CHAPTER 366: CHAPTER 366: ZHENGHUA RESTAURANT (SECOND UPDATE)

Steam was still rising from the dishes on the round table, and the enticing aroma of food filled the air.

"Little sister-in-law’s cooking smells amazing." Zhao Xiangqian took a deep breath, leaning in to admire the dishes on the round table. "This stir-fried prawns smell so good, and is this beef? This one is spare ribs soup, but its fragrance is even better than those we’ve had before."

"This tofu dish is well made, just like what you’d find in a restaurant," said Yan Dong, pointing to a bowl of tofu.

"Brother Mo, you’re really lucky."

"Yeah, I really didn’t expect Tang Yue to be so young but have such incredible cooking skills."

Even before they had tasted anything, the mere presentation of the dishes had already conquered everyone.

Jiang Lan brought out more dishes.

Someone asked with a chuckle, "Is it you who cooked these dishes, Liu Bin’s family, or was it Tang Yue?"

After all, Tang Yue was young in age, and in addition, she was good-looking. Everyone in the compound praised her as if she were a little fairy, which naturally led people to believe she wouldn’t be one to do household chores.

But upon seeing how spotless the home was, along with the array of dishes on the table, everyone had their doubts.

"It’s all Xiao Yue’s work; I haven’t even touched the spatula," replied Jiang Lan, her voice soft but clear. These were her husband’s superiors, or peers, and even though Jiang Lan was somewhat embarrassed, she still gave an answer.

The sounds of praise were endless.

When Tang Yue joined the table, she heard everyone continuously commenting on how delicious each dish was. Tang Yue responded graciously and with poise, and someone even directly asked her how she managed to cook so well.

Tang Yue coolly attributed her skills to her father, Tang Zhengde. Being his daughter, if she could inherit even a little of his culinary talent, that wasn’t bad at all.

Sure enough, once everyone heard that Mr. Tang owned a restaurant, any lingering doubts vanished, and the compliments turned to Tang Yue’s good looks and cooking skills, saying things like Mo Siyu was a lucky man.

This meal solidified Tang Yue’s reputation for cooking delicious food—when even Qin Anhao offered praises, how could it not be delicious!

In the afternoon, when Mo Siyu took Tang Yue back to the city, his heart ached for her having made so many dishes, and he silently massaged her hands.

Tang Yue found it amusing and yet felt an intense sweetness in her heart.

The sweet, honeyed weekend had passed, and up ahead was the busy time again.

Xingyao Clothing Store’s clothes, the studio’s designs, and Mingyue Clothing Factory’s garments all relied on Tang Yue to finish. Besides attending school and reading books, she dedicated all her other time to design work.

These two days at the motor pool, Tang Yue hadn’t had a moment of rest.

At eight in the evening, Tang Yue finally had a moment to herself when her phone rang.

"Hello," said Tang Yue, rubbing her sore neck. Perhaps due to constantly bending over her drawings, her neck had stiffened.

"Xiao Yue, does your neck hurt again?" As soon as Zhang Hualian heard her voice, she felt something was off.

"Mom, no, I just stretched." Tang Yue hastily explained.

Zhang Hualian sighed and said, "Xiao Yue, you have to take good care of yourself. When you’ve been looking down reading or drawing for a long time, remember to lift your head up and look around."

"Mom, I know, I’ll be careful." Tang Yue quickly changed the subject, "Mom, has the store been renovated yet?"

"Not yet." Zhang Hualian’s attention was indeed diverted by Tang Yue’s question, and she said, "Your dad and I have been discussing it. Although the restaurant is fine, there are too many hoodlums around. Your dad fears that what happened last time might happen again, so he’s thinking of finding a larger place to open a restaurant with both an upstairs and downstairs, complete with private rooms."

"Mom, I think that’s a great idea. The location of the old store wasn’t that good, and it was too small. If we open a restaurant, we can hire more people, which is so much better." Tang Yue was very supportive of this idea.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Hualian hurriedly asked, "Xiao Yue, where do you think we should open it?"

The mother and daughter discussed it at length. After a while, Tang Yue understood why her mom had called—to discuss the opening of the new store. Moreover, from the conversation, it seemed that her mom wasn’t too keen on investing all the family’s earnings into the restaurant.

After all, opening a large restaurant would require more patrons, and it would be very easy to lose money if there wasn’t enough business.

However, Wangjiang County was developing, and once the tourist attractions there were exploited, Wangjiang County might even outshine the city. Seizing the initiative now to open a restaurant could ensure the business thrives in the future.

Tang Yue strongly supported this view.

Three days later, Zhang Hualian called again. Things were moving quickly; not only had they found a place for the restaurant, but they had also bought it. Although they had to take out a loan, it was, at last, their own property.

Tang Yue also provided many suggestions for the restaurant’s decoration. Talking to her mother on the phone every night had become mandatory for her.

A month later, Zhenghua Restaurant in Wangjiang County was ready to open. Tang Yue specially took two days off to witness the opening of Zhenghua Restaurant. Despite being tired, she felt it was totally worth it.

The location of Zhenghua Restaurant was excellent, right on both sides of the future planned commercial street. The store was spacious, and the building was new. It likely wouldn’t be demolished for at least another decade.

When buying the property, Tang Zhengde and Tang Mingli had put in a lot of thought and managed to secure it at a very good price. Although the area was not particularly bustling yet, there was still a large flow of people.

"Mom and Dad, our store will definitely get better and better," Tang Yue said, admiring the newly hung signboard with the four vigorous characters of ’Zhenghua Restaurant.’

From the humble breakfast shop in Zhang Tingyu’s old house to a single-story restaurant and now a two-story restaurant, the hardships they had endured were unknown to most.

"Yes, I also believe that we will keep getting better," Tang Zhengde gazed at the store, filled with boundless emotion. Back when he resolutely quit his logging job to open a breakfast shop in the county, many people disagreed with his decision and even mocked him behind his back for being foolish and stupid.

He was aware of all these things, but he pressed on without looking back. The breakfast shop grew more prosperous, which paved the way for the restaurant and now the current restaurant. Tang Zhengde felt as if years of hard work were finally paying off.

"Zhengde, our restaurant will surely grow bigger and bigger in the future," Zhang Hualian also felt a strong sense of emotion.

Tang Yue stepped forward, standing in the middle, holding Zhang Hualian’s hand with her left hand and placing her right hand on Mr. Tang’s hand. She said, "Mom and Dad, we’re a happy family, and our future days will surely be prosperous and thriving."