Chapter 445 - 231: Thank You for Your Hard Work, Husband

Downstairs from the company building, two SUVs were parked side-by-side, each costing around a million yuan to get on the road.

If you said such luxury cars belonged to some company executives, that would be easier to believe.

But the owners of these two cars were two drop-dead gorgeous women.

"Honey, take my car~"

Liu Shiwen was the first to link arms with Qi Sheng, placing the key in his palm.

Qi Sheng didn’t mind either way and got straight into the driver’s seat of the Range Rover Sport.

Although she had only gotten the car less than half a year ago, it was very well-maintained.

The small trinkets inside had also been thoughtfully arranged by Liu Shiwen herself.

"Honey, where are we going to eat?"

Liu Shiwen proactively rested her beautiful, stocking-clad legs against Qi Sheng, making it convenient for him to caress them while driving.

"Let’s go to the Zifei at Luhu Lake. I heard business has been great since it opened a few days ago. We’ll go check it out."

Qi Sheng calmly steered with his left hand, his right hand stroking the smooth fabric of the high-end stockings.

"Oh, right! That place is super popular. I heard Huahua and the others went once after it opened and almost had to wait in line for two hours."

Liu Shiwen and the others had followed Qi Sheng to the Capital City, so of course they missed the opening ceremony for the Zifei branch at Luhu Lake.

"Honey, how did Qianqian suddenly get so pretty?"

Liu Shiwen hadn’t given up, still feeling like Qi Sheng must have some secret method.

"Qianqian works so hard applying her facial masks. You’ve only done it a few times, how could you expect the same results?"

Qi Sheng started spouting nonsense.

After all, he was the ultimate authority on the matter.

At worst, he could just give his other girlfriends a small boost.

He had no doubt they’d be tempted.

Just how crazy were women in their pursuit of beauty?

You only had to look at all the female celebrities getting Botox injections to know.

But how could such crude methods compare to the system’s divine workmanship?

...

「Luhu Lake, Tianfu Gourmet Island.」

A courtyard complex in the style of a Western Sichuan residence lay quietly by the lakeside.

A pair of antique stone lions at the entrance looked simple and majestic.

The two Small Seal Script characters for "Zifei" on the door plaque were personally written by Qi Sheng.

Pushing the door open, the design was somewhat reminiscent of the Zifei in Kuanzhai Alley.

The fish-shaped lanterns hanging from the beams, the old artifacts placed along the corridors.

The scent of incense wafting through the air, the sound of a qin from the stage.

The atmosphere was elegant and tranquil, brimming with style.

In the courtyard were two Chinese fringe flower trees.

Their blossoms were like ribbons of brocade, a truly stunning sight.

This Zifei branch at Luhu Lake took nearly half a year to complete.

The renovation costs were as high as 20 million yuan.

And that was after rushing the work to shorten the construction period considerably.

Qi Sheng and his two little secretaries were led on a tour of the restaurant’s interior by a waitress in a blue dress.

The 2,500-square-meter restaurant had two independent courtyards.

It boasted 280 meters of shoreline and 20 private dining rooms, every single one facing the lake.

In terms of dining environment alone, this location surpassed the Zifei in Kuanzhai Alley.

Its location was just a bit remote.

However, good wine needs no bush.

With the popularity generated by the main branch in Kuanzhai Alley,

this Luhu Lake branch had been incredibly popular from the day it opened.

And the restaurant’s quality was worthy of Zifei’s loyal patrons.

Zhou Yang had been transferred here to serve as the executive chef, responsible for creating the 4,500-yuan Master’s Omakase.

Under him were 4 head chefs and 20 senior chefs.

The number of chefs at the Luhu Lake location alone reached 25.

For a high-end restaurant with only 200 seats,

this chef-to-diner ratio was quite generous.

What’s more, all these chefs were at least Elite Level.

Zhou Yang’s promotion to Master Level was paid for using Zhuangyu Catering’s own funds.

The other chefs were all thanks to Qi Sheng’s contributions.

The 4 head chefs were all Expert-level Chefs, responsible for the 3,000-yuan Chef’s Set Menu.

The 20 senior chefs were all Elite Level chefs, responsible for the 1,500-yuan Selected Set Menu.

The Talent Recruitment Cards Qi Sheng had received as level-up rewards were now basically all used up.

Only 10 Elite Talent Recruitment Cards and 3 Master-level Talent Recruitment Cards remained.

Of course, the system also used some creative accounting.

It had refunded him the entire 200 million yuan required to recruit these talents.

And it was pure, after-tax cash.

I have to say, that move by the system was truly generous.

...

"Boss, Private Room 1 just freed up. If you and the two lady bosses would please come this way."

After being notified, the waitress in the blue dress quickly led her boss to the cleaned-up private room.

This Luhu Lake location had 20 private rooms in total.

Rooms 1 through 3 were reserved for high-end clients from major banks.

But they had a minimum spending requirement of no less than 10,000 yuan.

If the party was small, they definitely wouldn’t be able to order the most cost-effective Selected Set Menu.

Even for the 1,500-yuan Selected Set Menu,

all the dishes were personally prepared by chefs at the level of a two-Michelin-star restaurant.

And this Luhu Lake location had a full 20 of these ’head chefs’.

This was the terrifying power of the system’s buffs.

It directly raised a chef’s skill by an entire level.

The four Expert Level head chefs had a +100% Deliciousness buff.

Their culinary skills were in no way inferior to the long-famous titans of the Sichuan culinary world.

As for Zhou Yang, who possessed Master Level culinary skills,

with the help of the buff, he could be called the ceiling of the Sichuan culinary world.

Not a single diner who had experienced the 4,500-yuan Master’s Omakase had failed to shower it with praise.

Being expensive was not a flaw of Zifei.

At the very least, the quality of Zifei’s set menus was absolutely worth the price.

Qi Sheng casually ordered three Master’s Omakase sets, also wanting to see just how far Zhou Yang’s culinary skills had evolved.

Hearing that the boss had arrived, Zhou Yang was suddenly as energetic as if he’d been pumped full of stimulants.

By the end of the banquet, the two little secretaries had nearly bitten their tongues off from how delicious everything was.

"Honey, how come I feel like this place is even more delicious than the one in Kuanzhai Alley?"

Liu Shiwen couldn’t even be bothered to take pictures; every single dish was simply perfect.

"The new generation surpasses the old."

Qi Sheng, of course, knew what was going on. It was all because he’d given them a cheat code.

"Boss, what do you think of my current skill level?"

Zhou Yang ran over, confidently awaiting his boss’s praise.

"Your culinary skills have surpassed even your master’s, but you can’t get arrogant."

Qi Sheng finally gave Zhou Yang a compliment. He couldn’t just keep putting him down.

Hearing Qi Sheng’s praise, the corners of Zhou Yang’s mouth nearly curled up to the heavens.

"Don’t worry, since I’m the executive chef of this restaurant, I will manage the kitchen just as well as my master does."

"I’m confident I can lead the Luhu Lake branch to a three-Michelin-star rating!"

Zhou Yang patted his chest and made a solemn pledge.

"Good. Once you win the three Michelin stars, I’ll send you to Shanghai to manage the Zifei Restaurant at the Banyan Tree."

Qi Sheng wasn’t worried that this Luhu Lake location would fail to be selected by Michelin.

Unless they wanted to attract bad press.

Otherwise, with the quality of Zifei at Luhu Lake,

three Michelin stars were practically in the bag.

When the time comes, armed with the honor of a three-Michelin-star restaurant, he would parachute into the millionaire-packed city of Shanghai.

You didn’t even have to think about it to know the restaurant would be making a killing!

"Thank you, Boss!"

Hearing he could go to Shanghai to be an executive chef, Zhou Yang’s fighting spirit soared even higher.

Unlike his master’s generation,

he was at an age where he loved to show off and yearned for the big city.

Especially after becoming the executive chef here, his annual salary had risen to 5 million yuan.

For the 28-year-old Zhou Yang, it was more money than he could spend.

The luxury mansions he once only dared to glance at on his phone,

now only cost him about two years’ salary.

Zhou Yang attributed all of his changes to his boss’s vigorous cultivation.

His loyalty to Qi Sheng was as clear as the sun and moon.

If he weren’t afraid of the negative impression it would create, he’d even want to post a "Quotations from Boss Qi Sheng" in the kitchen.

...

Having come all the way to Luhu Lake, not making a trip home would be a little hard to justify.

Qi Sheng and his two little secretaries had all been drinking.

So he had Gu Feng drive the car to the Black Jade Island residential complex.

In the living room, Tan Hua was doing yoga with Xu Ying and the others.

Hearing a noise at the door, she ran over in pleasant surprise.

"Honey, you’re back?"

Tan Hua helped Qi Sheng with his shoes and also greeted Liu Shiwen and Tang Qian with a smile.

"Shiwen, Qianqian... huh? Qianqian, you seem to have gotten prettier?"

At first, Tan Hua thought her eyes were playing tricks on her.

But looking closely, Tang Qian’s facial features hadn’t changed much.

Her skin, however, was a whole shade fairer.

As a woman herself, Tan Hua dreamed of becoming more beautiful.

After all, she was the "official" girlfriend, yet her looks couldn’t even compare to latecomers like Qu Man.

Thankfully, Qu Man had a very zen-like personality and didn’t care much for such empty titles.

Otherwise, Tan Hua really wouldn’t be able to sleep soundly at night.

But just because Qu Man didn’t compete didn’t mean others wouldn’t.

Rather than pinning her hopes on others’ sympathy,

it was better to find a way to boost her own competitiveness.

"Qianqian, you have to tell me, how did your skin suddenly get so much fairer?"

Tan Hua forgot all about Qi Sheng and pulled Tang Qian by the hand into the living room.

"Whoa, Qianqian, you must have secretly taken some miracle potion behind our backs, haven’t you?"

Xu Ying and Pei Yinyin crowded around as well.

They were also extremely surprised by the change in Tang Qian’s appearance.

"Hehe, it’s all thanks to Honey. I just apply facial masks often, that’s all."

Tang Qian winked and told the truth.

"We’re being serious with you, stop making dirty jokes."

Tan Hua playfully slapped Tang Qian, waiting eagerly for an explanation.

"But what I said is true! Maybe you just haven’t done it enough times, so the effect isn’t as obvious."

Tang Qian understood what Tan Hua and the others were thinking.

Even she could only come up with a barely plausible explanation.

"Really?"

Seeing that Tang Qian’s expression didn’t look like she was joking, Tan Hua started to hesitate.

"Really! I swear, if I’m lying, may Honey kick me out of the house!"

When Tang Qian saw they still didn’t believe her, she made a solemn oath.

"Alright, alright, we believe you!"

Tan Hua was now completely convinced of this... somewhat dirty method.

For Tang Qian, being kicked out of the house was what she feared most.

’Does that mean we have to be like Tang Qian and shamefully beg Qi Sheng?’

Just thinking about it made Tan Hua blush with embarrassment.

But the urgency to improve her looks forced Tan Hua to give it a try.

As long as there was a glimmer of hope, she definitely wouldn’t miss it.

Xu Ying and the others had the same idea.

Within their group of girlfriends, perhaps only Qu Man didn’t have a strong desire for better looks.

Even Zong Rui, with her bombshell figure, also yearned for a celestial beauty like Qu Man’s.

"Ahem, don’t look at me like that."

Seeing the girls staring at him intently, Qi Sheng was instantly flustered.

"Honey, you must be tired. I’ll help you take a bath~"

Tan Hua made the first move, pulling Qi Sheng toward the master bedroom.

"Yinyin, I’m second. Can you go after me?"

Xu Ying used to be pretty unambitious, but that was because she felt satisfied in all aspects of her life.

Now that she had a chance to improve her looks, how could she possibly pass it up?

If she could reach her best friend’s level, she would wake up laughing from her dreams.

"I think we can go together. He has a lot, it’s more than enough."

Pei Yinyin whispered to Xu Ying, her train of thought uniquely unconventional.

Her main reason was not wanting to work hard alone for an hour and a half.

Xu Ying’s eyes lit up. "Oh, right! You’re the smart one, Yinyin. Huahua is so dumb. Even if the three of us apply our ’facial masks’ at the same time, Honey’s supply is definitely more than enough."

"I think it’d be even better if all four of us go together. That way, no one gets tired, and Honey will be happy too."

Tang Qian, the queen of lewdness, sidled over and proposed an even more exciting plan.

"Ah... isn’t that a bit... much?"

Pei Yinyin hesitated. Usually, the most she did was with Xu Ying.

Now, to serve him with three of her sisters... it was a little hard for her to accept.

"Oh, come on, Yinyin, you’re just too shy."

"Listen to me. If we go together, I guarantee Honey will be even more excited. Maybe the effect will be even better!"

Tang Qian’s personal testimony naturally tempted the other three women.

"Then... we’ll have to trouble Honey."

Pei Yinyin was tempted. She also wanted to reach Qu Man’s level.

Although, that was probably unrealistic.

But even becoming a tiny bit prettier would be a huge improvement!

’Anyway, Qi Sheng has plenty to go around. No need to worry about him being drained dry.’