Chương 17: He didn't know he was wrong;

the Sichuanese people's particularity about food was ingrained in their bones. If they were disgusted by something related to food, they couldn't hold back their anger until they vented it. Who could stand such humiliation? Zhou Yan, hearing the commotion, couldn't help but peek at the commotion from the doorway. A crowd of onlookers had gathered at the factory gate, some even carrying their rice bowls from inside the factory. Wasn't this more appetizing than the canteen food?

Wang Laowu, standing in front of the noodle pot being scolded, looked like a wilted eggplant, completely dejected. His wife, her face flushed, wished she could disappear into the ground. In late October, the weather was cool in the mornings and evenings, but the daytime temperature was still quite high under the sun. Wang Laowu's noodle stall had a layer of oilcloth on it, and the toppings and sauces had been drying in the sun all day and then left overnight. By noon today, they naturally had a slightly sour smell.

"It's just... just a little bit left over from yesterday, with the meat picked out. How could it have any flavor?" Wang Laowu pouted, somewhat aggrieved.

"Two yuan a pound for beef, who would want to throw it away!" Yesterday, influenced by Zhou Erwa's restaurant, they had most of their prepared toppings and sauces left over. Today, with the price drastically reduced, the couple figured they'd just stir-fry a big pot of seasonings and mix it in; they figured no one would notice. But the sun was too strong today, and the temperature rose quickly. It was only noon, and it already smelled rancid; even pepper couldn't mask it.

"Even the worst canteen noodles are better than your leftovers!"

"Absolutely! Zhou Yan's shop looks clean and hygienic! Paying an extra two cents gives you peace of mind!" The customers didn't listen to Wang Laowu's excuses and immediately got up to head towards Zhou Erwa's restaurant.

"Hey, you haven't paid yet!" Wang Laowu's wife, Liu Fen, said anxiously.

"You still dare to ask for money? It's a miracle we haven't demolished your stall! Do you believe I'll report you to the market management committee?" Liu Laoba jumped up and down, "I trusted you so much! I've eaten noodles at your place for so many years!"

"That's right!" Wang Jianming snorted, then walked away without looking back. Liu Fen wanted to argue.

"Don't say a word!" Wang Laowu tugged at Liu Fen's clothes and whispered, "If this gets out, we won't be able to set up our stall."

"It's all your fault! I told you it's too hot and the food will spoil easily. Now all the customers have gone to Zhou Yan's place. What are we going to do?" Liu Fen stamped her feet anxiously. They had invested heavily today to steal Zhou Yan's business, and now they still had half of the meat sauce and toppings left. If they couldn't sell them, they wouldn't even recoup their costs.

"It's all Zhou Yan's fault. Otherwise, we wouldn't have had so much meat sauce left over yesterday." Wang Laowu also put on a mask of pain. His reputation, built up over many years, was ruined, which was even more distressing than these few bowls of meat sauce.

"Tsk tsk tsk, this is unethical to feed customers leftovers. They have no conscience!" Zhao Tieying also came to the door to watch the commotion and smacked her lips, laughing, "See? It's just like that old saying, 'A wicked hen cuddling a widow's egg'—she brought it on herself!" Zhao Tieying didn't keep her voice down, and the customers coming to the restaurant all heard her.

"Aunt Zhao is right!" A customer joined in with a few laughs and curses, their goodwill towards Aunt Zhao greatly increased. Wang Laowu and Liu Fen turned green, but since they were in the wrong, they didn't dare to respond. The mother and son exchanged a smile, and Zhou Yan silently gave his mother a thumbs up. When it comes to delivering a critical hit, it has to be the Yin-Yang Master Aunt Zhao. Wang Laowu's self-disclosure greatly relieved Zhou Yan's pressure of stockpiling goods.

Many customers who originally came for the 40 cents and 50-gram meat noodles decisively chose the strongly recommended Zhou Erwa Restaurant after hearing that Wang Laowu was using leftovers, resulting in a significant increase in customer traffic. Wang Laowu and Liu Fen stood guard over their empty stall, their faces full of worry.

"Should we ask Director Wang to come and support us again? If this continues, we can't do business anymore." Liu Fen tugged at Wang Laowu's sleeve and whispered.

"You go and ask him, I'll..." Wang Laowu whispered a few words to her.

"Okay." Liu Fen nodded and quickly left. Wang Laowu stood up, picked up a half-full bowl of braised beef topping, and loudly proclaimed, "I was wrong today. I shouldn't have been so stingy with the leftover beef, and I especially shouldn't have let customers eat the leftover sauce and toppings. I'll take my punishment for my mistake, no questions asked. However, I've been selling noodles outside the textile factory for two years, and this is the first time I've done something like this.

I hope everyone can give me a chance to reform. I swear, from today onwards, our noodle stall will never use leftovers again." The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. With that, he poured the beef topping into a nearby swill bucket—a half-full enamel basin containing at least two or three pounds of beef. Then he picked up a bowl of minced meat and poured it into the swill bucket as well. Wang Laowu's actions attracted the attention of many workers. This was all meat!

Most families only ate it once or twice a month, and it was being wasted like this. Wang Laowu poured out three bowls of meat sauce and toppings before stopping, then loudly proclaimed, "The remaining toppings and meat sauce are all good, freshly stir-fried this morning, absolutely no leftovers mixed in!"

"To express our apology, I'm treating everyone to noodles for free! One bowl of noodles and one ounce of meat, not a penny to your name! Consider it my way of apologizing!" Upon hearing this, many workers' eyes lit up. Even the customers who were originally heading towards Zhou Erwa's restaurant stopped in their tracks. A bowl of noodles and one ounce of meat, all for free—it sounded very appealing.

"Free food, want to try it? Everyone said it was good when they ate Wang Laowu's before, right?"

"He can admit his mistake and correct it; we should give him a chance." (The latest novels are first published on 69shu. com!)"He doesn't know he's wrong, he's just scared. You go ahead, I'll eat Zhou Yan's noodles." The workers whispered among themselves, some heading towards Wang Laowu's noodle stall, others resolutely walking towards Zhou Erwa's restaurant. Wang Laowu's lips curled up; he'd gambled right.

The remaining sauce would spoil anyway tomorrow, so he might as well give it away for free to salvage his reputation. He could then sell noodles at a low price for a while, and the matter would gradually fade away. Zhao Tieying collected the bowls and went into the kitchen to tell Zhou Yan about it.

"He's quite decisive." Zhou Yan paused in his noodle-picking. Wang Laowu's crisis management was quick enough; relying on him to self-destruct and bankrupt the noodle stall seemed a bit lacking. He wondered if Station Chief Gao was reliable and if he could trace it back to Wang Laowu.

"It's alright, this kind of despicable person will get what's coming to them sooner or later," Zhao Tieying comforted Zhou Yan with a smile.

"The most important thing is for us to make good noodles and let our customers eat with peace of mind."

"You're right," Zhou Yan nodded with a smile. Zhao Tieying was indeed someone who didn't engage in internal strife. As soon as the news of free noodles spread, Wang Laowu's noodle stall quickly became bustling again, with seven or eight people sitting down in no time. Wang Laowu stood in front of the large pot cooking noodles, a smile returning to his face. Losing a little money was fine; as long as the business could continue, he would earn it back sooner or later.

On the other side, Liu Fen also invited Wang Defa over. Wang Defa stood in front of the noodle pot with his hands behind his back and a potbelly sticking out, lecturing with a pained expression, "Wang Laowu, are you confused! How have I always taught you? You must make sure the workers eat well, eat their fill, and eat with peace of mind."

"Director Wang, you're right. I was blinded by greed and just couldn't bear to waste meat. I'll never do it again." Wang Laowu nodded vigorously.

"Sigh, I know you're used to being frugal. Everyone's just had enough to eat, so I understand. But you absolutely can't do this again." Wang Defa nodded slightly, his tone softening considerably.

"Your noodles are pretty good. The meat is the same good quality as in the factory canteen, the portions are generous, and the price is reasonable. Unlike some restaurants that only care about money, they have a capitalist mentality."

"Of course, of course." Wang Laowu nodded in response. The charade between Wang Defa and Wang Laowu was so convincing that even Zhou Yan, who was serving the noodles, couldn't help but stop and listen for a couple of lines. You can't underestimate the wisdom of the common people. Their public relations skills are far superior to some of the makeshift troupes of later generations, and they even managed to annoy him in the process.

"Even Director Wang from the factory canteen praised Wang Laowu's noodles so highly, which means they're really good."

"The meat in the factory canteen is prioritized by the supply and marketing cooperative; Wang Laowu is really willing to invest."

" Maybe I should go back and call everyone from the workshop over. Opportunities to eat for free like this don't come often." The workers nodded repeatedly, some sitting down to try it, others preparing to invite their friends. Wang Defa smiled smugly, preparing to deliver a few more bureaucratic remarks. Just then, two jeeps pulled up and stopped in front of the noodle stall.

Two epidemic prevention workers in white coats got out of the first vehicle, which was painted with "Jiazhou Epidemic Prevention Station," one of whom was Gao Tianlei. Two men in hats got out of the second vehicle, glanced at the noodle stall's sign, and looked at Wang Laowu, saying, "Wang Dewei, right? You are suspected of long-term, large-scale purchases of diseased pork, endangering food safety. Please come with us for investigation!"