Chapter 89: The Bosses Get Excited After Tasting a True Delicacy
Jiulong Gorge.
Chu Yiwei, Lin Xin, Zhang Qinghe, and the other teachers arrived.
"Boss, a large bowl of beef noodles for everyone for lunch today," Zhang Qinghe said.
"Of course. Please, come on in, everyone!"
Li You welcomed the teachers inside, then went into the kitchen to prepare thirteen large bowls of beef noodles.
He served the bowls to the teachers.
After taking a bite, Zhang Qinghe said with satisfaction, "Even just coming here for a bowl of noodles is incredibly satisfying."
Chu Yiwei, Lin Xin, and the other teachers all agreed.
Meanwhile, in the parking lot, Zhao Yu, Deng Luping, Xie Hai, and the other bosses from the market arrived.
With the exception of Deng Luping, the other bosses were sizing the place up.
They hadn’t been here in a while. And sure enough, there was a new restaurant.
I have to say, with this restaurant here, the place suddenly felt more alive.
"He even planted such a large orchard in front of the shop. That young man must be planning to run this place long-term!" Zhao Yu said.
"It certainly looks that way. This also means there must be real business here. Otherwise, you can’t keep a place open just running on passion alone," another boss said.
Chatting amongst themselves, the group of bosses slowly walked to the entrance of the shop.
They saw the "Today’s Menu" sign.
Xie Hai said, "So they really do have Boiled Cabbage in Supreme Broth. If it’s genuinely delicious, 568 isn’t an expensive price. But... it can’t possibly be that good, can it?"
Earlier that morning, they had all been convinced it wouldn’t be good. They all said the young man was just looking for suckers, happy to fleece anyone he could find.
But now, they weren’t so sure.
Of course, that just meant they were no longer completely certain.
It was still highly likely that it wouldn’t be any good.
After all, Boiled Cabbage in Supreme Broth wasn’t an ordinary dish. It was incredibly difficult to make well.
’Even if the young man can make delicious noodles and other common dishes, there’s no way he can make a good Boiled Cabbage in Supreme Broth, right?’
This was what all the bosses were thinking.
Just then, Li You saw people outside the shop.
He stepped out the door.
He was a bit surprised to see Deng Luping. Looking at the others, he recognized four more familiar faces.
They were all shopkeepers from the town market. Li You had bought things from their shops before.
This made Li You even more surprised.
’So many bosses showing up together? What’s going on?’
’And the rest of them? Are they also shopkeepers from the market?’
’What on earth is going on? Don’t tell me they’re here to eat?’
Just as Li You recognized the four familiar faces, they also recognized him.
’Hey, I think this young fella has bought stuff from my shop before.’
’So he’s the one who opened this shop.’
That was unexpected.
At that moment, Li You said, "Boss Deng, and all you other bosses, what brings you all here?"
Deng Luping smiled. "We heard the food here is delicious, Boss Li, so we came to give it a try."
’So they really are here to eat.’
’This is great!’
Li You was very happy and said with a smile, "Please, come on in, everyone!"
"Thank you!"
The bosses thanked him as they walked into the shop.
Zhang Qinghe, who was in the middle of eating his noodles, saw Zhao Yu.
He was a little surprised.
’I didn’t expect Boss Zhao to get here so fast.’
’And he brought so many other bosses with him.’
Zhang Qinghe was familiar with a few of them; they would always greet each other whenever they met.
He wasn’t familiar with the rest, but he more or less recognized them.
’To think so many bosses came here together.’
’Looks like everyone loves good food!’
Zhang Qinghe stood up, walked over, and said, "Boss Zhao, Boss Zhu, Boss Xie, and all the other bosses, you’re all here."
Zhao Yu smiled. "After hearing what you said, Teacher Zhang, we were all curious just how delicious Boss Li’s food is. So, we all came over together."
Zhang Qinghe said, "Rest assured, everyone. Boss Li’s food is absolutely more delicious than you can imagine."
Hearing their conversation, Li You wondered, ’Could it be that these bosses came here together because of Teacher Zhang?’
Zhang Qinghe noticed Li You’s confusion and, with a smile, briefly explained how he had stopped by Zhao Yu’s shop to buy cigarettes on his way over.
Li You understood now and said, "Thank you for the recommendation, Teacher Zhang."
Zhang Qinghe said, "You’re too kind, Boss. Honestly, even without my recommendation, Boss Zhao and the others would have found out sooner or later."
Hearing Zhang Qinghe’s unwavering confidence in how incredibly delicious the food was, Zhao Yu, Deng Luping, Xie Hai, and the other bosses couldn’t help but feel even more curious and full of anticipation.
It was time to hurry up and order something to try.
’So, the key question is, what should we order?’
Zhao Yu asked Zhang Qinghe, "Teacher Zhang, what’s the best thing to eat here?"
Zhang Qinghe replied, "There’s no single best thing to eat, because every single item is a must-try. Since this is everyone’s first time here, I suggest you try a bit of everything. Everyone can get a bowl of noodles—either the beef noodles or the Yangchun Noodles are fine—and then order one of every side dish to share. That way, you have your noodles as the main course and can just get a taste of all the other dishes. It won’t cost too much, and you’ll get to sample everything on the menu."
"Well..."
The bosses looked at each other. They hadn’t expected Zhang Qinghe to make such a suggestion.
That was one way to do it, they supposed. But was the Boiled Cabbage in Supreme Broth really necessary?
They wondered if it would just be a waste of 568 yuan.
But in the end, the bosses decided to follow Zhang Qinghe’s suggestion and order just that.
Even if the 568 yuan was a waste, it wouldn’t amount to much when split among them all.
As for the noodles, they would all get beef noodles.
They all preferred meat, after all.
Large bowls.
Zhao Yu relayed their order.
Li You nodded. "Alright then, please have a seat and wait a moment, everyone. It’ll be ready soon."
With that, he turned and went into the kitchen.
Once again, he operated several stoves at the same time.
Soon, the dishes were ready: Boiled Cabbage in Supreme Broth, Mapo Tofu, Twice-cooked Pork with Garlic Sprouts, Twice-cooked Pork with Green Peppers, Stir-fried Shredded Potatoes, and fifteen large bowls of beef noodles.
He served them to the bosses.
The moment the bosses saw the food, they were all secretly astonished.
Whether it was the beef noodles or the side dishes, they all looked absolutely delicious just from their appearance.
The presentation was on another level!
And they smelled incredible, too.
They weren’t familiar with Boiled Cabbage in Supreme Broth, but they were very familiar with beef noodles and the other dishes, which they ate often.
’How can the appearance and aroma of these dishes be this good?’
It was simply unbelievable.
They had a feeling this would be more delicious than anything they’d ever eaten before.
What Teacher Zhang had said was almost certainly true.
Moreover, the Boiled Cabbage in Supreme Broth, which they were unfamiliar with, not only looked stunningly beautiful but also had a rich, fragrant aroma that wafted toward them.
’Is this even food?’
’This is a work of art, isn’t it?’
It was a real eye-opener!
Even Xie Hai, who knew a little about Boiled Cabbage in Supreme Broth, thought the same at this moment.
’How could this possibly not be delicious?’
’A waste of 568 yuan?’
Bullshit!
Before they had even taken a bite, the bosses were already certain that their previous thoughts had been complete bullshit.
So, what would it actually taste like?
All of the bosses were filled with anticipation!
They couldn’t wait to dig in.
The first bite was simply unbelievable!
...