Chapter 124

Sun Yujie’s breakup was within Su Bin’s expectations. After last night’s incident, if Sun Yujie were still with Cheng Ang, even Su Bin would have despised Sun Yujie for lacking backbone!

“Did you break up with him?” Su Bin couldn’t help but continue gossiping.

“I sent him a breakup text, but he didn’t reply,” Sun Yujie said as he tried to operate the cash register, “I guess that’s his way of agreeing.”

Su Bin finally encountered a guy even “worse” than Jin Fei.

Although Jin Fei frequented social circles and often stayed out late, apart from the temporary relationship with “Lena” during their trip to Hangzhou, Su Bin had never seen Jin Fei introduce any girls to them as his girlfriend.

So, Jin Fei’s social intentions were clear; he was looking for friends with benefits… Did Su Bin believe that Jin Fei stayed out late just to have heartfelt conversations and enjoy the night breeze with those social girls till dawn? Su Bin wouldn’t believe it even if he were beaten to death!

“Friends with benefits” was a common relationship in foreign countries, especially when two single guys hit it off in a nightclub and felt compatible physically. However, for various reasons (already having someone they like or just for fulfilling desires), they couldn’t further develop their relationship, so they could only be friends with benefits. While in bed, sweet words could be exchanged, but once they got out of bed, they were complete strangers.

If that were the case, Sun Yujie couldn’t really blame Cheng Ang for playing the field. However, they weren’t like that, because Sun Yujie liked Cheng Ang, and Cheng Ang was well aware of it.

“Has Cheng Ang ever said he likes you?” Su Bin asked.

Sun Yujie nodded, bit his lip, and said, “What difference does it make if he likes me? Even if he likes me, I can’t compare to a woman who can walk on the streets with him openly.”

Su Bin: “…” Damn, why does this sound so heartbreaking?

Sun Yujie sighed and continued, “I used to think that as long as we could be together, it didn’t matter how much injustice we faced outside. As long as he treated me well in private… But now I realize I can’t do it.”

Su Bin felt melancholic too. Yeah, considering last night’s situation, even when he imagined it from Sun Yujie’s perspective, it felt like a stab to the heart, suffocating, making him wish he could just go up and give Cheng Ang a couple of punches, let alone Sun Yujie himself.

“I’ve been thinking all night, thinking about the problems we’ll face even if we continue. For example, I asked myself if I could accept it if he married another woman one day,” Sun Yujie choked up for a moment, closed his eyes, then opened them, not shedding a tear, “I can’t accept it.”

Su Bin patted his shoulder, consoling him silently.

Sun Yujie: “But he’s bound to get married someday, so it’s better to end it now than to prolong the pain.”

“Xiao Jie, you’ll meet someone better…” After saying this, Su Bin realized it was what Chen Xiaotian had said to him when she dumped him, feeling a wave of cringe-worthy shivers, he immediately changed his tone and added, “Cheng Ang will regret it!”

Whether Sun Yujie would meet someone better, Su Bin didn’t know; whether Chen Xiaotian regretted it, Su Bin didn’t know either.

The only thing Su Bin was sure of was that all pain would become a thing of the past.

After Qin Chao informed Su Bin about Chef Wang’s “previous convictions,” Su Bin was worried. He immediately went back to discuss with his roommates.

“Well, it’s indeed not easy to fire him if he hasn’t made any mistakes, but it’s always good to be cautious,” Yang Chengzhe nodded in agreement with Su Bin’s decision, then said, “Boss Su is now very popular, but you still can’t meet the demand. So, the problem you should be concerned about now isn’t that chef, but how to prevent cutthroat competition.”

“Cutthroat competition?” Su Bin asked.

Jin Fei nodded, “That’s right. There’s definitely more than one person planning to open a takeout shop like yours. Why were you the first? Because of the practical difficulty, students don’t have the ability and energy. Chinese people who are doing well in B country think this kind of small shop doesn’t make much profit, so they disdain it; as for foreigners, they don’t understand. But now that someone sees your shop doing well, it’s like seeing a business opportunity. Without corresponding legal protection of your own rights, it’s very likely that others will plagiarize or directly copy your business model, name it ‘Boss Yang’ or even ‘Boss Wang’, what will you do?”

Su Bin: “…” QAQ This is too much to handle!

He looked to Allen for help and asked, “Can we apply for a patent? Like KFC and McDonald’s.”

“You can apply, but it doesn’t have much practical use. No matter how big your industry is, there will always be competition. In B country, there are not only KFC and McDonald’s but also many unnamed small shops,” Allen looked at him and made a suggestion leisurely, “The only way is to expand rapidly. When others haven’t reacted yet, occupy the B country market.”

Jin Fei clapped his hands, “Allen’s right. This way, everyone’s first impression will only be ‘Boss Su’. As for other ‘Boss Wang’ or ‘Boss Yang’, they’re just clouds, like how Burger King will never surpass KFC.”

Su Bin: “So, we need to… open more stores?”

Allen: “Yes, B country is only this big. At least start with M City as the center and extend to three or four big cities, occupying the central region.”

Su Bin: “But I still have to go to class. I can’t manage so many stores by myself…”

“You fool, why bother with so much management? There are so many unemployed management graduates from famous universities in B country. Just hire them to work!” Jin Fei tapped his head, “You’re really not cut out to be a boss!”

Su Bin: “…”

But now, Su Bin couldn’t even position himself in “Boss Su.” Jin Fei was the investor, Yang Chengzhe was the business consultant and partner, Allen was the actual owner of “Boss Su,” and they had their company behind them… So, what was he? Just a mascot? Orz…

It seemed like Allen sensed Su Bin’s confusion and nodded slightly, as if saying, “Yes, you’re just a mascot.” (In fact, Allen was just agreeing with Jin Fei.)

Su Bin felt even more depressed because Allen had previously mentioned not letting him take the lead. So, what kind of mascot was he? Just a figurehead for the stupid shop’s name?

After enjoying Su Bin’s frustrated expression for a while, Allen smiled and said, “Your task is to research food recipes.”

Su Bin: “Huh?”

Yang Chengzhe nodded in agreement, “Selling dumplings, roujiamo, and boiled noodles, weren’t they your ideas? The most important thing in a business is creativity and having your own unique features. Only when the food is delicious can it stand the test of time… So, you need to come up with more delicious items!”

Su Bin’s eyes lit up a bit at this, and a brilliant path appeared before him…

The matter of opening branches would be managed by Jin Fei and the operating company behind “Boss Su,” so Su Bin didn’t need to worry about it. What he needed to focus on now was the “original base” in M City. Since it was just a relatively small takeout shop, he had initially hired Chef Wang as the only full-time staff member. Following Jin Fei’s suggestion, he decided to hire another full-time salesperson for the front counter.

In these few days, the drink machines had also arrived, and drinks like pearl milk tea and freshly squeezed orange juice started selling. “Boss Su” was thriving amidst overwhelming praise.

Su Bin’s exam results for the first half of the academic year had also come out, all exceeding Second Class, with one even reaching Excellent (First Class). Su Bin was surprised to find that it was the group project course where Cheng Ang was the team leader!

Thinking about the previous slander against Cheng Ang, Su Bin felt a bit uneasy.

On this day, he asked Sun Yujie about the aftermath of the breakup incident. Sun Yujie said that after helping Su Bin with the New Year’s Eve chores and returning to Cheng Ang’s single apartment, he packed up his things and moved back to his own room. Since they lived in the same student dormitory, just in different buildings, it was still convenient.

However, Cheng Ang still hadn’t replied to Sun Yujie’s breakup text. Instead, a week later, he privately invited Sun Yujie out for a meal and bought him an IWC watch as a breakup gift.

“I thought he wanted to have a good chat about our breakup, so I even thought about explaining my thoughts to him calmly and amicably, to part on good terms… But when we met, he didn’t say a word and just gave me a watch,” Sun Yujie later recalled with a somewhat sarcastic tone, “I didn’t ask him for anything while we were together. He knew that, yet he still did this.”

Su Bin: “Damn it…” Not even an apology for hurting someone’s feelings, just a watch as compensation? Is it out of guilt, choosing to compensate with material goods? Or is it just paying the price for services rendered? —Bought a watch last year!

“Did you smash that thing in his face?” Su Bin became increasingly angry as he thought about it, even more so than Sun Yujie.

“I wanted to, but it was just a fleeting thought. More importantly, it was about facing reality,” Sun Yujie shook his head, “If I really smashed it, it would only make me seem petty and melodramatic.”

“Then did you accept it?” Su Bin pounded his chest and stomped his feet, “Why are you still considering his feelings at a time like this? Where’s your backbone?”

“Can backbone be eaten? I looked up the watch online, and it’s worth tens of thousands…” Sun Yujie said lightly, “He’s quite generous. This way, he might feel a bit better too. If I had thrown a tantrum and not accepted it, it would only make things difficult for him.”

Upon hearing this, Su Bin suddenly realized that the main reason for Sun Yujie and Cheng Ang’s breakup wasn’t just the “injustice” they faced on New Year’s Eve but because Sun Yujie felt he couldn’t give Cheng Ang what he wanted.

Because Sun Yujie had explained many times to Su Bin that he didn’t mind the “concealed relationship” to that extent.

“Do you still like him?” Su Bin asked cautiously.

Sun Yujie paused for a moment, then softly said, “Yeah.”

Su Bin fell silent…

What kind of love was it that you wouldn’t want to hurt the other person even after breaking up?

He suddenly remembered a song he had heard long ago, with a lyric that went like this — there’s a kind of love called letting go, ending eternity for love, if my departure gives you everything, then let true love take me away, saying goodbye…

“So, let’s not dwell on it,” Sun Yujie seemed afraid of crying, quickly raising his head and saying, “I feel uncomfortable looking at that watch, I’ll fold it up and put it away later.”

Because he couldn’t afford it, couldn’t love, afraid of delaying him, afraid of making things difficult for him, so he chose to leave, chose to be cruel to himself…

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