Three dishes were served at the table where Shen Lingqing was seated. Shen Lingqing, who hadn’t eaten any decent meal earlier—aside from the breakfast she had shared with her father and her older brother, stared at the visual presentation of Liu Jinfei’s cooking.

Shen Lingqing then lifted her gaze to look at Liu Jinfei’s face and could sense the nervousness coming from him. Without wasting another second, she took the silverware next to her,  sliced a small portion of the first dish, and placed it in her mouth.

As she slowly chewed her food, those people watching her swallowed the invisible lump in their throats as they waited for the demon princess’s verdict on Liu Jinfei’s dishes.

Would a chef like Liu Jinfei that had graduated from Silver Leaf be able to impress Shen Lingqing?

Qiao Lian watched in anticipation. Since they were children, she had been on Shen Lingqing’s side and understood her even in silence. Shen Lingqing’s expression alone was enough to give her a hint of what the Shen princess was thinking.

Shen Lingqing brought down her silverware and took a sip from her drink to wash away the taste that lingered in her mouth. She didn’t utter a single word to comment about the first dish and immediately moved to the second one.

Just what she did earlier, Shen Lingqing only took a portion to taste and repeated it until she was done tasting the three dishes. As she leaned back on her seat, wiping her mouth with a napkin; she regarded Liu Jinfei.

“You have great control of fire and know what kind of ingredients to use to your advantage. I must admit that your dishes are passable,” she said after a long silence between them, “Unfortunately, I cannot accept you as a head chef at the moment. You are still lacking in so many ways, so I’ll hire you as a Sous Chef to replace Chef Lin from his previous spot.”

Fu Shuren and Qiao Lian stared at their miss in surprise. Did they hear her right? Did she just compliment Liu Jinfei’s cooking? This was the first time that they heard Shen Lingqing give a genuine compliment to another chef that was not her mother or uncle.

Their eyes then turned to Liu Jinfei who now sported a wide smile on his face. This could only mean that Shen Lingqing had seen great potential in this man. Else, she would not accept this man to work at the Savory Alley.

“That’s fine by me, Director Shen.” Liu Jinfei gave her a polite bow. “Thank you for allowing me to join your team.” He added, his tone filled with enthusiasm; which only made Qiao Lian raise a brow.

Surely, this Liu Jinfei was an odd one since he never acted being intimidated by Shen Lingqing’s presence, unlike the rest. Also, why the heck would a young master from a wealthy family choose to become a chef than fight to regain his rights?

Who hadn’t heard about the tragedy that befell the Liu family several years ago? Qiao Lian could only hope that Liu Jinfei wasn’t planning to use her miss as a shield against the rest of the Liu family. Regardless of Liu Jinfei’s true potential as a chef, Qiao Lian’s utmost priority was Shen Lingqing’s safety.

Shen Lingqing then rose to her feet and regarded everyone. Chef Lin and Fu Shuren congratulated Liu Jinfei and patted his back. It seemed that the staff of the restaurant were happy to know that they had gained a capable chef as soon as the Zhang brothers left.

“You can go back and finish your tasks for today,” Shen Lingqing announced and then looked at Lin Xiaoyu. “Miss Lin, please lead me to the manager’s office. There is too much work for me to oversee.”

“Y-yes, Director Shen,” the young woman replied nervously before eyeing her father who just gave her a thumbs-up. “Please follow me upstairs.”

Lin Xiaoyu knew that the age difference between her and Shen Lingqing wasn’t huge, but she suddenly felt too small standing next to the Shen princess. There were several rumors circulating around Shen Lingqing, but she had never thought that she would be starstruck by this princess.

Following them were Shen Lingqing’s bodyguards who looked less intimidating than their boss. Lin Xiaoyu briefly wondered if all the members of the Shen family shared the same temper as Shen Lingqing… or if it was already a normal occurrence for them to see people cower in fear whenever a Shen looked at them.

Lin Xiaoyu led them to the third floor of the restaurant where the office was located. She opened the door and let the three come inside, with Shen Lingqing looking around the place and frowning as her finger caught the dirt that had accumulated on the desk.

“Oh! Please give me a moment to clean the place.” Lin Xiaoyu was slightly embarrassed that Shen Lingqing saw the unsightly condition of the office. Shen Lingqing must truly be disappointed with the Savory Alley’s situation right now, given how the Zhang brothers effectively ruined their restaurant’s name and made a fool out of themselves in front of Director Shen.

“There’s no need for that, Miss Lin,” Fu Shuren told her with a gentle smile on his face. “I’m sure Qiao Lian and I could do the job on our own. Our Miss here also preferred to work in silence with as little distraction as possible.”

Lin Xiaoyu watched as Qiao Lian sprayed some disinfectant on the office chair behind the desk and wiped it clean, while Shen Lingqing leaned against the table, holding the employee’s record with one hand. She looked nonchalant and didn’t care much about the place.

“Then, I’ll go and pick up the cleaning materials you may use,” she said in a flustered state, leaving the three behind. She still wasn’t sure if her father had made the right choice to stay here and work for Shen Lingqing.