"The cops are here?"
Lin Jiang was a little curious, so he also went out to watch the commotion.
He saw a large crowd gathered at the entrance of the Spring Harmony Noodle Shop. The most conspicuous were two police officers in their midst.
At this point, Zhou Chengrong, Wu Liping, and Zhang Guofu had also come out.
"Officer, please let us explain. Everything we sell is made with genuine ingredients. We get fresh ingredients every day. It’s absolutely impossible for there to be a problem. You can go inside and check if you don’t believe us."
"But more than one person has reported that after eating your noodles, they went home and suffered from vomiting and diarrhea."
The middle-aged officer glanced at the woman beside him, who was clutching her stomach, and said,
"Right now, it’s not just her and her two children. Her younger brother has been hospitalized. Do you think this is a coincidence?"
"I think it is. But I’ll say it again: you can inspect anything in our shop. Maybe they ate something else that made them sick. You can’t pin the blame on us," Zhou Chengrong argued.
"Fine. We’ll go in and have a look."
Zhou Chengrong, acting fearlessly, welcomed the two officers inside.
Everyone else stayed outside to watch the drama unfold, their gossip-loving spirits running high.
"Brother Jiang, do you think they bought substandard ingredients to cut costs?" Li Yuanyuan asked.
"He’s been in business for so many years. He knows how strict the regulations are. It’s unlikely he’d do something like that."
"So it’s really a coincidence? These people ate something else that upset their stomachs?"
"That’s a possibility, but a very slim one." Lin Jiang thought for a moment before adding,
"It’s more likely there was some procedural mistake, or something unsanitary was accidentally dropped into the pot, and that caused this mess."
Lin Jiang was something of an authority on the matter, because he had done the exact same thing himself.
He’d once carelessly tossed a chicken that wasn’t fresh into a pot, making several people throw up. He ended up paying a lot of money to settle the matter.
Zhou Chengrong’s shop was probably in a similar situation.
"Brother Jiang, let’s get a closer look."
Li Yuanyuan was eager for a front-row seat to the drama. She pulled Lin Jiang right to the shop’s entrance, securing the VIP seats for the show.
"Officers, take a look. All our ingredients are here. This is the pot for the chicken broth."
Zhou Chengrong magnanimously showed them everything in the back kitchen.
The two officers looked around. The back kitchen wasn’t exceptionally tidy, but overall, it was quite good. They couldn’t find any faults from a hygiene perspective.
"This is the broth base for the chicken noodle soup, right?"
The middle-aged officer asked, pointing to a large stainless steel pot.
"Yes, it’s all made from whole chickens. Go on, have a taste if you don’t believe me."
To get to the bottom of things, the middle-aged officer didn’t hesitate.
He picked up a disposable takeout spoon, scooped up a small amount, and tasted it.
"Hmm? Why does your chicken broth taste different from other places?"
"We add our own secret blend of seasonings, so of course the flavor is different."
Zhou Chengrong looked proud and confident.
"It hasn’t simmered long enough today. Come back and try it tomorrow, it’ll taste even better."
"What’s in the secret blend of seasonings?"
Many shops had so-called secret recipes, so the officer didn’t think much of it and just asked casually.
"It’s just a few Chinese medicinal herbs. Adding them to the chicken broth brings out all the flavors and makes it more savory."
The middle-aged officer nodded, not taking it too seriously.
Adding Chinese medicinal herbs to broth wasn’t a new concept. Even many hot pot restaurants did it, claiming it made the meal healthier.
"Huh?"
Just then, the younger officer noticed a bag of Chinese medicine on the floor.
"Are these the medicinal herbs you added?"
"Ah, yes."
Although these things were not to be revealed, they were the police, and given what had happened, he couldn’t keep it a secret.
The young officer crouched down and looked at the bag of herbs on the floor, his expression turning a bit strange.
"Are you sure you didn’t use the wrong ones?"
"Huh? What do you mean?"
"Aren’t these herbs for treating menstrual cramps? My wife was prescribed medicine for her cramps a few days ago, and it was these exact ones. You put this stuff in your soup to boil? How could that be right?"
"Huh? Medicine for menstrual cramps?"
The three of them—Zhou Chengrong and the others—were dumbfounded, their heads buzzing.
Especially Wu Liping. Even with her lack of common sense, she knew you couldn’t just add those things to the soup.
"They were closed for three days, did they fry their brains? How could you put something for women’s problems in the soup?" Li Yuanyuan said.
"It is a bit bizarre."
Lin Jiang rubbed his chin. The level of absurdity in this situation was higher than he had imagined.
Inside the shop, the middle-aged officer walked over to the stainless steel pot, used a strainer to fish around inside, and sure enough, he saw the same herbs from the bag. His expression instantly soured.
"Brother Zhang, I just looked it up online. Danshen, motherwort, and safflower—they’re all for treating menstrual cramps."
Lin Jiang: ???
’Why do those herbs sound so familiar?’
Now that he knew the truth, the middle-aged officer’s expression was particularly ugly.
"What were you all thinking? Adding this stuff to your chicken broth? How are you even running a noodle shop?"
The three were speechless. Zhou Chengrong turned to Zhang Guofu, his face contorted with rage.
"Master Zhang, what is going on?! Didn’t you say this was a secret recipe? Why did it turn out like this?!"
"I... I just learned it from someone else. I don’t know what happened either..."
Zhang Guofu’s face was ashen. He was completely stunned.
’This was clearly Lin Jiang’s recipe! How did it turn out so different when I used it?!’
Standing at the entrance, Lin Jiang had a sudden realization.
’Holy shit!’
’No wonder those herbs sounded so familiar. That old coot Zhang Guofu... he couldn’t have taken Qin Youyou’s prescription for her period and used it as his secret recipe, could he?’
’I never thought I’d meet a rival in the race to be the biggest idiot.’
"Starting now, your shop is to be closed for rectification. You will also have to pay a fine. As for any other penalties, we will coordinate with the market supervision and administration department and contact you accordingly."
"Un-understood."
The two officers left. Zhou Chengrong clenched his fists, so furious he felt like his head would explode. He kicked Zhang Guofu.
"Look at the fucking mess you’ve made! I’m ruined because of you!"
Zhang Guofu looked aggrieved, but he didn’t dare talk back after being hit.
"I... I really didn’t know it would be like this..."
PFFT—
Li Yuanyuan couldn’t hold it in and burst out laughing.
Hearing the laughter, Zhou Chengrong saw Lin Jiang and Li Yuanyuan at the entrance.
"Ah, sorry about that. Please, continue your bizarre performance. We won’t disturb you."
Lin Jiang suppressed his laughter and led Li Yuanyuan back to their shop.
To confirm his suspicion, Lin Jiang opened Qin Youyou’s bag of Chinese medicine to take a look.
The prescription on it was exactly the same as what the officer had described.
Lin Jiang didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. He even felt a little sorry for Zhou Chengrong.
’I haven’t even made my move yet, and he’s already about to be taken down.’

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