"Welcome, honored guest! Come right in!"
"Take care, honored guest!"
"Would you like a meal or a room, honored guest?"
Xu Er stood at the inn's entrance, drenched in sweat, nodding and bowing as he greeted the guests coming and going. It was noon, the busiest time for lunch. Although Treasure Immortal Town had only three restaurants, that only made the competition fiercer. This was precisely when the Four Directions Inn needed to draw in customers. Xu Er had a silver tongue and, as a longtime employee, was an old hand at drumming up business. Every day at this hour, Zhang Dafu, the owner and manager, sent him out to the entrance. Xu Er never disappointed him, either, bringing in plenty of customers and making the restaurant's business flourish. Zhang Dafu was no miser: he paid Xu Er thirty percent more than an ordinary waiter, which made Xu Er work all the harder.
Xu Er wiped the sweat from his forehead. His throat was so dry it might as well have been smoking. Anyone who had shouted for over two hours would have found it unbearable. Seeing that almost all the seats inside were occupied, he decided to slip into the backyard for a drink of cool water while Zhang Dafu wasn't looking. He had just lifted his foot to leave when Zhang Dafu called out, "Xu Er!"
Xu Er hurriedly turned around. "Manager! You called?" Inwardly, he grumbled, This can't be anything good!
"The tables are nearly full, so stop bringing in customers!" Zhang Dafu instructed unhurriedly. "Stay by the entrance and keep those beggar brats out! Don't let them disrupt our business!"
Xu Er was delighted at first, but the rest of the instructions left him groaning inwardly. He could only answer listlessly, "Yes!"
"Especially that Li Xiaoya! Whatever you do, don't let him in. If you do, I'll dock you three days' wages!" Zhang Dafu added.
Xu Er immediately perked up at that, muttering through gritted teeth, "That Li brat!" If anyone asked whom he hated most in Treasure Immortal Town, Xu Er would answer without hesitation: the Li brat. That brat was none other than the Li Xiaoya Zhang Dafu had just mentioned. In truth, Li Xiaoya was rather pitiful, an orphaned little beggar with neither father nor mother. Had he simply been a beggar, Xu Er would not have disliked him so much or made things difficult for him. He would even have given him some leftover food as an act of charity. But this little beggar was utterly infuriating. He refused to eat leftovers, absolutely refusing anything another guest had left behind. Instead, he always resorted to schemes and tricks to swindle meals out of other customers, then dusted off his backside and walked away.
Naturally, the customers he fooled were unhappy and made a scene with Zhang Dafu every time. As time went on, Zhang Dafu also began to loathe the beggar. Recently, the newly opened Ten Thousand Fragrance Tower had stolen quite a bit of his business, leaving him in an even worse mood. The sight of Li Xiaoya only made his blood boil. Besides, Li Xiaoya never went to the other two restaurants to swindle food and drink; he always came here. If he tricked an ordinary traveling merchant, the victim would usually rub his nose, accept his bad luck, and pay the bill to settle the matter.
Two days earlier, however, Li Xiaoya had swindled a martial-world warrior. The man had kicked Zhang Dafu so hard that his thigh was still swollen, and had hacked apart a table and two stools before dusting off his backside and striding away. Zhang Dafu was so furious his teeth itched. Unable to find the slippery Li Xiaoya, he had vented his anger on Xu Er, who had been guarding the entrance, and docked him ten days' wages. Xu Er had accidentally let Li Xiaoya in before, but Zhang Dafu had never done more than scold him. This was the first time he had docked his pay. Xu Er had begun cursing Li Xiaoya in secret, swearing to break his damned legs the next time he saw him. Over the past few days, he had been asking around about Li Xiaoya's whereabouts, determined to give the little bastard a lesson he would remember. Standing at the entrance, Xu Er watched the people passing in the distance, but saw no sign of Li Xiaoya nearby.
"Xu Er! Come here a moment!" Zhang Dafu suddenly beckoned.
"What is it, Manager?"
Zhang Dafu glanced around. Seeing no one nearby, he lowered his voice. "Li Xiaoya hasn't come here for days. Do you think he's gone to that new Ten Thousand Fragrance Tower to swindle meals?" There was a hint of gloating in his voice.
Xu Er shook his head and said confidently, "No! Li Xiaoya wouldn't dare go there!" He paused, glanced around, then continued quietly, "I asked around a few days ago about why that Li brat only comes to our place instead of swindling food and drink at the Welcome Inn or Ten Thousand Fragrance Tower. Turns out, whenever Li Xiaoya goes to the Welcome Inn, Li Shoucheng has his men beat him out of the place. That old moneybags Li is vicious. He tells the waiters to rain punches and kicks on Li Xiaoya, and says they're to beat him every time they see him. After a few times, the Li brat didn't dare go back. Ten Thousand Fragrance Tower is even worse. He only took a look from the entrance, and their waiters chased him with clubs as thick as an arm. If he hadn't run so fast, they might have crippled him..." Xu Er chuckled gleefully, but after a couple of laughs, he suddenly seemed to remember something and fell silent. He stole a few more glances around, his eyes darting this way and that, then leaned closer to Zhang Dafu and lowered his voice. "Manager! Why don't we also..." His meaning could not have been clearer.
"That wouldn't be right, would it?" Zhang Dafu said hesitantly. In fact, he had considered it long ago. For one thing, however, he was afraid of causing trouble. For another, although Li Xiaoya was annoying, he was also rather pitiful. Besides, word of a restaurant beating beggars would not sound good and would damage his reputation.
"Manager! We only need to scare him so he won't come in and swindle meals. We're not going to kill or cripple him. Just teach him a little lesson." Xu Er chuckled.
"Would that work? It won't cause trouble, will it?" Tempted, Zhang Dafu made a show of reluctance.
"Of course not. Look at Ten Thousand Fragrance Tower and the Welcome Inn. Who knows how many beggars they've crippled? Nothing's happened to them," Xu Er continued, seeing that his employer was wavering. He had been mulling this over for days. If the Li brat kept coming here to swindle food and drink, sooner or later he would cause real trouble. Two days ago, when Li Xiaoya had angered that warrior, Xu Er had gone up to reason with the man after he hacked apart the table. Before Xu Er could even see what was happening, that gleaming steel saber had been laid against his neck. The memory alone sent a chill around his throat. This time, he had only lost wages. Next time, losing his livelihood might be the least of his worries-he could lose his life. What a terrible injustice that would be. At that thought, Xu Er was about to continue.
"Hey, hey! Li Xiaoya's here! Hurry and stop him!" Zhang Dafu suddenly gave Xu Er a shove.
If you can't find it by searching the title, try searching the author. Perhaps the title has simply changed!
A boy could be seen swaggering toward the restaurant from the distance. He was eleven or twelve, dressed in heavily patched clothes that had nevertheless been washed clean. His features were delicate, but his dark eyes kept darting about, giving him a distinctly sly look. It was Li Xiaoya. "Play it by ear!" Zhang Dafu whispered, giving Xu Er another shove.
Xu Er glanced back at Zhang Dafu and chuckled, then hurried to the entrance in a few strides and stood there with his arms folded.
Soon, Li Xiaoya drew closer. While still some distance away, he called out with a grin, "Brother Xu! How are you? Business looks good!" He acted as though he and Xu Er were old friends.
The sight of Li Xiaoya's cheeky grin made Xu Er bristle. "It would be even better if you came less often!" he snapped coldly.
Li Xiaoya took no offense. Pivoting on his foot, he tried to slip around Xu Er and enter. Xu Er stepped across his path and said expressionlessly, "Li brat, know what's good for you. You're not welcome here!"
Without a word, Li Xiaoya sidestepped to the right, trying to slip past that way.
Xu Er moved right as well, blocking him again. "You..."
Before Xu Er could finish, Li Xiaoya sidestepped left. Xu Er hurried left too, blocking his path again. Li Xiaoya kept darting left and right, right and left, left-left-right, right-left-left, trying several times to get around him. He had practically turned it into a game of hawk catching chicks. But he still could not get past Xu Er, who blocked him at every turn. After dealing with Li Xiaoya for so long, Xu Er had long since cracked these little tricks.
Xu Er laughed triumphantly. "Li brat! That trick doesn't work anymore. Be good and wait outside. Once the customers have finished, I'll wrap up some scraps and give you a little charity!"
Li Xiaoya's eyes rolled, and he spread both hands, looking utterly innocent. "Brother Xu, I'm not a beggar! I came here to eat. I'm a customer. How can you chase a customer away? Who would come here to eat after that?"
Xu Er snorted. Li Xiaoya had told that lie countless times. His face stiffened, and he spat out two words: "We're full!"
Li Xiaoya suddenly sidestepped left. Xu Er reacted just as quickly and blocked him. Li Xiaoya abruptly moved left again, and Xu Er immediately intercepted him. Li Xiaoya moved left five or six times in succession, and Xu Er blocked him every time. "Li brat, know what's good for you! I'll-Ow!" Before Xu Er could finish, he cried out in pain, accompanied by a thunk!
Xu Er crouched to one side, clutching his head. Li Xiaoya had moved left so many times that they had reached the edge of the doorway. Xu Er had kept his eyes fixed on Li Xiaoya, moving wherever the boy moved, and Li Xiaoya had deliberately led him into a pillar.
"Hahaha! Brother Xu, are you all right?" Li Xiaoya asked with feigned concern, even as he headed into the dining hall.
"Hey, hey, hey! Li Xiaoya! Have you come here to swindle food and drink again?!" Li Xiaoya had barely entered when Zhang Dafu rushed out from behind the counter by the entrance and blocked him.
Zhang Dafu had spotted Li Xiaoya long before. Seeing him slip inside again, he forgot the pain in his leg and hurried out, inwardly cursing Xu Er for being useless.
Seeing Zhang Dafu, Li Xiaoya put on a bewildered expression. "Swindle food and drink? When have I ever done that? Is that the kind of person I, Li Xiaoya, am?"
"Hmph! You don't swindle food and drink? You've got some nerve saying that! Just two days ago, you tricked a martial-world hero and got me kicked. It still hurts! Get out! You're not welcome here!" Zhang Dafu said angrily, grabbing Li Xiaoya and tugging at him as he spoke.
"Hey! Manager Zhang! That had nothing to do with me! That warrior was generous enough to treat me to a meal! You got beaten because you didn't look after him properly, didn't you? Or maybe he was short of money and deliberately made trouble so he wouldn't have to pay!" Li Xiaoya planted himself firmly, refusing to leave, and spoke in a mocking tone.
"You! In any case, don't ever come here again! This establishment can't afford to serve a grand lord like you!" Zhang Dafu huffed. He tugged harder at Li Xiaoya, determined to drag him outside.
The website welcomes all readers. The newest, fastest-updated, and hottest serialized works are all here!