Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 601 Cucumber and Egg Stir-fry

After thanking the enthusiastic part-time tour guide, the four of them walked towards the tall tower not far away, braving the light drizzle. This was the Anti-Japanese War Victory Monument, a national-level monument.

This area is full of high-rise buildings, five or six stories high. There are shopping malls, bookstores, cinemas, and the neon sign of Wanlele stands tall on the roof of the department store.

Xiao Hong pointed ahead and said, "Hey, that restaurant the little girl was talking about."

Xiao Wei was looking up at the GG card, then turned his head and glanced at it, saying, "Huixianlou?"

Xiao Hong said, "No, um, Yi Zhi Shi. How about we have this for lunch today? Okay?"

Xiao Wei looked over and said, "You've already said whether it's good or bad. What would you do if I disagreed?"

Xiao Hong punched Xiao Wei and then snuggled into his arms: "Hmph, you only bully me all day long, I don't want to live anymore."

Xiao Liu said, "Be mindful of the impact; this is in broad daylight and in front of everyone."

Xiao Hong pointed to the side and said, "They're even kissing."

A few people looked over and saw a local couple sweetly cuddling and talking under the shade of a tree, occasionally pecking at each other. Passersby seemed used to it and didn't give them a second glance.

At this time, compared to the South, Northeasterners were still quite conservative. Xiao Wei felt a little embarrassed when he saw that the other person was hugging him, so he tugged at Xiao Hong and said, "Let's go, let's go, what's so interesting?"

Xiao Hong said, "The people here are so bold! If we were to walk like this in the street, my mom would kill me."

Xiao Wei said, "It's a matter of customs and habits. There are definitely big differences between places that are thousands of kilometers apart. Don't make things up if you don't know the situation."

A group of people strolled along the road. There were no private shops on this side; it was all large state-owned shopping malls, department stores, bookstores, post offices, banks, and restaurants, bustling with people. Only after leaving these main streets and walking behind these buildings into the residential area could one find various small, privately owned shops.

The Jiefangbei commercial district wasn't very big at that time; it was just a large intersection. It took about two hours to get there, and I didn't buy much. This area is inland, so it's not as fashionable as Shanghai or Guangzhou.

After circling back to the central monument, Xiaowei asked, "What are we going to do next?"

Xiao Hong checked the time and said, "Let's go eat and try some local food."

Xiao Liu said, "The food here? That girl said it's all Sichuan peppercorns and chili peppers. Can we handle that?"

Xiao Wei said, "Why not give it a try? You have to try it at least once you've come here."

Xiao Hong pointed ahead and said, "Let's go eat at that restaurant." She hadn't forgotten about Yi Shi.

The four people watched as the car followed the flow of people across the road and arrived at Yizhi Restaurant.

Yizhi Restaurant is a Sichuan-style restaurant that only serves authentic Sichuan cuisine.

Xiao Hong and Xiao Liu studied the menu for a long time before finally ordering, while Xiao Wei and Ga Zi didn't care and just ate whatever they ordered.

The waiter had noted down the menu and was about to take the order when Xiaowei remembered something and called out to him, "Waiter, waiter, please don't make it too spicy. We're from Northeast China, and we can't handle spicy food. Also, please put less Sichuan peppercorn powder."

The waiter nodded and said, "They're not very spicy, and we don't have Sichuan peppercorn powder." He turned and left, and Xiaowei felt relieved. People in Northeast China do eat Sichuan peppercorns, but they only use a small amount, like an ounce of ground peppercorns, enough to last half a year. There are people who can handle spicy food, but they are relatively few.

After waiting for about ten or twenty minutes, the dishes were served one after another. They looked quite appealing, with vibrant reds and greens—the colors of Sichuan cuisine are undeniably beautiful. Xiao Wei immediately noticed the peppercorns in the dishes and pointed at them, asking the waiter, "Didn't you say there were no peppercorns?"

The waiter looked at it carefully and said, "We don't have Sichuan peppercorn powder. This is Sichuan peppercorn, not Sichuan peppercorn powder. We don't eat Sichuan peppercorn powder."

In Sichuan cuisine, Sichuan peppercorns are used in handfuls. The amount of peppercorns from one dish, ground into powder, is enough to feed a family in Northeast China for several months.

Xiao Hong picked up a piece of twice-cooked pork with her chopsticks, shook it, and said, "It's okay, it's such a big piece, it'll fall off if you shake it. Be careful, maybe that's the flavor they want." As she spoke, she put the meat in her mouth, nodded, and said, "Mmm, delicious, so fragrant!" After chewing a few times, her face twitched, then turned bright red. She looked around, tried to swallow the meat, and then searched the table frantically: "Water, where's water?"

Xiao Wei handed her the tea and asked, "What's wrong?"

Xiao Hong took a sip of tea, held it in her mouth for a while, then twitched her face and said with a thick tongue, "Spicy."

Everyone tried it, but apart from Gazi slurping it up and eating it anyway, Xiaowei and Xiaoliu couldn't eat it because it was too spicy.

The waiter brought out more food, and Xiaowei said, "Didn't I tell you not to make it too spicy because I can't handle spice? Why is it still so spicy?"

The waiter looked at Xiaowei with a puzzled expression and said, "Spicy? Where's the spiciness? It's not spicy at all, and it doesn't even have much flavor."

Xiao Liu patted Xiao Wei and said, "Alright, stop talking. They're saying completely different things. In their mouths, this might just mean it's not spicy."

The waiter said, "It's really not spicy, please have some."

Xiao Wei waved his hand and said, "Never mind, you don't need to say anything. Just make me some cucumber and egg stir-fry, okay? Without chili peppers or Sichuan peppercorns?"

The waiter shook his head. Just as Xiaowei was about to speak, the waiter said, "We don't have cucumber stir-fried with eggs, but we have tomato stir-fried with eggs."

Xiao Wei paused for a moment and asked the waiter, "Don't you have cucumber and scrambled eggs?" The waiter nodded.

Xiao Wei asked, "Do you have any cucumbers?"

The waiter nodded: "Yes."

Xiao Wei asked, "Do you have any eggs?"

The waiter nodded again: "Yes."

Xiao Wei said, "Then let's have cucumber and scrambled eggs."

The waiter shook his head: "No, we don't have any."

Xiao Wei asked, "Why?"

The waiter looked at Xiaowei like he was an idiot and said, "Where do you ever have cucumber stir-fried with eggs? I've never even heard of it. It's not good."

Xiao Wei said, "Can't I just eat cucumber and scrambled eggs?"

The waiter shook his head and said, "Really, we don't have that. It's not good. How about scrambled eggs with tomatoes?"

Xiao Wei's face turned red instantly. Xiao Hong grabbed Xiao Wei's arm and said to the waiter, "Okay, scrambled eggs with tomatoes, hurry up and cook them." The waiter glanced at Xiao Wei, turned around and left. Xiao Wei gritted his teeth and let out a heavy sigh.

Xiao Hong said, "Is it really worth it? I'm really angry."

Xiao Wei said, "We have cucumbers, we have eggs, but not cucumber and egg stir-fry. Isn't that infuriating?"

Xiao Liu said, "Don't be angry. It's like how the boss in Shanghai insists on adding sugar and says it won't taste good without it. If you ask people here not to add Sichuan peppercorns and chili peppers, they'll probably say it won't taste good without them. It's a regional issue. People here just don't eat cucumber stir-fried with eggs."

Xiao Wei took out a cigarette, lit it, took a puff, and said, "Alright, let's eat. It's nothing."

(End of this chapter)