Mei Qingxue, on the second floor of the restaurant, also witnessed the bustling scene outside. She knew that her method of attracting customers should have succeeded.
"Master." Just as Mei Qingxue was secretly calculating how much silver would soon flow into her pocket, a familiar voice came from behind. She was slightly surprised.
"Shadow? Why did you come back so soon? I thought I'd have to wait at least another two days." It seemed like it hadn't been long since she sent the message. Did this guy come back by plane?
"I've finished my business there ahead of schedule, so when you sent the message, I was just on my way back." Actually, what he didn't say was that after receiving Mei Qingxue's letter, he rushed back non - stop. He covered a two - day journey in just one day.
"How many times have I told you that when it's just the two of us, you don't need to call me 'Master' all the time. It sounds so formal. I've said that you're my friend, and friends don't act like this." Over the past year or so, there have been many things that would have been much more difficult for her if it weren't for Shadow. Although Shadow was nominally her subordinate, she truly regarded him as a friend.
"I dare not." When Mei Qingxue said this, a crack appeared in Shadow's cold and hard heart. A friend? He thought he'd never know what a friend was in his life... In fact, after getting along with Mei Qingxue, his once - cold heart had already begun to change slowly, gradually being warmed by her seemingly casual words or actions...
Seeing Shadow like this, Mei Qingxue felt a bit helpless. This kid was only eighteen, such a wonderful and energetic age, yet he made himself so listless. After giving him a big eye - roll, she stepped forward and punched him in the chest.
"What do you mean 'dare not'? I say you're my friend, so you are. You're so young but act so old - fashioned. I'm telling you, this is really not good, do you know?"
Shadow blushed slightly at Mei Qingxue's action. She always behaved like this, completely disregarding her status as an unmarried young lady, befriending him like a man. He sighed helplessly. "I understand."
"Also, what on earth did you put on your face? It makes your original face look so ugly." Once, Mei Qingxue accidentally saw Shadow's real face. As someone who had no resistance to handsome men, she was completely attracted by his chiseled and handsome face. Shadow was a very masculine man. She guessed that his figure must be excellent. Having practiced martial arts for a long time, his muscles should be firm and well - shaped. She really wanted to take a good look if she had the chance...
Ahem, thinking about her friend like this was a shameful thing. Mei Qingxue, you're becoming more and more out of shape!
Shadow was rendered speechless by Mei Qingxue. He felt powerless about the way her thoughts jumped. Before, when they were seriously discussing some important matter, she would suddenly blurt out something like "Shall we have crystal pig's feet for dinner tonight?" This would always leave everyone stunned and then in silent embarrassment.
"This is a special potion for disguise. Since it makes me look ugly, it means the disguise has worked. If there's no change, the disguise would be redundant. If you think it's ugly, I'll wash off the potion before coming to see you next time."
"Wow! Shadow, you just said such a long sentence! You rarely said such a long sentence before!" Mei Qingxue looked at Shadow as if she had discovered a new continent. She had secretly counted the words when Shadow was speaking! This was one of the few long sentences he had said since she met him a year ago!
This time, Shadow was truly speechless. Facing such a superior, what could he do? Only a row of crows flying overhead could understand his depression.
"Hehe, just joking. You don't know that I'm most afraid of when you don't talk. I have no idea what you're thinking." She had spent a long time "training" Shadow to be a bit more cheerful. She didn't like it when he used to be so silent.
"I came back in a hurry because you said in your letter that 'Welcome Guests' had encountered some problems?" Shadow knew that if he didn't bring up the important matter, Mei Qingxue would probably forget about it soon.
"Ah, look at me. I got so happy when I saw you just now that I got off - topic." Actually, the reason why Mei Qingxue was like this was that after Shadow came back, she felt like she had found a "backing". She knew that as long as she handed any troublesome matter to him, he would handle it well.
"Did we run into some trouble?"
"Yes. I think we've developed too fast and may have touched the bottom line of some big shots." Thinking of what had happened before, Mei Qingxue's joking smile turned serious. Maybe this matter wasn't that simple.
"Big shots? Before we opened the restaurant, I had someone check the backgrounds of the major restaurant owners in the capital. I didn't find anyone with a very powerful backer or direct connections with the officialdom." Hearing what Mei Qingxue said, Shadow also began to recall what kind of big shots couldn't be offended. When Mei Qingxue decided to open the restaurant, he had checked the backgrounds of the owners of the restaurants of a certain scale in the capital and didn't find any that were more powerful than the prime minister.
"Yes, so I'm a bit curious. This incident seems like a small hassle, but for some things, money alone won't do without connections."
"Yes, indeed."
"Do you think it could be someone from the royal family?"
Shadow frowned slightly. It was not impossible. "I'll have them investigate this matter clearly." Over the past year, Mei Qingxue had spent a lot of effort on these things. He wouldn't let those who wanted to stop her development succeed.
"Yes. Fortunately, someone helped us get through this time. Otherwise, it would have been really hard to say. You should transfer some more people back. Have them recruit some reliable new people. I thought I could feel at ease here, but who would have thought..."
"The restaurant won't be open this afternoon?" Just now, he was in a hurry to come up and find Mei Qingxue, so he didn't notice the notice posted at the door. Seeing that "Welcome Guests" was closed, he was a bit curious.
"Oh, it's nothing. It's just a way for me to attract customers. After all, after what happened, we have to think of some ways to recover."
Shadow raised his eyebrows slightly. He knew she would come up with a way to deal with it.
"You must be tired from your journey. Go back and rest first. Some things can wait."
"Okay." Although traveling like this was really tiring, whenever he saw her smiling face as soon as he came back, he felt that it was all worth it.
When "Welcome Guests" opened for business the next day, there were quite a few customers, even more than before the incident.
The waiters repeatedly explained the rules of the lottery activity to the customers. Many customers were very interested in this new thing, and the prizes were also very attractive. In this ancient time when the grain output was not high, the price of white rice was not cheap. A bag of rice cost quite a bit of silver. In addition, there were three high - class carriages as the grand prizes. Everyone was willing to take a chance to see if they were lucky.
At the same time, Mei Qingxue had someone prepare a lot of exquisite small gifts. Even if customers didn't win the grand prize, they could still get a small gift as a reward. The customers who received the small gifts were very happy.
Most importantly, Mei Qingxue asked the chefs of "Welcome Guests" to put in their best efforts to make the signature dishes of the restaurant even better. She also took this opportunity to introduce many new dishes, making the customers satisfied with their meals and eager to come back again.
"Sir, your method is really amazing. Look, there are more customers today than when the restaurant first opened." Yu Yi was really happy to see the waiters on the first floor being so busy. He was glad that he had the chance to follow such a kind - hearted and talented master.
Mei Qingxue nodded in satisfaction looking at the customers downstairs. She was also satisfied with the effect of this activity. "Yes, this activity will end after all the prizes have been drawn. It shouldn't last more than ten days." If it lasted too long, people would no longer find it new.
Why not hold this activity for a longer time since it was so effective? Although Yu Yi had this doubt in his heart, he believed that Mei Qingxue's decision was correct. "Yes, I understand."
"Sir, Young Master Pretty - Face sent you a letter." A servant - looking person handed a letter to Mei Qingxue.
"Young Master Pretty - Face?" Mei Qingxue took the letter with a puzzled look and frowned slightly. Young Master Pretty - Face was also in the capital. He could just come and talk to her if he had something to say. Why did he send a letter today? Could it be something he was embarrassed to say?
"Yes."
"Okay, I see."
Back in her private room, Mei Qingxue couldn't help but feel a bit nervous as she opened the letter and read it slowly.
As soon as she opened the letter, the bold and powerful yet elegant characters of Du Guqing came into her view.
"Brother Luo, I'll be busy with some important matters in the near future and may not be able to meet you often. After some time, I'll have a good drink with you, brother." The content of the letter was not much, just a few short sentences. At the end of the letter, it was signed "Written by Young Master Pretty - Face".
Mei Qingxue slowly closed the letter. Her heart began to feel a bit restless. Was it because he had encountered some trouble that he wrote like this? Or were there some things he didn't want her to know? Thinking about the more than a year she had known him, apart from some basic information that everyone knew, she knew nothing else about him.
In fact, many times she wanted to ask him about his specific family background, but every time the words were on the tip of her tongue, she couldn't say them. Why did he hide some things from her? Was his friendship with her just on the surface? Thinking of this, her mood couldn't help but turn down.
Maybe they could only be friends...
Looking at the white clouds floating in the breeze outside the window, Mei Qingxue felt lost.