As the saying goes, even a mud figurine has its temperament.

With the shamelessness of Laifu Antique Soup, Jiang Yanyi now regarded them as she would a thief.

The storytellers value their reputation and wouldn’t dare come directly to Jiang Yanyi’s shop to listen; they mostly sent the restaurant’s attendants to hear the tales, who would then return and recount them.

After the storytellers organized the stories themselves, they would tell them again.

Mr. Ding from Laifu Restaurant was exceptional at storytelling, and even if the attendants relayed the stories in a dry manner, he could enrich them with his own flair after reworking the framework, making them captivating and unique with his insights.

Jiang Yanyi felt a headache coming on as she said to Yang Xiu and Bing Shao, “You two need to keep an eye out. Recently, those attendants from Laifu Restaurant have been frequently loitering at our door to listen to the stories. If they come again, just drive them away.”

As a result, the attendants from Laifu Restaurant stopped loitering at the door to listen to stories and instead shamelessly entered the shop, eating hotpot while listening.

Jiang Yanyi also had Yang Xiu stop them; she didn’t mind losing this business.

The attendant, furious, jumped three feet into the air, “Why are you stopping me from entering to eat hotpot? Hey, everyone passing by, please weigh in! I’m paying to enter, and this Jiang shop is actually blocking me!”

Now, Jiang Yanyi’s hotpot shop was in fierce competition with Laifu Antique Soup.

Any slight commotion attracted a crowd of onlookers.

Hearing the shouts from the Laifu Restaurant’s attendant outside, Jiang Yanyi closed her account book and stepped out, saying, “Go back and tell your boss that if he personally comes to eat hotpot, I won’t stop him. If he has any questions about running a shop, he can ask me. We’re all in business on the same street.

If business doesn’t work out, there’s still camaraderie. Am I going to hide anything? Manager Xu is paying you attendants to run to my shop every day. You’re not even learning well, which is just a waste of Manager Xu’s money!”

Her sharp words brought laughter from the crowd, who saw it as a joke at Laifu Restaurant’s expense.

One onlooker remarked, “Manager Jiang has just fired up a new batch of porcelain; those pomegranate jars and pumpkin bowls are quite interesting. I wonder when Laifu Restaurant will also be able to make such porcelain.”

The attendant felt his face burning and dared not cause a scene at Jiang Yanyi’s door any longer, turning to leave.

Jiang Yanyi initially thought this would make Laifu Restaurant delay hearing the latest stories for a few days.

However, the next day, they still relayed what the old scholar had told.

She couldn’t understand it and had Yang Xiu investigate, only to find out that Manager Xu was directly paying some cash-strapped individuals to eat at her shop, listen to the stories, and then relay them back.

This made it impossible for her to defend against.

Mr. Ding had accumulated many listeners over his years of storytelling.

Recently, the old scholar had gained quite a reputation, and some eager souls began comparing him to Mr. Ding.

Some said the old scholar told the stories with more nuance, while others believed Mr. Ding’s storytelling, though simpler, had deeper meanings and was more aligned with reality, giving him a slight edge.

One day, while the old scholar was telling a story in the shop, a customer suddenly slammed his teacup onto the table and disdainfully said, “This is so dragged out; it’s nothing like Mr. Ding’s crisp delivery! With this level of skill, how dare you try to show off?”

It was the first time in years that the old scholar had been interrupted mid-story.

He ignored the man and continued.

But the customer wouldn’t back down, shouting loudly, “Where’s the manager? Is this storyteller choked up or just out of breath? It’s so annoying I can’t even eat! If he keeps going, I won’t be paying for this meal!”

Forced to interrupt, the old scholar’s face flushed slightly.

Other diners had already been displeased when the man first spoke up, and now, seeing him interrupt again, they couldn’t help but speak out, “I think he’s doing just fine.”

“This guy is so unreasonable; he’s just looking for trouble, isn’t he?”

“I can’t believe there are still such rude people in the world!”

Jiang Yanyi was in the kitchen making dry pot when she heard from Yang Xiu that someone was causing a scene in the shop. She took off her apron and stepped outside.

The troublemaking customer was a middle-aged man who looked rather wealthy, lounging with an air of superiority.

With a polite smile, Jiang Yanyi asked, “Sir, is there anything about my shop’s service that you find unsatisfactory?”

The customer lazily lifted his drooping eyelids, peeled a slice of orange, and tossed it into his mouth.

The large black mole at the corner of his mouth moved with his chewing.

After finishing, he casually spat out the seeds and pointed at the old scholar sitting at the desk, “Everything in the shop is fine, but listening to this old man tell stories is like having a fly buzzing in my ear. It’s just annoying and not the type to be doing this at his age.”

While Jiang Yanyi’s smile remained, the coldness in her eyes began to surface.

Oh, this person must be a professional troll, right?

She glanced at the old scholar, who was squeezed into a corner and didn’t know how to respond, wishing she could give him a couple of slaps.

She gave the old scholar a comforting glance and turned to the other diners in the shop, “Do you all feel the same way?”

The other diners naturally wouldn’t say yes. Those who could eat here were all respectable people, too dignified to argue with someone looking for trouble.

Jiang Yanyi smiled at the troublesome diner with a black mole, “Look, everyone in the shop enjoys this old gentleman’s storytelling.”

The mole-faced diner picked at his teeth and arrogantly replied, “What others like doesn’t mean I have to like it too. I just think his storytelling skills are lacking. Either you kick this storyteller out, or I won’t pay!”

The old scholar had heard various insults in his life, but it was his first time being questioned about his storytelling skills.

He felt both upset and doubted his own eloquence.

Not wanting to cause trouble for Jiang Yanyi, he stood up and cupped his hands, “Shopkeeper, I’ll take my table away for now.”

It was a disgrace for a storyteller to leave their table.

Only those who were forcibly kicked out or wouldn’t be hired again would leave voluntarily.

Upon hearing this, the other diners immediately chimed in:

“This storytelling is going great; why is he suddenly leaving?”

“We were just getting into it. What’s the point of paying attention to this troublemaker? This restaurant isn’t his!”

“Exactly! Listening to the storytelling doesn’t cost you anything. Why be so vicious with your words? Show some decency!”

…

The diners spoke up one after another, but the mole-faced diner had thick skin and felt no shame.

Instead, he put on a rogue-like demeanor.

Jiang Yanyi reassured the old scholar, “Please continue with the storytelling today.”

She turned to the troublesome diner and said, “I’ve sent someone to invite the authorities over. You can stay a little longer, and whether you pay or not, we’ll discuss it at the magistrate’s office.”

The mole-faced diner spat, dislodging his toothpick, “What? You think if I eat here at Jiang’s Antique Soup, I can’t say a word against it? Or else I have to report you? Isn’t that a bit too domineering for your business?”

Facing his sarcastic remarks, Jiang Yanyi showed no anger on her face and replied, “You’re wrong there, sir. You didn’t say that the food here isn’t good, did you? I’m selling food, not storytelling.”

The mole-faced diner hadn’t expected Jiang Yanyi to be so sharp-tongued, and he curled his lips, “Your food isn’t even as good as that from Laifuh Restaurant.”

Jiang Yanyi replied good-naturedly, “If you go to Laifuh Restaurant and order a dish, then compare it to those from the capital’s restaurants, do you think Laifuh would refuse to take your money?”

This sarcastic remark caused the diners to burst into laughter.

The mole-faced diner initially wanted to say something more unpleasant, but Jiang Yanyi’s expression had turned completely cold.

Yang Xiu and Bing Shao were standing at the entrance with their arms crossed, and the muscles in their arms were visibly defined even through their winter clothes.

Their gaze was particularly unfriendly, and he dared not continue looking for trouble.

As he settled the bill and walked out of the shop, he spat fiercely, “This damn bitch’s place has a disgusting smell in the food!”

At the entrance, Yang Xiu and Bing Shao exchanged glances.

Bing Shao understood and followed the mole-faced diner outside.

As the mole-faced diner walked along, he turned into a small alley when suddenly a bamboo basket fell from the wall, covering his head.

Immediately after, numerous fists and feet rained down on him, hitting him hard but avoiding any vital strikes.

The mole-faced diner cried out for mercy, “Hero, spare me! Hero, spare me!”

No one paid him any mind; the punches kept falling like rain on the mole-faced diner.

When passersby noticed someone lying against the wall with a bamboo basket over his head, they thought a crime had occurred and hurriedly reported it to the authorities.

When the officials arrived, they discovered he hadn’t died; he just had all his teeth knocked out and his face swollen like a pig’s head, having fainted from the pain.

Shopkeeper Xu had recently been looking particularly radiant.

Ever since Mr. Ding in his shop started telling “Dream of the Red Chamber,” business had improved significantly at both the antique soup shop and the restaurant.

Even Shopkeeper Xu, usually idle, had taken to resting his chin on the counter to listen to the storytelling.

This afternoon was no different when suddenly, a servant from his residence rushed into the shop, looking flustered, and said, “Sir, the Second Master has been beaten!”

Manager Xu has been quite successful in business, but his younger brother is a good-for-nothing, spending his days in gambling dens and brothels.

Upon hearing the servant’s words, Manager Xu’s first reaction was that his brother had been chased by the gambling house for debts again, or that he had gotten into a conflict with a prostitute.

He impatiently said, “How old is he? Every time he causes trouble, I have to clean up after him.”

After a moment’s hesitation, the servant said, “Second Master had all his teeth knocked out. According to him, it was probably the people from Jiang’s Antique Soup who did it.”

When Manager Xu heard that it was related to Jiang’s, his expression changed.

---

That afternoon, although the old scholar finished telling the second half of his story, he was clearly not in good spirits.

When it came time for dinner, the old scholar had barely eaten a few bites, looking troubled.

Jiang Yanyi knew he must have been affected by the remarks of that customer with the black mole.

She said, “That person did it on purpose; don’t take it to heart.”

The old scholar nodded but continued to pick up and put down his chopsticks, his spirit not as good as usual.

By the next day, nearing noon, the old scholar still hadn’t arrived at the shop.

Jiang Yanyi sent Bing Shao to check on him at his home in the southern part of the city, only to find out that the old scholar was ill.

It turned out that the old scholar had wanted to practice storytelling last night, but since his neighbors were nearby, he worried about disturbing them with his voice.

So, he went out to the wild to practice his vocalizations. Unfortunately, he caught a chill that night and was too sick to get out of bed this morning, his voice hoarse and unable to speak.

The patrons who were excited to hear the old scholar’s storytelling that day felt disappointed upon learning that he wouldn’t be coming.

Some who had entered the shop directly got up to leave: “If we can’t hear the latest tale, it’s better to go to Laifu Antique Soup and listen to yesterday’s story again; Mr. Ding’s storytelling isn’t bad either!”

Qiu Kui was so angry that she broke a chopstick in her hand. “How can they be like this?”

Jiang Yanyi gently patted her head. “Don’t be angry; we’ll come up with a solution.”

Although today’s business wasn’t as bustling as when the old scholar was telling stories, it wasn’t too quiet either.

The food at Jiang Yanyi’s shop was distinctive and hard to replicate, so she still had a loyal customer base.

When a regular customer entered, Jiang Yanyi could smile and ask, “The usual?”

The customer smiled subtly, nodded, and, as he walked to his usual seat, couldn’t help but mention, “Manager Jiang, I heard someone said you beat up a customer in your shop?”

Jiang Yanyi was taken aback. “What is this based on?”

The customer replied, “It’s said that a customer came to your shop yesterday, found the hotpot unsatisfactory, and on his way home after paying the bill, he was beaten up and lost all his teeth.”

In an instant, Jiang Yanyi thought of the customer with the black mole yesterday.

She said, “It’s fortunate there were other customers in my shop yesterday. That man was clearly aggressive, repeatedly insulting our storyteller, and in the end, he even tried to leave without paying. There were so many witnesses who saw him leave my shop. How could he get beaten up and then dump the blame on me?”

Yang Xiu and Bing Shao, who were busy, felt a bit guilty upon hearing her words.

Other patrons who were present yesterday chimed in, supporting Jiang Yanyi’s statement.

Those who didn’t know the situation also realized it was an intentional smear campaign.

They felt some sympathy for Jiang Yanyi, a woman running a shop, having to endure such rumors.

Though Jiang Yanyi spoke confidently to outsiders, she had her own understanding of the situation.

When no more customers came to the shop, she exchanged glances with Yang Xiu and Bing Shao before heading to the backyard.

The two followed her, and before Jiang Yanyi could speak, Bing Shao said, “Manager, it was I who took the initiative to beat that scoundrel. His mouth was filthy.”

Yang Xiu hurriedly added, “I asked Bing Shao to do it. I didn’t expect to trouble you, Manager; I’ll accept punishment from Third Master later.”