Chapter 005: Noodles from Beyond

Hearing Lin Le say this, a flash of delight immediately appeared on Lin Tenghui’s face.

“Absolutely! Of course we can!” Lin Tenghui slapped his thigh in excitement.

“That’s right, with noodles this delicious, I doubt there’s anyone in the world who wouldn’t love them!” Chen Qiang was equally elated.

Back when Lin Le learned these skills from that God of Food, he had already considered this idea—now putting it into practice was only natural.

The three of them ate and drank as they discussed the details of opening the noodle shop.

First was the name for the beef noodles. Lin Le named it “Celestial Noodles.”

Chen Qiang, after his very first bite, felt that such a flavor belonged only in heaven, rarely tasted in the mortal world, so he found the name “Celestial Noodles” perfectly fitting.

Next came the issue of the storefront. Their current breakfast shop could be easily converted into a noodle house with a few changes, and it wouldn’t cost much. However, Chen Qiang suggested that noodles this delicious deserved a proper shop to fetch a good price, and he was willing to invest three hundred thousand as renovation expenses.

Chen Qiang was no fool. He saw a bright future for Celestial Noodles and wanted to use this three hundred thousand to buy a share in the business. His demands were modest—just five percent of the profits.

With this investment, the brand value of Celestial Noodles would soar. Lin Tenghui, generous as ever, immediately raised Chen Qiang’s share to fifteen percent, leaving Chen Qiang grinning from ear to ear.

Watching his father and Chen Qiang enthusiastically discussing the future of Celestial Noodles, Lin Le felt a deep sense of satisfaction.

With the divine elixir of the God of Food in his possession, Lin Le was confident that the business would thrive and soon flourish.

But for now, this was still a small venture given their current circumstances. Even if Celestial Noodles dominated Haizhou, it would still be nothing compared to the former scale of the Lin family corporation.

Nevertheless, Lin Le was in no rush. Everything could wait until they had firmly established themselves in Haizhou.

With the memories of the Celestial Emperor from the world beyond the heavens, Lin Le’s mind had matured. His ambition was now not only to restore the Lin family’s former glory, but to build an even greater commercial empire than before.

This was only their first step.

With Lin Le’s return and the promising future of Celestial Noodles, the three drank heartily. Before long, Chen Qiang was passed out drunk, slumped over the table, and even Lin Tenghui was a bit tipsy.

Lin Le, however, remained perfectly clear-headed. With his current constitution, even downing several bottles of strong liquor was like drinking water.

“Dad, did you and Mom… really get divorced?” Lin Le seized the moment to ask while his father was drunk.

For the past three years, the people Lin Le had missed most were his parents.

Lin Tenghui gave a bitter, drunken laugh. “Le, our family is gone! Why keep your mother by my side, making her suffer in this rundown home? Why should she endure the misery of living with me, hounded by creditors every day?”

Lin Le immediately understood: his father had divorced his mother only to spare her from being dragged down with him.

Perhaps it was for the best. Given the current situation, it was probably better for his mother to stay with the Xie family in the capital.

However, after she defied her family’s wishes and married his father, the Xie family had never treated his mother kindly—not even when the Lin family’s business was at its peak in Haizhou. Their attitude had never changed.

Of course, the Xie family’s status in the capital, and in all of China, gave them every reason for their pride. Even at the height of their power, the Lin family had never measured up to the Xies.

Lin Le could only hope his mother wouldn’t be ostracized upon her return.

“There’s something else, Le—what are you planning to do about the Tang family?”

At the mention of the Tang family, Lin Le’s heart skipped a beat.

The face of a woman so beautiful she could captivate all the men in Haizhou—and even China—appeared vividly in his mind.

The Tang family was the wealthiest in Haizhou, and Tang Nianchen was the only daughter of Tang Baisheng, the city’s richest man.

Lin Le’s grandfather and Tang Nianchen’s grandfather had been comrades-in-arms, and they’d once agreed that if their descendants included a boy and a girl, they would be joined in marriage.

But both families had only sons, so the promise was passed on to Lin Le and Tang Nianchen.

Unfortunately, times had changed. Now, the gap between the Lin and Tang families was vast.

Ever since the Lin Group went bankrupt three years ago, the Tang family had repeatedly visited Lin Tenghui to discuss breaking off the engagement. Before, Tenghui could use Lin Le’s absence as an excuse to delay, but now that Lin Le had returned, the matter could no longer be avoided.

“I don’t care about them. Let’s just wait and see,” Lin Le replied.

Even though the proud Tang Nianchen had never thought much of him, and the Tang family wasn’t likely to kick them while they were down, being rejected in this way was a humiliation both for himself and for the Lin family.

Tang Nianchen, the Tang family—you will all regret this, I swear!

With these thoughts, Lin Le unknowingly drifted off to sleep.

During the next two days, Lin Tenghui busied himself with establishing Celestial Noodles—registering the brand, renovating the storefront, and everything else that needed doing.

He didn’t ask Lin Le to help. Since the new school term had just begun, he enrolled Lin Le to continue his studies.

Both Lin Tenghui and his wife held graduate degrees and had studied abroad. They understood well the importance of education for a child, knowing that school was not just a place for knowledge but for learning all kinds of life skills.

So, despite Lin Le’s objections, his father made all the arrangements for him to attend school—this had also been his mother’s wish.

Not daring to defy his parents, Lin Le followed their wishes and went to enroll.

Before he left, Lin Le taught his father the complete recipe for Celestial Noodles. As for the divine elixir, he simply described it as his own secret seasoning.

That day, Lin Le had only added two drops of the pure elixir to nourish his father and Chen Qiang’s health.

The elixir was exceedingly rare and precious; for the noodle shop, it couldn’t be used so lavishly. According to the old God of Food, one drop diluted a thousand times was more than enough for ordinary consumption—there would be no difference in taste, though the health benefits would be somewhat reduced. Still, even diluted, it far outperformed any ordinary supplement.

With everything arranged, on the third day after returning home, Lin Le slung his backpack over his shoulder and resumed his senior year of high school.

The school his father had chosen for him was the best in Haizhou—Haizhou No. 1 High School, located in the southern part of the city, about half an hour’s drive from his home.

Lin Le couldn’t be bothered to ride a bike; he simply ran there and didn’t take long at all.

After completing his registration, Lin Le reported to Class 8 of the senior year.

His arrival caused little stir in the class.

Though Lin Le was fairly good-looking, his plain attire was a far cry from the stylish clothes worn by many of his classmates. He was quiet, too; his self-introduction was just, “Hello everyone, I’m Lin Le. Nice to meet you.” That was all—so ordinary it couldn’t be more so.

Some snobbish girls, after glancing at his cheap clothes, immediately wrote him off as a pauper.

Lin Le paid them no mind. The only vacant seat was in the last row, in the corner, so he sat there.

No sooner had he sat down than his seatmate leaned over.

“You’re Lin Le? I’m Lu Hongzhe. We’re deskmates now, so let’s look out for each other!” Lu Hongzhe was dressed in a knockoff Adidas tracksuit, looking trendy and quite handsome, with an easy, friendly smile that made him instantly likable.

“Mm.” Lin Le nodded with a smile.

Three years had passed since he’d last been in school—a long time, and he felt a little out of place in the academic atmosphere.

But after just two classes, Lin Le had already adjusted to his surroundings and rediscovered that familiar feeling of student life.

He had Lu Hongzhe to thank for that. The guy was truly outgoing—chatting with Lin Le one moment, nudging the seat in front, tossing paper balls at girls the next, almost dragging Lin Le into his mischief.

Lu Hongzhe had another notable trait: he loved to admire pretty girls. In less than a single class period, he’d introduced Lin Le to all the famous beauties of Class 8 and even Haizhou No. 1 High School, leaving Lin Le with a headache.

Lu Hongzhe’s interests didn’t stop at his classmates; even the female teachers were fair game.

The second class was English. As the teacher entered, Lu Hongzhe gestured toward the podium and started his rhapsody.

“See her? That’s our English teacher, He Ruolan—she’s the belle of Haizhou No. 1 High! Countless male teachers are after her, and nearly every boy in our class has her photo saved on their phone!”

Lin Le glanced at He Ruolan. It was undeniable—she was strikingly beautiful, with an aura of elegance.

Tall and slim, she wore a black business suit: a short jacket over a white blouse that barely contained her figure, and a black pencil skirt that revealed her long, shapely legs in sheer black stockings, accentuating their perfect lines. Black high heels further set off her stunning legs.

He Ruolan wore glasses, which only added to her intellectual allure—far more sophisticated than any of the young female students.

She was a true beauty, no wonder she was the dream of every male student and teacher in Haizhou No. 1 High.

As soon as the English class ended, Lin Le was about to rest his head on his desk when Lu Hongzhe nudged him awake with an elbow.

“Lin Le, look! Don’t miss this chance—it might never come again!” Lu Hongzhe said excitedly, pointing at the classroom door.

At that moment, a girl in school uniform stood at the doorway, peering inside as if searching for someone.

Her skin was fair as snow, her features delicate and charming, with bright, clear eyes like twin pools reflecting the stars—full of vitality and spirit. She was tall and slender, her figure already showing the promise of blossoming womanhood, vibrant with youthful energy.

Though she wore an ordinary school uniform, on her it appeared fresh and refined, like a spring breeze.

Such a lovely girl instantly drew every eye in the classroom, especially the boys—all of whom hoped they were the one she was looking for.

“See her? That’s Xu Xier, one of the school’s four great beauties! Gorgeous, isn’t she?” Lu Hongzhe’s eyes were practically shining with excitement.

“But just feast your eyes—girls like Xu Xier have standards way above ours. I doubt any guy in our class is even on her radar. Still, I don’t recall anyone here being close to her. Who could she be looking for?”

As Lu Hongzhe glanced at Lin Le, he realized Lin Le hadn’t heard a word—his gaze was fixed on Xu Xier at the door.

Lu Hongzhe couldn’t help but curse inwardly—he looked like a hopeless admirer.

Just then, Lin Le slowly stood up, a smile playing at his lips as he looked at Xu Xier.

Her eyes found his, and she finally stopped searching.

“Brother Lin Le!” Xu Xier called out with a radiant smile, her voice ringing through the classroom.