The online uproar did not affect Hou Wenjie.
At that moment, he was drinking with Ma Tianhai.
Ma Tianhai's wife, Zhang Yunxiang, is quite good at cooking; she can make several home-style dishes that are delicious and visually appealing.
"Brother, come on, let me toast you!" Ma Tianhai raised his glass and clinked it with Hou Wenjie's.
Then, he took a sip of the liquor, and as the strong liquor went down his throat, he felt only exhilaration.
Looking at Hou Wenjie, he said, "To be honest, the moment I saw you, I knew you were no ordinary person."
Thank you so much for helping my little shop! From tomorrow onwards, no matter how things turn out, I will always remember your kindness.
Hou Wenjie laughed and said, "Actually, I do all this for myself. I'm also trying to make money!"
But Mr. Ma, you are a really good person. You are decisive in your actions, which is something many people can't match.
Most importantly, you have a supportive wife; many people are incredibly envious of you.
"Hahaha!"
Ma Tianhai burst into laughter:
"Speaking of which, what I'm most proud of is that I caught up with my wife in three months at the factory."
Back then, there were far more bachelors than available women; the factory had way too many single men, and I still managed to get my way!
Zhang Yunxiang patted Ma Tianhai's arm, then brought over a plate of shredded pork with green peppers. Meeting Ma Tianhai's gaze, she rolled her eyes at him.
"If you can't drink, then drink less. Look how drunk you are! And you're showing off this little thing!"
Ma Tianhai looked at Zhang Yunxiang, then took her arm and pulled her to sit down.
Then he took another sip of wine before saying with a sigh:
"To be honest, I'm not really that capable."
My wife has really suffered these past two years with me.
I really have no house and no money, but she's still willing to stay with me.
Sometimes I feel really sorry for her. He's been with me for a long time, and hasn't had a single good day.
When we first got married, we invested all the money we had left in this noodle shop.
We said back then, "Let's work for two years, and when we have money, we'll have another child."
However, the business has not improved much.
I've actually thought of many methods. I've researched how to make the noodles taste better and how to make the shop's decor more comfortable for customers.
To make sure people could see my noodle shop, I even had a sign for it erected 100 meters away.
Unfortunately, it didn't have a very good effect.
Sometimes I think that's how it is in the restaurant business: the more people there are in your restaurant, the more they want to squeeze in.
If your shop is deserted, even if people are very hungry, they won't stop for a moment. In their subconscious, they think that if a shop is not doing well, it must be because the food is bad or something else is wrong. In short, it's not something they consider.
This creates a vicious cycle.
I remember, there's a restaurant called Hongxiu on Nanheng Street, the street where you stayed at your hotel.
I know the owner of that restaurant; he opened his business a month before mine.
After holding on for more than half a year, the business couldn't continue and I lost nearly 100,000 yuan.
One hundred thousand may not be a lot for a rich person, but it is definitely not a small amount for a worker with few skills.
If you factor in your own expenses and supporting your family, it's really not easy to save 100,000.
Later, he came to my noodle shop and we chatted for a long time.
He said, "That's fate." For him, the opportunity to start a business might only come once.
But even this time, his wife divorced him.
After the divorce, his daughter stayed with him, and his wife quickly found another husband.
At the time, he ordered a bowl of vegetable noodles, and he drank all the soup without wasting a drop.
Then, he waved to me and left.
To be honest, seeing things happen around you with your own eyes gives you a much stronger sense of empathy than hearing about them secondhand.
Then, I told myself that I must persevere, for myself, for my wife, and for a future that might get better!
So today, I really have to thank you, Brother Hou.
Because you are truly changing my life!
Hou Wenjie listened attentively to Ma Tianhai's words.
Having experienced the life of a ruler for several years in the last century, his view of many things began to become more rational, and he began to become indifferent to some people and things.
But now, in this modern world, having absorbed the original owner's memories, his once frozen heart begins to thaw little by little.
He raised his glass and offered a toast to Ma Tianhai, saying with a smile, "This toast is to our potentially better life!"
Ma Tianhai raised his glass and smiled, "To our lives that might get better!"
Hou Wenjie poured himself another full glass, glanced at Lin Le beside him, and shook the beer bottle: "Can you drink?"
Lin Le looked into Hou Wenjie's eyes.
She noticed that Hou Wenjie's eyes were bright and pure, without any extraneous emotions, and he did not flinch from her gaze.
Lin Le looked away and said, "I can drink a little beer!"
Hou Wenjie nodded and handed the bottle to Lin Le: "Pour some for yourself!"
Seeing Lin Le take a glass and fill it with wine, the proprietress Zhang Yunxiang across from Ma Tianhai smiled, took the beer bottle in front of Ma Tianhai, and poured herself a glass of wine as well.
Then, everyone's eyes turned to Hou Wenjie.
The atmosphere has been built up to this point.
Hou Wenjie raised his glass, and Lin Le, Ma Tianhai, and Zhang Yunxiang also raised their glasses.
Hou Wenjie shouted, "This toast is to our cause!"
"To our cause!"
The live stream room was already crowded with people because of Zhihu users and Gugu's trending topics, and now the bullet comments were even more lively.
"Holy crap, I'm getting a little teary-eyed. I don't know why, but suddenly my blood is boiling and I have this urge to do something big!"
"This really is Hou Wenjie, the guy I know! Damn it! I got so excited just now that I kicked over the trash can in the living room, and my wife is yelling at me right now!"
"One glass to our lives that may get better, one glass to our careers! The sense of ritual is so strong, it gives me a strange sense of motivation!"
"The restaurant owner in the ramen shop owner story is really pitiful, but it also reflects the reality for many working people."
A fellow villager of mine saved up his money and worked away from home for over ten years. He wanted to start a business back home and built a crayfish pond.
The result was severe losses; the pond is now abandoned, and the people there haven't been back to their hometown for the Lunar New Year in two years.
"Listening to Hou Wenjie's words and then watching his previous videos, I suddenly realized that he is a very interesting person."
I really feel that this person possesses a rare mature and composed demeanor, completely different from the impetuous mentality of some people nowadays.
“I felt it too. I used to criticize him.”
Only now do I realize that this person is truly a rare example of clear-headedness.
Sleeping under bridges and in parks before were all experiences I had to toughen myself up.
He can also calmly face the insults from netizens.
His promotional plans for the small noodle shop were very effective; I look forward to his next move.
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