Chapter 181: Chapter 171: Boss Jiang, the Father-Daughter Role Model
Xia Changzhi scoffed, "Ha! Old Jun, are you daydreaming? I’m telling you, before you even bring up this idea, maybe you should think about Boss Jiang’s tens of thousands of fans."
"Never mind that Boss Jiang couldn’t care less about your money. Even if you did manage to poach him, don’t you think his neighbors might just come and smash your door down?"
...!!
The two, who had just gotten excited, had a bucket of cold water dumped on them.
That’s right!
With food as good as Boss Jiang’s, it’s not like he was short of opportunities. He wouldn’t even look twice at the two of them.
Besides, South City was crawling with retired bigwigs. If you poached their beloved chef, they would definitely come after you!
After thinking it through, Jun Xinghe lost his nerve.
’Better not.’
He really didn’t want to stir up any trouble.
Even though his friend Guo Dapao was an official, two fists were no match for four hands.
’A whole mob coming after you—wouldn’t you be scared?’
Just then, Jiang Liu came out to stock the cooler with juice.
The three men ordered three more glasses.
Jun Xinghe sized up Jiang Liu, who was going about his work, and the more he watched, the more satisfied he became, nodding with a constant smile.
He looked exactly like a father gazing at his own son.
His expression was so tender, it was as if he’d already picked out a name for his third-generation heir.
Guo Dapao could see what his friend was thinking.
He asked, "Have you found your daughter yet?"
Jun Xinghe’s expression instantly soured. "No. I can’t be bothered to look for her. She can go wherever she pleases."
If he wanted to find her, he could track her down at any time.
But he just didn’t want to. He was still mad!
Xia Changzhi chuckled, knowing Jun Xinghe’s temper.
He turned and asked Jiang Liu:
"Boss Jiang, where’s Tongtong? Did she go to preschool?"
"Yep, it’s Monday."
Hearing someone ask about his daughter, Jiang Liu smiled happily.
Jun Xinghe wasn’t surprised. While they were eating earlier, he had discreetly asked Xia Changzhi a lot about Jiang Liu.
All in all, he was outstanding in every respect, and most importantly, his personality was very much to Jun Xinghe’s satisfaction.
He was a suitable candidate.
"I was wondering why I didn’t see the little girl today. I quite miss her. I’ll have to bring her a gift some other day," Xia Changzhi said with a cheerful laugh.
Jun Xinghe suddenly spoke up. "Boss Jiang, allow me to introduce myself. My surname is Jun, and I’m an entrepreneur. Would it be alright if I asked you a few personal questions? You don’t have to answer."
"It’s fine, go ahead and ask."
Hearing that the man’s surname was Jun, Jiang Liu felt a sense of warmth. He casually pulled up a chair and sat down next to the three men to take a quick break.
"How is the relationship between you and your daughter, Tongtong?"
"Hm, it’s great. My daughter can be a little mischievous sometimes, but she loves me very much, and I love her very much."
As Jiang Liu spoke, a gratified smile appeared on his face.
Jun Xinghe nodded and asked, "Then what if one day, you wanted your daughter to do something you believed was right for her, but she got angry and ran away from home? How would you handle that?"
"Angry?..."
Jiang Liu thought about it seriously. "Something like that would never happen between me and my daughter. We never get angry with each other."
"Hahaha!" Guo Dapao slapped his thigh and roared with laughter. "Old Jun, don’t go comparing your family’s problems to others. Is there even a comparison?"
That hit Jun Xinghe right where it hurt.
He rephrased his question, frowning. "I’m saying *if*. If you two had a fight and she ran away from home, if that happened to you, how would you handle it?"
"Assume you’re in the right, and your daughter is in the wrong."
Jiang Liu listened carefully and, without even pausing to think, replied with a smile, "If that really happened, I would go find her myself. Then I’d take her to get her favorite ice cream."
"My daughter loves ice cream more than anything. Besides, I don’t want to get hung up on who’s right or wrong. Love is about acceptance. All I need to know is that my daughter loves me, her father. That’s enough to make me happy."
All three men were moved.
As the saying goes, seeing is believing. Before, Jun Xinghe and Guo Dapao had only heard about Jiang Liu from Xia Changzhi.
But it was nowhere near as impactful as experiencing it firsthand.
Jun Xinghe fell silent.
Xia Changzhi and Guo Dapao exchanged glances.
’A major shareholder and executive of a publicly traded company was not only asking a small restaurant owner for advice, but was also getting his composure completely shattered by a few simple words?’
’Boss Jiang is really something else...’
Jiang Liu looked at the dazed Jun Xinghe, guessing what was going on. "Uncle Jun," he asked, "are you at odds with your daughter?"
"Yes," Jun Xinghe nodded and said with a sigh, pouring out his troubles.
"Here’s the thing. My daughter is an only child, and she was spoiled growing up, so she’s a bit naive. I want her to take over the company, but she doesn’t want to. *Sigh*. So she just stubbornly ran away from home without a second glance. It’s been a few years since we last spoke. Tell me, she’s clearly the one in the wrong, yet she won’t apologize to me, her father. Am I, the father, supposed to go begging her to come back?"
Jun Xinghe was clearly angry as he spoke.
"Boss Jiang, what’s your take on this issue between me and my daughter?"
Jiang Liu listened patiently again, not interrupting, nor did he reply immediately.
Instead, he pondered for ten seconds before speaking. "I don’t really have a ’take’ on it. I just think family is priceless. Uncle Jun, you must be around fifty, right?"
"Yes, fifty-one."
"Then let me ask you, if your daughter came back to you now, how many more years could you spend with her?"
"About twenty-some years, I suppose."
"Right. Twenty-some years. Factoring in work, personal lives, and sleep, the time you’d actually spend together is probably less than ten years. Time passes like a puff of smoke. Why aren’t you cherishing it? Is your pride really that important?"
"Perhaps one day, when you’re too old to walk and decide you want to apologize and have your daughter come back to take care of you... will it be too late? If you truly love her, you should be more protective and forgiving of her."
Jun Xinghe listened, mesmerized, his gaze fixed on the air conditioner in the kitchen.
’That’s right.’
’Time passes like a puff of smoke.’
And here he was, feuding and holding a grudge against the only family he had left in the world.
All for a tiny scrap of fatherly pride. Was it really that important?
Jun Xinghe couldn’t help but think back ten years, to when he was still running a small medicinal herb drying and processing plant.
One day, one of his employees, exhausted from overtime, accidentally hit a thirty-meter-high drying rack with a forklift, knocking it over.
The loss was over three hundred thousand.
Jun Xinghe chose to give him a second chance, offering forgiveness and encouragement.
Now, that employee was one of his most capable and loyal subordinates, willing to go through hell and high water for him.
He could be tolerant toward an outsider, yet with his own daughter, he nitpicked over every little thing.
Perhaps he really was a failure, a terrible father.
Jun Xinghe let out a deep sigh.
"Boss Jiang, thank you!"
Jiang Liu said, "I was just speaking what I believe to be the truth. You can think about it in your own situation. Every circumstance is different, so being able to adapt is always for the best."
"Alright. A lesson well learned."
Jun Xinghe’s trust in Jiang Liu grew significantly.
’If I entrusted my daughter to him, perhaps it would be a good choice.’
He didn’t care about wealth, because he wasn’t short on money.
He didn’t care about power, because he had friends in all places.
Instead...
Jun Xinghe much preferred someone like Jiang Liu—a man of good character, down-to-earth, sincere in his relationships, and not petty.
And besides, he was extremely satisfied with the food Jiang Liu made.
Jun Xinghe had figured it out. Relaxing, he continued to seek advice. "Boss Jiang, if one day you’re old and your restaurant has become a huge success, and you want your daughter to learn how to make your buns, but she doesn’t want to inherit your craft, what would you do?"
"Would you find a way to make her learn from you, or would you give up and let her be?"
Jiang Liu looked up, recalling something Tongtong had said, and answered with a smile, "I’ve never thought about making my daughter learn to cook from me. If she likes it, she can learn. If she doesn’t, she doesn’t have to."
"I remember my daughter’s biggest wish is that once her old dad has earned enough money, she can take me out to eat delicious food and go have fun."
