Chapter 25: The Restaurant in Trouble

"Cheers!"
A restaurant near Tianhai University—only about a hundred meters from the university’s main gate. At this very moment, He Tian, Wang Xinrou, Ouyang Bingbing, Li Yingying, and Lin Ying were having dinner together.

After their discussion back in the dorm, Wang Xinrou had made a suggestion, quickly seconded by Ouyang Bingbing, Li Yingying, and Lin Ying. He Tian, however, had been stripped of any say in the matter. And so, here they were, holding their little dinner gathering.

To accommodate the ladies, only juice was served. To be honest, He Tian found it rather dull—he would have preferred a bit of alcohol. In his eyes, the four girls were absolute lunatics. But as he listened to their conversation at the table, he gradually realized something else—they were not mad, but truly capable.

At the very least, he learned that, apart from Ouyang Bingbing, who lacked any family background or experience, both Lin Ying and Li Yingying had been exposed to this sort of business from a young age. Their families had dabbled in related ventures. Moreover, each of them spoke about their respective projects with clear insight and confidence. They certainly didn’t sound naïve.

Of course, the real test would be in the execution. But since He Tian had already handed over control of the funds to Wang Xinrou, he chose to keep his hands off the matter. He just focused on eating and listening.

It was Ouyang Bingbing who truly surprised him. This gentle-looking girl—according to Wang Xinrou—was a prodigy in the stock market. Ouyang herself even claimed her ambition was to become the Soros of the East.

Well, they were undeniably bold—but not recklessly so. This conclusion made He Tian even less inclined to interfere. He even considered whether he should add his own fifteen million dollars and nearly ten million yuan to the pot. But after some thought, he decided against it. Better to keep that as a safety net for them. Starting a business is never easy; how many succeed on their first try?

He Tian might have seemed like an afterthought, but in reality, he had successfully integrated into their circle—after all, the money was his. In truth, he was the real boss behind the scenes. Especially with Ouyang Bingbing, who appeared to have completely forgotten their earlier unpleasantness, which He Tian found quite gratifying.

Still, from time to time, the image of that scene would flash through his mind, especially when Ouyang Bingbing was nearby, making him itch with curiosity. Fortunately, he managed to restrain himself; otherwise, Wang Xinrou would have surely exploded.

"Did you see that? This restaurant’s business isn’t great, right? I’m telling you, if I took over, it would never be like this!" Lin Ying, excited, let her guard down. To her, He Tian was no stranger, and any reservations had vanished.

"Where’s Boss Yang? Come out here!" Lin Ying was just getting started when a loud shout echoed from outside.

"Leopard!"

"So, have you made up your mind?"

"Leopard, your price really puts me in a tough spot!"

"Tough spot?" came a cold, menacing voice, followed by a loud crash as something was smashed.

"Boss Yang, I’ll give you three more days to think about it. If you still can’t decide by then, don’t blame me for what happens next. Let’s go!"

He Tian chuckled, stood up, and looked out the window on the second floor, seeing a group of burly men leaving the restaurant.

"Lin Ying, now I finally understand why, despite such a good location and decent food and service, this place is struggling," he said, turning to her.

Lin Ying, standing by the window, nodded. "Just a bunch of thugs! All they have to do is call the police!" she said through gritted teeth.

"Don’t you think Boss Yang has thought of that? It’s useless. So, do you still have the confidence to run this restaurant well?" He Tian asked with a smile.

"Absolutely!" Lin Ying replied without hesitation. "This is just a minor problem. Without these entanglements, I’d definitely do better than Boss Yang!"

"Good! Go talk to Boss Yang right now—tell him you’re ready to take over the restaurant immediately. As for those thugs, leave them to me. I’ll be waiting to see how you handle the rest of the business," He Tian said with a light laugh.

"You…" Lin Ying looked at He Tian, a little incredulous.

He Tian only smiled.

Wang Xinrou could barely contain herself. "What’s a bunch of thugs? Just leave them to Brother He Tian! Lin Ying, go negotiate now and try to get the lowest possible price. Come on, we’ll go with you!" She knew He Tian’s abilities—such trouble was nothing to him.

Lin Ying took a deep breath. "Let’s go!" She adjusted her demeanor and strode out in front.

The main hall of the restaurant was a mess, the earlier customers long gone. A man in his forties was sighing, a woman beside him nagging.

"Enough! Let’s go. We’ll just accept our losses!" Boss Yang suddenly snapped at the woman.

"What are you yelling at me for? If you’ve got guts, yell at them instead!" she retorted. She was Boss Yang’s wife—feisty with her own but powerless against the thugs.

"Boss Yang!" Lin Ying greeted him with a smile as she approached.

"You’re here to settle the bill, right?" Boss Yang forced a smile at her.

"No, Boss Yang. I want to take over your restaurant. Name your price," Lin Ying said directly.

"Student, you’re from Tianhai University, right? Don’t joke around," Boss Yang replied, waving her off.

"I’m serious, Boss Yang," Lin Ying insisted.

"You really want to take over?" Boss Yang’s wife, however, believed her.

"Auntie, yes," Lin Ying nodded.

"You’ve seen the location—rent’s paid for another year and a half, and all the equipment is included. Seventy thousand, all at once," the woman said.

"Auntie, I just witnessed what happened. I’m sure that so-called Leopard offered you much less. Without his interference, seventy thousand wouldn’t be too much. But now, wouldn’t you say that price is a bit optimistic?" Lin Ying replied calmly.

"Student, you name a price," Boss Yang said, realizing she was serious.

"Fifty thousand," Lin Ying said, chopping twenty thousand off the price. "Seventy thousand is the top price. To be honest, business wasn’t great even before Leopard started causing trouble. I don’t want to take advantage of you, and I’ll handle the thug problem. Fifty thousand is fair."

"Fifty thousand is really too low! We’d lose a fortune!" Boss Yang wailed. "If it weren’t for Leopard, I wouldn’t sell for even a hundred thousand!"

"Boss Yang, you’re calculating with the wrong numbers. Times change, and so do prices. Fifty thousan