Chapter 13 (V-Admission Notice) Big...
Nanjiu ignored the gazes that made her uncomfortable and introduced the tea menu in English.
While she was talking, the three of them didn't really listen, whispering something. Nan Jiu stopped talking and stood by the tea table, waiting for them to finish talking.
Seeing that she was no longer talking, the three stopped talking. Li Wei asked her in English how much it cost.
Although Li Wei spoke fluent English, the front-of-mouth resonance in his pronunciation was still perfectly captured by Nanjiu's ears. She raised her impeccable professional smile and said, "Since we're all Chinese, there's no need for me to translate for you." She placed the tea menu on the tea table and said, "Call me when you're ready."
Li Wei simply stopped pretending to be a foreigner and asked, "How much do you make working here for a month?"
Nan Jiu raised his chin slightly and glanced at the few people. Li Wei's eyes wandered across Nan Jiu's neck and collarbone without hesitation: "Are you interested in changing jobs?"
The smile on Nanjiu's face did not reach his eyes: "Give me a reason to change jobs."
Li Wei pointed at the furnishings in the teahouse and turned his wrist half a circle: "Such a fashionable girl is staying in a shabby teahouse. It's better to go somewhere more upscale."
"What is considered a high-end place?" Nan Jiu asked.
Li Wei smiled but didn't answer. He took out his phone and handed it to Nanjiu: "Leave me your number and I'll contact you later."
Nan Jiu took the phone, entered a number, and handed it back to Li Wei. Li Wei picked up the phone and glanced at it: "Your number is so short?"
"Yes." Nanjiu replied lightly and asked, "Have you taken a look at the tea menu?"
Li Wei casually pointed at the tea menu. Nan Jiu took the menu and handed it to Aunt Wu, then walked back to the counter.
After a while, Aunt Wu's voice reached Nan Jiu's ears: "I told you I'd change the tea bowl for you."
Nan Jiu raised his head when he heard the voice. Li Wei threw the tea bowl on the table and shouted, "Is this just a matter of changing the tea bowl? I almost cut my mouth. Is this how you handle things?"
His shout drew the attention of the other guests. Li Wei picked up the broken tea bowl and held it before Aunt Li. "How do I know if anyone else has cut their mouth when drinking from this bowl? If someone gets sick, wouldn't I be the unlucky one?"
As soon as Li Wei said this, the guest who was holding the tea bowl put down the tea bowl silently.
Just last week, a news story broke in South City about a restaurant where a customer was injured and blood spilled onto tableware. Because the restaurant hadn't properly disinfected the tableware, it was used by the next customer. The customer's lip was cut by a crack on the bowl's rim, but he didn't take it seriously at the time. He later felt unwell and went to the hospital for a checkup, which revealed he was HIV-positive.
This explosive news led to a month-long overhaul of the Nancheng catering industry. While the overhaul is still ongoing, the sudden appearance of this incident in a teahouse is undoubtedly causing some discomfort among tea drinkers.
Nan Jiu walked around the counter and headed straight for the table. He took the tea bowl from Li Wei's hand, glanced at it, and then shifted his gaze to his face: "How can you be sure that this tea bowl was broken before you came?"
Li Wei gave Nan Jiu a look, and while taking the bowl back from her hand, he pressed his thumb on the back of her hand, rubbing it, and said to her meaningfully, "Don't interfere."
Nanjiu retracted his hand, took out a piece of tissue paper from the tissue box, and wiped the back of his hand: "Who do you want to handle it?"
"Let the boss come out and give an explanation."
Nan Jiu rolled the tissue he had used to wipe into a ball and threw it into the trash can. He raised his head and glared at him: "The boss is my grandfather. Tell me if you have anything to say."
Li Wei's expression was slightly surprised. The three of them looked at each other and exchanged glances.
Nan Jiu didn't give them a chance to discuss it, and immediately said, "It's impossible for the tea sets in our teahouse to be damaged."
"You mean, we broke this tea bowl? We came here to drink tea, why would we break your tea set?" said Da Qiangzi, who was wearing a string of diamonds.
"Yes, why?" Nan Jiu not only did not agree with Da Qianzi's words, but instead threw the question back.
Li Wei took over the conversation: "You keep saying that we broke it. What evidence do you have? Did you capture it on surveillance or did you see it with your own eyes?"
He put one hand on the back of the chair, looking calm and composed. He was sure that there was no surveillance camera installed in the teahouse and that he could not provide any evidence.
Old Man Nan heard the commotion and came out of the house. He happened to overhear Li Wei's words and got a rough idea of what was going on. He noticed a number of people looking out the door to watch the fun, so he walked over on his cane, said a few polite words, and offered to give their table a free meal, hoping to suppress the matter.
While Old Man Nan was negotiating with the others, Nan Jiu walked out of the teahouse and stayed in the alley for a while. When he returned to the teahouse, he happened to see Li Wei kicking his chair, standing up with his two brothers, and saying harshly, "I see you're old enough to not bother with you. Why are you still running a teahouse with such unsanitary conditions?"
Old Man Nan's face darkened, and he poked the ground with his cane. "We've been running this small place for so many years, and there have been a lot of problems, but we've never had any hygiene issues. I'll spare you all the trouble. Goodbye."
After the order to leave, Li Wei and the other two had no intention of staying. As they turned around, Nan Jiu stepped forward and stood in front of them. "My grandfather may be the owner of the teahouse, but I'm the one collecting the bills. Today, not only must you pay for the tea, but you must also compensate us for the damaged tea bowls."
Old Man Nan stared, his voice humming like an old bellows: "Xiao Jiu!"
Before his grandfather could stop him, Nan Jiu spoke first: "I called the police five minutes ago. They will probably be here in another five minutes."
She took a firm stance, blocking the door of the teahouse and staring at the men. Her eyes were filled with frost, stopping the three men in their tracks.
Li Wei's anger turned into a smile. "I saw your boss was old, so I didn't pursue the matter. You insist on arguing with me? Fine, then we'll wait for the police to come and judge the case." Li Wei turned to look at Old Man Nan and pointed at him. "Let me be frank. If the police can't make a decision, you've wasted my time, and you'll be more than just a free meal."
The three of them pulled up chairs and sat nonchalantly at the entrance of the teahouse, as if to say that no one was allowed to enter.
With things getting to this point, the teahouse's business naturally could not continue. Some tea drinkers got up and left one after another, and the remaining tea drinkers were just waiting for an explanation.
Old Man Nan walked up to Nan Jiu and glared at her: "Do you think this isn't a big enough fuss? Who told you to call the police?"
This matter related to the teahouse business, and Old Man Nan was furious. Nan Jiu didn't want to argue with the old man in front of so many people, so he just replied, "It's already been reported anyway."
Old Man Nan was so angry that he turned around and asked Aunt Wu to get some hot water while he went from table to table on his crutches to greet everyone. Aunt Wu ran around with a serious face, and the other tea drinkers had no interest in sipping tea.
As soon as the police arrived, everyone in the alley gathered around. The younger officer stared at Li Wei and the others sitting at the gate and asked, "Were you three the ones who called the police?"
"It's me." Nanjiu stood behind the policeman and said to the young policeman, "Please come out with me."
The young police officer followed Nanjiu out of the teahouse, where another older officer investigated the dispute. Li Wei led the charge, accusing Maoer Teahouse of bullying customers. The other two brothers chimed in, saying they'd been subjected to numerous harassments by the owner. They also questioned the restaurant's serious hygiene issues and demanded a thorough investigation.
According to the city's recent plan for handling substandard restaurant hygiene, if Li Wei's claims are confirmed, the teahouse will face heavy fines or even suspension of business. The police are taking this matter very seriously.
Old Man Nan naturally tried his best to protect the reputation of the teahouse, and the crowd engaged in a heated argument in front of the police. The commotion continued until Nan Jiu and the young police officer returned to the teahouse.
The young police officer handed the phone to another officer. The older officer looked at the phone and looked up at Li Wei: "Do you know what the charge is for provoking trouble?"
Li Wei's eyes flickered, and he looked back at the police officer: "I didn't cause any trouble."
The officer held the phone upside down and played a surveillance video. Maoer Lane is equipped with several outdated surveillance cameras, which cover almost the entire main lane. These public surveillance cameras are maintained by the public security department, and the only way to access the footage is to call the police.
The surveillance camera in the video is some distance away from the teahouse, but the figure sitting at the window can still be vaguely seen.
After Aunt Wu served the tea and left, Li Wei took a sip of the tea, then casually grabbed the teacup and reached for the windowsill. He glanced around and tapped the edge of the bowl against the windowsill.
Li Wei had never expected this teahouse to be so critical of a broken tea bowl. Faced with the overwhelming evidence in the video, Li Wei lost his earlier arrogance, but his attitude remained unbending. He said to Nan Jiu, "I'll just compensate you with a tea bowl."
Nanjiu stood at the entrance of the teahouse and raised his voice, "Are you talking about compensating for a tea bowl? Have you paid for the tea? Not to mention that you've delayed our business for an entire afternoon, just the fact that you've falsely accused us of hygiene issues has caused considerable damage to our teahouse's reputation." Nanjiu's gaze shifted to the police officer, "Comrade police officer, the reputation of this old shop is the most important thing. If they do this, we won't even eat."
Seeing Nan Jiu trying to escalate the situation, Old Man Nan stopped her from negotiating further and turned to Li Wei and the other two, saying, "Pay for the tea and bowls, and you can leave."
Nan Jiu's anger was rising. Taking advantage of the police presence, and the clear opportunity for negotiation, Old Man Nan chose to keep things quiet. Nan Jiu squinted her eyes anxiously, but Old Man Nan didn't even look at her.
The few of them threw their money away and walked out of the teahouse. Turning around Maoer Lane, Li Wei took out his phone and found the number Nan Jiu had left. The more he looked at it, the more he felt something was amiss. He turned to Da Qiangzi and said, "Can you search for this number?"
Da Qiangzi took out his phone and searched, then exclaimed, "This is the reporting hotline for anti-pornography and anti-illegal publications."
Li Wei's face gradually turned gloomy.
......
As soon as the police left, Old Man Nan glared at Nan Jiu while holding the handle of his cane: "Come in."
Entering the kitchen, Old Man Nan hung his cane heavily on the doorknob, his eyes brimming with unwavering strength as he said, "With your temper, you easily offend people. How can you accomplish anything long-term?"
"They are obviously not here to drink tea. People like them can't be expected to become repeat customers. So what if we offend them?" Nan Jiu leaned against the stove, looking down at his fingernails.
"Why make it public when you can minimize the problem? If it gets out, our teahouse will be unforgiving. Does that sound good?"
Nan Jiu put his hand down, raised his head and looked directly at Old Man Nan. "If they were serious people coming for tea, any problems would have to be resolved. They're not serious people, so why should we let them manipulate us? Do the service industry deserve to be treated like a grandson?"
"Who wants you to be my grandson?" Old Man Nan's voice suddenly rose. "You've grown so independent now. You ignored my words and called the police without even saying a word. Do you still respect me as your grandfather?"
The quarrel between the grandfather and grandson continued to come from the kitchen. Aunt Wu did not dare to breathe and silently cleared the tea set on the table.
Song Ting came back from outside and saw that the teahouse had closed early. There were still a few people gathered at the door talking. He came in and asked Aunt Wu, "What happened?"
Aunt Wu told Song Ting everything that happened in the afternoon, and Nan Qiaoyu also came over to listen.
"Hey, they're still arguing!" Aunt Wu glanced at the kitchen.
Song Ting said nothing and walked towards the kitchen.
Old Man Nan's angry voice rang out from the kitchen: "You can send them away by just giving them a cup of tea. You've made a big fuss about a small matter. You're going to suffer a great loss with your temper!"
"I don't think this is a small matter. They even touched me. Why should I let them get away with it?"
"I told you not to wear such rags. Your arms and legs are exposed. How can you look like a proper girl?"
Nanjiu's eyes flickered, then gradually widened. He stood up and strode forward, his glare filled with shattered ice. "You mean... this is my fault?"
Throughout his life, Old Man Nan had run the teahouse with a compassionate heart, fostering harmony. He tried to convey this philosophy to Nan Jiu, but despite much persuasion, she remained stubborn and retorted ten times his words, acting like a frizzled cat, baring its sharp claws at him.
Old Man Nan's skinny chest rose and fell as he picked up his cane and lashed at her: "I think you've rebelled!"
A figure stepped between them. Song Ting extended his arm, and the cane struck him hard, leaving a red mark. Old Man Nan froze, his grip on the cane slipping from his grasp. Nan Jiu's eyes flashed crimson as he turned and stormed out of the kitchen.
Song Ting bent down to pick up the crutch, handed it to Old Man Nan, and turned around to find Nan Jiu.
Nan Jiu's footsteps were breathless, the soles of his shoes hitting the ground with a "thump thump" sound. Nan Qiaoyu stood in the aisle, his head tilted, looking in. Nan Jiu walked past him, unceremoniously pushed his shoulder away, and walked out the door.
Song Ting followed quickly and blocked the entrance to the teahouse: "Where are you going?"
"What do you care?" Nan Jiu took a step to the left, and Song Ting leaned to the left. Nan Jiu moved to the right, and Song Ting leaned to the right again, blocking her firmly.
Nanjiu clenched his fists and glared at him, the light in his eyes gathering into a scorching flame, burning silently. The wind in the alley blew up the fallen leaves, and the sun slowly set behind the eaves.
A faint curve passed across the corner of his lips: "What? Still want to throw a tantrum at me?"
Nan Jiu didn't take her anger out on Song Ting like she used to. She still had that stubborn spirit in her, but the difference was that time had taught her how to sheathe that sharp blade.
Song Ting turned around and closed the door of the teahouse, then turned to Nan Jiu and said, "Come with me."
The author has something to say:
----------------------
Attention everyone! The next chapter will be released as a V-rated title, and a 10,000-word bonus chapter will be included. For the first three days of the V-rated title, updates will be at midnight (00:00). Please pay attention to the schedule adjustments. After the clip (V-rated list) is posted, the update schedule will be adjusted back to daytime. Please pay attention to Zuohua for the next few days; I'll announce the next day's update time each day, so you don't have to wait in vain. For those of you who haven't seen Zuohua, please let us know in the comments section. Thank you.
Friends who have subscribed to the full account can participate in the lucky draw. The winning Jinjiang coins will be automatically distributed to the backend after the draw. Hold me tight.
The next chapter will be updated at midnight on August 31st.
Finally, I wish everyone a happy Qixi Festival~
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
