The War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression Begins in Songhu

Chapter 516 Possessing a Treasure is a Crime (Bonus Chapter for Cat's Random Helmsman)

Time: Around 11:30 AM on the fourteenth day of the rest period.

Location: Panjiayuan, inside a large IT company.

Old Sun, whose receding hairline immediately suggested he was a seasoned programmer, picked up his phone and clicked on a certain Meituan app.

He had only glanced at it a few times when he couldn't help but frown; his expression was much more serious than when he had discovered some program bugs.

Actually, he was worried about what kind of takeout to order for lunch.

The food at Deyuelou is indeed delicious, and it's also quite affordable and clean.

The problem is that ever since Mr. Hu opened his shop in Panjiayuan two or three months ago, Mr. Sun was amazed after eating there once, and then he ordered takeout from Deyuelou for lunch and dinner.

In other words, Deyuelou doesn't serve late-night snacks, otherwise I would still order from them.

Over such a long period of time, Old Sun ate over a hundred different kinds of oil-splashed noodles, rice bowls, and braised pork rice.

I don't say it's bad or I'm tired of it anymore, but I still want to change things up today.

However, when he clicked into other stores, he found that the food was both expensive and not tasty, leaving him in a dilemma.

Just then, Xiao Zhang from the next workstation poked his head over and glanced at Lao Sun's phone.

He immediately started shouting, "Hey! I thought you were worried about something? Turns out you're worried about what to eat for dinner."

You've really hit the jackpot today, kid. I managed to snag a reservation online for Deyuelou hotpot for lunch today. Come with me later!

Shuangqing's spicy flavor is guaranteed to satisfy you.

"The weather forecast said the temperature in the capital city would be 36 degrees Celsius today, but the actual temperature was at least 40 degrees Celsius. In this kind of weather, you actually went to eat hot pot, and spicy hot pot at that."

"Did I hear you wrong, or are you crazy, kid? Aren't you afraid of carbon monoxide poisoning?"

Upon hearing this, Old Sun immediately rattled off a string of questions: "Besides! When did Deyuelou start serving hot pot? How come I didn't know?"

Faced with the above questions, Xiao Zhang felt as if his inner itch had been scratched, and immediately began to proudly explain: "Deyuelou launched hot pot more than ten days ago, and it was placed outside several private rooms on their second floor."

Unfortunately, the second floor has limited seating. Apart from three private dining rooms, there are only 15 tables available for business. As soon as it was launched, demand exceeded supply, so they didn't advertise it at all, which is why you don't know about it.

Even so, it is still quite difficult to reserve a table for dining these days.

I've been trying to book an appointment every day, and this is only the second time I've managed to get one.

As for carbon monoxide poisoning? There's no need to worry about that as long as there's good ventilation. Mr. Hu has already taken precautions against this, so don't worry.”

Seeing that Xiao Zhang had gone this far, Lao Sun naturally had no more questions, and instead became inexplicably expectant.

Because the concept that everything produced by Deyuelou is of the highest quality has long been considered a truism by the foodies around them, they can just blindly rush to buy any new product they launch.

Half an hour later, it was lunchtime.

Old Sun and Xiao Zhang, a group of six, immediately shut down their computers and rushed to Deyuelou.

Upon arriving at the second floor of Deyuelou, I immediately noticed that the air conditioning was very cold, to the point that it gave me goosebumps.

At first, Lao Sun was silently complaining to himself, "Boss Hu, doesn't he have to pay for his electricity? Why is he running the air conditioner so loudly?"

However, he soon came to appreciate its benefits.

Because Deyuelou's hot pot, despite its numbing and spicy flavor, does not mask the freshness of the ingredients at all; on the contrary, it perfectly blends the two together, creating a more wonderful complex flavor.

It's so spicy that you keep sucking your lips and tongue, but you can't help but keep eating.

Furthermore, stimulated by the hot and spicy taste of the hot pot, Lao Sun felt that all the pores on his body were opened, and a large amount of sweat was forced out.

At the same time, the cold air from the air conditioner enters the body through the open pores.

The combination of the two sensations is just like the legendary experience of experiencing both ice and fire, making it an absolutely unique and special experience.

But the most crucial point is that after sweating profusely, it feels like my body has been successfully detoxified.

Old Sun felt that his strained lower back muscles, frozen shoulder, and stomach problems had been miraculously relieved, and he felt much more relaxed.

Goodness! This hot pot meal cost over 200 yuan per person, which seems a bit pricey at first glance.

After all, even a famous hot pot restaurant like Didi only costs around 100 yuan per person. But if you factor in this therapeutic effect, it's absolutely worth it; he usually spends more than that on a decent foot massage.

But as he walked out of Deyuelou, Old Sun suddenly felt inexplicably sad.

He knew that even if Boss Hu was too lazy to promote it, Deyuelou's hot pot would only become more and more famous, and it would probably become harder and harder to make a reservation.

I don't know when I'll be able to eat it again...

******
At the same time, in Hu Biao's office.

Mina had encountered that couple from 'Watermelon Capital' once before when she delivered popsicles to her brother-in-law, and they appeared again.

At that moment, Hu Biao was still in the kitchen, wielding a large ladle and busy preparing for the lunchtime business.

So at this moment, only the future boss lady, who wasn't working today, was serving the couple; however, the couple seemed rather distracted while drinking tea.

All of this can only be blamed on Hu Biao's recent launch of hot pot, which made them realize the huge profits it represented.

If their previous skills in making braised dishes, rice bowls, and private kitchen dishes led them to believe that the final valuation of Deyuelou would only be 10 billion yuan when it was packaged and listed on the stock market.

With Hu Biao's hotpot skills added to the mix, the value skyrocketed tenfold, reaching a staggering 100 billion.

Don't be alarmed by this number; they are professionals with very detailed data to support and compare it.

For example, the current market value of a certain hot pot chain is HK$780.3 billion; in comparison, the hot pot at Deyuelou tastes much better.

Even after trying both, they felt there was no need to compare them.

Unlike other types of catering, hot pot can basically guarantee the quality of its products by ensuring the quality of the hot pot base.

In short, for the couple who invested in watermelons, Deyuelou was a perfect investment target; investing one yuan now would yield at least a hundred times the return in the future, making it almost impossible to fail.

Therefore, they came here today with a firm determination to take down Hu Biao.

Unfortunately, one of the key tactics—the exceptionally glamorous secretary Julie—knew that this plan was doomed after seeing Annie.

She's got plenty of advantages, but she can't compare to Hu Biao in terms of figure, looks, or temperament. What does she have to offer to seduce Hu Biao?

Are you tired of expecting your partner to eat lavish meals and suddenly want some light dishes to change things up?
So now the only hope is that the two of them brought a proposal today, which has much more favorable terms than last time, and they hope that these terms can sway Hu Biao.

After a rather agonizing wait, Hu Biao, having finished his work, finally entered the office.

After exchanging a few pleasantries, Hu Biao picked up the project proposal and began to read it; during this time, he also whispered a few words to Annie.

After quickly finishing reading it, Hu Biao immediately said:
"I'm sorry! Deyuelou currently has no intention of accepting investment or large-scale expansion; if there is any in the future, we will contact you both as soon as possible."

Upon hearing this, the female secretary Julie panicked and shook her breasts, trying to say something.

Unexpectedly, the middle-aged man at the head of the group, who was also her boss Mike, stood up and said decisively, "Okay! We'll wait for Mr. Hu's good news."

After saying that, he took his leave with Julie.

However, after the two got into a Maybach and drove for about a hundred meters,

The female secretary sitting in the passenger seat couldn't wait to ask, "Mr. Mike, is the investment in Deyuelou just going to be dropped like this?"

"We can't give up! If we can take down Hu Biao, our bonus today will be at least several times higher."

"Give up! How could I possibly give up?" the middle-aged man driving replied, his face contorted with rage, a far cry from the suave demeanor he displayed when he first met Hu Biao.

Then, gritting his teeth, he continued:
"Although I am now a citizen of the Great Yin, I am also aware of the old saying, 'A common man is innocent, but possessing a treasure is a crime.'"

If Hu Biao were sensible and understood the principle of mutual benefit, that everyone benefits, then everything would be fine; but since he's so unreasonable, let's teach him a lesson first.

Let him know that if he doesn't want his hard work to be ruined, he'd better obediently accept the cooperation and he can still become a wealthy man.

Faced with such a statement, Julie not only didn't take it seriously, but instead became eager to try it out.

Because 'Watermelon Investment' is a company, and one founded by a foreigner; no matter how mild-mannered they usually appear, or how polite their staff are in public.

But these are all illusions; they cannot change their greedy and bloodthirsty nature in the slightest...

(End of this chapter)