Mu Jinyu's body pressed tightly against the wall in the dark alley, and only after seeing Gu Xiyan's car speed past did she finally relax.
"Phew!"
Mu Jinyu let out a long sigh of relief, silently feeling lucky.
That was really too dangerous. She almost got caught on the spot and had to pay Gu Xiyan back, which would have inevitably led to a beating.
Luckily, she sensed that things were going south and quickly made a run for it. Otherwise, it would have been truly dreadful!
It was just a shame about that set of clothes.
Mu Jinyu felt a bit regretful, but there was nothing she could do. Although the clothes were comfortable, they were not really valuable compared to the one hundred thousand yuan in her pocket.
Hmm... running off with the money was definitely the better choice.
After waiting a little while longer and seeing that Gu Xiyan hadn't looked back, Mu Jinyu then tiptoed deeper into the dark alley.
It was seven o'clock in the evening.
The main street outside was still bustling with people, but this alley was sparsely populated, with most of the stores almost all closed.
Mu Jinyu was very hungry, truly very hungry.
She had come down the mountain after three in the afternoon, followed Xu Zhixin to treat the old man of the Xu Family, saved Mei Yinxue along the way, and then was dragged off by Gu Xiyan to spend a good half hour buying clothes, thinking that she would be able to have a feast at her grandfather's birthday banquet that night.
But she hadn't expected things to completely fall out with them, and in the end, naturally, she wasn't in the mood to stay and eat their banquet. And now, she was genuinely starved.
Mu Jinyu felt that her eyes must be as green and hungry as a wolf's when she saw a small eatery ahead that hadn't closed its doors. She didn't care if it was a fly restaurant; she headed straight in.
The small eatery wasn't big, with only a few tables, but it was wiped clean, without a trace of oily or filthy feel.
However, there were no customers inside the eatery at this time, either because it was past mealtime, the location was too remote, or some other reason.
Mu Jinyu didn't concern herself with these details, and straightaway called out to the owner, who was dozing off on the counter: "Boss, give me a fried noodle with an added chicken leg."
"Hmm? Oh oh..."
The worn-out owner, who had been dozing on the counter, quickly raised her head upon hearing Mu Jinyu's shout, looking at her with sleepy eyes, and then replied.
The owner of this small eatery was a young girl. As she lifted her head, a cascade of black hair gracefully spilled over her shoulders, revealing a beautiful face without makeup, completely natural.
Mu Jinyu couldn't help but compare her face with that of Mei Yinxue and Gu Xiyan.
'Hmm, just a bit behind them.'
Mu Jinyu thought to herself.
It wasn't that this girl's appearance was truly inferior to the other two women; it's just that she was too young and unripe, like a budding flower, naive and fresh-faced. And being barefaced, although her glances exuded charm, they still fell slightly short.
However, if she fully matured and applied a touch of makeup, she would likely bloom into a beauty no less stunning than Gu Xiyan and the other girl.
As the girl got up and headed to the back kitchen, Mu Jinyu thought of her striking lovely face and glanced at the empty eatery, feeling somewhat puzzled.
If this proprietress was so beautiful, then this small eatery, even though small and out of the way, shouldn't be doing such poor business, should it?
Could the food be too awful?
Mu Jinyu couldn't help thinking this and started to worry.
But soon, she felt that something was amiss.
Even if this girl's cooking was unappetizing and what one might call 'dark cuisine', in all logic, there should be hordes of loyal customers flocking to her like flies.
After all, beauty can be just as pleasing to the eye as food, and just looking at the girl's face should have been enough for those loyal customers to stick around.
I don't get it.
Mu Jinyu soon lost interest in pondering this mystery.
After all, he was too hungry, so famished that he couldn't focus on these messy thoughts, and obviously, a Thousand-year Ginseng couldn't be eaten as a meal.
It wasn't much longer.
The girl came over with the stir-fried noodles and chicken drumstick that Mu Jinyu had ordered, along with a bowl of clear soup, walking slowly.
She set the stir-fried noodles and chicken drumstick and the clear soup down in front of Mu Jinyu, gave him a kind smile, and said, "Please enjoy your meal."
She then returned to the counter with the tray, but without feigning sleep anymore.
Mu Jinyu picked up his chopsticks, his expression one of hesitation and conflict, but his stomach was truly too hungry, and in the end, he tentatively grabbed a strand of noodles and took a bite.
Hmm...
The taste was surprisingly good.
Mu Jinyu began to eat voraciously, quickly finishing the bowl of stir-fried noodles, then he grabbed a napkin, wiped his mouth, looked at the menu posted on the wall, and said, "Miss, I'd like another bowl of stir-fried noodles, some steamed dumplings, and some flatbread."
"Alright, just a moment."
The girl, who had been prepared to go over and settle the bill after seeing how quickly Mu Jinyu was eating, was surprised to hear him order more, immediately responded happily, and quickly ducked into the kitchen to prepare his meal.
In a small restaurant like this, it's common for the owner to wear many hats, acting as the waiter, cook, dishwasher, and cashier all at once, and this girl was no exception, performing multiple roles herself.
With a bowl of stir-fried noodles as a base, Mu Jinyu didn't feel too hungry and had a bit more patience.
When the girl brought over the food he had ordered again, he didn't wolf it down as before, making a spectacle of himself, but instead, while eating, he asked, "Hey, Miss, are you the only one running the place?"
"Yes," the girl said as she sat down on a chair next to Mu Jinyu, giving a bittersweet smile and softly said, "Business isn't so good, so there's no use having too many staff."
Mu Jinyu swallowed a steamed dumpling and then asked, "Why is the business bad? You're beautiful, a feast for the eyes, and besides, your cooking skills are very good, so the business should be booming."
The girl just smiled and didn't say anything.
Mu Jinyu found his questions unrewarding but didn't mind and casually asked, "You look quite young; shouldn't you be in college? How is college? Is it fun?"
The girl shook her head and said, "I didn't go to college."
Upon hearing this, Mu Jinyu glanced at her, and although the girl didn't elaborate, he could tell that she really wanted to study, but probably lacked the money and was forced by life to drop out.
A surge of sympathy rose in his heart, and Mu Jinyu couldn't help asking, "So, are you running this restaurant all by yourself to make a living now? But if the business is not good, why don't you sell it and go out to work?"
The girl lowered her head, gave a bitter smile, and answered, "I've been planning to close up and look for a job recently..."
"Bang!"
Before the girl could finish speaking, a loud banging noise suddenly erupted, interrupting their conversation.
Mu Jinyu frowned and turned around to look.
He saw a group of young men with dyed hair in various colors, wearing earrings and thick gold chains, a stereotypical thug appearance, walking in while chewing gum.
"Hey, sweetheart, you didn't pay enough protection money yesterday. How's it coming along today? If it's still not enough... heh heh... why don't you spend some time with the bosses to make us happy, and we'll take care of your protection money!"