Chapter 436 - 371: Catching Soft-Shelled Turtles Tomorrow

Chapter 436: Chapter 371: Catching Soft-Shelled Turtles Tomorrow

After the lively scene outside died down, the customers filed into the restaurant and began ordering their meals.

Xie Wanxiang and Luo Yunlin placed their order as well.

One order of Wensi Tofu, one of twice-cooked pork with green peppers, and one of tomato and egg soup.

Jiang Caidong, Liang Heng, Wei Ping’s family, as well as Liu Xu, Xiao Yue, Zhang Rui’Er, and the other customers from the county town all ordered Wensi Tofu too.

Not everyone ordered their own portion; rather, each small group dining together ordered one to share.

With so many people, it was impossible for everyone to split the bill together. Instead, they formed small groups of a few people each to go Dutch.

The Wensi Tofu dishes were brought to the tables one after another.

Whether they had heard of the dish before or not, everyone was utterly amazed and full of wonder.

Jiang Caidong, Liang Heng, and the others had heard of this dish before and had even eaten it.

But setting aside the flavor of the versions they’d had before, the knife work alone was far inferior.

The threads of all the various ingredients were simply beautiful.

Shredding the other ingredients was relatively easy, so that wasn’t worth mentioning. But to be able to slice tofu into such beautiful threads was definitely a display of top-tier knife skills, and it was truly stunning.

They knew that Boss Li You’s version of this dish would be absolutely gorgeous.

And now, they saw it was true.

Before eating, one really had to take a moment to admire it.

The rest of the customers, who were unfamiliar with Wensi Tofu, were of course even more astonished.

People always said Huaiyang Cuisine emphasized knife skills, and the finished dishes were often exceptionally exquisite.

Seeing it now, they knew it truly lived up to its reputation.

The customers were overjoyed to experience the charm of a dish from a distant region right here.

It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say it was a real eye-opener.

Xie Wanxiang and Luo Yunlin were also very excited. ’Just think,’ they thought, ’when this dish appears at the banquet, all our friends and family will be completely blown away.’

As the hosts, it would make them look very good.

The very thought filled them with anticipation.

They quickly tasted it.

After one bite, it was, unsurprisingly, delicious.

This undoubtedly made them even more thrilled.

The other customers also started eating, and every single person was full of praise for the flavor.

Every dish here was truly an exquisite delicacy that one was reluctant to finish.

...

After Xie Wanxiang and Luo Yunlin finished their meal, they went to say goodbye to Li You.

"Master Li, we’ll be counting on you for the banquet," Xie Wanxiang said.

"Don’t you worry, Elder Xie. I will do my absolute best," Li You replied.

’Since I’ve accepted the job, I have to give it my all.’

"Thank you! Thank you so much!" Xie Wanxiang said repeatedly.

Then, after exchanging goodbyes, Xie Wanxiang and Luo Yunlin left.

The other customers also finished their meals one by one.

Many of the customers made plans to go back to the patch of wild fig vines to look for more fruit.

Among them were Xiao Yue, Zhang Rui’Er, and the other young women.

They had already finished all the wild figs they found this morning. Perhaps because it had been so many years since they’d last eaten them, they found them exceptionally delicious.

So, they wanted to go search again, hoping to find even more than they did in the morning.

Other customers decided to take a stroll through the gorge.

Wei Ping’s family, for example. The two little ones wanted to go catch crabs in the gorge again.

Liu Xu, Xie Yunfei, and their group also went to the gorge to take in the scenery again.

It felt like a view they could never get tired of.

Jiang Caidong and Liang Heng, on the other hand, wandered through the gardens for a while before saying their farewells to Li You.

They planned to head back early, as they still had many things to take care of regarding the new branch store.

Li You found a net, put the soft-shelled turtle inside, and handed it to Jiang Caidong.

Jiang Caidong took it and smiled. "Thanks, Boss Li. We’ll be on our way then."

Liang Heng also said goodbye to Li You.

Li You nodded. "Take care, you two."

After that, Li You returned to the kitchen to continue his work. He didn’t have a moment of free time until three in the afternoon.

He lay back in the rocking chair by the entrance to rest for a bit.

Ling Xiaoru came downstairs, found a stool to sit on next to him, and said, "Boss, let’s go catch soft-shelled turtles tomorrow. How about it?"

Li You nodded. "Sure. We can go after the lunch rush tomorrow."

Ling Xiaoru was thrilled. "In that case, I’ll take another day off tomorrow," she said.

Li You smiled faintly. "Alright."

Ling Xiaoru added, "Oh, right, Boss, aren’t you a huge fan of *Slam Dunk*? The movie version of the National Tournament Arc is coming out soon. Are you going to see it?"

Li You said, "It’s not the full National Tournament Arc. It’s just the match against Yamawang Industry. Of course, after waiting for so many years, even getting to see one match is pretty great. I’m definitely going to see it."

Ling Xiaoru said, "Can I go with you, then? I want to see it too. *Slam Dunk* isn’t my absolute favorite, but I still really like it."

Li You smiled. "Of course you can."

Ling Xiaoru was delighted. "Then let’s go together! This series was our childhood, and it represents the youth of so many people. When the final curtain falls on our youth, I wonder if a lot of people will feel a sense of wistful loss?"

Li You pondered for a moment, then said slowly, "I think so. Everyone was so anxious and full of anticipation waiting for an animated version of the National Tournament Arc that never came. And once we’ve finally gotten it, when the movie ends, that’s when our youth officially comes to a close. People will probably feel at least a little bit of that wistful loss. But that’s what youth is. It always has to end sometime."

Ling Xiaoru nodded slowly. "That’s true. Luckily, we’re still young."

Li You smiled again and nodded.

...

After a while, the customers who went to look for wild figs began to return.

Every one of them was excited to show Li You their haul. Each person had done well, gathering at least a pound, with the biggest hauls estimated at over two pounds.

Xiao Yue and Zhang Rui’Er returned as well.

"Boss, look!" The two of them showed Li You the bag filled with their wild figs.

It was a big bag, holding at least two pounds, maybe even three.

A very impressive haul.

Li You laughed. "You two did great. It looks like you got the most."

"Of course," they both said proudly. "We’ll take these home, put them in the fridge, and they’ll last us for two days."

Li You nodded. "About right."

"We’ll go put them in the car first."

"Okay."

Just then, the customers who had gone to the gorge also started coming back.

Wei Ping’s two children had caught a lot of crabs again. They were all fairly small and kept in separate plastic water bottles.

The two kids also showed Li You their catch, saying they were going to take them home and raise them.

Li You smiled. "Well, you’ll have to take good care of them and raise them to be big and strong, okay?"

"Okay!" the two children shouted in unison.

Afterward, Li You chatted for a while with Wei Ping, Liu Xu, and the others.

...

By five in the afternoon, all the visitors from the county town, including Wei Ping, Liu Xu, Xiao Yue, and Zhang Rui’Er, were ordering dinner again.

They wanted to eat early so they could head back home.

Li You got busy once more.

After finishing their meal, Wei Ping, Liu Xu, Xiao Yue, Zhang Rui’Er, and the rest said their goodbyes and left one after another.

...