Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
“What would you like to have today?” Zhou Jia asked.
Zhou Xi might not know what Zhou Shijie liked to eat, but Zhou Shijie definitely knew what Zhou Xi liked to eat. Therefore, he would put a lot of thought into his son’s behalf when ordering.
“One Dongpo Pig Knuckle, one Jin’ling Grass, one Swedish Meatball, one Melt-In-The-Mouth Chicken Feet, and two plain white rice of the 100 Styles of Rice Cuisine,” Zhou Shijie ordered without even looking at the menu. He was already a regular customer here.
The chicken feet and meatball were his son’s favorite food, or to be precise, these used to be his favorite food. Zhou Xi had been studying abroad for three years. His preference in food had long changed.
Thus, when Zhou Xi heard Zhou Shijie ordering those dishes, he shook his head but did not say anything.
“By the way, there’s Watermelon Juice as well, right? We are the first batch of customers to enter,” Zhou Shijie asked.
Zhou Jia nodded as she quickly wrote down the orders before asking, “One more glass of Watermelon Juice, right?”
Zhou Shijie nodded and paid using Apple Pay in a familiar manner. Zhou Shijie had always been using the most trendy phone, and in Yuan Zhou’s restaurant, all sorts of payment applications were supported.
All the regular customers knew that there were three trendy old geezers among the restaurant’s customers. One was Zhou Shijie, and the second one was the Grandpa Jia, the rickshaw driver. One ought to know that not only could Grandpa Jia talk with Ling Hong about the NBA, he was even considering streaming recently.
That’s right. Grandpa Jia was considering doing a type of streaming that was very popular on the Internet as of late, outdoor streaming. Every day, he would use the birthday gift Ling Hong gave him, the high-end smart camera to stream outdoors.
Grandpa Jia’s stream was extremely casual. He did not bother intentionally talking to the camera nor did he care about the viewer count. He would faithfully stream him riding his rickshaw around every day.
As for the third trendy geezer, he was the leader of the three. But for now, we shall not talk about him. Back to the topic, after Zhou Shijie made the payment, Zhou Xi started grumbling about the expensive price.
“The product is worth the price. Look at the long line. If it’s really not worth the price, are those people all idiots?” Zhou Shijie said.
“It’s not like I have spoiled my brain from all the studying I have done. Of course I realize I won’t be the only smart person among so many people here. Even someone as learned as Yu Chu is here.” Zhou Xi continued, “But an observer will always have a clearer view of things. Sheep mentality is a very scary thing. I think the reason for the long queue is fame and marketing. Of course, I don’t deny that the taste of the food here is decent as well. After all, people that can afford the price here are no idiots.”
While Zhou Shijie and Zhou Xi talked, Yu Chu entered with his friend.
They were supposed to enter during the second batch. But two other customers that were colleagues had received an emergency call from their company. Thus, they rushed away after a simple meal of Egg Fried Rice. Hence, Yu Chu and his friend’s turn arrived earlier.
“We sure are lucky today,” Li Zi said eagerly. He was very excited as he was finally going to try the food of the legendary Yuan Zhou’s restaurant.
Yu Chu nodded in agreement. Zhou Jia then came to take their order. After ordering and paying, Yu Chu sat back and started waiting for food.
The requirements for All-Fish Banquet had been written previously. It must be an actual banquet, and one had to give a one day notification. That was to avoid last minute bookings causing chaos.
Thus, the first dish of the All-Fish Banquet ordered by Yu Chu and Li Zi had arrived at about the same time as Zhou Shijie’s dishes.
Zhou Xi planned to first eat some vegetables. Just as he was about to eat some Jin’ling Grass, a familiar voice rang out nearby.
“In terms of the psychology of color, this Weaving Brocade Diligently While Wearing Winter Clothing dish is rich in color. The brightness is very effective in stimulating one’s appetite,” Yu Chu started seriously explaining to his friend.
“Don’t look down on the flat bottom plate used here with the mixed vegetables at the bottom. This is an embodiment of Boss Yuan’s cooking skills. That was because all the gravy has been absorbed. Thus, while eating, it will feel tender, succulent, and springy,” said Yu Chu while eating.
“More importantly, this dish is very appetizing. This is the most important characteristic of a cold dish,” Yu Chu continued his explanation.
Yu Chu had a unique voice. Thus, Zhou Xi immediately knew who it was. But what was up with the content of his words? Since when was this “quality inspector” such a food expert?
Zhou Xi thought he was hearing things.
Yes, he was definitely hearing things. In disbelief, Zhou Xi even set his chopsticks down and turned his head to look in the direction of the voice. And from his angle, he could see clearly Yu Chu giving his long long lecture there.
“As for this Wire Fish Fillet, it is the dish I wanted to eat most. After seeing it in a video, I have been craving for it,” said Yu Chu’s friend, Li Zi, as he reached out with his chopsticks unhesitatingly.
“Understandable. This dish is not only delicious, it is very entertaining as well. More importantly, it feels like the fish is turning back to life when you put it in your mouth,” remarked Yu Chu seriously.
“The moment your teeth tear apart the layer of gravy enveloping the fish, the freshness of the fish will explode in your mouth,” Yu Chu continued narrating while eating, his explanations clear and logical.
It was as if he had suddenly transformed into a food critic. And he did not look like a regular critic. Rather, he looked like a famous food critic.
“This must be a fake Yu Chu.” was the only thought in Zhou Xi’s heart currently. This version of Yu Chu not only had good oratory skills, the satisfied expression he had on his face with every bite was an expression any man would understand well.
“Why are you not eating? Come, eat,” said Zhou Shijie when he noticed Zhou Xi blanking out.
Zhou Xi was brought back from his thoughts. He no longer felt like eating Jin’ling Grass. He shifted his gaze to the newly arrived Melt-In-The-Mouth Chicken Feet. Chicken feet used to be his favorite food before he went abroad.
The dish stayed true to its name as it truly melted when entering his mouth. It was like he was eating fried ice cream instead. Moreover, this dish wasn’t as greasy as fried ice cream when his mouth was instantly flooded by a warm wave of chicken meat.
The flavor of the gravy caused him to be unable to stop after his first bite. He immediately took a second bite.
He chewed harder on his second bite, crushing the chicken bones. Normally, even after special handling, the bones of the chicken feet would be hard. But with Yuan Zhou’s version, the bones were crispy and cold. Mixed with the tenderness of the meat, it gave birth to an extreme enjoyment.
There was a saying on a certain culinary website that was very well spoken. If anyone was unsatisfied with Yuan Zhou’s restaurant, a single meal would be all it took. No dissatisfaction had ever survived more than a single meal here.
The current Zhou Xi was a good example. Only six chicken feet were served, and before Zhou Shijie could do anything, Zhou Xi had already eaten five of them.
Fortunately, Zhou Xi still had his conscience and left the final one for his father.
At this time, the Swedish Meatball had arrived as well. With one plain white rice for each of them, everything they ordered had arrived.
Zhou Xi could no longer be bothered with whether that Yu Chu was a fake or genuine Yu Chu. He was thoroughly immersed in eating, forgetting the world around him.
Zhou Shijie was feeling smug when he first saw that his son had indeed been conquered by Yuan Zhou’s restaurant. But the smugness evaporated shortly after.
It was not because the dishes had been finished. It did not matter as Zhou Shijie was happy to see his son having such a good appetite.
But the problem was…
“Zhou Xi, can you take care of your image? Eat slower. It’s not like I’m fighting over the food with you. What is the rush?” Zhou Shijie said in anger. “If you eat any faster, you will be the same as Shameless Wu!”
