GBP Chapter 198 Free Surprise
Chapter 198 Free Surprise
The box is not big, but it is well ventilated.
The surrounding walls are decorated with several exquisite paintings of Jiangnan water towns.
There are houses with white walls and black tiles beside small bridges and flowing water, and there is also the West Lake shrouded in mist and rain, with boats swaying on the lake and mountains in the distance looming. It seems as if you can feel the comfort of the drizzle caressing your face.
There is an antique round table in the box. The tabletop is made of fine mahogany with clearly visible texture, and it is surrounded by matching mahogany chairs.
After going upstairs, the noise downstairs had nothing to do with them. It was quiet and there was even the sound of birds chirping.
Lu Rong sat down by the window and took the menu handed to him by Jing Xian.
This restaurant specializes in Zhejiang cuisine, and the menu naturally includes local specialties.
Lu Rong checked the dish she had in mind and looked up: "What do you want to eat? How about this Tianmu Mountain fresh bamboo shoots fried with sour cabbage?"
Jingxian is a typical omnivore. He is not picky about anything except sauerkraut.
It’s strange, Feng Jin didn’t show any preference for eating sauerkraut at that time?
Does it mean that there was no pickled cabbage in the Qian Dynasty? That is not true. They called it "菹" at that time, which is actually the ancient name for pickled cabbage or kimchi.
Soon, he stopped thinking about it, after all, people's preferences will change over time.
As Lu Rong was flipping through the thick menu, his attention was suddenly attracted by a picture.
That is the famous Hangzhou West Lake Vinegar Fish!
This is a very well-known dish, but its reputation is average. Many netizens who posted videos online said that it was not tasty and was a disappointment.
Lu Rong had never eaten West Lake Vinegar Fish, but had seen some related videos. He looked at Jing Xian with some curiosity: "Is this West Lake Vinegar Fish really that bad?"
Jing Xian explained in a serious tone: "This dish... everyone who has eaten it says that the harder it tastes, the more authentic it is."
"Ah?" Lu Rong blinked in confusion.
"The government has come out to make fun of itself. The vinegar fish in 98 was really delicious, but now it has almost no taste."
Jing Xian shook his head helplessly. Before 98, most of the chefs were Hangzhou locals and were professional culinary graduates. Now, most of them are invited from other places.
West Lake Vinegar Fish is very particular. It requires wild fish and starvation to remove the fishy smell. Seasoning, heat, and even knife skills will affect the taste of this dish.
In addition, vinegar fish has a sweet and sour taste, and tourists who come here for the taste and are not used to this flavor may find it difficult to accept it.
"Right now, the hospital is doing okay, but I don't recommend trying it."
Jing Xian reminded that although the couple who run the private restaurant are locals of Hangzhou, the restaurant mainly serves home-cooked dishes, so one should still be cautious when trying these exquisite banquet dishes.
After hearing this, Lu Rong became even more curious.
Before, people said that West Lake Vinegar Fish was a specialty of Hangzhou, but Lu Rong didn’t feel anything. Now everyone says it tastes bad, and even the omnivore Jing Xian doesn’t comment. But Lu Rong just wants to try it and see what it tastes like.
Besides, how bad can fish taste? It will be delicious if you just remove the fishy smell and cook it at home.
Jing Xian helplessly watched Rongrong tick the vinegar fish: "Since you've ordered it, you're not allowed to waste food..."
"Got it, brother." Lu Rong gestured at the menu with a smile and ordered a winter melon and sauerkraut soup.
While Lu Rong was ordering food, Jing Xian picked up his phone and secretly took several photos.
The light from the riverside shone through the quaint window of the restaurant and onto Lu Rong.
The young man's body was naturally stretched out, leaning comfortably on the back of the chair, his white and green sleeves fluttering slightly in the wind, and the delicate embroidery on the collar and cuffs was faintly visible.
The elegant tones complement his natural clear temperament, and the corners of his mouth show the joy that is unique to being in a good mood.
At this moment, a black-sailed boat was slowly passing by the window. The river was winding, and under the light, the river reflected the white-walled and black-tiled houses on both sides.
Jing Xian happened to capture this unique tranquility of Jiangnan with his mobile phone.
No need to retouch, the photos are really great.
Jing Xian held the phone lovingly in his hands, and the next second the photo became his lock screen wallpaper.
"Serve the food~" The proprietress didn't care about the details. She held the bowl with her iron hands and presented it to the customer without even complaining about the heat.
The bright red Dongpo pork, the tender and boneless old duck stew with dried bamboo shoots, the sweet and salty braised spring bamboo shoots...
With the night view of the water town outside the window, this meal was very delicious.
The West Lake Vinegar Fish, which Lu Rong was most looking forward to, was served last.
Seeing that the climax was about to begin, both of them put down their bowls and chopsticks and looked up.
Although Jing Xian had failed once, it was made in another hotel after all. Jing Xian still trusted the cooking skills of this private restaurant. What if the West Lake Vinegar Fish made there was more authentic?
He was just joking just now. According to his father, authentic West Lake vinegar fish is very delicious and has a flavor like river crab.
But that was thirty years ago. Now even if Jing's father came and tried it, he would still shake his head.
I have to say that it looks very good. The fish body is intact and peeled along both sides of the spine. The sauce is bright red and the fish meat is white and tender, and it is sprinkled with chopped green onions and shredded ginger.
Lu Rong couldn't wait to pick up a piece of fish and put it into his mouth. As soon as he started chewing, a complicated expression appeared on his face.
His brows furrowed, his eyes widened slightly, revealing a look of disappointment.
My lips unconsciously pursed, trying to stop the unpleasant taste from spreading further, but the taste lingered stubbornly in my mouth.
His cheeks puffed up slightly as he tried hard to endure this sudden taste disaster, but in the end he decided not to spit the fish out onto the tissue and swallowed it.
The fishy smell, the sour taste of vinegar and the sweet taste of sugar mixed together to form an indescribable strange taste that constantly hits the taste buds.
The fish meat, which should have been tender, now felt old and tough, like rough sandpaper rubbing against one's mouth.
Seeing Lu Rong's expression, Jing Xian knew what was going on. He couldn't help laughing and said jokingly, "I tell you, you are just stubborn and don't believe in evil."
Seeing Jing Xian's gloating expression, Lu Rong glanced at him unhappily. Combined with the fox makeup at the corners of his eyes, he looked even more thrilling.
Jing Xian's heart skipped a beat and he ate the vinegar fish that Lu Rong put in his bowl without thinking.
Hmm~ that little smell rushed straight to his head and he woke up immediately. He took a sip of winter melon soup to wash away the strange taste in his mouth.
Because of Jing Xian's words not to waste food, Lu Rong insisted on finishing the dish even though it tasted bad. Poor Jing Xian was shooting himself in the foot and had no choice but to accompany him.
The two of them were arguing with each other, with the same deep hatred in their hearts. They looked at each other at the same time and laughed to find joy in the midst of misery.
When it was time to settle the bill and clear the table, the proprietress looked at the empty plate of vinegar fish and her eyes widened in surprise.
"You guys have finished eating?!"
"Any problem?" The proprietress's strange question made the two of them look at each other in surprise.
It turns out that the couple who run the restaurant are indeed experts in Hangzhou cuisine, and their food is even better than that of many hotel chefs, but the only two dishes they don’t know how to make are West Lake Vinegar Fish and Qianjiang Shredded Pork.
When they first started their business, they practiced hard for a period of time. After all, it was their signature dish. It would be so embarrassing if a tourist who came here because of its reputation ordered it and their restaurant didn't have it.
However, they couldn’t cook these two dishes properly. Finally, their son-in-law came up with a solution. Isn’t that kind of internet celebrity challenge popular on the Internet?
As long as you can finish eating the West Lake Vinegar Fish they make, you can win a mysterious grand prize.
The shop got started by relying on this challenge, and it has attracted many locals and tourists to patronize it and has grown bigger and bigger.
Basically, old customers know that their vinegar fish is not delicious, and no one succeeded in the challenge in those years.
Looking at the confused faces of the two, one big and one small, the proprietress laughed so hard that she couldn't straighten her waist: "If I hadn't made West Lake vinegar fish for more than a year, I would have thought that my cooking skills had improved..."
After she had laughed enough, the lady boss said, "Although the challenge has been taken down, as a late winner, I'll waive the order!"
She waved her hand with great enthusiasm.
"How can that be--" The two of them stood up quickly. Although they were let down by the proprietress's vinegar fish, the other dishes were delicious, and the ingredients tasted fresh. Plus, the labor cost was not cheap at all.
"Hey, why are you being so polite? Even my Wangcai wouldn't eat the vinegar fish I made. Can't I treat you all if you can finish it?"
Jing Xian & Lu Rong: “…” That’s a bit presumptuous.
In the end, the two of them inexplicably ate the unpalatable vinegar fish and were inexplicably asked to eat free meals. They were still a little dazed when they came out.
"Then where are we going next...?" Lu Rong looked at Jing Xian blankly.
"We were originally going to go to the movies, but..."
There was a car accident on the road leading to the cinema, and the road was cordoned off, so we couldn't pass through for the time being.
It was also Jingxian’s first date, and the itinerary was all based on travel guides. The so-called universal formula was eating + watching a movie/playing in an escape room/going to a mall/visiting an amusement park + a sweet farewell.
The latter two people have too much traffic and there is a risk. After much hesitation, he still chooses the most old-fashioned way to watch a movie. After all, Rongrong has been in the movie circle recently, so she might be interested.
But the accident came faster than expected.
"How about we go to the ice rink?" Lu Rong suddenly had an idea and looked at Jing Xian with bright eyes.
After several months of training under the guidance of Coach Guan, he completely discovered his hobby of figure skating.
Although I can't do three or four extreme jumps like professional athletes, as Director Feng said, it's more than enough for shooting a promotional video.
In fact, Director Feng was still being conservative. If Lu Rong had not fully developed, he would be worried that if Lu Rong continued to do deep diving and jumped, it would not be a trivial matter if she fell.
By then, he would not only be unable to be a professional athlete, but his acting career would also be ruined, which would be a serious sin.
Although Coach Guan gave up the idea of turning Lu Rong into a professional athlete, his skating and spinning are in no way inferior to those of top figure skaters.
The overall professional level among amateurs is simply a dimensionality reduction attack.
Seeing Lu Rong's expectant expression, Jing Xian did not refuse and drove to the nearest ice rink nearby.
It is an ice and snow park with an ice rink of more than 1000 square meters, which can accommodate tourists at the same time for various ice and snow entertainment activities.
The equipment inside is quite complete, with all kinds of skates available.
Jing Xian hesitantly asked the owner of the skate rental shop: "Do you have skates suitable for beginners?"
The boss seemed to come alive, and stood up to sell enthusiastically:
"Young man, you have to wear these casual roller skates! The wheels are relatively large, about 70 to 90 millimeters. Large wheels have a larger contact area with the ground, are more stable, and are less likely to fall!"
After choosing the ice skates, Lu Rong took a closer look and was immediately at a loss whether to laugh or cry. Aren’t these the same shoes that kids wear when skating in the park?
It turns out that the novice that Brother Jing was talking about really is the type that knows nothing at all.
After paying, the boss looked at Jing Xian meaningfully: "Young man, why don't you buy a fart pad? Skating is not safe..."
The boss picked up another butt pad, a round one with cartoon patterns printed on it.
There are generally two common ways to fix this kind of butt pad.
One is through elastic straps, two or three.
These straps are located on both sides and the back of the butt pad, wrap around the waist and thighs, and are fixed with Velcro or buckles.
Another way is to use a pants-like design, sewing the butt pad inside a shorts-like cover, and the skater can put on the butt pad like wearing pants. This method is more secure, but it is not very elegant.
Lu Rong couldn't help but think with evil amusement, what would it look like if Jing Xian wore this butt pad?
Unfortunately, Jing Xian rejected his boss's enthusiastic recommendation without hesitation.
After renting the shoes, the two went to the ice rink. It was around eight or nine in the evening, and the weather hadn't warmed up yet, so there weren't many people skating, but there were about sixty or seventy people.
The edge of the ice rink is home to the most people, many of whom come here to experience skating with absolutely no basic knowledge at all, and they hold onto their skateboarding hands and dare not let go for even a moment.
Lu Rong recalled how fast he used to go on the ice, and looked at the trembling expressions of normal people. The feeling of letting go in his heart eased.
It seems that I have to pay special attention to Jing Xian's movements later. Even with protective gear, this fall is still very painful.
The moment he touched the ice, Lu Rong slid forward with a step, crossed his legs, and used the outside edge of his blade to push the ice alternately.
After going back and forth twice, the movements gradually became familiar from unfamiliar, and it only took eight minutes.
While skating, Lu Rong suddenly brought his toes together, separated his heels, moved his body's center of gravity backward, scraped the ice forward with his inner edge, and performed an emergency stop + emergency turn neatly.
He skated towards the edge of the ice rink, his eyes still searching for Jing Xian's figure.
Suddenly, a dark shadow passed by his side. Because Lu Rong was sliding so fast, the figure flashed by in his eyes.
Lu Rong was stunned for a moment. The movement of the black shadow was so strange, just like a ghost moving horizontally in a horror movie. The upper body was stiff and motionless, just standing there and sliding.
The center of gravity is controlled well, and I can actually slide in this position.
The more Lu Rong thought about it, the more he felt something was wrong. Why did the figure of that person just now look so much like Jing Xian?
Whether it's height or clothing...
That's the inner court. If a novice doesn't have any auxiliary aids, you can imagine what will happen to him.
He quickly slid back, praying in his heart that Brother Jing was okay...