Xu Yao lowered her head somewhat shyly, her voice barely audible.

“I…I don’t know what to give you. I’ve noticed you don’t wear jewelry much. I don’t think you ever wore that set from Floating Dream Jewelry.”

Her voice trailed off as she spoke, and she glanced at Zhou Yang discreetly before continuing to mutter softly.

“I was thinking that this bracelet is more everyday, not as flashy as those gold, silver and gemstone bracelets, so maybe...maybe you will like to wear it.”

"As for the material, I heard it from the salesperson. They said it's good for your health and can calm your mind."

This little girl is quite thoughtful!

Zhou Yang felt a warmth in his heart.

Indeed, the men's jewelry set that the system rewarded him with was quite valuable, but he always felt it was too ostentatious and not suitable for everyday wear.

On the contrary, this string of small-leaf sandalwood beads, deep and understated, reveals hidden wonders upon closer inspection, which suits his taste perfectly.

"I love the bracelet you chose! I love it so much!"

Without hesitation, Zhou Yang took the bracelet out of the brocade box and put it directly on his left wrist.

The beads were the perfect size, and the purplish-red wood complemented his tanned skin, adding to his calm and refined demeanor.

He raised his wrist, twirled it under the light, felt the warm touch of the beads, and nodded in satisfaction.

"This bracelet is understated yet luxurious and has a lot of substance. I love it! I'll wear it from now on!"

Seeing Zhou Yang put it on the spot and express his liking for it so openly, Xu Yao finally felt relieved.

Her eyes crinkled into a smile, and she beamed, "I'm glad you like it!"

Looking at her bright smile, Zhou Yang felt a surge of love well up in his heart again. He couldn't help but reach out and pull her into his arms once more, gently kissing her forehead.

Damn it, my life has been worth it!

...

For the next four days, the beef offal hot pot at Huaiyang Old Street remained the undisputed draw for customers.

Every day, the beef offal hot pot sells out in a whirlwind amidst the lingering smacking of diners' lips and the constant stream of "check-in and bragging" posts on social media.

On the seventh day, Zhou Yang and Xu Yao had just seen off their last guest and were quickly tidying up the modified stove cart.

Suddenly, a long-awaited voice rang in Zhou Yang's mind:

[Ding! Congratulations, host, on successfully completing this week's mission! The mission reward, the "Flying Flowers and Plucking Leaves" skill, has been issued. Please check your account!]

Zhou Yang's heart skipped a beat, and a surge of joy instantly welled up inside him!

Holy crap, the flower-picking and leaf-picking game is finally here!

He suppressed his excitement, keeping his face calm, but his mind quickly opened the "Flying Flowers and Picking Leaves" icon that was flashing with golden light in the system panel.

In an instant, an indescribable and mysterious feeling surged through Zhou Yang's entire body!

He clearly felt as if an invisible force was meticulously combing through his limbs and bones.

Every muscle and every tendon becomes more coordinated, flexible, and explosive.

In that instant, the body's balance, coordination, and reaction speed all experienced a qualitative leap!

What shocked him even more was that countless techniques and insights about the use of power and the throwing of hidden weapons suddenly appeared in his mind.

It was as if he had practiced diligently for decades; those skills were deeply imprinted in his soul and had become part of his body's instincts.

Zhou Yang glanced subconsciously at a piece of vegetable leaf left on the cutting board next to the stove, and a thought struck him.

If you gave me a leaf right now, I'm absolutely confident I could shoot it with the power of a bullet!

It can even accurately hit a fly fifty meters away!

This feeling of control over power almost made him want to roar to the sky!

However, reason told him that now was not the time to test new skills.

The old street in Huaiyang is bustling with people; if something were to happen, it would be difficult to handle.

"Stay put, don't be reckless!"

Zhou Yang took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the surging impulse, and continued to clean up the pots and pans.

But the barely suppressed smile on his lips looked...overjoyed!

Xu Yao was wiping the table when she noticed the joy on Zhou Yang's face and tilted her head curiously.

"Zhou Yang, did you find some money? Why are you smiling so happily?"

Zhou Yang laughed heartily, in high spirits: "Almost! I've struck gold!"

Just then, a stylishly dressed young woman, who was live-streaming on her phone, ran over excitedly.

"Boss Zhou! Boss Zhou! You guys are trending! No, it's that 'Big Mouth Eats All Directions' thing that's trending, and then it deleted the post and apologized immediately!"

The girl spoke very quickly, her face flushed with excitement.

"Huh? What's going on?"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yang raised an eyebrow, signaling the girl to elaborate.

The girl immediately brought her phone screen close to Zhou Yang's face and clicked on a topic that had just topped the trending search list.

#BigMouthEatsEverywhereBumpingIntoFraudZhou'sBeefBieHotpot#

Upon clicking in, sure enough, just a few minutes earlier, the account "Big Mouth Eats All Directions" had posted a video.

He subtly accused Zhou Yang of being arrogant and indifferent to customers, even implying that Zhou Yang was arrogant and disrespectful to food bloggers because of his fame.

The video editing was also quite skillful, deliberately choosing moments when Zhou Yang and Xu Yao were busy and had no time to pay attention to certain flirting shots, and adding inflammatory narration, intending to guide public opinion.

However, the provocative video was deleted after trending on social media for less than ten minutes.

Instead, "Big Mouth Eats All Directions" released a new apology video.

In the video, "Big Mouth Eats All Directions" changed his usual sarcastic tone and tearfully confessed.

He claimed that he acted out of momentary confusion, out of jealousy of Zhou Yang's popularity and resentment at being rejected by Zhou Yang for cooperation. He said that he was blinded by greed and maliciously edited the video in an attempt to smear Zhou Yang and gain popularity through controversy.

He deeply realized his mistake and acknowledged the negative impact it had had on Zhou Yang and the general public, and earnestly asked for everyone's forgiveness.

That acting talent is so good, it would be a waste if he didn't go to the Oscars.

Xu Yao watched in stunned silence, her mouth slightly agape.

"Wow... this plot twist happened so fast! We were so busy, we didn't even know this had happened!"

"I didn't expect that this matter would be resolved by itself without us doing anything?"

This is not something I can solve on my own.

Zhou Yang understood, and a smile appeared on his lips.

After a moment's thought, he guessed about 70-80% of it.

It's highly likely that it was either the Golden Light Group or someone from Fumeng Jewelry who made the move.

He thought to himself that he should at least reciprocate in kind.

He's been driving this Pagani for a while now, and he's gotten a little tired of it.

Why not just buy another car?

His gaze fell on Xu Yao, and a smile appeared on his lips. He said, "Yao Yao, after we're done packing, let's go straight to the Jin Guang Group."

Upon hearing this, Xu Yao looked up in confusion: "Going to the Golden Light Group? To buy a car?"

Zhou Yang nodded. "Yes."

“Driving a sports car to carry all this stuff every day is not a good idea. It’s time to get a more suitable vehicle.”