The Game of Life

Jiang Feng swore he absolutely did not recommend Li Hongzhang Hodgepodge to Zheng Da. It was Zheng Da himself who, while flipping through the menu, insisted on ordering it, but Fan Mei did not believe his tall tale.

Fan Mei even suspected that there might be some internal conflict within their school, thus employing such a vicious method to take revenge on Master Zheng and senior.

“Manager Fan, the menu is set with these five dishes, and it shouldn’t change. Tomorrow is my senior’s first blind date in Beiping. My master takes it very seriously, so I hope you can take good care of everything outside. The decorations on the tables, candles, and other things that can enhance the atmosphere will need your careful attention,” Jiang Feng said.

Fan Mei’s facial expression showed hesitation. Her fingers were unconsciously tapping the table with a certain rhythm, and after pondering for a long time, she slowly spoke, “Little boss, would it be better to change the Li Hongzhang Hodgepodge?”

Ever since Jiang Feng mentioned to Fan Mei that Taifeng Building could promote the Li Hongzhang Hodgepodge as a signature dish, she had been hesitating. Having witnessed too many customers cry over it, and aware that Jiang Feng was adept at telling fibs, this made Fan Mei quite skeptical of him.

During the days following the opening, Fan Mei had been investigating customer feedback, cost, and potential market aspects of other dishes in an attempt to promote a dish better or at least equal to Li Hongzhang Hodgepodge.

Fan Mei felt that if she really couldn’t find a dish better or equal to Li Hongzhang Hodgepodge, she might as well believe Jiang Feng’s fibs and let him have a try.

“No need to change it, rest assured, the Li Hongzhang Hodgepodge that comes out will definitely be a completely normal serving, and there will be no problems!” Jiang Feng assured Fan Mei.

“Alright, is there anything else that needs attention?” Fan Mei decided to wait and see the situation tomorrow. If it really worked, she would set the signature dish as Li Hongzhang Hodgepodge and consider the marketing plan in the coming days.

“Oh, there is one more thing. Please remind the waiter serving the dishes to tell my senior and his blind date that they should drink the soup first when serving the Stuffed Lotus Root.”

Fan Mei: ???

Although she didn’t understand why a dessert like Stuffed Lotus Root required drinking soup, Fan Mei nodded and took note.

Time quickly moved on to the next evening.

The day of Zheng Siyuan’s blind date.

Ling Guangzhao gave Zheng Siyuan time off for his blind date, but Zheng Siyuan was still very responsible and made two batches of pastries in the afternoon, asking the other white chefs at Eight-Treasure House to help bake or steam them, which touched Ling Guangzhao deeply.

This also strengthened Ling Guangzhao’s resolve to introduce a Beiping girl to Zheng Siyuan.

When Ling Guangzhao was selecting candidates for Zheng Siyuan’s blind date, he was choosy, targeting girls whose overall conditions were suitable and who were either intent on staying to make a living in Beiping or were Beiping natives.

Zheng Siyuan and his blind date almost arrived at the same time. Zheng Da was sitting at the next table beside Zheng Siyuan, with his back to him. The table had no dishes, only a bowl of preserved egg and pork congee. His son’s blind date made Zheng Da so nervous that he couldn’t eat anything and could only drink some congee to calm down.

The blind date’s name was Gao Qing, a very sociable person. Knowing that Zheng Siyuan might not be very talkative, she was always actively looking for topics to discuss since sitting down.

Gao Qing had a proper appearance, simple makeup with just a slightly darker lipstick, and she was wearing a sharp business suit, obviously just off work.

Their dishes were served not long after they sat down.

“Hello, Stuffed Lotus Root.” The server bringing the dishes to Zheng Siyuan’s table was a young and round-faced girl who had started her internship after the New Year. She was very nervous as she served the food, burdened by Fan Mei’s instructions.

“For the Stuffed Lotus Root, I would suggest drinking the soup first. Do you need me to help you two with the soup?” The server, nervous, offered.

“Drink the soup?” Gao Qing was surprised and forgot what she wanted to say to Zheng Siyuan. She glanced at the server’s tray and noticed a small bowl of sweet soup.

“Yes, this is… this is our restaurant’s specialty, and sticky rice lotus root is also a new product we’re promoting, recommended with soup,” the waiter said.

“Thank you,” Gao Qing smiled at the waiter and then turned to Zheng Siyuan, “I haven’t been to Taifeng Building before, I had no idea their dishes were so unique. To think sticky rice lotus root could also come with soup, it’s my first time seeing this.”

“It’s my first time seeing it too,” Zheng Siyuan said.

Seeing that Zheng Siyuan was responsive, Gao Qing knew they could continue the conversation, “Speaking of which, I actually have a question I’ve been wanting to ask you. Since Mr. Ling from Eight-treasure House introduced us and you are a chef there, why was our blind date set up here at Taifeng Building instead of your own restaurant?”

Zheng Siyuan didn’t know why either, as he had only found out he was supposed to have this blind date that morning.

“If it were at our own place, I was afraid it would inconvenience everyone, and I also have some connections with the chefs here at Taifeng Building, so it’s very convenient to pre-order dishes and reserve seats,” Zheng Siyuan explained.

Gao Qing nodded, “That makes sense. It would indeed be quite awkward to have a blind date surrounded by people you know. At our age, although matchmaking is a common thing, we still don’t really like to tell others about it.”

Gao Qing took a sip of the sweet soup and frowned, putting the bowl down, “This is way too sweet, it’s basically just sugar water with too much sugar added.”

Zheng Siyuan also had a taste upon hearing this, “It is too sweet.”

After putting down the bowl, Gao Qing decided she wouldn’t touch the sticky rice lotus root again and mentally blacklisted the dish. She continued chatting with Zheng Siyuan on the topic of blind dates until the rest of the dishes were served and they started to eat.

Because of the overly sweet sugar water, Gao Qing’s first impression of Taifeng Building was not great. She thought it was just a restaurant overcharging for dishes while lacking in culinary skills. But after trying the following dishes, Gao Qing quickly revisited her opinion on the chefs of Taifeng Building, finding it a place worth dining at regularly.

As long as she stayed away from that strange sticky rice lotus root, every restaurant had a few dud dishes, which Gao Qing thought was normal.

Gao Qing and Zheng Siyuan finished their blind date meal quite quickly, almost done within an hour.

In Gao Qing’s eyes, this blind date was probably the most comfortable and satisfying one she had among the many she had had in her life.

Even though Zheng Siyuan didn’t talk much, coming off somewhat aloof, Gao Qing, who had crossed the thirty-year mark and experienced numerous quirky and bizarre dates, felt that Zheng Siyuan was a rare catch among men of their age group.

For people her age, it was already a happy occurrence if the date was a normal person.

After all, she had previously encountered baffling reasons for rejection, such as disapproval of her age, her high level of education, or not having a house in Beiping.

“How about going to a nearby mall to look around, or watching a movie? I know there’s a recently released film that’s supposed to be very good, and I haven’t had the chance to see it. I’m free tonight, so why don’t we go watch a movie to relax?” Gao Qing took the initiative to ask.

Zheng Da at the next table was overjoyed, feeling certain his son would definitely be able to find a wife this time.

“No, I should head back to the shop,” Zheng Siyuan said.

Gao Qing: ???

Zheng Da: ???

Zheng Da even forgot he was pretending to be a diner alongside Zheng Siyuan. He turned his head in disbelief, wondering whether his son had crumbs or butter in his brain.

“You… you have to work overtime?” Gao Qing could hardly believe her ears.

“I have to go back to work. The pastries should have sold out by now so I can make new ones. I’ve already paid the bill; you can go watch the movie by yourself. Remember to get home early, it’s not safe for a girl to go home too late,” Zheng Siyuan said, put on his down jacket, and left.

Gao Qing sat stunned for a moment, with a bitter smile on her face, “To think I was flattering myself believing he was interested, turns out he wasn’t into me at all.”

Gao Qing shook her head and left with her purse.

Zheng Da: …

The daughter-in-law that seemed within reach flew away because his son was a fool.

Zheng Da really wanted to pry open Zheng Siyuan’s head to see exactly what was inside.

During the blind date, he didn’t seem to have any objections nor did he show dissatisfaction. Previously, when forced on blind dates, he was reluctant and even rude to the women. This time, the date theoretically went smoothly without picking on the woman or finding faults, and he never complained about her job. Just when everything seemed set, he pulled away at the last moment.

Furious, Zheng Da took out his phone on the spot to call and scold his son.

Then Zheng Siyuan told him that he thought Gao Qing was alright, but…

He had run out of pastries he made in the afternoon and needed to rush back to Eight-treasure House to make a new batch.

Zheng Da: …

I don’t want this son anymore.

🙂