Chapter 1: Let You Open a Food Shop, Why Are You Operating at 3 AM

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Protagonist:

Lu Feng

【Saliva and brain depository.】

【Leave a follow, may your wishes come true, good luck in abundance, a red packet of 88.88 million falls from the sky.】

……

Hua Guo.

Jiang City.

Inside an office building in the city center.

Lu Feng stood before the company gate hung with a large lock, looking at the notice pasted on the door, his heart filled with indescribable melancholy.

"Dear colleagues, due to poor management, after research and decision by company leadership, the company is dissolved effective immediately. Wishing everyone better jobs."

Colleagues who had once fought shoulder to shoulder with Lu Feng gathered at the company door.

Anger, confusion, panic, disbelief.

Who would have thought that just yesterday after getting off work they were still enthusiastically discussing where to go for a weekend gathering.

Today they were unemployed.

A few girls with weaker psychological resilience squatted to one side covering their faces and sobbing.

Lu Feng looked inside through the company's glass door.

Familiar workstations, familiar computers.

Yet now separated by a tightly shut gate.

The company had previously withheld two months' wages for various reasons.

However, everyone had been at this company for quite some time; the shortest tenure was two years.

Similar situations had occurred during that period, and in the end wages were always paid on time.

So this time no one paid it too much mind.

No one expected the company would directly dissolve this time.

Lu Feng had been at this company for three years.

He originally planned to work hard this year to save some money and scrape together a down payment on a house.

Now it seems buying a house has also become a mirage.

With two months of unpaid wages, Lu Feng's savings were not much left.

Monthly rent, plus daily living expenses.

That is the pressing problem that needs solving right now.

Lu Feng sighed, forced to accept the reality of his unemployment.

"Lu Feng, this lousy company's gone bust. What are your plans next?"

A large hand smacked Lu Feng's shoulder, and a lazy voice came from behind.

Lu Feng didn't need to turn his head to know it was Li Jiang from the customer service department.

The company's closure had zero effect on this guy's mood.

Li Jiang was the colleague Lu Feng got along with best in the company, a sworn brother.

Usually after getting off work the two would go eat together, drink some alcohol, that sort of thing.

Only later did he find out this kid's family had been relocated a few years ago and owned several apartments in the city.

The rent he collected each month alone was far higher than Lu Feng's take-home pay.

To put it bluntly, he only came to work because he was bored at home and wanted to experience life.

"What plans could I have? Take a break, then keep job hunting. What about you?"

Lu Feng shrugged and said with a bitter smile.

"I plan to go travel, relax a bit. This lousy job wore me to death!"

The corner of Lu Feng's mouth twitched; he thought, you find work tiring?

The one slacking off and dozing all day isn't you?

If not for Lu Feng covering for him, this kid would've been fired by the company long ago.

"Then wish you a pleasant journey, endless romantic encounters, take lots of photos, and remember to bring me local specialties when you return."

"Come with me, I'll cover all expenses!"

"... We'll see."

For such a good offer, normally Lu Feng would have agreed in a heartbeat.

But he had just joined the ranks of the unemployed, and right now his spirits weren't high.

As a standard corporate drone, ever since Lu Feng started working.

The farthest place he'd ever been was the client company in Lin Shi.

Travel and such — he just flipped through Moments looking at other people's photos.

Liked a post and counted it as having gone there himself.

"Fine! It's settled then! Wait for my call these few days!"

Li Jiang patted Lu Feng's shoulder and left excitedly.

Lu Feng looked at the colleagues at the company gate, faces full of worry.

He took one last look at the workstation where he had struggled for three years, sighed, and left the familiar office building.

…………

Inside the rental house.

After returning, Lu Feng did not rush to look for a job; he lay on the bed staring at the ceiling.

Thinking about his future path.

Working for someone else for a lifetime — when it comes down to it, your fate is still in their hands.

Once you get older, they lay you off whenever they want.

By then finding a job will be hard, and you inevitably end up with the ironman triathlon too.

Ride-hailing, takeout, courier.

That is going to do manual labor, also the profession most middle-aged people have no choice but to choose.

Starting his own business, but he has no marketable skill to speak of.

Most importantly, these working years he hasn't saved much capital.

After his parents passed away a few years ago, they didn't leave Lu Feng any substantial inheritance.

Except for a small restaurant that hadn't opened in several years.

When they were alive, the restaurant's business wasn't good either.

Open for several years, not only did it not make money, it actually lost quite a bit.

After his parents passed away, Lu Feng posted transfer information at the door.

To this day there's been no news, and he hasn't gone back to look even once.

Right now the job is gone, but life must go on.

Jiangcheng is a third-tier city; the salary level isn't high.

A university classmate he occasionally contacted before, heard that in the southern Shen Shi the wages are pretty high.

If worst comes to worst, he'll go try there himself.

But that means leaving this familiar place where he's lived for over twenty years.

To say he's not reluctant — that's definitely impossible.

……

"Ring ring ring~"

Lu Feng's messy train of thought was interrupted by the phone ringing on the bedside.

Lu Feng picked up the phone and looked — it was an unfamiliar number.

Lu Feng pondered slightly, then pressed the answer key.

Thinking if it's someone selling insurance, loans, or the like, he'll just hang up.

"Hello, who is this?"

"Hello, my surname is Jiang. Are you the boss of Xin Xin Fast Food Restaurant at No. 35 Garden Road? What should I call you?"

A man's resonant voice came from the other end of the phone.

Lu Feng was stunned for a moment, and only after a while did he recall.

Xin Xin Fast Food at No. 35 Garden Road — that's the restaurant he posted the transfer info for.

If the other party hadn't called, he would've almost forgotten about this matter.

"Right, it's me. My name is Lu Feng."

"Hello Boss Lu, is your restaurant still for transfer? The price we can negotiate."

"How much are you planning to offer?"

The transfer info had been posted for so long; today someone finally showed interest.

And it just happened to be when Lu Feng lost his job.

This is the only inheritance his parents left him after they passed away.

If the other party's offer is too low, he doesn't plan to sell.

"Hmm... Boss Lu, I see this shop has been empty for quite a while. If I take it over I'll have to renovate and invest capital. How about 50,000 yuan?"

50,000?

Lu Feng rolled his eyes in disdain, thinking: sure enough, there's no businessman who isn't crafty.

Although Garden Road isn't the Jiang City center, the location of his shop is still pretty good.

Several large shopping malls are nearby; the customer flow isn't small either.

When he first posted the transfer info, he inquired around.

Several nearby shops with worse locations than his have transfer fees over 50,000.

Lu Feng was just about to open his mouth to refuse, when the other party seemed to realize it too.

"Boss Lu, how about we meet and discuss? I'll take a look at the shop's interior situation; the price can be negotiated further."

Lu Feng glanced at the time displayed on his phone.

Right now it's just past ten; going over is only half an hour's journey.

Meeting to talk is fine too.

【Ding!】

【Detected that Host is about to embark on a new direction in life, matching a System compatible with Host...】

【Match complete.】

【Chef God System has been bound. Please proceed to your restaurant to sign in and receive the Newbie Gift Pack.】

Lu Feng, who was about to speak, instantly froze in place.