Immediate Retribution

He knocked carefully on the door, and only went in with a big smile after being let in.

"Brother Wang, come on, the food is served."

Inside the private room, there were only six or seven people sitting at one table, all of whom were middle-aged men who appeared to be quite distinguished and of high status.

"That was fast," said Brother Wang, who had just arrived in his Mercedes-Benz S-Class- Class. "The food here is very authentic. I come here often. Come on, President Qian, please have a taste."

"It certainly looks delicious," President Qian, sitting at the head of the table, said with a smile as he put down his chopsticks.

The owner of the Dongyuan Family knew that these were distinguished guests that General Manager Luo was going to entertain, so he was naturally quite concerned about whether the dishes would satisfy everyone.

So, I left it slightly.

Mr. President Qian picked up some food, put it in his mouth, chewed it a couple of times, but then paused slightly.

"How's it? The food's pretty good, isn't it, President Qian?" Brother Wang asked with a smile.

"Hmm, it's not bad." President Qian glanced at Brother Wang beside him, then at the shop owner who was eagerly waiting in front of him, and simply smiled imperceptibly, offering a polite but indifferent remark.

The shop owner, Old Luo, couldn't tell whether the man was genuinely satisfied or just pretending.

But I couldn't just stand there and not leave, so I said goodbye and left the private room first.

Inside the private room, everyone was discussing business; no one cared about the food.

However, even as more dishes were served, President Qian, who was sitting in the main seat, rarely touched his chopsticks, and only ate some noodles that were served separately at the end.

Only Brother Wang, after eating there a few times, knew exactly what was going on, but he just frowned and remained silent.

Before the party ended, he went out early to pay the bill.

"How was it, Brother Wang? Was the food alright?" The restaurant owner, Mr. Luo, smiled warmly. "The total is 1,560, but you can pay 1,500."

Brother Wang didn't say anything, just lowered his head and paid the money.

"Huh? What's this?" Boss Luo was taken aback when he saw the payment amount.

Because this regular customer, Brother Wang, hadn't shortchanged him by a single penny. This wasn't a good thing; instead, it made him a little uneasy.

Brother Wang waved his hand, said nothing, and turned to walk outside.

Boss Luo panicked when he saw this and quickly jogged after him.

"Brother Wang, did you not eat well, or is there something I did wrong? You should give me some pointers so I know what I'm doing!"

"No need, you go ahead with your work." Brother Wang smiled, continuing on his way.

Then, Boss Luo relentlessly chased after him until he reached his car.

Just before getting on the bus, Brother Wang stood by the door and glanced back at Boss Luo.

"Old Luo, did you change your chef?"

"Huh?" Boss Luo nodded hesitantly.

"What were you thinking? What kind of chef did you hire? Don't you even look at the rubbish this has produced today?" Brother Wang sneered. "I already said that today's guests are very important, and they came here because of your reputation. And you've made a mess of this... never mind, there won't be a next time."

With that, he slammed the door, got into the car, and drove off.

Boss Luo stood there, stunned for a long time, his face turning pale and then purple.

Behind him, the proprietress came forward, wanting to ask a few words of concern.

"Old Luo, are you alright? Why did Brother Wang leave in such a hurry?"

"Leaving in such a hurry? They're avoiding us like the plague, they'll never come to our house again!" Boss Luo stamped his foot and gritted his teeth.

"What's the reason?" the proprietress asked again.

"What else could it be? The food! The reviews were... utterly terrible, what kind of rubbish was this!" Boss Luo blurted out, "Can we even get those chefs we fired back?"

"A good horse doesn't eat the grass it's already grazed; that's true for them, and it's true for us too." The proprietress looked embarrassed. "Besides, even if we could come back, the price would definitely be much higher than before."

"Then I'll accept it," Boss Luo said through gritted teeth.

"Then I'll make a call and ask." The proprietress nodded and had no choice but to make the call first.

As she spoke, she subtly made a hand gesture, covered the phone, and lowered her voice, "You can come back, but you have to take this salary..."

"Come back, come back right now. I'll accept this salary," Boss Luo said hurriedly.

The proprietress nodded slightly and then repeated a few more words.

A moment later, the call ended.

"I can be there anytime. I told him to wait for my message." The proprietress gritted her teeth and let out a long sigh. "So now it's..."

She was experiencing a mix of emotions.

The initial idea was that by poaching the other party's chef team, they could surely bring down the other party and allow their own business to reach new heights.

The Haiqin Restaurant is still thriving.

The chef team they poached was like a spoiled brat; instead of taking their restaurant's business to new heights, it caused it to decline steadily.

In the few days since we arrived, our reputation has been declining day after day.

They've really shot themselves in the foot!

The couple exchanged a glance, all their anger directed at Old Liu. Now that they'd found a way out, what were they waiting for?

A moment later, the two walked through the hall, past many diners who seemed unhappy with their meals, and headed straight for the kitchen.

Instead of working inside the kitchen, Old Liu was resting comfortably by the doorway.

"Old Liu, why aren't you in the kitchen? Why are you out here?"

"You're exhausted, can't you even take a break?!" Old Liu retorted, raising his eyelids. "If I collapse from exhaustion, who will take care of your kitchen? Don't you know the importance of balancing work and rest?"

Seeing Old Liu's arrogant attitude, Boss Luo's anger intensified.

"You want to rest, right? Okay, then go back and rest." Boss Luo waved his hand dismissively.

"Go back to rest?" Old Liu was taken aback. "You're really willing to let me go back to rest during the National Day holiday, given how busy you've been? By the way, even if I go back to rest, my apprentice is still covering for me these days, so you can't skimp on my pay."

"I'm telling you to go back to rest forever," Old Luo said with a forced smile.

Old Liu was completely unprepared and was stunned.

"No... Mr. Luo, what do you mean by that?"

"I told you to pack your things and get out of here with your bunch of followers! Don't you understand?" Boss Luo's pent-up anger exploded instantly.

He pointed at Old Liu and started swearing.

What is this guy? He really thinks he's something special. I hired him to make my hotel business more prosperous, not to have some old man act all high and mighty here all day long.

"I'm leaving? No... why would I leave?" Old Liu was completely stunned by the suddenness of the situation.

"Don't you have any self-awareness about why we let you go? We hired you because of your skills, but what's the reality?" Boss Luo sneered. "After you came, Haiqin Restaurant's business continued to thrive, but our business was dragged down by you. What use are you?!"

"What? Haiqin Restaurant is still doing so well?" Old Liu panicked instantly.

Could it be that their business success really has nothing to do with me? Have I really overestimated my own skills?

He had an inflated sense of self-importance because he believed he was valuable, but reality has shown him that what he thought was valuable is actually worthless.

Is he really just an ordinary... cook?

"Get out! Get out!" Old Luo waved his hand impatiently.

In the kitchen, many of Old Liu's apprentices came out upon hearing the news. After understanding what had happened, they were all filled with righteous indignation.

"You were the one who wanted to dig, and now you're telling people to leave?!"

"You can leave, but hand over the money!"

"Yes! Give me the money!"

Boss Luo sneered, "Still not convinced, huh? You really think I run this restaurant just to be trifled with? Are you leaving or not?!"

The group of people in front of them didn't move at all.

"Go make the call..." Mr. Luo said, looking directly at the proprietress.

"Wait!" Old Liu suddenly spoke up, slowly raising his head. "Let's go, about... wages."

Boss Luo waved his hand impatiently, as if shooing away flies.

··

Later, Old Liu returned with a group of apprentices, looking bewildered.

Not far away, the Haiqin Restaurant was bustling with customers; whether they were there or not, business was just as good.

"Should we... should we return it?"

One of the younger apprentices suggested in a low voice.

"Mr. and Mrs. Zhang are actually very nice people."

"How can we go back to an old friend? Besides, it's not us who's leaving, it's that young Mr. Zhang..."

A group of people were discussing it animatedly.

Old Liu's expression shifted, and suddenly he saw Mr. Zhang, the owner of Haiqin Restaurant, come out to smoke not far away.

"Wait a minute."

He threw out a remark and, steeling himself, stepped forward.

A moment later, in front of the Haiqin Restaurant.

Chef Liu, with a shameless grin, approached Zhang Zhaohai, who was smoking by the door.

"Mr. Zhang?"

Zhang Zhaohai glanced up and immediately saw Chef Liu with a beaming smile, giving him a brief, indifferent look.

"Isn't this Chef Liu? Why aren't you busy in the kitchen? What brings you here?"

Chef Liu's face was burning hot, and standing so close, he could clearly feel the booming business Haiqin Restaurant.

"Um... Mr. Zhang, do you need any more staff here right now?"

Zhang Zhaohai was overjoyed.

"Yes, I want it."

"Want it?" Old Liu was overjoyed. "Then what do you think, if we come back..."

"What happened to you...?" Zhang Zhaohai looked Liu up and down and laughed, "You got kicked out?"

Old Liu looked extremely embarrassed.

"Not really. I thought about it again and realized that Haiqin Restaurant is more suitable for me. That other place is not suitable at all... So I'm thinking..."

"How dare you?" Zhang Zhaohai burst out laughing. "Even if I were hiring, I wouldn't hire people like you! Who do you think you are? You really think you're the boss?"

He subconsciously felt that his restaurant's good business might be inseparable from the chefs, so he was quite polite to Old Liu.

But now it's proven that their business is doing well, and it has absolutely nothing to do with this Old Liu.

Well then... why even bother with him!

"I..." In an instant, Old Liu's face turned pale and then purple.

"What are you still doing standing in front of our house? Get out of the way." Zhang Zhaohai threw down his cigarette butt, raised his chin, and said, "Don't interfere with our business."

His tone was as if he were chasing away a beggar.

"You... you..." Chef Liu trembled with anger, because the Zhang Zhaohai in front of him was completely different from the one he remembered.

In my memory, Zhang Zhaohai was easy to talk to and kind.

But now, this harsh reality has truly slapped him in the face.

"What do you mean, 'you'? You really think I'm good-tempered?" Zhang Zhaohai turned around and shouted loudly.

Immediately, seven or eight chefs came out of the kitchen.

He had all sorts of tools in his hands.

Upon seeing this scene, Old Liu was so frightened that he took a step back and then fled in panic.

"Damn it!" Old Liu cursed as he walked, witnessing for the first time the true colors of these bosses.

When you have value, speak kindly and politely.

It's worthless now, so I can just throw it away.

"Master, what's the situation now?"

"Does Boss Zhang need any more people?"

A group of apprentices surrounded him, asking questions all at once.

"Don't even mention it! That heartless bastard!" Chef Liu spat. "If they don't want me here, there are plenty of other places that will! If Zhang Zhaohai won't stay here, he'll find somewhere else!"

Suddenly, a sound came from the side.

"Um... Master, are you the chefs from the Haiqin Restaurant before?"

Chef Liu looked closely and saw a couple standing to the side, tentatively glancing at them.

"That's right! Is there something you need?"

Upon hearing this, the two people beside him were immediately delighted.

These two were none other than Zhang Zhaohai's brother-in-law, Song Wenbo, and his wife.

Today, the Haiqin Restaurant Dongyuan Road Branch officially opened. After much deliberation, the couple decided to send a flower basket as a gift. They figured it might be worth it; a flower basket doesn't cost much, and who knows, it might help ease tensions?

Who would have thought that I would run into a chef from the former Haiqin Restaurant as soon as I arrived here.

Isn't this a delightful surprise?

They didn't care how these chefs left; it must have been a dispute over wages and benefits. But their excellent culinary skills were undeniable, as evidenced by the previous success of Haiqin Restaurant.

Or··

"Master, would you be interested in working at our restaurant?" Song Wenbo asked with a smile.

"Your restaurant?" Old Liu feigned composure, took the business card, and then looked the two men up and down. "The compensation we're looking for isn't low; it can't be lower than what we were treated to before..."

"What was your previous treatment like?" Song Wenbo asked.

Old Liu casually stated a number.

Immediately, Song Wenbo and his wife both gasped in shock.

"Looks like you can't offer this salary, forget it..." Old Liu waved his hand.

"Wait!" Zhou Xiaona tugged hard at her husband's sleeve, then quickly called out to stop him, "Master, we agree."

"Really?" Chef Liu stopped in his tracks, his eyes filled with doubt.

"Absolutely true," Zhou Xiaona said quickly, afraid of missing the opportunity.

You want high pay? No problem!

At worst, we can use the money we planned to use for expanding the store to hire a chef first. If business really booms, will expanding the store still be a problem?

Hmph! So what if they won't lend me money?

"Alright, I'll go take a look this afternoon." Chef Liu nodded, verbally agreeing first.

A moment later in the car, Zhou Xiaona spoke with obvious excitement.

"Great! That corner was dug brilliantly!"

"... What if my sister and brother-in-law find out?" Song Wenbo was still somewhat uneasy.

"What's there to be afraid of? We don't know anything. If they ask, we'll just say it's a coincidence. If they can kick such a good chef out, why can't the chef find another way?" Zhou Xiaona said, her smile fading.