Zhang Yi left an address for the staff of Haidilao, instructing them to deliver the hot pot base later. As for the food ingredients, they could be picked directly from Walmart's warehouse at the time. Only the hot pot base wouldn't actually be sold, even though pre-packaged hot pot mixes available on the market were far inferior to what the restaurant offered. Otherwise, there would be no customers coming to the restaurant for hot pot.
After finishing the meal, Zhang Yi prepared to go home when his phone received a call from the manager of a five-star hotel.
"Mr. Zhang, the 500 banquet tables you ordered are ready. Are you available to receive them now?"
"Yes, just have them delivered."
Zhang Yi returned home, waiting for the arrival of all the delicious food and drinks. These 500 banquet tables would be enough for him for two to three years. With several million in hand, he didn't mind spending money at all; instead, he was eager to spend it all.
On his way back, Zhang Yi thought about what else he liked to eat. So, he placed orders with several major restaurants in Tianhai City, asking them to deliver a hundred tables each. Eight major cuisines, including Western cuisine, were ordered, totaling thousands of tables. This essentially ensured his lifetime supply of food.
Not long after, the catering trucks from Hongfu Tianxia Hotel arrived at the entrance of Yuelu Community. Dozens of vehicles crowded the road, leaving the neighbors bewildered. Uncle You, the security guard, hurried to intercept and inquire about their purpose.
The hotel manager explained the situation, but Uncle You insisted that the homeowners must come down to open the gate. Given the scale of the convoy and the unknown contents of the vehicles, he couldn't allow them easy passage for the safety of the community.
The hotel manager had to call Zhang Yi. Zhang Yi then came downstairs to the community's entrance. By this time, the entrance was crowded with people, including neighbors from the apartment building and onlookers like Fang Yuqing and Lin Caining.
Approaching Uncle You, Zhang Yi smiled, "Uncle You, these are for my meal delivery. Let them in, please!"
Uncle You looked surprised. "Meal delivery? What are you eating that requires a dozen cars to deliver?"
The surrounding neighbors were equally shocked to learn it was a meal delivery. "Wow, this must be at least a few hundred tables! Where does he plan to put all this?"
"Could it be that something's happening at Zhang Yi's house, like a banquet?"
"Is he getting married? But a few hundred tables are too much!"
"Look closely, that's Hongfu Tianxia, a five-star hotel! Ordering hundreds of tables there would cost at least hundreds of thousands!"
"Oh my, a single banquet could cost hundreds of thousands. Zhang Yi really hides his wealth well!""Before, we only knew their family was well-off, but now it seems he might be a tycoon!" The neighbors discussed eagerly, their gazes towards Zhang Yi turning fiery with a hint of awe.
Fang Yuqing, standing on the roadside, saw this scene and pursed her lips, firming her resolve to win over Zhang Yi. She walked up to Zhang Yi and smiled, "Zhang Yi, what's been keeping your family busy lately? Buying so many things."
Zhang Yi ignored her and instead handed a cigarette to Uncle You. Seeing the homeowner, Uncle You opened the gate, allowing the convoy from Hongfu Tianxia Hotel to enter the community. Zhang Yi led the way while disregarding Fang Yuqing. However, Fang Yuqing didn't seem to mind at all, walking beside him and chatting as if nothing had happened.
"What's going on at home that you can't tell me? Aren't we good friends?" she asked. "I hope to get to know you better in the future. Please don't treat me like a stranger."
Zhang Yi glanced at her deeply and sneered, "All these things are purchased by my boss for me. Even the last time we went to the Western restaurant, it was his treat." He sighed, "Ah, if only I were really that wealthy."
Fang Yuqing's expression changed suddenly. "You... you're not joking with me, are you?"
Zhang Yi shrugged, "Why would I lie to you? We've known each other for years, and you know the situation at my home."
"My parents passed away, and I'm just a supervisor in a warehouse. Where would I get any money?" His explanation left Fang Yuqing unsure of how to react.
She had indeed suspected that he was a second-generation rich kid, at least with a family involved in big business. But Zhang Yi's parents had passed away years ago, leaving behind some inheritance but not enough to make him a second-generation rich kid.
She quietly distanced herself from Zhang Yi, then smoothed her hair and said with a polite smile, "Regardless of whether you're a second-generation rich kid or not, we're still the best of friends, aren't we? I'm not a materialistic woman."
The word "friends" was intentionally emphasized.
Lü Cha never burned bridges because she still needed backup and flatterers to serve her.
Zhang Yi smirked and didn't say anything more to her.
Meanwhile, the employees of Hongfu Tianxia began to transport the lavish meals to the location designated by Zhang Yi. Zhang Yi was generally well-liked, so he had borrowed a warehouse in the underground of the community from the property management. They were instructed to place everything in the warehouse.
Although the quantity of food for 500 tables was substantial, once packed in meal boxes, it wouldn't take up too much space.
Zhang Yi had ordered only the top-tier food, including abalone, sea cucumber, shark fin, Australian lobster, truffles, and caviar, among others.
It would take some time to transport the large meal orders of 500 tables into the warehouse. Even the hotel manager was somewhat astonished. After years of managing, it was the first time he encountered such a massive takeaway order.
However, Zhang Yi told them to simply move everything into the warehouse, and he quietly took advantage of the situation, waiting for the workers to leave before storing all the food into his own dimensional space.
Others might have suspicions and think Zhang Yi was acting oddly. However, in a world where everyone was busy, who had the time to care about an unrelated person? So, whether it was neighbors or hotel employees, at most, they just gossiped a bit, but no one truly took it to heart.
Soon, all the meals for 500 tables were completely stored in Zhang Yi's dimensional space.
In the evening, Zhang Yi received a call from Wu Huairan, the manager of the War Dragon Company. Wu Huairan informed Zhang Yi that they were ready and could start constructing the safe house for him anytime he wanted. He asked when Zhang Yi would be available to begin.
Zhang Yi told them they could come over tomorrow. In the meantime, he planned to move to the hotel.
After discussing the safe house arrangements, Zhang Yi waited for Wu Huairan's next instructions.
Now that Zhang Yi had admitted he wasn't a second-generation rich kid, all of Fang Yuqing's doubts suddenly made sense.