I Had My Life Work's Stolen And Was Chased Out のすべてのチャプター: チャプター 1 - チャプター 10

“So, are lifesavers only worth two thousand dollars now?”Ms. Zena’s face became flushed.Flora looked down at her fingernails. “Bernard, that’s not very nice of you to say. A worker is just a worker. Bosses treat you well so that you’ll work harder, right? It’s a mutual arrangement; don’t make it sound like he’s done us some huge favor.” Bernard glared at her, like he was shooting daggers out of them. “Shut up! You’re just as ungrateful as the rest of them!“When you first started here and a guest was yelling right in your face, it was Mr. Lane who stepped in front of you and took the cup of tea that was thrown at you. Ask yourself and tell me, was that a ‘mutual arrangement’?“When your boyfriend beat you up, you called Mr. Lane in the middle of the night in tears. Without a word, he drove over to pick you up and covered your stay at a hotel for a whole week! How dare you say things like that now?”Flora fell silent.Bernard turned to Wade. “And you. When you got into a fight

I smiled. “Because I’m waiting for someone to help us promote this place for free.”My phone vibrated. Harvey had sent me a message.[Mr. Lane, how’s the new restaurant going? Want to check out my place? I was worried it might be too quiet for you on your own, so I set up a live stream just for you to get a feel of the lively atmosphere here.]A link followed the message, and I tapped on it.The live stream loaded and showed Harvey’s store packed with people.The comments rolled by one after another. “Isn’t this where Lane’s Kitchen used to be?”“The food tastes great, just like it used to!”The camera panned, and Harvey made a heart shape with his hands toward the lens.“Thanks for everyone’s support! It’s our grand opening today. There’s 20% off all food and free beer! If you’re not here yet, hurry on over. There are already more than twenty tables waiting in line!”The chat box exploded with messages.Suddenly, a line of text popped up in the bottom right corner of the s

I decided to triple Bernard’s salary next month.After closing, I went over the books.Our daily sales over the past few days matched the busiest times at our old restaurant.Considering the new restaurant’s remote location and the fact that not many people knew about it yet, the profit had exceeded my expectations.I closed the ledger and suddenly smiled.“Mr. Lane, what are you smiling about?” Bernard asked.“I was just wondering. If Harvey knew he’d given us such a huge free advertisement, would he be furious?”The next day at noon, I received a message from Flora.Flora’s profile picture was still the one I had taken for her. She was standing at the entrance of the old restaurant and holding a bouquet of flowers. Her eyes were crinkled with a smile.That was my birthday gift to her. That day, she had said, “Mr. Lane, this is the first time I’ve ever received flowers.”This time, she wrote, [Mr. Lane, Harvey can’t pay his employees right now. He says he’ll have to delay it

It was Flora.I closed my eyes and took three deep breaths.Then, I opened my phone’s contacts and found a number I had saved a long time ago.It belonged to Liam, a reporter for the lifestyle channel at the local TV station.He had interviewed me two years ago. We had added each other’s contacts back then, and he had said, “Mr. Lane, if anything newsworthy comes up, be sure to let me know.”I dialed the number.“Liam, this is the owner of Lane’s Kitchen. Someone’s spreading rumors that I use recycled oil, but I have evidence to prove my innocence. Would you be interested in coming to film a segment?”That evening, five people showed up at the restaurant.The leader was a young guy with bleach blonde hair. He was decked in designer labels, and a big gold chain hung around his neck.He kicked open the glass door, stood in the middle of the dining area, and shouted so loudly the whole alley could hear him.“Where’s the owner of Lane’s Kitchen?! Get out here! You’re cheating us

Organophosphates? That was a pesticide, right?Someone had put pesticide in my food.My fingers were shaking.That night, I opened the local forum and saw a shocking headline. [Suspected food poisoning at Lane’s Kitchen in Bliss Alley. Multiple people rushed to the hospital!]There were already over three hundred replies to the post. Most of them were berating me.Some said, [A heartless boss like that should be arrested and sentenced.] Others said, [I always thought the food there tasted off. Turns out there really was a problem.]There were even some who said, [I’ll never eat in that alley again. How terrible.]I did not reply to a single comment.At this point, whatever I said would be wrong. I would only have the right to speak after the truth came out.Bernard called, and his voice was very low.“Mr. Lane, there’s something I need to tell you.“Around 9 a.m. today, Zack took out the trash once. He was gone for a long time, about fifteen minutes, before he came back. I