Although Liu Jinfei was older than Shen Lingqing, he never dared to look down on the young woman seated behind the desk that separated the two of them within her office. Today, he was to sign the contract with her, legally obligating him to join Savory Alley as an official chef of the team.

“You better read the clauses of the contract. If you have questions, just ask.” Shen Lingqing placed the contract on top of the desk and eyed him with her round brown eyes, watching him intently. Even though he had yet to sign a contract with her, Liu Jinfei was already dressed in the chef uniform with the insignia of the Savory Alley on his collar.

Qiao Lian was seated on the couch, but it was obvious that she was eavesdropping on the conversation between the two. She was busy comparing the financial reports of the restaurant, trying to figure out where to cut off the expenses to lower it.

Liu Jinfei picked up the contract and read the contents carefully. There wasn’t anything suspicious in the contract as they were mostly similar to what he had seen before, except that the Shen family added a clause that it would protect its interests by asking him to exclusively work for SY Holdings and its other restaurants—aside from Savory Alley—for three years.

“I thought I’m only going to work here at Savory Alley,” he told Shen Lingqing, a little confused about the details written in his contract. He applied for a position in Savory Alley, so why did Director Shen choose to employ him directly under SY Holdings?

Qiao Lian thought of the same when she read the contract before Liu Jinfei’s arrival. Shen Lingqing was signing him up as an employee of SY Holdings, and not as one of Savory Alley. Her miss had never mentioned that she was planning any of this.

Shen Lingqing clasped her hands together, while her elbows propped her arms up on the desk. She had to admit… Liu Jinfei’s cooking skills were one of the best she’d encountered so far, aside from her mother and her uncle; although Liu Jinfei needed a lot of training to hone these skills to perfection.

It would be a waste for SY Holdings to let go of a talented chef like him if she failed her quest in Savory Alley. That was why she opted to sign him under SY Holdings than let him go.

“You might not know, but Savory Alley isn’t really stable at the moment. If my father deemed that it was far from being saved, we would close down the restaurant with no questions asked,” she told him.

“So I have to sign under SY Holdings instead?” Liu Jinfei asked.

“The situation of Savory Alley isn’t related to you. There’s no need for you to bear the consequence later if I failed,” the Shen Princess replied and stood in front of the window, her back facing him.

Liu Jinfei furrowed his brows and then glanced at Qiao Lian in confusion. What the hell did Shen Lingqing mean by that? Was Savory Alley in danger of being closed down by SY Holdings?

“So if the restaurant eventually closes, I will not be affected by it? What about Chef Lin and the others?” It then dawned on him that Shen Lingqing was giving him the privilege to stay employed even if the restaurant closed in three years.

“Director Shen, I think this is unfair to my co-workers,” he said with all seriousness, “I don’t want them to think that you are giving me an advantage here just because I was a sponsored student of your family at Silver Leaf.”

“Who said that I hired you because of that?” Shen Lingqing turned to face him and gave him a pointed glare. She had never expected that Liu Jinfei would question her like this.

What was so confusing about this contract? Should he be satisfied that she was acknowledging his skills in the kitchen? As for the others, they had yet to prove their worth to her.

“I hired you because I acknowledge your skills. Regardless of whether my mother sponsored you before or not, it has nothing to do with my decision to hire you. Don’t jump to conclusions, Liu Jinfei,” she warned him.

The man was slightly taken aback by her answer. Still, he found it weird that he could get away with the problem, while the future of the other employees of Savory Alley was uncertain.

As if knowing what was going on in his mind, Shen Lingqing sighed and took a seat.

“Their future depends on their performance. Whether I give them a chance or not, they could work hard to earn it. Please understand that I’m running a restaurant, Liu Jinfei. This isn’t a charity where I could overlook the mistakes my employees make, which could hurt our business.”

“I understand. I apologize for my earlier outburst. I’m in no place to question you, Director Shen.” Liu Jinfei was a little ashamed of what he said earlier. It was as if he was accusing her of favoritism and unfairness towards their employees.

This only made him fully aware of the difference between them. He really didn’t have what it took to run a massive company like Shen Lingqing. That’s why he never contested his rights to the Liu Corporation, even though he was the rightful heir apparent of the company.

Unlike Shen Lingqing, he didn’t have the foresight to know what was best for the restaurant and why Shen Lingqing had to be strict while managing it. Director Shen might have things in her mind that she wasn’t ready to discuss with her employees yet.

Shen Lingqing didn’t say anything in response and waited for him to sign the contract. He read the contract for the last time and stamped his seal before giving it back to her.

“Welcome to SY Holdings. Your participation is deeply appreciated,” Shen Lingqing said and shook his hands.