1984: Starting from a bankrupt Sichuan restaurant

Chapter 222 Oh, that guy from the mountain city! (6.6k words combined)

"Little Yellow Chicken! Is this how you do things?!"

"Tell me! What are you going to do with that dilapidated house you bought for eight hundred yuan?"

"I was fooled by your lies! Don't touch me!"

At Feiyan Restaurant, Zhao Shulan's eyes were wide with anger, and her fists were clenched.

Huang He hunched his shoulders and stood at the other corner of the counter, muttering, "Oh, Shulan, the baby is still here. Please give me some face and let this matter go."

Huang Ying and Huang Bing stood aside, cracking sunflower seeds and watching the show.

"Mom, it's alright, you don't need to worry about us, just pretend we don't exist." Huang Ying waved her hand dismissively.

“That’s right, Mom, calm down, don’t hurt your hand.” Huang Bing nodded in agreement, and found a feather duster from somewhere and handed it to his mother.

"Huang Bing! I'll get you sooner or later!" Huang He got anxious, moved a little to the side, and bared his teeth at Huang Bing.

Huang Bing moved closer to Zhao Shulan and urged, "Mom, look, the old man is still not convinced!"

"Smack!" Zhao Shulan raised her hand and gave him a slap on the buttocks first.

"Ouch!" Huang Bing jumped up in pain, looking completely innocent. "Mom, why are you hitting me?"

"I'm annoyed just looking at you!" Zhao Shulan rolled her eyes at him.

"Hehe, look, your mother can't tolerate traitors!" Huang He laughed, a smug smile on his face.

"Snapped!"

The next second, the feather duster landed on his buttocks.

Huang He's expression shifted several times, but he managed to hold back from crying out.

"It doesn't hurt, right?" Zhao Shulan raised her hand and flicked the brush again.

"Ouch! Ouch!" Huang He cried out immediately.

"You still dare to shout!" Zhao Shulan raised her hand as if to hit her again.

Huang He quickly stepped behind Huang Ying and said with a hint of grievance, "Yingying, try to persuade your mother. This house was chosen by both of us, father and daughter."

"Mom, never mind, it's not easy for anyone." Huang Ying smiled and stepped forward to comfort her, taking the feather duster from Zhao Shulan's hand. "See, this proves that your vision is more accurate and forward-looking than ours. This family still needs you to manage it."

Zhao Shulan's lips curled up into a wide smile as she nodded and said, "Yingying is so sensible; she makes some sense."

"Yes, yes, that's exactly it." Huang He nodded frantically. A daughter is good, I still have to have a daughter.

"Old man, you said that Zhou Yan bought the Qiu family's old house. Is he buying it to live in himself, or is he planning to move the restaurant up here?" Huang Ying asked Huang He.

“Buying an old house for ten thousand yuan, if it’s just for living in, is a huge loss.” Huang He pondered, “Zhou Yan is a shrewd young man. He must have bought the Qiu family’s old house because he liked the location. He probably wants to open a restaurant in Jiaozhou.”

"Really?! That's great!" Huang Ying's eyes lit up, and she said with a smile, "Let's keep that dilapidated tile-roofed house. When I make some money, I'll build a small house there, and then I can eat at Zhou Yan's shop whenever I go out. I can even be his neighbor."

Huang He and Zhao Shulan looked at each other, their expressions somewhat strange.

Huang Bing's eyes lit up when he heard this: "Wow, such a good thing! If you build it, you have to give me a room!"

“That won’t do. You should live with your future wife.” Huang Ying shook her head.

"Alright, alright, what's the point of repairing it? That house is only accessible through a narrow alley, where even a bicycle can't turn around. Are you guys out of your minds to go in and repair it?" Zhao Shulan rolled her eyes. "If we could have taken over the house in front, we could have repaired it together. Now we need to figure out how to sell it and recoup some of our costs."

Huang He pondered for a moment and said, "How about I go and ask Zhou Yan if we can buy the Qiu family's old house from him?"

"So many people have been eyeing the Qiu family's old house but haven't been able to acquire it. How did Zhou Yan manage to get it? It means he successfully persuaded the old lady of the Qiu family. You can imagine how much effort and hard work he put in behind the scenes." Zhao Shulan looked at him and said, "Let me ask you, if you had to go through all that trouble, empty your family's coffers, and even take on debt to acquire this house, would you be willing to sell it?"

Huang He scratched his head: "Then... we'll have to pay more."

"You still dare to ask for more money!" Zhao Shulan raised an eyebrow.

"No, no more!" Huang He quickly waved his hand.

“Zhou Yan can come up with 10,000 to buy this house, which means even if you add 1,000 or 2,000, he still won’t be interested,” Zhao Shulan said calmly. “Then how much do you think you should add? 5,000? 10,000? Huang Xiaoji, can you come up with that much money? If you empty your savings to buy it, where are you going to find the money to build a house?”

Huang He thought for a moment and then fell silent.

Zhao Shulan's tone softened a bit: "Spread the word and see if anyone wants that dilapidated house. Sell it for 800 a month first. If no one wants it, lower the price and sell it slowly."

"Okay." Huang He nodded, a little dejected. He had been actively planning this for a month, using all sorts of connections, and had spent over a hundred yuan just to gather information.

Just when it seemed that Su Ji was making some progress with Wang Yu, Zhou Yan beat him to it.

I feel really uncomfortable.

"Brother Yan is amazing! He actually managed to come up with 10,000 yuan to buy a house. He's really powerful!" Huang Bing belatedly exclaimed in amazement.

“Yes, Mr. Zhou’s restaurant hasn’t been open for more than a few months, has it?” Huang Ying nodded in agreement. Zhou Erwa’s restaurant was doing very well, always packed with customers. After thinking for a moment, she said, “Old man, I think we should consider how much impact it would have on our business if Mr. Zhou opened his restaurant in Jiaozhou. At that time, the braised meat won’t give us any more preferential treatment.”

"It's alright, we target different customer groups. He chose that location to open a restaurant because he wants to cater to business travelers and tourists. Our Feiyan Restaurant relies on the loyal customers we've built up over the years, as well as guests who want to entertain and have high-end banquet needs." Huang He waved his hand dismissively. "Putting everything else aside, just the decor of our Feiyan Restaurant is something he can't compare to. That's what you call heritage."

“If he can spend 10,000 to buy an old house, why can’t he spend tens of thousands to build a decent restaurant?” Huang Ying looked at Huang He. “Based on my observation of Boss Zhou, he is definitely not a person who will settle for less. His two existing small, shabby shops are not even as good as his current restaurant.”

Huang He frowned and pondered for a while, then spread his hands and said with a smile, "What's there to worry about? Jiaozhou has never lacked genius chefs, nor has it lacked restaurants that suddenly amaze everyone. But the only ones that can be passed down for a hundred years are still Feiyan Restaurant and Leming Restaurant."

Your grandfather said, "Cook good food, treat your guests well. There are so many people in Jiaozhou City, no family can possibly eat them all. As long as we safeguard the Huang family's legacy, we can look forward to the next twenty years."

Huang Ying nodded thoughtfully and smiled as well.

……

Zhou Yan stopped at No. 1 Middle School halfway there and left two lunchboxes covered with net bags at the guardhouse. He attached a piece of paper with Zhou Ming's name on it and wrote what was inside on the back, asking the guard to tell Zhou Ming.

The braised food he brought for Zhou Ming was a testament to his painstaking efforts in getting Ming to learn martial arts.

"Thanks, sir." Zhou Yan put the cigarette back in his pocket, got on his bike, and rode away.

Although he doesn't smoke, he always carries a pack of Yuxi cigarettes in his pocket.

Between men, offering a cigarette can often quickly bridge the gap and make the other person more willing to do small favors for you.

Zhou Yan patted his bag and rode his bicycle toward Suji.

With the property certificate in hand, the matter of buying a house is considered settled.

Grandma Qiu and Duan Yuyan will stay for a few more days and then go directly to Hong Kong. Yan Fei will deliver the keys to the shop for them then.

……

When the bell rang, students poured out of the school gates and went home.

After most of the students had left, Zhou Ming pushed his bicycle and walked side by side with Song Wanqing. The two walked through two blocks before getting on the bicycle together.

Song Wanqing sat in the back seat, holding onto the seat, chatting with Zhou Ming, a slight smile playing on her lips.

Before long, we arrived at Dongfeng Lane and parked the bicycle at the entrance of the courtyard.

"See you tomorrow, Teacher Zhou," Song Wanqing said with a smile.

"Teacher Song, wait a moment." Zhou Ming bent down, took two lunch boxes from the bicycle basket, and handed them to her with a smile: "I brought you some braised food."

Song Wanqing was somewhat surprised: "Huh? When did you bring this? Didn't you come to do morning exercises first thing this morning?"

"Zhou Yan came to Jiaozhou on business today, so I asked him to give me a ride," Zhou Ming explained.

Song Wanqing took the lunchbox, her hand sinking into it. "It's so heavy, what's inside?"

"Zhou Yan's braised pig's trotters are especially delicious. When I was a child, my grandma would only braise pig's trotters during the Chinese New Year, and only the youngest child could eat half of one. Before Zhou Yan learned how to make them, I hadn't eaten them for many years." Zhou Ming said with a smile, "You can steam them. Hot braised pig's trotters taste even better. I also brought some braised pig's head meat for Grandpa Song to have with his drinks."

"Braised pig's trotters!" Song Wanqing's eyes lit up, but she quickly became a little embarrassed and said, "Teacher Zhou, this is too much of a expense for you! I'll pay you how much the braised pig's trotters cost, as if you brought them for me."

"Teacher Song, I've borrowed your bicycle every day and haven't even offered to pay you back. You're being too polite." Zhou Ming watched Song Wanqing rummage through her purse, then turned his bike around and rode away, saying, "You have morning reading class tomorrow, I'll pick you up! Goodbye!"

Song Wanqing watched Zhou Ming ride away on his bicycle, a smile appearing on her face. She replied crisply, "Okay! Goodbye."

She turned around to knock on the door, but it had already opened inwards.

Song Changhe stood inside the door, looking at the smiling Song Wanqing, and frowned.

Before he could speak, Song Wanqing waved the lunchbox in her hand: "Zhou Ming brought you braised pig's head, do you want some? There are also braised pig's trotters, if you don't want them, I'll enjoy them all by myself."

Song Changhe looked at her and said, "Don't you feel lonely eating alone?"

Song Wanqing shook her head: "Being alone makes me feel lonely, but eating alone doesn't."

"Girls should eat less at night to maintain a healthy figure." Song Changhe coughed lightly, "I'll help you with some of that."

"Remember, this is something Zhou Ming brought for you."

"I didn't know, I ate the food you brought me."

"What if I owe him too much kindness? How am I supposed to repay it?" Song Wanqing said as she walked into the courtyard. "Should I repay him with my body?"

Song Changhe was getting a little anxious: "No way! Is this how you've been taught after reading so many classic books? You think you can just repay someone with your body just because you've eaten a pig's trotter? I have a pension, so give that kid the money tomorrow."

"A young lady shouldn't be too greedy. Don't ruin your life for a couple of bites. You need to be more discerning. If you mess things up, how am I supposed to explain it to your parents?"

Song Wanqing smiled slyly: "Then you can tell them: the task you gave me has been successfully completed. I've found a good young man and am ready to marry off you old maids who are getting married late."

Upon hearing this, Song Changhe smiled but shook his head helplessly.

What could he do? This girl was just so stubborn. Once she made up her mind about something, not even ten oxen could pull her back.

"I'll go heat up the braised pig's trotters and braised pig's head meat, then we'll eat." Song Wanqing carried the lunchbox to the kitchen.

"Don't heat up the pig's head! If you heat it up, it will lose its texture and the taste will be half as bad!" Song Changhe quickly said.

"Oh." Song Wanqing put down the braised pig's head, picked up the braised pig's trotters and went into the kitchen. After a while, she came out with a lunchbox wrapped in a towel.

Opening the lunchbox, inside lay a braised pig's trotter split in two, its color a bright red, its surface glistening with oil, almost filling the entire lunchbox.

It's huge, packed full, and the rich aroma of braised meat rises with the steam.

"Gulp~" Song Wanqing's throat bobbed, and the sound of her swallowing was extremely loud.

She taught two classes in a row this afternoon and stood all afternoon, which made her very hungry.

"My goodness! These pig's trotters look amazing!" Song Wanqing couldn't help but exclaim.

"It looks good." Song Changhe nodded in agreement.

"Here, Grandpa, half for you, half for me." Song Wanqing picked up her chopsticks, took half a pig's trotter from the lunchbox, and carefully placed it into Song Changhe's bowl.

These pig's trotters are so tender that the chopsticks sink right into the flesh when you pick them up. They tremble and quiver as if they're about to fall apart at any moment.

Dragging the lunchbox over, Song Wanqing picked up a corner of the other half of the pig's trotter and took a bite.

"Ugh! This feeling! Oh my god—"

The pork skin falls off the bone with a gentle touch, and the tendons between the meat and bone are soft and chewy. One bite fills your mouth with the aroma of braised meat, making your soul tremble.

It smells amazing! It smells so good!
One bite, and it's packed with meaty goodness—so satisfying!

Hot braised pig's trotters!

This feels great!
What genius invented this way of eating?

Grandpa Song across from them nodded repeatedly as he ate, praising, "Zhou Yan is really amazing. His cooking skills are much better than Chef Huang's in our unit's canteen. Why don't you consider Zhou Yan? I think this young man is quite good after getting to know him."

Song Wanqing said, both amused and exasperated, "Grandpa! You just said that young ladies shouldn't be too greedy, and shouldn't ruin their lives because of a couple of bites of food! And definitely shouldn't give themselves to someone just because of a pig's trotter!"

"Did I say that? It's not just a pig's trotter, you see, there's also braised pig's head, braised pork ribs, beef with bamboo shoots, snowflake chicken soup..." Song Changhe said, counting on his fingers.

“Teacher Zhou is different.” Song Wanqing shook her head.

"Oh? What's different?" Song Changhe looked up at her.

“He has a youthful spirit, and he still has been like that since I met him more than ten years ago.” Song Wanqing smiled and said, “I have never met such a simple person, living a simple and pure life.”

Song Changhe looked at her, a slight smile playing on his lips, then lowered his head to eat the pig's trotter, saying nothing more.

"You really get the feeling of eating a pig's trotter by holding it in your hand." Song Wanqing put down her chopsticks, grabbed half a pig's trotter, and happily started eating it.

……

"Sister Li, please clear this table first."

"Aunt Li, table number three, a serving of shredded pork with garlic sauce and a serving of Mapo tofu, please serve."

"Sister Li..."

Li Lihua is arguably the best mercenary; on her first day, she quickly adapted to the fast-paced operation of the restaurant.

They are efficient and can accurately execute instructions without cheating or shirking responsibility.

Zhou Yan believes this is the standard for an excellent employee.

The employees he took over from Old Lady Qiu were truly a lucky find.

After closing for the evening, Li Lihua wiped the last table clean, straightened her back, let out a long sigh of relief, and said with a smile, "Wow, business is so good! As expected, a chef with good cooking skills can make a good business no matter where he opens his restaurant."

She worked at the Qiu family's residence for three years and occasionally returned to Suji. She never imagined that a restaurant in town could be so successful.

The restaurant is packed from the moment it starts serving noodles in the morning, and even more so in the afternoon and evening when there are no seats left and customers have to wait in line.

Some people have to wait an hour after closing time, but customers can sit at the door chatting away for hours.

This is something you won't find in restaurants in Jiaozhou City.

Once the store opened, it felt like everyone was spinning like a top, unable to stop.

"Auntie, have some water, you've worked hard~~" Zhou Momo brought over a glass of warm water and handed it to Li Lihua.

"Oh, Momo is so good, thank you! I'll get it myself next time." Li Lihua quickly reached out and took the water, taking a sip and feeling most of her fatigue disappear.

"You're welcome," the little one replied sweetly, then ran to fetch another glass of water for Aunt Zhao: "Mommy, have some water~"

Aunt Zhao finished the water in her glass in one gulp. After more than two hours of taking orders and serving customers, her throat was parched. She smiled and patted Zhou Momo's head, then looked at Li Lihua and said, "Sister Li, you're really something! You can do everything, and you do it all very well. With you here, my day has become much easier."

"I also feel this is the most relaxed day recently. Sister Li is really good at her work," Zhao Hong said with a smile.

"I'm so flustered today, I'm embarrassed by all the praise." Li Lihua's hands hung down in front of her, a little reserved, but she was still quite happy to receive such affirmation.

"You did a great job on your first day at work." Zhou Yan took off his apron and came out of the kitchen, looking at Li Lihua and saying, "Aunt Li, starting tomorrow, you can come to the restaurant at six o'clock in the morning. You don't need to come earlier."

In the mornings, your main responsibility is to help prepare the ingredients. During lunch and dinner hours, you'll assist Sister Zhao Hong with serving dishes and clearing tables. In the evening, after washing the dishes and cleaning up, you can go home.

"Okay." Li Lihua nodded with a smile. With her boss's approval, she felt more at ease.

Zhou Yan looked at her and smiled, "Isn't it much more tiring than when you were working for Old Madam Qiu?"

Li Lihua said with a smile, "To be honest, the workload is much greater, but I do it very well and I'm very happy. Boss, don't worry, I can handle this job."

Zhou Yan nodded: "Okay, do a good job. Twenty yuan is the base salary. If you do a good job, there will be additional bonuses."

"Twenty yuan is a lot, why would I need a bonus?" Li Lihua waved her hand, already very satisfied with the job.

The three of them washed the dishes together: one washed, one rinsed, and one put them into a basket. This improved the efficiency of washing dishes, and they finished washing them in no time.

There was some leftover braised pig's head and beef stewed with dried bamboo shoots today. Zhou Yan mixed them up and packed them up for Li Lihua and Zhao Hong to take back.

"Such expensive beef and pork head meat, boss, you should keep it for yourself." Li Lihua was still a little embarrassed and didn't dare to reach out to take it.

“We can’t eat much, but there will be fresh food tomorrow. You can take it back and stir-fry some vegetables, then they’ll have something to eat, so they won’t have to keep running around when they get back.” Aunt Zhao ladled a bowl of the remaining beef soup for her, shoved the lunchbox into her hand, and said with a smile, “Go back and get some rest. You’ll be busy tomorrow.”

“That’s right, Sister Li, how can I take it if you don’t?” Zhao Hong said with a smile.

“You are all so kind, I…” Li Lihua choked up a little.

This was completely different from her previous experience working at the restaurant, where the supervisor treated them like thieves, practically wanting to search them every day after get off work.

This class is so heartwarming.

"Hurry up and go, your husband has been waiting outside for ages." Aunt Zhao smiled and pushed her out the door, not letting her continue.

"Fourth Aunt, Fourth Uncle, Zhou Yan, Momo, I'll head back now." Zhao Hong greeted them with a smile, then left with the leftovers.

Zhou Yan went out for a run and when he returned, Aunt Zhao was soaking her feet, and Old Zhou was standing behind her massaging her shoulders.

Zhou Momo sat upright to the side, drawing.

Zhou Yan leaned closer to take a look. It was a painting of Wu Song fighting a tiger. Apart from the tiger looking a bit cute, the painting was quite well done, and the colors were eye-catching.

Instead of copying the children's picture book, she added her own imagination. For example, Wu Song's stick looks a bit like Sun Wukong's Ruyi Jingu Bang, and the big tiger that leaps high has a head and body that are 4:6 in proportion, and its wide-open mouth is exaggerated yet cute.

Crayons can't draw very sharp strokes, but her imagination and the final image still gave Zhou Yan a refreshing feeling.

"Guoguo, is it pretty?" Zhou Momo looked up at her and asked with a smile.

"Yes, it looks really good." Zhou Yan nodded with a smile.

"I've got the property certificate." Zhou Yan didn't disturb her painting. He walked behind the counter, took the property certificate out of his bag, and handed it to Old Zhou.

The two looked through the property certificate for a long time, both with smiles on their faces.

"That's great." Aunt Zhao nodded and handed the property certificate to Zhou Yan: "Keep it safe and don't lose it."

"Then you can keep it for me, so I don't forget where I put it," Zhou Yan said with a smile, without taking it.

Aunt Zhao smiled and nodded, saying, "Okay, I'll keep it for you first, and then you can hand it over to your wife to manage after you get married."

"Okay." Zhou Yan nodded with a smile, but who knows when that will be.

After finishing her drawing, Zhou Momo put away her crayons, closed her sketchbook and comic book, and ran over to Zhou Yan, gently pulling his hand and asking, "Brother, when are we going to Shancheng to find Sister Yao Yao?"

“She should be going back to Hangzhou for the New Year. I’m going to send her a letter tomorrow. Do you have anything you want to send her?” Zhou Yan asked with a smile. He was too busy and couldn’t go to the mountain city in one day on Sunday, so he couldn’t make a promise to the little one.

“Then I’ll send the picture of Wu Song fighting the tiger to Sister Yao Yao! That way she’ll know I’ve already read the comic book.” Zhou Momo ran over, took the drawing she had just finished from the picture book, and handed it to Zhou Yan. “Tell Sister Yao Yao that I miss her.”

"Okay." Zhou Yan nodded with a smile.

Aunt Zhao shook her head, a hint of helplessness in her smile.

Zhou Momo went upstairs and fell asleep the moment her head hit the bed.

After turning off the lights, Aunt Zhao whispered, "Xia Yao is indeed a good girl, but Hangzhou is just too far away. We can't even see her now in Chongqing, and it'll be even less likely after she graduates from university. Sanshui, do you think Zhou Yan has really fallen for her?"

"It's hard to say. I think Zhou Yan is focused on making money and building his career right now, and doesn't seem like he's troubled by love." Old Zhou shook his head. "Maybe they're just pen pals, exchanging letters occasionally, which is fine too."

"Should I have someone introduce him to two girls during the New Year?"

"You should discuss this with Zhou Yan. He's only twenty; there's no rush."

……

The next morning, after finishing all the braised dishes, Zhou Yan took off her apron and came out of the kitchen, letting out a long sigh of relief.

This is the only time I can relax this morning, because in a little while I'll be busy preparing lunch again.

"Send a letter!" Zhou Momo ran over and reminded her.

“Okay.” Zhou Yan nodded with a smile, took out the letter with the stamp affixed yesterday from the cabinet, and walked towards the door.

Just as I stepped outside, a Crown car pulled up in front of the restaurant.

The back door opened, and Duan Yuyan got out of the car. Looking at Zhou Yan, who was holding an envelope, she casually asked, "Who are you sending the letter to?"

"Sister Yao Yao!" Zhou Momo answered quickly.

"Oh, that one from Shancheng?" Duan Yuyan asked thoughtfully, looking at Zhou Yan with a smile, "Girlfriend?"

In the distance, a shuttle bus swayed and came to a stop at the entrance of the textile factory.

　Asking for a monthly ticket~~
　　
　
(End of this chapter)