Chapter 109 Trouble: The Municipal Health Bureau received a report from the public and demanded that the business cease operations...
"Boss, a bowl of spicy noodles, please."
"I'd like a liangpi (cold skin noodles) and roujiamo (Chinese hamburger), with extra cucumber shreds."
"Okay, what would the person in the back like to eat? We have rice, steamed buns, and noodles." He Maimiao was wearing a red woolen coat, holding a pen and scribbling in a notebook, her face beaming with enthusiasm.
She has been helping out at the restaurant for some time now, working tirelessly from dawn till dusk, and her relationship with her daughter has improved considerably.
Lin Junhui then went to Sichuan with Maihemuti to sell goods. Since arriving in Xinjiang, it was as if he had opened the door to a new world, and he couldn't stop himself from wanting to go out and explore.
Lin Shanhu commented that this was "the awakening of his ancestral bloodline of escorting goods."
After the weather gets cold, restaurants have become much busier. Many people don't want to cook on their way home from work, so they grab a bite at a restaurant on their way.
Considering the large portions and the fact that some people might not be able to finish the food, Chen Mian thoughtfully provided a takeaway service.
You can bring your own lunchbox and take any leftovers home to eat. The restaurant will give you a free steamed bun. If they happen to have freshly made food, they'll also give you a spoonful.
Some clever people order two dishes at once, divide them in half and pack them into lunchboxes beforehand, then eat the rest.
He Maimiao had just finished entertaining one group of guests and sat down when an old man and a young man walked in through the door.
The young man had a scar on his face, thick eyebrows, slanted eyes, and a fierce look. A black backpack was slung over one shoulder.
The old man he was helping looked kind, but seemed very weak and kept coughing.
Hoga surveyed the restaurant, then shouted in a loud voice, "Who's the owner of this place? Come out here!"
He Maimiao stood up, clutching the menu in her arms, and said, "I'm the owner. What would you two like to eat?"
Hoga didn't reply. He let go of the old man's hand, strode forward, and overturned the nearest table to him.
Instantly, soup splashed onto the diner's glasses and stained his clothes. "What are you doing? Are you crazy?!"
"Ah..." The other guests also quickly moved away from their tables, afraid that they would be the next ones to be affected.
He Maimiao's eyelids twitched, and she hurriedly grabbed a rag from the counter to wipe the unfortunate customer's face. "Don't be angry, this meal is on us. You can come back next time for another free meal."
Hoja frowned: "What's the point of eating? It's this shady workshop that's made my grandfather vomit and have diarrhea."
“I brought some vegetables back from this place yesterday, and my grandfather got an upset stomach shortly after eating. He went to the toilet more than a dozen times in one night, and now his legs are shaking.”
He Maimiao put her hands on her hips. She could tell that this thug had come specifically to cause trouble.
Hmph, when it comes to arguing, I've never lost in my life.
He Maimiao looked Huo Jia and his grandfather up and down, then parted her red lips slightly: "Didn't you say you ate something bad and were extremely weak? How come a whole day has passed and you haven't taken them to the hospital to get checked out?"
"Are you afraid that your grandfather is too healthy and won't be able to extort money from me? Let me tell you, my niece's husband is a policeman, I'm not afraid of you."
Before He Maimiao could finish speaking and before Huo Jia could say anything, Reheman, who had been standing quietly at the door, suddenly turned bright red.
She staggered over, grabbed Hoga's sleeve, and said timidly, "Let's go back, Hoga. Grandpa will be fine after resting at home for a few days. Don't cause trouble in their shop."
Hoja flung his arm away. "What am I making a fuss about, Grandpa? Tell me, did you get takeout from this restaurant yesterday? Did you get diarrhea after eating it?"
"Yes, but..."
"But what? They're clearly making money by selling us spoiled vegetables, trying to kill us."
Hoga's few words scared away all the remaining people in the store.
Looking at the suddenly deserted store, He Maimiao rolled up her sleeves and questioned, "What exactly are you trying to do? The vegetables in our store are all grown by our own family with great effort, and the chicken is also free-range chicken raised on our own farm."
"You can say we've harmed you with just a few words, but I'd say you've harmed me! What proof do you have?"
Hoja looked like he knew exactly what He Maimiao was going to say, and smugly pulled a bowl in a plastic bag out of his backpack and waved it in front of He Maimiao.
"Did you recognize it? This has your restaurant's name printed on it, and it still contains the leftovers from yesterday."
He Maimiao's eyelids started twitching again. She turned her head and stared at Reheman for a long time. "Grandpa, aren't you the one who ordered three dishes yesterday but forgot to bring a lunchbox?"
Reheman never expected that his first time buying food at the restaurant would cause such a big trouble.
"It was me. If it weren't for your kindness yesterday, I wouldn't know what to do."
He Maimiao pouted and said irritably, "Knowing we meant well, you still came to harm me. Hurry up and take your grandson away. What bad luck!"
Hoja: "Why are you leaving? My grandfather is in this state, you have to give me an explanation today!"
He Maimiao: "Are you leaving or not? If you're not leaving, I'm calling the police! In broad daylight, you dare to come to my door and extort money. I'm going to have the police arrest you all."
"Let's go, Hoga, I'll go back and get some sleep." Reheman had barely finished speaking when he started gagging again due to his emotional state.
After a few coughs, he started coughing, his body swaying, and there was blood in his cough.
He leaned against the wall and slowly sat down on the ground. He was old and his health wasn't good to begin with, so he couldn't stand for that long.
Seeing his appearance, He Maimiao forgot about arguing and said, "Forget it, just consider it bad luck for me today. I'll ride my bike and take you to the hospital to get checked out."
After saying that, she told the kitchen staff what she was doing, grabbed her keys, and prepared to leave.
Although Reheman was old, he was still a man and had no strength, so Hemaimiao couldn't get him into the tricycle for a while.
The tall and burly Hoga, his brow furrowed, strode over and carried Reheman onto the train carriage.
"Go ahead and go. Once you get to the hospital and the doctor examines you, you can expect to have to close down and pay compensation!"
…
At four o'clock in the afternoon, a blue tricycle stopped in front of Taoyuan Restaurant, and He Mai Miao jumped off nimbly.
She had just returned from the hospital and plopped down as soon as she entered the room. Before she could even take a sip of water, she saw two men in blue uniforms walk in.
"Where is your shop owner? The Municipal Health Bureau received a report and is here to investigate."
As soon as they finished speaking, the two of them started looking around the shop. "No wonder someone reported you. The environment in your shop is terrible. There's so much soup and water on the floor. You don't even clean it up."
He Mai Miao choked, followed the man's gaze to the leftover food on the ground, and her eyelids twitched even more violently.
She's been gone for at least three hours, and the people in the shop haven't even cleaned up the food that's spilled on the floor.
She quickly grabbed a rag from the counter and started wiping, smiling apologetically, "I'm so sorry, this is because someone was causing trouble today. We usually keep things very clean."
Xi Ri Hong slammed his notebook shut: "I don't care about any of that. Anyway, someone reported that your restaurant's food contained pesticides, and people were vomiting and having diarrhea after eating it. You should suspend operations for rectification."
He Maimiao was puzzled: "But the troublemakers only arrived at noon, and then I went to the hospital with them. They just got back now. When did they report us?"
She shouldn't have brought it up, because once she did, Xiri Ahong got angry: "Why are you asking so many questions? I just got to work this morning, and those two were squatting at the entrance of my workplace..."
“Your shops have no bottom line when it comes to making money.”
He Maimiao said with a bitter face, "Leader, we are really wronged. These vegetables are all grown by my own family, and we never use pesticides."
The meat comes from free-range chickens we raise ourselves; there's no healthier chicken than ours.
He Maimiao became even more anxious when she saw that the two of them were indifferent and wouldn't listen to her explanation.
Xiri Ahong took a notice out of his pocket and prepared to stick it on the door.
The above roughly means that "the Municipal Health Bureau received a report from the public and requested that the business be suspended for rectification."
He Maimiao stood at the door, spreading her arms to block it. "Boss, you really can't put up those signs. If you close our shop, what will our family eat?"
She's only been in charge for a few days and this has already happened. If she really causes Chen Mianmian's shop to close down, her mother-in-law will tear her apart and send her back to her hometown alone.
Xi Ri A Hong: "Don't interfere with official business. The results of whether there are pesticides in the vegetables are still out. If it is true, you will be held responsible."
He Maimiao's raised arm froze, her eyes filled with panic, and she blurted out, "I...I'm not the boss, why are you arresting me?"
Xi Ri Hong was surprised that after talking for so long, he hadn't even notified the boss. He scolded sharply, "Where is your boss? If it's not the boss, why didn't you say so earlier? You've wasted my time."
He Maimiao said, trembling, "The boss isn't here right now. Why don't you come another day?"
Xiri Ahong and his colleague exchanged a glance and prepared to post the notice first.
The atmosphere grew increasingly tense, and just as the group was at an impasse, Ji Yu entered.
Ji Yu: "What's going on? Why such a big commotion?"
He came to pick up some liquor. A few colleagues from the bureau were planning a small get-together today, and the store happened to have a few bottles of fine liquor on hand.
He drove over to pick it up, while his other colleagues were still sitting in the car.
Xi Ri A Hong raised an eyebrow: "And you are?"
“I am the husband of the shop owner,” Ji Yu said, extending her hand. “I work at the Municipal Public Security Bureau.”
Xi Ri Hong's eyes revealed a hint of amusement, "Brother, have you offended someone? You work at the Public Security Bureau, and someone still dares to report your wife."
He explained the whole story in just a few words.
Ji Yu frowned slightly, actually wondering if she had offended anyone recently.
"Ji Yu, hurry up, let's go!"
His colleagues outside were urging him on, but he didn't care. He took two packs of cigarettes from the counter and handed them to the two of them.
"Brothers, please give me some face and we can talk about it tomorrow. My colleagues and boss are sitting in the car and are already calling me."
Ji Yu: "Please leave me your contact information, and I will visit you both tomorrow morning."
Xiri Ahong actually agreed, "Then I'll take this notice with me first, but it would be best if your shop closed for the next few days."
"Let's wait until things are resolved before starting, otherwise I won't know how to explain it to my superiors."
We're all part of the system, but the police are much harder to deal with than them.
It's better to avoid trouble. Let him owe you a favor today; you might need it someday.
Ji Yu nodded: "Understood, thanks, brother! I'll treat you to dinner later."
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