Chapter 293: Stealing Guests, Taking First Place!

Although Chen Jianhai didn't get along well with Xu Yong and their personalities clashed, there were no major conflicts or significant interests at stake between them.

If anything, his assistant was Xu Yong's junior apprentice. Even without that connection, seeing an ordinary stranger lying in such a sorry state in a hospital bed would compel anyone to lend a helping hand.

Since Chen Jianhai saw Xu Yong, he heard the buzzing of Xu Yong's phone vibrating from his pants pocket from time to time. 

Although phones nowadays have about the same battery life,

no phone can withstand such constant use!

So,

Kind-hearted by nature, Chen Jianhai decided to extend a hand of friendship to help this unfortunate brother.

"Mr. Xu's phone is probably running out of battery. I'll go get him a charger from his place. You two keep an eye on him here."

Chen Jianhai yawned, ready to sneak back home to sleep.

"Boss…!" Wen Zifan called out to Chen Jianhai, "There are portable chargers for rent in the hospital."

"Portable chargers are not as good as the original charger," Chen Jianhai was so sleepy that he could barely keep his eyes open. It was almost 1 AM, and if he didn't sleep soon, he wouldn't be able to sleep at all.

Chen Jianhai asked Wen Zifan, "Are you coming with me?"

Wen Zifan looked worriedly at Xu Yong, but with the assistant there, it should be fine.

"I'll go with you."

As they left the hospital, Chen Jianhai initially wanted to hail a cab back to the hotel, but by the time they could catch a cab, they could have walked back.

After hesitating for a moment, Chen Jianhai reluctantly shrugged and said, "This way," then started walking toward the hotel.

"Boss, thank you." As they walked, Wen Zifan suddenly spoke.

Chen Jianhai, still groggy, replied, "Thank me for what? Thank me for giving you a raise this month?"

Wen Zifan sincerely said, "Thank you for helping my senior brother tonight."

Chen Jianhai raised an eyebrow, his gossip instincts igniting, "I thought you'd stay at the hospital to take care of him tonight."

Wen Zifan immediately responded, "He has an assistant with him, why should I stay to take care of him? Besides, he has a wife."

"Uh... well," Chen Jianhai felt a bit awkward. In his mind, Xu Yong had always been very attentive to this junior apprentice,

but Wen Zifan's attitude suggested they had no personal relationship.

"But aren't you two close? He was worried about your job when you were coming back to the country…" Chen Jianhai asked, puzzled.

"He owes me!" Wen Zifan rolled her eyes and said through gritted teeth, "If it wasn't for his nonsense, I would have returned home ages ago instead of dragging it out till now!"

Noticing that her expression was somewhat fierce,

Wen Zifan glanced at Chen Jianhai nonchalantly and said quietly, "But at least he found me a decent job, so we're even now."

"So... you two never had any romantic entanglements?" Chen Jianhai's pure eyes were filled with a quest for truth.

"Am I crazy? Have a romantic entanglement with him! I'm lucky he didn't screw me over more!" Wen Zifan looked disgusted, clearly indicating that her time studying abroad had been full of Xu Yong's mischief.

"But despite that, in critical moments, Senior Brother does step up."

Chen Jianhai nodded. In this regard, Xu Yong indeed had commendable qualities.

Back at the hotel, Chen Jianhai didn't even wash his face, kicked off his shoes, and collapsed into bed, falling asleep immediately.

As for bringing a charger to Xu Yong, he had long forgotten about it.

...

At the Beer Tent of Nanjing's Five-Star Hotels

Cui Meng, the chief assistant of Yue Mei Hotel's owner, looked at his restaurant area, took out his phone, snapped a few photos, and sent them to his ten bosses, then let out a long breath.

After rushing for days, they finally managed to set up the area two days before the beer festival.

The original yellow long tables were set up in rows, staggered, and tilted.

Without violating the association's requirement to avoid partitions, they had created a private and quiet dining environment for guests, cleverly separating it from the adjacent hotel dining area.

In the large open space, pink, green, and white sofas and tables were placed.

The bright, lively colors under the golden lights gave the decoration a classic, vintage feel.

To better highlight Yue Mei Hotel's Western cuisine culture,

numerous post-modern oil paintings and golden lamps were hung on the yellow benches. Wide-mouth, thin-stemmed glasses and silver utensils were neatly arranged on the tables, creating a transparent, pristine aesthetic.

At a glance, it didn't feel like a beer tent at all, but rather a prestigious restaurant with a hundred-year history.

The other dining areas had also completed their final touches today.

Now, there wasn't a trace of the beer festival inside the tent; it looked more like a high-end hotel restaurant exhibition.

Without even mentioning the food,

the visual art alone was worth the price of dozens of tickets.

"Hehehe, bit off more than you can chew, huh!"

Cui Meng happily sat on a pink sofa, looking at the high barriers erected by Lang Ai Hotel, his face full of schadenfreude.

The beer festival was the day after tomorrow.

The association required all hotel chefs to familiarize themselves with the venue tomorrow, and even the mayor was scheduled to inspect and offer greetings.

"There'll be a good show to watch then!"

Cui Meng listened to the clinking and drilling sounds coming from behind the barriers, feeling a sense of revenge.

Serves you right for being overly competitive!

Got yourself into a bind… Deserved it!

Tui!

...

Lang Ai Hotel's Kitchen

The twelve golden saints stood together, their feet surrounded by luggage bags, looking at Chen Jianhai with a determined expression.

Early tomorrow morning, they would head to the battlefield to compete with chefs from 42 other hotels.

Nervous, excited, eager to showcase their skills—all these emotions intertwined, the adrenaline rush speeding up their heartbeats, awakening their primal competitive instincts.

This feeling was both intoxicating and dangerously uncontrollable.

One careless move could lead to excessive zeal, complete failure, and tarnish the hotel's reputation.

Chen Jianhai stood in front of them, looking at their tense faces, and asked seriously, "Do you know the signature dishes of the other hotels?"

"Yes!" the saints responded in unison.

To better understand their competitors and win this competition, Xu Bo had led them to taste the signature dishes of all 43 hotels.

They had carefully noted which chefs liked to add sugar, which liked intricate knife work, and which liked spicy flavors.

"Good!" Chen Jianhai nodded in satisfaction and then asked, "Do you know your best dishes?"

"Yes!" the saints responded in unison again.

A chef doesn't need to be versatile. As long as they master one dish and perfect it, that's victory!

"Alright!" Chen Jianhai said seriously, "Know your enemy and yourself! Do you know what our goal is this time?"

"Steal guests! Take first place! Make them kneel and call us grandpa!"