Xi Hao quickly relayed the information and went to handle his own business.

Regarding this inspection, Mr. Qiu hadn’t said much and hadn’t even asked them to prepare in advance.

Xi Hao instinctively wanted to make some preparations, but after careful thought, what was there to prepare?

Everyone’s regular work attitudes were excellent—they were motivated, emotionally engaged, and the development progress of each project was going smoothly. Even if some projects weren’t proceeding as expected, it was only because they had better ideas and needed to modify their development plans.

In short, from Xi Hao’s perspective, the work atmosphere at the incubation base was perfect, with nothing to hide.

The only issue might be that they weren’t working overtime, which might seem less dedicated, but Mr. Qiu had never advocated for overtime. If Mr. Qiu didn’t advocate for it, then the visiting leader probably wouldn’t either, right?

So Xi Hao didn’t arrange for any rush preparations. He made a quick round, found that the indie game developers and administrative staff were all working diligently, and felt reassured.

This inspection would probably be just a formality—the visiting leader would take a tour, casually ask a few questions, offer some trivial opinions and suggestions, and that would be it.

…

At 2:30 PM, Qiu Hong led Tang Yishu to the “Poverty Road Project” indie game incubation base.

The two drivers still followed cautiously behind Tang Yishu like bodyguards, constantly vigilant against any potential dangers.

Wu Zhicheng spotted Qiu Hong and Tang Yishu from a distance, but he didn’t immediately recognize that this young girl was the “leader” coming for inspection.

She seemed too young—Wu Zhicheng seriously doubted whether she had even reached twenty.

Moreover, looking at her timid, careful steps, she reminded him more of the type of girl who walked with her head down at school, without any leadership qualities whatsoever.

But judging from Qiu Hong’s attitude toward her and the two bodyguards’ alert demeanor, she appeared to be someone of high status.

“Could she be the princess of the big investor behind Mr. Qiu?” Wu Zhicheng’s mind instantly conjured up scenarios commonly found in novels.

Although somewhat surprised, Wu Zhicheng felt much more at ease after seeing Tang Yishu’s true appearance.

He had naturally been resistant to the idea of a “leader’s inspection,” fearing he might encounter an unreasonable leader who would ask stupid questions and suggest nonsensical improvements just to assert their existence.

But seeing that it was a timid-looking young girl who seemed approachable, Wu Zhicheng felt much better, thinking this “inspection” would probably just be a formality.

Such a young girl couldn’t possibly understand game design, right? She’d probably just take a cursory look around, and Mr. Qiu would give her a brief explanation, and that would be it.

Xi Hao also spotted Qiu Hong and Tang Yishu and hurried over to greet them: “Mr. Qiu!”

Qiu Hong introduced them: “This is Little Tang, representing the ‘Poverty Road Project’ investor. And this is Xi Hao, head of the administration department responsible for the incubation base’s daily operations and management.”

Qiu Hong felt that since Tang Yishu could serve as a “special envoy” for the inspection, she must at least be a department head within Tenda, and her title should be mentioned when addressing her.

But he wasn’t clear about Tang Yishu’s specific position in Tenda, as Mr. Pei hadn’t mentioned it.

So he could only introduce her vaguely.

Xi Hao quickly extended his hand: “Nice to meet you, nice to meet you.”

Tang Yishu was afraid her bad luck might affect others, but felt it would be impolite not to shake hands. She hesitantly extended her hand for a brief handshake: “My name is Tang Yishu, just call me Little Tang.”

Seeing that the visiting “leader” was so approachable, Xi Hao was quite pleased and quickly said, “Alright, then let me introduce you to the incubation base’s daily operations. Please follow me.”

Xi Hao led Tang Yishu and Qiu Hong around the incubation base, giving a brief introduction.

“This is our rest area for lunch, regular meetings, and receiving guests.”

“This is the administrative area. Our administrative department is mainly responsible for planning game development schedules and various supporting services. Besides handling the incubation base’s daily operations, we also have many other tasks.”

“Our lunch is delivered by nearby Slackin’ Takeout, and coffee and beverages are provided free of charge.”

“Regarding the games, current development progress is smooth. The fastest games might officially launch next month, while slower ones might take another three to five months. Game sizes vary, so development times differ accordingly.”

Xi Hao briefly introduced the various aspects of the incubation base. Throughout this process, Tang Yishu listened attentively, nodding frequently, but didn’t raise any questions.

Originally, Xi Hao had planned to give a simple introduction, expecting Tang Yishu to ask questions that he could then answer in detail.

But unexpectedly, after completing the tour, Tang Yishu merely listened attentively and nodded, without any intention of asking questions.

This made the situation slightly awkward because touring the entire incubation base, including introductions, only took about ten minutes. Someone had traveled all the way from Jingzhou to the capital—surely the inspection couldn’t just last ten minutes?

But the entire incubation base had indeed been introduced, Tang Yishu hadn’t asked any questions, and Xi Hao felt it would be strange to start over and give a more detailed introduction.

As the atmosphere grew somewhat awkward, Xi Hao had a sudden inspiration.

“How about I have the developers showcase a few high-completion Demos for you to see?”

Upon saying this, Xi Hao felt quite proud of himself.

The incubation base didn’t have many other special features, but it did have many indie games in development!

Although these indie games weren’t ready for official launch and were only partially complete, they were certainly suitable for Demo demonstrations.

Showcasing these Demos would highlight the incubation base’s productive work and significant achievements, making Mr. Qiu look good as well.

Tang Yishu asked uncertainly, “If it’s too much trouble, there’s no need…”

Xi Hao quickly replied, “Not at all, not at all! Please, this way.”

“Old Yu, open up your game’s Demo. Yes, that stable playable Demo version you finished recently.”

A nearby indie game developer with a light beard immediately opened the editor and loaded his game’s Demo.

Xi Hao took a quick look to ensure the Demo’s start screen had no issues, then gestured to Tang Yishu: “Please, have a seat.”

This was a stable playable Demo with relatively few bugs.

Game development involved different versions. To prevent irreversible critical bugs, new versions weren’t immediately deployed over old ones; multiple versions were saved instead.

After each version was completed, it would undergo repeated testing to ensure no major bugs remained before proceeding to the next version’s development.

This Demo was a stable version that, after several bug fixes, could generally run smoothly.

Of course, Xi Hao was also concerned about potential game-breaking bugs appearing mid-session, which would leave a poor impression, so he first selected a stable game Demo.

Tang Yishu sat in the chair, awkwardly picking up the controller from the desk.

She didn’t play games often and had slightly delayed reactions and poor coordination, so her posture while holding the controller was somewhat stiff.

Xi Hao was slightly surprised—how could the representative of the “Poverty Road Project” investor seem unfamiliar with games?

However, he didn’t comment on this, merely explaining the game’s basic controls and which buttons corresponded to which skills.

Tang Yishu gently moved the joystick, making the character on screen take a few steps and jump in place.

But before the first monster even spawned, there was a loud “thunk,” and an error message popped up on the game window.

It crashed!

Xi Hao and Old Yu both stared wide-eyed, momentarily unable to accept this.

Wasn’t this the stable Demo version?

It had been run dozens of times without any major bugs, hadn’t it?

Xi Hao looked at Old Yu with an expression that said: What’s going on? How could you let me down at such a crucial moment?

Old Yu looked equally helpless, shrugging as if to say: How the hell should I know?!

This stable Demo version hadn’t been modified for a long time and had always worked fine before.

With the game crashing and becoming unplayable, Xi Hao felt the atmosphere turn awkward and quickly said, “Minor bug, minor bug. These issues are inevitable during game development.”

“Old Yu, quickly screenshot this bug and record it. Fix it as soon as possible, so it doesn’t affect the official version.”

Old Yu nodded: “Yes! No problem.”

Tang Yishu had been playing with the controller, while Old Yu used the keyboard and mouse to take screenshots, quickly creating a new spreadsheet to record the bug for later fixing.

Then he closed the error window and restarted the game.

Tang Yishu entered the game again, and this time she played for about a minute without any bugs appearing.

Xi Hao wiped the sweat from his forehead and said, “See, that earlier bug was just an occasional occurrence, not happening every time. Today was just a coincidence, not a big pro—”

Before he could finish, he watched as the character on screen was surrounded and killed by a group of monsters, but instead of showing a restart screen, the game progression was stuck.

Xi Hao: “This…”

This time, without being told, Old Yu quickly took a screenshot, recorded the bug, and restarted the game in under a minute.

Xi Hao was speechless: “Please continue.”

More than half an hour later, Tang Yishu finally stumbled through this short Demo.

Looking at Old Yu’s spreadsheet, there were at least fifteen bug entries, with a pile of bug screenshots on the desktop.

Xi Hao felt somewhat ashamed, barely able to make eye contact with Qiu Hong.

What a mess!

The original intention was to showcase the games being developed at the incubation base to the visiting Little Tang, but it turned into a bug exhibition instead!

The fifteen bugs left Old Yu stunned. They varied in severity—some caused crashes and game exits, some were texture errors affecting visual quality, and others only caused game stuttering but allowed continued play.

But regardless of severity, all bugs needed fixing.

Old Yu had been quite confident, thinking this stable Demo version would be perfect for demonstration, but for some reason, today was like a streak of bad luck, with all the hidden occasional bugs showing up at once!

Xi Hao said somewhat awkwardly, “This must be an unusual situation—bad luck. Let’s look at another game, which should have fewer issues.”

“Little Zhou, open your game.”

Xi Hao was eager to redeem himself and prove that not all games at the incubation base were a complete mess—some were actually playable.

However, Little Zhou scratched his head and said sheepishly, “Brother Hao, for some reason, my game won’t open…”

Xi Hao felt dizzy: “Wasn’t it working fine this morning? How can it not open now?”

Little Zhou looked completely innocent: “I don’t know! I didn’t change anything!”

Xi Hao was speechless: “Start troubleshooting immediately!”

In an instant, the entire indie game incubation base was in chaos.

Indie games naturally had more bugs.

Due to limited manpower in indie games, both bug testing and fixing weren’t as timely.

However, these indie game developers had already gotten used to this. More experienced developers would choose more mature, refined solutions to reduce potential bugs.

Furthermore, after joining the incubation base, developers and administrative staff often played each other’s games, finding bugs for one another, so compared to before, there were far fewer bugs.

These indie game developers had been living in a state of peace, believing their games didn’t have that many bugs, or at least could run smoothly without significant issues.

But today, they all received a harsh reality check!

All sorts of strange and peculiar bugs kept emerging, and all the game developers felt like they were experiencing a series of unfortunate events, as if every misfortune had converged on this day!

Wu Zhicheng had been confidently planning to showcase “Ink and Smoke” to this visiting young leader, but after testing it himself, he discovered a multitude of bugs!

Many of these bugs were ones he had never seen before, seemingly lurking in “Ink and Smoke” since its early development, persisting through several versions, only to suddenly emerge today.

Wu Zhicheng felt like he’d been doused with cold water and silently retreated.

What was there to showcase? Better to avoid embarrassment and focus on fixing the bugs!

He would never underestimate lurking bugs again. Fortunately, they were exposed during development. What if they had remained hidden until the game’s release, followed by a critical bug outbreak? Wouldn’t players viciously condemn the game?

All those months of hard work would be wasted on just one bug—that would be too unfair.

The incubation base’s atmosphere quickly shifted from lively to serious, and then from serious to collapsing.

Countless bugs mercilessly shattered these developers’ illusions, demolishing their self-confidence.

Xi Hao was also embarrassed. He had wanted to showcase the incubation base’s achievements, but instead experienced repeated failures.

Although Little Tang didn’t seem angry and maintained a friendly expression, Xi Hao felt immense pressure.

It seemed they needed to focus more on game testing in the future—at their current level, they were far from ready for official release!

With no games to play, Xi Hao suggested, “How about we go to the rest area, sit for a while, and have some coffee?”

Tang Yishu nodded: “Sure.”

Everyone went to the rest area and ordered coffee.

Xi Hao felt somewhat apologetic: “I’m truly sorry about today. For some reason, all the bugs decided to show up at once! But please rest assured, our attitude toward fixing bugs is absolutely serious. These bugs will all be fixed soon, and we’ll remain extra vigilant in the future, testing multiple times to minimize bugs as much as possible.”

“Um… do you have any other questions? I’m happy to answer them all.”

Tang Yishu was about to say she had no further questions, but suddenly remembered Mr. Pei’s instructions before leaving, and quickly asked, “I’m wondering about your work efficiency here?”

“Work efficiency?” Xi Hao immediately responded, “Our work efficiency is absolutely excellent!”

“Our administrative department has relieved the developers of their worries, allowing them to focus solely on game design. Since this is their passion and the most creative part of the work, every game developer’s creative enthusiasm has been fully activated…”

Xi Hao had finally found an area where he could shine, and began to elaborate eloquently.

Although his words were somewhat exaggerated, there wasn’t any significant issue. The incubation base had indeed provided an environment where indie game developers could create without distractions, greatly improving their work efficiency—this was the consensus among all game developers.

Xi Hao explained his views in detail, using various specific examples as evidence to prove that the incubation base’s work efficiency was truly high.

He noticed Tang Yishu listening attentively throughout, nodding frequently, apparently moved by his explanation.

Xi Hao couldn’t help feeling a bit proud—after all, improving the developers’ work efficiency was an achievement for him as the administrative department head.

Shouldn’t he be praised for this?

However, after hearing Xi Hao’s explanation, Tang Yishu said, “It sounds like your daily work process has some serious issues.”

“From now on, all staff must spend ten hours of their work time each week playing games. It must be during work hours, not occupying after-work rest time.”

Xi Hao: “Huh?”

He almost thought he had misheard.

How did high work efficiency indicate serious issues with the daily work process?

And why was the solution to force everyone to play games during work hours? For ten hours each week?

Tang Yishu spoke without much confidence, as she was merely repeating what Mr. Pei had said before she left.

Mr. Pei had mentioned that if the incubation base’s work efficiency was high, everyone should be forced to play games for at least ten hours weekly.

As for why high work efficiency meant they needed to play games? Mr. Pei hadn’t explained, so Tang Yishu naturally didn’t know either.

The previously silent Qiu Hong suddenly looked up: “Little Tang, do you perhaps think that Xi Hao’s description of ‘high work efficiency’ isn’t necessarily a good thing?”

Xi Hao was stunned: “Huh? Why wouldn’t high work efficiency be a good thing?”

Qiu Hong explained: “In conventional thinking, high work efficiency is certainly better than low work efficiency. But in some artistic creative work, pure efficiency isn’t necessarily beneficial.”

“Game design is a form of artistic creation, often heavily reliant on inspiration. Many times, people’s thinking can get stuck in a rut. When stuck, mental focus intensifies and work efficiency increases significantly, but the final product isn’t necessarily good.”

“Take these game developers for example. Their work is very focused and efficient, but precisely because of this, they may fall into a certain obsessive state. Focusing all their energy on their own games, blindly believing their current approach is the best, ignoring better possibilities.”

“Forcing everyone to play more games is hoping that while maintaining efficiency, they can also step out of their own small circles, see how other games are designed, absorb various strengths, and potentially spark new inspirations.”

“I think that’s what Little Tang means.”

Xi Hao suddenly understood: “I see! Then I’ll immediately organize everyone to play games together, collecting inspiration and materials!”

After hearing Qiu Hong’s explanation, Tang Yishu also found herself nodding slightly.

So that’s what the senior meant!

How impressive that the senior had foreseen and arranged everything!

The inspection of the incubation base concluded. Qiu Hong checked his phone for the time and said to Tang Yishu, “Then let’s end here for today. Tomorrow at 9 AM, we’ll visit Cold Noodle Girl.”

…

December 9th, Friday morning.

In Cold Noodle Girl’s first store, Meng Chang directed employees and cleaning staff to thoroughly clean the entire store, including the kitchen, while arranging all tables and chairs neatly.

Cold Noodle Girl’s long-term positioning was as a Chinese fast-food brand that also served breakfast.

It was now 5 AM. Although the store had been cleaned after closing the previous night, Meng Chang wasn’t satisfied and arrived early to check everything one last time before opening, ensuring the store was in optimal condition.

Meng Chang didn’t know about Tang Yishu’s visit to the capital; today’s cleaning wasn’t for her but for some potential investors coming to evaluate the business.

Tang Yishu and these investors happened to be visiting on the same day.

This traced back to when Meng Chang received another 6 million investment from Dream Venture Capital.

Because Mr. Pei had specific requirements, Meng Chang didn’t dare reveal that this 6 million came from Tenda, but being shrewd, he naturally had other ways to convey this information to investors.

Before Mr. Pei decided to invest another 6 million, several investors had already extended offers to Meng Chang.

However, Meng Chang had rejected them all because their investment terms seemed too harsh to him, either including performance guarantees or locking up founder shares, which were very unfriendly to him.

After Meng Chang’s rejection, these investors neither insisted nor immediately gave up, maintaining a somewhat detached attitude while continuing to observe.

They were waiting for Cold Noodle Girl to face funding problems.

Now, all investors could see that Meng Chang was a founder keen on burning money for marketing. Even if Cold Noodle Girl’s stores could break even, they certainly couldn’t sustain Meng Chang’s rate of spending.

Of course, this wasn’t necessarily bad, as Meng Chang’s marketing skills had successfully implanted the “Cold Noodle Girl” brand in consumers’ minds. The money spent wasn’t wasted—it was quite profitable.

In many investors’ views, this behavior aligned perfectly with internet marketing strategies. Meng Chang was doing a beautiful job.

Meng Chang and capital needed each other.

To maintain Cold Noodle Girl’s cash flow and momentum, Meng Chang would inevitably need to continue seeking financing. Once the Cold Noodle Girl brand succeeded and its valuation skyrocketed, these investors would receive substantial returns.

So these investors believed Meng Chang’s temporary rejection was just a negotiation tactic.

They just needed to wait until Cold Noodle Girl faced funding issues, and Meng Chang would naturally put aside his pride and accept investment agreements with various terms like performance guarantees and share lockups to secure continued financing.

Their plan wasn’t flawed. If Dream Venture Capital hadn’t continued investing, Meng Chang truly would have found himself in this difficult situation.

But Meng Chang, with his gambler’s nature, had once again bet correctly.

After receiving ammunition from Dream Venture Capital, although he couldn’t openly boast about it, Meng Chang had the perfect opportunity for a counterattack.

He began burning money at an even faster rate, even spending hundreds of thousands to rent venues for personal speaking engagements, using his excellent oratory skills and business acumen to endorse the “Cold Noodle Girl” brand.

On one hand, this continued expanding Cold Noodle Girl’s influence; on the other, it sent a very clear message to investors.

You refused to invest? You thought I couldn’t get funding elsewhere?

Sorry, not only did I get funding, I got a lot!

Are you still going to stubbornly hold onto that agreement without budging? If you don’t invest now, you might not get another chance.

These investors, seeing Cold Noodle Girl burning money at such a rate with no cash flow problems, and Meng Chang still appearing completely in control, started to feel anxious.

Because company valuations tend to inflate over time as more capital flows in, growing faster.

Investing a month earlier versus a month later could mean a vast difference in the actual shares one could purchase due to differing company valuations.

So now it was these investors who couldn’t stay patient. They wanted to come for another evaluation to decide exactly how much they needed to concede in their investment agreements.

Meng Chang planned to make one final push today, hopefully convincing these investors, continuing to drive Cold Noodle Girl’s valuation upward, and preparing for the next step of finding someone to take over.

Even someone as thick-skinned as Meng Chang couldn’t help feeling nervous. Because if today’s plan failed and investors continued to wait and see, his current funds truly wouldn’t last much longer, with the risk of a cash flow crisis at any moment.

Of course, even if there were some minor cash flow issues, the Cold Noodle Girl brand wouldn’t immediately collapse. Meng Chang still had many ways to find money.

But money obtained under such circumstances would be more difficult to handle and not as easy to secure.

So, Meng Chang’s current behavior was essentially continuing to flex his muscles to investors, on one hand, showcasing bright prospects through his excellent oratory skills and business model, while on the other, proving his ability to transform these prospects into reality through clean, orderly, and popular stores.

After confirming all the store’s details like an obsessive perfectionist, Meng Chang began reviewing his pitch to investors, ensuring the morning’s presentation would be flawless.

…

At 10 AM.

Qiu Hong and Tang Yishu arrived at the Cold Noodle Girl store, finding an inconspicuous corner to sit.

Although it wasn’t lunchtime yet, Cold Noodle Girl’s store still had quite a few customers—about 60% of the seats were filled, suggesting there would be lines during the lunch rush.

Tang Yishu curiously observed the store’s environment, her eyes revealing some confusion.

Everything seemed fine, with no apparent issues.

Before leaving, Mr. Pei had specifically instructed her to pay attention to Cold Noodle Girl’s situation and report truthfully afterward. He told her not to worry about not understanding—she didn’t need to deliberately analyze, just observe based on her first impressions.

But upon arriving at the store, Tang Yishu truly found that her first impression revealed nothing.

The store was clean and tidy, business seemed good, and the servers didn’t display the formulaic enthusiasm seen in other fast-food restaurants. Instead, they wore gentle smiles, attentively serving customers, even better than some traditional fast-food brands’ service attitudes.

In Tang Yishu’s eyes, this was just a normal restaurant that would make a lot of money.

The two ordered some signature dishes, which arrived quickly.

Tang Yishu ate while worrying, because she truly couldn’t sense any major flaws or issues with this store.

Of course, it wasn’t perfect—being a fast-food brand, one couldn’t expect too much regarding taste, but it was definitely above passing grade.

Meanwhile, Meng Chang was waiting in another inconspicuous corner of the store for the investors’ arrival.

Meng Chang appeared calm on the surface but was somewhat anxious, as the investors were a few minutes late for their 10 AM appointment.

Suddenly, Meng Chang’s eyes lit up, and he immediately stood and walked toward the entrance.

Soon after, Meng Chang and several investors entered the store, chatting amiably.

“Mr. Meng, I’m truly sorry. There was some traffic on the way, making us a few minutes late. We’ve kept you waiting.”

“It’s fine, it’s fine. It’s my honor that you gentlemen would visit my humble establishment. Please, make yourselves comfortable.”

Meng Chang maintained a calm, confident demeanor. After brief pleasantries, he began explaining Cold Noodle Girl’s situation to everyone.

This included Cold Noodle Girl’s recent marketing achievements, preparations for new stores, feedback on new menu items, various service details, and more.

The Cold Noodle Girl brand was constantly evolving, with store management models and menu tastes continually being optimized. Even investors who had visited previously could now see noticeable improvements.

After all, Meng Chang had increased his spending, so it would be strange if the store showed no changes.

Sitting in the corner, Tang Yishu took small bites of her grilled cold noodles while straining to hear what these people were discussing.

However, Meng Chang wasn’t speaking loudly, and Tang Yishu could only catch fragments even with full concentration, making her somewhat anxious.

If she couldn’t observe anything at Cold Noodle Girl, how would she report back to her senior?

Meng Chang began enthusiastically introducing the store’s features to the investors.

“Recently, our store’s decorative style has undergone subtle adjustments with new accents, primarily aiming to create an atmosphere that blends tradition with modernity. Look, here’s a traditional Chinese element, and there are posters with artistic flair—all part of Cold Noodle Girl’s brand cultural heritage.”

“The mix of styles creates a unique dining environment, and these design elements become material that customers are eager to share on Weibo or social circles, turning our customers into free ambassadors.”

“These details manifest in every aspect. For instance, our tables and chairs are all specially customized. They similarly strike a balance between trendy and nostalgic while combining aesthetics with practicality. Theoretically, they should last ten years without issues…”

As Meng Chang was explaining, he casually played with a swivel chair, but suddenly heard a light “creak,” and the chair became stuck.

Meng Chang: “?”

He thought perhaps his rotation technique was wrong, trying to turn it forward then backward, only to confirm it truly was stuck—completely immobile!

The situation became somewhat awkward.

Meng Chang was baffled. What was going on?

He hadn’t spoken a single lie—these tables and chairs were indeed specially customized without any corner-cutting. The materials were solid, and theoretically, they should last several years without issues.

But they malfunctioned anyway!

Although it wasn’t a major problem—just the chair’s swivel axis getting stuck for unknown reasons, preventing further rotation—the feeling of being proven wrong on the spot was still extremely embarrassing for Meng Chang.

Although the investors were courteous and said nothing, Meng Chang knew they were certainly forming some thoughts. These minor flaws would accumulate, affecting investors’ evaluation of Cold Noodle Girl, resulting in harsher investment terms.

However, with his resilient mindset, Meng Chang wasn’t easily thrown off by such a minor incident. Smiling, he said, “It seems this furniture factory still has some quality control issues. It’s good that problems are exposed early so they can be corrected sooner—perhaps this isn’t entirely a bad thing.”

“We’ll have them strengthen their quality control.”

“Besides the dining environment, our server recruitment and cultural development also differ from other restaurant brands…”

Meng Chang quickly changed the subject, not wanting to dwell on this issue and leave an impression with investors.

However, while he was speaking eloquently, a customer stood up somewhat impatiently and approached the counter, saying, “Why isn’t my stir-fried cold noodle ready yet? Don’t you promise meals within fifteen minutes? It’s been twenty minutes already!”

The counter girl apologized profusely, “I’m sorry, let me check with the kitchen.”

The customer returned to his seat, looking quite displeased.

The investors had noticed this, and their expressions subtly changed.

Meng Chang felt his heart skip a beat and silently cursed the kitchen staff a hundred times.

Wasn’t everything fine normally? And just this morning, he had repeatedly emphasized the importance of serving speed. Why cause trouble at this critical moment?

This was sabotage!

However, he knew he couldn’t dwell on this now—the more he fixated, the more apparent the problems would become. So he pretended nothing had happened and continued energetically explaining to the investors.

But before he could speak for even half a minute, another incident occurred.

A burly man, seemingly impatient with waiting, said from his seat, “Why haven’t my side dishes arrived yet? I’ve almost finished my noodles! Aren’t your side dishes cold? What, are you just starting to grow them now?”

A server hurried over to quietly pacify him.

Meng Chang’s mouth twitched slightly. This time, ignoring it was impossible. Once might be a coincidence, but twice?

Cold Noodle Girl positioned itself as a fast-food brand, requiring meals to be served within 15 minutes—the faster, the better. Now, with service time issues, the impression left on investors would be that kitchen management was chaotic, potentially directly affecting Cold Noodle Girl’s brand building and reputation.

Moreover, it wasn’t even the lunch rush yet—slow service shouldn’t be happening at all.

There was no way to gloss over this.

Meng Chang adjusted his attitude, still maintaining his composure: “I apologize, the kitchen seems to be experiencing some minor issues. Everyone, please wait a moment while I handle this.”

Meng Chang quickly went to the kitchen, somewhat angrily whispering, “What’s going on! Why is food service so slow today?”

The servers were bustling about frantically. Seeing Meng Chang, they hurriedly explained, “Mr. Meng! We don’t know what happened today—we’re having terrible luck. We accidentally burned a batch of noodles earlier, then someone tripped while serving, and we forgot some side dishes…”

Meng Chang was fuming. Of all times to have issues, why now at this critical moment?

But at this point, Meng Chang had no better solutions. He could only scold them briefly and urge them to serve the food faster.

Leaving the kitchen, Meng Chang once again assumed that calm, indifferent expression.

He moved to the center of the store and gently clapped his hands: “Dear customers, I sincerely apologize. There’s been a minor situation in the kitchen today. But please rest assured, I promise that for anyone whose food wasn’t served within 15 minutes today, your meal will be entirely free!”

At a time like this, only throwing money at the problem could extinguish customers’ anger.

When there’s an issue, it needs to be resolved promptly and actively. These investors were still watching—if problems weren’t addressed immediately, they would deduct even more points.

Hearing about free meals, the anxiously waiting customers finally calmed down.

Qiu Hong was puzzled and whispered, “Strange, our food came quite quickly when we arrived. Did something happen in their kitchen?”

Tang Yishu continued taking small bites of her grilled cold noodles, pretending not to hear.

She remembered her first visit to Ming Fu Family Feast, when even Mr. Li’s high-end restaurant had been affected, with numerous kitchen problems.

Cold Noodle Girl was just an ordinary fast-food restaurant with a kitchen surely inferior to Ming Fu Family Feast’s—how could it withstand her presence?

Tang Yishu felt somewhat guilty. She was here for an undercover inspection, but judging by the current situation, she was worried she might have inadvertently harmed her senior’s business.

Tang Yishu took out a napkin and wiped her mouth: “Mr. Qiu, let’s go.”

Qiu Hong was surprised: “Huh? We’re not going to observe more?”

Tang Yishu shook her head: “No need.”

She knew Cold Noodle Girl was Mr. Pei’s investment. If they stayed longer and the kitchen continued to have issues, the consequences could be unimaginable.

It was better to leave early, before causing greater damage.

Qiu Hong didn’t say much more—after all, Tang Yishu was the one conducting the inspection, while he was just accompanying her. The two stood up and left.

Meanwhile, Meng Chang continued explaining to the investors, but it was obvious that the investors’ eyes no longer held the same intense interest as when they first arrived.

There was no way around it—today’s unexpected incidents were truly damaging. Many investors who had been initially interested were now returning to a wait-and-see attitude.

“Well, Mr. Meng, let’s stop here for today. We’ll discuss the investment further and get back to you in a few days.”

The investors remained very polite, but their attitude had subtly changed from when they first arrived.

Meng Chang knew exactly what was happening but could do nothing about it. He could only maintain a facade of indifference, smiling as he escorted the investors out.

Returning to Cold Noodle Girl, Meng Chang sighed quietly and sat down in an empty seat to brood.

A server hurried over, whispering, “Mr. Meng! The kitchen is back to normal now. We’ve given free meals to those delayed customers, and we can xguarantee service time during the lunch rush!”

Meng Chang gave her an irritated look, at a loss for words.

What a headache.