Chapter 97: "I Don’t Accept! I Want to Appeal!
’That son of a bitch,’ Boss Cao cursed inwardly. ’If he’s supposed to be "serving the people," why is he still taking my bribe?’
But his mood improved nonetheless.
Seeing her husband’s expression relax, Zhou Fang asked, "What did Vice Director Liu say?"
"Heh. Let’s go to sleep. We’re going to watch the show tomorrow."
Boss Cao lay down with a chuckle, eagerly anticipating the next day. He couldn’t wait to personally witness the Bureau of Industry and Commerce shutting down Shen Lu’s new shop on its grand opening.
’Wouldn’t that little bitch just die from anger?’
Meanwhile, Mrs. Shen, who had just spoken with the director of the Lower City District’s Bureau of Industry and Commerce, was thinking the exact same thing.
She hadn’t expected Shen Lu to make such a huge blunder. To think she’d open a shop without going through the proper procedures, and that she, of all people, would be the one to find out.
Sitting beside her, Shen Lan wore a worried expression, looking as if she were very concerned.
"Mother, how could Shen Lu do something like this? Running a street stall is one thing; that doesn’t require a business license. But opening a shop is different. How could she not get the proper paperwork? Breaking the law is wrong."
Mrs. Shen scoffed. "The bastard offspring of a low-class person. Of course she wouldn’t know anything about rules."
After her last unpleasant encounter with Shen Lu, Mrs. Shen had been constantly plotting how to deal with her.
It wasn’t that she hadn’t considered hiring a few thugs to trash the stall, but Mrs. Shen, who prided herself on having escaped her lower-class citizen status, was unwilling to stoop to such crude methods.
But Shen Lu had been so considerate, handing over a weakness on a silver platter.
An inexplicable joy bubbled up inside Shen Lan. She said cautiously, "Mother, how about I go take a look tomorrow? What if Shen Lu gets too angry and does something irrational? It wouldn’t be good if she dragged us down with her."
In reality, Shen Lan just wanted to go watch the show.
She would be delighted to see Shen Lu utterly defeated and left with nothing.
Shen Lu.
Every time she thought of that name, a deep hatred would surge within Shen Lan’s heart.
’Shouldn’t she be doing worse and worse after being kicked out of the Shen Family?’
But now, not only was she running a stall, she even had the money to open a shop.
By what right was she living so well? She wouldn’t allow her to live so well.
Mrs. Shen glanced at her daughter, as if seeing right through her. "You can go, but don’t let anyone recognize you. Your birthday banquet is tomorrow. Don’t cause any unnecessary trouble."
"I won’t. I’ll just go take a look," Shen Lan hurriedly promised.
She knew how to weigh her priorities.
The birthday banquet was more important than Shen Lu, because this could be the start of her meteoric rise!
At that moment, the soundly sleeping Shen Lu had no idea just how lively the next day would be.
Or perhaps, she had expected it to be lively, just not in the way she imagined.
「At four o’clock the next day」
After the alarm clock rang once, Shen Lu groggily opened her eyes.
She rubbed her head against the pillow, then the young woman reluctantly sat up.
[Ding-dong~ New mission issued: Please sell 500 portions of crayfish with a customer satisfaction rating of three stars or higher. Time limit: eight hours.]
Shen Lu was instantly wide awake.
Shen Lu: "You’re issuing the daily mission this early?"
[That’s right, Host. Friendly reminder: now that the novice benefit month has ended, the difficulty of daily missions has increased. Please be aware.]
Shen Lu: "So if I don’t successfully complete the mission according to the requirements, will there be a penalty?"
[Yes, there will. Penalties include, but are not limited to, deduction of popularity value, Star Coins, or satisfaction points. It is also possible for items, privileges, etc. to be revoked.]
Shen Lu: ￣へ￣
Shen Lu: "I don’t accept this! I want to appeal!"
’This is too cruel!’
[Good luck, Host! I believe you will definitely complete all missions perfectly!~]
ARGH!
Shen Lu pouted, her good mood about the grand opening completely soured.
But a bad mood was a bad mood; the work still had to be done.
Shen Lu quickly got up, washed up, and went downstairs to the changing room in the back kitchen to put on her chef’s uniform.
Cai Su had woken up even earlier than her and was currently scooping out the crayfish that had been soaking in the brine overnight.
Shen Lu stored the brined crayfish directly into the System Warehouse. The System Warehouse could keep food warm and fresh, making it the most suitable place for storage.
"You’re making steamed buns with me today."
She sprinkled some flour on the kneading board, took the dough out of the refrigerator, and began to knead it vigorously. First, she worked the air out of the dough, then divided it, rolled the pieces into long strips, and pinched off and rolled each individual portion.
Shen Lu wasn’t from the north, so her skill with dough was average at best. Plus, she was in a new body now, and the original owner’s constitution wasn’t as good as hers. She had less strength, which made kneading the dough quite strenuous.
Cai Su, on the other hand, looked thin and frail but had more strength than Shen Lu. She just lacked technique, and her hands were clumsy.
The two of them fumbled around for a good while before they managed to turn the basin of dough into buns, which they placed one by one into steamers to cook.
The mung bean congee was already cooked. It was perfectly warm and ready to be served.
There wasn’t much of the cold-tossed radish skin left, so Shen Lu brought it all out. She also grabbed a bowl of chili oil. Who knew, maybe someone would enjoy dipping their steamed buns in it.
Wang Daguo’s family arrived at five, just as the steamed buns were coming out of the steamers. Shen Lu sent a message to Lin Zhou and Ye Fan, telling them to come over for breakfast.
"If you like it sweet, you can add sugar to your mung bean congee," Shen Lu said, adding two spoonfuls of sugar to both her and Fu Cheng’s bowls. She had a sweet tooth. As for whether Fu Cheng liked it?
Shen Lu felt like there was nothing Fu Cheng disliked. In any case, he obediently ate whatever she fed him.
After putting a few pieces of radish skin on a small plate, Shen Lu carried her and Fu Cheng’s breakfast upstairs to the second floor. To save time, she’d just eat while feeding him.
Wang Xiaohui clutched a steamed bun as big as her face, staring dumbfounded as Ye Fan devoured a bun in two bites. She was so shocked she forgot to eat her own.
’This big brother has such a big mouth,’ she thought. ’He can really eat.’
Ye Fan noticed the little girl’s gaze and slowed down his bun-stuffing pace.
Ahem, he had almost made a fool of himself again.
Besides, Shen Lu had told them that if they were going to eat, they had to stick to a normal single-person portion. For breakfast, she said everyone could have four steamed buns and a large bowl of congee, and no more.
He didn’t know how Shen Lu did it, but even her steamed buns were more delicious than anyone else’s. He hadn’t been able to control himself and had wolfed down two in the blink of an eye without even properly tasting them!
The steamed buns Shen Lu made were quite substantial. For sisters like Wang Xiaohui and Wang Xiaoci, one bun was enough to fill them up, leaving them unable to even finish their congee.
Mrs. Wang whispered to her son, "Daguo, can we take the leftover buns and congee home?"
Wang Daguo: "We probably shouldn’t. Boss Shen is kind and generous, but we can’t push our luck."
Mrs. Wang: "Can we just take one bun for your grandmother? We’re here eating and drinking well, while your grandmother is at home all alone eating Insect Cakes. I..."
"Then I’ll ask Boss Shen when she comes down."
"Okay."
Fu Cheng could tell that Shen Lu seemed a little unhappy. After a moment of thought, he guessed she might be worried about the grand opening today.
In truth, she didn’t need to worry. With her skills, and the fact that her food had a soothing and healing effect on the Spiritual Sea, it would be difficult for her business not to be good.
She would probably even face a situation where demand exceeded supply.
Conversely, Fu Cheng hoped her business wouldn’t get *too* good. At least, not until he was able to shelter her from the wind and rain. Maintaining its current level would be just fine.