MMB Chapter 124 Open Fire
Chapter 124 Open Fire
The car wobbled and turned into the narrow alley of the old street, finally coming to a slow stop in front of "Old Liu's Noodle Shop" with a dull screech of brakes.
The door was already half open.
Liu Cheng, wearing a clean blue apron that had been ironed overnight, was anxiously waiting at the door.
He nervously rubbed his hands on his apron, and as soon as he saw the somewhat familiar car, a warm smile immediately spread across his face, and he hurriedly ran to greet it.
"Boss Chen! Young Master Su! How did the meat delivery go today? I got up early this morning and cleaned the stove thoroughly, just waiting..."
Before Liu Cheng could finish speaking, his voice abruptly stopped.
Su Chen opened the car door and dejectedly got out of the passenger seat.
He clutched empty woven bags in both hands, his young face was completely drained of color, his eyes were red, and he dared not look Liu Cheng in the eye.
Behind Su Chen, Xingruo and Mengmeng slowly got out of the car. Mengmeng's big eyes still showed fear, while Xingruo lowered her head and her delicate eyebrows were tightly furrowed.
Looking at the woven bag that wasn't even bare, and then at the frosty expressions on everyone's faces, Liu Cheng's heart sank, and his lips trembled.
"Where...where's the meat? Where are the scallions and ginger? Didn't you manage to buy any fresh, top-quality stuff?" Liu Chengqiang forced a smile, his voice trembling.
"Uncle Liu... I'm sorry."
Su Chen threw the empty bag in his hand to the ground, leaned weakly against the car door, and said in a low voice.
"We went to the wholesale market, and out of dozens of stalls, not a single person was willing to sell us anything."
My brother... that scoundrel Su Ang from my family, he hired people to cut off all the small-scale suppliers in the south of the city.
They think I embarrassed the Su family by being there for Brother Chen, and they're trying to... to cut off all our livelihoods!!
boom.
These words struck Liu Cheng like an invisible thunderbolt.
Liu Cheng felt dizzy and disoriented.
His thighs suddenly buckled, and he stumbled back two steps until his back slammed hard against the cold steel bars of the roller shutter door before he could barely regain his balance.
"Blocked...blocked?"
Liu Cheng murmured absentmindedly, his hands unconsciously reaching for the pocket on his chest where Chen Feng's phone number was hidden.
He was an honest man who had spent most of his life struggling at the bottom of society, and he knew all too well what a truly powerful local force like the "Su family" meant.
That's the kind of living devil who could shut down Old Liu's noodle shop the next day with just a few words.
Yesterday's huge sum of ten thousand yuan, Zhang Xiulan's bank account balance that had just turned green in the hospital, and the joyous scene of diners from all over the city crowding to open the door...
These hopes, which had just been built up before Liu Cheng like a miracle, were so easily crushed by someone with just two fingers after dawn.
"It's all fate... It's all because I, Liu Cheng, am incompetent, and I've dragged Boss Chen down with me..."
Liu Cheng clutched his white hair tightly, then slid down the roller shutter door and squatted on the cement floor. Tears instantly streamed down his face and fell onto the bluestone slabs.
In his imagination, it would be easier for a big boss like Su Ang to deal with a few cooks who run small restaurants in a back alley than to step on a few ants.
Even if Chen Feng is famous online now, as long as those powerful forces use their connections, they can easily suppress the news online. Who can stand up for justice for these ordinary people?
They were all unaware that Chen Feng had called his junior brother, who was far away in Beijing.
When Chen Feng took out his phone in the car, he only mumbled a few words hesitantly, keeping his voice very low, like a mosquito's buzz, and hung up in less than two minutes.
No one on the bus noticed.
"Uncle Liu, don't worry, things will work themselves out. I... I can always go back, that way my brother won't have so many complaints!"
When Su Chen saw Liu Cheng start to cry again, she became anxious and her eyes also reddened. She took two steps over and tried to pull the old man up from the ground.
Xingruo stood behind, her arms tightly wrapped around Mengmeng.
She looked up at Chen Feng, who was still standing by the bread truck, silent since getting off. Her face was full of heartache and helplessness.
"dad……"
Mengmeng peeked half her little head out from Xingruo's shoulder, her big eyes still glistening with tears.
Although the little girl couldn't quite understand what the adults were saying about "banning" and "the Su family," she could feel the suffocating silence around her.
She stretched out her two chubby little hands to Chen Feng, sobbing softly, "Daddy, Mengmeng won't eat big pieces of meat anymore... Let's not buy it from those bad people, Daddy, don't be angry..."
Chen Feng stood there quietly, letting the draft make his gray vest flutter.
He ignored Su Chen's desperate self-blame, and didn't even look at Liu Cheng's crouching, collapsing figure.
He slightly raised his hand, gently rubbed his chin with his fingertips, and then strode across the wooden threshold of Old Liu's Noodle Shop.
"Uncle Liu."
Chen Feng's voice was calm and authoritative, and it sounded exceptionally clear in the dark shop.
Liu Cheng looked up at Chen Feng with a blank expression, sniffing.
"Stand up." Chen Feng's dark eyes were deep and calm. "We men can't let our backs collapse first."
Liu Cheng trembled as Chen Feng scolded him, and subconsciously straightened his back.
"Fill those two large stainless steel pots in the kitchen with water." Chen Feng turned around. "Get them boiling!"
"ah?!"
Su Chen, who was listening from the side, was so shocked that he was completely dumbfounded.
He rushed into the shop, pointing incredulously at the empty counter: "Brother Chen! What are you doing?! We didn't buy anything, and now you're telling Uncle Liu to start boiling water... Are we cooking air for the customers outside to eat?!"
On the outer side of the old street, one could already faintly hear the noisy horns of early-arriving foodies parking their cars.
Chen Feng neatly folded the towel he had used to wipe the work surface and hung it back on the wooden rack.
"Once the water boils, the meat will naturally arrive."
Chen Feng didn't explain a single word. He simply turned his head and met Su Chen and Liu Cheng's eyes, which were filled with despair and shock. His voice was low and deep.
"Fire!"