The reason it's called a "premium private restaurant" is that, in addition to its tranquil environment, its dim sum, such as shrimp dumplings and various desserts, are very popular. It's just that some ingredients have been scarce in recent years, otherwise the variety would be even greater.

Most people have to get a number before they can dine the next day. Even if they can come in to dine, they may not be able to see Chef Fan personally cook.

At this moment, Yi Zhe came over and introduced himself as Master Fan. After a while, a short and thin old man ran out.

Master Fan had a deep connection to the Yi family, and had been friends with the Yi family's elder since childhood. In the past, a chef with a family tradition was considered well-off. If it weren't for this old man's special skills, he might have followed the Yi family to fight the Japanese.

"Little Tiger Girl is here?"

Zhou Jiao quickly lowered her head when she heard the tone, fearing she would lose control and laugh wildly. This nickname was too powerful!

"Grandpa Fan..." Yi Zhe shook his head helplessly, "When do you plan to retire? My grandfather asked you to go to the capital, why haven't you left yet?"

Master Fan immediately turned around and led the way. "I'll find you a seat. Follow me." As they walked, he changed the subject, "Guests coming? What would you like to eat? Today, I'll show you my cooking skills."

Yi Zhe glanced at Zhou Jiao and said with a smile, "Just watch over it, it's fine. The flavors should be lighter, and there should be more desserts."

"Okay, take a seat first. I'll get someone to bring you dessert."

After Yi Zhe asked the three of them to take their seats, he went out again.

"Aunt, why don't you tell us the story of Hongying Wood Warehouse?" Zhou Jiao didn't think much about it when she saw him go out, and was asking about the gossip with great interest.

Cheng Ruzhu glanced at the two gossipers and said with a smile, "Little Tiger Girl's mother and I lived together in the rear area when we were little. Later, we separated when Little Tiger Girl's grandfather was no longer around. When we returned to the capital and reunited, she had already given birth to Little Tiger Girl. On my wedding day, she gave me my favorite red tassel wooden barn as a gift."

Zhou Jiao's eyes flashed with doubt when she heard this. If they had such a good relationship, why didn't her aunt visit her old friend during her two visits to Northeast China?

Cheng Ruzhu looked outside and saw that Yi Zhe hadn't come in yet. She whispered, "He's really interesting. Hmm, how should I put it? He really likes to wield swords and play with wood. Mulan knows that, right?"

Yi Jiefang nodded repeatedly, "Indeed. If she hadn't married my uncle, she would probably still be a soldier now. When I was a child, every time I went to my uncle's house, the thing that impressed me most was how many weapons my brother had in his house, all kinds of swords and knives."

Zhou Jiao covered her mouth and laughed. She thought of Smiling Fox and her father. Their tastes in choosing a partner were worlds apart. She had to take a look at the other one when she had the chance to see if such an interesting woman was as good as she expected.

Yi Zhe, who had left, came back just when all the dishes were served.

"Brother, hurry up, I'm waiting for you."

Hearing Yi Jiefang say this, he smiled and said, "Why don't you start eating first? Auntie, since it's you, there's no need to be polite."

"I just had dessert." Cheng Ruzhu pointed to the hot dishes on the table and shook her head with a smile, "These dishes are too exquisite. I can't bear to eat them."

Zhou Jiao nodded in agreement. She'd been here for so long, and was used to the large, thick bowls and plates of Northeast China. These small plates and bowls felt really familiar, especially the carved patterns on them...

"Last time at Haishi, they also called it Cantonese cuisine. Let's not even talk about the taste, the pineapple carving was completely different. This is it!"

Yi Zhe looked at Zhou Jiao's thumbs-up and couldn't help laughing. He took a small plate, put some sweet and sour pork on it and put it in front of her.

Zhou Jiao noticed that he used serving chopsticks. This detail made her happy, and she immediately smiled at him and thanked him.

When dining with strangers, she worries most about someone using chopsticks that have been stuffed in their mouths to pick up food for themselves at an inappropriate time. Would you eat it? If you don't, it will embarrass the other person.

Yi Zhe was stunned by her smile, quickly looked away and continued to pick up food for Cheng Ruzhu.

Perhaps it was because he was too good at hiding it, or because everyone's attention was focused on the food, no one noticed this, which made Yi Zhe secretly relieved.

The dinner passed in a harmonious atmosphere, with laughter. When we came out, it was already dark. Pedestrians were already out shopping under the streetlights on both sides, and many customers gathered in the nearby Victory Mall.

Under the same sky, it might be snowing in the north, but here the breeze was still not even a hint of coolness. This kind of weather reminded Zhou Jiao of Hong Kong… and of Old Master Zhang…

"Auntie, where are you going next? I'll drive you there and then leave."

Cheng Ruzhu shook her head: "This place is quite far from your military camp, you should go back early. The three of us will walk slowly to the guesthouse. We will go home early for the New Year."

Yi Zhe smiled and nodded. It was indeed late, and he had to go back to see how his wife, who had given birth to his children, was doing.

"Brother, if we have a chance to be near your unit, we will come to find you."

"Okay, I've been on duty in the office most of the time recently. Call me immediately if anything happens." After Yi Zhe finished speaking, he took out a yellow-green military cloth bag from the car and handed it to Zhou Jiao.

Zhou Jiao tilted her head, blinked, and looked at him puzzledly.

Yizhe suppressed his right hand's urge to touch her head. He smiled and said, "This is for Xiaowu, it's the same for you."

When Zhou Jiao heard it was for Zhang Guoqing, she didn't hesitate. She knew that these two people would occasionally exchange letters and send each other some local specialties.

The two of them teased each other in their letters, and were the type of friends who were harmful to each other. She had seen Zhang Guoqing cursing people many times, but then smiling as he sent them something in return.

As for men’s friendship, a little girl like her, please forgive me for not understanding its meaning!

Yi Zhe looked at her deeply for the last time, turned around and got into the car, waved goodbye to the three of them, and drove away.

"Auntie, it's still early. Where are you going? I'll take you there."

Cheng Ruzhu casually pointed ahead and glanced at Zhou Jiao. Why did she always feel weird? She shook her head, maybe she was overthinking it.

"Aunt, let's go for a walk by the river. I'm so full from eating tonight, I need a good walk."

Yi Jiefang squinted at her with disdain. "Do you know how far this is from the river? You're stupid! Aren't you afraid of being exhausted? Please beg me! My brother gave me a lot of tickets."

"Look at you! Are you my brother?"

Cheng Ruzhu looked at the two of them and laughed happily.

"Hmph, I'll give you this once."

How could Zhou Jiao play with him seriously? She shook her hand and said with a smile: "Let's just walk around here to my aunt's guesthouse. We'll go back early."

"Fool! You finally managed to escape, but you're still trapped. Stop associating so closely with the three maids in your room."

Zhou Jiao listened to the meaning of his words and nodded seriously at him.

Yi Jiefang felt it was not nice to talk about others behind their backs, so he thought for a moment and explained, "In the afternoon, they came to me to ask about my aunt. Whether it was intentional or not, they had too many little thoughts."

Surrounded by cunning people, how could Yi Jiefang not see the clues? Zhou Jiao knew very well that one of them must have said something to offend him.

"I understand." Zhou Jiao didn't say thank you. She could still tell who in the compound treated her family sincerely. Thanking Yi Jiefang would have been an insult to their friendship.