Ning Ge guessed right, the scores had indeed been calculated. The emcee said some congratulatory words and then invited the relevant local leaders to speak and announce the competition results.
In the audience seats, over at Joy Soon Loy’s side, Wang Bo and his team stood up nervously.
"Oh my god, this is torture, just announce it quickly!" Xiao Zhu was sweating profusely, wishing he could just grab the paper from the emcee and read it himself.
"Exactly, I wasn’t even this nervous when my wife was giving birth to my child!" Old Liu rubbed his hands together incessantly.
Finally, after some speeches, the awards were announced.
"Third prize goes to Friendly Food Company!" announced a man in a suit.
Immediately after, the emcee congratulated them and invited Friendly’s representatives to the stage to receive their award.
Winning the prize, Wan Fuyu felt pleased yet his expression subtly changed; getting third prize meant Joy Soon Loy might have performed even better.
He wasn’t harboring any delusions that Joy Soon Loy would be at the bottom. Did this mean Friendly was destined to lose to Joy Soon Loy?
"Boss, it’s time to go up?" His secretary gave Wan Fuyu a gentle nudge.
Wan Fuyu regained his composure, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and smiled as he went on stage to receive the bronze trophy, feeling conflicted.
"We definitely won’t lose to Friendly!" Ning Ge quietly whispered to Cheng Su.
Cheng Su’s hands clenched slightly, whispering, "Don’t underestimate them."
Ning Ge puckered his lips in a mumble, "The outcome is already decided."
The other two companies weren’t much competition; only that little No. 5 could stand a chance against their team.
"Second prize goes to Good Taste Company, also a local company. Congratulations to them." The emcee began clapping.
Wan Fuyu’s expression turned even darker, he instinctively glanced at Cheng Su, who was standing there, a slight smile on her lips, seeming unperturbed.
Inside, Cheng Su’s emotions were in turmoil; there wasn’t any insider decision, and Good Taste had won second.
This meant Joy Soon Loy still had a one-third chance of winning.
Good Taste’s representative went on stage to receive the award, followed by the announcement of first place.
This time, a higher-ranking official gave a lengthy speech before announcing first place.
"Please, please."
"Joy Soon Loy, Joy Soon Loy."
"This first place is definitely ours."
Wang Bo and the group were chanting excitedly.
"In this competition, we were fortunate to invite various peers, and every company has performed excellently. This is precisely the spirit of social constructionism. Now I announce, the winner of the inaugural competition is Qing City’s Joy Soon Loy Company."
"Wow!"
"We won!"
Wang Bo and his team jumped up, shouting and cheering.
Cheng Su had a smile on her lips, tears in her eyes, suppressing her excitement as she pursed her lips.
"We won." Ning Ge nudged her hand.
"Mm!" Cheng Su said, "Let’s go receive the award together."
"You go; I’ll watch you from here!" Ning Ge thought for a moment and pushed her forward.
This was her personal honor, deserving the gaze of everyone’s praise, while he was unsure of when he might withdraw, so he was content to just watch.
Cheng Su went on stage, taking the golden trophy handed over by the chubby judge, and smiled, "Thank you!"
"Well deserved." The chubby judge, who was the culinary master Mr. Cai, smiled and said to Cheng Su, "I admire your attitude towards cooking; very serious, devout, and dedicated. Only with such an attitude can one create extreme culinary art. I hope you continue to maintain it."
Just like Luh Wei’s words, Cheng Su’s tears fell as she nodded vigorously.