Spicy Hot Pot Chain

Chen Nan finished eating quickly and went to the back kitchen to take a look.

Sister Li, who was still busy inside, greeted him warmly. Chen Nan thought the woman was quite beautiful, though she had some fine lines around her eyes and a worried look. However, this only added to her charm.

But Chen Nan wasn't concerned with the lingering charm of a woman in her thirties or forties. He just felt a sense of familiarity about her.

With a hint of doubt, he peered into the cooking pot.

The fire had already been put out, but steam was still rising. Chen Nan looked around the pot and then shook his head.

This was Chen Nan's first time visiting the shop to inspect it. He naturally had to ensure everything was in order. After all, it was his idea to open the shop, and it was tied to his hometown. He naturally hoped it would last for a long time.

After a quick tour, feeling confident he had a good grasp of the situation, he came out.

Everyone else had also finished eating, and Jiang Lili wanted to take them out to have some fun.

They now had two cars. Including Little Black Ox, Chen Xiao, Feng Wu, Jiang Lili, and Chen Nan, they all went to the amusement park.

At noon, they had another big meal, and in the evening, they ate some snacks before returning to Jiang Lili's home.

Chen Nan and the others only needed to return before the dormitory curfew at nine o'clock, so they had plenty of time.

Thus, Chen Nan took this opportunity to tell Jiang Lili and the others about the problems he had discovered during the day.

He said, "There are a few issues now, and I want to address them.

First, the back kitchen must have surveillance cameras, especially near the soup pots. This will prevent problems from occurring without any evidence to trace them.

These cameras must be installed very discreetly, so no one notices them.

Also, when you're running the spicy hot pot business, don't make it look like one big communal pot.

You can set up one or two rows of display cabinets, listing various dishes, noodles, and other items by category. Let customers choose according to their taste, and then charge them by weight.

This way, customers can get the dishes they like most, it caters to their appetite, avoids waste, and reduces your workload.

Also, Feng Wu and Chen Xiao, after a certain period, you two need to go out and open branches. This way, each of you will open one, making a total of three main stores in Wu City.

With these three main stores as a core, you can then develop chain stores. Given Wu City's population, it's best not to exceed fifteen stores. If it becomes too saturated, it will be detrimental to our development.

Once developed to a certain extent in Wu City, start expanding downwards to the 'Ting' (equivalent to county towns) and 'Xiang' (equivalent to towns). Upwards, expand to 'Jun' (provincial capitals, etc.).

Finally, if you have the ambition, you can naturally open stores all over the country and even go global."

Jiang Lili smiled and said, "We certainly have that ambition. Chen Xiao, did you write down everything Chen Nan said?"

Chen Xiao nodded and replied, "Don't worry, I've recorded every key point."

This whole operation left Shen Congyun and the others a bit bewildered.

Good heavens, who exactly was this Chen Nan? How could he think of so much, so far ahead? They were all kids, but the difference was quite significant.

But at the same time, they also sensed a crisis.

There were only fifteen stores in total in Wu City, so after the three main stores, there were only twelve left.

Given how popular the spicy hot pot was, opening chain stores seemed incredibly easy.

Therefore, to succeed in this business, they had to act quickly, or it would be too late.

As a result, Shen Congyun and the other two immediately asked Chen Nan for spots, using their shared dormitory as leverage to pressure him into reserving three chain store spots for them.

Jiang Lili agreed on behalf of Chen Nan, and the three of them decided to contact their families immediately upon returning that day.

After all, they were students at the Preparatory Academy. Even though they were young, their status at home was already extraordinary.

Their parents would not possibly ignore their requests.

The next day, the parents of the three arrived, conducted some investigations, and then applied for franchises.

After all, the crowds filling every nook and cranny were the most compelling evidence. No one seeing such a scene would remain unmoved.

And the reputation of "Chen Nan's Spicy Hot Pot" began to spread throughout Wu City, from a small point to a wider area.

This news eventually reached Wang Bodan's ears.

It was almost impossible to deal with Chen Nan now. After that battle, Chen Nan's reputation was well-established, and no one dared to provoke him.

Moreover, the special treatment Chen Nan received in the academy also showed the school's regard for him.

Who in the school would dare to lay a hand on such a person?

But how could Wang Bodan's desire for revenge be extinguished? On the contrary, the better Chen Nan fared, the more it fueled the flames, making them burn even hotter.

Seeing the enemy who had ruined his family living so carefree and at ease was unbearable for anyone.

Hearing about "Chen Nan's Spicy Hot Pot" suddenly presented Wang Bodan with an opportunity to act.

However, he knew he was too weak to accomplish anything on his own, so he planned to contact people within the academy.

And he already had a target: Zhang Hua, who also harbored a deep hatred for Chen Nan.

Wang Bodan's hatred for Chen Nan was matched by Zhang Hua's envy.

He had originally thought that after entering the Preparatory Academy, he would undoubtedly be the most brilliant star within it. And "celebrities" like Chen Nan would only be his lackeys.

But the situation had reversed. Chen Nan had become the dazzling figure at the school.

He heard other students talking, and they all envied Chen Nan. Under Chen Nan's radiance, Zhang Hua seemed much dimmer.

A saying that fits him perfectly: Can a firefly's light dare to compete with the bright moon?

But considering his background, how could he possibly endure this? This was, after all, within Wu City!

Therefore, he had long been looking for an opportunity to humiliate Chen Nan.

When Wang Bodan found Zhang Hua, a few words of provocation were all it took to win him over. The two then began to conspire on how to cause trouble for Chen Nan.

Since they couldn't make a move against Chen Nan within the academy, they naturally had to target his ventures outside.

They set their sights on Chen Nan's Spicy Hot Pot shop. Wang Bodan came up with a plan, consisting of two steps.

The first step was to ruin the Spicy Hot Pot shop. For businesses dealing with food, the methods used to bring them down have almost always been the same.

The strategy Wang Bodan proposed was ruthless; if successful, the Spicy Hot Pot shop would never recover.

However, ruining the Spicy Hot Pot shop was not Wang Bodan's ultimate goal. He actually just wanted to lure Chen Nan away from the academy for an extended period.

Once Chen Nan was gone, there would be plenty of opportunities to deal with him through less conventional means.

In fact, the ranks of Transcendent beings were also filled with criminal organizations. For example, there was the Assassin Association. While the Assassin Association wouldn't assassinate ordinary people, they had no qualms about targeting Transcendent beings.

This was exactly what Wang Bodan had in mind.

He planned to hire an assassin to eliminate Chen Nan when he came to deal with the Spicy Hot Pot incident.

And on this point, he needed Zhang Hua's help.

As an ordinary person, Wang Bodan had difficulty accessing the world of Transcendent assassins, so he needed Zhang Hua's assistance.

Zhang Hua agreed to all parts of the plan except for killing Chen Nan. Wang Bodan didn't mind this; he only needed Zhang Hua to provide information about assassins, and he would then pay a hefty sum to hire one.

Zhang Hua was naturally delighted and provided the information.

Wang Bodan was taking a desperate gamble. Although the court had seized his family's assets, there were still hidden funds remaining.

These amounted to tens of millions, enough to live a leisurely life without any problems. Unfortunately, his hatred wouldn't allow him to do so.

He knew this was his last chance. Once Chen Nan entered the Transcendent Academy, they would be worlds apart, and he would never be able to reach him.

Therefore, he decided to use all this money to hire an assassin to completely eliminate Chen Nan.

Chen Nan, completely unaware of all this, remained focused on his cultivation, oblivious to the outside world.

In the blink of an eye, another month passed. Chen Nan had once again advanced three levels, reaching Level Six Zero Stage.

However, Chen Nan discovered that cultivation became increasingly difficult. It took him a month to reach the first three levels, and another month for the next three. Although the time and levels were the same, the circumstances of the two cultivation periods were different.

This month of cultivation had been conducted with powerful assistance, not only from food buffs but also from various equipment and medicines.

Even so, he had only advanced three levels in a month.

Chen Nan estimated that at this rate, it would take at least another two months to reach Level Ten. This would push him into February of the following year.

The entrance examination for the Transcendent Academy was held in September of the current year. This left him only seven months to reach Level Fifteen. Judging by this, time was extremely tight.

As for whether he could rank in the top three during the assessment, that wasn't particularly difficult.

This was because it was unlikely for individuals at Level Eighteen or Nineteen to appear during the assessment.

Most people would participate in the assessment right around the Level Fifteen mark. After all, entering the Transcendent Academy earlier meant receiving more advanced education sooner.

Who would be foolish enough to waste precious time fighting for a useless reputation?

In any case, the major families would certainly not act this way. Only "wildlings" and preparatory academies similar to Wu City would place such importance on rankings.

What truly mattered for entering the Transcendent Academy was age. The younger the age, the greater the proof of talent and potential for development.

Of course, even so, it would still be extremely difficult to secure a top-three spot in the assessment.

While reputation might be useless, how many people were burdened by seeking it?

It could be foreseen that even if it was of no practical use, many youths would compete for it.