She looked down at her toes, seemingly trying to minimize her presence in order to resolve the problem she was facing.
But these two drunken colleagues were convinced that Ah Ping was easy to bully, and they questioned her: "What? Pretending not to hear us? Doesn't your restaurant claim to have good service? Why are you like a block of wood? Laugh!"
Just as A-Ping lowered her head and remained silent, Li Junsheng walked over and said coldly to the two of them, "This is a restaurant, and she is our employee, not a prostitute. Don't go too far and cause trouble just because you've had a few drinks."
The two men exchanged a glance and laughed arrogantly, "Aren't waitresses in restaurants just there to serve people and put on a show? Why is she giving us that stern look?"
"Exactly! Don't you guys keep saying you're providing excellent service to every customer? What's wrong with making her smile?"
“Providing good service doesn’t mean you have to smile for people. She has the right to smile or not. If you two cause any more trouble, don’t blame us for calling the police. You two don’t want to be taken away by the police for causing trouble while drunk, do you?”
Li Junsheng firmly decided that Ah Ping's smile today meant she didn't need to be laughed at by anyone.
A-Ping stared blankly at Li Junsheng's retreating figure, her thoughts unreadable!
When Li Junsheng suggested calling the police, the two colleagues who had caused the trouble sobered up considerably. They glared at Li Junsheng and then turned to leave the restaurant.
Before leaving, he spat out, "Pah! What a load of crap! Letting her laugh is a sign of respect for her, and also a sign of respect for you."
Ignoring what the two were saying, Li Junsheng turned to A-Ping and asked, "Are you alright? Those two bullied you just now, why didn't you talk back?"
Even though she was being bullied, she didn't say a word. Li Junsheng was truly helpless with A Ping.
Ah Ping glanced quickly at Li Junsheng and said softly, "Thank you... I'm just a shop assistant. If they ask me to smile and I refuse, wouldn't the shop lose two customers?"
"What do you think they are? Never mind, it doesn't matter. Since you don't want to smile, there's no need to force a smile. It's rare for you to say so much today."
Li Junsheng smiled, helped A Ping out of the predicament, and then went about his own business.
After he left, a slight ripple stirred in Aping's heart, but it quickly vanished without a trace.
Ever since the shop across the street was transformed into a restaurant, Li Junsheng noticed that some people in the neighborhood had started watching the spectacle.
They even openly discussed whether the newly opened restaurant could outperform their own!
The restaurant across the street was also making a strong entrance; it renovated its restaurant in just a few days, quickly brought in tables and chairs, and even put up a signboard.
The restaurant is called Delicious!
On the day the restaurant across the street opened, Li Junsheng watched the excitement from the restaurant entrance and discovered that the owner of the Delicious Restaurant was actually the same two people who had eaten at the restaurant before and caused trouble with A Ping after drinking.
"Great! They really came to see how our restaurant is run and what our signature dishes are!"
Li Junsheng pointed to the two people and Li Guohua pointed to them. Li Guohua was also thinking about another question.
"Dad, they opened so quickly, right after the renovations were finished. Did they even have time to get a business license?"
"Who knows? It's hard to say how the food is, but it seems like they have the capability. Otherwise, how could they have opened a restaurant so easily?"
Do you really think restaurants are springing up like mushrooms after rain, one after another?
When their own restaurant was expanded, the decor was quite stylish. It seemed that the restaurant across the street, Hao Zi Wei, wanted to imitate it, but unfortunately, they went too far. Their understated luxury made them look like nouveau riche.
Just by looking at the decor across the street, Li Junsheng could tell they had spent a lot of money!
"Come and take a look! Our Good Taste Restaurant is now open! The prices are fair and affordable. Whether you want Sichuan cuisine, Hunan cuisine, or Huaiyang cuisine, we have it all."
"Everyone gets a free bowl of rice and a side dish when they enter the store. There's a wide variety of side dishes to choose from!"
The owner of the Good Taste Restaurant was shouting through a megaphone when he saw Li Junsheng watching the commotion and gave him a provocative look.
"Dad, they're being so generous, giving away rice and side dishes as soon as you walk in? Isn't that practically treating people to a free meal?"
Li Chunya stepped forward, unable to help but feel some concern for his own restaurant.
The shop assistants behind them weren't too happy either. They had finally found a decent job. The boss was understanding, the salary wasn't too low, and most importantly, he even provided a meal.
It's not much worse than a state-owned factory!
If their restaurant goes out of business because of the competition across the street, what will they do?
Li Xiaoyu remained calm and said to her sister, "Sis, they've just opened a shop, so they're bound to offer some perks to attract customers. These good deals might not be available for a few days."
Li Guohua nodded in agreement, "That's right. If they give away a free meal and side dishes, how many of them will actually eat the free meals in the past? I don't think they'll make much profit."
Hearing Li Guohua and his sister say this, Li Chunya calmed down for the time being.
Li Junsheng was too lazy to watch the restaurant across the street having an event. He said to his children and the staff, "Let's go back. Customers will be arriving soon."
The group nodded and returned to the hotel to attend to their own business.
Aping stood at the store entrance, ready to greet customers, while the other staff members wiped the tables and floor very clean!
Tang Liang is preparing to cook in the kitchen!
However, even though it was lunchtime today, there were only a handful of people in the restaurant, except for a few regular customers.
"Oh, Mr. Li, you don't know, I just went to that restaurant across the street and took a look. The free meals and side dishes they serve didn't look very good."
"The waiter's attitude was also terrible. Your place is much better. I reckon everyone who went to his restaurant out of curiosity will be coming back soon."
A customer who had just come from the Good Taste Restaurant across the street was quite outspoken and made no attempt to hide his reason for going there out of curiosity!
Li Junsheng smiled at him, not taking the matter to heart.
He knew in his heart that people would eventually get tired of eating at the same restaurant and look for something new. This customer was a perfect example. The service across the street was bad, and the free food wasn't very good either, so he came back!
To thank him for returning, Li Junsheng gave him an extra treat.
I thought this was a good start, but by lunchtime, not many more customers had come!
The shop assistants all had some free time, and Tang Liang even came out of the kitchen.
With so few customers in the store today, everyone feels a little down, but no one says it out loud!
"Sister Ping, come and rest for a bit. Anyway, no one's coming right now, and it's tiring to stand here."
Li Xiaoyu pulled Aping over, and the two sat down side by side.
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