For the past two days, they’d done nothing but wait in line, and then they’d go out and party at night.

They were mentally drained.

But no matter how tired they were,

missing out on Boss Jiang’s food was absolutely not an option.

They couldn’t miss a single one of their three daily meals here.

Before long,

Tongtong brought them their steamed buns.

The moment they smelled the fragrant buns, their spirits lifted. Their eyes widened slightly, and their breathing quickened.

Without a word,

they grabbed the buns and started stuffing them into their mouths.

It was like a forced reboot for their bodies.

Delicious!

So amazing!

You could eat this for ten years and never get tired of it!

They bit into the fresh chive and egg buns. The tender egg, perfectly salted, coated their tongues with its rich, savory flavor.

The chives were crisp, tender, and refreshing. With every chew, scalding hot juices burst from the leaves.

Paired with the fragrant, tender egg, it was, in a word, bliss!

"This is so good! I heard the food we’re eating is only a third of what Boss Jiang knows how to make. It’s such a shame. If only he’d advertised when he first opened!"

"Glad I didn’t sleep in today, or I would’ve missed out on another bun feast."

"Holy crap, Bai An’an, why do you have a plastic bag in your purse? Planning to sneak some home to eat in bed?"

"What’s it to you?"

The girls bickered quietly.

Just then,

Yang Zhengwu pushed open the glass door, a leather briefcase tucked under his arm. He had managed to secure a spot.

The moment he walked in, he saw his daughter, Yang Zishan, with her mouth stuffed full of a bun. One of her hands was grabbing for the plate, while the other was holding a piece of potato.

They both spotted each other at the same time and stared, wide-eyed.

’What a coincidence!’

Yang Zhengwu walked over.

Yang Zishan was still chewing, her words muffled. "Dad, what are you doing here?"

Yang Zhengwu looked his daughter up and down. After confirming it was really her, he asked in surprise, "You get up this early now?"

He distinctly remembered his daughter not getting out of bed until sunset.

Seeing her here eating breakfast first thing in the morning was just absurd.

"Haha, well, you know... Dad, do you want to sit and eat with us?"

"No, I’ll go order my own. Can’t waste a spot."

Mindful of his status, Yang Zhengwu waved it off and glanced up at the counter.

The moment he saw a busy Jun Qingmeng, he froze.

"Qingmeng?"

Jun Qingmeng looked toward the voice. Seeing Yang Zhengwu’s stunned expression, she wasn’t surprised. She greeted him calmly, "Good morning, Uncle Yang."

Yang Zhengwu nodded, his gaze turning thoughtful as he glanced at Jiang Liu. "Qingmeng, are you working for Boss Jiang?"

"...No. Jiang Liu is my boyfriend."

"What? Boyfriend?!" Yang Zhengwu was stunned, a thunderbolt shattering the sour hopes brewing in his heart.

’How did Boss Jiang end up as the son-in-law of that old coot Jun Xinghe?’

’On what grounds!’

’Fuck!’

’That old bastard Jun Xinghe! Not only is his daughter gorgeous, but he also makes a goddamn fortune every year, keeping me suppressed for over a decade.’

’And now, to make matters worse,’

’the son-in-law he had his eye on has been snatched away by that old bastard’s daughter!’

’Does he have to take every damn advantage? What a fucking bastard!’

Jun Qingmeng picked Tongtong up into her arms. "This is my daughter. Tongtong, say hi to Uncle Yang."

"Hello, Uncle Yang~" Jiang Tongtong called out in her sweet, childish voice.

"Ah, hello there, little one."

Yang Zhengwu looked at Tongtong, who was as cute as a porcelain doll, and forced a smile.

He then turned and shot his own daughter a look of bitter disappointment.

’Useless!’

’The Nexus has fallen.’

’And she’s still just sitting there, eating.’

Yang Zishan blinked innocently and swallowed her mouthful of bun with some effort.

Yang Zhengwu was in no mood to chat.

He didn’t have much of a personal relationship with the Jun Family to begin with.

They were acquaintances, nothing more.

"Boss Jiang, I’ll have ten shrimp buns, five fennel buns, a plate of ham, and a bottle of beer, please."

"The ham is sold out, sir," Jiang Liu replied with a smile.

’Every item that sold out was a weight off his shoulders.’

"Sold out? What about the other things?"

"Er, we only have steamed buns and drinks left right now."

"Fine, then. Buns it is."

Yang Zhengwu smacked his lips. A sudden idea struck him, and he walked straight to his daughter’s table.

"Dad, what are you doing?" Yang Zishan saw the predatory gleam in her father’s eyes and instinctively shielded her plate.

Yang Zhengwu said grimly, "The only thing left in the restaurant is buns. What do you think I want? Didn’t you just invite me to join you?"

"But you refused..." Yang Zishan’s voice trailed off. She had only been making a polite offer, assuming her father wouldn’t want to crowd in with a group of young women.

But she hadn’t expected him to be so shameless when it came to food.

Yang Zhengwu had already sat down next to his daughter.

Her friends seized the opportunity to quickly gobble down a few more slices of ham.

"Ahem." Yang Zhengwu said, "I’ve ordered more buns. When they get here, everyone dig in."

As he spoke, he shamelessly helped himself to several slices of ham and stuffed them into his mouth.

The ham’s rich aroma instantly exploded in his mouth. The flavor was savory but not greasy, with a natural hint of oak.

The five friends: ...Their hearts ached at the sight.

Yang Zishan couldn’t bear it and tried to hint discreetly, "Dad, my friends and I have some things to discuss. Could you maybe find another table?"

"Move? Why should I move? You talk about whatever you want. I just won’t listen, simple as that."

"Dad, please just move to another table. I’m begging you..."

Yang Zhengwu’s face darkened, and he started to play the victim. "You think it’s easy for me to get a meal here? I postponed three meetings! I flew here through the rain at four in the morning, and this is how you treat your old man? By chasing me away?"

"Is it easy for me to earn money for this family? Fine, I’ll leave!"

"...Never mind, Dad. You can eat."

"It’s okay, Uncle! Everything on the table is yours!"

"See, Anan is the sensible one here."

Yang Zhengwu’s smile returned as he sat back down. Humming contentedly, he picked up a large, tender piece of beef and popped it into his mouth, his expression one of pure bliss.

’Boss Jiang’s food is truly one of life’s greatest joys!’

Xiao Han and the others stared, dumbfounded.

For a major entrepreneur like Yang Zhengwu to come here and act like a child, stealing food from his own daughter, was just...

It just went to show how irresistible Boss Jiang’s food was.

Before long, Yang Zhengwu had devoured all the ham on the plate.

He then set his sights on the meat on Yang Zishan’s plate.

"You can’t finish all that. Give some to your old dad!"

"Huh?"

Like a startled rabbit, Yang Zishan pulled her plate closer, leaning toward her friends for protection.

She said pitifully, "Dad, why don’t you just come back at lunchtime? I haven’t even eaten that much..."

And it was true; Yang Zishan hadn’t eaten much, mostly because with her father gorging himself, she felt too embarrassed to compete with her friends for the food.

Yang Zhengwu’s tone left no room for argument. "Give me half!"

"Waaah, no," she whimpered.

"Then your allowance for the year is gone."

"Why?! We agreed you’d give me my allowance every month!"

Yang Zhengwu snorted. "We agreed, yes. But have I actually given it to you yet?"

’As a crafty old businessman, could he not handle his own little girl?’

"Ugh, fine!"

Yang Zishan sighed and obediently pushed half of the meat over to her dad’s side.

Watching her father eat with gusto, she was crying on the inside.

’I could barely bring myself to eat it, you know?’

’Just you wait. When you get old, I’m going to unplug your life support. Ten times a day!’

"Hm? What are you mumbling about?" Yang Zhengwu’s ears twitched. ’Did I just hear something about unplugging my life support?’

...