Doomsday Wonderland Vol. 11: Modern World [Complete]

1330: A Day Without Much Happening

At noon the next day, several drivers who often gathered for lunch happened to be busy with their taxi runs. That's how it was with taxi driving—there was never a fixed schedule. Guan Hailian had never gone to Hongyan's Snack Bar by himself, and he was also afraid that Chen Hongyan would insist on repaying him for yesterday's meal. But considering the heavy crates of drinks behind the house, he gritted his teeth and went anyway.

Before he even reached the entrance, voices from inside floated out to him.

This was unusual. Business was slowest at lunchtime because the young people in the neighborhood were all at work, leaving only retired elders who wouldn't spend money eating out. Guan Hailian had been here many times, but it was the first time he saw outsiders at this hour.

"What's wrong with the community?" said a man sitting facing Chen Hongyan at a table, his back to the door. "Do you know how much it costs to rent a two-bedroom apartment here? Over six thousand! Just for living, not for running a business like yours. With all the grease and smoke, my ceiling has been blackened."

If there was one intuition that Guan Hailian had developed in this world, it was a sense of impending trouble. He took a few steps forward and said, "Sister-in-law, I'm here."

"Oh, it's Old Guan," Chen Hongyan said, glancing briefly, then looking up again as if steadying her emotions. "Please have a seat. I'll be with you in a moment."

"No rush, no rush, you go ahead." As expected, it was the landlord.

The man glanced at Guan Hailian before returning to Chen Hongyan, saying, "With the current property prices, you should know my shop is quite large, and I rent out several sections to those who sell breakfast and handle deliveries. Their rent can be twice as much as yours. I considered that you've been renting for so long, so I thought I'd raise it slightly."

"But if you raise it, it's an additional two thousand five hundred. I can't afford that." Chen Hongyan's face showed a rare expression as if she hadn't slept for several days and nights, her usual vitality extinguished. She lowered her voice and said, "This restaurant doesn't make much money, just enough to get by."

"Why don't you sell breakfast then?" the landlord suggested.

Chen Hongyan was silent for a few seconds. She glanced in Guan Hailian's direction, seeing him pretending to be engrossed in his phone, before whispering, "If I sell breakfast, I have to get up at four in the morning, but this restaurant is busy at night... Sometimes, we don't close until eleven or twelve at night. I can't rest during the day. My child is only three years old and not yet of school age."

Guan Hailian suddenly realized that she had considered selling breakfast before.

"Then, you can raise your prices. I don't care," the landlord interrupted her. "I also have a family to support, and the rent is increasing."

Chen Hongyan sat still for a moment, seeming to soften. When the landlord started to leave, she suddenly exclaimed, "But we have a contract! It's not due yet. Why raise the rent?"

"Contract?" The landlord stopped in his tracks, his voice sharpening. "If you want to follow the contract, fine, then move out in a month. I'm giving you one month's notice according to the contract. If you don't leave by then, the deposit won't be refunded."

"But how can you do this?" Chen Hongyan's face flushed red and then pale. Softening her tone, she said, "If I move out, how can I live? Can't you raise it a little less?"

"I'm not heartless. I don't want to kick you out, but you need to live, and I need to live, too," the landlord said, taking a step back. "How about this? Let's make it two thousand two hundred, starting next month."