Chapter 65 : Xiao Yi’s Attitude

“Well, sorry about that, we just came up with a new way to prepare it. If it doesn’t taste good, my apologies. Come back next time, and I promise it’ll be better than today,” Boss He said nonchalantly.

Everyone was speechless. Some of the more easygoing customers paid reluctantly, but a few bolder ones weren’t having it and snapped back: “You clearly copied Xiao’s hot and sour noodles, and you still claim you came up with it yourself. You’re just jealous of how well their business is doing. As for your noodles after tasting them once, I wouldn’t eat them again. They’re not even as good as plain broth noodles. Xiao’s hot and sour noodles are delicious even without meat. And their boss is really polite too. On top of that, in this scorching heat, they even offer free mung bean soup. I’m never eating at your place again.”

That hit a nerve. The comparison to the Xiao family pushed Boss He over the edge.

His face darkened: “If you don’t like the food, no one’s forcing you to eat here! Eating stuff this spicy every day, aren’t you afraid of getting mouth sores? And now you don’t even want to pay for my noodles?”

The customer snapped back, “I spend money on noodles to fill my stomach and enjoy the taste. I say they’re bad, and you get offended? No wonder you can’t keep up in business. You deserve it. Who cares about a few coins? Here!” He slapped the money on the table. “I’m going to Xiao’s.”

That customer had a fiery temper and walked out without hesitation.

The rest of the customers had seen Boss He’s true colors and looked at him with contempt.

The customer who confronted him actually left He Ji’s noodle stall and headed straight to Xiao’s.

After everyone left, Mrs. He came out awkwardly and said: “Boss, it’s not right to talk to customers like that. If we want to do business for the long run, we need to treat our customers well.”

Unexpectedly, Boss He shot her a glare and said: “What do you know? You’re just a woman, long hair, short sense. Go mind your own business!”

Mrs. He had always been a punching bag in the marriage. She was quiet and submissive. Deep down, she believed doing business shouldn’t be like this, but her husband never listened.

Later, because of the gimmick of the hot and sour noodles, a lot of curious and uninformed customers were indeed drawn in. But after trying it once and realizing they’d been duped, none of them came back. In the end, there were no repeat customers.

Still, Boss He had made some money off the gimmick, so he didn’t care.

Meanwhile, the Xiao family’s business wasn’t affected by Boss He’s antics. Their performance remained steady, earning nearly 300 coins a day.

Jiang Sui no longer worried. She let Boss He do whatever he wanted, he wouldn’t last long.

Sure enough, the next day, Boss He’s trick stopped working. Word had spread that he was a scammer, and no one wanted to fall for it again. People preferred to go to Xiao’s instead, willing to pay a few more coins for better taste and respectful service.

Boss He looked at his empty stall and the dough he had kneaded, which was starting to spoil in the heat.

Mrs. He sighed helplessly at the sight.

She had thought he’d stick to the agreement with the other vendors and take turns lowering prices for a few days, but even by the fourth day, he hadn’t budged. This angered the other stall owners, who came over to demand an explanation.

By now, Boss He was completely deflated. He said bluntly: “So what? I’m not lowering my prices. There’s no business anyway, what difference does it make? I never said you couldn’t lower yours.”

Classic rogue behavior. He made some quick cash off hot and sour noodles and now refused to leave a path open for anyone else.

Although everyone was furious, there was nothing they could do. If they’d known this was how he operated, they never would’ve partnered with him in the first place.

Three days had passed since the letter was sent. On the evening of the third day, Father Xiao, along with the eldest and second sons of the Xiao family, packed their bags and returned home.

As soon as he received the letter, Father Xiao went straight to the foreman and explained that something had happened at home and he needed a few days off. The foreman agreed and granted him the time off.

What happened at home came so suddenly, the loss of a child for no clear reason weighed heavily on him.

The eldest and second brothers also returned. After all, if they were going to Liujia Village, Father Xiao and the third son couldn’t go alone. That was someone else’s territory. They came back to back them up and ensure their family wouldn’t be bullied. In times like these, brothers must stand united.

The first thing Father Xiao did upon returning was sit down to talk with his third son.

“A’Yi, what do you think of Liu now? If you still want to keep a woman like her as your wife, then you’re being truly foolish. It’s said that a man should marry a virtuous woman, one who fits in with the family. But ever since Liu joined our household, she’s been nothing but trouble. It’s one thing to speak unpleasantly, but she always sides with her own family and even helps them pressure us. In my view, we cannot let her stay in this family any longer.”

At first, Father Xiao had thought Liu just had some bad habits, but he tolerated them because his son liked her. But now, her selfishness had led to the current crisis, and he could no longer accept it.

In just a few days, Xiao Yi’s chin had grown stubbly. He looked disheveled and worn down.

Now that his father had returned, it was time to take a stand:

“Dad, Liu has disrupted our family, and I no longer have any feelings for her. I’ve already written a divorce letter. Please help me go over there and officially end this marriage.”

Seeing his son come to his senses, Father Xiao was relieved.

“It’s good that you’ve come around. Tomorrow, your eldest and second brothers, your mother, and I will go with you to Liujia Village to settle this matter. Let’s also ask your Second Uncle and his two sons to come along. We mustn’t let them overpower us in numbers.”

Second Uncle Ergen was the only relative in Xianhe Village who still had a close relationship with Father Xiao.

Uncle Ergen was happy to support him and agreed right away to bring his two sons to Liujia Village as backup.

Mother Xiao also planned to go because, as Xiao Yi’s mother, she would need to say a few polite words once they arrived.

So the stall would be left in the hands of Jiang Sui, Zhou, and Xiao Lanlan the next day.

With Jiang Sui around, there was no problem, and Zhou also needed to go for acupuncture treatment.

The next morning, the whole group rode the ox cart into town, helped set up the stall, and then headed toward Liujia Village.

The street vendors were surprised to see the Xiao family moving together in such a large group. They knew the family had four sons, all tall and strong.

This also served as a warning to anyone harboring ill intentions, if things turned ugly, the Xiao family wasn’t afraid to fight back.

When Uncle Ergen saw the size of the Xiao family’s stall, he was both surprised and a little envious.

Everyone in the village had heard about the Xiao family’s business. Some had even stopped by to try their food while traveling through town. Mother Xiao would intentionally charge less when serving fellow villagers.

News of their thriving business had spread, people heard they could earn hundreds of coins a day, and envy started to grow.

Of course, there were also jealous folks in the village. Seeing the Xiao family’s success, they wanted to figure out how they were making so much money. But when only Xiao Lanlan and Zhou were at home, the door was always shut, and no one could get inside. Every day after Goudan came home from school, a bunch of people would ask him questions, but Goudan never said a word and acted like he didn’t know anything.