fly?
impossible!
Chen Feng immediately denied it, then carefully examined the group in front of him. Seeing their aggressive demeanor, he knew they were up to no good.
To avoid further trouble, he smiled.
"Gentlemen, please calm down. I will immediately order a fresh table of food and wine to be served to you. Consider this a treat from me. Please forgive any shortcomings in our hospitality."
Butcher Li invited these three men to dinner to cause trouble, his aim being to make a big fuss about the flies in their food, the bigger the better, so that they could spread the word throughout Qingshui Town and let all the diners know that their food was unhygienic, thus ruining Ruyilou Restaurant.
They promised each person a reward of ten taels of silver upon successful completion of the task.
But the three men changed their minds as soon as they entered the store. Wouldn't it be a waste not to take advantage of such a good opportunity to extort some money?
If we succeed this time, we'll be able to make a steady stream of money from here in the future. Wouldn't that be wonderful?
The bald man scoffed disdainfully, "Kid, you've got a dream. You think you can get rid of us by just changing the table? Do you think we're beggars?"
"That's right, I have an upset stomach, I'm dizzy and nauseous. If you don't pay me back, I'm not leaving!" the sharp-nosed monkey shouted.
Scarface threatened menacingly, "Tell this brat to hand over five hundred taels of silver right now, and we'll call it a day. Otherwise, we'll smash up your shop and take the evidence to the county magistrate to sue you."
Wu Shiren, who was watching the commotion from outside the door, saw everything that was happening inside. He was furious to see that the group was playing blackmail and not trying to get to the point.
He shouted in a high-pitched voice, "Ugh, we found a huge fly in Ruyilou's signature dish! It's disgusting! Everyone should avoid eating there!"
Several guests who were about to enter the house paused in their tracks.
"What? Such a high-class restaurant can't even cook clean food? What if we get an upset stomach? Let's go somewhere else!"
"That's right, let's go to Qingfeng Restaurant across the street. It's an old establishment that we feel more comfortable eating at."
"The new dishes they've launched are said to have unique flavors; it would be a shame not to try them."
"Taste is important, but if you find something you shouldn't be eating, wouldn't you feel disgusted?"
"Yes, yes, let's go."
Wu Shiren was so pleased with himself that he almost laughed out loud. He never thought that a tiny fly could save his shop. If he had known it would be this easy, he wouldn't have let Duoduo go and steal the secret recipe.
The diners inside looked at each other in bewilderment, and then got up and gathered around.
Seeing that Chen Feng ignored him, Scarface gave up his extortion attempt and pointed to the plate in front of him.
"Everyone come and take a look! This is Ruyilou's signature dish. Order a braised pork knuckle and get a dead fly as a complimentary dish. It's absolutely disgusting."
Just as Wu Shiren was secretly pleased, Chen Qingqing's voice suddenly rang out.
"Don't rush off, everyone. It might just be a farce!"
As he spoke, he looked at Wu Shiren standing at the door, a cryptic smile appearing in his eyes, "Manager Wu, since you're here, why don't you come in and sit down? What are you doing, sneaking around and shouting outside our restaurant?"
Looking at Chen Qingqing standing at the door, Wu Shiren felt a burning sensation on his face, a kind of embarrassing feeling of a thief crying "stop thief!"
"I...I just heard a commotion, so I came to see what was going on. What's wrong with that?!"
Chen Qingqing smiled enigmatically, “Why not? But I’m afraid Manager Wu will be disappointed.”
The guests who could enter and leave Ruyi Tower were all shrewd and intelligent. Upon hearing Chen Qingqing's words, they realized that the person who had led them away was the manager of Qingfeng Restaurant, and they seemed to understand something immediately.
"What this young lady said is true; there might really be some misunderstanding in such a large restaurant."
"Yes, yes, it's a real pity that they left without even getting to taste the spicy hot pot."
Chen Qingqing didn't go inside; she stood at the doorway watching Scarface and the others.
She wanted to see how Chen Feng would handle this matter. Doing business requires learning to deal with all sorts of people. They were just a few scoundrels. If he couldn't even handle such a small matter, he would only be able to stay in this small town of Qingshui in the future.
At this moment, Chen Feng frowned. Although he didn't know how the fly had gotten in, these people were still making a fuss and wouldn't accept any compensation.
If an argument breaks out, it will only make people think that Ruyilou restaurant is taking advantage of its customers, is irresponsible, and serves unclean food.
Wouldn't doing that ruin Ruyilou's reputation?
He had to tolerate this, after all, doing business is about valuing harmony and integrity.
Seeing the surrounding diners gathering around, Chen Feng was extremely anxious.
If unsuspecting diners were to discover flies in the food, Ruyilou's business would inevitably be affected.
It's impossible to remove the plate now.
His eyes darted around, and an idea came to him. He grinned at the bald man and said, "Sir, please don't get angry yet. Let me see where the fly you mentioned is."
As he spoke, he picked up a pair of chopsticks, picked up the fly from the plate, and examined it carefully. "It's a misunderstanding. This isn't a fly at all; it's clearly a peppercorn."
Upon hearing this, the bald man flew into a rage, shouting, "Bullshit! Are you blind? Do you think your peppercorns have wings?"
"That's right, stop pretending to be stupid. The facts are right in front of you, and you still dare to deny them. Let everyone see if this is a fly or a peppercorn."
The sharp-nosed monkey intended to make a big scene, letting everyone know that Ruyi Restaurant's food was unsanitary. He planned to provoke public anger and then smash up the restaurant, thus ruining Ruyi Restaurant's business and extorting money from them—a win-win situation.
To his surprise, Chen Feng seemed completely unconcerned, holding the fly under his nose, sniffing it, and then casually putting it in his mouth.
He smacked his lips a few times, savored the taste, and nodded.
"The Sichuan peppercorns from Anyang really taste good. They would taste even better if they were fried for a little longer."
When they saw him put the fly in his mouth, the others were dumbfounded.
The monkey with the pointed snout stared wide-eyed, its face full of disbelief. "You, you, you, how could you eat a fly?"
Chen Feng shook his head and smiled, "Sir, you must be seeing things. This isn't a fly, it's just a peppercorn that wasn't fully cooked."
"You're talking nonsense! Those are clearly flies! Don't deny it, it was me personally..."
Before the bald man could finish speaking, he was hit by the sharp-nosed monkey.
The bald man snapped back to reality. What a close call! He almost blurted out the truth. He rolled up his sleeves, adopting a determined stance.
"You brat, I saw a fly right before my eyes. Don't try to fool us, or I'll get rough with you."
Scarface recovered from his shock and pointed at Chen Feng, shouting, "Stop pretending, kid! We found a fly in our food at Ruyi Restaurant. You have to give us an explanation, or we'll smash up your shady establishment!"
......
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