Era: You're asked to cook a home-style dish, but you cook Wellington.

"Who are you?"

Gao Yang was somewhat unsure.

The old man was dressed in a black Zhongshan suit, his hair was neatly styled, and he wore gold-rimmed glasses. At first glance, he seemed ordinary, but upon closer inspection, one could discover his calm and composed aura.

Gao Yang felt a slight chill.

Having seen all sorts of people in his past life, he could tell at a glance that this person's aura indicated wealth and nobility, and that he was definitely not an ordinary person.

For some reason, an absurd idea suddenly popped into his head, and he cautiously tried to probe the question without showing it on his face.

"Sir, judging from your accent, you're not a local, are you? How was your meal today?"

Gao Yang laughed heartily.

"Yes, I'm here to take care of some business. I must say, your food is really good."

The old man had a kind face. He stroked his beard, smiled, and nodded, but a barely perceptible shrewdness flashed in his eyes, which he quickly suppressed.

Gao Yang took in all of these micro-expressions.

"There's no doubt about it, it must be that important figure from the capital."

Gao Yang's heart was in turmoil.

"What a pity, even the best wine needs advertising these days."

Upon hearing this, the old man laughed it off.

"Young man, you're still young, you have a long road ahead of you. A temporary setback is nothing. When I first came here, everyone was saying you used gutter oil and expired ingredients, and your waiters even assaulted people!"

The old man's gaze swept over the empty hall, and he smiled faintly.

He paused, then said meaningfully.

"Now it seems that all of this was fake, so don't rush, just do your job well, and when the time is right, you will naturally succeed."

Wang Biao, standing to the side, asked in confusion, "What are they saying? I can't understand them."

Zhou Guodong clicked his tongue, glanced at Wang Biao with annoyance, and slapped Wang Biao on the head.

"I told you to study more, but you insisted on herding cattle. Now look what happened! Get out of my way and stop getting in my way."

The old man slowly left the restaurant and disappeared at the street corner.

Zhou Guodong finally couldn't hold back any longer, quickly stepped forward, and lowered his voice.

"Master Gao, I've heard some rumors lately, could it be...?"

"Yes, Master Zhou, it should be just as you think."

Upon receiving confirmation, Zhou Guodong's eyes lit up instantly, a sharp glint flashing in his cloudy eyes, and his clenched fists trembled slightly.

"Our mansion is saved!"

…………

Meanwhile, on the other side...

After leaving the Grand Hotel, the old man went straight to the Golden Dragon Hotel.

"Old man, what would you like to eat?"

As soon as the old man sat down, a waiter slammed a menu onto the table.

The waiter had his hands in his pockets, looking annoyed, as if someone owed him tens of thousands of dollars.

He had a sleazy, disreputable air about him, and you could even smell smoke coming from him if you got close.

The old man frowned. Having traveled all over the country for so many years, he had never seen a restaurant like this before. Under normal circumstances, he would never have ordered anything and would have gotten up and left immediately.

"Su's shop is still the best."

The old man couldn't help but harbor some resentment in his heart.

He took out a tissue and slowly wiped the shiny grease off the table.

"Hey, old man, are you going to order or not?"

Seeing that the old man ignored him, the waiter felt disregarded and immediately shouted.

The old man's eyebrows shot up, his mood was extremely bad, but when he thought about the task he had come for, he suppressed his anger and picked up the menu.

It wasn't until he opened the menu that the old man understood why so many people were dining at this restaurant.

"This Wellington costs $100?"

The old man was dumbfounded.

It's worth noting that such a complexly prepared steak was a true luxury in 1993, costing at least 2 or 300 yuan. Yet, the Golden Dragon Hotel charged 100 yuan for it!

"Yeah, yeah, it's already cheap enough, but we still can't afford it?"

The waiter looked impatient.

"This, this."

The old man was too lazy to talk to him. Seeing that the dishes were so cheap, he casually ordered two dishes and threw the menu back to the waiter.

"Damn, this is so slow, they're taking forever to order food."

The waiter grumbled and jotted down two dishes in his notebook, then took the menu and headed to the kitchen.

Not long after, the dishes were served.

The old man frowned as he looked at the plate of what was called Wellington steak.

The pastry was baked until it was black and burnt, with some soft, undercooked edges. When you cut into it, it didn't make that crisp, snapping sound you'd expect.

The beef inside was no longer pink and juicy; it had turned completely brown and was as hard as a rock, impossible to cut.

What's even worse is the smell.

A faint, indescribable smell of oil, mixed with the stale aroma of spices, wafted into my nostrils.

The old man suppressed his nausea, cut off a small piece, looked at it again and again, hesitated for a long time, and finally put it in his mouth.

"vomit."

Completely different from what I had at the Grand Court Hotel, the Wellington steak here had a strong rancid smell, like a rag that had been soaked in dirty water for two days.

The beef, in particular, was sour and smelly, with an indescribable nauseating taste that filled my mouth. If it had been left for another two days, it probably would have been infested with maggots.

This is hardly a Wellington steak.

This is hardly a normal dish.

He ran to the bathroom, rinsed his mouth frantically, his chest churning with anger, and struggled to control his trembling hands.

When he returned, the second dish was served.

The old man looked up and felt a tightness in his chest.

The dishes were dull in color, sticky and oily, and even the most basic plating was done terribly. The same oily smell as before wafted straight into my nose.

He didn't touch it at all; he even considered it unlucky to get close to it.

"Check, please."

The old man's voice was calm, yet as cold as ice.

Hearing the commotion, the waiter immediately stopped what he was doing and came over.

"Hey old man, isn't it delicious? Our food is the best in Yicheng, much better than that Haoting Restaurant next door. Look how many people come to our restaurant."

"A total of 220."

He had a toothpick in his mouth, tilted his head, and looked arrogant and domineering.

The old man didn't bother arguing with him any further, so he took out 250 yuan from his wallet and handed it to him.

Seeing the old man's magnanimity, the waiter's eyes darted around, and he decided to act like a rogue.

"Old man, you're so rich, don't take the extra 30 yuan, consider it my service fee."

"you!"

The old man shuddered; even with his refined upbringing, he couldn't help but feel angry.

Give me back my money.

Upon seeing this, the waiter's face instantly darkened, and his tone became fierce.

"You're so rich, what's wrong with giving me some? You old codger, do you really need a pittance?"

He grabbed the old man by the collar.

"Let me tell you, don't even think about causing me any trouble. If you're not careful, I'll yell at you and you'll be carried out of here on your back."

He loosened the old man's collar, raised his finger, and pointed at the old man as a warning.

"Ha ha."

The old man felt his blood boil and was so angry he laughed.

He looked at the others around him, and it seemed that the waiters and cashiers were already used to it and didn't care at all. Not a single one of them came over to help him out.

Okay, okay, very good, very good!

He took several deep breaths to calm himself down and slowly walked out of the Golden Dragon Hotel.