Chapter 56: Does This Family Belong to the King of Hell? (Second Update)

The fish stall owner's surname was Gao and his given name was Yu. He was twenty-five years old, ranked third in his family, and was known by everyone as Gao the Third.

Zhou Yan felt that the nickname carried too much pressure, so he simply called him Boss Gao.

Boss Gao was forcibly woken up. He stared blankly for a moment after opening his eyes before sitting up. Looking at Zhou Yan, he scratched his head and asked, "Boss Zhou, did those forty crucian carp sell out this morning?"

"Not many left, I'll restock a bit more," Zhou Yan said with a smile.

"Will do. I'll deliver them to your shop at four-thirty." Boss Gao fished a small notebook from his pocket, scribbled a few lines, then looked up at Zhou Yan and said, "I've raised a batch of grass carp in my pond this year. They grew up eating nothing but grass, and they're over three pounds now. If you decide to make sour vegetable fish or boiled fish later, grass carp are the best choice—the meat is incredibly crisp and tender. Given our relationship, I'll give you a discount."

"Alright, I'll come looking for you if I need them." Zhou Yan nodded, mounted his bike, and turned back.

Boss Gao couldn't sleep anymore either. He got up to sort through the fish in his buckets. Unable to find twenty satisfactory ones, he gave a shout to the neighboring stall owner, hopped on his tricycle, and headed back to the fish pond to catch more.

Zhou Yan had high standards for fish: they had to be uniform in size, high quality, and very active.

However, he bought in large quantities and paid promptly. As long as the fish were good, the money was settled immediately without any credit.

This single factor alone put him ten streets ahead of every other restaurant and stall in town.

Some thick-skinned people would try to put even two crucian carp on credit, and when it came time to collect the money at the end of the month, you had to beg and plead. It was damn frustrating.

Gao the Third swore to himself that he would make his business big and strong! One day, he would make those people beg to buy fish from him and pay in cash!

Zhou Yan didn't know about Boss Gao's grand ambitions, but he was quite satisfied with his fish. If he needed fish in the future, finding him was a good idea.

Today, Comrade Zhou had returned from fishing quite early, arriving before the factory shift ended.

He wiped the mud off his feet by the river embankment before pushing his bicycle over.

Zhou Momo ran over, hugged Old Zhou's leg, and looked up, asking in a milky voice, "Daddy! Daddy! Did you catch any fish today?"

"Mhm, caught one today." Zhou Miao parked the bike and pulled an eight-to-nine-tael crucian carp out of the bamboo basket in the bike basket.

"Wow! Daddy is so capable! You caught a fishy again!" Zhou Momo jumped up happily, clapping her small hands.

"Caught another one, huh? Not bad." Zhao Tieying followed him out and inspected the crucian carp in Zhou Miao's hand. "This size is just right for making basil crucian carp."

"Yeah, the size is perfect," Zhou Yan said with a smile.

It was exactly like the ones he bought.

A very standard farmed fish.

【A decent quality farmed crucian carp】

The "Air Force Loser" still hadn't broken his losing streak.

"Then I'll go catch it and keep it in the tank first."

As Zhou Miao walked toward the kitchen with the fish, he passed Zhou Yan, exchanging a smile that only a father and son could understand.

Zhou Yan could only call it the helpless, bitter smile of an "Air Force Loser."

Since he only bought one this time, it seemed Comrade Zhou was planning a war of attrition—slow and steady.

Zhou Miao brought a bucket of water out from the kitchen and began washing his hands and scrubbing his shoes under a nearby tree.

Zhao Tieying told him about the trouble Wang Mazhi had caused at noon.

Zhou Miao listened in silence before asking, "Did Zhou Yan say someone was instigating this from behind the scenes?"

"We don't know yet. We'll have to see what the Security Department says," Zhao Tieying said with a smile. "It's fine, I settled it. A small matter."

"Mhm, my wife is truly capable of handling things. As expected of a model member of the militia brigade back in the day!" Zhou Miao also smiled and gave her a thumbs-up.

"You still remember I was a model member?" Zhao Tieying beamed, unable to stop smiling.

Zhou Miao nodded with a smile. "Of course. You even got an enamel cup and two towels as a reward. I still keep that cup in the cabinet for you."

"Didn't it leak?"

"Even if it leaks, it has sentimental value. You were the first female militia member to be named a model!"

"Sanshui, you are truly too good to me."

"It's only right to be good to you."

"No, no, that's too sweet. Save that kind of talk for when we're home."

Auntie Zhao stood up with a hint of bashfulness and walked toward the shop.

Zhou Miao watched her enter with a smile, splashed the dirty water away, set the wooden bucket aside, and stood up to walk toward the Security Department, his expression turning cold.

...

Huang Fusheng spent three hours in the Security Department's interrogation room. When he pushed his bicycle out of the factory gates, his face was pale and he looked somewhat dazed.

A lowlife like Wang Mazhi had no sense of "underworld honor." After being detained for less than an hour, he had already spilled everything.

The Security Department had come to the factory canteen to take him back to investigate the situation.

This matter could be treated as a minor incident or a major one.

Although he was the instigator, Wang Mazhi and his gang hadn't caused any major damage at Zhou Erwa's restaurant, nor had they involved money; at most, it was considered disorderly conduct.

But this was a period of strict crackdowns. Wang Mazhi and his lot had a long list of troubles, and getting involved meant getting covered in filth.

He was being released today, but suspended from work to wait for further notice.

"Are you Huang Fusheng?" A voice rang out from behind him.

"Huh?" Huang Fusheng turned around, looking at the dark-skinned middle-aged man with confusion. "I am. Who are you?"

"Zhou Yan is my son. I am Zhou Miao, the butcher from Zhou Village." Zhou Miao lifted his shirt, revealing the handle of a bone-cleaver at his waist, his eyes fixed on Huang Fusheng.

"The Security Department said you found people to cause trouble at my son's shop. I've come to say a few words to you."

"If anything happens to Zhou Yan in the future, I will come for you."

"Suji is very small. There is no one who cannot be found."

His tone was flat, but the ruthlessness in his voice carried a murderous intent that was exceptionally cold.

Huang Fusheng's fat body trembled, and he hurriedly waved his hands. "I won't do it again! I won't!"

Zhou Miao lowered his shirt and turned to walk away.

Huang Fusheng let out a long breath, realizing his back was completely soaked with sweat.

A butcher?

If he said he had killed people, Huang Fusheng would have believed him!

Huang Fusheng mounted his bicycle, but he failed to get on three times before finally using a roadside curb to hoist himself up.

He couldn't help it; his legs were weak.

Was this family related to the King of Hell?

They were too terrifying!

From now on, he would stay as far away as possible from anything related to Zhou Yan.

When Zhou Miao returned to the shop, a gentle smile returned to his face.

As the factory shift ended, customers began to trickle in.

Zhou Miao helped serve dishes, bring dipping sauces, and serve rice; he was quite good at these small tasks.

"Where did you just go?" Auntie Zhao asked him.

"Ran into an acquaintance and had a little chat," Zhou Miao said casually.

"You have acquaintances in this factory too?" Auntie Zhao was somewhat surprised.

"I'm just getting to know them today. The first time is a stranger, the second time is an acquaintance," Zhou Miao smiled, picking up two bowls of Qiaojiao Beef to serve a customer.

There were quite a few customers tonight. Between the former factory director's review and the word-of-mouth from the past two days, the tables in the shop were steadily filling up.

"Sister Zhao, give me one order of Qiaojiao Beef, and then pack up an order of braised pork ribs for me." Lin Zhiqiang walked into the shop and handed over an aluminum lunch box.

"Will do. Is Factory Director Lin packing it for the kids?" Zhao Tieying smiled as she took the lunch box.

"Mhm, the two kids haven't stopped talking about the braised ribs they had yesterday. They insisted I bring some home today." Lin Zhiqiang nodded with a smile, then asked concernedly, "I heard someone caused trouble here at noon. How did it go?"

"It's fine. Director Luo from the Security Department and his staff arrived in time and took all the troublemakers away. It didn't have much impact," Zhao Tieying said.

"As long as it's fine." Lin Zhiqiang nodded, greeted Zhou Miao, and sat down to the side.

He had come specifically to eat Qiaojiao Beef and to bring braised ribs for the two kids.

He hadn't expected that at thirty-eight, he would experience a second spring.

However...

Thinking about how Meng Anhe had both fried him an egg and put a coat on him this morning, the corners of his mouth curled up involuntarily.

This Qiaojiao Beef—he absolutely had to eat it!