Chapter 32 Lemon Passion Fruit Juice

The fatigue from a morning's work dissipated somewhat after smelling the aroma of food.

The stir-fried pork with garlic sprouts was steaming hot, freshly cooked. Ding Haicheng picked up a slice of pork and put it in his mouth. "Mmm... the pork is tender and smooth, not the kind of processed meat that doesn't have a meaty feel!"

Next, I took a bite of garlic sprouts. The stir-fried garlic sprouts with meat had a strong wok hei (wok aroma) and no seasoning, which masked the natural freshness of the food.

This restaurant is a hidden gem! No wonder it's so popular; how come he never discovered it before!

Ding Haicheng felt like he had missed out on hundreds of millions of dollars, and couldn't help but start to feast.

And the corn is sweet and juicy, the pork ribs are tender and juicy, bursting with flavor when you bite into them, and a bowl of soup after a meal makes life wonderful!

When paying the bill, Ding Haicheng specifically said to the owner, "Boss, you must keep this shop open for ten years, twenty years... or even longer."

I really hope he can still come to this restaurant when he retires.

His wife asked him if he had eaten enough for lunch and if he wanted her to bring him some.

Ding Haicheng quickly replied that it wouldn't work; the portions were generous, and he could eat his fill after ordering two dishes.

In the hallway, the teacher saw him and was surprised that the usually serious grade head was smiling. She joked, "Director Ding, what good thing happened to you today?"

"I found a restaurant!" Ding Haicheng said with a rising tone. "The food is really good. It would be great if your teachers could have a get-together there sometime!"

"Oh? Director, what's the name of the restaurant?" The teacher asked, intrigued.

"It seems to be... Tang Family Restaurant, right at the gate of our school."

The teacher recognized the restaurant name and thought, "Wait, isn't this the restaurant they ate at during their previous get-together?"

After Ding Haicheng left, a gossipy teacher posted the news in the group chat: [Director Ding didn't go home for lunch today. Guess where he ate!]

[The school cafeteria? That shouldn't be possible; I don't recall ever seeing Director Ding.]

Stop keeping me in suspense, just tell me!

The teacher chuckled and typed a reply: [The same restaurant we ate at before for our get-together.]

Teacher Wang was eating takeout when she saw this message, and she remained calm.

It's perfectly normal that so many people at the school know about Tang Family Restaurant.

She typed back: [My hidden gem restaurant has been discovered!]

On a sweltering afternoon, the sky was overcast with dark clouds, and it looked like it was about to rain.

Tang Yiyi quickly went outside and brought in the dried radish peels from the open space in front of the restaurant.

Seeing this, Song Man ran over to help collect the radish peels.

Finally, before it rained, they brought the radish peels into the shop.

"Sister Yi, can't we just cook this radish directly? Why do we have to cut it up and dry it?"

Tang Yiyi explained, "The dried radish stir-fried with cured pork is incredibly fragrant. The dried radish is crisp and chewy, and the cured pork is a perfect balance of lean and fat, sizzling with oil. When stir-fried together, the aroma is irresistible."

"Sister Yi, if you describe me again, I'll start drooling!" Song Man covered her ears, but her mouth was unconsciously producing saliva.

After Xiaoyu went to school in the afternoon, Tang Yiyi moved the tables and chairs aside, swept the hall, filled a bucket with water containing dish soap, soaked the floor, and mopped it.

To ensure the floor dried quickly, she mopped it again with a dry mop and left the doors and windows wide open for ventilation.

After saying goodbye to Song Man, she got on her bicycle and rode towards the market. She bought some passion fruit at the fruit shop. The wrinkled passion fruit was sweet and sour, and tasted best eaten directly or made into juice. Then she bought a bag of yellow lemons and two jars of honey.

After arriving at the restaurant, unload the ingredients and prepare the passion fruit. Cut off the top and scoop out the pulp and juice, pour it into a bowl. The juice is clear and has a slightly sweet and sour aroma. Wash the lemon, cut it into thin slices, put it into the passion fruit, add an appropriate amount of honey, stir it together, and mix well.

Then pour in some warm water, and you can add ice cubes later. It's refreshing, sweet and sour, and very cooling.

Pour a bowl of freshly made juice into an iron bucket and cover it with the lid.

Song Man, standing to the side, was incredibly tempted and really wanted to buy a cup to try. It looked just as good as the milk tea sold in some chain stores, with fresh fruit, good quality, and no other additives, making it a healthy drink.

Starlight Elementary School.

The last class in the afternoon is always hard to get through; the time seems to drag on forever.

Wang Xiaobao bit his finger, wondering what to eat for dinner and what dishes his mother would make.

The teacher probably noticed that Wang Xiaobao was daydreaming and reminded him, "Xiaobao, don't get distracted."

Upon hearing this, Wang Xiaobao nodded obediently.

As soon as the bell rang, the teacher told the students to be careful and then dismissed the get out of class.

Wang Xiaobao calmly packed his schoolbag, while his deskmate in front of him darted out and quickly disappeared from sight.

A classmate asked, "Tang Zhe, why are you running so fast?"

Tang Zhe turned around and smiled, "Let's go eat at the restaurant near the school gate. My parents have saved seats and ordered. Bye-bye!"

A restaurant? Wang Xiaobao wondered, could it be the shop where Mom bought tea eggs this morning?

Looking around, the school gate was full of students and parents. Tang Yiyi saw Xiaoyu and waved, "Xiaoyu, here!"

Xiaoyu ran over, his hair wet on his forehead.

Tang Yiyi would pick up Xiaoyu after school whenever there were no customers in the store.

A short while later, Liu Xiaobao came out of the school and waited for his mother at the gate.

The agreed time had long passed, Mom was late, and it was so hot.

A rich aroma wafted from the shop across the street. Liu Xiaobao's nose twitched, and his legs began to move uncontrollably.

When he arrived at the restaurant, he saw a child about his age drinking juice through a straw.

The air was filled with a sweet and sour aroma.

Tang Yiyi took some ice cubes and prepared to put them into the iron bucket so that the lemon passion fruit juice would taste even more refreshing.

Unexpectedly, a primary school student came over, wearing a school uniform and carrying a schoolbag. Isn't this the child of the customer who comes to buy tea eggs every day?

"Little friend, where is your mother?" she asked, bending down.

Liu Xiaobao didn't reply directly. Instead, he took out some change from his bag and said, "Boss, I want to drink juice, the kind he drinks."

After saying that, he pointed at Xiaoyu, like a child trying hard to act like an adult.

"Then please take a seat, I'll sit down and bring it to you."

Tang Yiyi lifted the lid of the iron bucket, scooped out a bowl of lemon passion fruit, which contained a few ice cubes and was fine for children to drink.

The color is appealing and beautiful; the light yellow passion fruit juice paired with lemon slices and garnished with a mint leaf looks lovely.

Liu Xiaobao eagerly picked up his spoon and started eating the passion fruit pulp, but suddenly he frowned and whispered, "It's so sour..."

In just three seconds, a sweet sensation surged up, and the sourness in my mouth seemed to lessen. The sour and sweet flavors blended together and spread layer by layer in my mouth.

"It tastes pretty good," Liu Xiaobao's eyes lit up.

His mother had given him fruit of this color before, but it was too sour and he didn't like it. This time, however, it was sweet, and the juice seemed less sour.

Liu Xiaobao drank it carefully, stopping after each sip, wanting to wait for his mother to come over so he could tell her how delicious the juice was.

Tang Yiyi was cooking in the kitchen. There was only half a corn left. The corn was consumed very quickly in just a few hours. Many customers who had eaten it said that the corn was sweet and juicy, and it was perfect when paired with pork ribs in soup.

The flavor of the dishes comes from the freshness of the ingredients themselves, so she rarely adds any seasonings that would spoil the taste of the ingredients.

"Xiaobao, Mom has finally found you!" Wang Juan was a little late on the way to pick up her son, but he wasn't waiting at the school gate.

The teacher called and asked my husband at home, since Xiaobao didn't come home after school, where could he have gone?

Wang Juan almost went crazy trying to find Xiao Bao!

"Mom, I'm sorry, I was wrong!" Liu Xiaobao jumped off the chair, ran to Wang Juan, and apologized earnestly.

Hearing the noise, Tang Yiyi went out to see what was going on. It turned out that the child hadn't waited for his parents after school, causing them to worry.

Wang Juan wiped away her tears, realizing that there were customers in the store and passersby outside who had seen her, and immediately calmed herself down.

"Xiao Bao, why did you decide to come to a restaurant?"

Did Xiaobao come here to eat with his classmates?

Liu Xiaobao was a little embarrassed and lowered his head to explain, "The restaurant smells so good!"

Okay, now Wang Juan stopped crying and started laughing. Her little one is definitely a little foodie.

At this moment, Tang Yiyi brought over a bowl of lemon passion fruit.

Wang Juan looked up in surprise. Had the boss made a mistake? She hadn't ordered any drinks.

"It's a gift from me, it doesn't cost any money," Tang Yiyi smiled and added, "Being a parent isn't easy either."

One sentence almost broke Wang Juan's defenses again. This boss is so gentle and understanding. Putting aside the cooking skills, just the service attitude alone makes her happy to eat at the restaurant.

After taking a few deep breaths, Wang Juan calmed down a bit and said to Xiao Bao, "Xiao Bao, shall we eat at a restaurant tonight?"

"Great!" Liu Xiaobao was so excited he almost jumped up.

Wang Juan ordered two dishes, one meat and one vegetable, and found a seat.

Although it was a complimentary lemon and passion fruit gift, the quantity was generous, indicating that the owner wasn't just trying to fob her off.

Wang Juan hummed a song, took a few photos, and posted them on her WeChat Moments with the caption, "Thank you to the owner of Tangjia Restaurant, the juice tasted great, I will come again."

Then she stirred the juice. The passion fruit and lemon tasted a bit sour, but it was acceptable. The sweetness that followed was like adding white sugar, or even more like adding honey. The sweetness was rich and pure, with an unforgettable aftertaste.

The addition of mint leaves gives it a refreshing feel, even cooler than the wind blowing outside.

And the lemon and passion fruit look really good, they're beautiful.

The sweet and sour fruit juice was quite appetizing, and the hot dishes were served.

Wang Juan had a very good impression of the store. "Thank you!"

At this time, the streetlights came on, and many families began to cook and eat.

Wang Juan felt a sense of belonging and suddenly felt very happy. The aroma of the food reminded her of watching TV next to her mother at night when she was a child...

These are the simplest home-style dishes, but the taste is amazing. The owner must love cooking to keep doing this.

The vibrant green garlic shoots paired with thinly sliced, perfectly marbled pork, and the addition of bright red chili peppers create a dish that is visually appealing, fragrant, and delicious. The corn and pork rib soup looks light, with the tender yellow of the corn and the pale pink of the pork ribs. A layer of oil shines on the surface of the soup, and it's sprinkled with chopped green onions—it looks quite appealing.

The mother and son were both hungry, so they started eating.

The garlic shoots are crisp, the sliced ​​meat is tender, and the broth is perfect for mixing with rice.

The corn was very fresh, and the pork ribs were delicious too.

It was a rare treat for Wang Juan to eat out, and she found it very enjoyable.

Seeing the hurried passersby outside, she could enjoy delicious food.

So happy.