Chapter 191 - 173: Furious But Dare Not Speak

Chapter 191: Chapter 173: Furious But Dare Not Speak

Han Yuanping only had time for a silent curse before announcing his company’s name as instructed by the staff member. The moment he spoke, another staffer standing amidst the boxed lunches walked straight to one of the piles, picked up a carrier bag, and handed it to him. After reflexively taking the bag and walking away, Han Yuanping noticed a long, cut-out strip of paper taped to the outside. It read, "Third Floor, Zone E6, Xinyang Commercial Kitchen Technology Co., Ltd."

This familiar paper strip, this familiar style... Han Yuanping was finally convinced. The caterer providing the boxed lunches for the Hai City Machinery Equipment Exhibition was indeed Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant! Xu An’s youthful face appeared in his mind, and he couldn’t help but sigh. ’I wasn’t wrong. That Xu An really is some rich young master!’

Back at the booth, his colleagues were still busy. Han Yuanping set down the food, pulled out a box for himself, and got ready to eat. The moment he took it out of the bag, he saw a paper slip on the lid of the top box: Salted Duck Combo, Tian Zhiyang. ℯℯ𝑙.

This one wasn’t his. Han Yuanping put it back in the bag and rummaged through a couple more before finding the box with his name on it—Dongpo Pork Combo, Han Yuanping.

As more and more exhibitors returned with their boxed lunches, the aroma of food grew richer. Some visitors touring the exhibition were drawn in by the scent, looking around curiously. They began asking the booth staff who were escorting them, "Is there a dining area in the convention center? What floor is it on? And where did you get these boxed lunches? They smell absolutely delicious!"

"These are the boxed lunches the convention center provides for exhibitors," the staff member replied, a little sheepishly. "We’re not exactly sure which hotel they’re from. Why don’t I go ask the convention center staff where they were ordered?"

Hearing this, a flicker of disappointment crossed the customer’s face, but he quickly nodded. "Then I’ll have to trouble you to ask."

Han Yuanping overheard their entire conversation. He quickly put down his chopsticks, swallowed the food in his mouth, and called out to his colleague who was about to leave, "Tian, the convention center ordered the boxed lunches from Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant."

"Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant?" The customer turned to Han Yuanping, puzzled. "How come I’ve never heard of that place? Is it in Hai City?"

"Yes," Han Yuanping nodded. He wanted to explain Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant to the customer, but his mind was filled with a jumble of biased and incomplete ideas—rich young masters, wealthy people, a tiny streetside eatery. Just then, his gaze swept over the display screen on a nearby piece of equipment, and he suddenly remembered something.

When he had gone to Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant to install the equipment, he’d seen a TV at the entrance playing some food program. After watching for a few seconds, he had casually asked what documentary it was. He remembered Xu An saying it was a documentary produced by a local Hai City TV station called *Visiting Fast Food Restaurant*, and the segment on screen was the one featuring their restaurant.

’Perfect, I’ll tell him that!’

The customer listened, nodded thoughtfully, and didn’t press the matter further. He had originally planned to wander around the exhibition a while longer before leaving for lunch, but now the entire hall was filled with the aroma of food. It made his stomach start to move, letting out a faint GROWL.

’Forget it, I’ve seen enough for today,’ the customer thought. ’I’ll go back and analyze everything, then come back tomorrow after lunch to talk about a partnership.’ And so, the customer politely said his goodbyes to Han Yuanping and the others and left. The number of visitors at the booth instantly dropped by more than half. Several colleagues came over, found their boxed lunches, and started eating, causing the savory aroma in the exhibition hall to intensify.

「Hai City Machinery Equipment Exhibition Organizing Committee.」

No sooner had Xu An left than a young man on the organizing committee received a message: "The boxed lunches have been delivered. Please come and pick them up."

The young man stopped his work, swiftly got up, and took the elevator downstairs. He collected a carrier bag of boxed lunches labeled "E09, Haizhan Technology Co., Ltd." from a colleague and rode the elevator back to his office.

That’s right! "Haizhan Technology Co., Ltd." was the code name for the organizing committee!

The young man found two specially marked boxed lunches inside, knocked on the door to Meng Yuanzhong’s office, and set them down. "Secretary Feng, Minister Meng," he said softly, "here are your lunches."

"Thanks!" Meng Yuanzhong nodded to the young man. After the man had left and closed the door, the two of them walked over to the sofa and sat down, each reaching for the boxed lunch in front of them.

The Dongpo pork was melt-in-your-mouth tender. The salted duck was firm yet succulent. The minced pork with eggplant was the perfect, savory complement to rice, while the stir-fried bitter melon with egg was refreshing and cut through the richness...

"Not bad. They didn’t skimp on the portions or try to fool us," the older man said, nodding in satisfaction after tasting a bite of each dish.

Meng Yuanzhong couldn’t help but laugh. "If the kid dared to cut corners on the convention center’s order, he’d have to be audacious beyond belief."

"Mm," the older man nodded again. "The kid is a solid, down-to-earth worker. He doesn’t seem like some impetuous eighteen-year-old. In fact, he’s a bit like me..."