Why was Zhou Yu at Li's Restaurant?
The moment Li Xingying saw her roommate, she froze, as if her soul had left her body, utterly at a loss.
If Zhou Yu found out that the person sitting in the private room was her ex-boyfriend, Jiang Beicheng, the scene would turn downright theatrical.
Snapping back to reality, her first instinct was to grip the door handle and hurriedly ask, "Is that young restaurant tycoon you mentioned also dining here?"
Zhou Yu smiled and said, "It's Zeng Haifeng, the general manager of this place. His father, Zeng Wei, is the founder of Chaoniu Hotpot, a big name in Jiangnan City's dining scene."
"Congrats," Li Xingying said with an awkward smile. "You should go keep him company. It's not good to keep someone waiting."
"There's definitely something fishy going on," Zhou Yu said, scrutinizing Li Xingying. "You're really nervous right now. Your expression and actions have already given you away. Be honest—is the person inside someone you're dating?"
Li Xingying's eyes widened.
This misunderstanding was huge.
"No, don't jump to conclusions…"
Before she could finish, Zhou Yu forcefully pushed the door open.
"Let me see who's charming enough to win over our talented girl…"
Her words trailed off halfway.
Zhou Yu stared at Jiang Beicheng, stunned.
She was dumbfounded.
Since when did Li Xingying get involved with him?
They had only broken up yesterday!
"Did you invite him?" Jiang Beicheng glanced at Li Xingying, casually addressing Zhou Yu as if she were a passerby.
"No, Young Master Jiang, it's just a coincidence…" Li Xingying waved her hands, trying to explain.
Zhou Yu tilted her head toward Li Xingying and muttered under her breath, "Can you use your brain a little?"
Though her voice was low, Jiang Beicheng still heard it.
The implication wasn't to scold Li Xingying but to remind her: with your qualities, why would you throw yourself at a man who has nothing? Why waste your youth? *I just got rid of him and feel free, yet here you are, shamelessly chasing after him.*
Li Xingying didn't know how to explain herself, but Zhou Yu's words left her feeling uneasy.
After all, Jiang Beicheng was a guest she had personally invited today.
She was also exasperated by Zhou Yu's online antics from the previous night. She said directly, "Don't look at people through tinted glasses. I'm treating a guest to dinner—please show us a little respect."
Jiang Beicheng hadn't expected this girl to stand up for him.
"If you're not here to dine with us, don't disturb our meal," Jiang Beicheng said, picking up his teacup and taking a sip.
Zhou Yu knew those words were directed at her.
Being kicked out didn't feel good, of course.
She muttered to herself, "Still acting like the little Young Master Jiang everyone used to fawn over? Who's he putting on airs for?"
Then, turning to Li Xingying, she said, "You'd better give me a reasonable explanation by tonight."
With that, she left.
Li Xingying looked innocent. "Why do I need to explain? Can't I have dinner with a friend?"
She closed the door, sat back down, and calmed herself. "Young Master Jiang, sorry you had to see that."
Jiang Beicheng looked at Li Xingying with an appreciative gaze. "I didn't expect you to be a woman with a bit of a temper."
Her demeanor just now was a stark contrast to her gentle appearance and the refined tone of her writing.
This girl had a bit of a contrasting charm.
"Don't tease me, Young Master Jiang," Li Xingying sighed. "The crucible of society has a way of changing people too much. Sigh…"
She let out a small lament.
Jiang Beicheng roughly understood her meaning.
No matter how close Li Xingying and Zhou Yu had been in college, once they entered society and chose different paths, their material lives and ways of thinking had diverged significantly. Even if Li Xingying hadn't stood up to Zhou Yu just now, they would've clashed sooner or later.
"The only constant in this world is change," Jiang Beicheng said.
"True. Let's not dwell on it. Let's eat, Young Master Jiang, please," Li Xingying said, unaffected by the earlier interruption, smiling as she invited him to dig in.
Jiang Beicheng introduced the dish: "East Sea yellow croaker with rice cakes, a classic Taizhou dish and one that truly tests a chef's skill. Try Old Wu's craftsmanship."
Old Wu was the executive chef of this restaurant, a nationally recognized master chef, poached by Jiang Beicheng's mother, Li Yun, with a 20% stake in the restaurant and a 500,000-yuan annual salary.
"Young Master Jiang, you're quite knowledgeable about food. There's a lot I could learn from you," Li Xingying said, picking up her chopsticks and taking a bite, not forgetting to offer a compliment.
Her emotional intelligence was impressive.
"Mmm, it melts in your mouth. Really delicious," Li Xingying said.
It wasn't flattery—her review was genuine.
But Jiang Beicheng frowned slightly at her comment.
He picked up his chopsticks, took a piece of the yellow croaker, and tasted it.
His expression darkened instantly.
"What's wrong?" Li Xingying asked, puzzled.
"They used farmed yellow croaker," Jiang Beicheng said. "And it's from a densely packed shallow-sea farm. The texture is soft, and even after cooking with yellow wine, you can still taste a hint of muddy flavor."
Li Xingying stared at him, dumbfounded.
He could tell that just from a bite?
As expected of a young master who treated high-end business restaurants like his personal cafeteria.
"If it's not to Young Master Jiang's taste, we can order something else," Li Xingying offered.
Jiang Beicheng said, "Tell the manager to take this dish back. Passing off inferior goods as premium—deceiving customers. Has Li's Restaurant stooped to such dirty business?"
Li Xingying realized the gravity of the situation. This wasn't just about farmed versus wild yellow croaker.
A dish priced at 1,280 yuan, made with farmed fish that cost only a few dozen yuan—wasn't that outright fraud?
Normally, this dish should be made with wild East Sea yellow croaker. For fish under a jin, even those caught by sea fishing cost only 500-600 yuan per jin. Add in the cost of cold-chain air transport, and the restaurant still made a profit of several hundred yuan.
That profit margin was normal for a high-end business restaurant.
But using farmed fish that cost a few dozen yuan? That was crossing a line.
Li Xingying guessed Jiang Beicheng was probably furious right now. After all, this restaurant was founded by his mother. Even if it had been sold, it still bore the "Li's" name.
The Zeng family was being utterly disrespectful.
"Young Master Jiang, your wine," said Xu Ru, the restaurant manager, as she entered with a decanter and glasses, noticing Jiang Beicheng's expression.
Her gaze fell on the yellow croaker dish, where a few pieces had been taken.
She understood immediately.
Xu Ru felt a deep sense of guilt, as if she had let down Jiang Beicheng's mother.
Without Li Yun founding Li's Restaurant, nurturing them patiently, and pursuing high quality and service to build its reputation, they wouldn't have been able to command the highest salaries in Jiangnan City's industry.
Now that Li's was engaging in such dirty practices, Xu Ru, as the restaurant manager, felt responsible and ashamed for failing Li Yun's efforts.
She also felt she was letting down the customers who had always supported Li's.
But she had no say in the restaurant's management.
"Whether it's Zeng Wei, you, or Old Wu, you all promised to uphold the reputation of Li's," Jiang Beicheng said sternly. "If you're going to run a dirty business, at least take down the Li's sign first. This is a disgrace to the honor of a three-diamond Black Pearl restaurant."
Xu Ru choked up. "Young Master Jiang, Li's hasn't been on the Black Pearl list for three years."
Jiang Beicheng was stunned. "Is Old Wu still here?"
"He is!"
Jiang Beicheng stood and headed straight for the kitchen, with Xu Ru following.
"Who's managing the restaurant now?" Jiang Beicheng asked.
"Zeng Wei's son, Zeng Haifeng," Xu Ru replied. "Everything in the restaurant, from the front of house to the kitchen, goes through him. He has the final say."