Su Qingluan didn't take the waiter's attitude to heart and just ordered a bowl of fresh fish soup from "Hongfulou".

Since she only ordered a bowl of fish soup and was alone, it was impossible for her to be led to the elegant private room on the second floor, so she had to sit in the lobby on the first floor.

"Hongfulou" is indeed one of the best restaurants in this town. Even after noon, customers are still coming in an endless stream. Su Qingluan can't even see any empty square tables. She can only find the end of a long narrow table in the corner, pull over a square stool and wait for the fish soup.

After about two quarters of an hour, the fish soup came up. A few crisp chopped green onions floated on the milky white fish soup, which whetted one's appetite.

But when she got closer and raised her nose to smell it, Su Qingluan couldn't help but sneeze.

"The chef did put a lot of effort into removing the fishy smell..." Su Qingluan's mouth twitched slightly, "But he's putting the cart before the horse."

After tasting it for a few times, Su Qingluan figured out the general method of making the fish soup. She had a plan in mind, so she began to sip the fish soup at a snail's pace to buy time. In fact, she was secretly keeping an eye on all directions and listening carefully, hoping to meet someone in charge.

Maybe she kept muttering in her mind and annoyed some immortal, but just when Su Qingluan's fish soup was almost finished and the waiter was about to come over to collect the bowls for the third time, more than ten people came down from the private room on the second floor.

One of the leaders was a wealthy middle-aged man wearing a maroon jacket, an apricot-yellow headscarf, a round pot belly, and a mustache.

He led the way down the stairs for the people behind him. When he reached the door of Hongfu Building, he clasped his hands and said to the people behind him, "It is a great honor for us all to patronize our humble shop today!"

"Brother Liang, you are too polite. It is a great honor to meet you today." One of them clasped his fists in return.

"Yes, yes," another person also sighed, "but after parting today, I don't know when we can meet again."

"If we are destined to meet, we will meet again!" the third person consoled.

Shopkeeper Liang also nodded in agreement: "If we meet again someday, I will certainly welcome you with open arms. No matter when, Hongfulou looks forward to your return."

"Manager Liang, please stay..."

"Everyone, take care..."

Su Qingluan ignored the waiter's murderous gaze that kept sweeping over her in an attempt to drive her away, and finally saw Manager Liang sending that group of people out.

As soon as Manager Liang turned around and stepped into "Hongfulou", Su Qingluan rushed over and stopped Manager Liang.

Shopkeeper Liang was startled by the figure that suddenly rushed out. He looked closely and saw that it was just a girl who looked about thirteen or fourteen years old.

He couldn't help but frown: "Why are you so reckless, little lady? Get out of the way!"

The waiter nearby was horrified when he saw this: How could this yellow-haired girl rush right up to the shopkeeper without anyone noticing?!

The waiter was begging in his heart, hoping that the boss would not vent his anger on him, while reaching out to throw Su Qingluan out.

Su Qingluan nimbly dodged past the waiter and shouted, "Manager Liang, your fish soup is substandard!"

Su Qingluan's voice was clear and bright, penetrating even in the noisy restaurant lobby. As soon as she said this, the voices around her suddenly fell silent.

Then, the voices became even louder and more noisy.

"You're actually questioning the quality of Hong Fu Lou's food? You're really overestimating yourself."

"Exactly. Where did this little girl come from? How dare she speak so arrogantly."

"Are you here to mess things up?"

"What a joke! Hong Fu Lou has been here for over 20 years. They wouldn't let a little girl mess things up, would they?"

The people watching the excitement around were talking about it, but most of them were laughing at Su Qingluan for overestimating her own abilities and making wild remarks.

Because of the "Rolling a Hundred Wealths" stall, a few diners recognized Su Qingluan and shouted, "Hey, isn't this the young lady from the Su family who makes rolls on the street? Why aren't you satisfied with running a small business? Are you trying to steal the business from Hongfulou?"

Immediately, there was a burst of booing and laughter all around, and it was obvious that Su Qingluan was being treated as a joke.

Su Qingluan seemed oblivious to the subtle hostility surrounding her. She simply smiled and said, "How dare I, a humble woman, single-handedly attempt to dismantle the time-honored Hongfulou? I simply wish to establish a mutually beneficial business relationship with Manager Liang."

At this time, the waiter started to chase him away again: "What kind of business is this? I think you are here to cause trouble. Pay the money quickly and leave..."

"Wait!" Shopkeeper Liang restrained his smile condescendingly and looked at Su Qingluan expressionlessly.

He was tall and strong, with a sturdy body. When he smiled, he looked as amiable as Maitreya, but when he didn't smile, he looked like a mountain pressing down on him, with an air of authority without even getting angry.

However, Shopkeeper Liang was surprised to find that the thin little girl opposite him, although she looked only thirteen or fourteen years old, still had a slight smile on her face when he looked at her.

The voices around gradually faded away, and everyone looked towards Manager Liang.

Even the guy next to him kept silent when he looked at him with a fierce face, his eyes darting around in panic and he didn't know what to do. But the smile on this little girl's face didn't fade at all.

Shopkeeper Liang nodded secretly in his heart.

He opened the "Hongfu Building" and welcomed all kinds of guests, and he had seen all kinds of people. Regardless of what this little girl was up to, her calm demeanor alone was worth listening to her.

So, Shopkeeper Liang waved his hand at the waiter, telling him to do what he was supposed to do, and then said to Su Qingluan, "Come with me."

Su Qingluan followed Manager Liang all the way, but she didn't ask anything.

However, the shopkeeper Liang who was walking in front snorted and laughed: "Little girl, you just followed me here rashly, aren't you afraid of encountering any accidents?"

Su Qingluan smiled and said, "Shopkeeper Liang welcomes guests from all over the world and visits thousands of alleys. He is busy with important matters and makes a lot of money. Naturally, he won't make things difficult for a little girl like me."

"This mouth can speak."

"I dare not. I am just telling the truth."

"If you meet our chef later, you will be just a smooth talker if you don't tell him everything." Shopkeeper Liang said half-jokingly.

Su Qingluan understood that the core person in this kind of restaurant was not the owner, but the chef.

A restaurant can only survive if the chef is skilled. So in some cases, the person with the greatest prestige and the highest status in a restaurant is not the owner, but the chef in charge of the cooking.

Because he is the one who determines the survival of a restaurant.

Su Qingluan followed Manager Liang through a quiet courtyard and finally arrived at the kitchen.

As soon as she lifted the curtain, Su Qingluan felt a heat wave even hotter than outside, mixed with the noisy clanging of pots and pans and the continuous shouting and cursing, all rushing towards her.

"Master Xu!" Shopkeeper Liang said to a burly middle-aged man who was scolding his apprentice for his poor chopping skills. "Come here!"

When Xu Yuanwei heard the shopkeeper calling him, he touched his neck with a handkerchief and strode over to ask, "Shopkeeper, what's going on?"

Shopkeeper Liang pointed at Su Qingluan standing beside him and smiled meaningfully: "I brought you someone to disrupt the place."