Rebirth 07: Starting with Saving a Bankrupt Restaurant

For these people who spend all their time in internet cafes surfing the internet, Zhouji Restaurant's prices seem a bit too expensive.

It's more economical to order instant noodles. Cigarettes and betel nuts might be a bit pricey, but in their eyes, they're not ordinary items at all.

"Forget it, I might as well just order a bowl of instant noodles. I could use the money left over to surf the internet for a few hours, or buy some cigarettes and nuts."

"Restaurants also make noodles..."

"Where? Isn't there only food?" The person put the headphones back on, said this, and then focused on operating the machine.

Those familiar with Zhouji Restaurant examined the card from both sides and found that noodles were indeed missing.

All other foods were available, but noodles were definitely missing.

The restaurant didn't offer noodles for delivery, and Zhou Wen made this decision without much hesitation.

There are two things to keep in mind when delivering noodles with broth, such as tomato and egg noodles, shrimp and mushroom noodles, and cold noodles.

First, if there are steep sections along the way, the soup can easily spill out, filling the entire bag with soup and potentially affecting the food.

Secondly, I'm afraid the noodles will clump together when they're delivered, which would greatly diminish the flavor.

Zhou Wen does delivery services because he wants his customers to enjoy the same delicious food as those in restaurants. It would be bad if the food he delivers didn't taste good.

While there's some truth to that, I don't smoke or eat betel nuts myself.

I really wanted to recommend this restaurant to my friends, but they didn't seem that interested.

……

After Shan Wei finished his last delivery run, he returned to the restaurant to rest.

It was very hot outside, and Shan Wei, who was resting in the corner, kept drinking cup after cup of water.

There was a small fan blowing on it from the side.

Zhou Wen understood the heat of the day and didn't plan to have Shan Wei help out in the front or back of the house anymore.

After resting at the restaurant, Zhou Wen found Shan Wei, who was sitting in a corner, and asked, "How are you? Can you handle it?"

Shan Wei nodded: "It's not a big problem, I can handle it."

Zhou Wen nodded slightly: "Did anything unexpected happen on the way?"

Shan Wei shook his head: "No."

Zhou Wen didn't intend to ask any more questions.

"Sit a little longer, dinner will be ready soon."

After the meal was finished and everyone left...

Zhou Wen charged the battery and then went back to the second floor to rest.

……

The two sat in the internet cafe from around 10 a.m. until 4 p.m., without eating any food, just opening some small snacks to fill their stomachs and satisfy their cravings.

"What do you want to eat?" Internet users in internet cafes usually eat at different times. They only order food when they are so hungry that they can't stand it anymore.

As long as I'm not too hungry, I'm willing to spend all my money on internet fees.

Are you still eating instant noodles?

The man kept his eyes on the screen and nodded.

"I'm not quite sure, let me think about it some more."

My friend took off his headphones: "I'm going to get some instant noodles after I finish this game. I'm not going to bother with you anymore."

"Okay, sure."

I looked at the time in the bottom right corner of the screen, then looked at the card again and again.

Finally, after discovering that the restaurant was about to open, I made up my mind and made a phone call.

The call was quickly connected, and Ren Xuan's voice came from the other end.

Zhou Wen needs to cook, Shi Ying and Shi Ling need to be busy with things in the front of the house, and Ren Xuan, who helps in the back of the house, is considered to have a relatively easy job.

Of course, answering the phone is not guaranteed, and it's not always the same person.

The last customer to call also ordered a set meal of rice bowl and cold skin rolls, and then left his address.

Ren Xuan was on the phone while writing down the specific address and the phone number left by the customer for the food they ordered on a sticky note.

Because of the increased delivery service, Renxuan now also needs to pack the food, write the customers' addresses on sticky notes, and then stick them on the already packed food.

These are all the requirements Zhou Wen requested.

After a morning of getting used to things, Shan Wei became much more familiar with them by the afternoon.

Dan Wei was quite clever; he almost never made eye contact with the internet cafe manager. While the manager was talking to other people, he quietly carried the food into the internet cafe.

Looking at the contents of the sticky note, I found the person who ordered the food and gently tapped their shoulder.

"Hello, is this the food you ordered?"

The man nodded, but Shan Wei didn't readily hand over the meal.

"The last four digits of the number left."

After stating the number and confirming that it is correct, the meal will be delivered.

We still need to discuss this matter with others.

Then he left with the words: "Enjoy your meal."

They then hurriedly rushed to the next location.

"Did you order food?"

Once the rice bowl is opened, the aroma of the rice immediately wafts out.

My companion, who was eating instant noodles and watching a web series, also smelled the aroma and immediately turned his head to look.

The instant noodles in my hand don't seem to smell very appetizing anymore.

Not only his companions, but other netizens nearby who were also browsing the internet sniffed the air, then took off their headphones to search for the source of the fragrance.

Finally, he looked at the person who had ordered the food.

"How much is this?" my friend asked, staring intently at the rice bowl.

"Eight yuan, with this cold noodle dish."

The original price was seven yuan for the Mapo Tofu rice bowl and three yuan for a cold noodle dish, which would have totaled ten yuan.

However, the restaurant offered a special set meal, reducing the price from ten yuan to eight yuan.

That's equivalent to a cold noodle dish costing only one yuan.

The person also noticed the rolled-up cold noodles and asked, "Is this cold noodles? Why does it look different from what you usually eat?"

Upon hearing this, the man became interested: "This rolled liangpi is of course different from the liangpi outside. Aren't the liangpi outside just a simple seasoning and then put the liangpi in?"

"This rolled liangpi (cold skin noodles) is different; it's filled with food, and the taste is absolutely amazing."

The man stared at the rolled-up cold noodles: "I see."

At this time, some netizens also came over.

"Dude, is this restaurant nearby?"

The person who ordered the food thought for a moment and then said, "I wouldn't say that."

"Is there contact information on the bar counter?"

Clearly, the customer who came to inquire was quite hungry.

"No, but someone came in and handed out a small card with contact information on it."

"Oh, I see. Okay, thank you."

After being reminded, I remembered it and then returned to my seat.

The result was a hilarious scene.

The man searched his seat thoroughly, checking under the mouse pad and keyboard, but couldn't find the card.

Finally, he slapped his forehead and remembered that he had thrown the card into the trash can.

Fortunately, the card was on top of the trash can.

The diner picked up the card again, blew on it, and examined it closely.

Finally, he put the card in his pocket and put it away.

……

……