Chapter 520: Why Is This Rice So Fragrant?

Chapter 520: Chapter 520: Why Is This Rice So Fragrant?

’That sort of thing is unhealthy. It’s best my daughter doesn’t know about it.’

He scooped rice onto a few plates, casually stir-fried some twice-cooked pork, and carried the food over to the workers next door.

Since they were working for him and he ran a restaurant, it was only natural for him to provide the workers with a few meals.

Just as he stepped out of the restaurant, Jiang Liu was stunned to find a large crowd of customers gathered in front of the expanding storefront, pointing and murmuring. Some were even hurrying the workers along, telling them not to hold up Xiao Jiang from making money and so on.

He handed the food to the workers.

"Thanks, Boss Jiang."

"Brother Jiang, your food is amazing! You have no idea—this morning my girlfriend told me I was drooling in my sleep all night."

"Haha." Jiang Liu didn’t know what to say, so he just chuckled.

The workers excitedly ran over to grab their food, squatting to one side and wolfing it down.

"This rice is so good. No wonder so many people were clamoring for it."

"I’m not a very cultured guy, so I don’t know how to describe it, but I can say this: Boss Jiang’s rice is at least five times more delicious than the best rice I’ve ever eaten!"

The crowd of aunties and uncles, who had been chattering at the entrance just a moment ago, immediately fell silent, letting out collective sighs of craving.

They smacked their lips.

The craving was intense!

Jiang Liu walked out and asked casually, "What are you all gathered here for?"

"We’re helping you supervise the renovation!"

"Don’t you worry, Xiao Jiang. We’re keeping an eye on things for you. We’ll make sure it gets done as quickly as possible."

"Do you need more workers? My son’s a contractor in construction. With one phone call, he can get a whole crew over here to work for you in minutes!"

Jiang Liu raised an eyebrow. If he remembered correctly, this same uncle had told him his son was a lawyer or something, and had also said his son was a designated driver. Today, he was a contractor.

’Could it be this uncle has a whole bunch of sons?’

Jiang Liu couldn’t help but think of how he only had one daughter, and a sense of urgency welled up inside him.

’I need to hurry up and work on having a second child with Jun Qingmeng.’

’He’d secretly bought condoms before, but it looked like he wouldn’t be needing them now—at least not for the next few years.’

’No, that’s not right. He never wanted to use them with Jun Qingmeng, ever.’

Snapping back to reality, the voices around him became clear again.

An auntie chimed in with a suggestion, "Xiao Jiang, stop spacing out! Go talk to those workers and tell them to let us join in. We’re just standing around with nothing to do anyway, wouldn’t it be great to help you with some work?"

"That’s right! The sooner the renovation is done, the sooner you can be open twenty-four hours a day for us."

"And after that, will you be making thirty thousand steamed buns a day?"

"You’re behind the times, Old Huang. Boss Jiang said fifty thousand steamed buns. He apparently bought special imported machinery and even hired several of the nation’s top chefs to be his assistants."

"???" Jiang Liu was dumbfounded.

Wait a minute.

’Did I say all that?’

"Uncles, Aunties, you can’t just spread baseless rumors! I never said any of those things!"

Jiang Liu hurriedly clarified.

’Are you kidding me?’

’If the customers took this seriously, he’d be worked to death.’

After his explanation, without waiting for the aunties and uncles to swarm him, Jiang Liu quickly ducked back into the restaurant.

Back in the restaurant.

Jiang Tongtong was pestering Jiang Liu for some ice cream.

"Daddy, Tongtong hasn’t had ice cream in so long! Please, just let me have one!"

"No way. Don’t even think about it!"

"Sob, sob... Daddy, I hate you."

Jiang Tongtong pretended to sulk, turning her back to him with her arms crossed as she faced the wall.

’Hurry up and comfort me!’

Finally, after a moment’s thought, Jiang Liu changed his tune. "How about this? I’ll buy one, and you can watch me eat it. We’ll just pretend you’re the one who ate it. How does that sound?"

Jiang Tongtong: "???"

’Daddy is a big meanie!’

"Jiang Liu, how can you be so mean? If you make Tongtong watch you eat, won’t that just make her crave it more?" Jun Qingmeng couldn’t help but stand up for her daughter.

"Mama, Daddy is bullying your little darling!"

Having found her champion, Jiang Tongtong threw herself into Jun Qingmeng’s arms, whimpering pitifully.

"Tongtong wants to eat ice cream, *sob, sob*... Daddy won’t let me, and he said he’d make Tongtong watch him eat it," she tattled, her voice full of grievance.

Jun Qingmeng pretended to be angry and glared at Jiang Liu.

"There, there, don’t be sad. In a couple of days, Mama will buy some for Tongtong."

"Really?" Jiang Tongtong looked up.

"Mhm!"

"Mama, you’re the best! Daddy is the worst."

Her expression changed in a flash.

Jiang Liu shook his head, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. ’Have mother and daughter formed an "ice cream alliance" now?’

He went into the kitchen to heat up the leftover moo shu pork and brought it out with three bowls of steaming, fragrant rice.

"Hurry up and eat. We’ll go home and sleep after we’re done."

"Hmph!" Jiang Tongtong pouted and turned her head away.

Jiang Liu paid his daughter no mind, picking up his own bowl of rice. He took a sniff. "Ah, this smells amazing!"

He then said deliberately,

"Honey, hurry up and eat. Let’s finish up and go home to sleep. If a certain little darling wants to go hungry, then we’ll just let her."

Jun Qingmeng rolled her eyes at Jiang Liu but played along, picking up her bowl.

Smelling the fragrant rice and looking at the distinct, pearl-like grains, she couldn’t resist scooping up a fluffy mouthful.

Hmm?!

This rice...

Jun Qingmeng looked at Jiang Liu in surprise.

As she chewed, she found the grains fragrant and sticky, yet soft and light.

’Where did he get such amazing rice?’ She vaguely recalled eating it once before, though not much of it. She’d heard this type of rice was an imperial tribute from Japan—valuable, but with no market to buy it from.

She was inwardly shocked.

The eggy aroma of the moo shu pork reached Jiang Tongtong, and she gulped.

She obediently sat back down and waved her little hands. "Okay, okay, Daddy. Tongtong will be the bigger person and forgive you."

As she spoke, Tongtong picked up a tender strip of meat and a piece of crisp, tender wood ear mushroom, placed them on her rice, and shoveled the whole mouthful into her mouth.

The little girl’s eyes suddenly went wide.

"Daddy, why does the rice taste even better now?"

"If it’s good, then hurry up and eat."

"Can we have rice this delicious again in the future?" Jiang Tongtong asked expectantly.

She had never eaten rice this good before.

"If you want to eat it, I’ll make it for you."

"Hehe, Daddy, you’re so good to Tongtong, and to Mama, too! We’re such a happy family!"

A look of longing filled Jiang Tongtong’s eyes.

’It would be so nice to be with Daddy and Mama every day.’

After they finished talking, Jiang Liu took out his phone to check on his branch stores.

The branch stores were his guarantee that he could provide a comfortable life for his family in the future. He couldn’t just stop working one day and have no income.

Moreover, even when he got old and passed away, he could transfer his shares to his daughter, allowing his silly little girl to live a carefree life.

He was thinking far ahead.

After checking the revenue, Jiang Liu was very satisfied. The three branch stores had brought in over four hundred thousand.

After deducting labor costs, the profit was around three hundred thousand.

That afternoon, Hu Yongfa had sent him a training roster for a new batch of chefs and servers.

Jiang Liu quickly scanned the list.

He thought for a moment.

He sent a WeChat message to Ren Qingqing: "Start preparing to open two more new stores. I’ll need you to pick out two more locations in the next few days. Thanks for your hard work."

Jiang Liu now had nearly five million saved up.

Counting the money from his father-in-law’s backpack, he had more than enough to continue expanding.

Ren Qingqing, who was still at the second branch, was shocked when she received the message.

She quickly replied, "President Jiang, isn’t this a bit too fast? We only just opened these two new branches. Don’t we need some time to stabilize first?"

Just that morning, because of Ren Qingqing’s diligence and outstanding performance, Jun Xinghe had generously given her 1% of the company’s shares.

Even though it was only 1%, it had been enough to make Ren Qingqing jump for joy.

According to her calculations, President Jiang’s brand would absolutely be able to earn several million a day in South City in the future.