IHOEAYSTTTIW Chapter 25

Chapter 25: Strange but Delicious, Unconventional but Recognizable

“Chicken soup…” Lin Yan coughed lightly, changing his words at lightning speed, “Here comes the shredded chicken!”

The shredded chicken was clearly defined, as smooth as jade, with some greenish lemons scattered in between, emitting a refreshing fragrance.

Cheng Que looked at the dark yellow and black mixture in front of him, then at the strangely prepared shredded chicken, and his mentality finally exploded. He picked up his chopsticks and then put them down, ultimately lacking the courage to even try a bite. Thinking about his current position, he didn’t say it directly, but found a clumsy excuse: “I… I usually don’t eat dinner.”

“Brother, give me another bowl of rice.” Yun Qi didn’t care about any of that. Everything Lin Yan made was delicious, and he was already eager to start eating. Since Cheng Que wasn’t eating dinner, he could just eat as much as he wanted.

The always cheerful Gu Zhan couldn’t be cheerful either. He clicked his tongue and shook his head, “Your husband’s cooking…”

Yun Qi put the best pieces of meat on Lin Yan’s plate, then casually gave Gu Zhan a chopstickful: “You try a bite first.”

Gu Zhan turned the strange meat over and over in front of him for a long time, then took a small, delicate bite.

The chicken was tender and smooth, soaking up the sweet and sour lemon juice. The refreshing taste was like a clear spring flowing across his taste buds, dispelling the greasiness of the chicken. The salty aroma, garlic, and sesame seeds burst with diverse flavors, leaving a long aftertaste.

Gu Zhan paused, then joined the battle for the food, grabbing food for himself while also putting some in Cheng Que’s bowl from time to time, “A’Que, try it.”

“This…” Cheng Que couldn’t quite accept it. He had no desire to taste it, and he was preparing to find an excuse to leave the table.

Gu Zhan put a chicken leg in Cheng Que’s bowl, and ordered in a muffled voice, “Eat!”

Cheng Que reluctantly picked up his chopsticks, took a small piece of chicken and put it in his mouth. The refreshing taste made his eyes light up suddenly. Gu Zhan had been paying attention to Cheng Que’s reaction, and seeing this, he couldn’t help but smile, “It’s delicious, right?”

Cheng Que gave a nod, but he was still being polite. The other three didn’t play fair, so Cheng Que was naturally at a disadvantage, but Gu Zhan wouldn’t stand on ceremony with the other two. So, Cheng Que’s plate was never empty.

The food was quickly eaten up. Gu Zhan let out a satisfied burp, feeling content. He looked at the empty plates on the table, still wanting more: “With A’Yan’s skills, Xiang cuisine will definitely rise to fame.”

Cheng Que noticed Gu Zhan’s way of addressing Lin Yan, and the gloomy aura that had dissipated became thick again. He lowered his head, tugging at the corner of his clothes, and muttered softly: “You guys are so familiar.”

“No, no.” Gu Zhan waved his hands frantically, gently soothing the irritated Cheng Que, “I’m happy for you.”

“I’ll clean up.” Gu Zhan’s comfort didn’t seem to have much effect. Cheng Que nodded and turned to clear the dishes from the table.

“I’ll do it, I’ll do it.” Gu Zhan wanted to take over Cheng Que’s task, but Cheng Que dodged him, “I’ll do it, the backyard hasn’t been taken care of yet.”

“Okay.” Gu Zhan squeezed Cheng Que’s hand again, reluctantly letting go. He replied in a rough voice, “Then it’s hard work for you, A’Que.”

Yun Qi pulled Lin Yan towards the backyard, and Gu Zhan reluctantly followed. Watching the people walk away, Cheng Que rubbed his fingers together, and the corners of his mouth turned up slightly.

Scholar Cheng always felt that all professions were inferior except for reading. After Cheng Que’s mother passed away, he didn’t properly manage the store. The woman he brought in would act up every now and then, and most of the old employees in the store had left.

The store had all the tables, chairs, bowls, and plates, but Lin Yan always felt like something was missing. He leaned against the table and looked around. After only a little while, the table creaked under the weight and tilted to one side.

“Brother.” Yun Qi, who was cleaning up next to him, quickly grabbed Lin Yan. Looking at the table that had fallen to the ground, he muttered softly: “What kind of quality is this?”

Gu Zhan came over at the sound. He tapped the table a few times, then casually grabbed the axe for chopping wood, and split the table leg open like cutting a cake. Red ants crawled out, and their numbers gradually increased, crawling from the table to the ground. He clicked his tongue, disgustedly pulled over another table that looked intact, and directly split it with an axe. This table was the same: the carvings on the outside were intact, but the inside had been eaten hollow.

Gu Zhan threw the table leg in his hand away, looking at the barely supported tables and chairs with increasing displeasure: “Like old man Cheng, all of them are gold on the outside, but rotten on the inside.”

Lin Yan finally knew what was missing. He walked around the store and snapped his fingers: “That’s right, we need to renovate.”

The level of technology in Great Zhou was similar to that of the Ming Dynasty, so there was no such thing as a signature color. The decorative carvings on the roof beams were also common peonies and peonies, birds and beasts.

“We need to change the color.” Lin Yan patted the pillar, his hand stroking the carved flowers and leaves on the pillar, “Red is too common, yellow can’t be used… Let’s paint it blue-green, and get a mascot…”

As soon as Cheng Que entered the store, he saw that three and a half tables had been destroyed, and he also heard Gu Zhan saying that he was going to use these things to start a fire. These tables and chairs were all old pieces of furniture, and if they hadn’t been neglected in the past few years, they definitely wouldn’t have become like this.

A sour feeling welled up in his heart, gradually spreading.

Cheng Que felt sorry for the discarded tables and chairs, disgusted with his own neglect, but he didn’t dare to have any resentment towards Gu Zhan, the “culprit” who had turned the tables and chairs into waste, let alone blame the source of everything, his disappointing father.

Gu Zhan also noticed that Cheng Que was in a bad mood, but he never knew how to comfort people. Fortunately, the annoying fat cat strolled into the room.

Fluffiness can cure everything.

Gu Zhan picked up White, stroked it a few times, and ignoring its struggles, stuffed the cat into Cheng Que’s arms: “A’Que, you touch it, it feels very good.”

“That’s it.” Lin Yan looked at the unwilling White, his eyes growing brighter, “Brother Gu, I’ll trouble you to carve a LOGO for the store.”

Gu Zhan reluctantly moved his gaze away from Cheng Que. He looked at the culprit who was disturbing his date, not forgetting to hold down White, who was trying to struggle: “What’s a ‘loo-go’?”

“It’s the sign for the restaurant…” Lin Yan gestured in the air for a long time, finally giving up on explaining, “Never mind, it’s hard to explain, I’ll draw it for you.”

Lin Yan was good at cooking, and his drawing skills couldn’t be said to be superb, but he could be considered a master of soul-painting.

A circle, two triangles, this is the head; a big circle, four toothpicks, this is the body; outside is a big circle, with the word “Xiang” written in the middle.

Lin Yan handed the sketch of the LOGO to Gu Zhan: “It’s roughly like this.”

Gu Zhan looked at the sketch, then looked at Lin Yan, and finally confirmed that he wasn’t joking. He tried to make it out for a long time, and finally saw some clues.

“This is… a cat, it’s holding a jade pendant? The jade pendant has the word ‘Xiang’ written on it?” Gu Zhan gradually became excited, eager to try, “Leave this to me, what else are you planning to do?”

Lin Yan looked around, revealing a sunny smile. He touched the carvings on the table, the devil whispering, “I’m going to dye this thing green.”

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