This is another long story, so Xu Yanxia could only give a brief explanation. "My father passed away very early, and later my mother left home. My brother and I were raised by our grandparents."
"When the demolition compensation came through, I was still finishing up at school. My brother was busy looking at shops and new apartments in the city. My uncle used to seem quite honest. That day, my grandfather had actually asked him to transfer the money to my brother to secure a house deposit, but he suddenly ran off with the money instead. No one could have anticipated it, not even my aunt."
After hearing this, everyone basically understood.
Mrs. Lu sighed. "Every family really has its own troubles to bear. Some people simply can't stand up to a test of character."
Sister Wang nodded. "Exactly. It must have been so hard for you two siblings and your grandparents."
Sister Sun was indignant. "That despicable uncle! How are his own wife and child supposed to hold their heads up after this?"
Mrs. Lu then asked Xu Yanxia, "By the way, who sent those people to stage the accident at your stall last night?"
Sister Sun immediately showed Mrs. Lu a video on her phone. "Look, it's written right here. It was people sent by that big restaurant called 'Nine Treasures Fine Dining.' They're just jealous of Xiao Xia's good business."
"Nine Treasures?"
Mrs. Lu frowned. "Wait... I think I have an investment there."
What?
Xu Yanxia and the two sisters were stunned.
Just then, President Lu and his son came downstairs and sat at the dining table. Lu Jingming asked his mother, "Mom, you said you have an investment in Nine Treasures?"
President Lu also asked her, "Since when have you been interested in the restaurant business?"
Mrs. Lu said somewhat helplessly, "I was pulled into it years ago by Old Huang from Jingchuang. I didn't invest much, just two or three million. The returns used to be okay, but they've shrunk a lot since last year... If they keep this up, I might actually lose money."
President Lu, who was eating beef vermicelli soup, wasn't quite following. "Why would you lose money?"
Mrs. Lu was exasperated. "Weren't you listening upstairs? This Nine Treasures place is outrageous. A big restaurant like that sent people to stage an accident at Xiao Xia's family stall, got caught red-handed by them, and ended up at the police station. It's all over the trending news now! Who's going to eat there after this?"
President Lu finally understood and nodded. "That is indeed excessive. Their mind isn't on their business, no wonder no one's been going there lately."
"Precisely," Mrs. Lu continued, still fuming. "These two young people, losing their parents early, cheated by a relative, finally standing on their own feet, and then they get bullied like this? It's simply too much! Jingming, have the company finance department look into it for me today. If it's no good, sell off those shares quickly. It's not worth the embarrassment."
"Alright," Lu Jingming nodded.
This made Xu Yanxia feel a bit awkward. "Mrs. Lu, I'm sorry, I didn't know you had an investment in Nine Treasures..."
"It's not your fault at all," Mrs. Lu quickly waved her hand. "It's their own problem. They can't even run a business properly and they bully others."
President Lu also nodded beside her. "Just pull out. Their food isn't good, and their conduct is worse. They'll ruin themselves one day."
Then, speaking earnestly to his eldest son, he added, "This incident serves as a perfect cautionary tale. We should take it as a warning. Remember, building a good reputation isn't easy, but destroying it can happen in an instant."
Lu Jingming nodded again. "Understood."
Then he looked at Xu Yanxia and asked her, "Was the police car we saw last night there because of this?"
Xu Yanxia nodded, "Yes."
"How is it being handled now?"
"This kind of malicious competition can be taken to court for compensation."
Xu Yanxia smiled, "I haven't asked my brother about the follow-up yet, but those people probably won't admit they were sent by the restaurant."
Lu Jingming gave an acknowledging hum, then added, "The company has a legal department. If needed, we can ask them to help."
Xu Yanxia smiled again, "Alright, thank you, President Lu."
Seeing there was nothing else for now, she planned to go back to the kitchen to clean up. Chairman Lu glanced at his son and spoke up again, "Jingming, your mother and I are going to see your grandfather at noon today. Should we ask Xiao Xu to bring you lunch?"
"That's right,"
Mrs. Lu also chimed in, "Since Xiao Xu doesn't need to cook for us, just tell her what you'd like to eat and have her make it and deliver it to you."
"No problem,"
Xu Yanxia also nodded, looking at Lu Jingming, "What would you like to eat, President Lu?"
However, after thinking for a moment, Lu Jingming said to her, "Lunch isn't urgent. If you're free today, could you come to the company again? I plan to deal with the cafeteria matter."
"What happened with the cafeteria?"
Chairman Lu immediately asked.
Lu Jingming explained, "The relevant personnel may have used substandard ingredients to defraud company funds. Xiao Xia is quite professional in this area, and I'd like to ask for her help."
"Such a thing actually happened?"
Chairman Lu instantly became serious, "Then it must be investigated as soon as possible. We absolutely cannot let it slide."
Mrs. Lu also hurriedly looked at Xu Yanxia, "You are indeed an expert in this area. Then please trouble you to go with Jingming and take a look. The food for so many people in the company must not have any problems."
Xu Yanxia nodded, "Alright, I'll head over later."
With nothing else left to discuss, she returned to the kitchen.
Lu Jingming also began to eat the sandwich on the table.
After just one bite, he had to admit from the bottom of his heart that hers really did taste better.
The toast slices were slightly crispy, the scrambled eggs soft, tender, and rich with a milky fragrance, combined with the salad dressing made from salmon bits and pickles. It was mellow and delicate in the mouth, leaving a lingering aroma.
No wonder Wen Jiajun ate two in one go.
After breakfast, Lu Jingming went to the company, and Chairman Lu also accompanied Mrs. Lu back to her parents' home.
Xu Yanxia had breakfast with her colleagues in the mansion and then began their respective tasks.
Her phone kept vibrating in her pocket all morning. After organizing the newly arrived ingredients and the kitchen, Xu Yanxia took a moment to check and found it was local classmates and friends who had seen the trending topic on TikTok and were reaching out to check on her.
She had to briefly reply to each one. Checking the time, she then gave Luo Jiajia a call.
It was already 9:30, they should be up by now.
The phone rang twice before connecting. Luo Jiajia asked, "What's up, Xia Xia?"
"Nothing much," Xu Yanxia said, "I didn't get a chance to ask you guys last night. Was everything okay at the stall later? Any news from the police?"
"It went smoothly,"
Luo Jiajia said, "The police station called us later. Those guys flatly denied being sent by Jiu Shan. They could only fine them two hundred yuan and detain them for a day. They said they'd apologize to us after they're released."
As expected.
Xu Yanxia said, "They'll definitely deny it, but whether they admit it or not doesn't really matter. Right now, the whole internet is criticizing Jiushan. This whole thing is generating a lot of buzz. How is our Douyin account holding up?"
"I was just about to tell you!"
Luo Jiajia was excited. "From last night until now, our followers have already grown to over fifty thousand, and it's still climbing! That video of us prepping ingredients yesterday got over a hundred thousand likes and more than five thousand comments. It's absolutely insane! We've also gotten tons of private messages asking for our address, saying they want to come try our teppanyaki. I was up all night glued to my phone and barely got any sleep!"
