As night falls, the hot pot restaurant is brightly lit and bustling with activity.
"Come on, let's raise our glasses! Let's toast to our good day!" Chen Xiaoru raised her glass, her voice clear and loud.
"Happy New Year!" The guys responded in unison and raised their glasses to drink.
After three rounds of wine and five dishes, the atmosphere became more and more lively.
Zhou Si sat next to Chen Xiaoru, silently picking up food for her, his eyes so gentle that tears could be dripping from them.
Chen Xiaoru felt his gaze, turned around and smiled at him, feeling sweet in her heart.
"Madam, you and the boss are a perfect match made in heaven!" a waiter said loudly while drunk.
"Yes, the boss lady and the boss are a perfect match, they are simply a perfect couple!" another waiter echoed.
"Boss Zhou is so nice to his wife. I'm really envious!"
The guys expressed their blessings to Chen Xiaoru and Zhou Si one after another.
Chen Xiaoru blushed when she heard these words. She secretly glanced at Zhou Si and found that he was also looking at her with eyes full of affection.
Zhou Si smiled slightly, stood up, and said loudly: "Everyone is right, Xiaoru and I are indeed in love with each other. We have decided to officially get married after a while."
"Wow!"
"Very good!"
"Congratulations, Madam Boss, and Mr. Zhou!"
The guys cheered and sent their blessings.
Chen Xiaoru was surprised and happy. She didn't expect Zhou Si to announce their marriage in front of so many people.
She was deeply moved and her eyes were slightly moist.
"Zhou Si, you..." Chen Xiaoru said softly, her voice choked.
Zhou Si held her hand and said softly, "Xiao Ru, I said I would give you a real wedding and make you the happiest bride."
Chen Xiaoru couldn't bear it anymore and threw herself into Zhou Si's arms, hugging him tightly.
Zhou Si patted her back gently and whispered in her ear: "Don't be afraid, I'm here."
At this moment, Chen Xiaoru felt that she was the happiest woman in the world.
Amid the noise, the two hugged each other tightly, as if they were the only ones left in the world.
Suddenly, a waiter rushed in.
"Madam! Oh no! Something happened!" the waiter said breathlessly.
Chen Xiaoru and Zhou Si quickly separated and looked at the waiter.
"What happened?" Chen Xiaoru asked, with an ominous premonition in her heart.
"Someone from the government office... the government office is here! They said... they wanted to seal off our hot pot restaurant!" the waiter said breathlessly.
"What?!" Chen Xiaoru and Zhou Si were shocked.
"What's going on? Hasn't Mr. Li been arrested? Why is someone else causing trouble?" Zhou Si asked with a frown.
"I don't know! They...they said they received a report saying that our hot pot restaurant...has a problem!" The waiter's voice became smaller and smaller, and he was obviously a little scared.
"Let's go! Let's take a look!" Chen Xiaoru made a quick decision and pulled Zhou Si out.
At the entrance of the hot pot restaurant, a group of yamen runners were standing there, led by a middle-aged man in official uniform.
"What are you doing?" Chen Xiaoru walked forward and asked.
The middle-aged man glanced at Chen Xiaoru and said coldly, "We've received a report that your hot pot restaurant uses gutter oil, passing off inferior products as good ones and harming the people. We are now closing down your hot pot restaurant and bringing you back to the government office for questioning."
"What? Gutter oil? Substituting inferior products for good ones?" Chen Xiaoru couldn't believe her ears. "What evidence do you have?"
"Evidence? Humph! When we get to the government office, I'll show you!" The middle-aged man waved his hand, "Come on, take them all away!"
The bailiffs rushed forward and tried to arrest people.
"Let's see who dares!" Zhou Si stood in front of Chen Xiaoru and shouted angrily.
"What? You still want to resist law enforcement?" The middle-aged man sneered, "Catch them!"
The yamen runners rushed up again, and Zhou Si was not afraid at all and wrestled with them.
Seeing this, Chen Xiaoru became extremely anxious.
She knew that although Zhou Si knew some martial arts, he could not defeat four people with two fists, not to mention that the other party was a government official.
"Stop! Stop it!" Chen Xiaoru shouted loudly, but no one paid any attention to her.
In the chaos, Zhou Si was kicked to the ground by a yamen runner.
"Zhou Si!" Chen Xiaoru exclaimed and wanted to rush over, but was stopped by several yamen runners.
"Let me go! Let me go!" Chen Xiaoru struggled desperately, but to no avail.
Seeing that Zhou Si was about to be taken away by the yamen runners, Chen Xiaoru was extremely anxious.
“Wait!”
Just then, a voice suddenly rang out.
Everyone looked in the direction of the voice and saw a young man in brocade clothes and with an extraordinary demeanor walking towards them.
"Who are you?" the middle-aged man asked with a frown.
The young man ignored him and walked straight to Chen Xiaoru, smiling slightly: "Boss Chen, how are you?"
Chen Xiaoru looked at the strange young man in front of her, puzzled: "Who are you...?"
The young man smiled and said, "My surname is Zhao, and my given name is Yu."
"Zhao Yu?" Chen Xiaoru searched for the name in her mind, but had no impression of it.
"It doesn't matter if Boss Chen doesn't know me, but I know Boss Chen," Zhao Yu said. "Boss Chen's hot pot restaurant is famous far and wide."
"What exactly do you want to say?" Chen Xiaoru looked at him warily.
Zhao Yu smiled and said, "Don't be nervous, Boss Chen. I'm not here to cause trouble. On the contrary, I'm here to help you."
"Help us?" Chen Xiaoru was even more confused.
Zhao Yu nodded, turned to look at the middle-aged man, and said, "Sir, I wonder what kind of report you have received that would lead you to shut down Boss Chen's hot pot restaurant?"
Seeing Zhao Yu's extraordinary demeanor, the middle-aged man did not dare to neglect him and said, "We received a report that Boss Chen's hot pot restaurant uses gutter oil and passes it off as good quality."
"Oh? Do you have any evidence?" Zhao Yu asked.
"This..." The middle-aged man hesitated, "The informant said he saw it with his own eyes."
"Saw it with your own eyes?" Zhao Yu smiled. "Then could you please ask this whistleblower to come out and confront him face to face?"
"This..." The middle-aged man hesitated even more, "The informant... the informant is unwilling to show up."
"You're unwilling to show your face?" Zhao Yu's tone turned cold. "You dare to accuse others without even showing your face? Sir, do you think such a report is credible?"
The middle-aged man was speechless after being asked by Zhao Yu.
"Sir, I think there's something else going on here," Zhao Yu continued. "Boss Chen's hot pot restaurant is doing so well, and that inevitably attracts jealousy. Some people, unable to bear the thought of others doing well, try to do harm. This kind of thing has happened before."
After hearing what Zhao Yu said, the middle-aged man's face turned pale and blue.
He knew that Zhao Yu was right.
This report is indeed a bit strange.
However, he had already accepted benefits from others, and if he didn't get the job done, he would have a hard time explaining himself.
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