Chapter 2: Grandpa's canteen

After saying "Grandpa's canteen," he took the lead and walked ahead.

Qu Xiaoxiao looked at Chu Mingheng, who was clearly flustered, and helplessly pouted, walking behind him casually.

As she walked, she carefully observed her surroundings.

The ground was fairly clean, but the traces of time were still evident; there were still adhesive residues from small advertisements on the walls, and various places were yellowed to varying degrees.

After passing several buildings, she finally saw a bright spot besides the flowers, trees, and shrubs—a brightly colored four-story building.

At a glance, she saw the prominent sign on both sides of the entrance—Minsheng Road Community Service Center.

It seemed that her future workplace should be nearby.

Just as she was still immersed in observing her surroundings, someone came out of the building, looking at her with a beaming smile.

Chu Mingheng familiarly stepped forward and greeted,

"Director Qu, hello!"

"Hello! Is this the girl from the Qu family?"

"Yes, that's right. I'll have to rely on you for a while."

As he spoke, Chu Mingheng glanced at Qu Xiaoxiao, who was still looking elsewhere, and coughed heavily a few times.

"Cough cough!"

The violent coughing finally drew Qu Xiaoxiao's attention. She looked at the suddenly appearing stranger and quickly walked over.

"Hello! My name is Qu Xiaoxiao."

"I know, I even held you when you were little."

These words immediately startled Qu Xiaoxiao. She had no recollection of it. She turned her head, her questioning gaze fixed on Chu Mingheng.

This startled little face immediately amused Qu Yangrong.

"Hahahaha!"

Qu Yangrong grabbed Qu Xiaoxiao's hand and explained,

"Xiaoxiao, make yourself at home here.

It's true, your parents haven't had a chance to bring you back to visit all these years. If it weren't for the community center falling into disrepair a few years ago, and your parents coming to our aid both financially and physically, we would have thought your Qu family had forgotten all of us old neighbors.

Many people here watched your father grow up; it's no different from coming home."

"Is that so?" Qu Xiaoxiao murmured.

She tried hard to connect Qu Yangrong's words with her memories of her father.

Although her voice was low, Qu Yangrong still heard her and continued to explain,

"You don't remember because you moved away before you were four. How could a child remember so much? But it's good to be here now.

Speaking of which, our community should thank you.

We were just planning to open a community canteen for the elderly in the neighborhood, and you responded enthusiastically, just like your grandfather.

Over the years, many people in the community still miss your grandfather's cooking skills, and everyone is fortunate this time."

As she spoke, she took Qu Xiaoxiao's arm and led her towards the service center.

She kept introducing the neighborhood and the canteen, and Qu Xiaoxiao finally understood the situation of the canteen where she would be working.

In short, her grandfather used to be the head chef of the factory canteen, and his cooking skills were superb.

Even after the factory moved away, he continued to run the shop here, where the delicious food was affordable and the neighbors lingered.

It was a pity that he later became unwell and passed away suddenly.

This is why Qu Xiaoxiao doesn't have many memories of him; she only remembers her grandparents, but only as images from the memorial services.

Today, she suddenly felt a different kind of emotion towards the grandfather who was so well-known among the neighbors.

She tried hard to recall him, but couldn't find anything clear.

In fact, her brain would throb with pain whenever she tried to think, forcing her to stop and soothe the aching head.

Moreover, the community service center building she was currently using was the very spot where her grandfather had once run his canteen.

Simply put, the building was, to a certain extent, owned by the Qu family.

The canteen was established because the old neighborhoods in the old city were mostly inhabited by elderly residents, making it an aging community.

Various facilities to facilitate the lives of the elderly urgently needed to be added, and food was a crucial part of that.

She didn't know how her father had learned about this situation and sent her here; was it simply to revive her grandfather's former glory?

However, based on the district director's introduction, Qu Xiaoxiao had high doubts about the difference in ability between herself and her grandfather, who was mentioned in the district director's profile.

But Qu Yangrong didn't think so; she believed Qu Xiaoxiao's culinary skills couldn't be too bad.

"We hope the community canteen can open as soon as possible. Xiaoxiao, what's the progress on your end? If you need anything, please contact our community so we can make it easier for elderly residents to get meals,"

Chu Mingheng, following behind, noticed Qu Xiaoxiao's vacant gaze and quickly interjected.

"We're basically all ready. The only thing we still need to go through is obtaining health certificates and other qualifications. We should be able to start operating in about two or three days."

"That's wonderful!"

Qu Yangrong slapped her thigh excitedly, surprised by how quickly things had progressed. She grabbed Qu Xiaoxiao's hand, unwilling to let go.

Qu Xiaoxiao, however, snapped out of her daze, looking at Chu Mingheng in disbelief, her eyes filled with a pitiful sense of abandonment.

It was heartbreaking to see, but no matter what, things had come to this point, and Chu Mingheng couldn't possibly stop it.

He leaned close to Qu Xiaoxiao's ear and explained, "Currently, the community canteen's renovation and business registration are all complete. We're just waiting for you, the head chef, to start cooking and open for business. But before that, you need to register and find ingredient suppliers.

I believe these two things won't be difficult for you."

As he spoke, he gave Qu Xiaoxiao a wink, indicating there was something that could be done.

Unfortunately, Qu Xiaoxiao, looking at the nearly 200-square-meter canteen in front of her, had no interest in what was inside.

She couldn't believe she could manage such a large canteen by herself. Her head jerked as she turned towards Chu Mingheng, asking, "The canteen should be able to hire staff, right?"

"Of course. It's just the salary..."

Chu Mingheng replied without hesitation, leaving the last four words open to interpretation.

Qu Xiaoxiao gripped her bank card tightly, laughing in exasperation.

Even hiring staff at Yuncheng's relatively low wage levels would cost about five thousand yuan a month, instantly consuming half of her start-up capital.

Add to that the cost of ingredients and other miscellaneous expenses, and she estimated she wouldn't even have enough money to last half a month.

Who would dare to hire anyone like this!

That means that for a long time to come, she will be in charge of all the cafeteria affairs by herself, without even a cleaner.

"Phew—"

Thinking of this, Qu Xiaoxiao let out a long sigh. It was truly a difficult situation.

Qu Yangrong, standing nearby, seemed to notice the unspoken tension between the two and also noticed Qu Xiaoxiao's thin arms and legs.

To be honest, she was worried about her exhausting herself and quickly comforted her,

"To be honest, the community canteen is indeed meant to serve the residents, but not everyone will eat here. In the initial survey, not many people were willing to buy a membership card. Xiaoxiao, you have to be prepared."

"Really!"

a surprised voice exclaimed.

Qu Yangrong nodded, confirming the other's guess.

This relieved Qu Xiaoxiao of some of the pressure.

But upon closer inspection, fewer customers meant less revenue, further reducing the possibility of hiring help.

Two conflicting emotions swirled within her: more customers or fewer customers? It left her feeling utterly exhausted.

Just then, the three of them arrived at the canteen entrance.

Qu Yangrong took out her key and opened the door, introducing,

"The renovation was already quite good when it was renovated before. This time, they said it would be converted into a cafeteria, so your father renovated it again. You could say it's the best place in our entire community. You see..."

Qu Xiaoxiao, who followed her through the door, didn't have time to hear the introduction.

Because, the moment she stepped through the door, a cold yet smug mechanical voice suddenly rang in her mind.

"Community Cafeteria System Activated!"

Interrupting her thoughts, Qu Xiaoxiao's first reaction was, could it be that her brain had been damaged by the series of shocks today, to the point that she was even hallucinating?

She couldn't help but shake her head and continued to walk forward to observe the cafeteria's renovation.

But as she took a step, a familiar voice immediately rang in her mind, retorting,

"You're not out of your mind, this system is real."

Just by hearing the voice, one could imagine the arrogant appearance of the "person" who said this.

The sudden pause caught the attention of Chu Mingheng, who was walking behind. He asked,

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing! Nothing!"

Qu Xiaoxiao replied instinctively, quickly stopping and walking towards Qu Yangrong.

At the same time, she thought to herself: Whether it's true or not, shut up. I don't have time for this nonsense.

But in reality, her mind was already disturbed by this sudden appearance.

She started considering the possibility of going to the hospital—would that allow her to escape her current task?

However, she figured that even if she said that, most people probably wouldn't believe her.

Especially Brother Chu, who would likely think she was playing some kind of trick again.

Thinking of this, Qu Xiaoxiao asked Qu Yangrong,

"Where is the kitchen? Director Qu, as you know, the kitchen is the most important place for us chefs. If there's anything that needs to be changed, it'd be best to fix it as soon as possible."

"Of course, come with me. And Xiaoxiao, we're neighbors, no need to be so formal as Director Qu, just call her Aunt Qu."

"Aunt Qu."

"Hey! Come on, let's go see together."

Qu Yangrong was completely powerless against girls like Qu Xiaoxiao, and pulled her hand, heading towards the kitchen.

Only Chu Mingheng, left behind, felt a pang of disappointment. He hadn't expected to be so completely ignored, and a bitter feeling welled up inside him.

The other two arrived at the kitchen, and seeing the stove large enough for six people to cook simultaneously, Qu Xiaoxiao really didn't know what to say about her father's arrangement.

It seemed that only someone with three heads and six arms could manage one person's kitchen.

Qu Yangrong, however, didn't think much of it and praised, "We, the elderly residents of this compound, really don't know how to thank your whole family. Just go for it! If you have any problems, feel free to come to me.

I work on the second floor above you. If anyone dares to cause trouble, I'm sure we won't let them get away with it."

"Hearing you say that is like a reassurance. I will also try my best not to let everyone down."

"Alright, you can continue to look around here and see if there's anything that needs to be changed. I'll go take care of other things first. If you need anything, just come upstairs. If I'm not here, you can find someone else."

"Okay, you go ahead and take care of your business."

Qu Xiaoxiao smiled as she watched Qu Yangrong leave. As she walked out of the kitchen, she saw Chu Mingheng standing guard at the door and was almost startled.

"Brother Chu, what are you doing standing here? You almost scared me to death!"

"I have something to tell you."

After saying that, Chu Mingheng took out a stack of things from his bag. New and old things were mixed together, including books, papers, and keys.

"Inside is a detailed map of the nearby farmers' markets, and something the chairman specifically instructed me to give you. Make sure you look at it carefully."

Qu Xiaoxiao took the large stack of odds and ends, puzzled. She opened the top map and looked at the locations and distances listed.

Suddenly remembering something, she ran up to Chu Mingheng as he was about to leave, asking,

"Brother Chu, what kind of transportation do I use to buy groceries every day? You're not going to take a taxi every day, are you? That's so expensive! Why don't you just give me the car you drove today…"

Before she could finish, Chu Mingheng stumbled, almost twisting his ankle, and replied guiltily,

"The chairman already prepared it. He bought you a new red sports car."

With that, he hurriedly ran out.

When Qu Xiaoxiao chased after him, she only saw the dust kicked up by the wheels.

She then looked towards the door, scanning the area before finally spotting the red "sports car" Chu Mingheng had mentioned.

She gritted her teeth, forcing a smile, looking at the three-wheeled convertible "sports car," and had to admit, it really suited her current situation.