Looking into Chenchen's adorable, pitiful little eyes, Su Zhu's heart melted. She reached out, lifted Chenchen onto her lap, rubbed her chin gently against the girl's hair, and softly said,
"Sweetheart, tomorrow morning Mommy will take you to the jewelry mall and buy you a gemstone bracelet exactly like this one, okay?"
"Really?" Chenchen looked up, her eyes shining with excitement.
"Of course," Su Zhu lightly scratched her cute little nose, "When have I ever lied to you, Chenchen?"
Chenchen rolled her eyes as if recalling, then happily laughed,
"Mm-hmm, Mommy always keeps her word!"
"Wow, that's great! Tomorrow we can go out and play!"
"Mommy keeps her word, so Chenchen has to keep hers, too. Tomorrow morning you'll eat your VD capsule obediently, okay?"
Su Zhu knew very well that Chenchen hated taking VD soft capsules — several times she'd secretly seen her spit them out.
"Okay, Mommy, I will be good. Because I promised Uncle Ouyang Yunjian I'd take one every day..."
Chenchen was speaking when she suddenly noticed Su Zhu's expression change. Realizing she had said the wrong thing, Chenchen stuck out her tongue and giggled.
"That's Uncle Ouyang Yunjian, not 'Daddy.' Don't call him that again, got it?" Su Zhu said sternly.
Kids blurt things out carelessly; if Ouyang Yunjian misunderstood and thought Chenchen had been taught that, it would be a big mess.
"Mommy, I was wrong!" Chenchen admitted eagerly.
"Really remember?" Su Zhu looked at her suspiciously, feeling Chenchen's quick admission was a little off.
"I promise I'll remember!"
"Mommy, I'm going to swing now, bye-bye!" Chenchen giggled and ran outside.
...
At six in the evening, while Chenchen's Hand-Pulled Noodle House was bustling with activity, at the Cai Family's old mansion outside the East Third Ring, Cai Wenqing sat in a rattan chair under the ginkgo tree. A bamboo table in front of her held a teapot and three cups.
Besides Cai Wenqing, Cai Dongmin — the eldest son — and his son Cai Haoran were also present.
Their topic of conversation was Su Zhu.
With the Cai Family's influence, investigating something in Zhonghai was easy; within less than three hours, Su Zhu's detailed information had been obtained.
But after careful examination, they still couldn't figure out how the Young Master of the Meng Family could have become friends with Su Zhu.
These two were from completely different worlds!
"Dad, maybe there's something hidden here. Should we investigate privately?" Cai Dongmin asked cautiously.
"Foolish!" Cai Wenqing glared, "Even if we find out, what good will it do us? You know how hot-tempered the Young Master of the Meng Family is — even Old Master Meng can't control him. If he suspects us, do you think we'll have any peace afterward?"
"Think carefully before acting!"
Seeing the old master angry, Cai Dongmin shrank his neck and said, "You're right, Father. I didn't consider it carefully."
"So, what should we do next?"
"Just keep an eye on that noodle shop. If there's trouble, help out if you can. After all, they really helped us a lot today."
"Yes, I'll arrange it right away."
"Cai Haoran," Cai Wenqing looked at Cai Haoran with a smile, "You're not going to school these days, right?"
"Yes, Grandpa. We've finished our exams."
"Good. I have a task for you. Every noon, bring me a serving of Hand-Pulled Noodles from Su Zhu's shop."
"That noodle is so delicious, even state banquet chefs couldn't replicate the taste!"
"Okay, Grandpa!" Cai Haoran replied excitedly. It was a great excuse to have a meal.
"Also, Cai Haoran, bring two more portions — your mom and I both like it," Cai Dongmin added.
"Got it."
...
The popularity of a noodle shop had spread—not just on Xiangyang Street itself but on surrounding streets as well. Everyone knew the Hand-Pulled Noodle House on Xiangyang Street was making huge money daily, with customers lining up just to get a bowl.
Some people just couldn't stand to see others make money — they were jealous!
A few hundred meters away on another street was a small Sichuan-style noodle shop specializing in Braised Pork Intestine Noodles and Dandan Noodles. Business was decent, but since Xu Maofa, the owner, saw the long queues in front of the noodle shop, he felt unbalanced.
He wanted to be as rich as the Hand-Pulled Noodle House!
At first, he tried to imitate their noodles. But after buying several bowls for research, he just couldn't replicate the taste and finally gave up!
They were both noodle shops — why did they earn so much every day? Why were there lines outside their door?
Driven by jealousy, Xu Maofa began to hatch a sinister plan.
He was determined to bring down the Hand-Pulled Noodle House.
Then he could open his own Hand-Pulled Noodle House.
With the original down, no competition nearby, his business would surely flourish!
At this moment, Xu Maofa was sitting alone in his shop's backyard, making his final decision about the idea he had thought up.
After all, it was an illegal plan.
"No guts, no glory."
A ferocious gleam flashed in his eyes, and he finally stood up, returning to the noodle shop.
This book is provided by FunNovel Novel Book | Fan Fiction Novel [Beautiful Free Novel Book]