Starting from a Bankrupt Sichuan Cuisine Restaurant

Huang He nodded. He understood, of course. For a three-hundred-yuan salary, it was no wonder Zhou Yan hadn’t batted an eye—even his own parents were unimpressed when they heard about it. It just went to show how little that amount was compared to their profits.

"Mom, you gotta give me my meal money! Huang Ying spotted me for breakfast, and I have to pay her back double," Huang Bing whined, sidling up to Zhao Shulan with his hand out.

Huang He frowned. "Didn’t your mom just give you thirty yesterday? Did you blow it all on those good-for-nothing friends of yours again?!"

Looking guilty, Huang Bing shuffled closer to his mom and whispered, "If I said I lost it... would you believe me?"

"I bet my belt won’t believe that crap!" Huang He growled, reaching for his belt.

"Mom, Mom, save me!" Huang Bing yelped, scrambling behind Zhao Shulan for cover.

"Magic Cloak," Zhao Shulan said, raising a hand to stop Huang He. She looked at Huang Bing and announced, "Starting today, you’ll eat all three of your meals at Suji with your sister. I’ll cover the cost, but I’m giving the money to Huang Ying to manage. As long as you show up for all three meals, I’ll give you ten yuan a day in spending money."

"But Mom, didn’t we agree on thirty?" Huang Bing protested.

"Li the Third is a First-level Chef—a head chef at a major restaurant—and he only makes three hundred and sixty a month! You, you damn loafer, get three hundred a month in allowance and you still think it’s not enough?" With a sharp *SHLICK*, Huang He yanked out his belt.

"Ten it is! Ten is fine! It’s enough, more than enough!" Huang Bing panicked and yelled.

Zhao Shulan pushed Huang He’s arm down again. "Then it’s settled," she said. "I’ll give you an extra ten today for gas for the motorcycle."

"Thank you, my dearest mother! I’m off to take a shower!" Huang Bing grinned, dodging around a pillar to give Huang He a wide berth before darting into the house.

Zhao Shulan pulled out five Great Unity notes and handed them to Huang Ying. "Huang Ying, this is for you and your brother’s meals for the next three days, plus your allowance. I’ll give you your allowance in a lump sum, and you can budget it yourself. But you also have to check in with me once a day. Deal?"

Huang Ying casually tucked the money into her purse and nodded with a smile. "Deal, Mom. I think getting to eat at Suji every day sounds wonderful."

Zhao Shulan smiled and nodded. "Alright. You go get changed too, so you don’t catch a cold."

Huang Ying nodded, parked her bike in the courtyard, and went inside as well.

"It’s right to give Huang Ying an allowance, but you shouldn’t be giving Huang Bing so much," Huang He grumbled under his breath as he and Zhao Shulan walked out, pushing their bikes. "We never see him all day. Who knows where he’s off fooling around."

"What do you know?" Zhao Shulan laughed. "Think about it. He has to ride his bike over twenty kilometers round-trip, and he has to do that three times a day to earn that ten yuan. That’s a lot harder than just asking me for it, isn’t it? Just you watch. By the time he gets home tonight and collects his money, he’ll be too tired to go out and fool around."

Huang He stopped in his tracks, his eyes lighting up. "Honey! That’s my wife! I can’t believe you came up with such a cunning scheme!"

"It’s called strategy," Zhao Shulan said, giving his side a sharp pinch. "Not a scheme!"

"Right, right, right! You’re Zhuge Shulan herself!"

...

On the living room sofa, now in fresh clothes, Huang Ying and Huang Bing were sprawled out on opposite ends, staring blankly as *Heroic Martial Artist Huo Yuanjia* played on the color television. Both of them felt completely drained.

Huang Ying unwrapped a gold coin chocolate and held it in her hand for three minutes before finally getting up and stuffing it into Huang Bing’s mouth.

The chocolate still in his mouth, Huang Bing stared wide-eyed at Huang Ying, his expression not one of delight, but of pure terror and suspicion. "Hey! Did you drop this on the floor? Is it expired? This is your favorite chocolate; why would you ever give it to me? Did you poison it?"

The two were usually at each other’s throats; a sudden act of kindness from his sister was terrifying.

Huang Ying rolled her eyes. "Take it or leave it. I just feel like I might have lost a little weight, and eating this chocolate would be a betrayal to all the hard work I put into pedaling my bike."

Only then did Huang Bing start chewing in relief. He stared at Huang Ying for a moment before asking uncertainly, "Don’t tell me you’ve actually fallen for Zhou Yan, have you? In three years, this is the first time I’ve ever heard you talk about losing weight! That’s just too weird."

Huang Ying was completely unabashed. "Everyone appreciates beauty. It’s not like I’m being a creep. It’s just... a beautiful flower is in full bloom. If I don’t take the time to admire it, I’d seem completely tasteless. I’m going to be patronizing his business every day. Stealing a few glances and exchanging a few words isn’t going too far, is it?"

"When you put it that way, I guess it’s not too much." Huang Bing nodded, but after a moment’s thought, something seemed off. "Hey? But you’re just a little slip of a girl. How come it feels like you know more about this than I do?"

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