Chapter 595: Lullaby
Hearing those words, Song Nian blinked in surprise. ’Someone actually came because of yesterday’s livestream?’
Although slightly puzzled, he didn’t ask any questions. Instead, he quietly began preparing the noodles.
Several minutes later, the bowl was placed before the young man.
He eagerly picked up his chopsticks. The moment he took the very first bite, his eyes widened dramatically.
The deep, savory broth, the perfectly cooked noodles, and the harmonious blend of spices instantly conquered his taste buds.
Without even realizing it, he finished the entire bowl. Not even a single drop of soup remained.
Finally understanding why Lana had looked so satisfied while eating, the young man immediately took out his phone.
Without hesitation, he snapped several photographs of the empty bowl before opening his social media account.
Just as the young man finished posting his review, the wooden door creaked open once again.
Then another customer entered. Soon after, another followed.
Within only a few minutes, nearly ten people had walked into the small restaurant one after another.
Every single one of them looked around excitedly before asking almost the same question.
"Uncle Song, we’d like the same bowl of noodles that the young lady ate yesterday."
Song Nian stood frozen for a moment. His weathered face was filled with disbelief. ’What is happening?’
Nevertheless, he quickly recovered and hurried into the kitchen. By the end of the afternoon, his arms had become sore from cooking.
His forehead was covered in sweat. Even so, the line outside only continued growing longer.
Finally, he had no choice but to close the restaurant early. Every single ingredient had been used up. Not even a handful of noodles remained.
Yet more than thirty hungry customers were still standing outside the restaurant. Some looked disappointed while others tried persuading him to cook just one more bowl.
Song Nian repeatedly apologized.
"I’m truly sorry. I’ve completely run out of ingredients. I really can’t make another bowl today."
Seeing everyone’s disappointed expressions, he felt slightly guilty. After thinking for a moment, he smiled awkwardly.
"How about this? Anyone who comes back tomorrow will receive a ten percent discount."
Only after hearing those words did the waiting customers gradually disperse.
When the last customer finally left, silence returned to the little alley. Song Nian slowly looked around his empty restaurant.
The tables that had remained deserted for years had all been occupied today.
The floor was littered with footprints, empty tissue packets, and the lingering fragrance of freshly cooked noodles.
Everything felt surreal. He slowly lowered himself onto the wooden stool behind the counter.
Then, without realizing it, tears quietly gathered in his eyes. His vision gradually blurred. A trembling smile slowly appeared on his wrinkled face.
"Is my day finally going to change?"
....................................
The following morning, long before sunrise, people had already begun gathering outside Song Family Restaurant.
By eight o’clock, the line had stretched far beyond the entrance.
Hundreds became thousands.
The narrow alley was completely packed with customers eagerly waiting to taste the famous bowl of noodles they had seen during Lana’s livestream.
Some had even traveled from neighboring districts just to eat there.
Seeing the endless queue outside his restaurant, Song Nian was completely dumbfounded.
’This... this is impossible...’
There were simply too many customers. He couldn’t possibly handle everything by himself.
Without wasting another moment, he hurriedly hired a temporary helper from the neighborhood.
Only with another pair of hands assisting him was he barely able to keep up with the overwhelming demand.
Even then, both of them remained busy from morning until late evening. Neither of them had time to properly eat or even sit down for a few minutes.
By the time the restaurant finally closed, Song Nian counted the day’s earnings.
His trembling fingers nearly dropped the stack of money. Hundreds of thousands of yuan.
Just one day’s income had exceeded what he used to earn over several months.
His eyes instantly reddened. He tightly clutched the money against his chest as tears rolled uncontrollably down his cheeks.
For the first time in many years... he finally saw hope. Looking toward the entrance where Lana had once stood, he softly murmured,
"Lana... I’ll never forget that name."
....................................
Meanwhile... Lana calmly looked at the tablet displaying today’s trending topics.
One headline stood out immediately.
’Song Family Restaurant’s Handmade Noodles Become an Overnight Sensation.’
Looking at the rapidly increasing customer count, Lana smiled faintly before turning off the screen. "I’ve repaid your kindness, old man."
With that, she stood up and stretched lazily. She let out a long yawn. "I really am exhausted."
Just then, Axel walked into the room. A smile appeared on his face. "You performed very well."
He then crossed his arms before adding helplessly, "But, that arrogant personality of yours..."
Lana chuckled. "Well, I can’t really help it."
Axel immediately rolled his eyes. "Oh, stop pretending. You weren’t this arrogant before."
He looked at her suspiciously.
"Lana from everything I’ve seen, you’re actually a very calm and collected person. So why did you suddenly start acting like such an arrogant genius after following me around?"
Lana couldn’t help laughing. "Well, Uncle... I simply wanted to act arrogant."
She shrugged innocently.
"I once saw a certain mystical cultivator behaving exactly like that. I found him incredibly cool. So I decided to imitate him."
The moment Axel heard those words, a terrible feeling suddenly arose inside him.
His eyelids twitched. Slowly, he looked toward Lana. "What exactly do you mean?"
Lana smiled brightly. "I watched your old interviews. And your previous competition videos."
She pointed at him excitedly. "Uncle, you inspired me."
Axel nearly choked. He genuinely had the urge to knock her lightly on the head.
’This little brat, why would she copy me of all people?’
He knew better than anyone how much suffering his own arrogant personality had caused him over the years.
Taking a deep breath, he spoke seriously. "Listen carefully. You are absolutely not allowed to continue this arrogant character."
Lana ignored him completely. She stretched lazily before smiling.
"I’m sleepy. Please sing me a lullaby."
Axel became completely speechless. At that moment, Lucian happened to walk into the room.