My hometown is far away in Moscow.

Chapter 93 The Request of Lotus Root

"Calm down, this is just their competitive tactic, don't get agitated." Hu Yi was also anxious inside, but he still pretended to be calm and asked, "How's the new dish I asked you to come up with? Any progress?"

"It's not that easy. I've considered three or four dishes, but after several attempts, they haven't been very successful; the taste isn't right." Li Baoqing muttered under his breath, "Besides, sales are so bad right now, I don't even have the mind to think about those things. Just thinking about Sixth Brother makes me angry!"

"We still need to think about it. A skilled craftsman needs the right tools; sharpening the axe won't delay the work," Hu Yi patiently advised. "Let's go, let's get ready for dinner. Focus on what's in front of us and don't keep thinking about Sixth Brother. It's useless, it only adds to our worries."

"Alright, stop trying to give me that crap." Li Baoqing reluctantly got up and asked, "How many copies do we need to prepare tonight?"

Hu Yi thought for a moment, "Twelve servings, then. We can eat the rest ourselves. If we don't sell enough, it'll make our business seem booming, right?"

The two entered the kitchen and saw Fang Qing kneading dough to prepare fried pancakes. He'd been suffering from the constant demand for takeout from his sixth brother lately, and upon seeing Hu Yi and Li Baoqing, he began to subtly complain. Li Baoqing felt he'd found a kindred spirit and couldn't help but join Fang Qing in pouring out their grievances.

Hu Yi didn't join their discussion. After chopping the vegetables, he quietly returned to the house, intending to sort out his chaotic thoughts and come up with a solution to deal with the current situation as soon as possible.

Although he spoke casually when comforting Li Baoqing, he was, after all, just a student in his early twenties who hadn't really experienced the realities of life. When faced with this kind of problem, he could only act on his intuition, at most referring to what he had learned from various books.

Standing by the window, smoking and lost in thought for a long time, Hu Yi felt like his mind was a complete mess. Just as he was feeling frustrated, Han Shangyun returned carrying a large box full of kimchi, followed by his Korean friends.

"Anton! Let's have dinner together!" Han Shangyun's friends were very enthusiastic when they saw Hu Yi, as they hadn't seen each other for a whole winter break.

Hu Yi forced a smile and chatted with everyone for a few minutes. The other Koreans began preparing dinner. While clearing the table, Han Shangyun asked, "Anton, have fast food sales been low lately?"

"Yes, you noticed too?"

"Before, you were busy and finished late. These past few days, you've been less busy and finished earlier. You smile less and seem to be in a bad mood." Han Shangyun uttered each word carefully: "Don't worry. Everything will be alright."

"Thank you." Although these words of comfort were rather empty, they still cheered Hu Yi up a little.

The number of reservations for dinner tonight remained lukewarm, basically the same as the previous few days. Hu Yi asked Li Baoqing to stir-fry some chicken drumsticks, and then sat down at the table with the Koreans for dinner.

These Koreans always have kimchi when they have a meal together. Han Sang-yun and a few others chatted and laughed with the girl who was making kimchi while they ate. The girl seemed a little embarrassed, giggling and calling him "Oppa" over and over again, with a blush on her face.

"I say, Xizhen's kimchi is even better this time, getting better and better." Han Shangyun was very careful about social etiquette and often had to awkwardly translate his conversations with his compatriots to Hu Yi and Li Baoqing: "A woman who can make kimchi will have an easy time getting married in the future."

"Oppa!" The petite girl named Kim Hee-jung covered her mouth with her hand, her eyes crinkling into crescent moons with laughter. "Don't joke around like that!"

"Indeed! It's really delicious!" Hu Yi picked up several pieces of kimchi and said to Jin Xizhen with a smile, "It's fantastic! I love it!"

"This is not just insincere flattery. Hu Yi was not used to the unique spicy taste of Korean kimchi at first, but after living with Han Shangyun for a few months, he gradually got used to it and even craved it if he didn't eat it for a few days."

Kim Hee-jung smiled sweetly: "Thank you. If you like it, please eat more."

Hu Yi ate two more pieces, put down his chopsticks, and asked, "I often hear you call them 'lotus root,' what does that mean?"

"It means 'older brother'," Kim Hee-jung explained with gestures, her Russian not much better than Han Sang-woon's. "It doesn't necessarily mean family members. You can call a man who isn't too much older than you 'older brother'."

Hu Yi suddenly realized and turned to look at Han Shangyun: "Should I call you that too?" As he spoke, he imitated the winding tone of Kim Hee-jung's song and called out: "Ou~ba~!"

The Koreans burst into laughter, and Han Sang-yun waved his hands repeatedly, saying, "No, no, no, usually women call men that. Men rarely do that between each other."

"Oh, I understand."

"Moreover, we Busan people come from the south, and we speak with a strong, masculine voice. Listen: 'Ou Ba,' the pronunciation is short and direct, like a man's." Han Sang-yun patted his chest and pointed to Kim Hee-jung and several other men: "They are from Seoul, northerners, that's why they speak in such a roundabout way, like women."

The Seoul men laughed and playfully slapped Han Sang-yun on the back of the head. Hu Yi chuckled as they argued about the characteristics of their respective regional dialects, then turned to Kim Hee-jung and said, "I'm older than you, so I'm your boyfriend, right?"

"Oh, right!" Kim Hee-jung exclaimed cheerfully, "Andong is a lotus root too!"

Hu Yi was overjoyed. He glanced at Li Baoqing, who was eating kimchi one bite after another with his chopsticks, and nudged him, saying, "Is it good? Why don't you say something nice about it!"

"Delicious! Delicious!" Li Baoqing quickly gave a thumbs up: "Extremely delicious, spicy shredded chicken!"

Kim Hee-jung laughed heartily: "Thank you, is that the truth?"

"Really! Really!" Li Baoqing's Russian vocabulary was insufficient to support his detailed expression, so he turned to Hu Yi and said, "You know what, this stuff is a bit addictive if you eat too much of it."

"Really?" Hu Yi's heart skipped a beat, and he slapped his thigh. "I've come up with an idea."

"What idea?"

Hu Yi didn't answer, but put a hand on Li Baoqing's shoulder and looked at Jin Xizhen with a grin: "Xizhen, we two love your kimchi. Could you please make some for us? We'll pay for it."

"Of course." Kim Hee-jung spread her hands and shook her head: "Paying is not necessary."

"Yes, yes, we need to." Hu Yi hurriedly explained, "Lotus root needs a lot of kimchi, a large portion, not only for myself, but also to be served with lotus root's boxed lunches so that other Chinese people can eat it too. This involves—well, it involves lotus root's business, so we must pay for it."

"Oh!" Kim Hee-jung's eyes widened. "My technique isn't very good yet. Other Chinese people might not like it."

"You'll love it! You definitely will!" Hu Yi encouraged confidently. "If we two think it's delicious, everyone else will think it's delicious too."

Kim Hee-jung smiled slightly: "Okay, I'll make it tomorrow and bring it to you on Saturday."

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