Chapter 108: Street Youths

Afterward, Jiang Hao took the initiative to help Su Qingli clean up. Much of the food Su Qingli had prepared for Zhang Liping and Su Bingming remained untouched. Jiang Hao dumped the leftovers straight into the trash and took the dishes to the kitchen to wash.

Su Qingli walked into the kitchen. After a brief hesitation, she whispered, "Jiang Hao, thank you."

Jiang Hao was momentarily taken aback, and then a warm, happy smile spread across his face. It seemed his relationship with Su Qingli was slowly mending, which was exactly what he had hoped for.

"By the way, I broke one of your tables earlier. I'll have someone come and replace it tomorrow," Jiang Hao said.

Su Qingli nodded, offering no further reply.

It was past ten in the evening. Su Qingli carried her bedding to the front of the restaurant, spread it out in an open space, and then slipped off her shoes to sit down.

Watching her prepare to turn in for the night, Jiang Hao scratched his head and asked helplessly, "Are you really going to sleep here instead of coming back to my place?"

"Yes," Su Qingli replied with a nod.

"Then I'll stay here to keep you company. Do you have any extra bedding?" Jiang Hao asked.

Su Qingli shook her head.

Jiang Hao felt a flash of awkwardness, but he quickly recovered. "It's fine if you don't. It doesn't matter to me—it's not cold anyway." As he spoke, he took off his jacket and spread it on the floor.

Seeing him prepare to sleep on the floor, Su Qingli let out a soft sigh. "You really don't have to go to such lengths... You should head back. Having you here will actually make it harder for me to rest."

When she saw Jiang Hao open his mouth to argue, she cut him off. "Just come back and see me tomorrow. It's not like I'm going to vanish overnight. There's no need to watch over me like this."

Since she had put it so bluntly, Jiang Hao could only nod in agreement.

The next morning, when Jiang Hao arrived at the restaurant, he noticed that the table he had broken the night before had already been replaced. Su Qingli was busy in the kitchen with two cooks, while the two college students working part-time as waitresses were busy attending to customers in the dining area.

Spotting Jiang Hao, the waitress he had chatted with the day before scurried over, a teasing smile on her face. "Boss, you're here! Did you come to see the boss's wife?"

"Yes, I came to check on her," Jiang Hao replied with a smile.

Stepping into the kitchen, he asked, "Qingli, do you need any help?"

"No, thank you," Su Qingli replied, shaking her head. She and the two cooks had organized the kitchen so meticulously that there was truly no room for Jiang Hao to pitch in.

Even so, Jiang Hao had no intention of leaving. He was already here, so why walk away? Besides, even if he couldn't help, just being present was better than being absent.

Seeing his reluctance to leave, Su Qingli sighed helplessly. "The dining room is getting busy. If you really want to help, go out front."

"Alright, I'll attend to the guests," Jiang Hao agreed with a smile.

There were far more customers today than the day before, making the dining area quite hectic. While serving the tables, Jiang Hao chatted with some customers and learned the reason: the incident yesterday—where a four-eyed rascal tried to plant a cockroach in his bowl to extort the restaurant—had been recorded on a phone by a bystander and uploaded online.

Thanks to the viral video, Su Qingli's restaurant, the Qingli Wellness Eatery, had gained sudden fame, drawing in crowds of curious diners. This was undoubtedly a blessing for Su Qingli, driving a surge in business, and Jiang Hao felt genuinely happy for her.

The day flew by, and night soon fell. The waitresses and the cooks finished their shifts and headed home, but Su Qingli showed no signs of stopping. Jiang Hao stayed behind to help her sweep up and prep ingredients for the next day.

"I never realized running a restaurant could be this exhausting," Jiang Hao remarked, wiping the sweat from his brow.

Su Qingli looked weary, yet a bright smile remained on her face. "It is tiring, but I still prefer this life. At least it's much better than being a department manager back at the Su family's herbal medicine company. Earning a living with my own two hands means I don't have to walk on eggshells around anyone, and I don't have all those headaches."

Jiang Hao nodded in silent agreement. Once all the chores were done, Su Qingli cooked two bowls of glass noodles, and they sat down together in the dining area to eat.

Eating the meal Su Qingli had prepared, Jiang Hao felt a deep warmth spread through his chest. Back when they lived under the roof of Su Bingming and Zhang Liping, she had never cooked for him; it had always been Jiang Hao preparing the meals. Now, savoring a dish made by his wife's own hands felt like one of life's greatest blessings.

Suddenly remembering something, Jiang Hao stood up. "Qingli, I brought you something."

"What is it?" she asked curiously.

Jiang Hao stepped out of the restaurant and walked over to his car—he had driven his Maserati today. Popping the trunk, he pulled out a single folding cot.

He carried the cot back inside and set it up, unfolding it with a smile. "I saw you sleeping on the floor last night. Even with the bedding, I was worried you'd catch a chill. So I made a trip to the furniture market today and picked this up for you. It's foldable, so you can set it up at night and tuck it away in a corner during the day. It won't take up any space at all."

Staring at the lightweight cot, Su Qingli felt a wave of warmth wash over her. A simple cot like this wasn't expensive—perhaps a hundred or two at most—but the fact that Jiang Hao had gone out of his way to find one for her spoke volumes about his care.

"Thank you, Jiang Hao," Su Qingli said, looking at him with earnest gratitude.

"Don't mention it, it's nothing expensive," Jiang Hao replied dismissively. Yet despite his casual tone, hearing her thank him brought a genuine swell of joy to his heart.

Just then, the restaurant's glass door was pushed open.

"I'm sorry, we're closed for the night," Su Qingli said, turning around.

But the moment she saw who had walked in, her face paled. The newcomers were no ordinary customers; they were a group of seven or eight ruffians armed with steel pipes and wooden clubs.

The youths all looked to be in their early twenties, their faces and arms covered in tattoos. Their hair was dyed in a riot of loud colors, their clothes were intentionally shredded and torn, and several wore metal rings through their ears and noses. One look at their getup made it clear they were up to no good. Most alarming of all were the weapons in their hands. No one carrying steel pipes and wooden clubs was here for a meal.

"Where's the boss? Who's the boss here? Get the fuck out here!" the leader, a youth with dyed yellow hair, bellowed. To emphasize his words, he slammed his steel pipe down onto a nearby table with a deafening clang.