Shuangyang Coffee's opening ceremony took place a full month and a half later than originally planned.
Over that month and a half, Fang Dongxu felt as though he had aged ten years.
He had gone from a college student entrepreneur full of dreams to a supervisor who spent every day on a construction site, a penny-pinching buyer, and a frazzled recruitment interviewer.
Qin Haitao came every day, but his main task was to find fault and complain.
"Dongxu, the color of this counter is wrong. It's too dark. It doesn't look high-end enough!"
"Why do these chairs have iron legs? Didn't we agree on solid wood?"
"Recruitment? Are those pretty girls you hired any good? They look so dull, not a clever one among them."
The two had argued countless times over these trivial details, and each argument added to Fang Dongxu's anger and anxiety. And Sui Yiming? He was nowhere to be seen.
Whenever they called, he said he was busy. He was in charge of an important design project and had to oversee the site himself. It was his first project of his own.
Fang Dongxu and Qin Haitao could only bury their resentment toward Sui Yiming and grit their teeth, arguing as they got the shop open.
On opening day, the shop really was packed.
Melodious music, exquisite decor, the rich aroma of coffee-everything was exactly as Fang Dongxu had imagined.
Standing behind the counter, looking at the occupied tables, he finally felt a trace of comfort.
But that comfort did not last long before Qin Haitao doused it with cold water.
"Dongxu, come take a look." Qin Haitao pulled him over to the counter and lowered his voice, his face full of anger. "Look at them, all eating and drinking for free. Who's footing this bill?"