I was forced to start the second round because I was raised in poverty

Chapter 260 Birthday Banquet
There were hardly any customers at the store in the morning, so Su Cheng was able to quietly check all the recent accounts.

The store's accounts look fine.

The only problem is that these accounts are too perfect.

It looked like something meticulously crafted by the Red Circle Accounting Firm.

In the afternoon, some people did come to inquire, but they just browsed around.

Some customers looked hesitant after asking about the price and left the store in a hurry.

Some customers just glanced at the showroom and left without even asking about the price.

Su Cheng had already seen 3D particle paint and even tried it himself, but the results were just so-so.

Most of the people who buy houses in the county town are from subordinate townships, or they are buying a second home. They are probably more practical than following trends.

This raises a problem.

The product itself is weak, and the price is not affordable enough.

How can they have so many customers?
Judging from today's visitor volume, it's actually at a normal level.

For home renovation products, it's normal to not have a single customer in a day, and to only get a dozen or so orders a month. Sometimes, the transactions happen concentrated in a few days.

so.

Where do all these customers come from?
Surely they can't all be fake?
In the morning, Lao Deng specifically instructed Su Cheng to be as enthusiastic as possible when guests came, and to try to close the deal if possible.

Forget about closing a deal, there were hardly any people even present.

Su Cheng thought that Lao Deng would arrange for actors to come today to create the impression that the 3D particle paint he was selling was very popular, because only in this way could the accounts be reconciled.

Was it a miscalculation by Old Deng?

Logically speaking, it shouldn’t be.

In Su Cheng's eyes, Lao Deng was a very meticulous person and it was impossible for him to make such a mistake.

However, Su Cheng still kept a close eye on things and saved a list of clients on her phone, including their names, phone numbers, addresses, and other information.

If it was Old Deng's mistake, then he has finally found a loophole.

Su Cheng can use this as a breakthrough point to change the situation.

That evening, Su Cheng returned home, but Lao Deng had not yet come back.

He called to ask what time he would be back, saying he was still working and didn't know. He told Su Cheng not to wait for him.

Su Cheng figured that Lao Deng definitely wasn't working.

He had worked with Lao Deng for a few days and had already figured out Lao Deng's physical strength.

Su Cheng doesn't know if he climbed mountain trails when he was young, but now Lao Deng would never work from morning till night.

Who knows where they're hiding to enjoy themselves, and then they'll come back looking exhausted after they've had their fill.

No!

If you won't let me wait, then I'll wait anyway.

Su Cheng waited until eight or nine o'clock in the evening before Lao Deng returned from outside.

"Huh? Didn't I tell you not to wait for me?"

"Dad, you must be exhausted. Wash your face first, and I'll go heat up the flour paste in the pot."

Su Tianyan was completely dumbfounded: ? ? ?

What's going on?

He subconsciously looked at the pinhole cameras buried in his home.

What is the intelligence team for?
He just ate six ounces of steak and four ounces of beef shank outside.

To avoid letting Su Cheng smell the alcohol, Su Tianyan refrained from opening the red wine and drank juice instead.

So we have to eat another meal when we get back?
A large bowl of white flour porridge and two steamed buns were placed in front of Su Tianyan, leaving him at a loss for words.

"Dad, come and eat."

Su Tianyan looked at the egg white porridge and steamed buns in front of her and felt a little nauseous.

There was simply no room left in his stomach.

But this is Su Cheng's way of showing filial piety to his father. If his father doesn't eat it, Su Cheng will feel very disappointed and won't cook for him anymore.

Su Tianyan couldn't let her son down at this time; doing so would sow the seeds of future trouble.

But Su Tianyan couldn't say that he had eaten outside, as that wouldn't fit his frugal persona.

Seeing the brat's enthusiastic and proactive manner, Su Tianyan had no choice but to bite the bullet and sit down to eat.

He picked up a steamed bun, took a big bite, and while chewing, he used his chopsticks to pick up some pickled vegetables and put them in his mouth. Then he put his mouth right up to the bowl and slurped up a small mouthful of egg mixture, making a "gurgling" sound.

Su Cheng stood to the side, smoking a cigarette, watching Lao Deng with an appreciative expression.

Generally speaking, people who have actually done a full day of physical labor don't eat like Lao Deng; they absolutely wolf down their food and chew it in big bites.

So the way Old Deng was eating so slowly and deliberately meant he had been slacking off all day and must have eaten before going home.

Otherwise, why would she eat like that?
He really wanted to ask Old Deng if he ate beef or sea cucumber and abalone outside that night.

Su Cheng recalled that when he was a picky eater as a child, his father would always say something like, "You'll be fine if you starve yourself for a few days" or "Look at what other families are eating," and then force Su Cheng to eat the kind of food that could only keep him alive.

At the time, Su Cheng felt very guilty and scolded herself for being so greedy. Why couldn't she understand her father's hardships?

As it turns out, damn, Old Deng was secretly eating all the good stuff.

This is really tough on me!

Watching Lao Deng shove the food into his mouth like he was being tortured, why was Su Cheng doing it so readily?
Su Cheng wanted to know when Old Deng would stop.

Whenever Lao Deng pushed his bowl away and said he didn't want to eat anymore, Su Cheng would very dutifully persuade him to eat more, and if that wasn't enough, he would cook more, showing Lao Deng his filial piety.

Isn't this exactly what you wanted?
Regrettably.

Old Deng didn't say a word.

He managed to finish a whole bowl of white flour porridge and two white flour steamed buns.

Su Cheng was shocked after reading it.

This old Deng is quite a character, isn't he?
Aren't you afraid of stuffing yourself to death?
Su Tianyan pushed the bowl forward and leaned back in his chair unconsciously, letting out two burps in a row.

Su Tianyan was in extreme discomfort at this point, and he forced himself to eat the food.

I wish he hadn't eaten that steak tonight.

What is the intelligence group?

Weren't you keeping an eye on Su Cheng the whole time?
Why did I make him cook for me?
Didn't you even notify yourself?
If I had known, he would have come back at midnight. Su Cheng would probably have been asleep by then. I could have secretly thrown away the food and avoided this ordeal.
Su Tianyan felt like he was about to burst from being so full that he could barely walk.

"Dad, is that enough for you?"

"If that's not enough, I'll make you some more."

"That's enough, I'm full."

"Dad, you didn't eat much today. You usually can eat three big steamed buns. Are you feeling unwell? Are you sick?"

Su Tianyan's face was full of question marks.

Where does it hurt?
His stomach is upset right now.

"I'm not sick, I'm just so tired that I don't have much of an appetite."

"Oh, thank you for your hard work, Dad."

"Yes, I know Dad works hard, that's good. I don't spend the money I earn myself, I save it all for you, don't I?"

"Uh-huh."

"How's business at the store today? Have any customers come in to ask questions?"

"Yes, there is..."

"Ok?"

Su Cheng told Lao Deng about the shop's situation, while also subtly inquiring about the shop's accounts. Judging from customer traffic, making ten sales a month was already quite impressive.

"That's because you don't know how to introduce yourself to people or how to chat with them."

"If you just introduce the product to people and give them a price, they definitely won't hire you."

There's a lot to learn about this!

Su Cheng: ???
knowledge?

What kind of knowledge is it?
Su Cheng didn't understand what kind of knowledge Lao Deng was talking about that could allow someone to handle forty or fifty clients a month.

"Dad, then I'll have to ask you for some advice. How do you sign clients?"

Su Tianyan wanted to have a long chat with Su Cheng, but his stomach was really upset. He had swallowed so much stuff, and even though he wanted to talk, he was having trouble breathing.

"This cannot be explained in just a sentence or two."

"Let's do it another day. Dad will share some of his experience with you another day."

"If you have nothing else to do, go and get some rest. We're going to your grandma's house tomorrow."

Su Tianyan urged Su Cheng to go to bed quickly.

"Oh okay."

midnight.

After confirming that Su Cheng was asleep, Su Tianyan finally couldn't hold back any longer.

He didn't have time to go to the command center upstairs or downstairs, and hurriedly ran into his own bathroom.

Su Tianyan's stomach churned violently, and a fermented taste surged from his intestines to his mouth.

He felt nauseous, but couldn't vomit.

He tried to pull, but he couldn't.

Finally, having no other choice, Su Tianyan could only try to clear his throat by looking into the toilet bowl.

After several attempts, I finally managed to vomit up what was in my stomach.

He vomited up the egg custard, the steamed buns, and even the steak and beef shank he had eaten that evening.

Su Tianyan's eyes were red from vomiting, and tears and snot flowed out physiologically.

He looked at his disheveled reflection in the mirror and let out a long sigh.

Grass!
I felt much better after vomiting.

……

Early the next morning.

Su Cheng and Su Tianyan were both dressed neatly and came to their grandmother's house to help.

Actually, the two of them didn't have to do much work. The major preparations had already been done a few days ago by their uncles' friends and the chef they hired. The dishes were mostly semi-finished products, and the fish and meatballs were already fried.

By mid-morning, almost all the guests had arrived.

It wasn't exactly bustling with visitors; it lacked the grand spectacle of a birthday banquet attended by the God of War and his son-in-law.

But the east room, west room, north room, and courtyard were all crowded with people, making it quite lively.

The gifts that everyone carried were not antiques or paintings worth millions or tens of millions of yuan, but rather regular nutritional supplements, and they rarely even carried eggs.

The guests were a diverse group, including Grandma's old best friends, her uncles' colleagues, and former classmates.

There were also neighbors with whom I had a good relationship, as well as some of the students that my maternal grandparents had taught over the years.

These students are worth mentioning; they all have an "official" look on their faces and the air of someone who has spent years in a government agency.

However, Su Cheng didn't care about any of that. He was paying attention to the group of guests to see if anyone would greet Old Deng.

Old Deng's acquaintances might also be a breakthrough for Su Cheng.

It is a pity.

Basically, nobody paid any attention to Old Deng.

Those who rarely greeted Old Deng seemed very polite, not like they were very familiar with him.

They had a small family gathering the day before yesterday, so today is mainly for entertaining guests.

The adults sat separately at different tables to entertain their friends.

Su Cheng sat at the table with the children and women.

The table was an old-fashioned round mahogany table covered with a thin layer of plastic sheeting; it was a very traditional banquet table.

Sitting with Su Cheng were her aunt, Tian Manman, Tian Yuxuan, Xue Yan, and some elderly neighbors from the neighborhood.

Speaking of Tian Manman.

Su Cheng didn't actually blame her, her uncle, and her aunt for taking the gift she had given to her grandmother.

Since Grandma already has an imported fully automatic massage chair and a foot bath tub, there's no point in her keeping these things. They were probably distributed to them by Grandma herself.

As for those small appliances, Su Cheng didn't see them at home that morning.

He guessed that his uncles and aunts wouldn't use those no-name brand appliances; they were probably given to his grandmother's old friends.

The quality of those items still has a certain lower limit; they just have poor functionality, short lifespan, and some are particularly power-consuming.

If we're talking about killing someone with a stun gun, then it definitely won't kill them.

Xue Yan, sitting at the table, is the more outgoing type; he chats with this person and that person.

Among the third generation of the Tian family, he was actually the oldest besides Su Cheng, older than both Tian Manman and Tian Yuxuan.

Judging from the topics they discussed, the three of them weren't actually very close, as they mostly talked about their current situations and didn't have any deep conversations.

We know each other, we're related by blood, but we're definitely not that close.

It's highly likely that they know this person exists, but they basically don't interact with them, only learning about their recent situation through their parents, and they don't really keep in touch.

Xue Yan noticed that Tian Yuxuan was browsing a fashion app, so he took the opportunity to chat with Tian Yuxuan about fashion.

Xue Yan asked Tian Yuxuan, "Are you picking out a windbreaker?"

Tian Yuxuan nodded: "Yeah, I want to get a windbreaker, but I don't know whether to buy a hardshell or a softshell one."

Do you have a favorite brand?

"I haven't made a choice yet. I think Kailas seems pretty good, but it's a bit niche."

"Forget Kailas, just pick a softshell Bird. Buy it without thinking. I've already bought four or five. It'll definitely make you look good."

At that time, Arc'teryx was still a symbol of luxury, not so popular with the general public.

Kailas is still a niche domestic brand, and its prices are affordable, but it is not well-known.

If Su Cheng were to choose, he would also blindly choose Arc'teryx.

But it's not because of the brand, but because of Arc'teryx's quality.

Xue Yan chose Arc'teryx because it's a luxury brand, and wearing it would make him look good.

With the added advantage of his parents both being teachers, Su Cheng would find it very amusing.

Su Cheng remembered that when he was in school, the school emphasized that one should not compare oneself with others.

Large slogans against comparing oneself to others should be painted on the walls, and teachers are required to emphasize this to their students as well.

But Su Cheng's impression of her aunt was that she was the kind of person who liked to compare herself to others.

It's not that I'm deliberately trying to belittle or look down on my aunt; it's just that comparing oneself to others is a normal thing, and no one can escape it.

Su Cheng imagined an interesting scene: her aunt taught students at school during the day not to compare themselves with each other, then turned around, went out, picked up a Mercedes C260, and started comparing herself with the teachers.

Then her son Xue Yan followed suit and became particular about his clothes.

You can tell what kind of social class this family is at a glance.

(End of this chapter)