All Chapters of Back to the Banquet: Chapter 1 - Chapter 9

9 Chapters

Chapter 1

Emily Larson's shrill voice echoed through the banquet hall."This meatball dish is something I paid a fortune to learn from a master chef at a five-star hotel. It's a perfect harmony between meat and vegetables. The broth is rich and fragrant, and its plating exquisite. How could the clients possibly be unhappy?"Hearing that familiar voice of my nemesis, I snapped fully awake and realized that I had been reborn.Her voice drew the other colleagues, who quickly gathered around.Emily's eyes instantly reddened, her tone filled with grievance."Everyone, please judge for yourselves. I paid out of my own pocket and spent a lot of money learning this cooking just to entertain our guests properly, but Ms. Hardings refuses to let me do it. I only want to make the clients happy. How is that wrong?"She turned to me and continued, "I know you've always been jealous and held a grudge because I grew up with Kenneth, but that's all in the past. You're his wife now. I'm just a humble intern

Chapter 2

Seeing the dark look on my face, Emily grew uneasy. She pretended she was about to leave."Kenneth, if it really won't work, then don't make things hard for Olivia. I'd feel terribly guilty if your marriage is affected because of me."Kenneth pulled her straight into his arms, defending her without hesitation."Emily and I grew up together. I trust that everything she does is for my sake."His words chilled my heart.I let out a cold laugh and shot back, "So what you're saying is that I'd actually harm you?"Emily nestled into his arms and began snuggling up to him intimately."Kenneth, I hardly ever get the chance to cook for you. Today, with clients here, I finally have an opportunity to show what I can do. Just let me handle it, okay? Leave this banquet to me. I promise I won't disappoint you.""And besides…" She deliberately put on a shy expression and tossed him a flirtatious glance. "You work so hard for the company every day. It really breaks my heart watching you. Pork

Chapter 3

That afternoon, when the banquet began, Kenneth arranged for the clients to be seated, then very naturally took the seat of honor with Emily.Looking at the table filled with dishes rich in color, aroma, and flavor, the clients' eyes lit up, and praises came one after another.Kenneth quickly introduced Emily."This is all thanks to my assistant, Emily. She said that since you've traveled such a long way, you should definitely get a taste of our local cuisine."Hearing Kenneth praise her so openly, Emily immediately understood the cue.She stood up at once, enthusiastically introducing the dishes and eagerly showing off."Please try this luxurious seafood bisque. This special concoction here holds flavors from half the world, with eighteen top-grade ingredients all packed into a broth that is slowly simmered over low heat for several hours."And this one here: pan-seared halibut with citrus-honey gastrique. I know you're not used to spicy food, so this dish will definitely suit

Chapter 4

The interpreter thought he had misheard and asked again, "What did you say?"Emily, having not realized how serious the situation was, replied casually, "Pork, of course."To make sure everyone understood, she even smugly said it in an even more widely used term, "Pig."The interpreter's face turned deathly pale, and he jumped to his feet in panic."Have you lost your minds? Arabs don't eat pork! This is a blasphemy against their religious beliefs. How could you make such a low-level mistake?"In an instant, the clients erupted, some retching, and some recoiling in disgust.One of them furiously threw the pot onto the floor."This is an insult to our faith! It is unforgivable!"Seeing them start to vomit, Emily hurriedly backed away."Do you people have any manners? I've put so much effort into making this! I get it you don't want to eat it, but don't make up some nonsense about faith."Hearing her double down and spout such shameless remarks, the clients were beyond furious.

Chapter 5

After I left, the clients cursed under their breath and prepared to leave as well.Kenneth clung to them desperately, refusing to let go, his face full of regret."Please stay. Give me one more chance. I really didn't do this on purpose."Nonetheless, these Emirates tycoons were used to being treated with the highest level of respect wherever they went. They had never endured such humiliation.They did not even spare Kenneth a glance. With a flick of their sleeves, they walked away.As the investors departed, the other colleagues present began to panic.They surrounded Kenneth, anxiously showering him with questions."Sir, what do we do now? If this money doesn't come through, will the company collapse? Are we all going to lose our jobs?""Exactly. Last year's year-end bonuses haven't even been paid yet. My whole family is counting on it. You can't seriously expect us to live on nothing, can you?"A few people were already on the verge of tears."Why didn't you listen to Ms.

Chapter 6

Kenneth stomped his feet and cursed furiously, "That Olivia! She really is a spiteful witch!"He then turned to Emily with a look of pity."Emily, I'm sorry. I was a bit harsh with you just now. Please don't take it to heart."Emily forced out some crocodile tears and shook her head pitifully. "It's okay, Kenneth. I understand. You were just anxious at the time."Seeing how frail and helpless she looked, his guilt only deepened."I promise I won't lose my temper with you again. Once this mess is dealt with, I'll properly make it up to you. That rat Olivia dragged me into this mess. I swear I'll settle the score with her!"The others immediately chimed in."Who would've thought Ms. Hardings is such a petty woman? I never imagined she could be this vicious. Just because of jealousy, she not only wanted to ruin Mr. Septon, but all of us, too.""Exactly! She knew perfectly well how important this deal was for the company, yet she deliberately stirred trouble at such a critical mome

Chapter 7

My mother had never seen anything like this before. I was terrified the shock would affect her heart again, so I hurried to push them out of the ward.Still, they refused to leave and kept spouting nonsense."Oh, so you care about your family, eh? What about the families of all those people who'll lose their jobs because of you? You're far too selfish."Seeing how they were chasing clout and traffic without any regard for my mother's life or death, I stopped being polite and warned them coldly."Fine. Stay here and keep interviewing. If my mother's heart condition relapses and someone dies, not a single one of you will get away with it."Only then did they retreat from the ward reluctantly.After comforting my mother, I stepped outside as well.Facing the tidal wave of abuse flooding the livestream, I spoke calmly."I didn't do a single thing you're accusing me of. If you insist on framing me, then show me the evidence."Before I could finish speaking, Kenneth appeared in the

Chapter 8

The crowd erupted in an uproar. Kenneth had not expected me to have a backup plan.He shouted angrily, "Don't believe her! She's a scheming woman who's always framing others!""Really?" I shot back sarcastically. "The public isn't blind. Let them judge for themselves. Why are you getting so worked up all of a sudden?"As I spoke, I played the video on my phone.Burned once in my previous life, I had learned my lesson. This time around, I had befriended the banquet hall manager early on. Every move in the hall had been recorded from start to finish and downloaded onto my phone.After watching my video, the crowd fell into deep thought."So… Whose story is actually true? Both videos look pretty real.""Not necessarily. Videos can be edited nowadays. If that assistant really knew the clients couldn't eat pork and still insisted on serving it, then the company deserves to go under. That's just asking for it.""But that girl has witnesses and material evidence. She only has one vide

Chapter 9

Aini eventually wore herself out and grabbed Emily by the hair again, demanding, "Tell everyone. What's the truth?"Emily stubbornly refused to speak, but when Aini lost patience and slapped her until her lips were swollen, Emily–finally–admitted, albeit reluctantly."Yes… It was my ignorance. I didn't know they don't eat pork. I just wanted to show off and outshine Olivia, so I made the meatballs."Seeing her finally confess, I pressed on. "Then what about that video?""About that…" She glanced at Kenneth in fear, as if summoning all her courage before speaking. "Your husband did it. He had someone edit the footage, then processed it afterward so it looked like you were making a scene at the banquet and bullying me at work."Hearing Emily confess on her own, the onlookers finally learned the full truth.Even then, Kenneth still refused to admit his involvement."You rat! You were jealous of my wife and ruined me like this, and now you're turning around and slandering me, saying

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