wearing work IDs around their necks.

"’Hai City Local TV?’" Xu An slowed his pace after reading the words on the IDs, his face a mask of confusion.

’Why would a TV station be filming at my restaurant? What are they shooting?’

’Several food documentaries from his past life came to Xu An’s mind, but the timeline was wrong. Besides, this was just a fast-food joint, famous only among local office workers. It didn’t make sense. How did they find him?’

Just as he was puzzling over it, he suddenly spotted a familiar face in the crowd—Lin Xu Yang!

Lin Xu Yang saw him too and simply nodded with a smile, not saying a word.

Seeing Lin Xu Yang’s smile, the knot of tension in Xu An’s chest finally loosened.

He squeezed through a gap in the crowd to the front, stood before everyone, and put on a big smile. "Hello, everyone. I’m the owner of Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant. May I ask what brings you all here today?"

The team leader, a man named Rogge, was taken aback for a moment when he saw how young Xu An was.

’He knew Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant was a recent startup, but he hadn’t expected the owner to be this young.’

But he quickly recovered and handed his ID to Xu An. "We’re from Hai City Local TV. Because of the recent food poisoning incidents, the food supervision department has partnered with us to produce a documentary series called *Visiting Fast Food Restaurant*. Your restaurant has been selected. We’d appreciate your cooperation."

Xu An took the ID and examined it. ’With Lin Xu Yang here, it’s probably not fake.’

Then he recalled the things Lin Xu Yang had said when he visited his home a few days ago, and it all clicked.

’So that’s what it was! Lin Xu Yang was giving me a heads-up back then! He was just being a bit subtle about it.’

But this wasn’t the time to dwell on that. Xu An immediately returned the ID with both hands, his smile growing even brighter. "It’s a great honor to have the opportunity to participate in the filming of this documentary! Please, just let me know whatever you need from me!"

"Boss Xu, first, tell us about your restaurant’s business model and scope of operations."

"Of course."

Xu An cleared his throat and began to explain the details of his restaurant...

Meanwhile, Nanny He, needing to get back to work, had quickly sent the six women on their way. This time, their "rescue mission" had ended in failure.

As the women were about to head back to the first storefront to get their electric scooters and leave, they saw the large crowd gathered at the entrance. Their interest was immediately piqued. They hurried over to the back of the crowd and pricked up their ears to listen to the conversation between Xu An and Rogge.

After listening for a while, they figured out what was going on. ’Hai City Local TV is filming a documentary at Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant!’

’And the documentary is going to be broadcast on Hai City Local TV!’

The six women grew excited at once. ’This is a great chance to be on camera! We can’t miss it! If we get on TV, we’ll have so much to talk about!’

And so, the six women, who had just finished eating, went back into the restaurant to buy something else. They even occupied the most conspicuous table in the place, waiting for the TV crew to start filming.

...

To prevent word from leaking out and giving other fast-food restaurants time to prepare, Hai City Local TV had dispatched six film crews at once to simultaneously shoot at the six selected establishments.

At that very moment, the other five film crews had also arrived at their respective locations and were beginning their pre-filming discussions with the owners.

Yipin Xiang Fast Food Restaurant, with its twelve chain stores, was, of course, among those being filmed!