After the divorce, he took care of his child and sold fried rice; his ex-wife was filled with regret

Aunt Wang, holding her teacup, chimed in irritably, "These young people, all they do is sit around on their crappy phones and profit off others' misfortunes!"

"Boss Lin's kitchen is so clean you couldn't even get a fly in!"

"You've all lost your conscience! You haven't even stepped inside, yet you're already joining those thugs outside in throwing dirty water on people!"

Old Wang, from the joint defense team, sat across the round table and took a big gulp of hot water, feeling completely warm. He put down his cup, looked at the two young men, and shook his head with a sigh.

"You believe all the nonsense you read online?"

"We patrol and are on duty in this area. Of the dozen or so businesses on Golden Street, Mr. Lin's shop consistently sets the highest standards for hygiene and fire safety, exempting us from inspection every day!"

Old Wang slammed his hand on the table, his tone very serious:

"Zhao San'er, the one who led the trouble this morning, is a seasoned con artist who's been to the detention center three times before."

"You two greenhorns, for a few clicks, you were even prepared to follow that despicable scoundrel and stir up trouble. You almost became accomplices in a criminal case. Do you even know how foolish you were?!"

Upon hearing the words "accomplice in a criminal case," the two young men trembled violently, nearly dropping the glass from their hands onto the table.

"We...we really didn't know Zhao San'er was hired..."

The young man in the woolen hat was almost in tears, wiping cold sweat from his trouser seams with both hands, his voice trembling with sobs:

"We just saw that Dapeng's videos were getting so much attention... Our account hasn't gained any followers in months, and we're almost unable to pay our rent, so we thought we'd jump on the bandwagon... We really didn't mean to harm anyone!"

The two sanitation workers sitting next to them looked at the clean, solid wood round table and couldn't help but reach out and touch the warm wood grain, sighing softly:

"This table is so clean... We spent the whole morning shoveling snow on the main street, and it was hard to find a place to sit down and have a drink of hot water in this freezing weather."

"Boss Lin is a very kind person. It's really unfair that such a good shop is being gossiped about by those people online."

Su Xiaoxiao stood in front of the bar, watching the group of people fidget and feel ashamed. Her anger subsided slightly, and she pursed her lips, no longer continuing to curse.

Just as the lobby was completely silent, and the two young men wished they could bury their heads in their crotches.

"boom--"

The powerful roar of flames came from the stove in the back kitchen once again.

Immediately afterwards, the sizzling sound of hot oil being stir-fried in a large cast iron wok could be clearly heard through the blue cloth curtain, and a burst of steam mixed with the aroma of pickled cabbage and the rich white fish bone soup rushed into the hall through the gap in the curtain.

After the roar of the flames, a series of very crisp and efficient sounds of wok tossing followed immediately from the kitchen.

"Clang, clang, clang!"

The large wrought iron pot bumped slightly against the stove, accompanied by the rustling sound of the iron spatula turning over quickly.

Each time it was stir-fried, an even stronger, savory aroma wafted through the blue cloth curtain and flooded the lobby on the first floor like a tide.

The people sitting at the round table near the door all leaned forward instinctively.

The savory aroma of rendered pork belly frying in rendered pork fat, mixed with the tangy, burnt smell of pickled cabbage dried over a high flame, went straight to the depths of their throats.

The two had been waiting at the alley entrance since 5 a.m., braving the wind and snow, and several hours had passed since then.

Their stomachs were already empty, filled only with acidic water, and their stomach walls were twitching and sticking together. At this moment, when they smelled the domineering aroma of meat so close to them, the saliva on both sides of their mouths was secreted as if a dam had burst. They didn't even have time to swallow, so they could only clench their teeth tightly and make very low swallowing sounds.

The two sanitation workers sitting next to them seemed even more reserved than the two young men.

They placed their hands neatly on their knees, and their feet were tucked together under the chairs with their heels dangling, as if afraid that the soles of their shoes would scrape against the tiles on the floor.

One of the men, a middle-aged man with gray hair, looked at the several clean, transparent glass cups on the table. He rubbed his hands, which were covered in chilblains and cracks, on his trouser legs several times before carefully reaching out to pick up a cup.

The water was ordinary boiled water, yet it had a faint, sweet taste.

The middle-aged man took a small sip of hot water, the steam making him squint and his Adam's apple bob. He then turned to his companion and muttered softly:

"Old Zhou...it's so warm in here, even the water tastes sweet."

The sanitation worker, Lao Zhou, also held a cup, his hands pressed tightly against the warm glass wall. His cloudy eyes stared at the solid wood tabletop in front of him, polished so smooth it reflected his image, and he looked somewhat uneasy.

"Yeah...we've spent half our lives shoveling snow on the streets, which big shop along the street doesn't complain about how dirty we are?"

"In this freezing weather, you have to be careful what you do to even get half a bottle of warm water. But this Boss Lin... not only lets us sit in the main hall, but also makes us hot soup. He's such a kind-hearted person."

Hearing this, Old Liu, who was sitting on the bench next to him, tapped his copper pipe lightly on the sole of his shoe, grinned, and chimed in:

"Brother, you don't know this! Boss Lin is particular about rules when cooking, and even more so about his character!"

"The reason his shop sells expensive items is because he uses only the finest, most premium materials."

"But he treats everyone the same, whether they're big bosses driving luxury cars or ordinary laborers like us!"

"Unlike some young people who don't learn good things, spending all their time gossiping online with a broken stick, spewing nonsense!"

Old Liu's words were a veiled insult, and the young man in the woolen hat froze, lowering his head even further, his ears turning as red as if they were about to bleed.

Su Xiaoxiao walked over with a clean, thick rag, and casually refilled the water cups of the two sanitation workers with boiling water, her tone gentle and natural:

"Gentlemen, please don't be shy. The food will be ready in the kitchen soon. We always serve large portions, so eat as much as you like, it's all you can eat!"

"Oh! Thank you, young lady, thank you!" The two elderly people bowed and nodded, flattered.

Just then, the blue cloth curtain in the back kitchen was suddenly lifted.

A large cloud of billowing white steam instantly poured out of the kitchen doorway, accompanied by an extremely strong aroma of sour and spicy fish and the burnt smell of cooked oil and soy sauce, making the temperature in the entire hall seem to rise by three degrees out of nowhere!

Lin Fan, with his hands padded with thick cloth, carried a heavy, shiny black clay pot with two handles and strode out.

Immediately afterwards, Su Xiaoxiao also quickly followed into the kitchen, carrying a heavy utensil in each hand.

In the right hand is a wooden bucket about the size of a washbasin, filled to the brim with Wuchang Xiangshui tribute rice. The snow-white rice grains stand upright, emitting the pure, sweet aroma of steaming hot, ripe rice.

In his left hand was a large, deep-sea bowl of freshly cooked stir-fried minced pork with pickled mustard greens.

The deep red diced meat gleamed with a golden-brown sheen, tightly wrapped with the green and red pickled cabbage pieces, and the surface layer of cooked pork fat sauce was still bubbling slightly.

"Clatter!"

The large earthenware pot and wooden bucket were placed steadily in the center of the round table.

All eyes in the lobby were instantly drawn to the center of the table.