Courtyard House: Inheriting the Restaurant, the Jia Family Wants to Get It for Free

"Brother, the wine is here!"

Liu Haizhong quickly took it, wanting to open it and smell it.

"Hey, don't move!" The man grabbed his hand. "This jar is sealed tight. If you open it, the aroma will escape, and it'll be worthless! If you're worried, I'll get you some to try."

As he spoke, the man took out a thin bamboo tube from his pocket, carefully poked a small hole in the seal clay at the mouth of the jar, inserted the tube, pretended to suck in a mouthful, spat it into his palm, and handed it to Liu Haizhong.

"Brother, you should try some."

Liu Haizhong stuck out his tongue with some skepticism and licked the man's palm.

A rich, mellow aroma of liquor exploded in his mouth instantly!

That's it! It smells exactly like the one he smelled outside the restaurant!

All of Liu Hai's doubts vanished at that moment.

He excitedly pulled out his money, counted out a million, and handed it to the man.

"Cash on delivery!"

The man took the money, beaming, and then disappeared into the night.

Liu Haizhong held the heavy jar of wine, his heart pounding with excitement.

He could almost see the workshop director's approving gaze, and he could see himself putting on clean work clothes again, pointing out the best he could do in the forging workshop.

He carefully carried the jar of "Bright Future" wine, humming a little tune, and went home triumphantly.

He thought he was incredibly clever, having accomplished something that others couldn't achieve even with minimal effort.

Liu Haizhong held the wine jar and didn't sleep well all night.

He placed the jar by his bedside and would reach out to touch it every now and then, as if afraid it would grow legs and run away.

The next morning, he got up before dawn and carefully washed his faded work clothes again, even polishing his shoes until they shone.

Upon arriving at the steel rolling mill, instead of cleaning the toilets first, he carried the wine jar and went straight to the forging workshop office, where he found the workshop director, Director Zhou.

"Good morning, Director Zhou!"

With bangs framing her face and a broad smile, she looked just like a blooming chrysanthemum.

Director Zhou was drinking tea and reading the newspaper when he glanced at him, gave a faint "hmm," and then lowered his head again.

Director Zhou didn't have a pleasant look at this guy who had tried to flatter him but ended up making a fool of himself in front of Deputy Factory Director Yang.

Liu Haizhong didn't care; he knew his current status.

He carefully placed the wine jar he was carrying on Director Zhou's desk.

"Director Zhou, look, this is a gift from me to you."

Liu Haizhong rubbed his hands together, his face full of flattery.

Director Zhou's gaze fell on the rustic-looking wine jar, and he frowned: "What is this?"

"Liquor! Cheng Family Restaurant's 'Sweet Potato Liquor'!" Liu Haizhong emphasized his words, his face beaming with "Praise me!" "You know how hard it is to buy this liquor these days. I went through a lot of trouble and spent a fortune to get it for you!"

"Oh?"

Director Zhou was a little surprised.

He had certainly heard about the wine at Cheng's restaurant.

Many people in the factory had tried it, and they all bragged about its amazing effects. He had considered it too, but when he heard about the long queues, he backed out.

He never expected that Liu Haizhong, that idiot, would have such ability.

"You're something else, kid."

Director Zhou's attitude softened considerably. He stood up, walked around the wine jar twice, and a satisfied look appeared on his face.

"Hehe, as long as you're happy, Director, my little bit of hard work is nothing."

Liu Haizhong quickly nodded and bowed.

"Hmm, not bad, that's thoughtful of you." Director Zhou patted Liu Haizhong on the shoulder. "I've got your note. Go back to work now. I'll report your issue to the higher-ups."

"Oh! Thank you, Director! Thank you, Director!" Liu Haizhong was so excited he almost knelt down before Director Zhou. He knew he had made the right bet!

Watching Liu Haizhong leave with profuse thanks, Director Zhou picked up the wine jar on the table, weighed it in his hand, and felt a surge of excitement in his heart.

It would be such a waste to drink such good stuff myself.

How about... we give it to Director Li?

Director Li Weimin is in charge of logistics and is a big shot in the factory. I heard that his father-in-law is quite a figure.

If I could use this jar of wine to establish a relationship with Director Li, wouldn't my future career at the factory be much smoother?

With that thought in mind, Director Zhou no longer hesitated. He wrapped the wine jar in newspaper, carried it, and went straight to the logistics department.

"Director Li, are you busy?" Director Zhou greeted him warmly as soon as he entered the room.

Li Weimin was looking at the documents when he saw Director Zhou come in carrying something. He smiled and asked, "Old Zhou, what brings you here? And you're carrying a precious little thing."

"Hehe, Director Li, you have a good eye." Director Zhou placed the wine jar on Li Weimin's desk, then proudly unfolded the newspaper. "Isn't this a treasure! It's 'Sweet Potato Dumplings' from Cheng's Restaurant, I specially got it for you!"

"Oh? Comrade Cheng's wine?"

Li Weimin also became interested.

He was a regular at Cheng Shuhai's restaurant, and he admired Cheng Shuhai's cooking skills and wine immensely.

"Well done, Lao Zhou. This wine isn't easy to buy. Do you have connections?" Li Weimin said as he reached out to break the seal on the jar.

"Director, you have to be careful, this wine smells very good, don't let it lose its flavor."

Director Zhou reminded him from the side.

Li Weimin smiled but didn't say anything.

He was an expert; with a flick of his finger, the seemingly solid seal opened instantly.

However, the expected strong and mellow aroma of the wine did not appear.

A pungent, slightly sour smell of cheap alcohol wafted from the mouth of the jar.

Li Weimin's smile froze on his face.

Director Zhou also smelled it. He paused for a moment, then leaned closer to sniff, somewhat puzzled. "Huh? This smell... something's not right?"

Li Weimin picked up the wine jar, looked at it in the light, dipped his finger in the wine, smelled it, and then licked it with his tongue.

The next second, he spat the wine onto the ground with a "pui" sound.

"What the hell!" Li Weimin's face instantly darkened.

"Director Li, what... what's going on?" Director Zhou's heart skipped a beat, and he had a bad feeling.

"What's wrong?" Li Weimin sneered, slamming the wine jar heavily on the table. "Old Zhou, do you think I, Li Weimin, am a fool, easily fooled?"

"This is just the cheapest liquor diluted with water, and you call this 'sweet potato liquor'? You're offering this to me as a tribute, trying to drink me to death so you can inherit my position?"

Li Weimin's voice wasn't loud, but every word was like an ice dagger piercing Director Zhou's heart.

Director Zhou's face instantly turned from red to purple, and then from purple to white.

"No...it's impossible! Director Li, this...this wine was obtained with great difficulty by my men, and he said it was true!" Director Zhou was sweating profusely and explained incoherently.

"Your subordinate?" Li Weimin glanced at him. "Which subordinate? Liu Haizhong?"

He recalled seeing Liu Haizhong come out of Director Zhou's office with a big smile in the hallway just now.

Director Zhou nodded with difficulty.

"Ha." Li Weimin chuckled, exasperated. "Well, your forging workshop really has a lot of talent. One dares to fool the leaders with fake liquor, and the other dares to fool the superiors with fake liquor. Old Zhou, you've done a good job as workshop director!"

These words are even more offensive than direct insults.

Director Zhou felt dizzy and wished he could disappear into the ground. He knew he had completely failed this time. Not only had he failed to curry favor with Director Li, he had also offended him terribly.

The culprit behind all this is none other than Liu Haizhong, who is more trouble than he's worth!