Chapter 77

As soon as Xiao Chen's essay was published, a wave of white-collar workers with similar experiences began sharing their stories. Before long, a group of hungry, eager professionals had formed.

They created many groups, discussing how to purchase Jiaji cakes. While they could enjoy them at their company cafeteria, the best ones they could get were only rated at three stars.

But five-star cakes? That would definitely whet anyone's appetite.

Gao Qichao realized what was happening after being bombarded by phone calls from foodies and quickly posted the locations of the AAA supermarkets and two soon-to-open plaza stores on his official website.

The managers of the two plazas began enduring daily complaints and angry outbursts from the white-collar crowd. It was puzzling — why were they being targeted when the renovations weren't even finished? Shouldn't they be talking to the manufacturer instead?

Despite their frustrations, the managers had to greet their customers with smiles. After all, the customer is always king.

Meanwhile, Lin Feifei's mother was facing the same issues.

Mother Lin still had some stock left, but it was quickly being bought out by a single customer every day. Despite her attempts to limit purchases, the demand was overwhelming, and the shelves would empty as soon as they were restocked.

She felt a mix of joy and pain. The foot traffic was good, but the limited daily quantity of cakes left her feeling helpless.

Once the cakes sold out, crowds would gather, clamoring for more. If someone didn't know any better, they might think the customers were after something far more valuable than cakes.

After some online digging, Jia Fuhai discovered that it was employees from the owner's company who had made Jiaji cakes so popular.

Of course, with all the attention, there were some casualties — takeout services, for example, were hit the hardest.

White-collar workers now went straight to their company cafeterias to eat Jiaji cakes. Why order takeout when they could have something so delicious?

As a result, companies that offered Jiaji cakes stopped ordering takeout altogether. Although bosses had to spend more, they noticed a significant improvement in their employees' efficiency and didn't mind the extra cost.

It wasn't just the three-star cakes, though. The high-star ones were in even higher demand, and companies scrambled to get them.

Takeout restaurants that relied on white-collar customers began to suffer, clueless as to why their business was declining until they stumbled upon the viral discussions about Jiaji cakes.

But what could they do? They couldn't exactly complain that their food wasn't as good. It was an unexpected disaster caused by a cake.

Some of the more well-known restaurants even tried tagging the white-collar crowd online, hoping to win them back.

The response was swift: "Don't @ me, I'm loyal to Jiaji."

Watching all of this unfold on the internet, Jia Fuhai could only marvel at the power of the web.

By the way, Xiaofeng mentioned he had set up a platform — something about a cat?

At the time, Chen Xiaofeng was in the middle of berating his subordinates at Lihuamao Company when his phone rang.

Seeing who was calling, he immediately brightened and answered with enthusiasm.

The subordinate he was scolding wiped the sweat from his brow. If it weren't for the high salary, he wouldn't put up with the abuse here. But considering the pay, he had to tough it out!

"Brother Jia, are you treating me to dinner? I'll be right there," Chen Xiaofeng said eagerly before Jia Fuhai could even speak.

Speechless, Jia Fuhai rolled his eyes. He knew this guy all too well. He had no sense of decorum.

"Brother Jia? What's up? Say something."

"...What time is it? I was just calling to ask what live streaming platform you're using," Jia Fuhai said, exasperated.

"Brother Jia, you've made me lose my appetite now! Nothing else compares to your food — everything else tastes like cardboard," Chen Xiaofeng groaned.

Even through the phone, Jia Fuhai could feel the weight of Chen Xiaofeng's frustration.

"Brother Jia, are you planning to do live broadcasts on our Tabby Cat platform? You're more than welcome," Chen Xiaofeng added after complaining for a bit.

"Do I really need it?" Jia Fuhai asked in surprise.

Jiaji's official website already had a basic live broadcast setup. It wasn't flashy, just a straightforward video feed with no extra features.

Curious to see what other options were available, he thought it wouldn't hurt to check out Chen Xiaofeng's platform.

"Alright, brother, you don't need it. I'll just come over and have a meal with you instead," Chen Xiaofeng suggested hopefully.

"Fine, fine. Come over tomorrow, but don't expect much," Jia Fuhai relented, already anticipating the request.

After ending the call, he searched for the Tabby Cat platform.

It looked relatively niche — did Xiaofeng have no business acumen?

To his surprise, he immediately found a live stream from his Jiaji Cake Factory on the homepage. He clicked on it, amused to see a familiar official certification logo and a stream of customer comments.

"Jiaji, you've made so much money. Why aren't you expanding your business?"

"He's probably already clocked out for the day."

"Mind your own business. I'm here to vent and remind Jiaji."

"Stop being petty. Just wait until 2 p.m. when they reopen. Then you'll really get mad when they're all sold out!"

…Why does everyone sound so resentful?

Shaking his head, Jia Fuhai left the chat and decided to head to bed.

In the bedroom, Zhen Linna noticed something shiny on his wrist. "Brother Hai, when did you get a new watch?"

"Qiqi gave it to me," he replied absentmindedly.

"Wait a minute, I don't remember giving you a watch," Zhen Linna tilted her head in thought.

Lin Feifei, standing nearby, also furrowed her brow, trying to recall.

"Hey, stop messing with me. Are you trying to make things difficult for me?" Jia Fuhai grumbled, waving them off.

But Zhen Linna was still scrutinizing him, her gaze lingering on his neck.

"What are you doing? Do you want me to wear a gold chain now? I'm not some big shot," he protested as he felt her stare.

To his surprise, her eyes lit up at the idea.

"Actually, what about a ring?" Lin Feifei chimed in suddenly.

"Feifei, stop messing around. Why are you all getting carried away with these ideas?" Jia Fuhai couldn't believe it.

At that moment, Zhen Linqi joined in, adding, "Why not? One for each of us!"

"What are you talking about?" he exclaimed, wide-eyed.

"It's to show our claim! It's only fair — the three of us should each get a ring," Zhen Linqi said, completely serious.

Zhen Linna agreed, "That sounds about right."

Lin Feifei nodded. "Definitely."

"Alright, alright. I'll get each of you a ring," Jia Fuhai conceded with a sigh, rolling his eyes.

"These women are really something else," he muttered under his breath.