Invisible Security Guard

Penulis: Peach Has Sold Out

Bab 1: Chapter 1: The Story of a Bowl of Spicy Hot Pot

Penerjemah: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

In June 2014, an extremely hot post went viral on the internet: the legendary tale of the six-yuan spicy hot pot love story that spread online. Most netizens are surely familiar with the story of the young lady who traveled thousands of miles for a date and was tormented thirteen times overnight.

The spicy hot pot, originating from the Sichuan and Chongqing regions, is a popular snack known for its mouth-numbing spiciness and affordable price, which has spread throughout the country. Whether in large cities or small towns, you can almost always find a spicy hot pot franchise, and virtually everyone under thirty has tried this fast food at least once.

Of course, some people are exceptions.

Ruth Wilcox had never eaten spicy hot pot. The environment she grew up in didn't allow it, and she spent her student years abroad, so she hadn't had the chance to try many famous Chinese snacks.

But today, driven by curiosity after hearing others mention it numerous times, she finally stepped into a spicy hot pot shop and ordered a sixteen-yuan set meal!

"I ordered the sixteen-yuan meal today; that's okay, right?" Ruth Wilcox sat at the Wanji Spicy Hot Pot eatery across from the job fair on Andingmen Outer Street in Beijing and sent this message to her best friend on WeChat.

"Oh my God, Ruthie, can you even finish a sixteen-yuan meal? That's so extravagant!" a WeChat profile marked with 'Mia Mia' lit up, showing extreme shock and disbelief.

"Is that a lot? But this place isn't very clean though, the walls are dirty, and there's dust in the corners..." Ruth chatted away as she waited.

"You're there for the taste, not to eat their walls. Gotta go, I'm off to shower. Wanna join?" Mia teased.

"I'm not showering with you; you take hours, I can't stand it..."

"Off I go then..." Mia said, and then her avatar immediately turned gray, indicating she had gone offline.

"Hey, beautiful, is this seat taken?" Just as Ruth put away her phone, a big boy with a backpack stood in front of her.

Indeed, a boy. Ruth estimated he was around twenty years old. His accent wasn't local to Beijing, but he had a loud voice and looked strong, clearly one of the 'Beijing drifters' coming to the job fair across the street to find work.

"Oh... No, it isn't." Ruth glanced around and saw that the other tables were full, only the seat opposite her was empty. So she nodded faintly, although she actually didn't like eating with strangers—it was awkward.

"Madam, a ten-yuan spicy hot pot," Yusuf Zuck hollered to the lady collecting money behind the counter.

"Coming up," the lady behind the counter replied.

Yusuf then sat down with a grin, lit a cigarette, and squinted his eyes, examining the beauty seated opposite him.

The beauty looked to be in her twenties, with light makeup, and must have been at least 170 cm tall. And as he sat down, he caught a whiff of a subtle fragrance coming from her, pleasing and not overpowering - exactly the kind of scent Yusuf liked.

Yusuf marveled at how Beijing was full of beauties; even in a modest spicy hot pot establishment, one could encounter exceptional ones.

"And she seems quite wealthy too..." Yusuf then noticed a car key next to the beauty's hand, with four rings—audi. Even the most basic Audi model must be an A3 or A4, right?

Perhaps sensing the unkind gaze from across, Ruth abruptly raised her head and looked at Yusuf as if to catch him in the act.

However, to her surprise, she did catch him staring right at her, and specifically at her chest area. Moreover, even after being caught, he didn't look away. Instead, he continued staring!

"What are you looking at?" Ruth's voice lowered into an angry hum.

"Guess!" Yusuf suddenly winked at Ruth.

"Me, guess?" Ruth was almost driven mad by Yusuf's words. She had nothing to guess—was this man that shameless?

"Your sixteen-yuan set meal is ready..." Just at that moment, a waiter placed a large pot of spicy hot pot in front of Ruth, brimming full.

Ruth was a bit bewildered; a sixteen-yuan meal was this much?

"Wow, you can really eat," Yusuf exaggeratedly widened his eyes. She ordered a sixteen-yuan meal? That was a portion meant for two people!

"If you dare say another word, do you believe I will dump this spicy hot pot over your head?" Ruth threatened angrily.

"Okay, okay, I was just joking with you. There..." Yusuf pointed at Ruth's chest, "you've got a button undone."

"Ah..." Ruth looked down immediately and saw that the third button on her blouse was undone. Through the open button gap, her underwear was visible, creating an immodest sight.

Ruth's face turned bright red with embarrassment. After fastening her button, she looked at the spicy hot pot on the table, but now she had lost all appetite.

"Alright, alright, I'm afraid I'll lose my appetite if I dine at the same table as you, so I'll leave," Yusuf Zuck actually feared the beautiful woman might go crazy and then dump a pot of spicy hot soup on his head, so taking advantage of the departure of the guests behind him, he immediately turned around, took the table behind them, and sat with his back to Ruth Wilcox!

Ruth's complexion slightly improved as she picked up a pair of disposable chopsticks, intending to just take a couple of bites before leaving.

However, after she had a couple of bites, she found that she wanted a third and a fourth bite.

She wasn't usually a big eater, but this was her first time trying the spicy hot soup, and the flavor was so spicy and appetizing that she couldn't put her chopsticks down.

Yusuf's spicy hot soup arrived, and he started eating it heartily.

About two or three minutes later, Yusuf suddenly heard the woman call the server over.

"She sure can eat, ordering more?" Yusuf marveled. The beautiful woman was quite slim, but he never imagined she could eat more than him.

"That... I forgot to bring money..." came a mosquito-like voice. It was the beautiful woman's voice; she had actually come out to eat without bringing any money!!!

"Sorry, but we don't do tabs here." The server wasn't very professional, and his voice was louder than Yusuf's, almost as if he was intentionally announcing it aloud.

"What's the matter, Juan'er?" the proprietress inquired from behind the counter.

The server replied, "Sister-in-law, she didn't bring money and wants to run up a tab!"

The proprietress, with eyes like dead fish, gave Ruth a glance and said gruffly, "If you didn't bring money, leave your phone as collateral." The proprietress wasn't very pleasant-looking and was quite overweight, which might have been due to a woman's jealousy at play, as she didn't offer any kind words or negotiation—she simply demanded Ruth's phone as a pawn.

"Fine, my car is parked at the corner nearby, and there's cash in it. I'll go fetch it!" Ruth regretted everything and swore never to dine at such a place again. Today was a total embarrassment for her. When she had gotten out of her car earlier, she was only thinking about the taste of spicy hot soup, so she grabbed her phone and car keys, but forgot her wallet.

"Why pawn your phone for a mere sixteen yuan?" Yusuf finally couldn't hold back and stood up. The proprietress and the server here were acting as if they had gunpowder for breakfast. It was just freakin' sixteen yuan; did they need to make a beautiful woman pawn her phone?

"I'm telling you, running a business like this, you'll have to shut down sooner or later. Here, is fifty yuan enough?" Yusuf pulled out a fifty-yuan note and slammed it down on the table with force.

"What's going on, what's the noise?" A chef came out from the back kitchen with a cleaver in hand, and upon seeing the man with the cleaver, Ruth, who had never been in such a situation before, was so frightened that she nearly collapsed to the ground.

"What's up, want to fight?" Yusuf's eyebrows lifted suddenly as he too stood up and strode towards the cleaver-wielding chef, looking ready to throw down!

"It's alright, it's alright, here's your twenty-four yuan in change, no worries..." The proprietress, after all, was a woman and a foreigner to boot, so she didn't dare to truly stir trouble. After she pushed the chef back with force, she passed over the change with an ingratiating smile. She could tell that this young man had an explosive temper—quick to ignite.

"I'm done eating, and all it's done is give me indigestion." Yusuf kicked the chair fiercely, picked up his bag, and left. In fact, he had finished his meal.

"Wait a minute..." Ruth hurried after him.

"No need to pay me back; don't feel obliged to offer yourself or anything... Off I go, I'm catching a bus," Yusuf didn't give Ruth a chance to speak and quickly crossed to the other side of the street, then blended into the crowd.

Ruth felt a mix of frustration and amusement. Today she'd seen a lot and got a taste of the wider world, full of all sorts of people.

"There are still many good people around." After a while, she glanced at the distant crowd and sighed softly. Although the guy was frivolous and somewhat lecherous, he was also a kind-hearted person.

As Ruth turned to get into her car, her phone rang.

"Ms. Wilcox, I saw your car. What brings you to the job fair too?" The call was from the Director of Human Resources, Lin, her subordinate, who had been ingratiatingly attentive towards her for the past few months.

"I'm just passing by. How's everything going there?" Ruth asked with a suddenly cold voice.

"We have filled all the vacancies. Do you want me to send you their profiles?" Director Lin asked in a soft voice.

"No need for that, just manage it amongst yourselves." After her reply, Ruth immediately hung up. Her company's HR department had been recruiting at the job fair today.

Yusuf boarded a bus, holding a business card of the 'Fengdu Group' HR department. He had applied and was hired as a security guard at this Fengdu Group before eating the spicy hot soup. Tomorrow, he would start his new life in the capital.

PS: Vote for me, add to your bookshelf, let's go, friends, thank you.

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