1995: From a small restaurant to a culinary genius

Chapter 44 The people from the town's cooperative got into a fight.

She glanced around the restaurant, thinking that Xu Liang would boil water when he came in, so she decided to find a seat and wait.

But she had only taken two steps when someone inside the restaurant pushed open the door, accompanied by panicked shouts.

Is Xu Liang here?

The man who came was a middle-aged man surnamed Wang who often ate at the small restaurant in town. Everyone called him Old Wang.

He does odd jobs near the cooperative and is generally a cheerful person.

At this moment, however, he looked anxious, his forehead was covered in sweat, and he pushed the door so hard that it slammed against the wall.

A muffled "bang" broke the tranquility of the small restaurant.

Jiang Wan was startled by the sudden commotion and instinctively turned around to look.

Old Wang didn't see Xu Liang at first glance, then his gaze fell on Jiang Wan. He hurriedly said, "Miss, where's Xu Liang? Quickly, call him out! Something's happened!"

"Brother Xu...?"

Jiang Wan was stunned for a moment.

"He's in the kitchen, he'll be out soon."

Just as he finished speaking, Xu Liang came out of the kitchen.

He had been wearing a gentle smile, but when he saw Lao Wang's flustered appearance, his brows furrowed instantly.

The ease on his face vanished, replaced by his usual surprise.

"Brother Wang, what's wrong?"

Xu Liang spoke, his voice calm.

Old Wang stepped forward and grabbed Xu Liang's arm.

He said urgently, "A fight has broken out! A fight has broken out at the cooperative! Several people are locked in a tangled mess, and we can't pull them apart. If we don't send help soon, something terrible might happen!"

"They've started fighting?"

Xu Liang's eyes darkened.

"Why? Who's with whom?"

"What else could it be!"

Old Wang was panting heavily.

"It's just that batch of new goods that the cooperative just received! Some people are saying the accounts don't match, some are saying the goods were stolen, and others are saying someone is secretly taking kickbacks and submitting false accounts. They couldn't even agree on a few words before they started arguing, and then it escalated into a fight! Now several people are rolling on the ground fighting, and they've even picked up bricks and wooden sticks. If we can't stop them, someone might actually get killed!"

In the 1990s, the cooperative was a very important place in the town.

Most of the grains, oils, cloth, and daily necessities came and went through the cooperative, affecting the interests of many people.

In addition, the staff was a mixed bag, including full-time employees, temporary helpers, and a few young people who got in through connections. There were already quite a few conflicts between them, but they hadn't really come to a head until now.

Today, someone brought it up, and an account didn't match up. Several people started blaming each other, and when tempers flared, no one was willing to back down.

However, the argument quickly escalated into a physical altercation.

Most of the people in the town are simple and honest, but if they get really angry, they will fight without any regard for others.

Old Wang was just passing by when he saw the situation getting out of control.

He thought of Xu Liang, who ran a small restaurant in town, was well-liked, had a steady personality, and whose words carried weight.

He is tall and strong, with good agility.

If he really needed to break up the fight, he could keep the situation under control, so Old Wang jogged over to call Xu Liang.

Xu Liang's expression turned serious after hearing this.

Having run a restaurant in town for so long, he knew all too well the consequences of such a commotion among the villagers.

If serious injuries are inflicted, not only will several families suffer, but the police station might also be alerted, and things could escalate significantly.

Although he was neither a village official nor a member of the cooperative, the restaurant was always bustling with people, and he had to deal with all sorts of people, so he couldn't just stand by and do nothing.

"Let's go take a look."

Without the slightest hesitation, Xu Liang turned and walked towards the door.

"Brother Xu!"

Jiang Wan called out to him instinctively, her eyes filled with worry.

"You...you need to be careful."

She heard clearly that they had already started fighting, and even picked up weapons. What if Xu Liang was accidentally injured if he rushed over to break up the fight?

Just a moment ago she was gently taking care of herself, and now she's rushing into the chaotic scene to break up a fight.

Jiang Wan's heart jumped.

Xu Liang stopped in his tracks and glanced back at her.

Seeing her tense expression, Xu Liang softened his tone and gently comforted her.

"It's nothing, I'm just going to try and persuade them. We're all from the same village, they won't really kill us."

"You stay inside and wait. Boil some hot water for yourself and don't wander off."

After saying that, Xu Liang didn't linger any longer and quickly followed Lao Wang out of the small restaurant.

Jiang Wan stood there, watching his figure disappear quickly through the doorway. Her heart was pounding, and all that shyness from before was gone, replaced by deep worry.

She walked to the door and looked in the direction of the cooperative.

The restaurant is not far from the cooperative; it's only a few minutes' walk.

At this moment, a large crowd had already gathered on the street. From a distance, one could see a group of people huddled together, and the noise and shouting could be heard intermittently, making it seem particularly noisy in the quiet afternoon.

But Jiang Wan was still worried, so she gently closed the glass door of the small restaurant and walked quickly toward the crowd.

She didn't dare get too close, so she stood on the periphery of the crowd and tiptoed to look inside.

The scene was even more chaotic than she had imagined.

In the open space in front of the cooperative, four men were wrestling, their clothes disheveled.

Two of them were formal employees of the cooperative, and they were a bit older. They were grabbing each other by the collar and punching each other repeatedly.

The other two, who were younger, had come to help with odd jobs. It was unclear who they were backing up for, but they picked up wooden sticks and bricks from the ground. Although they didn't actually smash them on their heads, they had that thought, which scared the people around them into backing away.

"You dare to scheme against me? I've wanted to settle this score with you for a long time!"

"Bullshit! You're the one who's dishonest, and you're trying to throw dirty water on me!"

"I'm going to teach you a lesson today, so you'll know you can't just say whatever comes to mind!"

"Come on! Who's afraid of who! Let's see what you can do to me today!"

The shouts, fighting, and the attempts by those around to stop them were all mixed together, creating a chaotic scene.

Several older people tried to break up the fight, but they were too weak to restrain the burly men who were in the heat of the moment.

As soon as I pulled one away, another pounced on me, making me so anxious I stomped my feet.

Just then, Xu Liang pushed through the crowd and went inside.

He didn't shout or yell, but simply walked quickly to the middle of the two people who were fighting the most fiercely.

The two were locked in a fierce fight, neither of them noticing anyone approaching. One of them swung his fist, about to smash it into the other's face.

Xu Liang reacted quickly, grabbing his wrist and twisting it slightly.

"what!"

The man cried out in pain, his fist freezing in mid-air as he turned to glare at Xu Liang.

"Who are you? Let go!"

Xu Liang's expression was calm, but a hint of authority flashed in his eyes. His voice was not loud, but it clearly drowned out the surrounding noise.

"Stop it! We're all neighbors, can't we talk things out instead of resorting to violence?"

He was already tall and had spent years practicing cooking, moving goods, and cleaning in the small restaurant.

Long hours of training have given him strong, muscular arms. Now, he holds one person's wrist with one hand and separates another with the other, forcefully separating the two wrestling individuals.

He was strong, but he knew how to use his strength, controlling his opponent without actually hurting them.

The man whose wrist was grabbed tried to struggle, but he couldn't break free after a couple of attempts, and his face turned pale and then red.

Another young man, seeing that someone was blocking his way, remained furious and raised a wooden stick, ready to rush forward.

"Mind your own business! This has nothing to do with you!"

Xu Liang looked up at him without the slightest fear.

"If a fight breaks out in town and the police station gets involved, everyone will suffer the consequences. Do you think it has nothing to do with me?"

"What will happen to your family if something serious happens? Will you still have your job at the cooperative?"

With just this one sentence, Xu Liang hit the young man where it hurt.

In the 1990s, a formal job was extremely valuable, especially in places like cooperatives, where countless people were eager to get in.

If you get taken away by the police station for fighting and have a criminal record, you'll definitely lose your job, and it will be too late to regret it then.

The young man's hand holding the wooden stick froze in mid-air, his face showing hesitation, and at the same time, his arrogance diminished somewhat.

Seeing this, the elders around quickly stepped forward, grabbed the young man, and kept trying to persuade him.

"Young man, don't be impulsive! Listen to Xu Liang, don't do anything foolish!"

"Yeah, injuring someone means paying compensation and going to jail, it's not worth it!"

Seeing that the situation had stabilized somewhat, Xu Liang slowly released his grip, took a step back, and stood between the group, separating the two sides.

Xu Liang did not favor either side, but simply spoke up loudly.

"Tell me, what's the reason? What's so serious that it requires physical action?"

The middle-aged man who had just been pulled away was panting heavily, pointing angrily at the person opposite him.

"He slandered me! He said two bags of the new batch of sugar the cooperative received were missing, and he accused me of secretly taking them home!"

"When did I take it? He just doesn't like me and is deliberately framing me!"

The man who was accused immediately retorted, his face turning bright red.

"I slandered you?"

"The warehouse inventory doesn't match up. Who else besides you has the warehouse key?"

"You were the last one to leave yesterday. If you didn't take it, who did?"

Then, the young man started to argue back.

"You're talking nonsense! I didn't touch it at all!"

"Maybe you just remembered it wrong, or someone else took it and you're blaming me!"

"I think you're just feeling guilty!"

As they talked, they lunged forward again, their tempers flaring up once more.

Xu Liang immediately reached out to stop him, his brows furrowing even more.

"Arguing won't solve the problem. If something is missing, go back to the warehouse and check it carefully to see if there was a mistake in the inventory count or if it was put in the wrong place."

"If someone really took it, they should have the person in charge of the cooperative come and handle it, instead of fighting here."

He paused, then emphasized his words.

"Do you think you can get your things back if you fight here today?"

"Not only will we not be able to find it, but we'll also damage our relationship and might even have to take responsibility. Is it worth it?"

Xu Liang's words were reasonable and well-founded.

The onlookers nodded in agreement.

"Xu Liang is right! Instead of fighting, we should go check the accounts again!"

"Exactly, maybe it was just a mistake in the inventory, a misunderstanding!"

The two arguing middle-aged men exchanged a glance.

Although he was still unconvinced, his arrogance had indeed diminished considerably.

They knew Xu Liang was right, but they were angry just now and were criticized in public.

Unable to save face, he resorted to violence.

Seeing that they had stopped attacking, Xu Liang continued to speak.

"We're all from the same town, we see each other all the time. How can we face each other again if we make such a fuss over a small misunderstanding?"

"The cooperative is a place where everyone works together. If things get out of hand, it won't benefit anyone."

Xu Liang looked at the older employee.

"Uncle Zhang, you're an old man, you should be more mature. What kind of behavior is it to take the lead in violence?"

He then looked at another person and said, "Brother Li, don't make accusations against others without solid evidence. It's upsetting for everyone if you wrong an innocent person."

Being singled out by him like that, the two of them felt a little embarrassed, lowered their heads, and stopped being as aggressive as before.

Seeing that their elders had stopped talking, the two young men next to them lost their temper and put down the wooden sticks and bricks they were holding.

They stood to one side, panting and trying to calm themselves down.

A fight that was about to spiral out of control was stopped by Xu Liang with just a few words.

Despite her strong presence, Xu Liang managed to persuade her to stay calm.

Those around him breathed a sigh of relief and praised Xu Liang repeatedly.

"Xu Liang is the most reliable one; no one else could have stopped him."

"Yes, he's a steady person, and what he says makes sense; otherwise, something really bad would have happened today."

"Thanks to him, otherwise this matter would have dragged on indefinitely."

"I'll try the food at his small restaurant sometime. He's a really kind and honest guy."

Xu Liang ignored the praise from others, but looked at the few people whose faces were still grim.

"Have you all calmed down now? If you're still angry, wait for the cooperative director to come over and explain things clearly in front of everyone."

"Check the accounts where necessary, conduct the inventory checks where necessary, but stop taking any further action."

The group glared at each other, but eventually nodded and stopped arguing.

Seeing this, Xu Liang finally felt relieved.

He glanced at the messy footprints and the few broken cardboard boxes on the ground, then looked at the disheveled clothes and minor scratches on the people, and gave them some instructions.

"Everyone, tidy up yourselves up and stop making a scene."

"If a fight breaks out again, I won't care anymore, I'll just call the police station over."

Upon hearing this, the others responded in unison.

The situation calmed down temporarily, and the onlookers gradually dispersed.

They discussed the scene in twos and threes, all marveling at Xu Liang's composure.

Xu Liang stood there for a while, and only after confirming that the others really wouldn't make a move again did he turn around and leave.

As soon as he turned around, he saw Jiang Wan standing on the outskirts of the crowd, her eyes fixed on him, filled with unconcealed worry.

Seeing that he was safe and sound, Jiang Wan visibly breathed a sigh of relief, and her face softened slightly.

Xu Liang felt a warmth in his heart, and the sullen expression that had appeared when he tried to mediate the fight instantly softened considerably.

He nodded slightly in Jiang Wan's direction to indicate that he was alright, and then walked towards her.

He walked up to Jiang Wan and asked softly.

"Why did you come over? Didn't I tell you to wait at the restaurant? Does your tooth still hurt?"

Jiang Wan looked up at him and saw that he was clean and without any signs of injury. Only then did she feel completely relieved and whispered.

"I...I was worried, so I came to check. By the way, your clothes?"

She reached out and gently pointed to the hem of his clothes.

Xu Liang looked down and realized that when he broke up the fight, the corner of his clothes was tugged and wrinkled, and there was some dust on them, making him look a bit disheveled.

He patted it off nonchalantly and smiled at Jiang Wan, "It's nothing, just a little dust, it'll stop you!"