After pulling the car out, he first went to Suya Fitness Center to check in.
[Check-in successful: Ten days]
After checking in, Lin Jiang didn’t go to the Civil Affairs Bureau. Instead, he drove back to the noodle shop.
’Given Chen Jingjia’s current condition, she can’t go to the Civil Affairs Bureau. A lawsuit is the only option.’
It wasn’t even ten o’clock, but the shop was already eighty percent full.
Delivery drivers were constantly coming and going. It felt like people were just stuffing money into his pockets.
The other shops next door, however, were quiet and deserted, creating a stark contrast.
BZZZT—
Just as he arrived at the shop, he received a message from He Jing.
He Jing: "The mall’s management is coming for an inspection. The noodle shop will probably be a primary target, so pay attention to hygiene and the placement of your fire safety equipment."
He Jing had sent the same message three times, probably worried he wouldn’t see it right away.
Lin Jiang: "Got it."
After replying, Lin Jiang glanced around.
The hygiene was impeccable, and the back kitchen was in great shape. Never mind the mall’s management; even an inspector from the city’s market supervision bureau wouldn’t be able to find a single fault.
’All in all, it’s not a big deal.’
Still, the whole thing felt very strange.
’An inspection before ten in the morning? It feels very targeted.’
’That means Wang Chunmin’s inspection yesterday definitely wasn’t random.’
’As for who’s pulling the strings... I guess I’ll find out by seeing who’s leading the inspection team today.’
[Boss has appeared. Please be on guard.]
Seeing the sudden notification, Lin Jiang’s expression turned serious. But before he could even look for the "Boss," he heard Li Yuanyuan’s voice.
"Brother Jiang! Brother Jiang! Someone’s heading our way."
"Don’t panic. Just keep working as usual. You don’t have to do anything."
Lin Jiang figured he’d guessed right. The prompt meant the "Boss" was the person leading the inspection.
CREAK—
The noodle shop’s back door, which led into the mall, was pushed open. Lin Jiang glanced at the group that entered—a dozen or so people, men and women alike, all dressed in sharp business attire and radiating an air of authority.
Among the crowd, he saw He Jing and Wang Chunmin, though their expressions were worlds apart.
The woman leading them was in her forties.
She wore a skirt that fell below her knees and a white silk blouse with the top button undone, perfectly showcasing her fair neck and a jade necklace.
Lin Jiang didn’t recognize the woman at all, nor did he recognize most of the executives behind her.
[Boss Appeared]
[Boss Name: Liu Jinting]
[Defeat Condition: Make her leave Berkeley Mall and offer you a sincere apology.]
[Defeat Reward: Pure Yang Physique, 40 EXP]
The system automatically tagged Liu Jinting—the woman leading the group!
"Managers..."
Seeing Lin Jiang make no move, Li Yuanyuan steeled herself and went over to greet them.
"Mm."
Liu Jinting nodded, her gaze shifting to Lin Jiang with a hint of dissatisfaction.
Lin Jiang smiled and nodded in return but didn’t stand up.
"You must be the owner of the noodle shop, Lin Jiang."
The speaker was the director of the operations center, a man named Li Dong. He walked politely over to Lin Jiang and made the introduction.
"This is the mall’s general manager, Liu Jinting, President Liu."
Lin Jiang smiled and nodded. "President Liu."
Liu Jinting’s expression remained unmoved, as stern and cold as a block of ice.
’Fucking ice queen.’
"Yuanyuan, management is here for an inspection. Why don’t you show them around."
"Got it, Brother Jiang."
The dozen or so people in the group had mixed expressions. The top leader of the mall shows up, and he just sends a waitress to handle them? What was that supposed to mean?
"I heard there was a significant dispute over a fire safety issue yesterday. That a lawyer even got involved?" Liu Jinting said impassively.
"You’ll have to ask Manager Wang about that." Lin Jiang said, smiling at Wang Chunmin.
"What exactly is the problem with our noodle shop? Perhaps Manager Wang can tell us in no uncertain terms?"
Wang Chunmin looked flustered. He hadn’t expected Lin Jiang to bring the matter up again.
"I-It’s just..."
After stammering for a while, Wang Chunmin couldn’t come up with a clear explanation. "It’s just that... there’s an issue with the ventilation duct."
"The ventilation duct’s design is the same as it’s always been. There wasn’t a problem before, so why is there a problem now?"
Lin Jiang slapped his thigh. "Ah, I get it now! Was the little something I gave you not enough? You thought it was beneath you, so now you’re here to cause trouble? Just look at this whole mess."
Lin Jiang opened the cash register and pulled out all the cash inside, right down to the last coin.
"Everyone pays by phone these days, so I don’t have much cash on hand. It’s a little over 3,000 yuan in total. You take this for now, and I’ll transfer you another 7,000. Got to make it a nice, round number, right?"
"Don’t talk nonsense!"
Wang Chunmin was so scared he nearly pissed himself. Even though he was just following orders, having something like this thrown in his face so publicly was more than anyone could bear.
"It’s because there are new regulations, different from before! That’s why we came to do an inspection."
"The problem is, you came to shut down my shop, but you can’t even produce these supposed ’new regulations.’ That makes you the one in the wrong, doesn’t it?"
Wang Chunmin was so frightened his legs started shaking. He stammered and stuttered, unable to get a single word out for a long moment.
Just then, Li Dong leaned in and whispered something to Liu Jinting. Her expression remained blank.
"We’ll deal with this matter back at the office."
With that, Liu Jinting glanced around the shop. "You’ve done a nice job with this place. You’ve really brought in a lot of foot traffic. If you need anything in the future, don’t hesitate to ask. The mall will give you its full support."
"Thank you, President Liu."
Without another word, Liu Jinting led her group away, and the little shop grew quiet once more.
"Brother Jiang, you exposed Wang Chunmin like that," Li Yuanyuan said. "Do you think he’ll get even more aggressive from now on?"

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