The Gourmet Customizer

He’s a good kid, most of the time, but sometimes you just want to punch him... He just couldn’t resist showing off, could he?

A pleasant dinner concluded with everyone taking a group photo to commemorate the occasion.

What was supposed to be a grand, contentious reception banquet had somehow turned into a friendly meal. Even stranger, Su Chen had inexplicably acquired three new, seemingly useless titles.

It wasn’t until after three in the afternoon.

A forlorn-looking Brother Fang Chang arrived at Su Chen’s office with Jiang Yuan in tow.

"Ah! I’m so sorry! About what happened today..."

Brother Fang Chang sighed. "Boss Su, you’re definitely not to blame. Besides, my future father-in-law and his elder brother had a great time."

Because of the midday excitement, Jiang Wensheng and Jiang Wusheng seemed to have forgotten one crucial detail: today was supposed to be Brother Fang Chang’s damn engagement party!

As it turned out, after lunch, those old timers decided they hadn’t had their fill and wanted to head over to Cui Yufen’s hotel to continue discussing the competition.

The Jiang Brothers, who initially had no interest in the competition, went along as well. They’d suddenly realized that chefs of Huaiyang Cuisine could participate, and even if they didn’t win, just making an appearance at such an event would be a good thing!

Which left poor Brother Fang Chang stranded at Meiweilai Company, completely dumbfounded.

Jiang Yuan held Brother Fang Chang’s arm. "Hey, an engagement isn’t a wedding. Every girl wants a lavish wedding, but that doesn’t apply to the engagement party. As long as our families are happy, nothing else matters!"

Brother Fang Chang still felt he had let his girlfriend down, but he could only sigh and nod.

Thankfully, Brother Fang Chang’s parents were quite reasonable. Seeing the Jiang Brothers get preoccupied, they realized the celebratory meal was unlikely to happen and had gone home around noon.

They had already booked another restaurant in the city to hold a make-up engagement party for Jiang Yuan.

After all, an engagement was really just about the parents from both sides getting together, talking things over, and formalizing the arrangement.

Fortunately, Su Chen wasn’t the cause of all this. Still, he said with great sympathy, "Happy engagement to you both! Hmm... Fang Chang, go find Liu Shengnan later about the refund. I’ll let her know you’re coming."

"Alright! But Boss Su, you have to remember—you owe me a meal!"

Su Chen waved him away. "Go on, I’ll remember."

After Brother Fang Chang left, Su Chen sent Liu Shengnan a message.

’Process the refund for Fang Chang’s engagement party. Also, give him a cash gift of one thousand yuan on behalf of Delicious.’

Whether the amount was large or small, it was the thought that counted.

Besides, according to the local customs in Jingzhou, only aunts and uncles typically gave a one-thousand-yuan red envelope for an engagement. Other relatives would give three or five hundred. It was a region where gift-giving was relatively modest.

So, Su Chen’s one-thousand-yuan gift wasn’t shabby at all.

Furthermore, Brother Fang Chang was a close partner of Delicious, so this gesture was essential.

After sending the message, Su Chen returned to his reclining chair and let out a comfortable sigh.

The matter with Cui Yufen was finally settled. He was a bit curious, though, why Ling Shuyu had insisted he agree to it.

So he gave Ling Shuyu a call.

"Boss? Ah... I can’t get away right now. Could you come here?"

Huh?

’I ask you to come to my office, and you turn around and ask me to go to yours?’

’What kind of nonsense is that?’

’Nope, I have to teach Ling Shuyu a lesson today!’

’She’s getting more and more audacious. The other day, she even ganged up with the other employees and locked me in the kitchen to make buns for them!’

’Outrageous! Absolutely outrageous!’

Su Chen tightened his belt, threw on his suit jacket, and marched toward the second floor.

As he reached the office door, he heard a conversation inside. The voice sounded quite familiar.

"Director Li?"

Seeing Su Chen, Li Mingtao quickly stood up and offered his seat. "Boss, please, have a seat!"

Su Chen sat down and gestured to another chair. "You sit too. We’re friends now, no need for formalities. What’s up? What brings you here today?"

Li Mingtao looked troubled. "Well, there is something... I came to ask President Ling for a favor..."

Ling Shuyu said with a serious expression, "I can’t be the one to decide this. It’s only a go if the boss says so."

Li Mingtao poured Su Chen a cup of freshly brewed tea. "Boss, here’s the situation. Ever since President Ling left, the design department at Xinghui got a new director, sent over from the Capital City."

"That sounds like a good thing," Su Chen said, sipping his tea.

’Delicious!’

"But recently, the big boss at Xinghui took on a project. You’ve probably heard that the Xiaqing Competition is going to be held in Jingzhou."

’What’s the Xiaqing Competition?’

Su Chen genuinely had no idea.

Seeing Su Chen’s blank look, Li Mingtao explained, "The Summer Youth Games. It’s a more obscure competition, but it’s still world-class!"

"Hah!" Su Chen shook his head. "There are too many competitions these days. There’s a winter one, a summer one, an adult one, a minor one... now a youth one pops up. It’s impossible to keep track."

Li Mingtao gave an awkward laugh. "It is hard to keep track. Jingzhou is running a civic improvement campaign this year, so they managed to secure a venue for the event. The competition will last a week, and the boss at Xinghui won the bid for part of the venue’s design work. But the new director isn’t cutting it, so..."

"So you want to get Ling Shuyu to help with the design?"

Li Mingtao nodded. "The pay is decent. But we’d need your approval."

Su Chen stood up and waved his hand dismissively. "I’m not getting involved in this. If she’s not busy, she should take it. Think of it as a side gig for some extra income—our salaries aren’t that high anyway. She can make her own decision."

Since they were busy, Su Chen wasn’t in a hurry to ask about the honorary president title anymore.

Humming a little tune, he headed back to the nineteenth floor.

Liu Ahbao had made lunch for a few employees. A group of them were eating in the cafeteria, and the sound of their happy chatter and laughter drifted out from time to time.

Ling Shuyu was downstairs discussing the freelance gig with Li Mingtao.

And as for me, Boss Su... hehe!

’Nothing much to do today. Just the minor annoyance of accidentally making forty thousand yuan! So irritating!’

Back in his office, he opened the music app on his computer, then settled into his reclining chair and pulled a thin blanket over himself.

He turned the volume on his two-thousand-yuan Harman Kardon speakers to thirty percent, and a beautiful melody filled the room.

’Who is it... knocking on my window?’

’Who is it... strumming the strings?’

And in this peaceful environment, Su Chen gradually drifted off to sleep.