The literary era since 1979

Chapter 152: Innate Gourmet Holy Body
"Teacher Fang, there is a letter for you!"

Xiao Hu was pushing a 28-inch bicycle and standing under the old locust tree.

After a while, Fang Yan came out of the yard. Seeing him in a dark green postman's uniform, he smiled and said:

"Master Hu retired?"

"Well, I'll take over the shift after the New Year."

Xiao Hu's tone was full of gratitude. "It's all thanks to Mr. Fang. After reading your novel, I was able to figure it out. Thank you!"

"Just figure it out yourself."

Fangyan took the stack of letters he handed over.

Xiao Hu's eyes were full of anticipation. "When the book 'That Mountain, That Man, That Dog' is published, I will definitely buy two copies for me and my dad. Can you sign them for us then?"

"No problem at all."

Fangyan agreed and waved goodbye to him.

I went back to the house and opened the letters one by one.

The contents of the letters are extremely varied.

Some people questioned themselves, why the article is clearly called "A Bite of China", so there are no delicacies from their hometown.

Some educated youth who stayed in a foreign land for various reasons did not drool but shed tears after watching "A Bite of China". They had not tasted the taste of their hometown for many years.

The delicious food from hometown is actually a kind of homesickness.

Some are invitation letters from state-owned hotels across the country.

In addition to "Teacher Fang", other honorific titles for him include "gourmet", "foodie", "foodie connoisseur"...

But unfortunately, I didn’t see the title of “God of Cookery”.

Although the names are very different, the purpose is basically the same, which is to invite him to have a meal in the local area, and all the travel and accommodation expenses are covered.

There was only one small condition, which was to write a food essay about their local food or the restaurant they dined at.

It would be fine if the level was about the same as "A Bite of China".

Fangyan never thought that in the early 80s, he could be a food exploration blogger? It was really amazing!

Am I the sage of gourmet restaurant exploration?

Just as I was daydreaming, a voice came from outside the house:

"elder brother!"

Fang Yan took the Yanjing Literature and ran all the way to her brother, "You hid it from me, it was so painful."

"What did I hide from you?"

Fangyan put down the envelope.

"You ate so many delicious foods by yourself!"

Fang Yan was aggrieved, "Why don't you take me with you?"

"I eat to create and find inspiration. Do you think everyone is like you, a greedy little cat, thinking about eating all day long?"

Fangyan tapped her forehead lightly.

Fang Yan hugged his arm, "Brother, can you take me out for a nice meal?" She shook him and acted like a spoiled child, "Please, brother, I'm almost dying of hunger after watching A Bite of China."

Fangyan smiled without saying anything and just watched quietly.

Fang Yan looked eagerly, "Sister Xiaoya said that with my current grades, I will have no problem getting into No. 117 Middle School. As long as I improve a little bit, it won't be a dream to sprint to No. 2 Middle School! I am reviewing very seriously every day now, and I especially need delicious food to supplement my nutrition and nourish my brain!"

"Stop talking nonsense. I can take you to eat something delicious."

Fangyan has seen the little sister's efforts these days.

"Brother, you're the best!"

There was a gleam of light in Fang Yan's eyes.

…………

The two of them took advantage of their day off to go out for a meal at noon.

Unexpectedly, there were many people who shared the same idea as him, and most restaurants in the city were packed.

This kind of crowded scene has been happening for a long time.

Since the publication of "A Bite of China", not only newspapers such as "Wenyi Bao" and "Wenxue Bao" have commented on it, but the library-run newspapers in various districts of Yanjing have also launched columns on food.

"Dandelions" from Xicheng, "Bell and Drum Tower" from Dongcheng, "Fragrant Grassland" from Chaoyang, and "Maple Leaf" from Haidian have a very good understanding of each other. They only reprint essays from "A Bite of China" that mention the food in their areas, and also supplement those that are not in the article.

All of a sudden, Yanjing became as popular as "Zibo BBQ", not to mention the old brands like Quanjude.

Even the few restaurants that had just reopened in the Eighth Building had no vacant seats, and everyone was grateful to one person.

That’s Teacher Fang!

However, he was looking for a restaurant at the time, but all the ones he usually went to were full, so he was simply "trapping himself in a cocoon".

Fortunately, when I was getting a haircut, I learned from Uncle Jing that one of his old customers had opened an authentic tripe shop.

This fly-in-the-wall restaurant is run by Uncle Liu and his family.

Because of his friendship with Uncle Jing, he directly got a VIP seat in the back kitchen. After following Uncle Jing's lead a few times, Fangyan gradually became familiar with Uncle Liu.

"Teacher Fang!!"

"Your business seems to be booming."

"Thank you, thank you."

Uncle Liu said that thanks to the mention of “Baodu Liu” on “A Bite of China”, his business is now as good as it can be.

Fangyan asked: "Is there any seat left?"

"Others don't have it, but you and Lao Jing have it!"

Uncle Liu led them to a special seat in the back kitchen.

As I walked through the aisle, I heard diners at a table chatting.

“There are three types of stir-fried tripe: stir-fried with green onions, stir-fried with oil, and stir-fried with soup.”

"This shop specializes in soup..." "If you want it to be delicious, the key is the 'burst'."

"The frying time must be just right, fresh, tender, crisp and refreshing, all of which are essential."

"There is also a certain order when eating. The principle is 'fresh first, then crispy, and finally tender', otherwise it will not be authentic!"

"........."

Looking in the direction of the voice, the more Fangyan looked, the more familiar the person who was speaking looked. This was the guy he met at Kaorou Wan.

I saw him eating fried tripe and chatting with his friends.

"I didn't expect that eating fried tripe would require so many things?"

"Of course not! After eating a few plates of fried tripe, followed by a bowl of fried tripe clear soup, the original soup is used to dissolve the original food, and then eat a freshly baked sesame pancake. It's so delicious. According to "A Bite of China", 'the best thing in life is simple happiness'."

"Yes, that's the flavor that Teacher Fang wrote."

"Teacher Fang is indeed a gourmet!"

"Who says he isn't? I'm afraid there aren't many foodies in Yanjing who know more about food than him."

After listening all the way, Fang Yan just felt greedy and hungry, and couldn't wait to run to the kitchen and sit down.

"Don't worry, season it first."

Fangyan patiently said: "The ingredients for eating pao du er should be light, good sesame paste, some soy sauce, rice vinegar, mashed garlic, minced ginger, and finally coriander to inject the soul."

He glanced at the table and asked, "Uncle Liu, where's the coriander?"

"Here, leave them all here for you."

Uncle Liu's son brought a big bowl.

When Fang Yan saw the steaming hot fried tripe on the table, she was so anxious that she scratched her head. When her brother handed her the seasoning, she looked like a starving ghost. Her eyes glowed green and she began to eat it voraciously with the pancake.

Fang Yan smiled and said, "Eat slowly."

"Brother, one more, no, two more!"

Fang Yan's face was bulging from eating so much.

Fangyan said: "You ate two large plates, that's too much."

Fang Yan drank a mouthful of the soup and smiled, "Not much, not much at all, it's really delicious."

"Did you enjoy your meal?"

Fang Yan looked at her and nodded, "You can't eat this meal for nothing. You have to review well and strive to make progress, okay?"

………………

The brother and sister devoured seven large plates in a flash and went home only after they were full.

The next day, Fangyan went to work as usual and took away a basket full of letters from the doorman, Mr. Dong.

In the office, Tian Zengxiang looked up and said, "Yanzi, where are you going to have lunch?"

Fang Yan said: "The cafeteria."

"Where are we going to have dinner then?"

Tian Zengxiang asked again.

"Of course, at home."

Fangyan said in a joking tone: "Why are you asking this? Are you going to treat me to a meal?"

"A treat? That's no problem!"

Tian Zengxiang patted his chest and said, "But we have a deal. You have to take me to eat delicious food. And it has to be a place that has not been written about in A Bite of China. This request is not too much, right?"

Before Fangyan could open his mouth, Zhang Shouren walked in from outside:
"Count me in for this kind of good thing!"

"And I."

Yan Ming followed closely behind with a smile on his face.

"What are you..."

Fangyan raised his eyebrows and said, "You guys connected very well."

"After the release of A Bite of China, everyone knows that you are a big eater, so they all want to enjoy the food with you."

Tian Zengxiang smiled.

"Yes!"

Yan Ming said with emotion: "I never thought that you, Yanzi, are so knowledgeable when it comes to food."

Zhang Shouren nodded and said, "I used to think that Mr. Wang was a rare writer who could eat, and a writer who could write about eating. Now there is another writer named Yanzi."

"Don't praise me with nice words."

Fangyan didn't know whether to laugh or cry, "Why don't I take you guys to eat?"

"Hahaha!"

In an instant, the house was filled with a cheerful atmosphere.

After chatting for a while, Zhang Shouren got down to business.

"Recently, the publishing house received a notice that the Ministry, the Writers Association and the General Political Department are planning to jointly hold a symposium on military-themed literature creation in Yanjing to promote the development of military-themed literature. Our October was also named and must participate."

“Military literature?”

Tian Zengxiang and Yan Ming looked at each other and said, "I'm afraid there is no one in the editorial department who knows more about military topics than Yan Zi."

Zhang Shouren glanced at Fangyan and said, "Our main task this time is to discover writers at the symposium and collect manuscripts for October."

Fang Yan asked, "When will the symposium be held?"

Zhang Shouren replied: "The specific time has not been determined yet, we only know it will be in April."

"April?"

Fangyan lowered his head and thought, that is, after the Sino-Japanese cultural exchange activities, there is no conflict in time.

(End of this chapter)