Chapter 60: Chapter 60: Be Polite to Boss Jiang, or Be Blacklisted

He couldn’t help but feel a sense of warmth.

"You guys aren’t eating? Then I will."

"No way, Brother Dahai. I ate so many buns in college I got sick of them. You can still stomach them now?"

"I’m not eating them anyway. Whoever wants them can have them."

Liu Honglei watched them go back and forth and chuckled.

"I waited in line for half an hour for these buns. If you don’t want them, fine. Oh, by the way, there’s juice in the paper bag too."

As soon as he said that, the men eating hot dry noodles paused.

"Juice is good. I’ll have a bottle. Damn, why are there only five bottles?"

Liu Honglei put on a smug look. "Sorry, limited supply."

"Wahahaha, what a show-off!"

Jiang Dahai had already opened the box.

Ten plump, white, steaming hot buns appeared before them.

The pleasant aroma of dough slowly drifted into their noses.

The eight men, including Liu Honglei, sniffed the air, their gazes unanimously turning to the buns in Jiang Dahai’s hands.

"What’s that smell? It’s amazing!"

Jiang Dahai, holding a pork and scallion bun, couldn’t hold back any longer.

He devoured half the bun in a single bite.

The next moment, his eyes widened in shock.

’The flavor is so fragrant, so delicious! The pure, natural aroma of the ingredients, the incomparable texture!’

Tender pork, mixed with crisp, zesty scallions.

Scalding hot meat juice flooded the back of his tongue.

’The ultimate culinary experience!’

"Holy shit! How can a bun be this delicious?!"

The moment the words left his mouth, Jiang Dahai regretted them.

Under the fiery gazes in the room, he quickly changed his tune:

"Ahem, I mean, how can these buns be so awful? You guys go on and eat, don’t mind me."

As he spoke, he pulled the bun box in front of him.

He shot a wary glance at the others.

Liu Honglei smelled the fragrant meat and swallowed hard.

He dropped all pretense.

"Dahai, I’m ordering you. Give me a bun."

"Let me try one too."

"Me too."

"No way!"

Jiang Dahai, like a mother hen protecting her chicks, said, "Didn’t you guys say you weren’t eating them? Shoo, shoo, go eat your hot dry noodles. I’m eating the buns."

’No way I’m sharing something this delicious.’

However, a few moments of defiant wailing later...

Jiang Dahai was collectively tied to an interrogation chair by the others. No matter how much he fumed, they just pretended not to hear him.

The eight men took a bite of the buns, their faces a mixture of ecstasy and astonishment.

"The shrimp is so silky! I’ve never had shrimp like this before!"

"This ’three-delicacy’ bun is the real deal! There’s no artificial flavoring from additives, it’s all the natural taste of the ingredients. Unbelievable!"

You wouldn’t know how delicious they were until you tried them.

It was safe to say that in all their decades of eating buns, none could compare to even a tenth of this one!

The team members savored them in small bites, reluctant to finish them all at once.

"Dahai, that was a low blow."

"You found something this good and actually tried to hide it."

"Hmph!" Jiang Dahai turned his head away and ignored them.

’They all said they wouldn’t eat the buns, but then they went back on their word and stole mine! Bandits, robbers!’

"Captain, where did you buy these?"

Someone asked the question on everyone’s mind.

They had to go buy some to share with their families.

Jiang Dahai’s ears perked up.

’I can use my connections to get the recipe,’ he thought. ’My son works in the food industry, doesn’t he? I can totally have him learn this.’

’My status on the team would definitely shoot up then!’

’If anyone dares to cross me, no buns for them!!’

Snapping out of his reverie, Liu Honglei shamelessly feigned ignorance. "I have no idea. A friend of mine bought them for me. I’ll ask him later."

The team members’ eyes widened.

"Are you even speaking human?"

"Holy crap! Captain, you’ve changed!!"

"I never knew you were this kind of person!!"

"Just tell us, come on!"

Jiang Dahai also pleaded, "Captain, don’t keep it to yourself."

Liu Honglei huffed smugly. "I really don’t know. If you want to eat more, I’ll have my friend buy some more for me later."

He decided to monopolize the supply for his subordinates. ’We’ll see who the troublemakers are in the future.’

’Always making excuses to get out of missions. This one’s sick, that one’s mother isn’t feeling well.’

’From now on, anyone who disobeys gets no buns!’

’After all, he was the only one who knew where to buy them.’

Amidst the resentful glares of the crowd, Liu Honglei picked up all the juice bottles.

He swaggered away with a pompous gait.

’Since the juice is from the same shop, it can’t be bad,’ he thought. ’My colleagues don’t need to drink it. I’ll take it home for my wife and son to try.’

As he savored this happy thought, he suddenly recalled what Jiang Liu looked like.

A strange look flashed in Liu Honglei’s eyes. Why did he feel like that boss bore a slight resemblance to Jiang Dahai?

...

"The buns are gone, but is there any juice left?"

"Sorry, we’re sold out. Please come back next time," Jun Qingmeng said with a smile.

Behind the counter, Jiang Liu calculated the day’s earnings.

Today was a little better than yesterday, around seventy-two thousand yuan.

He didn’t calculate it precisely.

He now had over one hundred ninety-five thousand yuan saved in his bank account!

He glanced at the [Gourmet Album]. His praise points had reached twenty-one thousand.

However, the third page was still nowhere to be seen, which was a little disappointing to Jiang Liu.

Every new dish meant a significant increase in his income and the ability to attract even more customers.

Jun Qingmeng and Tongtong were cleaning the entire shop.

The two of them insisted he sit and rest.

Jiang Liu now felt like the head of the household.

’Oh, right. Yesterday I was thinking about posting an ad for the new product on Douyin. I totally forgot.’

Jiang Liu unlocked his phone. He had a few WeChat messages. He opened the app.

He found a message from his uncle, saying he had pulled some strings and gotten the business license, food hygiene permit, and fire safety certificate all taken care of for him.

Jiang Liu didn’t reply, just transferred three thousand yuan over.

It was the "friends and family" price.

’Another expense.’

He opened Douyin, and a flood of notifications popped up. [999+]

’How do I have over a thousand followers already?’ Jiang Liu was a little surprised.

It had only been a few days, and he already had so many repeat customers.

Customers who bothered to follow his Douyin account were, without a doubt, true fans.

He checked his messages.

They were all over the place, all messages from customers.

Some were asking if he was open, some asked if they could reserve buns, and one person even asked if she could hire him for a hefty sum to be her private chef.

Jiang Liu was left speechless and stared at the ceiling.

Jiang Liu casually took a simple photo of his juice and posted it to his account.

The caption read: "New Product: Freshly Squeezed Juice. Made with strictly selected ingredients, all-natural with no additives. Drink happy, drink with peace of mind."

The moment he posted it, customers who followed him saw it on their feeds.

[Holy shit! Boss Jiang, you finally posted something. I thought you were dead. Seeing as you’re being so diligent, here’s a little heart for you.]

[I’ve already had the juice multiple times, and you’re only just now announcing it? Can you be a little more professional???]

[LMAO, why’d you just post a picture? This juice is so good, but you managed to make it look like it costs three yuan a cup!]

[Hahahaha, Jiang Liu, you’re hilarious.]

[Right? Other people promote a new product a month in advance. This guy puts out a new product, sells it for two days, and only then remembers to post an ad. Does he even want our money?]

[Hey, commenter above, be more polite! Watch out or you’ll get blacklisted from buying buns!!]...

The comments quickly numbered over a hundred, most of them making fun of Jiang Liu, and it got dozens of shares.

6:30 in the evening.

Shadows flickered as dusk fell, and the orange streetlights began to glow.