Volume 3: Dragon and Snake Movement Chapter 418: Big Eater, Attracting Customers
Just as the waiter said before, a square eight-immortal table can usually hold eleven or twelve dishes, but it is not enough to accommodate the two servings of snacks ordered by Ah Liudian. Fortunately, steamed snacks can be stacked in two or three steamers.
Even so, there was no room .
Under Zhang Shou's glare, Ah Liu moved the bowl of crispy fish noodles in front of Zhang Shou as if nothing had happened , and then handed over the soup dumplings, and then said seriously: "This is what the young master likes to eat."
Zhang Shou looked down and finally realized that the snacks on the table did not look like Suzhou cuisine. However, since he had come here and ordered so much, he was too lazy to think too much. He simply picked up a piece of noodles with chopsticks. As soon as he took a bite, he found that the noodles were smooth and the long fish was crispy. He took a sip of the soup and it was fresh and spicy, obviously pepper was added!
After making sure that it was indeed to his taste, he glanced at Ah Liu, picked up another soup dumpling and carefully bit into it. When he found that the soup inside was piping hot yet extremely delicious, he was finally completely satisfied. He simply didn't bother to care how Ah Liu finished the rest and concentrated on tasting the two things in front of him.
Ah Liu started his big shopping without paying attention to anyone around. He ate two portions of three-piece steamed buns, tofu skin steamed buns, shrimp roe wontons, etc. The wonton soup became the best tool to quench his thirst and help swallow. The young man watching almost stared at him.
At the same time, he used chopsticks in his right hand and spoon in his left hand, and his movements were as fast as lightning. Before Zhang Shou had finished the bowl of crispy fish noodles and soup dumplings, he had already finished them. When Zhang Shou put down his chopsticks and spoon, he saw that the table was in a mess. Except for two servings of candied lotus roots, everything else had been swept away. He couldn't help but stare at Ah Liu from head to toe.
He had given so many instructions, did Ah Liu just remember to eat more? Why didn't he gain weight or grow taller just by eating? Was it really because he was exercising too much that he consumed all the energy?
Not to mention Zhang Shou, the waiters watching and the tea drinkers not far away were all stunned. They knew about big eaters and had seen them before, but most of them took advantage of the unlimited noodles and rice. In this teahouse under the Yangzhou Guild Hall where the food was not cheap, people stuffed their stomachs with food like this. It was really rare to see such a big stomach!
The most important thing is that the one who ate so much was not the master, but the servant - because the waiter saw clearly before that Ah Liu helped Zhang Shou get off the horse, and the two were also dressed differently. He couldn't help but think that with such a big-bellied servant, this young master who was not dressed luxuriously was probably about to feel the pain... This meal was quite expensive!
Therefore, seeing Zhang Shou staring at Ah Liu, the waiter whispered, "Sir, these eight kinds of tea and snacks are in duplicate, and the total is... nine hundred and sixteen coins. Our teahouse in Yangzhou Guild Hall has invited a master chef from Yangzhou with first-class skills, so the price is inevitably a little higher than outside." In order to avoid disputes, he decided to say the ugly truth up front.
A lunch of tea and snacks cost almost a guan of money. This is really amazing... Zhang Shou thought so in his heart. Seeing that the candied lotus root on the table had not been finished, he stretched out his chopsticks to pick up two pieces and ate them. Then he felt that it was too sweet, so he drank two sips of tea to get rid of the greasiness. Then he looked at Ah Liu and said, "Don't pretend that you can't eat anymore. Eat quickly and pay the bill!"
"Oh." Ah Liu picked up the chopsticks again and ate up the twelve slices of sweet lotus root left on the two plates like a dragonfly skimming the water. Then he glanced at the remaining syrup with some regret. Suddenly, his eyes lit up and he immediately hooked his finger at the waiter next to him whose eyes were about to fall out.
"Go get two more white flour buns so I can dip them in the sugar water. Oh, and they'll all be counted toward the 916 coins."
After eating so much, he should give something as a gift, right? The waiter saw this request clearly from Ah Liu's eyes, and he didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He glanced at Ah Liu's belly, which was not swollen at all, and could only nod in agreement. Especially when he saw Ah Liu untie his money bag, take out a roll of banknotes, silver and copper coins and start counting them, he quickly ran away.
As long as you can afford this meal...even the shopkeeper won't say anything about such a small thing as giving two white flour buns.
When the two white flour buns were brought over as a gift, Ah Liu had already counted the money he had to pay - of course it couldn't really be 916 coins, but a banknote of one guan. And according to the request of this penny-pinching boy, the waiter could only conscientiously bring 84 coins in change on a small wooden tray.
As for the tea drinkers who were originally there to watch the fun, two tables of people had already left. After all, people these days don't have that many curiosity. It's fine to just watch a big eater, but who would stare at someone for no reason?
Zhang Shou saw the waiter ahead of him and the other two people clearing away many empty plates and bowls, while Ah Liu quickly finished two steamed buns dipped in sugar water. He couldn't help but said unhappily, "You ate a bag of vegetable buns when you came out. How can you be reborn as a starving ghost? People who don't know would think you never have enough to eat at home!"
"That's because the master didn't see me adding more food." Ah Liu finally finished the last bite, then gulped down the tea in the cup in one breath, then wiped his mouth with the scalded soft towel beside him, and then coughed and explained, "I eat all the leftover food at home every day. You told me to eat more."
Zhang Shou once again looked at Ah Liu's inconspicuous figure, and wondered why his family had not been destitute by such a big eater when he was in Rongshui Village. But then he thought that if there were not enough vegetables, he could make up for it with rice, and he felt relieved.
Well, as a family that manages many tenants on behalf of Duke Zhao, even if other things are in short supply, rice and flour are probably not in short supply!
Being interrupted by Ah Liu's sudden appearance, he had already forgotten his afternoon tea plan. Just as he stood up and was about to go out, he saw a man hurried in from outside the door. When he saw him, he immediately ran up to him with a big smile on his face.
"Doctor Zhang, I heard that you returned to the capital yesterday. You are free to come to this outer city today. Why don't you come to visit my Suzhou Guild Hall? The snacks in this Yangzhou teahouse are certainly unique in Huaiyang, but my Suzhou is also a place of delicious food. The snacks alone include fermented rice dumplings, eight-treasure rice, three-fresh tofu pudding, osmanthus cake..."
"It's Suzhou cuisine, there are also..."
Before Shopkeeper Hua finished reading the names of the dishes, Zhang Shou interrupted him and said, "I just wanted to find a quiet place to make up for a late lunch, so I asked Ah Liu to lead the way out of the city. Shopkeeper Hua, you don't have to brag about the taste of Suzhou cuisine and Suzhou dim sum in front of me."
This shopkeeper Hua obviously came prepared, otherwise why would he announce the names of the dishes right away? Was he sincerely trying to tempt his appetite or what? Was he already well-known for his reputation as a foodie?
Shopkeeper Hua was laughing so hard that the fat on his face was shaking. He was very glad that the two tea drinkers who had just left here were not from Yangzhou, but from Suzhou. When they returned to the guild hall, they mentioned this scene to him as a joke. After he asked about their appearance, he was suspicious and thought that they were right in front of the door, so he came to take a look. He found the person he was looking for!
Seeing that the table was almost cleared, he simply stepped forward and offered his hand to help Zhang Shou, saying in a very attentive manner: "It's still early, you can go to Suzhou Guild Hall to digest your food. I will ask the chef to use all his cooking skills. For dinner, I guarantee that you will be able to taste the essence of our Suzhou cuisine..."
Zhang Shou originally went out of the city to this guild hall area, just wanting to stop by Suzhou Guild Hall. However, he was distracted and was brought to Yangzhou Guild Hall by Ah Liu by accident, where he had a meal of authentic Yangzhou snacks.
Seeing that Shopkeeper Hua couldn't stop talking about his business, he agreed and said, "Okay, I'll go, but don't mention dinner. I rarely have three days off, and I can't just eat out all day and not go home."
Manager Hua had spent a lot of effort to find out from the county government that Zhang Shou had no other bad habits, but he loved food and even taught the chefs himself. Therefore, since he came to the capital to manage the Suzhou Guild Hall, he specially found a few famous chefs from the Suzhou Gang. Although he felt a little regretful at this time, he still agreed with a smile and dragged Zhang Shou out as fast as he could.
However, before he could step over the threshold and go out, he heard a roar from behind him: "You fat Hua, you actually came to steal my customers, how dare you!"
Following the voice, a skinny middle-aged man came out in a hurry. If Manager Hua was a bucket, then he was dry firewood. The two of them standing there would definitely be a beautiful sight. But he looked like he could be blown away by the wind, but his feet were so fast that he rushed behind Zhang Shou like a gust of wind and tried to grab him without saying anything. As a result, as soon as he stretched out his hand...
What he grabbed was Ah Liu's wrist!
Staring at Ah Liu's cold eyes, the skinny Yu Huishou remembered that this was the young servant with a voracious appetite that the shopkeeper had just mentioned. He quickly let go of his hand, then stepped back, bowed with a smile on his face and said, "I am Yu Cheng. I am grateful for the trust of my fellow townsman to run the Yangzhou Guild Hall. I didn't expect that Dr. Zhang would come to visit us with a small entourage. It really brings honor to this humble place!"
Seeing Fatty Hua glaring at him angrily, Yu raised his head without giving in and said with a smile, "Since Dr. Zhang came to my Yangzhou Guild Hall first, it is obvious that he prefers Yangzhou tea and snacks. Fatty Hua, isn't it too unkind of you to intercept the guest?"
Shopkeeper Hua was almost pissed off by Yu Huishou's tone. When I was having a good chat with him, you didn't even know where you were ! Look at what you did. You even stretched out your hand to drag him back, but you bumped into the iron fist of the young guard. You really got defeated, didn't you?
He snorted with a sullen face, then ignored Fatty Hua and said to Zhang Shou with a forced smile, "I'd like to let Dr. Zhang know that the fourth master of the Hua family just arrived in the capital at noon today. This is really a coincidence. He has admired you for a long time. Since you happen to meet him here, could you please take the time to meet him? Suzhou Guild Hall is just opposite, just two or three steps away!"
The claw that Yu Huishou stretched out again suddenly froze in mid-air. In the early morning, he did see a lot of cars and horses in the Suzhou Guild Hall across the street, as if some guests had arrived, but both Yangzhou and Suzhou were places where merchants gathered. He heard about it from his clerk, but he didn't take it seriously. But he never thought that it would be the fourth master Hua, the head of the Hua family, the richest family in Suzhou, who would come in person!
Compared with this guy's weight, he, who was recommended by the merchants in Yangzhou and presided over the Yangzhou Guild Hall in the capital, was obviously not important enough. The reason why he was competing with the fat guy Hua for customers was not because he really had something to ask Zhang Shou for, but he just wanted to stand out. After all, he was a direct descendant of the Hua family, and he didn't want this fat guy to suppress him when he first arrived!
But now, from the tone of Fatty Hua, it seems that Fourth Master Hua has come to the capital specially to see Zhang Shou? What is the reason?
Zhang Shou also didn't expect that the fourth master of the Hua family would rush to Beijing so quickly. Calculating the time, it is impossible for the master who was originally in Huai'an to take a boat to Beijing so quickly, so he must have traveled by car, and traveling in this hot weather, people with poor health really can't stand it.
Of course, it is not ruled out that people set off by boat immediately after receiving the news.
So, he immediately smiled and said, "I am a poor scholar, but I don't know what is worthy of Master Hua Si to see. Since it is better to happen by chance than by chance, you can lead the way."
At this point, he glanced back at Yu Huishou, whose expression was obviously not so good, and said with a smile: "I was brought here by Ah Liu today, and I have tasted the flavor of Yangzhou tea and snacks. Thank you for the hospitality, Yu Huishou."
Yu Huishou immediately remembered that when the shopkeeper just mentioned this strange thing, he had teased him a few times, and he was immediately embarrassed and sweated on his back. If he was not so familiar with Fatty Hua's voice, he would have rushed out as soon as he heard the noise, and he might not have reacted until the person was dragged away.
However, if he just returned the 900-odd coins for the meal at this moment, he felt that Zhang Shou's reaction might be unpredictable, at least he would definitely not be happy, so after repeatedly considering it in his mind, he deliberately smiled and said: "Dr. Zhang, I'm glad that you two like my craftsmanship, please come often in the future..."
At this point, he glared at Shopkeeper Hua and said, "Fatty Hua, for Dr. Zhang's sake, I won't mind you snatching my customers away! Humph, stop joking, how can your Suzhou cuisine compare to my Huaiyang cuisine, which is famous all over the world?"
Shopkeeper Hua had no intention of arguing with Yu Hui-chiu, so he didn't even look at the troublemaker and led Zhang Shou out of the shop without saying a word. He then pointed at the sign opposite and said with a hint of resentment, "The two shops are right across from each other, Dr. Zhang, you really just passed by without entering."
Can I be blamed for this? Zhang Shou glanced at the expressionless Ah Liu, thinking that it was clearly this greedy kid who was causing trouble! However, this was also a blessing in disguise, because he went to find someone in person, how could he be better than someone else coming to him specially after hearing the news?
