Since the last conversation on the island with Baipan, Hongbei had been tirelessly trying to develop a Sachima that was both delicious and innovative. However, he seemed to have hit a bottleneck and couldn't make the perfect Sachima.
If it weren't for the previous Xingxing sugar cookies and the newly launched Floral Sweetheart Chocolates as his signature products, Hongbei would have been driven mad by the immense pressure.
"What exactly is missing…"
Hongbei tasted each piece of Sachima on the baking tray but still couldn't figure out which step went wrong.
"Hongbei ge, maybe you're under too much pressure lately? Why not apply to the boss for a break?" Chocolate looked at Hongbei with concern and suggested.
Hongbei glanced at Chocolate and said hoarsely, "It's fine, I'll figure it out myself."
Chocolate, worried, gave Hongbei a gentle nod. This was something no one could help him with. He had to find a solution himself and create a dish he was satisfied with.
Fortunately, the boss was a good person, unconditionally trusting his employees, allowing them to freely use ingredients to research and innovate. Otherwise, if it were someone else, they might have been unwilling long ago.
While Chocolate was feeling grateful for having a good boss, over at the Coconut Umbrella Hotel Industry Association, Wen Zifan stood in the hallway with a calm expression, saying, "Yes, there's still a lot to do at the association, and I won't be able to return for a while."
"Alright, please inform the boss that if there's nothing urgent at the hotel, I won't be coming back."
After hanging up the phone, Wen Zifan, with a cold face, turned and walked to the reception hall on the second floor of the association, sat on the sofa, and picked up a coffee cup.
Damn it… that dog of a man,
I don't want to see you for the next month!!!
…
At the Lang Ai Hotel
"Boss, Xiao Fan jie is busy and can't come back."
Ruike Ya hung up the phone and innocently conveyed the message to Chen Jianhai.
She really couldn't understand what was wrong with the boss lately. If he wanted to find Wen Zifan, why didn't he call her directly but instead used her as a middleman? And Wen Zifan's tone was clearly off. Did the leadership have a falling out?
Thinking this, Ruike Ya sneaked a glance at Chen Jianhai but found him full of confidence and spirit, entirely different from Wen Zifan's suppressed anger.
Chen Jianhai smiled slightly, "If she can't come back, that's fine. I'll take the afternoon boat back to the island. If there's anything at the hotel, you'll have to work harder."
Hah...
Girls! They must be shy.
After all, his charm was unparalleled yesterday. The evening with the convertible sports car date at Haijiao Mountain must have left a perfect, unforgettable impression on Wen Zifan.
Brimming with confidence, he boarded the luxurious Ocean Star cruise ship and sailed back to the island.
"Yo! Hai ge, returning in a day from a thousand miles away, huh!" greeted Xiao Lang cheekily as soon as Chen Jianhai opened the door to the island café.
"Here, the car keys."
Chen Jianhai proudly tossed the keys of his precious sports car to Xiao Lang and comfortably sat on the sofa.
"So, did you succeed?" Xiao Lang nosily leaned in.
Although Chen Jianhai hadn't spelled it out, Xiao Lang's intelligence led him to guess it had something to do with Wen Zifan.
"Superficial!" Chen Jianhai flicked Xiao Lang's forehead in mock despair.
"The beauty lies in the journey, not in the outcome!"
Xiao Lang protested, "If you're not interested in the outcome, then why borrow my sports car?"
"If you're so capable, go on a date with a shared bike!"
Chen Jianhai was momentarily speechless. After a moment's thought, he retorted, "When you date, won't you use a sports car?"
Xiao Lang scoffed, "No!"
"I, Lord Lang, have lived my life looking for someone who likes me for who I am, not for my car, and someone I like who likes me back!"
Xiao Lang said confidently, full of ambition.
"Ha! In school, you copied my essays, and now you're spouting phrases with complex prepositions." Chen Jianhai commented bluntly.
Xiao Lang shrugged, "People always need to improve."
After bantering with Xiao Lang for a while, Chen Jianhai finally asked, "Hey? Where's Dabao?"
"Isn't he with you?" Xiao Lang replied, "He said he was going to get a haircut, so he's probably at the barber's now."
With that, Xiao Lang pointed out the window towards the barber shop.
Following Xiao Lang's finger, Chen Jianhai didn't see the barber shop but saw four or five people walking in the middle of the island, taking photos and gesturing in the air, seemingly planning something.
"Who are those people? They don't look like tourists." Chen Jianhai asked curiously.
"I heard they're investors and developers planning to build a shopping mall on the island." Xiao Lang replied nonchalantly.
Build a mall? Chen Jianhai raised an eyebrow. He hadn't heard of any such development plans for the island.
"Xiao Lang ge is right," Feng Di said gloomily. "The city wants to develop the island, with some fast-moving consumer brands as the foundational infrastructure."
"I heard that Yuexinyuan Coffee has also reached an agreement with the island's mall, preparing to set up a brand presence."
"In the future, my café will probably have to close down."
Feng Di sighed heavily.
His café had been running thanks to Chen Jianhai's support, but with a national coffee chain like Yuexinyuan entering, his little shop wouldn't survive for more than two months.
Chen Jianhai wasn't pleased to hear this.
"What are you talking about? How can the café close down with me here?"
Seriously, considering he was half a shareholder of the café, with him as a strong backer, it would be hard for the café to fail.
Feng Di looked at Chen Jianhai in despair, "Even with you, you can't come up with coffee recipes…"
Despite having good coffee machines, the variety of drinks was too limited. Yuexinyuan Coffee had nearly a hundred different coffee drinks on its menu, not to mention the seasonal specials they launched for each holiday.
Many people would go in just out of curiosity and buy a cup of limited-edition coffee during holidays.
Such a coffee shop, built with the collective efforts of numerous baristas to innovate and brand, couldn't be compared to Feng Di's solo-operated small café.
Chen Jianhai, seeing Feng Di's distressed face, comforted him, "Look on the bright side. We'll figure something out when the time comes."
"Exactly!" Xiao Lang said, happily sipping his coffee. "Making coffee isn't as satisfying as selling barbecue!"
"If your café really can't make it, join Lord Lang in the barbecue business."
"If I have a bite, you'll have a bite too!"