Universe Infinite Canteen

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He Xiaoqian was frantically searching her phone for tomato stewed with scorpion meat.

Even though Ma Lu hadn't set any work standards for her, as a waitress she always thought of ways to strive to improve her professional level, hoping to decrease the negative service reviews for Universe Infinite Canteen a little.

By searching for related videos online and phoning to ask countrymen working in other hotels, she had learned quite a lot this week.

Especially since she had the day off yesterday, she even deliberately found a restaurant to work as an intern for free for the day, which improved her service level considerably, particularly in assisting customers with ordering; He Xiaoqian felt she had begun to grasp the essentials.

However, today she came back to work full of confidence, only to be dumbfounded again by Ma Lu's whimsical menu.

As a waitress at Universe Infinite Canteen, He Xiaoqian found she knew absolutely nothing about the stall's signature dishes.

Moreover, even after scouring the entire internet, she couldn't find tomato stewed with scorpion meat, making it impossible to describe to customers what the dish tasted like, what its selling points were, who it was suitable for, and why it could be sold for such a high price.

He Xiaoqian really wanted to ask Ma Lu, but he was clearly also very busy at the moment, already turned to interview students who came in for part-time work.

Today Shen Yue couldn't make it because of class, and it was a sophomore boy and a freshman girl who came to help in the shop.

They were both students from Aerospace University, and Ma Lu was rather protective of his juniors, offering them an hourly wage of 50 yuan, one-and-a-half times higher than McDonald's, and it included two meals as well.

The girl obviously came from a less affluent family, using a phone model that was 5 or 6 years old, while the boy, in terms of clothing and dress, didn't really stand out, just typical university student level.

Ma Lu had some impression of him, thought for a moment and said, "Wait, are you that... Little Snail?"

"Yes, senior," the boy said shyly.

"Why aren't you continuing to chase your goddess and instead are working here?"

"I'm out of money," Little Snail admitted, "And Jia Yu has a boyfriend now, the president of the student council, Gao Zhen, good-looking and plays basketball well. Jia Yu told me we should stop contacting each other to avoid misunderstandings with Gao Zhen."

The latter half of what Little Snail said was tinged with a noticeable touch of melancholy.

Ma Lu patted him on the shoulder, consoling, "It doesn't matter, old things must go before new ones can come. Believe in yourself; you deserve better.

"Besides, if you take a closer look, your appearance is not bad, and you have a good personality, there should still be quite a few girls who would like you. I'll ask Shen Yue later to see if there's a suitable junior for you."

"No need, no need," Little Snail hurriedly waved his hands, his face flushed red, "I still want to wait and see... if Jia Yu and Gao Zhen will break up."

"..."n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

"Alright then, up to you." Ma Lu said to the girl, "Wu Peipei, you're in charge of cash collection and invoicing. Do you know how to use the cash register, fill out, and print invoices?"

"Uh..."

"Xiaoqian, teach her later. Little Snail..."

Little Snail hurriedly said, "My name is Xue Hao... Of course, senior, if you think Little Snail rolls off the tongue, it's also fine to call me that."

"Your job is to serve the guests in the front hall, clean up, and if you don't know what to do, find Xiaoqian and follow her instructions.

"Slacking off or loafing around and there will be no next time. Do well, and there's a bonus after ten days. Understood?" Ma Lu looked at the two newbies.

"Understood." Little Snail and the girl said together.

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"Very good," Ma Lu glanced at the wall clock, noting that less than a minute remained until 11 o'clock. He then checked on Old Wang's preparation progress in the kitchen to ensure everything was ready

before returning to the front hall and clapping his hands, "All right, let's open for business."

Upon hearing this, He Xiaoqian quickly put down her phone, flipped the "Closed" sign on the inside of the doorknob to "Open," and then opened the restaurant's main door.

While she opened the door, Ma Lu remembered something else and addressed Wu Peipei, who was already stationed behind the cash register.

"Oh, and about that beaver copper statue on the table, don't touch it unless necessary. Although it's not worth a lot, it's something I'm very fond of. I'm a hardcore beaver enthusiast, and I also have objectophilia, so you understand my special feelings for that statue, right?"

"Uh, okay... okay, senior," stuttered Wu Peipei.

Universe Infinite Canteen may not have received unanimous praise like The Universe's Number One Snack Stall, but it was this controversy that piqued many people's curiosity, compelling them to test it with their own taste buds.

Even though it was already the second week since opening, the flow of customers hadn't significantly lessened, with some people arriving to queue up before the doors even opened.

After all, Ma Lu had made it clear that each day's dishes were limited in quantity, and those who came late might indeed miss out.

The first customer of the day turned out to be a familiar face—Hou Yihan, known as Little Monkey.

She burst into the shop and shouted, "Boss, boss, I've saved up enough money. Serve me up a portion of your signature Fragrant Yearning Konjac Noodles!"

He Xiaoqian, who had gone forward to greet her, apologized hastily, "I'm sorry, customer, but the Fragrant Yearning Konjac Noodles are no longer for sale."

"What?"

"Would you like to take a look at the new menu?"

"Where is the new menu?" Hou Yihan asked.

He Xiaoqian pointed to the small blackboard nearby.

To He Xiaoqian's surprise, Hou Yihan's eyes lit up when she saw the dishes listed there, but as she saw the prices, she inhaled sharply.

He Xiaoqian expected her to complain about the price like the other diners, but to her surprise, Hou Yihan muttered, "Scorpions, huh? That's actually pretty reasonable."

"Ah, so would you like to order a portion?"

Hou Yihan stuck out her tongue, "I can't afford that. Maybe next week, I'll save up a bit more money. No, wait, you're going to change the menu again next week, aren't you? Just like when you started out selling from a stall—isn't it going to get more expensive?"

"That won't happen," Ma Lu said. "I'll set the prices based on ingredient costs and the taste of the dishes, ensuring they are fair."

No sooner had he spoken than a chorus of boos followed.

The patrons who entered afterward also noticed the numbers on the small blackboard and began to complain, "It's even more expensive than before, and why has the specialty dish changed to scorpions? Who would want to eat scorpions?"

Just as the crowd was buzzing with discussion, a Land Rover stopped outside the restaurant. A well-dressed woman alighted from the vehicle and walked straight into the shop, taking off her sunglasses and addressed He Xiaoqian.

"Give me ten servings of your what's-it Fragrant Yearning Konjac Noodles and some Konjac Cake to go."

After saying this, she praised, "Your food is truly nourishing; after eating it, my daughter works through her homework much faster. She even played the piano for two hours straight without feeling tired, and memorized more vocabulary words than usual."

"By the way, do you take meal reservations here? I can pay a down payment of twenty thousand in advance and have my driver come pick it up every day."