The old man thought to himself.
Soon, the Mapo Tofu and the Cabbage in Supreme Broth were also brought out one after another.
Of course, these two dishes also delighted the old man immensely.
The boss's culinary skills were truly unfathomable.
'And I hear he's a very young man.'
'The youth of today are truly something else!'
The old man slowly ate his meal and savored his wine, occasionally glancing toward the kitchen.
…
After Li You finished cooking all the customers' orders, no new ones had come in yet. So, he stir-fried a portion of twice-cooked pork with garlic sprouts for himself.
It was time for him to eat, too.
He ladled out a bowl of rice. Holding the dish in one hand and the rice in the other, he walked out of the kitchen, looking for an empty table to sit down and eat.
Just then, the old man saw Li You walk out of the kitchen.
'He really is a very young man,' he thought.
Seeing Li You with a plate in one hand and a bowl of rice in the other, he knew the chef was about to eat his own meal. So, he called out, "Boss."
Li You heard a customer call him and looked toward the voice to see an elderly gentleman.
The man's face was unfamiliar; it must be his first time here.
'I wonder if he needs something?'
Li You walked straight over to him.
As he approached, he asked, "Sir, is there something I can help you with?"
The old man smiled faintly. "Oh, it's nothing in particular. I was just wondering, if you don't mind, if you'd like to have your meal here at my table."
Li You was a little surprised, but he replied, "Well, since you've offered, sir, it would be rude of me to refuse."
With that, he placed the dish and bowl of rice on the table and sat down in a vacant seat next to the old man.
Noticing the old man hadn't ordered the twice-cooked pork with garlic sprouts, he added, "If you don't mind, sir, you're welcome to try some of mine."
The old man said, "Twice-cooked pork with garlic sprouts is the most authentic version of the dish. Some even call it the king of Sichuan cuisine. I would indeed love to have a taste. In that case, I won't be shy."
Li You smiled. "That's the idea, sir. Please, don't hold back."
The old man smiled again. "Thank you, Boss."
He then picked up his chopsticks, selected a piece of pork, and put it in his mouth.
The aroma was indescribable, the taste beyond words.
After savoring the flavor for a long moment, the old man said with a sigh of satisfaction, "I've never had twice-cooked pork this fragrant or delicious. For a boss so young to possess such unfathomable culinary skill... it's truly unbelievable."
Li You said, "You flatter me, sir. In truth, I'm only really skilled at these few dishes for now."
The old man replied, "Even if it's only these few dishes, it's still an extraordinary achievement. Your culinary skill is just as unfathomable. Besides, you're so young. You're bound to master many more dishes in the future."
Li You smiled. "I hope you're right, sir."
The old man smiled faintly, then pointed to the painting on the wall. "May I ask who painted that piece?"
Li You replied, "A customer painted it and gave it to me. Are you interested in it, sir?"
The old man nodded. "Indeed I am. Do you know how old the artist is?"
Li You said, "I think she's 24? Or maybe 23. No older than 25."
The old man's eyes lit up when he heard this, and he nodded repeatedly. "Excellent! Excellent! That's a wonderful age! It means there's still immense room for growth."
Li You could tell now. 'This old man definitely knows his art. He might even be a connoisseur.'
'No wonder he was so interested in the painting.'
'But what did he mean by "immense room for growth"? Is he saying the painting isn't good enough?'
After a moment's thought, Li You asked, "Sir, are you saying the painting isn't good enough?"
The old man mused, "For someone in their early twenties, it's already excellent. She is very talented and has a great deal of spirit. It's just that many areas are, indeed, not handled ideally."
'Not handled ideally? And many areas at that?'
'What the hell! Seriously?'
Li You looked at the painting again. 'No matter how I look at it, it seems really damn good to me!'
'The sense of depth is clear, the rendering techniques are excellent, and it has a grand, majestic atmosphere. It has real artistic mood.'
'He really couldn't see any flaws.'
Of course, he wasn't questioning the old man's judgment.
It's as they say: amateurs see the show, but experts see the skill.
'It was obvious now that this old man was a true expert on the subject.'
'If he said there were many areas that weren't handled ideally, then it must be true. I'm just not skilled enough to see it.'
Thinking this, Li You smiled. "It seems you're quite the expert on art, sir. To be honest, from my perspective, I thought it was already painted quite well."
The old man just smiled again, not denying Li You's words.
Just then, a voice came from the entrance. "Da Bai, are you selling braised chicken feet today? Is there any left?"
It was Ling Xiaoru's voice.
Li You cursed inwardly, 'What the hell!'
'We were just talking about the painting, and Ling Xiaoru shows up. What a coincidence!'
'Looks like she's here for the braised chicken feet, too.'
'But isn't it a bit late to be showing up now?'
But that wasn't the main point right now.
The main point was the painting.
Li You turned back to the old man. "Sir, speaking of coincidences, the artist who painted that picture just arrived."
The old man was quite surprised to hear this, but also pleasantly so.
He was very interested in the artist. He wanted to see what kind of young person they were.
And now, the artist had actually shown up.
It was, he had to admit, a delightful coincidence.
So he asked, "Which one is she?"
Li You looked toward the entrance. From their table, they had a clear view of Da Bai and Ling Xiaoru.
Then he said, "The beautiful woman standing with Da Bai at the entrance."
The old man said, "To think she's such a beautiful young lady. That makes her talent even more rare."
Li You smiled. "I think so too. Sir, would you like me to call her over for a chat?"
The old man nodded. "A meeting like this is a kind of fate. Since I saw the painting here at your restaurant today, and the artist herself has appeared so coincidentally... yes, I think a conversation is in order. Provided she is willing, of course."
Li You said, "Then I'll go invite her over."
The old man nodded. "Thank you for the trouble, Boss."
"It's no trouble at all, sir."
…
「At the entrance of the restaurant.」
Da Bai said, "Miss Xiaoru, I'm very sorry. The braised chicken feet are already sold out for today. Please come back for them tomorrow. The boss will be making them again, and in a much larger quantity than today."
Ling Xiaoru looked a little dejected.
She hadn't known the boss was doing a trial run of braised chicken feet today.
Otherwise, she would have definitely come first thing in the morning.
She absolutely loved braised chicken feet.
It was only when she went out shopping a little while ago that she overheard someone saying Boss Li You of Jiulong Gorge Restaurant was doing a trial sale of braised chicken feet.
She was thrilled to hear the news.
She abandoned her shopping and rode her electric scooter straight here.
But who would have thought she was already too late.
It was a huge shame, but there was nothing to be done. 'I'll just have to come earlier tomorrow,' she thought.
'I have to get some tomorrow, no matter what.'
'So for lunch today, I'll have…'
Ling Xiaoru was pondering what to eat for lunch.
She might have missed out on the braised chicken feet, but since she was already here, she would definitely be having lunch at the restaurant.
Just then, Li You walked over. "Miss Xiaoru, there's an elderly gentleman over there who would like to have a word with you. Are you interested?"
"Hm?" Ling Xiaoru was quite surprised. "Which gentleman, Boss?" she asked.
Li You gestured toward the old man's table. "That gentleman over there."
Ling Xiaoru focused her gaze in that direction.
He was a complete stranger.
…