Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 994 Enough with the showing off

The grand opening ceremony was in full swing, with singing, dancing, and crosstalk performances. Miler even brought out a few bottles of wine as a gimmick to draw prizes on the spot and give away some small souvenirs.

Friends and relatives who came to offer their congratulations could do whatever they wanted. After all, a business opening needs a lot of people. Those who wanted to join in the fun could make a fuss on the stage, while those who didn't could sit inside, chat, play cards, and wait for lunch in groups.

Xiaowei and Chen Hui delivered two hundred bottles of red wine of various flavors for the opening banquet. The goods arrived a long time ago and are now displayed on the wooden wine rack by the wall in the lobby. There are descriptions of the place of origin, raw materials, flavor, and brewing time. Many people are gathered around to look at them.

Red wine is still relatively new and hasn't yet established a set pattern in China.

Actually, domestic production has been around for a long time. Brands like Great Wall, Changyu, and Dynasty all established factories in China as early as the 1980s, but they were mainly consumed by specific groups and hadn't become widely popular. There's also some made by ordinary people, called fruit wine, and the raw material isn't just grapes.

At this time, domestic champagne was still available, but it was drunk as a beverage and had little alcohol content.

After lunch, friends from all walks of life gave each other red envelopes and said goodbye. Xiao Wei, Chen Hui, Wang Gang, Li Weibing, and a few others went with Miler to rest and chat in Miler's large office. There were also a few other people who were usually close to Miler, all of whom were kids from the same compound.

Although various compounds disappeared in China during this period, they actually remained, just no longer as blatantly obvious. People are inherently divided into different classes. If you're not from a compound, even if you struggle to reach that level, you can't integrate; you're simply not one of them.

Like Chen Hui's family, Old Chen's success was due to chance, but in the end, it was just a flash in the pan, lacking foundation and staying power.

Everyone sat and chatted, discussing which wine was good, and some were interested in Xiaowei and Chen Hui, subtly probing them in their conversations.

These days, it wasn't the later big market economy where you could get rich at will and show off as long as you had a little money. In this era, getting rich without any foundation was a disaster, and it hadn't been many years since those bosses from Wenzhou went to jail.

Everyone knew the benefits of doing business and the allure of money, but their awareness wasn't yet open, and there weren't as many ways to make money as there were later. A few that emerged were dazzlingly successful and attracted too much attention.

Why is the 1990s considered the era of officials and businessmen? Because without a solid foundation, one's position is unstable. Even if someone gets rich by chance, it will quickly become someone else's. The lucky ones might become wealthy, while the unlucky ones could face ruin and death in an instant. Those who remain in the middle are more comfortable, neither favored by those above nor attainable by those below.

Miler handed out cigarettes to everyone and said, "I'm just taking a chance. I don't know if it will work out. I'm just testing the waters for you guys. Whether I live or die depends on you all. Come here a few more times and get all the big shots and middlemen to come here."

A chubby boy said, "Actually, it's alright. It's certainly stylish enough, but the food is ridiculously filling! Each dish is only served in bite-sized portions and is ridiculously expensive. Do you guys think foreigners eat like this every day? Is this eating or just torture? Isn't this just torturing themselves?"

Chen Hui said, "Habits are different. We Chinese like big plates and big bowls with lots of meat and fish, while foreigners like fine food. Our chefs focus on flavor, color, and aroma when making dishes, while foreigners focus on exquisite presentation and pairings. They are not the same thing at all. I have gone out with my parents a few times, and we were indeed not full, but the foreigners ate quite well."

The chubby boy said, "I feel that foreigners are tall and big, so they shouldn't eat more than us, right?"

Chen Hui said, "Eat small meals frequently. We don't eat much at one meal, but we eat more at each meal. A hamburger or a sandwich at a time is just enough for us. They might have a cup of coffee or a sip of wine, and that's enough. We eat two or three meals a day, but they eat five or six meals."

Miler said, "Actually, it's about the same. They eat their fill at home too, but they talk a lot more outside. Restaurants have a bunch of etiquette to follow, which is nonsense. I'll talk to the chef and see if we can increase the portion size next time. Today was my first time too, and like you guys, the portion was indeed a bit small."

Wang Gang said, "Isn't Xuemei's brother running a restaurant over there? He can show off here and then eat his fill over there. It's that simple."

The chubby boy cursed, "Get out of here! Do I have to pay for a meal twice?"

Xiao Wei said, "You could actually think about a fusion of Chinese and Western styles, keeping some of the original French elements, modifying the rest, and adding a domestic chef to make Chinese food look Western and Western food more Chinese. But to keep it authentic, I doubt it. To be honest, there are a few dishes that I find disgusting."

Everyone agreed, and the chubby guy nodded, saying, "Yeah, Zhang Wei is right. That foie gras, damn, it was so fishy and greasy, I threw it all up under the table, and it was ridiculously expensive."

Chen Hui said, "Actually, the food at the winery is secondary. The main purpose is to have wine tasting parties, chat, and drink red wine like tea. This is a foreign tradition. They often have a glass of red wine and sit and chat when they have nothing to do. You also need to bring some rice wine and some snacks. Gradually, let everyone regard this place as a place for gatherings, business discussions, and conversations, instead of turning it into a complete restaurant."

Xiao Wei said, "Yes, for wine tasting, we can invite a couple of experts to give a lecture from time to time, talking about the knowledge and etiquette of red wine."

The chubby boy said, "I'll learn it. This is a great way to show off, I have to learn it." Everyone around him burst into laughter.

Xiao Wei said, "I'll get a coffee machine back in a while, and I'll get one for you. Your shop is missing one."

Chen Hui said, "This is China, so we have to have tea. We need to make good tea, both black and green tea."

The chubby boy said, "Milo, have your dad invite those foreigners over for a meal. Didn't you say the chef is French? Foreigners will definitely like it, and with all this wine, your business is guaranteed."

Miler said, "Please come tomorrow night. If you want to join in the fun, you can come again tomorrow."

The chubby boy shook his head: "Forget it, my dad will definitely come, and I'd be asking for trouble." His dad was in charge of foreign affairs and overseas Chinese affairs.

There was a knock on the office door, and Wang Jiwei walked in: "Chairman Zhang, General Manager Chen, Mayor Mi called and asked you to go to the construction site." Xiao Wei had left the phone with Wang Jiwei because he was attending a celebration, to avoid missing anything in the noise.

Xiao Wei stood up and scratched his head: "Alright then, that's settled for today. I can't refuse your dad's call. Brothers, you all sit down. I'll go deal with Miler's dad. Gu Xuemei, this is our first meeting, and I haven't prepared anything. Let's go together after your wedding. When are you and Miler going to Fengtian for fun?"

Everyone greeted each other, and Xiaowei and Chen Hui followed Wang Jiwei downstairs.

Once in the car, Xiao Wei said, "Let's go back and pick up Shi Li and Milina. They should come along; it's good for them to get some experience in these kinds of situations." Wang Jiwei replied, "They should be at headquarters, right?"

Chen Hui said, "It should be there. Let's go take a look; it's not far anyway."

(End of this chapter)