Chapter 8 (3)
Haoyu and Zhengyu are back. On Haoyu's birthday, Yu Meng wants to celebrate for him. Haoyu finds this strange, but birthdays have always been celebrated to treat both brothers equally. So, suddenly going on a lavish spree seems unnecessary. It would be more practical to buy limited-edition shoes.
Yu Meng taught her son, "Why send you away to study? Classmates are also a kind of relationship, a connection, which needs to be maintained, right? For example, that little Han, the one your aunt Weng went to see, is back now, right? Let's get together."
Haoyu thought his mother had discovered his relationship. He was nervous. In reality, he and Xiqian had already broken up. He was unsure if inviting her to dinner was a good idea, as they were now friends. But Haoyu finally gave in to his mother's persuasion and invited Xiqian.
The hotel was booked at a high-end restaurant. Besides Xiqian, there were three other boys—Haoyu's childhood friends. Yu Meng showed up in all her splendor, leaving the room for the children. Xiqian asked Haoyu, "What does your mom mean?"
"What do you mean?"
"You suddenly set up a table like this, and you're so polite."
"It's my birthday. I'm her son. How can I not take it seriously?"
Xi Qian was sensitive and smiled, "Your mother is doing business with my father."
"So what?"
"So she asked you to please me." Xi Qian saw through everything and was happy to point it out.
Haoyu got angry and pushed the dishes away, "No more."
Xi Qian continued to teach him, "Hey! What's the big deal? Is it worth getting angry about? The adults are ignorant, so how can we be ignorant? I'm here to remember some old friendship."
"Don't insult my mother."
"Eat, and stop talking nonsense." Xi Qian didn't intend to cause trouble. However, she had a more explosive opinion hidden in her mind. With her womanly intuition, she felt that Haoyu's mother was a bit interested in becoming her stepmother. Over the years, so many women had come forward, and her experience in struggles was enough to fill a book; nothing could be hidden from her.
After leaving the restaurant, Yu Meng rushed over to Yu Jia's place. The shop had officially opened, serving fast food, one soup, one rice, one meat dish, and two vegetable dishes, emulating the Japanese bento style. Yu Meng saw Yu Jia bustling about in the kitchen. The shop was packed; it had just opened, and it was fresh.
Yu Jia asked Yu Meng to find a seat first. When Yu Meng stretched her neck, she saw Yu Rui helping to pack and pass boxes to the delivery riders. Yu Rui nodded at Yu Meng. Yu Meng pretended not to notice and sat down, her butt facing her. Yu Jia was busy while also keeping an eye on the subtle changes. She had asked Rui and Meng to come today. She had deliberately created an opportunity to reconcile. There were no principled issues, so they had to reconcile.
Yu Jia washed her hands and left the counter, slowing down a bit. She went to the cashier to replace Yu Rui, and nodded, asking Rui to take Yu Meng's meal. "Come on, get over it." Yu Rui had no choice but to take the meal and bring it to Yu Meng, putting on a forgiving smile.
Yu Meng crossed her arms and before Yu Rui could speak, she interrupted, "Xiao Rui, I just want to ask you one question. Am I your sister, and are you my sister?"
"Absolutely."
"Which side are you from?"
"Sister, that day was really..."
"Okay, let's not talk about anything else. From now on, you go your way and I go mine. We can't eat from the same pot or piss in the same pot."
The situation is critical.
Yu Rui quickly said, "Sister, I feel wronged when you say that. If you want news, I'll give it to you as soon as I have it. If you want help, I'll definitely help you if I can. But I really couldn't help it that day. We're all the eldest sisters, so who wouldn't I give face to? I was stuck in the middle and it was difficult. Sister Weng scolded me, and then you scolded me again. I didn't take it to heart because it was external. I can understand that Sister Meng was unhappy with me, but it shouldn't be like this between us sisters. I feel bad when Sister Meng said that. Sister Weng took me with her on purpose. She would have been really happy if she had fallen for her trick."
A paragraph of words, all kinds of sisters, but Yu Meng heard it clearly. Yu Rui was not confused and should still stand on her side. She, Yu Meng, could not push the allies away. She had to unite the forces that needed to be united. So she took the opportunity to go down the stairs and said, "At any time, we can distinguish between friends and enemies!"
Seeing Yu Meng relax, Yu Rui finally let out the anger she'd been holding in her chest, and the two sisters sat down to eat. Suddenly, Bai Yuankai pulled up a chair and sat down. He turned to Yu Jia, "Boss, the regular set meal! Add an extra chicken drumstick!"
Yu Jia had come to the restaurant's opening, bringing a large group of people with him. The small shop was immediately packed. Yu Jia was sweating. Yuan Kai, realizing the shop couldn't handle the capacity, immediately ordered his staff to go home and order takeout. Yu Rui looked around but didn't see her sister Yu Qi. She couldn't ask Yuan Kai about it in front of Yu Meng. She planned to ask Yu Qi when she got home that night.
One month after opening, the business of the small shop gradually slowed down, but Yu Jia was still working hard to increase sales, do promotions, and distribute flyers. Obviously, after the novelty of the initial opening wore off, the white-collar workers did not seem to intend to come back.
Was it the food? Yu Jia had people taste test it, and everyone said it was delicious, especially the signature dish, the braised short ribs with rice, which was mouth-watering. Was it the price? But since opening, Yu Jia has been losing money, even trying to gain publicity. Gradually, members of the small team began to leave. One chef even wanted to resign. He said he simply couldn't see a future.
At ten o'clock in the evening, the shop door was still open. Yu Jia was alone at a high-top table next to the cash register, reviewing reports and analyzing them. Someone pushed the door open. Yu Jia instinctively said, "Welcome." Looking up, he saw it was Bai Yuankai.
"Still working hard." Yuan Kai smiled.
"You have to work hard, you have to work hard." Yu Jia's smile was bittersweet.
"How can I help?" he asked.
Yu Jia turned back to the kitchen, washed her hands, served a bowl of pork ribs rice, and brought it to Yuan Kai, "Help me eat it." She thanked him for always bringing people to take care of the business.
"Performance is not improving?" he asked while eating.
“There are few returning customers.”
"That's me," he joked.
Yu Jia said seriously, "It has to be a stranger, a returning customer who I have never met before." She was worried, but it was strange that the busyness during this period made Yu Jia show a rare vitality.
She felt as if she had returned to her twenties. Except for the brief moment she spent on the phone with Sisi, she didn't feel like a mother or a middle-aged woman. She was an entrepreneur, ageless, and she yearned for success.
"Have you ever been to Japan for an inspection?" Yuan Kai asked. His opinion was similar to Yu Rui's. Yu Jia said she hadn't had time—the reality was they were trying to save money. Bai Yuankai then meticulously analyzed everything from the history of bento to its current state, how it was prepared, the menu, the product categories, delivery, the dining habits of nearby white-collar workers, and so on. Yu Jia was fascinated. It was clear that Bai Yuankai had done research, perhaps even big data analysis. His analysis opened Yu Jia's eyes. For example, he suggested focusing on group buying, with delivery only available if each company ordered at least three. Another suggestion, to save on high-quality ingredients, was a single menu, offering only one type of bento each day, Monday through Friday. This would also reduce the pressure on the chefs. He also suggested improving the presentation of the dishes. White-collar workers have aesthetic preferences, and a lunch box should not only taste good but also look good. Furthermore, both the dish and the box needed to convey a "homey" feel. He suggested customizing the boxes, though this would require more investment. "Let's go to Japan. I'm going there on a business trip soon. Let's go together."
Bai Yuankai extended an invitation.
In the past, Yu Jia would never have accepted such an invitation, but the current situation is special. The store is in danger and if she can't find a way to save it, it means that all her retirement money will be invested in it. Although Yu Jia was mentally prepared for failure at the beginning of her business, she cannot accept failure so easily.
Just go! Focus on your career and don't think about the rest.
The plane took off, its destination: Tokyo. Looking at the ground getting farther and farther away, with Xiaobai helping him along, Yu Jia never thought he could fly so high.
Yu Qi wanted to resign and told Yu Rui about it when he got home. Yu Rui immediately expressed her opposition.
"Work has to be long."
"There's a company trying to recruit me, offering better pay than I have now."
"How did you get here? You can't be like this."
"Sister, this is the workplace, you just have to look forward."
"Does Bai know?"
"Not yet."
"Why exactly?"
“It’s a development need.”
"Has anything hindered your development here? I see great progress."
"We have to go anyway."
"He rejected you?"
"We're just friends, that's all."
"I used to go to the movies alone."
"There might be a misunderstanding."
"Xiao Xie, you can't be so sensitive. He has feelings for you, otherwise he wouldn't have recruited you and trained you so carefully." Yu Rui said earnestly.
"That's because he's attracted to my talent," Yu Qi said a little louder, "not my looks." His tone dropped sharply at the end of the sentence. "I'd rather he's attracted to my looks..."
"Cultivate it slowly." Yu Rui continued to persuade.
"He doesn't like me." Yu Qi could only tell the truth.
Yu Rui was surprised. Her sister was rarely so direct.
"Who do you like then?"
"Sister Jia."
This was truly earth-shattering. Yu Rui was so shocked she felt dizzy. "What nonsense?" But then she realized it was unexpected, yet also reasonable. All the clues that had come before her, all connected, had to do with Yu Jia.
"They went to Japan together."
"I know that going to investigate the fast food industry is a business trip."
"There's a photo of Sister Jia on his desk," Yu Qi said softly. Yu Rui still heard it clearly. It was unbelievable. Bai Yuankai, surrounded by beautiful women, actually had feelings for Sister Jia. Otherwise, how could the photo explain it? She asked Yu Qi again. Yu Qi confirmed it with absolute certainty. It was true.
Yu Rui was a little unconvinced. Although she'd let go now, she'd once harbored a soft spot for Xiaobai. She was convinced she'd lost to her sister. Xiaobai was innocent and pretty, similar to her grandmother's sister, the type a successful man would want. But Jiajie, to put it bluntly, was just a widow with a child. What merit had she, or what, to make Bai Yuankai so captivated? Yu Rui pondered it carefully; it was hard to say. Jiajie had that unique, classical, gentle aura. She was like a solitary orchid in a valley, and she loved Kunqu Opera. They shared a common interest... She didn't want to think about it further... But that was Bai Yuankai...
Yu Qi decided to resign. Seeing that Yu Rui couldn't persuade her, she had to wait a few days. Even if she had to resign, she had to wait until Yuan Kai returned to give an explanation. Yu Rui asked Yu Qi, "Are you just letting go like this?" Yu Qi replied, "I don't love those who don't love me." Hearing this, Yu Rui stopped trying to persuade her. Sister Jia was still investigating. One day, Yu Rui was sitting in the office worrying when Shuang called and asked her to come over quickly.
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