The other customers kept glancing over, but they didn’t forget to order their own food.
When they were outside the shop earlier, they had already noticed two new dishes on the menu today: Salted Pork with Preserved Greens and Tomato and Egg Soup.
The Salted Pork with Preserved Greens was bound to be delicious, and the Tomato and Egg Soup was also highly anticipated.
So, they had to try both new dishes.
"Da Bai, a bowl of Salted Pork with Preserved Greens, an order of Tomato and Egg Soup, and some rice."
Several customers placed the same order.
"Okay, just a moment."
Li You didn’t have to do anything for the Salted Pork with Preserved Greens; Da Bai could serve it directly to the customers.
He walked into the kitchen, lifted the lid of a steamer, and took out a bowl of Salted Pork with Preserved Greens. He then placed an empty bowl upside down over it, picked up both, and deftly flipped them over before bringing it out to the customer.
It was very convenient!
As the bowls of Salted Pork with Preserved Greens were brought to the tables, a rich aroma filled the air.
The customers weren’t surprised, but they were still delighted.
This Salted Pork with Preserved Greens had to be absolutely delicious.
Xia Xiaoyue, Mu Qingye, Yu Wei, Ling Xiaoru, and the other girls, who were in the middle of eating their spicy crayfish, also caught the scent of the Salted Pork with Preserved Greens.
Ling Xiaoru said, "The boss’s Salted Pork with Preserved Greens smells amazing. I just wonder if it’ll be too greasy."
Xia Xiaoyue said, "It’s hard to make Salted Pork with Preserved Greens that isn’t greasy. But I’m sure the boss’s version won’t be."
Mu Qingye said, "We’ll find out after we finish the crayfish. We can order a few bowls to try then."
The other girls all nodded.
But soon, it seemed they already had their answer.
A customer exclaimed with delight, "The boss’s Salted Pork with Preserved Greens isn’t greasy at all. It’s incredible!"
’So it really isn’t greasy.’
The girls were all thrilled. They knew that every one of the boss’s dishes was something special.
Just then, Deng Luping, Zhao Yu, Xie Hai, and the other shop owners from the market arrived outside the restaurant together.
"Huh? Is that Salted Pork with Preserved Greens? Did the boss add it to the menu?" Deng Luping said.
The other shop owners smelled it too.
They all turned to look at the "Today’s Menu" board.
Sure enough, he had added Salted Pork with Preserved Greens, along with Tomato and Egg Soup.
Excellent!
There was finally a soup on the menu. The boss should have added one long ago.
Tomato and Egg Soup was an extremely common, everyday soup.
But in the boss’s hands, even something so ordinary would become a delicacy.
The shop owners were completely convinced of this.
Of course, the Salted Pork with Preserved Greens was just as exciting! Judging by the aroma alone, it was guaranteed to be fantastic.
Today, they were lucky enough to get to try two new dishes.
The shop owners were all thrilled and hurried into the restaurant.
The moment they stepped inside, the first thing they saw was the group of girls including Xia Xiaoyue and Mu Qingye, and the large platters of crayfish on their table.
Those university girls were here for crayfish again.
’They’re really living the good life in college!’
Every one of them was young and pretty—a real sight for sore eyes.
The shop owners couldn’t help but stare a little longer. They were all quite envious of Li You at that moment.
But no matter how envious they were, it was time to order food.
They ordered five catties of spicy crayfish to go with their drinks, along with three bowls of Salted Pork with Preserved Greens and an order of Tomato and Egg Soup.
The spicy crayfish came out first, followed by the Salted Pork with Preserved Greens and the Tomato and Egg Soup.
After taking a bite of the pork and a sip of the soup, the shop owners were both satisfied and deeply moved.
The fact that the Salted Pork with Preserved Greens was delicious and not greasy went without saying.
The key was that they had known all along: even a soup as simple as Tomato and Egg would become a masterpiece in the boss’s hands.
And now, they were proven right.
This soup was truly a masterpiece!
The boss’s culinary skills were simply out of this world.
The shop owners marveled to themselves.
Just then, another customer called out to Da Bai, "Da Bai, could you please get me a to-go box? I want to pack up the leftover preserved greens. I’ll cook some rice tonight, and eating it with these greens will be a gourmet meal in itself."
His words made all the other customers’ eyes light up.
They should save some of their preserved greens to take home, too! Whether eaten with rice or added to noodles, it would be absolutely amazing.
And so, many of the customers who had ordered the Salted Pork with Preserved Greens started asking Da Bai and Xiaohai for to-go boxes.
Even Deng Luping, Zhao Yu, and Xie Hai were thinking, ’Should we also save the preserved greens, split them, and each take some home?’
’I wonder how the boss makes these preserved greens. Why are they so delicious?’
The preserved greens in this dish from other places were usually just salty. They were fine with rice or noodles, but the boss’s greens were delicious enough to eat on their own.
All they could say was that this was the difference between an ordinary chef and a master chef.
The shop owners marveled once again.
Meanwhile, Xia Xiaoyue, Mu Qingye, Ling Xiaoru, and the other girls had finally finished their crayfish.
They were thoroughly satisfied, but not quite full yet.
So, just as planned, it was time to order a few bowls of Salted Pork with Preserved Greens, some Tomato and Egg Soup, and a bit of rice.
’Ten bowls of Salted Pork with Preserved Greens and five orders of Tomato and Egg Soup should do it.’
Soon, ten bowls of Salted Pork with Preserved Greens, five orders of Tomato and Egg Soup, and the rice were all served.
The girls each ladled out a bowl of rice and began to eat.
They finally got to taste the Salted Pork with Preserved Greens and the Tomato and Egg Soup.
The Salted Pork with Preserved Greens was, as expected, not greasy at all, and the Tomato and Egg Soup was indescribably delicious.
The boss’s incredible cooking skills made them love him to bits.
He was so young and handsome, too, which made them love him even more.
The girls were all completely smitten.
After finishing their meal at a leisurely pace, they went to pay the bill.
The total came to 2,072 yuan.
With 23 of them in total, that averaged out to less than 100 yuan per person—not expensive at all.
To eat so incredibly well for less than a hundred yuan...
It was absolutely delicious and a great deal!
After paying, the girls went to wait outside. They were waiting for Li You to finish his work so they could all go back to his village to catch crayfish.
Time passed slowly, and at two in the afternoon, the last table of customers paid their bill and left.
’It’s so late now, there probably won’t be any more customers, right?’
All the girls looked at Li You with hopeful expressions.
Li You smiled. "Alright, let’s go. Time to head back to the village and catch some crayfish."
The girls let out a cheer.
The moment they had been waiting for was finally here!
"Boss, how are we getting there?" Xia Xiaoyue asked.
Li You said, "I’ll lead the way on my motorcycle. You guys just follow me in your cars."
Xia Xiaoyue nodded. "Okay!"
A moment later, she added, "By the way, boss, if we’re fishing for crayfish, should we prepare fishing rods and bait?"
Li You shook his head. "Nope. I’ll just bring some nylon string and a small dip net. That’s all we’ll need. Oh, right, take these two buckets and put them in one of your cars. We’ll need them to hold the crayfish."
"Okay!"
Xia Xiaoyue and Ling Xiaoru each took a bucket and headed toward the parking lot with the other girls.
They had driven five cars in total today.
Ling Xiaoru left her electric scooter behind and got a ride in Xia Xiaoyue’s car instead.
Li You grabbed the nylon string and the small dip net, then started his motorcycle.
Once he reached the parking lot, he waited for the girls to get their five cars ready, and then they all set off.
The five cars followed in a line behind him.
Li You didn’t ride very fast. The road was narrow and full of turns, so the cars couldn’t pick up much speed anyway.
Going a bit slower was fine; safety was the most important thing.
「Half an hour later, they reached the entrance to Changle Village.」
This was a good place for the cars to park.
Li You parked his motorcycle here as well.
Once all the vehicles were parked, the girls all got out.
Then, they all started looking around.
’So this is Changle Village, where the boss lives?’
’It’s so beautiful!’
It made sense for a village right next to Jiulong Gorge; it was just as beautiful as the gorge itself.
Li You, holding the dip net, said to the girls, "Alright, let’s head into the village."
"Okay!"
The girls answered in unison, and with two of them carrying the buckets, they followed Li You into the village.
...