"You all carry on. I’m going to take a break." Su Chen said to everyone before heading back to his office.

The 660 from lunch was a pleasant surprise. The 3,000-plus from dinner was a shock.

Even though at this rate it would still be difficult to earn 150,000 by the end of the month, everything was heading in the right direction.

What’s more, Bai Xiaobo already had orders for the next day, and the headcount was no smaller than today’s.

The only slight disappointment was the price per customer!

Su Chen was also pondering this issue. Based on the clue from Liu Shengnan, this new wave of customers had started appearing right after Li Mingtao brought his group to eat.

Their requests for meals also had a common theme: affordability.

He had reason to believe they were indeed employees from a company in the building across the street.

But why would Li Mingtao be connected to people from the company across the street? Besides, Su Chen had clearly heard customers call him "Director Li" on several occasions, so they obviously knew about his position as an office director.

Su Chen decided not to dwell on things he couldn’t figure out.

The next problem he needed to tackle was the price per customer.

Currently, because the customers were all employees from the company across the street, they only wanted standard work lunches.

Fish with Pickled Cabbage, Garlic Eggplant, Flash-fried Noodles, and Pork Knuckle Buns were basically enough to satisfy their needs.

This was also why the average check couldn’t go up. At first glance, the restaurant seemed packed, but in reality, each person wasn’t spending much at all.

Rashly raising prices was a cardinal sin in the restaurant industry!

’I’ll have to introduce some new dishes...’

After much thought, Su Chen set two small goals for himself.

First, develop a few new dishes priced at 68 or more.

Second, if possible, starting tomorrow he needed to get Bai Xiaobo and the others more involved in the cooking process. This would free him up even more.

With these thoughts settled, Su Chen leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes.

...

At that very moment, someone else was in the exact same posture as Su Chen.

Ling Shuyu!

After returning to the office, Ling Shuyu was supposed to continue reviewing client files. Then, once her department colleagues got back, she planned to hold a meeting before they all worked overtime to finalize the proposal.

She had just turned on her computer when she rubbed her stomach.

After six or seven years of skipping dinner, her stomach felt truly stuffed from suddenly eating so much.

’I can work lying down.’

So, Ling Shuyu settled into a comfortable position, placed her laptop on her legs, and reclined.

’Eating so much is making me drowsy... I’ll set a ten-minute alarm. A quick nap should help me feel more refreshed.’

Before she knew it, her breathing grew steady. She didn’t even hear her phone’s alarm when it went off.

When Zhang Li and her colleagues returned to the office, they all dutifully began working overtime to finalize the proposal.

In truth, the two proposals for the client had already been polished a week ago. But under Ling Shuyu, everyone was used to pulling an all-nighter before a submission.

Midnight.

Most of her colleagues had already left. Zhang Li gently pushed open the director’s office door.

’Sister Ling is still asleep...’

After a moment’s thought, Zhang Li placed the takeout containers of fish with pickled cabbage and garlic eggplant on Ling Shuyu’s desk. She turned off the air conditioning, draped a blanket over Ling Shuyu, and switched off the light.

"Sigh... The boss hasn’t had a proper night’s sleep in so long. Just get some real rest here at the office."

After Zhang Li left, all the lights on Xinghui Company’s floor went out.

Three in the morning.

"COUGH COUGH..." Ling Shuyu rolled over, trying to find some water to drink, but she lost her balance and nearly fell to the floor.

’Did ten minutes go by that fast? It feels like I just fell asleep.’

Ruffling her hair, Ling Shuyu used the glow of her phone screen to get to her feet. She was a little puzzled. ’Why are all the lights off?’

CLICK!

The lights flickered on. Ling Shuyu squinted, her eyes habitually drawn to her phone screen.

3:18?

Gasp! ’Seriously?’

’Did I really sleep from seven at night until past three in the morning?’

’This...’

She looked out of her office again. The entire design department—no, the entire company—was completely empty!

"Aargh!" Ling Shuyu clutched at her scalp in frustration. "We were supposed to work overtime, and I slept straight through it! Zhang Li has really been slacking lately! After eating so much, you’d think she’d know to wake me up!"

Waking up at this hour always left one with a strange sense of emptiness. She could try to go back to sleep, but she’d already had enough. She probably wouldn’t be able to anyway.

But not sleeping—just lying here waiting for the sun to rise—was even worse!

Frustrated, Ling Shuyu made herself a cup of coffee. Her gaze landed on her desk. "What’s this?"

She opened the plastic bag and took a closer look.

It was the fish with pickled cabbage Zhang Li had packed for her, along with the garlic eggplant she hadn’t gotten enough of and a container of rice.

"Tsk. You’re thoughtful, I’ll give you that. I won’t chew you out tomorrow. And I do seem to be a little hungry." 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

She casually transferred the food into her own bowl and put it in the microwave. Of course, this was a privilege reserved for Ling Shuyu.

If she was the one using the microwave in the office, no one would dare to stop her.

A few moments later.

Ling Shuyu set up a small table in front of the floor-to-ceiling window. She spread the blanket she had been using on the floor and sat down with the steaming fish with pickled cabbage, rice, and a side of garlic eggplant.

Gazing out at the pitch-black Development Zone, she took her first bite of the garlic eggplant.

"I wonder where the restaurant across the street found their chef. If push comes to shove, I should have the General Affairs Office see if we can poach them."

Ling Shuyu reflected that over the years, her work had required her to dine at countless high-end restaurants. And while she didn’t eat much, she had a discerning palate. She had never tasted eggplant this unique before.

It wasn’t like Sichuan cuisine, nor was it like Lu Cuisine, yet it was more delicious than both.

During dinner, she had been so surprised that she’d finished it before she could properly savor the taste.

This time, she would savor every bite!

A bite of eggplant mixed with some rice, followed by a spoonful of the hot and sour fish soup.

"Mmm~ Divine!"

Even Zhang Li, her closest assistant, had never seen this side of Ling Shuyu.

A meal at three in the morning was a thing of beauty!

...

"Are you nuts?"

「Delicious」

Su Chen rolled over in frustration, pulling the covers over his head to try and get back to sleep. But the glaring notification in his mind was impossible to ignore.

"Three a.m.? Who the hell eats at three in the morning! You have got to be... wait!" Su Chen shot upright. "This person is eating, so why am I getting experience points? Are they eating my food?"

[Deliciousness Value from Unknown Diner +1000]

’System, can you block these notifications?’

"..."

The system’s notifications were the type to just pop into his head, like a song getting stuck on repeat.

Completely beyond his control!

Su Chen sat there for a while before finally giving up. He got out of bed, turned on the light, brewed a cup of herbal tea, and stood by the window, gazing out at the city.

"Since I can’t sleep, I might as well have some tea to clear my head and work on some new dishes."

’I have to hurry up and release some higher-priced dishes. I’ll never hit my 150,000-a-month goal just by selling work lunches to the employees in the building across the street.’

’The building across the street?’

Huh?

Su Chen’s gaze drifted across the street.

’Is that a person sitting by the window over there?’