Chapter 225

Chapter 225: You Think You’re Worthy?

“I was talking, and which blind idiot dared talk back to me? Watch me…”

Grinding his teeth, Du Tian Ci turned his head and saw that the speaker was a young man in his early twenties. He couldn’t help being stunned as he said: “Y-you… who are you? Do you even have the right to talk here?”

Instead, it was Du An Rao who recognized the person at a glance. She had seen his picture not long ago, to be exact, his stills from a drama.

“Fu… Fu Si Li?!”

Fu Si Li? Xi Jing Yue frowned and, after a long moment, finally remembered. Wasn’t this the very handsome entertainer he had seen before at his cousin’s company?

After calling out, Du An Rao realized that shouting his name directly seemed a bit rude. Then she looked past him and was even more surprised.

“Mr. Fu, and Cousin, you two are…”

Putting away the notebook she had been using to take notes, Du Bi Xiao calmly said: “There happens to be a case that needs Mr. Fu’s cooperation, so we came over. You two know each other?”

“Know each other? If it weren’t for Miss Du, I still wouldn’t know where I’d be hiding right now, worrying about my dad’s medical bills.”

Du Bi Xiao raised her brows a little. She was surprised, but not that surprised, and said: “There’s more to it?”

“Hey, hey, hey, who are you people?” Seeing how Du An Rao had left him and his father and brother to the side to chat with the two newcomers, Du Tian Ci’s face turned dark. He looked ready to rush up and fight.

“We’re talking to her. Who said you could cut in?”

Fu Si Li, or maybe now he should be called Young Master Fu, gave Du Tian Ci a glance. He did not need the floor manager uncle to explain. Just from the few words they had exchanged earlier, he had already guessed what had happened.

“I can’t speak for other things, but when it comes to Gourmet Pavilion and Miss Du, I think I do have the right to say a few words. This gentleman has said so much, but isn’t it all just because you’re unhappy that Miss Du can come eat at our Gourmet Pavilion without lining up, and that she has become the one exception who enjoys special treatment?”

“What so-called special treatment? She clearly bribed the staff to sneak in here and fake things!”

“That’s right.” The Du family’s eldest young master checked the time. Guessing that the person they had invited was almost here, he planned to settle things quickly.

He had never seen these two young men before and did not know where they came from, so he did not dare let Du Tian Ci keep running his mouth. He took over the topic and gave the matter a label: “Gourmet Pavilion has been open for more than thirty years. Its rules have been the same for decades. Who in City B doesn’t know that? These rules are the foundation of Gourmet Pavilion’s honesty and its base for standing in this city. I think as long as the boss of Gourmet Pavilion is still clear in the head, he wouldn’t let anyone easily break this rule. Isn’t that right?”

These words were both a reminder and a threat. Just now he had steered the topic toward Du An Rao and the floor manager and young waitress on purpose so he could hang this crime on them.

No matter whether it was true that Du An Rao was an honored guest of Gourmet Pavilion, today it would be turned into a story of her secretly joining hands with the restaurant staff, using her network of relatives and connections to crush those lining up downstairs and sneak inside to enjoy special treatment.

At that point, as long as the restaurant fired one or two staff members, they could pull back their reputation.

If not, once they made this matter big, Gourmet Pavilion would face a crisis of reputation and the anger of many guests, which would seriously affect its business.

However, this eldest young master never thought that Du An Rao became an honored guest of Gourmet Pavilion not because of Du De Sheng, but because of herself.

He also never thought that what Du An Rao had given Gourmet Pavilion and the Fu family behind it was not some small favor, but a kindness as great as rebirth.

So when faced with his hidden hints, Fu Si Li did not respond at all.

“The foundation of Gourmet Pavilion lies in how it has spent decades polishing its cooking skills, improving its dishes, and taking the essence from traditional dishes while avoiding their flaws. The honesty of Gourmet Pavilion lies even more in its strict selection of clean, safe ingredients and in being responsible for each guest’s health, tastes, and preferences. That has nothing at all to do with what you just said.”

“Miss Du is our Fu family’s benefactor. As long as she likes, she can take anything in this restaurant as she wishes, and we can give it to her for free. Let alone just reserving a private room for her so she can come eat here easily.”

“Benefactor?” After listening for so long, even Du Wei Shuai put down his elder’s pride and joined the attack.

“What a joke. I’ve met the old master of the Fu family a few times, and I’ve never heard that the Fu family has any benefactor. Even if they did, this dead girl has only been in City B for a short time. How could she already have become the Fu family’s benefactor? You’re lying without even thinking it through.”

After he finished, Du Wei Shuai even looked Fu Si Li up and down and said: “And who are you? ‘Our Fu family’? Since when did the Fu family have someone like you? Who are you to represent Gourmet Pavilion? You’re not even worthy to look at yourself in a puddle of pee!”

“Just because he is our Fu family’s only Young Master and the future heir of Gourmet Pavilion. Do you think he has the right to represent our Gourmet Pavilion?”

These words were like a thunderclap, striking straight at the hearts of the Du family father and sons.

Xi Jing Yue also showed surprise on his face. He simply could not connect the dusty, silent teenager he had first met with the Fu family that was said to have official backing.

Only Du An Rao, who knew the truth, felt truly happy for the two elders of the Fu family.

[Oh ho, looks like they’ve already done the paternity test. This handsome guy really is the Fu family’s lost, real grandson.]

Xi Jing Yue’s eyes narrowed slightly. So that was it. This was the “small favor” this girl had mentioned doing for the Fu family before?

Fu Si Li was stunned too. Then he turned his head with a helpless look toward the person who had rushed over.

“Uncle, how many times have I said it? I’m not interested in cooking. Gourmet Pavilion was built up by you with your own hands. It has nothing to do with me.”

“Gourmet Pavilion is your brother and sister-in-law’s life’s work. I’m only keeping it for them. Now that you’ve come back, you still don’t want to take it over?”

“Are you sure you want me to? With my skills, if I walk into the kitchen, I could burn down our entire shop.”

Fu Rui Xiang suddenly remembered a “great feat” that a certain someone had done not long ago. His face stiffened, but he still insisted as he said: “If you don’t know how, you can learn. Who’s born knowing these things? Everyone learns.”

“No, Uncle, trust me. The entertainment world is the sea of stars that needs me to conquer it, not the world of cooking. Uncle, just spare me and spare yourself.”

If this were his own son, Fu Rui Xiang thought, he would definitely “reward” him with a good beating, like a plate of bamboo shoots fried with pork.

“Fu… Boss Fu, you…” Looking at Fu Rui Xiang, who had appeared just in time, Du Wei Shuai could no longer lie to himself. “How… how is this possible? He… he is your nephew, but…”

“But what? Do I need to lie to you? Si Li is my brother and sister-in-law’s real son, my own nephew.”

“But Mr. Fu and Madam Fu already… and their child also…”

“And what?” Fu Rui Xiang’s eyes were sharp as knives. “The fact that my nephew is still alive is Heaven’s favor to our Fu family. Do you have a problem with our Fu family? Are you that unhappy to see us doing well?”