Divorced Dad's Gourmet Shop

Chapter 287: Chapter 287: Mom’s Nagging

"Tell our daughter not to worry about the jump rope competition. It doesn’t matter if she’s first or last. Even if she comes in last, I’ll love her just the same."

Jiang Liu checked another text from an unknown number.

"Jiang Liu, how have you been? Is Tongtong okay? I miss our daughter. Can you bring Tongtong so we can meet?"

He blocked the number without a second thought.

Then, he scrolled through the messages from Wang Cheng, Hu Yongfa, and Yue Longfan.

Hu Yongfa told him that business at the shop was great and that they had a lot of repeat customers.

Yue Longfan had sent Jiang Liu a few photos of the queue, and you could faintly see the jealous stares from other street vendors in the background.

Then there was Wang Cheng, who told Jiang Liu that he had negotiated the price down to 2.1 million.

The other party had agreed and signed the contract. When the transfer process was halfway complete, Jiang Liu would need to deposit one million into their account.

Jiang Liu replied to each message one by one.

After replying, he checked his system interface.

[Number of Positive Reviews Received: 1,258.]

[Current Positive Review Points: 298,504.]

’Not bad, over a hundred thousand positive review points in one morning... But the number of positive reviews for the sixth page is a bit low...’

The mission for the sixth page required 100,000 positive reviews, which meant Jiang Liu needed to get ten thousand per day...

’I’ll see how things are in the evening...’

Jiang Liu turned off his phone and took a trip to the wet market.

The weather was nice today. The warm sun fell on his shoulders, bringing with it a pleasant heat.

At half-past nine, the entrance to The Second Best Restaurant Under Heaven was once again packed with customers.

A dozen or so elderly men and women were at the front of the line, gathered around a table playing cards.

"I’ll be honest with you, I’ve got two bombs. I refuse to believe you can win with seven cards left in your hand!"

Xia Changzhi, who had just played the rocket, sneered. "And what if I do win?"

Uncle Liu was brimming with confidence. "If you win, I’ll play cards with you while doing a handstand from now on!"

The seniors had been baptized by the fires of short-form video, and were now quite trendy.

"Alright, you said it! Sorry, but I have another bomb."

Xia Changzhi threw four Jacks onto the table.

Then, he slapped three 6s down, looking smugly at the stunned Old Liu.

"So? Need me to help you with that handstand?"

Old Liu’s biggest bomb was a set of 10s. He had thought Aunt Xu had the Jacks. Angrily, he threw his cards on the table.

"I’m not playing anymore! You definitely cheated and hid some cards."

"If you can’t afford to lose, then don’t play! What’s the point of being a sore loser?"

"You’re a cheater! Don’t think I didn’t see you secretly hiding cards!"

Old Liu had entered sore-loser mode, insisting that Xia Changzhi had cheated.

This behavior made the surrounding young people purse their lips in disdain.

An old man will always be an old man!

Hearing the furious and flustered shouting from outside, Jiang Liu just smiled and continued with his work.

He took a moment to check on the situation at the new shop.

On the screen, Hu Yongfa and his apprentice, Xiao Ao, were scrambling around the kitchen.

One moment they were stir-frying, the next they were running off to wrap buns.

Jiang Liu watched for a moment, then felt reassured.

Even though Hu Yongfa was busy, he wasn’t cutting any corners; every dish was being made with care.

Aunt Hong was washing the ingredients, and she was being very meticulous.

At 11:55 AM, Jiang Liu opened up for business early.

It was unclear which customer started it, but a round of applause broke out.

It made him feel a little awkward.

Other restaurants could open early and not have a single customer.

Yet his restaurant opened early and was met with applause.

He wasn’t sure if it was meant to be ironic.

Lin Qiu and Jiang Dahai arrived early, getting to the shop at noon to help Jiang Liu.

For the past two days, Qingmeng had been there looking after Jiang Liu and Tongtong, so the two elders didn’t want to intrude on the young trio’s time together.

As the doors opened, the customers outside, their faces filled with longing, rushed into the shop.

"I want three bottles of juice, ten shrimp buns, and five fennel buns!"

"An order of the tuna! Hey, Boss, this tuna of yours is amazing! Thumbs up!"

"One order of ham, and a bottle of beer. Thanks, Boss Jiang!"

"Boss Jiang, are there any new items for lunch today?"

Jiang Liu replied, "Not today."

"When will you have the shrimp noodles again? And the twice-cooked pork combo? I’m dying to have them, what am I going to do?"

Jiang Liu smiled at Jin Wei and said, "It’ll be a while. I’ll see when to put them back on the menu."

"Alright then! Fifteen buns and a cup of juice, please."

Wang Han was also in the line.

She walked elegantly into the shop in her high heels. "Jiang Liu, your ham is quite good. I’ll have an order of that and a bottle of beer. I’m eating here today."

"Okay, please have a seat."

Wang Han glanced at the jam-packed tables. One table, measuring one meter by 60 centimeters, was squeezed with eight people. She frowned.

She looked at Jiang Liu.

Jiang Liu understood what she was thinking and pointed to a small table under the counter. "You can sit here. This is where my family and I sit."

"Mm... okay."

Wang Han gave Jiang Liu a gentle nod. She sat down on the stool without any sign of displeasure and placed her bag on the table.

She didn’t even show any intention of taking out a tissue to wipe the table.

She watched the busy Jiang Liu, her expression unreadable as she spoke, "Jiang Liu, I heard you’re planning to buy the place next door to expand your shop?"

"Yeah, that’s the plan. I haven’t bought it yet, but it should be settled soon."

Wang Han nodded. After two seconds of silence, she said softly, "If you’re short on money, just tell me. I can give you some."

"And when it’s time for renovations, I can help you find someone to do it for free. The people I know are very reliable."

"Oh, okay, thanks. I’ll consider it if I need anything."

Jiang Liu replied with an awkward pleasantry.

Wang Han seemed a little displeased. She didn’t say anything else, instead taking a sip of the unpasteurized beer and a bite of the savory ham.

Her attention immediately shifted to the food.

She buried her head in her food and began to chow down.

He had to admit, she and Guo Jia would definitely get along.

At least, they would never run out of things to say about food.

At half-past twelve, service was over.

It was so fast it made Jiang Liu question his reality.

Lin Qiu and Jiang Dahai were helping Jiang Liu sweep the floor and wash the dishes.

Jiang Liu went to the kitchen and cooked Stir-fried Pork with Chili and Garlic Sprouts, Stir-fried Shredded Potatoes with Bell Peppers, and Tomato and Egg Drop Soup. He also steamed a large bowl of rice.

"Mom, stop washing. Just leave them for now, let’s eat first."

"Alright."

Lin Qiu wiped her hands and walked out of the kitchen.

She looked at the table: Stir-fried Pork with Chili and Garlic Sprouts, Tomato and Egg Drop Soup, Shredded Potatoes, Tuna Sashimi, and three bowls of rice.

She chided him, "Liu’er, why did you make so much again? Your father and I can’t possibly eat all this."

Jiang Dahai, who had already started eating, was in a good mood and joked, "Exactly! Are you trying to fatten your old man up like a pig?!"

"Just hurry up and eat. I bought too many ingredients. If we let them sit for too long, they’ll just have to be thrown out, so we might as well cook and eat them all."

Jiang Liu offered this explanation.

Just as he expected, Lin Qiu said no more.

She was used to being frugal and thrifty.

Jiang Dahai said while sipping his Tomato and Egg Drop Soup, "Son, your mom and I are heading back after we eat. Since you’re running the shop by yourself, be mindful of everything. Don’t push yourself when you’re tired. Rest when you need to."

Lin Qiu chimed in worriedly, "Liu’er, you have to listen to your father. You’re not an orphan, so why are you working so hard? Work when you need to work, but if you’re tired or not feeling well, you rest immediately. Do you hear me?"

Jiang Liu nodded seriously as he ate.

"I know! If I’m tired, I’ll definitely rest."

"Oh, you child. I just can’t help but worry about you. You looked so pale a couple of days ago, you worried your mother sick. It’s a good thing you met a wonderful girl like Qingmeng who was willing to take care of you. If it were someone else, they probably couldn’t be bothered. Girls these days are so pragmatic..."