After finishing up, Huang Tao walked out of the kitchen.

He glanced around the dining area but didn't see Old Qin and the others...

Hmm?

Where are they?

He couldn't help but feel puzzled, turning to ask Xu Hao, "Haozi, you said you came with Qin and someone was looking for me. Where is that person now?"

"Initially, they were sitting by the window. Later, I didn't see them. Probably finished eating and couldn't wait, so they left first..." Xu Hao scratched his head, recalling.

Upon hearing this, Huang Tao thought it probably wasn't anything important, otherwise, they wouldn't have left so abruptly.

Thinking this, he didn't give it much attention.

He saw a pair of adults and a child in the bright lights over there, and their gentle laughter reached his ears.

A warmth rose in his heart, and he walked toward them.

"Daddy~"

Seeing Huang Tao come over, Xuanxuan immediately jumped off the chair and ran toward him.

"Oops!"

Huang Tao quickly caught her in his arms.

Holding the little one in his arms, all of Huang Tao's fatigue vanished without a trace!

He couldn't help but plant a big kiss on her rosy cheek.

It made the little girl burst into a string of bell-like laughter.

He carried Xuanxuan to the table, placed her back on the chair, and called out to his parents, "Mom, Dad..."

"Son, you must be tired. I just cooked a pot of longan egg soup with the rice cooker. I'll go serve it for everyone..."

With that, Song Cailian stood up, intending to fetch the rice cooker.

"Grandma, let me help you..." Xuanxuan blinked her big eyes and said sweetly.

"No need, you stay seated and keep your dad company..."

Song Cailian served some longan egg soup to Xu Hao and the others.

This made Xu Hao and the others feel flattered, thanking repeatedly, "Thank you, Auntie, thank you, Auntie..."

"You're welcome... eat up..."

She smiled and divided the rest into four portions.

Huang Tao's and Youyou's and Huang Yide's bowls were filled with lots of longans, and each had two eggs.

Her own bowl had only a few longans and one egg.

The good stuff naturally was prioritized for her husband, son, and granddaughter.

"Daddy, you're tired, you should eat more. Xuanxuan is still young, doesn't need to eat that many longans." Xuanxuan took a spoon and scooped several longans and an egg from her bowl into his.

Huang Yide also scooped an egg and some longans from his bowl into Huang Tao's, "Son, eat more, you see, you've become thinner with all the work recently."

Huang Tao looked at the bowl of longan egg soup in front of him, almost overflowing.

Filled with eggs and longans.

His heart felt warm, smiling as he said, "It's too much; I can't finish it all."

He then shared some back to Xuanxuan, Huang Yide, and Song Cailian.

A few eggs and some longans went around the four bowls.

Four people exchanged glances and all burst out laughing happily.

At this time!

Ma Deqiang walked in, looked around the store but didn't know which one was Boss Huang...

Old Qin, following behind him, pointed to Huang Tao's table and said, "Manager Ma, look, Boss Huang is at that table!"

Ma Deqiang walked over, glanced at Huang Tao, and then went straight to Huang Yide.

He took out a business card and handed it to Huang Yide, "Boss Huang, hello, I am Ma Deqiang, the person in charge of the Municipal Commerce Bureau..."

Suddenly being called "Boss Huang," Huang Yide:(•ิ_•ิ)?

His hands didn't know where to go, unsure whether to take the card...

The real Boss Huang... Huang Tao: -________-''

Old Qin: ...]((o__)'彡☆

Oh dear!

Mistake, mistake!

Got it wrong!

Old Qin showed an awkward yet polite smile, quickly stepping forward to remind, "Manager Ma, this is Boss Huang's dad, the young man here is the real Boss Huang..."

Ma Deqiang: Σ(°△°|||)︴

He was incredibly surprised inwardly but remained calm on the surface, turning to look at Huang Tao.

Upon seeing Huang Tao's face clearly, a sentence instantly popped into his mind.

Clearly could rely on good looks for a living, but insists on relying on talent!

No wonder he got it wrong.

In his impression, anyone who could make such delicious food must be someone older.

Because this kind of taste, a chef wouldn't achieve it without practicing for ten or twenty years!

Never thought it would be a case of "people cannot be judged by their appearances, just like the sea cannot be measured with a pint!"

Experienced in big events, he naturally wouldn't be flustered over such a small mishap. He smiled and reached out his hand, "So this is Boss Huang's dad... Hello, Mr. Huang!"

"Hello, hello!" Huang Yide chuckled as he extended his hand to shake.

"I didn't expect Boss Huang to have such ability at such a young age, amazing culinary skills! My respect, my respect!"

He turned to Huang Tao and presented his business card to him, "I am Ma Deqiang, the person in charge of the Municipal Commerce Bureau and the eighth annual food festival this year. I've come to invite you to participate in this year's food festival. Are you interested?"

Xuanxuan, who had politely greeted Old Qin, was filled with surprise and excitement in her large, blinking eyes upon hearing the words "food festival".

She also felt proud of her dad!

Having just opened for a week, bragging rights weren't on the table, yet here was the Commerce Bureau's official inviting them?

Song Cailian and Huang Yide also looked over curiously, a bit shocked.

Shock aside!

The old couple just smiled without speaking. It's their son's matter; they don't understand it anyway.

To avoid disturbing their son, the old couple took Xuanxuan to another table.

Huang Tao was also surprised.

So they're looking for him concerning this matter?

He accepted the business card and looked at the department.

The Commerce Bureau is a proper department after all, yet they directly sought him out to participate in the food festival?

Huang Tao knew about the Commerce Bureau.

The city's annual food festival is spearheaded by the Commerce Bureau and is held with great zeal.

Each edition is a significant success.

It has become a culinary brand event to showcase features, build an image, gather popularity, and boost consumption in the city.

It's an annual winter carnival for both local residents and tourists.

The whole event lasts three days, from November 11th to 13th, held in the commercial pedestrian street, usually attended by upscale hotels.

At the end of the event, the top 10 are chosen through expert ratings and public voting.

With over a hundred hotels and restaurants joining each year, why would they invite his unknown little shop to participate?

He glanced at Old Qin beside him, guessing that it was probably Old Qin's recommendation.

Thinking about his bottlenecked "10,000 people" task, urgently needing a large influx of new customers.

This food festival was undoubtedly a great opportunity.

He was tempted!

Just then, a cold prompt from the system sounded in his mind.

[Ding!]

[Detected that the host intends to participate in the food festival.]

[Triggered side quest: Please accept and participate in the food festival and achieve a Top 3 placement. Completing the task will reward you with a random culinary skill.]

The timing of this task was indeed timely and thoughtful!

As for reaching Top 3... System, you really have high hopes for him, Huang Tao!

"I'm interested,"

Huang Tao nodded with a smile, inviting Old Qin and Ma Deqiang to sit, politely saying, "Please have a seat, you two. Our shop doesn't have a dedicated reception room; please accept the accommodation of sitting at the dining table."

"Oh, it's fine. The environment and hygiene in your shop are excellent. I just ate here, and it was a wonderful experience," Ma Deqiang said as he sat down with a smile.

At this moment, Song Cailian brought over two cups of hot tea, placing them in front of Ma Deqiang and Old Qin with a warm smile, "Manager Ma, Qin, come and have some tea..."

"Thank you, thank you..." The two replied in unison, then took a sip from their teacups.

Huang Tao inquired, "Manager Ma, if I participate in the food festival, do I need to fill out any forms? Like an application form?"

"Boss Huang, you don't need to worry about these things. I'll handle them for you. If it's convenient, I'll add you on WeChat and send you the relevant information for this year's food festival along with your assigned stall."

"Great! Thanks for your help."

The two exchanged contacts on WeChat.

They chatted for a while about the details of the food festival.

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