Due to Benben's muddled words, Chen Mo was forced to spend three hours explaining why his uncle and aunt had fought to the point of disrobing.
It wasn't until after two in the morning that he finally managed to coax little Xun'er to sleep, and then, exhausted, he himself fell into a hazy slumber.
However, the pleasant dreams did not last long. As the morning sunlight streamed through the window, the bustling sounds from outside the door stirred him from his sleep, bringing with it a sense of irritation.
Rubbing his eyes groggily, Chen Mo staggered to the window, only to be stunned by the scene before him.
It seemed that Jiadie's dollars had worked wonders. The walls of the Lucky Hotel were fully repaired, with no trace of the damage left visible.
But that was not the main point. What truly caught his attention was the crowd gathered at the entrance, giving the impression of a lottery draw about to take place.
"Uh, is someone here to steal the bride?" Though he had anticipated various scenarios, the sight of this chaotic, market-like scene still left him greatly surprised.
In his view, Ye Rong, clad in a bathrobe, was standing at the door, barely holding back the enthusiastic crowd: "Everyone! We don't open until noon... What? Just a bowl of porridge? Surely, your home has breakfast, right?"
"What's going on?" Chen Mo, exasperated, lit a cigarette and walked out, almost as if walking into a trap.
The moment they saw him, Ye Rong's face lit up as though she had discovered a gold ingot, and she hurried over.
"Thank heavens! I thought I was going to lose my mind!" Without waiting for Chen Mo to speak, she quickly urged, "Start cooking, start cooking! Don't say anything, just get a few hundred dishes out to get this over with!"
Pushed by Ye Rong into the restaurant, Chen Mo glanced around at the familiar faces, finally piecing together what was happening. In fact, he didn't even need to guess—those eager customers had already provided all the answers.
"Little Brother Chen, quickly get some dishes for us to try..." At the same time, a middle-aged man, familiar with the place, squeezed his way over. "I thought about it all night and decided, I'll just come here for breakfast, why bother with anything else!"
Clearly, this middle-aged man wasn't the only one with such a thought. Before Ye Rong could even open the door, people were already rushing in to claim seats. Many didn't even bother with ordering; they just shouted to be served whatever was available.
Ye Rong smiled broadly, her eyes almost disappearing, and whispered to Chen Mo, "Little Mo, make the most expensive dishes... hehe, I just bought a few pounds of abalone yesterday!"
"Uh, Rong Jie, you're really ruthless. Truly, the most venomous woman's heart!" Chen Mo helplessly adjusted his glasses, almost wanting to give a thumbs up in admiration.
While hurriedly tying on an apron, he instinctively glanced at the neighboring restaurant and hesitated, "By the way, has Jiadie come out to steal business this morning?"
"Nope, probably shaken by my aura of dominance!" Ye Rong snorted somewhat jealously, but immediately regained her radiant smile. "Quick, get to work! I'll go get more ingredients. By the way, what's the price of Tianjiu wings right now? I'll buy a few tons!"
"Ugh! Do you think you're buying cabbage?" Chen Mo could only shake his head helplessly as Ye Rong hurried away, before he turned and grabbed a pot, heading for the kitchen, instructing it to start cooking.
As he brushed his teeth, washed his face, and changed his clothes, Ye Rong came running back, her face beaming with excitement, "Mo Mo, that whole roasted beef was made by you yesterday, right?"
"Uh..." Seeing Ye Rong's beaming face, Chen Mo suddenly had a bad feeling.
Sure enough, she casually nodded, "I noticed there wasn't much meat this morning, so I had Lin Lin and the others slice it into beef for the customers!"
"Poof!" Chen Mo nearly choked on his mouthwash. Forgetting to wipe the foam from his mouth, he quickly rushed into the dining hall.
By the time he arrived, the customers had already begun feasting, with some having already finished several plates of beef.
Upon seeing Chen Mo rush in, the middle-aged man immediately gave a thumbs up and loudly praised, "Little Brother Chen, this beef is really well roasted. I've already had three plates!"
Fine, when Chen Mo heard this, he suddenly felt dizzy. But the real shock came next.
Hearing the middle-aged man's comment, several other diners shook their heads, saying, "No, no! Brother Chen's cooking is flawless, but I think the quality of this beef is excellent... It's chewy and aromatic, could this be the legendary Kobe beef?"
In an instant, the customers were engaged in a passionate discussion about the beef's unique flavor.
Chen Mo's heart filled with tears, thinking, how could this beef not be amazing?
What was it? It was a cow demon that had cultivated for centuries. If the meat wasn't perfect, that would truly be a miracle! It wasn't an exaggeration to say that the spiritual energy in just one slice of this beef was probably worth more than the entire nutritional value of a whole Kobe cow!
"Die for a worthy cause! Die for a worthy cause!" Chen Mo mourned in his heart for the soul of the golden-horned beast and silently prayed, "Brother, if you're watching from above, take revenge on them!"
But before he could finish his prayer, Ye Rong came running over with a broad grin, patting his shoulder, "Mo Mo, where did you get this beef? You can't waste it like this... let me think!"
"Uh, what are you planning to do?" Chen Mo asked, exasperated, staring at her. "It's already roasted; there's nothing else we can do with it!"
"What's the difference if it's roasted? We can cook it again!" Ye Rong seemed to be an atheist, a cold sneer escaping her lips. "Got it! Tonight, let's offer beef hotpot, beef bone stir-fry, clear-braised oxtail, braised beef penis... one cow, ten dishes!"
Well. If the golden-horned demon was watching from above, it must have been crying at this moment. This is what they meant by "the whole cow is a treasure"!
However, Ye Rong's speech didn't end there. She added, "By the way, I think the cowhide can be used to make belts... it's really such a good thing! Little Mo Mo, get a few more of these cows in the future!"
"Ugh! Where am I supposed to find them?" Chen Mo shrugged helplessly, no longer interested in arguing.
At that very moment, Nuonuo, ever so considerate, whispered from his pocket, "Boss, that's easy! Doesn't Xun'er want to slay demons and exterminate monsters? We can just follow her and collect the bodies, set up a sign for corpse retrieval!"
As if summoned by fate, before Nuonuo's words had even finished, little Xun'er appeared at the door, still in her pink nightgown, her eyes heavy with sleep.
The sight of this delicate little girl left the entire room suddenly quiet. All eyes were focused on her, and even the fashion-conscious office workers couldn't help but whisper among themselves, "So cute! I just want to take her home and raise her!"
"Right, I almost forgot!" After a few seconds of stunned silence, Ye Rong suddenly seemed to remember something, slapping her forehead. "Mo Mo, when I came downstairs this morning, I saw you both snoring away... Tell me, you didn't just abduct her, did you? Human trafficking is very uncivilized!"
"I found her, okay?" Chen Mo shot Ye Rong a glare, and gently clapped his hands towards Xun'er.
Ye Rong blinked in confusion, thinking, "How could someone as adorable as her just be found? Maybe I should stroll around the streets more often!"
Despite her words, as a woman, she couldn't resist such cuteness. With a smile, she bent down, making an embracing gesture toward Xun'er.
"Don't want to!" Xun'er glared at Ye Rong and immediately ignored her smile, wrapping her arms around Chen Mo. "Auntie's a bad person, she woke me up! I want Daddy to hold me, and Daddy should make me breakfast!"
"Huh? Did I wake you?" Ye Rong was taken aback, her heart sinking as she thought, "Recently, Jiadie's been getting on my nerves, even my killer move's effectiveness has diminished."
But before she could finish, she suddenly froze, her eyes widening in disbelief as she stared at Chen Mo. "Wait! What did little Xun'er just say... 'Daddy'?"
At that moment, Chen Mo broke into a cold sweat, unsure of how to explain.
But the explanation wasn't needed anymore. As Xun'er looked up at him in his arms, she clearly repeated, "Daddy!"
In that instant, the entire room fell silent. Several people even dropped their beef onto the table.
In the eerie silence, Ye Rong suddenly shook, her eyes burning with fury, "My dear Little Mo Mo, don't you think you should explain something to me?"
"Uh... actually, it's quite simple!" Chen Mo, sensing danger, took three steps back, managing to force a smile, "This 'Daddy' is actually a term from the northwest