The NO.1 Food Stall in the Wasteland novel Chapter 57

Chapter 57: Chapter 57: Impulse is Indeed the Devil

Sensing a commotion, the people nearby, snacks in hand, gathered around. They glanced from the man on the ground to Shen Lu, but no one stepped forward to play the hero.

"You’re the boss, right?!" Cao Yong didn’t care if anyone was going to intervene. He zeroed in on Shen Lu, demanding an explanation. "What kind of bullshit are you selling? My little brother has been healthy his whole life, never even been sick, and the first time he eats your food, he gets poisoned!"

"I’m telling all of you, don’t come here just because it’s cheap! Street stall food is always dirty. If you’re lucky, you’ll just get diarrhea, but if you end up poisoned like my brother, you’ll be in for a world of hurt."

"A single trip to the doctor costs a few hundred Star Coins at least! My brother and I barely make any money in a year. This is going to ruin us!"

Cao Yong held his hand out to Shen Lu. "Pay up! Pay up now! I need to take my brother to the clinic."

"Oh?" Shen Lu said. "Are you sure his symptoms only started after he ate my food? You’re sure he didn’t eat anything else beforehand?"

"What’s that supposed to mean?"

"Can’t I ask? What if it’s just a bad food combination?" Shen Lu said as she squatted down. "If it’s just a simple case of food incompatibility, he won’t need a doctor. I can treat it myself."

"Don’t you touch my brother!" Cao Yong, afraid their scam would be exposed, blocked Shen Lu from getting near Cao Yi.

But Shen Lu’s stun baton was already pressed silently against Cao Yi’s arm, hidden from view by her hand. No one else saw it.

With a flick of a switch, a current like steel needles jabbed into Cao Yi’s skin.

"AARGH!"

Cao Yi let out a sudden, wild shriek and leaped to his feet, frantically shaking his arm as if to fling off the bone-deep pain.

Cao Yong was dumbfounded. The onlookers laughed.

Shen Lu stood up, dusting off her hands. "Looks like your brother is fine now. Pretty energetic, wouldn’t you say?"

Cao Yong stammered, "H-He’s... it’s a final burst of life!"

As he spoke, he secretly shot Cao Yi a look, signaling him to hurry up and lie back down.

Cao Yi caught on and immediately clutched his chest, groaning, "Oww, owww..."

"It hurts... It hurts so much... I’m so dizzy... Everyone, don’t eat her food! It’s poisoned!"

His terrible acting was so unconvincing that several people in the crowd couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

Shen Lu had no intention of playing along anymore. Her face hardened. "Are you done making a scene? If you’re done, then get lost. You’re interfering with my business."

"What do you mean? Is that your attitude...?"

"If I weren’t worried about keeping my customers waiting, I wouldn’t mind sitting down and hashing this out with you. Heck, if it comes to that, I’ll pay to take your brother to the hospital for a check-up to see if he’s actually been poisoned."

Shen Lu cut him off. "I don’t care if you’re here to extort money or just to cause trouble. Now, get the hell out of here!"

"Boss Shen is right! Scram! Get lost, now! Do you have any idea I only have a one-hour lunch break? I’ve already spent half an hour in line, and now you two pieces of trash show up to waste Boss Shen’s time. Damn you!"

"You think I don’t know if Boss Shen’s food is clean? I’ve been eating here for over ten days straight without a single problem!"

"Hey, they look kind of familiar. Aren’t they relatives of the owner of Cao’s Noodle House? I’ve seen them eating there, calling Boss Cao ’big bro’."

"Don’t tell me they were sent by Cao’s Noodle House to stir up trouble? Frame Boss Shen for having unclean food so we’ll all stop coming here and have no choice but to eat at their place."

"The noodles at Cao’s are genuinely awful. That taste... tsk tsk tsk... it’s only slightly better than pig slop."

"Don’t say that. Pig slop has more flavor than their noodles."

...

The crowd’s comments, one after another, made Cao Yong and Cao Yi’s faces shift between pale and livid. In the end, Ma Laosan and a few others came over to maintain order, and the two brothers used the opportunity to sneak away.

Watching the whole scene from a short distance away, Boss Cao’s face was as black as a thundercloud. Zhou Fang complained even more, saying Cao Yong and Cao Yi were brainless.

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