The Young Lords of Wuling East of the Golden Market, Riding White Horses with Silver Saddles Through the Spring Breeze Chapter 117: A Challenge from a Rival (Part 1)

The next morning, Fang Yu was still fast asleep in his new bed at the townhouse when he was jolted awake by a phone call from Xia Churan.

"You stinky Fang Yu, wake up! I’ve already packed my bags, come and pick me up right now!"

He reluctantly crawled out from under the warm covers. "Why are you calling me so early? Fine, I get it, I’ll be there in a bit."

Twenty minutes later, his 640 rolled up to the entrance of Dormitory Building 15 with a roar of its engine. A crowd of students stared, eyes wide with curiosity as they took in the scene.

"Look, isn't that Fang Yu’s car? I heard he rarely shows up on campus."

"He’s a rich second-generation kid; he obviously has his own social circle. Why would he care about us?"

"Look, it’s Xia Churan, and she’s got luggage with her. Tsk tsk, I told you they were living together."

"It’s true, she’s even loading her bags into his car. They must be living together for sure."

Facing the myriad of gazes from the crowd, Fang Yu felt uncomfortable and couldn't help but complain. "Do you really need me to drive to your building for two suitcases? Couldn't you have just waited at the school gate?"

The girl raised a delicate eyebrow, a cunning smile playing on her lips. "I didn't want to. It's so heavy, how could a girl like me carry it? Hurry up, I need to go decorate my room."

Ignoring the strange looks from onlookers, he quickly helped her load the luggage into the car. He then stepped on the gas, rushed back to the townhouse complex, and lugged the two suitcases up to the third floor, huffing and puffing.

"Hee hee, Fang Yu, are you sure you don't want to live with me?" The girl leaned in closer to him, acting with a bit of ulterior motive.

He gulped. Who wouldn't want to share a room with such a beautiful girl? Even death under the peony blossom is a romantic way to go.

But since he had been reborn, he had to honor his original choices. Fang Yu gritted his teeth, conjuring the image of Qin Lu’s clear, innocent eyes in his mind. He steeled himself. "I'm sure!"

With that, he bolted downstairs and ran back to his room.

"Stinky Fang Yu, you blockhead!" Xia Churan stamped her foot in frustration, biting her lip, her pretty face flushing slightly.

He had barely caught his breath back in his room when Lu Zhen called.

"Boss Fang, it’s bad! Xianlin Milk Tea has opened a branch right across from us, and their business is almost as good as ours."

Fang Yu’s heart sank; the moment he had been dreading had arrived.

Xianlin Milk Tea was a brand from Shawan Island, and back in 2005-2006, it was considered a major name in the mainland. While they didn't target the high-end market, they held a significant share of the 3 to 5 yuan milk tea market. Although the taste was mediocre, the low price attracted plenty of students.

"Wait, how can that be? It’s not like there aren't other Xianlin branches in the city, but they’ve never done as well as us." He had been a bit lax lately; from the New Year until now, he had paid almost no attention to the shop's operations.

"You don't know, Boss Fang, they’ve started selling chicken cutlets too! They're even advertising them as 'Shawan Big Chicken Cutlets' that come with salad dressing," Lu Zhen explained, stammering.

He couldn't sit still anymore. After hanging up, he grabbed Xia Churan, who was still busy making her bed, and rushed back to the internet cafe. Lu Zhen and Zhao Bin were already standing at the entrance, looking grim and anxious.

"Where is it?" Fang Yu asked, hurrying out of the driver's seat.

"Right there, across from the milk tea shop," Lu Zhen said, pointing toward the street.

Fang Yu saw it clearly. An empty storefront opposite "Qinglu" had indeed been rented out. The sign was already up, and a crowd of students was lining up. He cursed himself for not paying closer attention the day he returned.

"Let's go, let's buy some to taste."

"I'll go," Zhao Bin said, nodding as he headed out.

Half an hour later, Zhao Bin returned to the cafe with a bag of milk tea and chicken cutlets. Cheng Chen hadn't woken up yet, so the group took a sip of the milk tea and immediately frowned.

"Damn, their milk tea is still this awful. I'd think it was too expensive even at 3 yuan."

"But the chicken cutlet is actually really good. Fang Yu, try it," Xia Churan said, her eyes bright.

He took a bite of the cutlet she offered and chewed for a few moments, his brow furrowing as well.

It was true: the Xianlin chicken cutlet was fragrant and crispy, with a firm texture and rich juices—far superior to the cheap stuff he was selling in his own shop.

Competing was fine if it was just a price war, but it was another matter entirely when the opponent had quality. Fang Yu ate half the cutlet, feeling troubled.

"Damn it, our supplier is just too incompetent. Which one of you can go to Xianlin Milk Tea and get me their source of ingredients?" He looked at Lu Zhen and Zhao Bin.

To his surprise, Zhao Bin shook his head. "It’s not that we don't want to, but they’ve already taken precautions. When I went to buy the tea just now, the clerk even asked me why I wasn't drinking from their own shop."

"Qinglu" was a household name on the snack street, and Xianlin had clearly been prepared; they had hired local staff who naturally recognized them.

"Ridiculous! If we can't do it on the snack street, can't we go to the city? Or even the suburbs? I don't believe Xianlin Milk Tea is going to hang our photos in their headquarters as training material!" Fang Yu said fiercely, tossing the milk tea in his hand into the bin.

Lu Zhen stepped forward. "Boss Fang, don't worry, I have a way."

"Oh? Tell me."

"My girlfriend, Zhang Yan. They don't know her, and even if they did, they don't know her connection to us. People change jobs all the time, don't they?"

Fang Yu nodded. Lu Zhen was right; Zhang Yan wasn't a student at Blue Ocean Academy, she just happened to be working there. While Xianlin was on guard against Fang Yu and his crew, they would welcome a defector from "Qinglu," perhaps even hoping to squeeze out the milk tea recipe and ingredient sources.

But as soon as this was said, Zhao Bin’s expression darkened. He spoke up after a moment, "Do you think they're idiots? They’ve definitely investigated everyone. And this kind of chicken recipe isn't hard to replicate; we can just find a few manufacturers to test it out."

"Testing with manufacturers isn't impossible, but it takes time, and there are costs involved. We have more than one shop now; we'd have to change the recipe for all of them," Fang Yu said, smacking his lips.

"I’ve calculated it; it won't cost much. What if we get recognized? That would be even more embarrassing," Zhao Bin insisted.

"Is that so? I wasn't aware. Tell me, what do you estimate the cost to be?" Fang Yu nodded.

Zhao Bin paused, then waved his hand impatiently. "You can tell just by doing a rough calculation; it definitely won't cost much."

Fang Yu’s eyes turned cold. Zhao Bin was speaking without thinking. Having been reborn for so long, he had almost forgotten this flaw: no matter what happened, Zhao Bin never admitted fault. It was always someone else's problem, and he always had a thousand reasons to justify his own judgment.

Before he was reborn, this flaw didn't matter much, but now it affected his business. He had no choice but to take a firm stance.