Chapter 90: Photographing a Wild Red-crowned Crane, Mu is Thrilled
Both the noodles and the other dishes were far more delicious than they could have imagined.
Every single dish was like that.
It would have been one thing if only the Cabbage in Supreme Broth, a famous state banquet dish, was tastier than expected.
But to their surprise, even common, homestyle dishes like Mapo Tofu, Twice-cooked Pork, and Stir-fried Shredded Potatoes—not to mention a ubiquitous meal like Beef Noodle Soup—were all unbelievably delicious as well.
’Just what kind of culinary skill does it take to make food like this?’
’Could this young man be a legendary Special Chef?’
’Are there even Special Chefs this young?’
The business owners simply couldn’t fathom how Li You, so young, possessed such extraordinary culinary talent.
But that wasn’t important.
What was important was that this place wasn’t far from the town market, and the prices were all normal.
This meant they could come back to enjoy such delicacies whenever they wanted.
It was an absolutely incredible prospect.
At that moment, the business owners finally understood why Zhang Qinghe and the other teachers rushed over here the second it was mealtime.
Because they would probably be doing the exact same thing from now on.
’For this young man to open his shop here... it’s a blessing for all of us in Wenxian Town!’
’Oh, right. Since he opened his shop here, he must be a Wenxian Town local, right?’
With this in mind, Deng Luping asked Li You, "Boss, you must be a local, right?"
Li You nodded. "I’m from Changle Village."
"That’s wonderful! HAHAHA!"
The business owners were all thrilled. If Li You was a local, he probably wouldn’t move his restaurant away.
The more they thought about it, the happier they became.
Filled with joy, they went back to eating.
Just then, two striking figures walked into the restaurant.
Upon seeing Li You, one of them exclaimed excitedly, "Boss, there are Red-crowned Cranes here! Wild Red-crowned Cranes! We actually got pictures of wild Red-crowned Cranes!"
The speaker was, of course, Xia Xiaoyue.
And the other person was, naturally, Mu Qingye.
They had already finished their photography for the morning.
Although Mu Qingye didn’t say a word, she was even more excited and thrilled than Xia Xiaoyue.
’Wild Red-crowned Cranes... To think there are still wild Red-crowned Cranes in the Xingshui City area.’
’And I managed to photograph them.’
’What incredible luck is this?’
’And what an amazing accomplishment!’
’This is a source of pride for me as a photographer. It’s incredibly meaningful.’
’And it will bring me accolades.’
From the moment she’d spotted the Red-crowned Cranes, Mu Qingye had been in a state of constant excitement.
Even now, she still hadn’t calmed down.
’Jiulong Gorge... such a beautiful, magical, and even somewhat mysterious place.’
’This trip was so worth it!’
Li You wasn’t surprised that there were Red-crowned Cranes in Jiulong Gorge.
He’d known for a while.
He’d seen a pair of them fly overhead and descend into the gorge just the other day.
However, the fact that Mu Qingye had managed to photograph them today was quite a surprise.
Being able to get pictures meant that Mu Qingye and Xia Xiaoyue must have been quite close to the cranes.
That was something Li You himself had never experienced.
For Mu Qingye to have such an encounter on her very first trip to Jiulong Gorge—her luck was truly incredible!
’For a photographer, this must be a serendipitous encounter, right?’
Li You was happy for Mu Qingye, too.
Zhang Qinghe and the other teachers, as well as Deng Luping and the other business owners, also knew about the Red-crowned Cranes in Jiulong Gorge.
They too had seen Red-crowned Cranes flying overhead, so they figured their habitat must be inside Jiulong Gorge.
Thus, they weren’t surprised by the news.
The teachers already recognized Xia Xiaoyue. They hadn’t seen the beautiful girl next to her before but figured she must be Xia Xiaoyue’s classmate.
Seeing the two students so thrilled about photographing Red-crowned Cranes here made the teachers suddenly feel a little proud of teaching in Wenxian Town.
’It may be a bit remote, but it’s an absolutely wonderful place.’
As for Deng Luping, Zhao Yu, and the other business owners, they didn’t recognize Xia Xiaoyue. They were all wondering, ’Where are these two young, beautiful girls from? The county seat?’
’The two girls are obviously not from Wenxian Town.’
’If they were locals, they’d know about the Red-crowned Cranes in Jiulong Gorge and wouldn’t be this excited.’
’If they’re from the county seat, and they’re clearly already familiar with the young proprietor...’
’...doesn’t that mean this young man’s restaurant’s reputation has already reached the county seat?’
’It’s already famous in the county seat, and we’re only finding out today. We’re really behind the times, aren’t we?’
The business owners all shook their heads. ’This is unacceptable.’
’Fortunately, it’s not too late now that we know.’
Just then, Li You smiled. "I knew there were Red-crowned Cranes here, but I didn’t expect you’d actually be able to photograph them. Where did you get the shot? Let me see."
"Sure!"
Mu Qingye was more than happy to show Li You.
She walked over to Li You’s side and showed him the display screen on her DSLR camera.
The very first photo made Li You’s eyes light up.
In the photo, two Red-crowned Cranes stood on a sandbar, their feathers snow-white, their crowns a brilliant red, with long legs and long necks.
Their forms were elegant and exceptionally beautiful.
They were simply stunning.
The Red-crowned Cranes themselves were stunning, but the photography was even more so.
The composition, framing, use of focal length—everything about the photograph was excellent and demonstrated a high level of skill.
Even though Mu Qingye was still a student, her photography skills were clearly already quite advanced.
"Mu, your photography skills are incredible! This is a very professional shot," Li You couldn’t help but praise.
’Even a beautiful scene needs a skilled photographer to truly capture its beauty.’
Hearing Li You’s praise, Mu Qingye was very happy and said, "Thank you, Boss."
Xia Xiaoyue added, "Senior Sister Mu won first place in the Xingshui City Photography Competition."
"So Mu is that amazing. That’s incredible!" Li You praised again, genuinely impressed.
Mu Qingye was delighted but replied humbly, "You’re too kind, Boss."
Li You insisted it was no exaggeration, then continued looking at the next photos.
Mu Qingye had taken several dozen photos of the Red-crowned Cranes in total, and every single one was shot at a high level of skill.
Looking at photos taken by a true master photographer was an absolute pleasure; one could never get enough.
Zhang Qinghe, Chu Yiwei, Lin Xin, and the other teachers, along with Zhao Yu, Deng Luping, and the other business owners, all gathered behind Li You and Mu Qingye. They wanted to see, too.
They were just as stunned.
The Red-crowned Cranes were beautiful and elegant to begin with, but in these photos, they seemed even more so.
’No wonder these big birds have been called ’celestial cranes’ since ancient times,’ they thought. ’They really do have an ethereal quality.’
"This spot doesn’t look too far from here. Boss, do you think those two Red-crowned Cranes might ever wander up to the front of your restaurant?" Chu Yiwei asked.
Li You had noticed that too. The sandbar in the photo wasn’t far; it was part of the same shallows where he set his fish traps.
He was surprised the two Red-crowned Cranes had wandered so close.
’But for them to come right up to the restaurant entrance... that seems unlikely, doesn’t it?’
Li You smiled. "I’d love for them to come, but it’s probably not very likely."
Chu Yiwei nodded. "You’re right, it’s pretty unlikely."
Still, if they did, it would be a huge attraction for the restaurant.
All the customers thought so.
And Li You, of course, thought so more than anyone.
...
...