School Beauty's Invincible Martial Expert-Chapter 449 - 450: Picking a Quarrel at the Door

"Because a telephone line can’t sustain the emotions between two people," Li Dapang said with a hint of compassion in her eyes, which were a little moist as she sadly added, "It’s just a pity that we’ve come to this point, and there’s no turning back now."

"Forget it, since there’s no way back, why even think of turning back?" Xiao Han said seriously.

"Right, you’re not wrong," Li Dapang nodded with a smile on her face, "So I’m not sad now, I just feel a bit of regret, that’s all."

Xiao Han patted Li Dapang on the shoulder. No more words were needed, as silence was more eloquent. Li Dapang naturally understood what Xiao Han meant. The two shared a big hug.

The relationship between Li Dapang and Yang Xiaoyan was formally concluded with a full stop. And from today, the two officially embarked on different paths.

In a blink, Chinese New Year’s Eve was nearly upon them.

The end of the year is the best time for class reunions and gatherings with friends. Hanmen Restaurant and Hanmen Technology saw their sales peak at year-end.

The closer to the end of the year, the busier the business, and Hanmen Restaurant’s business reached a peak.

After the holidays began, Xiao Han almost always helped out in Hanmen Restaurant. Liu Xiaolei was also very busy. The two of them were so preoccupied they hardly had time to talk. Liu Xiaolei handled the overall work of the restaurant, including some troublesome customers, who were mostly dealt with by her.

The success of Hanmen Restaurant made many people envious. Several good restaurants in the center of Linjiang City had previously enjoyed bustling business, but ever since Hanmen Restaurant arrived, their business plummeted.

Originally, they planned to sell their premises at the end of the year when business was booming, which could have driven up the transfer price. But they soon realized they were wrong; by year-end, their business remained lukewarm at best, better than usual but far from their expected targets.

"Damn it, are we just supposed to endure this?"

"Shit, we need to come up with a plan!"

"People die for wealth, birds die for food. They’re blocking our money, what do you say we should do?"

The owners of the several restaurants gathered to discuss strategies, dealing with Hanmen Restaurant had become an urgent problem that must be solved. Hanmen Restaurant had become a thorn in their side.

A man with dyed blond hair spoke up, "Why not just talk to them directly!"

"Talk about what, how to talk?" Another man across from him, wearing a black hat, said, "They want to make money; they’re not going to make less just for our sake."

"Right, I agree with what he said," the man with a cigar in hand said irritably, shaking his leg, "If you ask me, we might as well spend some money to cause trouble. Or just give them some problems."

Everyone perked up when they heard this.

Paying someone to cause a scene was obviously not going to work, but finding some trouble for Hanmen Restaurant was relatively easy. For example, putting a cockroach in a dish, or a couple of insects, could easily tarnish the restaurant’s reputation. In the catering industry, such methods are common and often seen in malicious competition.

It was clear that the man was well versed in these tactics.

"Old Liu, what do you think we should do about this?" the others looked to the man for his opinion.

Old Liu looked at everyone smugly, then laughed, "I’ll get a brother to go have a meal there. Then, plant a couple of bugs in the food and make a scene. That will bring Hanmen Restaurant’s reputation crashing down. Then we’ll strike while the iron is hot."

"Hmm, that makes sense," the man with blond hair nodded.

"This method is good and reliable," the man with the black hat also nodded.

Did the others in the conference room also nod in agreement, thinking Old Liu’s plan wasn’t half bad?

"Since everyone agrees with this plan, I’ll find someone to do it," Old Liu said with a smile.

"Old Liu, just name your price," the man with blond hair said earnestly, "As long as we can take down Hanmen Restaurant, any amount of money is fine."

"No matter the cost, we’re willing!" the others agreed, nodding.

Old Liu smiled faintly, then added, "Alright, I’ll contact someone later. That guy is an expert and quick on his feet. Even if he fails, he definitely won’t betray us."

The group, conspiring together, quickly came to a consensus with a slam of the table.

.................

Liu Xiaolei was busy every day, so busy she barely touched the ground with her heels. The restaurant had to entertain numerous guests every day. With such a mix of people coming and going, she never paid attention to the words and actions of each patron, let alone their behavior.

Clang...

Suddenly, a customer at table number twenty-three stood up. He grabbed the plate in his hand and slammed it hard onto the table.

"Damn, what kind of shitty restaurant is this?" the man roared.

His roar immediately attracted the attention of most of the customers in the restaurant. The waiter hurried over and asked, "Sir, what’s the matter?"

"Damn, there’s a worm in the food, and I’ve eaten half of it." The man glared at the waiter, then cursed, "Are you trying to disgust me to death, or poison me?"

The waiter was dumbfounded, as he had worked there for over a year and had never encountered such a situation.

"How... how could this happen?" The waiter was stunned, looking utterly bewildered.

"Look for yourself, is that not half a worm?" the man roared.

Indeed, hidden among the leaves of the lettuce, was half a caterpillar. The entire dish looked extremely disgusting.

The waiter didn’t know what to do in the moment.

"Hurry up and call your boss over," the man demanded loudly as he slapped the table. "I always thought Hanmen Restaurant was a decent place, but it has turned out to be such a disappointment."

"Yes, I’ll go get our manager right away," the waiter responded, all jittery and nodding excessively.

Liu Xiaolei had already noticed the commotion. Without waiting for the waiter to come find her, she had already made her way over.

When the waiter saw Liu Xiaolei, a look of relief appeared in his eyes, as though he had seen a savior. He quickly approached her and explained the situation at the scene.

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After listening, Liu Xiaolei nodded, indicating that she had understood the situation.

Liu Xiaolei hurried towards the man. The man was still banging on the table and cursing, seemingly very angry. Having worked at the Shenzhen Hotel for many years and in Linjiang City for over a year, Liu Xiaolei had encountered far more complicated situations than this, so she approached with confidence.

"Sir, I’m truly sorry for the inconvenience this has caused you," Liu Xiaolei said apologetically to the man, then continued, "I’ll waive your meal charges for today. How’s that?"

"Heh, you think I can’t afford to pay over a hundred bucks?" the man looked at Liu Xiaolei with disdain.

Liu Xiaolei immediately frowned, as the situation seemed more complicated than she had anticipated. She maintained her composed smile, "How about this... what if I give you an additional two hundred yuan in vouchers?"

"Are you trying to fob off a beggar?" the man sneered, then went on to say, "If you don’t give me one hundred thousand yuan today, you can forget about settling this matter."

"Sir, what you are doing is inappropriate," Liu Xiaolei wasn’t frightened by the man’s outrageous demand, but simply smiled gently, "Firstly, I’m not sure whether this worm is from our dish, and secondly, even if it were, don’t you think a compensation fee of one hundred thousand yuan is too high?"

"Starting high and bargaining is basic market principle," the man said with a casual smile, then added, "If you think it’s too much, you can make a counteroffer."

The man was indeed cunning. If Liu Xiaolei made a counteroffer, it would mean admitting there was a worm in the restaurant’s dish. Clearly, Liu Xiaolei wasn’t going to fall for that.

"Let’s forget about counteroffering," Liu Xiaolei said disdainfully, "I was initially trying to resolve this matter privately, to save you some face. But since you want to make a scene, then we’ll resolve this through proper channels!"

The man was taken aback, as he hadn’t expected Liu Xiaolei to be so resolute. This also made him lose confidence. After a moment’s hesitation, he then said, "How about this?"

"Let’s hear it!" Liu Xiaolei appeared very calm. Since the man was willing to back down, it meant that the situation wasn’t beyond resolution. Especially after seeing his willingness to compromise, Liu Xiaolei immediately caught the complexity in his gaze. Clearly, there was something amiss with the guy.

"I said one hundred thousand in one breath because I was angry," the man said with a smile, "If you agree to compensate fifty thousand, we can let this matter go. How about it?"

Fifty thousand yuan wasn’t much for Liu Xiaolei, nor for Hanmen Restaurant. However, Liu Xiaolei was absolutely unwilling to indulge the man’s illegal actions, completely unwilling to permit his obnoxious troublemaking.

"You can dream on," Liu Xiaolei said dismissively, "Don’t even think about getting a single penny for compensation. We are here to make money, not to lose money. Within my authority, the most I can do is waive this meal for you, and additionally, give you a five hundred yuan meal voucher. Take it or leave it."

On hearing this, the man’s face showed a slight change, and he said, "So you mean to say, there’s no room for negotiation?"

The man had expected Liu Xiaolei to say as much. Moreover, the man’s intentions that day weren’t for compensation at all. His purpose was very clear: to create chaos, to tarnish the restaurant’s reputation, and to sabotage Hanmen Restaurant’s business. So even if Liu Xiaolei didn’t compensate today, the man was indifferent. He couldn’t get Hanmen Restaurant’s money, but he could earn from Old Liu’s pocket.

"Yes, there’s no room for negotiation on this matter!" Liu Xiaolei nodded.