Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 150 He chickened out

Chen Hui was still angry about what Xiao Zhang had just said, so when Li asked, he replied irritably, "Your Mayor Liu and my dad. That tea was brought by my dad. Do you want some?"

Li gave an awkward laugh and asked, "Brother, who's your dad?"

Chen Hui said, "You wouldn't know him even if I told you. My dad works in Fengtian."

Li smiled and nodded, saying, "So you're a provincial leader, a big shot. Little Zhang is young and inexperienced, he misspoke, brother, please don't mind."

Chen Hui said, "It's okay, I'm not really angry. I'll have to rely on you guys to take care of me from now on."

Director Li nodded, "Of course, of course." He glared at Xiao Zhang. Xiao Zhang then realized who Director Li was; his own boss's surname was Li, and sweat broke out on his forehead.

Zhang finally made it down the stairs without incident, sat down next to Li, took a few deep breaths, took off his hat and fanned himself a couple of times, saying, "You don't need to look at me, I almost peed my pants just now, it's a miracle I even made it down." He turned to Chen Hui and said, "Brothers, I was blind to your greatness, don't hold it against me. Just let me know if you need anything in the future, and I promise I'll handle things perfectly in this area."

Chen Hui smiled and poured Zhang a glass of water, saying, "It's alright, come on, have some water. We're meeting for the first time, but we'll get to know each other better later."

Xiao Wei and Xia Maosheng also came over. Xia Maosheng plopped down, wiped his sweat, and said with lingering fear, "Damn, this whole thing almost made me pee." Chen Hui chuckled and said, "Is this some kind of peeing contest today? Brother Zhang just said he almost peed too, and now you're about to pee again, what's wrong?"

Xia Maosheng glanced at Chen Hui and said, "Brother Zhang, that's an exaggeration. I really need to pee. Your dad just came up with this surprise without giving any prior notice. If Director Li hadn't come down and told me, I might have had diarrhea instead of just peeing.

Chen Hui asked, "What's wrong? My dad came all this way to show his support, is it wrong to invite Mayor Liu over for dinner?"

Xiao Wei said with a wry smile, "Your dad made one phone call and the mayor came over to keep you company. He probably didn't think it was a big deal, but we can't do that. You know what? Mayor Liu is Hui, but your dad didn't mention it at all, and he just kept bringing up this big chunk of meat."

Chen Hui was stunned for a moment, then said, "Damn, so my dad can do something so stupid too, haha, I'll have something to say when we get home."

Xiao Wei let out a long sigh and said, "Only you can laugh like that. I was almost scared to death just now. What if we made Mayor Liu angry because of this dinner party?"

Chen Hui said, "It's okay, my dad's here. He came to my house, and my dad was even eating pig's trotters in front of him, and he didn't say anything."

Li Bing and Li Wen brought the dishes to this table. They couldn't serve the meat dish, so they served this table first.

As they were setting out the dishes, Xiao Wei asked, "What's Bao Yi doing?"

Li Bing said, "We have braised beef strips, crispy mutton, tendon, venison, and what else? There aren't many meat dishes left. The first thing we served was seafood. We only had one piece of meat."

Xiao Wei asked, "Venus meat? We still have venison?"

Li Bing said, "I was lucky. It was Master Zhai's own. His fellow apprentices brought some over this morning, and it came in handy."

Xia Maosheng poured wine for everyone and said, "Today was really an accident. I didn't invite all of you, but the upstairs room is full. I'm really sorry for the poor hospitality. Please don't mind, brothers. I'll get some local mountain produce some time later, and we'll have a good drink together."

Zhang tapped the table lightly with his fingers and said, "Don't be so polite. We're not kidding, everyone has connections when they're out doing business. We have to look after our relatives and friends, but we brothers also need to eat and make a living. Sometimes there's no other way. I have to take care of everyone's food, drink, and daily needs. Now that we're acquainted, don't worry, your business is my business, okay? I apologize for being rude today, let's have a drink." He downed his drink in one gulp.

Xia Maosheng handed Zhang Suoman a glass and said, "Don't say that. Once we've met, we're brothers. If anything happens, we won't make any exceptions. Everyone has their struggles. Come on, Brother Zhang, let me toast you."

Xiao Wei said, "Stop. What's going on here? Eat, eat, let's drink slowly. This isn't a competition. Brother Zhang, don't overthink it. This is our first time meeting. We'll have a long future ahead of us. My restaurant will be open for at least ten years. Let's take it slow. Come on, everyone, pick up your chopsticks and try Chef Zhai's cooking. He's the head chef of Lao Si Han."

Li asked, "What about that old fourth resident of the old street?"

Xiao Wei said, "Yes, that's the one. I'm the head chef there. Lao Xia and I went all the way to Lalatun to ask him for it. Come on, have a taste."

Everyone started eating. They were all young; even Zhang Suo and Political Commissar Wei, considered older, were under thirty. After a few bites of food and a few sips of wine, the atmosphere became lively, and the earlier unpleasantness was subjectively forgotten. Who's stupid? There's that big guy sitting upstairs; doesn't he have any self-awareness?

After a few rounds of drinks and several dishes, the group of police officers left, saying they were busy at the station and it wouldn't be good for too many people to stay for too long. The three brothers escorted Zhang, the station chief, who they didn't know was genuinely interested in, to the door, and watched as the officers got into a jeep and drove away.

Li Xing didn't leave. He wasn't from this area, so nobody could interfere. He stood at the door with the three brothers. Li Xing watched the Jeep drive away and said, "He was really scared. Did you see him? He had to use his hands to support himself as he came down the stairs. He couldn't even stand up straight."

Xiao Wei shook his head and said, "Forget it, it's all in the past. Who wouldn't be afraid in that situation? Aren't you afraid? It's not easy for anyone."

Li Xing said, "I don't know. I'll try it out when I become the director. When will I become the director?"

Xia Maosheng said, "Didn't you want to become a criminal investigator? What are the specialties of a criminal investigator? You'll never become one in your life."

Li Xing paused for a moment and said, "Oh right, damn it, all my chanting has been for nothing! There's no chief in the criminal investigation department. Captain, captain, captain! I want to be captain, I want to be captain! Amitabha, Amen."

The brothers laughed and turned back into the shop.

By the time everyone had left, it was already past 2 PM. Apart from a small surprise in the middle, the whole process was perfect. Everyone was quite happy, chatting and laughing as they cleaned up the tables and swept the floor. This battle was won, and future business was already foreseeable.

After cleaning up and arranging the tables and chairs, apart from the lingering smell of liquor, there was no longer any trace of people eating there. The brothers went downstairs to smoke and rest.

Chen Hui sat down on the stool and said, "Now I finally know what running a restaurant is all about. It's exhausting. There's so much to do."

Xiao Wei said, "Restaurants used to be called 'Qinhang,' you know? The 'Qin' in 'hardworking.'"