I've been reborn, I'm definitely going to become an internet celebrity!

Chapter 128 [Not sure if it can be published]

Shark fin soup.

After a chef wearing a chef's hat served the dish, he introduced it, "To be precise, it's a three-shredded shark fin soup."

"This is a famous dish from our area, but it's not commonly seen at regular banquets."

"This kind of bowl is usually only served at banquets of a medium to high standard."

After Liu Zhuohao became interested in the culinary team that Chen Ji had invited, the head chef would stand next to the main table and introduce each dish to the other guests after it was served.

"Liu Zhuohao didn't say anything, but looked at the furnace in front of him."

It was a white porcelain bowl, sitting upright on a hollowed-out cauldron.

Below, the candlelight flickered like a bean, its dim light seeping out from between the openwork, slowly warming the bottom of the bowl. The flame was not ostentatious, but burned quietly, serving only to keep the bowl warm at most.

He raised his hand and placed the cauldron in front of him, moved the bowl containing lobster meat, shrimp balls, and goose meat aside, and made room for a plate to hold bones and shells.

In the white porcelain bowl, the soup was amber in color, thick but not greasy.

He picked up a soup spoon and scooped it up.

The shark fin strips are crystal clear, shimmering with a faint moon-white hue in the light; the ham strips are crimson; the chicken strips are snow-white; and the shiitake mushroom strips are glossy black.

The three colors intertwine, half sinking and half floating in the soup.

Liu Zhuohao couldn't wait to scoop up a spoonful and put it in his mouth.

The texture is somewhat like eating glass noodles, which is why people often call glass noodles "fake shark fin".

But a fake is a fake; it can't compare to the real thing.

The salty aroma of ham, the sweetness of chicken, and the delicate fragrance of shiitake mushrooms burst together in your mouth with a sip of rich broth, along with the tender texture of shark fin.

The temperature was just right—hot enough to scald, but not burning.

He swallowed it, savoring the texture in his mouth.

"This dish is meant to be eaten in winter," he suddenly said.

The taste of the previous dishes was completely forgotten after this bite.

"really."

Chen Jianye chimed in, "If you had a bite of this in winter, wow—"

""

He clicked his tongue and said, "No, it's winter now, but it's not very cold here in the southern coastal areas. The climate is unpredictable. If you go a little further north, like in the Northeast..."

Liu Zhuohao's mind raced.

Yes, it's hot here, and most of the time a warm bowl of shark fin soup would just add fuel to the fire.

But what if this were in the North? A person, shivering in the biting wind, would come indoors, and be served a bowl of soup warmed by the stove, taking just one spoonful—

"Boss Chen's idea is great!"

Someone at the main table slapped their thigh in exasperation.

Liu Zhuohao looked up and saw an old business partner of the Chen family, in his fifties, with gray hair and a strong voice.

"This shark fin soup is indeed good, but it's not good enough for this environment," the man said. "We want to export it to the north. Would any of you like to try?"

"Making shark fin soup? The cost is not low."

"Then we can only open a high-end restaurant."

One sentence ignited the conversation.

Everyone present was a business owner, with a wealth of business acumen. They chatted away, making it sound like a serious conversation.

"That's great!" Chen Youyin joined in the fun. "Let's crowdfund now and buy it quickly in a while, so that others don't steal our market share."

Liu Zhuohao didn't interrupt.

He watched the group of people chatting and laughing, then lowered his head and scooped up a spoonful of shark fin soup.

At the main table, besides him and Chen Min, Chen Jianye was the youngest.

But I'm already over thirty.

The others were mostly in their forties or fifties and were long-term business partners of the Chen family.

He ate silently, his eyes never idle.

The steamed crab with roe has arrived.

The lobster was Australian lobster, and this crab is a genuine mud crab. Moreover, that bowl of shark fin soup is definitely not fake. I just don't know if it's a bowl of high-quality shark fin soup that costs five or six hundred yuan, or a bowl of high-quality shark fin soup that costs over a thousand yuan.

Chen Ji really went all out today. If this meal were served in a hotel, it would cost at least 20,000 yuan. However, if the factory hired a private chef, it might only cost 10,000 yuan per meal.

The main attraction is the ten bowls of shark fin soup. The price of this dish, shark fin soup with three kinds of shredded ingredients, can vary greatly!

Liu Zhuohao glanced at the table next to him. There was no shark fin on the workers' table, but there were lobsters and crabs. He just didn't know if they were Australian lobsters and crabs of the same quality.

Logically speaking, they are most likely local flower dragons and three-eyed crabs.

"Boss Liu is in the catering business, what do you think of shark fin soup?" Chen Min asked quietly, noticing that he wasn't participating in the conversation.

Her voice was very soft, not to get herself involved in the conversation, but just to keep herself company.

Liu Zhuohao turned his head.

Chen Min had moved a little closer at some point and was looking at him.

Very close.

He was so close that when he turned his head, he almost touched her shoulder, and a faint fragrance wafted into his nose.

It doesn't smell like food.

It's perfume.

It's faint and not overpowering, like a floral scent mixed with a hint of wood.

"I don't have any particular thoughts," Liu Zhuohao replied.

This approach is theoretically feasible, but in his memory, in the years that followed, he didn't see many high-end restaurants featuring shark fin as their main dish.

Why?

Chen Min asked again, lowering her voice even further.

As she spoke, she leaned slightly to this side, and the fragrance wafted over again, this time closer, making it clearer. It was mostly floral, but she didn't know what kind of flower it was, mixed with a hint of sandalwood, gentle and soft.

Beside her, Chen Jianye, who had been listening intently to the elders' boasting, also quietly turned his ear this way, but didn't say a word.

Liu Zhuohao didn't answer immediately. He scooped a spoonful of crab roe and crab fat from the crab shell.

"Environmental friendly."

He replied.

Chen Min was stunned for a moment.

The moment of surprise was brief, but she blinked, her eyelashes fluttering, as if she hadn't quite caught it.

Then Chen Min tilted her head, her pearl earring swayed, and the light slid from her ear to her cheek. Although she was in her twenties, she already had the charm of a woman in her thirties.

"Environmental protection?" she repeated, a hint of confusion in her voice. "You mean—protecting sharks?"

Liu Zhuohao nodded and put down the spoon.

Chen Jianye laughed, seemingly disagreeing with this statement, but he didn't say anything and just listened.

"That sounds a bit strange. How does food relate to environmental protection?" Chen Min replied, puzzled. Then, as if she had thought of something, she quickly lowered her voice, "Is this stuff poisonous?"

"No, it's just about protecting sharks, an endangered species," Liu Zhuohao replied. "If this gets scrutinized, it won't just be about money; it'll be about public opinion preventing your hotel from selling this."

Chen Min became even more curious. She glanced at Chen Jianye before asking, "How did you know?"

"Just look at the news," Liu Zhuohao replied matter-of-factly. "Other places are already showing signs of this. Now, environmental organizations in our country are being targeted one after another. You can forget about selling."

This has already been reported in the news.

Let alone protecting sharks, wildlife, rivers, climate—protecting everything, all of these are things that came from abroad, and international public opinion is putting pressure on them.

Thinking about it carefully, it's only been a few years. A very famous female reporter even made a documentary about smog, saying how bad the domestic environment was and how environmentally friendly and clean foreign countries were.

Some of the remarks made in the article will become popular in various cities in the future.

Even small third- or fourth-tier cities like Liu Zhuohao's were affected. Many primary and secondary school teachers regarded her as a goddess, showing her documentaries to students in class and urging them to protect the environment when they grow up.

The initial intention behind this was good.

The person who reported it was a bit hypocritical, applying the standards of developed countries that had already gone through a period of "massive emissions" to a developing country, and in a very subtle way, with the support of foreign organizations, trying to "deindustrialize" the country. So later, she was blacklisted.

Deindustrialization?

It's laughable to think about it; it's like sticking your neck out to someone's knife and waiting to be chopped off!

They didn't think of us when they were polluting the environment, but now that they want to protect it, they suddenly remember to include us.

"You've got a good head start," Chen Min said from the side. "I never knew watching the news was so useful. I thought watching the news was just about complaining about society like everyone else—"

She stopped there and looked towards Chen Jianye.

"cough!"

Beside him, Chen Jianye coughed lightly. Seeing that the two of them didn't continue talking, he reluctantly pulled his ears back and pretended to listen to the elders chatting.

The banquet was almost over.

The workers came over to greet us and offer toasts at each table, and now most of them have left.

At the main table, Chen Youyin was greeting his business partners, seeing them off one by one, saying "Take care" and "Let's get together again next time."

Liu Zhuohao didn't move, just sat there, looking somewhat helpless.

He's been entangled.

Chen Minfei told him to wait there and that she had something to tell him.

"Brother Liu—"

An arm suddenly came up and put its arm around his shoulder.

-

Liu Zhuohao turned his head and saw that Chen Jianye's face was flushed, his eyes were barely open, and he was still muttering, "If you're so capable, don't hold a grudge against me and stop arguing with me—"

The smell of alcohol hit him, causing Liu Zhuohao to lean back.

"We have to keep this business going," Chen Jianye said, putting his arm around his shoulder and bouncing slightly. "We've only sold beef balls so far, there are tendon balls, cuttlefish balls, and—"

As he spoke, his voice grew softer and softer.

Liu Zhuohao turned his head and saw that the person had fallen asleep on his shoulder.

He shook his head, didn't move, and just let the other person lie there.

"How embarrassing!"

When Chen Youyin returned after seeing off the last customer, he saw this scene as soon as he entered the door, and his face turned dark.

He strode over and beckoned to the people from the private kitchen who were helping to clear the table: "Come on, carry him away, he's a disgrace!"

Several people rushed over and pulled Chen Jianye off Liu Zhuohao's shoulders.

The person was muttering something as they were being carried out, their legs dragging on the ground as they were moved into the back room.

"Boss Liu, I'm so sorry." Chen Youyin rubbed his hands together, his face full of apology. "My nephew of mine loses all his composure when he drinks."

"His drinking manners were still good." Liu Zhuohao stood up, straightened his wrinkled clothes, and didn't hold it against him. At least he didn't curse or hit anyone, right?

Many people have bad drinking habits; they start cursing and hitting others after drinking, which can easily cause trouble.

If Chen Jianye really shows even this much of a problem, he will most likely consider ending the cooperation with the Chen family.

A leader can't be like this.

"I should probably go now," Liu Zhuohao said. "Let bygones be bygones."

He smiled and said, "You've brought it up many times, and I've said it many times too. It's normal to have a little less trust when it's our first collaboration. We'll work things out gradually."

"Yes, yes, yes, take it slow, take it slow." Chen Youyin nodded, his wrinkled face beaming with a smile. "Where's Xiaomin? Where did Xiaomin go? Come on, let's take Boss Liu back."

He called out, his eyes searching around.

"Uncle, I'm going to get something."

Chen Min came over from outside the factory; I don't know where she went before.

She was carrying things in both hands. In her left hand were several square gift boxes, wrapped in those red and green packaging bags, which looked like tea. In her right hand were several bulging plastic bags, and it was unclear what was inside.

"These are shrimp balls from Kuiyang." Chen Min walked over and stuffed the plastic bags into Liu Zhuohao's hands. "I saw you really liked these at the table earlier, and you took several extra bites."

She smiled as she spoke, "My brother has a friend in Kuiyang who also owns a factory."

"These shrimp balls are all homemade, and they use much more ingredients than those sold in the market."

"It's only a few pounds, don't be picky. If Boss Liu thinks it's delicious, I'll have my brother go find some more from Kuiyang."

Liu Zhuohao replied politely, "No need, no need. We've already sent so much beef and beef balls before."

Chen Youyin took the shiny thing from Chen Min's hand and stuffed it into his own hand.

"Yes, yes, that's right! The past is the past, the present is the present!"

As he spoke, he suddenly remembered something and added, "Oh right, I still have some dendrobium in my trunk. Xiaomin, could you go out later and take Boss Liu over to get some? This stuff is great; you can add some when you make soup. It's good for nourishing yin and the stomach."

Liu Zhuohao's hand was suddenly stuffed full, and he tried to pull back, saying, "No need, no need, you're too kind."

"Yes, yes," Chen Youyin chimed in from the side, pushing him back.

In one go, the items were in Liu Zhuohao's hands.

He looked at the pile of things in his hand, and then at the uncle and nephew in front of him, feeling somewhat helpless.

"I'd be impolite to refuse your offer," he said. "You're all so thoughtful. I'm young and naive, making so many trips back and forth without even bringing anything."

Chen Youyin waved his hand, his eyes crinkling with laughter: "Don't bother bringing anything. We've already made quite a bit of money by Boss Liu facilitating this online deal."

"If you make more videos in the future, help us sell more goods, and spread the reputation of Chen's products, we will be satisfied."

Liu Zhuohao nodded and picked up his things.

"I'm leaving first."

"Xiaomin, see them off," Chen Youyinhai instructed.

Chen Min responded and followed Liu Zhuohao outside.

The night breeze carried the unique smell of the factory area—the saltiness of the braising liquid and the pungent smell of the beef—which, after a while, didn't seem unpleasant.

At the entrance, a few of Chen's business partners, including Liang Tou, were still there, talking and smoking in the empty space, while cars with illegible license plates were parked nearby.

Liu Zhuohao greeted them, accepted a few business cards, and then walked outside.

"Thank you for the shrimp balls; I am indeed quite interested in them."

"You're too kind. It's just a few pounds of shrimp balls, nothing precious."

"That's quite a lot, even if it's only a few pounds."

"Oh, by the way, if you pick some dendrobium, remember to put it in the refrigerator when you get home. It's hot, and it will spoil easily if left outside."

"OK."

As they talked, the two pulled up a motorcycle parked in the shade outside.

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