Chapter 132: This Trip Was So Worth It for the Wine Alone
But soon, Li You found out why Wei Yang had come to eat here.
It turned out Zhao Yanglin had brought him.
Li You was very happy that Zhao Yanglin was back for another meal.
He always hoped to see his regular customers return.
This time, Zhao Yanglin’s party consisted of six people. Aside from Director Wei Yang and the younger driver, the other three also clearly had impressive backgrounds.
But regardless of their status, Li You didn’t care, nor did he have any interest in prying.
To him, it didn’t matter who they were. As long as they came into his restaurant to eat, they were his guests.
He was there to serve them delicious food.
It was as simple as that.
Li You liked to keep things simple.
...
Inside the restaurant.
Zhao Yanglin, Wei Yang, and Ye Shengge started ordering at their table.
"Let’s start with seven orders of Cabbage in Boiled Water," Zhao Yanglin said. "I’ve said it many times before: the Cabbage in Boiled Water here is more than good enough to be served at a state banquet. Now, I’ll let you all experience just how incredible a truly top-tier Cabbage in Boiled Water can be. Of course, that doesn’t include Miss Ye. I’m talking about the five of you."
Ye Shengge smiled faintly. Wei Yang and the other four men, including the driver, remained skeptical.
Zhao Yanglin paid no mind to their thoughts. He was in high spirits and continued, "Then, two orders of Mapo Tofu, so you can experience what the most delicious Mapo Tofu tastes like. Next, two orders each of Twice-cooked Pork with Garlic Sprouts and Stir-fried Shredded Potatoes. And then there are two new dishes... for the Huoxiang Crucian Carp, is one order a single fish?"
Da Bai replied, "Yes, sir."
"Then we’ll have seven of those. And finally, the spicy crayfish. How many pounds should we get?" Zhao Yanglin mused.
"Old Zhao, maybe we should skip the spicy crayfish," Wei Yang said.
The other three men agreed.
With so many other customers in the restaurant, the thought of picking up crayfish with their bare hands and getting grease all over their faces made them hesitant.
It felt beneath their status.
A bit undignified.
Zhao Yanglin said, "I know what you’re all thinking. But you absolutely have to try the spicy crayfish here. Trust me, you won’t regret it. It’s just eating crayfish, what’s the big deal? Everyone does it, so why can’t we? Besides, I’m sure Miss Ye likes them too."
Ye Shengge also knew why Wei Yang and the other three men didn’t want to order the spicy crayfish. She smiled faintly and said, "I do enjoy them. But I can have them anytime. It’s fine if we don’t have them for lunch today."
"Well..." Wei Yang hesitated. "Since Miss Ye enjoys them, then... let’s order them. Yes, let’s."
Zhao Yanglin said, "Alright, let’s get five pounds, then. That’s everything."
"Of course. Please wait a moment, everyone," Da Bai said.
Then Da Bai turned and walked toward the kitchen.
"Oh, right. Since the owner is selling liquor now, we should have some," Zhao Yanglin added.
Wei Yang and the other three men nodded.
’Even though the liquor here is probably some affordable, run-of-the-mill stuff, it won’t hurt to have a little. We’ll just drink sparingly.’
"Miss Ye, do you know what kinds of liquor they sell here?" Zhao Yanglin asked.
Ye Shengge said, "Only one kind, a bulk baijiu. It’s twenty yuan a liang."
’Bulk baijiu? Twenty yuan a liang?’
Zhao Yanglin, Wei Yang, and the others were a little surprised.
’Never mind that there was only one kind of bulk baijiu. The crucial part was the price: twenty yuan a liang. That wasn’t cheap at all!’
’For them, a liquor that cost two hundred yuan a jin wasn’t considered fine liquor, but for the average person, it was definitely not cheap.’
’And here they thought the owner’s liquor would be a bargain.’
The men were all quite surprised.
But that was all there was to it. After all, to them, a liquor that cost two hundred yuan a jin still wasn’t considered high-quality.
’Normally, they wouldn’t bother drinking it.’
’But now, since it was better than they had expected, they were more willing to give it a try.’
"Xiaodai has to drive, so he won’t be drinking. The rest of us will have two liang each," Zhao Yanglin said.
Then he turned to Ye Shengge. "Miss Ye, would you care for some?"
Zhao Yanglin was only asking out of politeness; he didn’t think Ye Shengge would drink.
Wei Yang and the other three men thought so as well.
But, to their surprise, Ye Shengge nodded. "I’ll have some. I’m actually very fond of the liquor here."
Hm?
Zhao Yanglin, Wei Yang, and the other three men were all stunned for a moment.
Then, their surprise quickly turned to delight.
’If Miss Ye is drinking, then this lunch is going to be very interesting indeed!’
’Get the liquor, get the liquor, hurry up!’
"Miss Ye, is two liang alright?" Zhao Yanglin asked.
Ye Shengge nodded. "That’s fine."
"Da Bai, please bring us six two-liang servings of liquor," Zhao Yanglin said to Da Bai.
He had gotten used to interacting with Da Bai.
"Of course, please wait a moment."
Da Bai responded, walked over to the liquor jar, ladled out six two-liang servings, and brought them to Zhao Yanglin, Wei Yang, Ye Shengge, and the others.
Seeing that the liquor was served in bowls, Wei Yang asked, "Are there no cups?"
Ye Shengge shook her head. "No. Only bowls."
Wei Yang nodded. ’Bowls it is, then.’
A moment later, he froze.
The aroma of the liquor had reached him.
Zhao Yanglin and the other three men froze as well.
’This aroma... it’s so rich, so fragrant, so mellow!’
’How could it smell this good? Even the bottles of liquor they drank that cost thousands, or even tens of thousands, of yuan didn’t have an aroma like this!’
’It made one desperate to take a big gulp immediately.’
’To hell with it. I have to taste it first.’
The five men, including Zhao Yanglin and Wei Yang, all raised their bowls and took a sip.
The moment the liquor touched their lips, their faces were etched with expressions of utter disbelief.
Every one of them was utterly stunned.
The liquor was simply too good—impossibly, indescribably good. It surpassed any expectation they might have had.
If they had to describe it with words, they could only borrow and slightly modify a line from the great poet Du Fu.
It was: "This liquor can only be from the heavens above; how often can one find it in the mortal world?"
’This must be a divine vintage, found only in the heavens!’
’If it exists in the mortal realm, it must be an exquisite brew crafted by an immortal who descended to earth.’
The five men were completely and utterly astounded!
They never, ever would have imagined that they would drink such a masterpiece of a liquor today.
When they first heard from Ye Shengge that the restaurant had started selling liquor, they hadn’t thought anything of it.
They’d assumed it would just be some ordinary, budget-friendly liquor available anywhere. ’What’s the big deal?’
Even after learning it cost twenty yuan a liang, they were only mildly surprised.
They still wouldn’t give a liquor that cost twenty yuan a liang a second glance.
But who could have possibly known that the owner’s liquor was actually one of the finest brews in the mortal realm?
They had tried many fine liquors in their time, including some of the most expensive ones money could buy.
But even the best liquor they had tasted before paled in comparison to this one; the difference was night and day.
For this liquor alone, the nearly six-hour car ride to get here was absolutely worth it.
So incredibly worth it!
Never mind six hours—even ten or twenty hours would have been worth it.
They hadn’t even eaten a single bite of food yet, but just from that one sip of liquor, Wei Yang and the other three men already felt that this trip was more than worth it.
’If they hadn’t come today, how could they have ever tasted such a masterpiece?’
At this thought, Wei Yang and the other three men all turned to thank Zhao Yanglin. "Old Zhao, we have to thank you for bringing us here today. Otherwise, we would never have known that such a magnificent liquor existed in this world."
Zhao Yanglin laughed heartily. This was a massive, completely unexpected surprise for him as well.
Then, all five men had the same thought: ’No wonder Miss Ye said she was very fond of the liquor here.’
’It’s just too damn good!’
’Where does the owner get this liquor from? Or... did he brew it himself?’
All five men were dying to know the answers.
So, Zhao Yanglin asked Ye Shengge, "Miss Ye, do you know if the owner buys this liquor, or does he brew it himself?"
Ye Shengge shook her head. "I don’t know. But it’s highly unlikely you’ll find this on the open market."
The five men nodded; they thought so too.
’That means you can only get this liquor here, at the owner’s place.’
’Such an exquisite, exclusive vintage, and he’s only selling it for twenty yuan a liang?’
This, too, struck the five men as unbelievable.
The word "cheap" didn’t even begin to describe it.
It was practically a steal!
Even if this liquor were sold for two hundred yuan a liang, it would still sell out in an instant.
Even at two thousand yuan a liang, there would be no shortage of buyers.
’And he’s only selling it for twenty yuan a liang?’
’How capricious!’
The five men were once again overcome with emotion!
...