Chapter 43

The next day, Xiao Bing saw Zhang Yizhi off and then returned to the noodle shop to continue working. After the school reopened, the shop's business did not decrease much. The students indeed went to school, but they could only come during lunch or dinner time. However, the reputation of Xiao Bing's ramen spread, and many non-students came to try it out, so the small noodle shop's business remained bustling.

With one less person, everyone's workload became even heavier. After a busy day, Yezi and Su Xiaoxiao came to help in the evening.

Seeing Yezi and Su Xiaoxiao walk in one after the other, Xiao Bing, while kneading the dough, smiled and said, "Great, we have two free laborers. One of you can help Hongmei, and the other can go to the kitchen to help Aunt Wang and Erhuo. I'm really tired after a whole day of work."

Yezi and Su Xiaoxiao almost simultaneously said to Li Hong, "I'll help you..."

Then the two girls looked at each other. Yezi's eyes showed a thoughtful expression, while Su Xiaoxiao's gaze was unyielding.

Li Hong stood there, unsure what to do. One was the owner's girlfriend, and the other was the boss's daughter. Whose instructions should she follow?

Su Xiaoxiao didn't know why she was at odds with Yezi. Although one was helping in the kitchen and the other in the front, the difference was significant. The person helping in the front could chat with Xiao Bing.

Su Xiaoxiao's gaze didn't waver, but Yezi smiled sweetly and said, "I've never done things like washing vegetables or cooking. I came to your shop this time to help because I was worried everyone would be too tired. Xiaoxiao must be reluctant to send me to the kitchen, right?"

Yezi's words left Su Xiaoxiao at a loss. Although her words were polite, the meaning was clear: this was the Su family's shop, and the Su family was making money. She wasn't taking a salary and was helping out voluntarily. Was it right to force her to do the work she didn't like?

Su Xiaoxiao, a smart girl, understood this point. She felt a bit annoyed but knew she had been caught in a bind. Why did she suddenly act this way, as if she was being petty?

Su Xiaoxiao, a girl who could let things go, wouldn't dwell on face-saving issues. She sighed inwardly and smiled awkwardly, saying, "I was also worried that the front would be too busy and you would get tired. Since that's the case, I'll go to the kitchen to help Aunt Wang."

Yezi smiled sweetly, "Then let's each do our part."

With these two additional helpers, everyone immediately felt more relaxed. Only Xiao Bing's workload didn't decrease, as he was the only one who could make the signature ramen in the shop.

As the sky grew darker, the shop was preparing to close after this batch of customers left. A tall man walked in.

The moment this man stepped into the shop, Xiao Bing looked up at him. The man was in his thirties, wearing old beige clothes and canvas shoes, with a black eye patch over one eye.

Many people were drawn to the eye patch, a thick, black one that no light could penetrate.

Li Hong and Li Jing looked at the man with surprise. Yezi sensed something unusual about him, but Xiao Bing remained calm.

The man, as if he could see through the eye patch, looked in Xiao Bing's direction and then walked straight to the front counter, expressionless, and said, "Please give me a bowl of ramen."

Li Hong, feeling a chill, managed to say, "Sure, find a seat first."

The man didn't speak, turned around, and was about to walk to an empty table when Li Hong, for some reason, asked, "Can you see the way with that eye patch?"

The man paused, his tone cold, "I'm blind. Does it matter if I can see the way?"

Does it matter?

It doesn't.

Li Hong felt even colder. She was talking to a blind man. Talking to a blind man wasn't unusual, but this blind man was looking at her while speaking, and he didn't need a cane to feel his way. It was as if everything around him was clear, which was too strange and terrifying.

This man was the mysterious blind man, Zhu Mingyu, who was by the side of the Northern Heavenly King, Mudan Fairy.

Zhu Mingyu sat down slowly, and almost everyone could feel the cold aura around him. Yezi walked to Xiao Bing and whispered, "This person is strange..."

Xiao Bing glanced at Zhu Mingyu, kneading the dough while saying to Yezi, "Don't provoke him. Don't think he can't see; he sees more clearly than anyone else. His eyes may be blind, but his heart is not."

Zhu Mingyu seemed to have heard Xiao Bing, and he looked in his direction. Xiao Bing continued to focus on making the ramen, sensing that Zhu Mingyu had come for him. From the moment he entered, he had looked at Xiao Bing first. However, Xiao Bing didn't want to provoke trouble, so he remained passive.

After a while, Xiao Bing finished the ramen, served it in a bowl, and had Yezi bring it to Zhu Mingyu.

Yezi placed the ramen in front of Zhu Mingyu and said, "Eat."

"Thank you," Zhu Mingyu replied calmly and coldly, picked up the chopsticks, and said, "Tell your master that his Tai Chi skills are excellent."

Yezi smiled, "Thank you. Brother Bing was right; your eyes may be blind, but your heart is not."

"Is that so? He said that... Tell him thank you."

"Sure," Yezi replied and returned to Xiao Bing, telling him about her conversation with Zhu Mingyu. Xiao Bing looked deeply at Zhu Mingyu.

Xiao Bing had thought Zhu Mingyu was there to cause trouble, but he was surprised to see him eating the ramen seriously, savoring each bite. After finishing, he paid and left.

As he walked out of the shop, Xiao Bing's pupils slightly contracted, and then a smile appeared on his lips. This blind man... is interesting. He seems to be a worthy opponent.

The busy day finally ended. Everyone was too tired to go home for dinner, so Wang Guifang had prepared a meal. Everyone sat around a table in the shop to eat.

Xiao Bing was on Su Xiaoxiao's left and Yezi's right, with others sitting around. Thinking about the tension between Su Xiaoxiao and Yezi earlier, Li Hong and Zhang Jing looked at them differently, wondering if they were competing for Xiao Bing's attention.

Su Xiaoxiao didn't know what they were thinking. If she did, she wouldn't admit it. Although she had developed some feelings for Xiao Bing, she still considered him a bad guy, though perhaps a "bad guy" in quotation marks, a fact she hadn't realized yet.

The meal was a bit awkward. Yezi and Xiao Bing were normal, with Xiao Bing often serving Yezi and Yezi chatting non-stop. Su Xiaoxiao, however, was quiet, eating silently and maintaining her usual cold demeanor. Li Hong and Zhang Jing kept glancing at Su Xiaoxiao, while Erhuo, as usual, ate voraciously, bowl after bowl.

Halfway through the meal, Xiao Bing finished first, put down his chopsticks, and smiled, "I think our shop is too small now. We need to expand and increase our capacity."

Su Xiaoxiao, breaking her silence, said coldly, "Easier said than done. Expansion requires money!"

Xiao Bing smiled, "Don't worry about the money. I have a plan. What matters is what everyone thinks."

Wang Guifang said, "I think it's feasible. We've seen the business these days. Every mealtime, there's a long queue outside. Many are students who need to get back to school early, so they can't wait and go elsewhere. We've also calculated the accounts. Our daily revenue has tripled. I think it will get even better soon."

Zhang Jing sighed, "I don't mind the work, but with just a few of us, it's overwhelming. In the kitchen, only Aunt Wang can cook, and Erhuo helps with buying ingredients and other tasks. It's tough to serve so many customers. I handle the cash register, but Hongmei can't manage the front alone. We need to expand the shop and hire more people."

Xiao Bing smiled, "I'll discuss this with Aunt Li. We'll talk about the expansion and the performance bonuses. Everyone has worked hard this month, and I promised a 30% raise, which won't change."

No matter what Xiao Bing said, Su Xiaoxiao wanted to make sarcastic remarks, but seeing his confident demeanor, she swallowed her words. She justified it to herself: he's helping my family's business. If we expand, he'll figure out the money. Why should I worry?

After dinner, with Su Xiaoxiao there, Yezi left by herself, and the others went home. Xiao Bing and Su Xiaoxiao walked home together.

Walking together, the atmosphere was awkward due to Su Xiaoxiao's cold personality. Xiao Bing initiated the conversation, smiling, "Thank you for coming to help. Otherwise, the shop would have been overwhelmed."

"Your ramen skills are excellent, better than my father's," Su Xiaoxiao praised, then fell silent.

Hearing a compliment from this girl was rare, and Xiao Bing was about to use this to start a conversation when Su Xiaoxiao suddenly said, "Let's go for a drink."

"Huh?"

"A street barbecue stall will do."

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