Divorced Dad's Gourmet Shop

Chapter 286: Chapter 286: Yang Yixue’s Store #3 Business Plummets

Her third store was also running a promotion on the Huangtuan delivery app.

Spend fifty yuan, get five yuan off, and a free small bottle of a drink—the kind that costs one mao to produce.

Even though it was only five yuan off, the thought still made Li Xiaoyan’s heart ache.

’This is money we’re talking about!’

She did the math. If a hundred customers used the discount, that was a loss of five hundred yuan!

If ten thousand people bought from them, that would be a fifty-thousand-yuan loss!

That was enough for twenty maintenance sessions on her beloved car!

As time went on,

Li Xiaoyan grew more and more restless.

"What’s going on? It’s this late and only fifteen customers have come?"

"Didn’t we have over fifty yesterday?"

Glancing at the server who was diligently handing out flyers, Li Xiaoyan went over and berated them for a bit.

She sat back down in her chair and lit a cigarette, letting it burn.

She couldn’t help but pull out her phone and send Yang Yixue a WeChat message: "How’s Store Number One doing? Is everything okay?"

Yang Yixue was busy with the new store and replied, "The new store is fine. Revenue is over four thousand right now."

"What’s wrong? Is Store Number Three not doing well?"

She was sharp and immediately guessed the reason behind her mother’s question.

Li Xiaoyan quickly changed the subject. "It’s fine. How are the preparations for the new store coming along? When’s the grand opening?"

Yang Yixue: "I hired two lawyers to run errands and handle the permits for me. Luckily, the previous tenant was also in food service, so it’s a fast process. We don’t have to prepare much."

"I predict that as long as we have enough staff, we can open for business tomorrow!"

Li Xiaoyan: "Okay, the sooner the better. Once it’s open, I can help you watch over two more stores."

Yang Yixue was sipping a Starbucks and didn’t reply.

She took a compact mirror from her bag and touched up her makeup.

It had to be said, she was quite beautiful. This was thanks to years of dedicated skincare. Even after having a child with Jiang Liu, her skin was still smooth and firm. Her long eyelashes, looking like they were done with a Carslan mascara, were neatly combed. Every frown and smile exuded the charm of a mature woman.

For some reason, Yang Yixue felt uneasy today.

Putting down her mirror, she took out her phone to check the revenue for the four stores.

Store Number One was fine.

Store Number Four gave Yang Yixue a pleasant surprise—its morning revenue was nearly ten thousand.

But when she saw the numbers for Store Number Two and Store Number Three,

Yang Yixue’s mood instantly soured, and her expression turned grim.

Store Number Two’s revenue was less than three thousand, and Store Number Three’s was a mere six hundred yuan!

"Why is it so low... Did something happen?"

As Yang Yixue pondered this, she initiated a WeChat video call to Liu Xin, the manager of Store Number Two.

Soon, Liu Xin’s acne-covered face appeared on the screen, and Yang Yixue felt a wave of disgust. She had a habit of comparing all men to Jiang Liu. Before the divorce, when other men didn’t measure up to him, she would feel a small, secret thrill of pleasure.

Yang Yixue asked bluntly:

"Manager Liu, how are you running this store? Why is this morning’s revenue only a little over two thousand? Give me an explanation."

Liu Xin gave a bitter smile. "President Yang, it has nothing to do with me. I’ve been strictly following standard procedures. I’m always very meticulous, but for some reason, apart from our fennel buns and chive-and-egg buns, sales for everything else are terrible."

The two steamed bun recipes Jiang Liu had given her had been completely ruined by Yang Yixue.

The ingredients weren’t fresh, she had abandoned making them by hand, the fillings were mixed by a machine, and she even allowed Old Xiang to modify the recipes.

Yang Yixue’s face was cold. "Don’t give me excuses. If the store starts losing money, you can go back to wherever you came from! ...How about this: fire all the current chefs and kitchen assistants and find me a new, competent crew immediately. I expect tomorrow’s revenue to be higher than your salary!"

Before Liu Xin could respond, Yang Yixue hung up.

A minor figure like Liu Xin wasn’t worth her attention. Only Jiang Liu could make her feel such a mix of love and hate.

After a moment’s thought, she sent another WeChat message to Li Xiaoyan.

Yang Yixue: "Mom, check if there’s a problem with the chefs at your store. Your store has the worst revenue. Find the cause quickly, or Store Number Three might have to close down."

When Li Xiaoyan saw the message, she took it as her daughter blaming her.

She was annoyed. ’Fine, I’ll replace them, happy now?’

Why was everything so complicated?

If it weren’t for her daughter putting so much faith in Jiang Liu’s bun recipes, things wouldn’t have ended up like this.

By now,

Li Xiaoyan was already starting to suspect the problem was with the recipes themselves.

...

「On Yangzhai Street.」

Amidst a chorus of complaints from the crowd of customers, Jiang Liu closed up for the day.

"You’ve got to be kidding me! Brother Jiang stood me up again."

An older woman glanced at the grumbling young lady from the massage parlor. "If you’d gotten here earlier, you could have eaten. Who can you blame but your lazy self?"

"What’s it to you?" the young lady retorted, storming off in a huff.

Outside the door, cries of lament were everywhere.

Inside, the customers enjoying the last few delicacies watched the drama unfold with a smile.

"Boss Jiang, when are you going to buy the shop next door?"

"Yeah! We’re waiting for you to buy it so we can help you renovate. You’ll be selling ten thousand buns a day then, right?"

"Haha, that would work Boss Jiang to death, but I’m all for it."

Amid the customers’ teasing, Jiang Liu just smiled. "They’re still discussing the shop next door. It’s a big decision, after all. It’s normal for the owner to be hesitant."

"Alright, well, if you need a renovation crew, just ask. We’d all be willing to help you for free."

"My relative sells cement and tiles. If you need some, I’ll have him give you a rock-bottom price!"

Everyone really liked Jiang Liu.

Not only was his food delicious, but he was a good person and wouldn’t get petty with you over small things.

In short, Boss Jiang was easy to get along with.

Jiang Liu chatted and laughed with the customers in the shop for a bit.

A customer who had finished eating grabbed the large trash bag Jiang Liu had placed in the corner and took it with them on their way out.

"Boss Jiang, I’m taking out the trash for you! No need to thank me, just make a few extra buns next time."

"Bye, Brother Jiang! Will you miss me? Want me to help you wipe the tables? I’m super fast, you know."

"Goodbye, Little Boss Jiang! I wiped my plate clean for you. Sell me two extra buns next time, okay?"

?

As the last batch of customers gradually left, Jiang Liu finally sat down, relaxed, ordered himself a glass of watermelon juice, and then served it to himself.

He suddenly missed his girlfriend and daughter.

Without the two of them in the house, it was a bit boring. There was no one to talk to.

He unplugged his charging phone from the back kitchen.

Many people had sent him messages.

Jiang Liu ignored the rest and first opened the chat with "Super Duper Cutie Pie."

Jun Qingmeng: "To my dearest, dearest, best husband, your two little cuties are at the kindergarten."

Jun Qingmeng: "There’s a jump rope game for the middle class this morning, and Tongtong is participating! Our little lazybones is warming up right now. She wants to win first place for you to see!"

Jun Qingmeng: "(Pouting) Why aren’t you replying? Okay, I know you’re busy, but what do I do? I miss you so much! Talk to me!"

Jun Qingmeng: "Will you ever leave me one day?"

Jun Qingmeng: "[Photo]"

The photo, taken by Jun Qingmeng, showed Tongtong gritting her teeth as she stood on a green soft mat, jumping rope.

After reading the messages, Jiang Liu took a sip of his watermelon juice with a broad smile on his face.

He replied: "I wasn’t ignoring you, I just finished up and sat down. I miss you guys too."

...