Chapter 127 I'm going to report this shady shop to the central government.
The Seventh Prince looked at the wooden plaque, frowned, and looked somewhat confused. "It's alright, just pick whichever one you like."
How could there be dish names that even the dignified Seventh Prince of the Great Zhou Dynasty didn't know?
"This truly lives up to its reputation as a century-old establishment; its heritage is truly profound," the two children thought in unison.
Xie Mianmian looked around with difficulty, and finally ordered three dishes with a hard-to-pronounce name.
The waiter left with a smile, then served them a pot of tea. "Thank you for your patronage, sirs. We've specially brought you a pot of fine wine. Please enjoy."
Xie Mianmian, who had been talking a lot, was thirsty. She picked up her cup and gulped down the water, letting out a burp. "It's sweet and delicious."
The seventh prince also took a sip, his expression strange. The water was sweet, but why was it sweet in a strange way?
"Such a good shop, why is no one coming to patronize it? The owner must be too lazy."
The shopkeeper had been sitting on the counter for so long without ever looking up at the customer.
While waiting for the food to be served, a thin, dark-skinned man with a sleazy appearance entered the restaurant. He was holding a little boy of about three years old who was fast asleep.
Xie Mianmian looked at him curiously. The man was ugly, but the child in his arms was delicate, fair-skinned, and smooth.
She swung her legs around, thinking casually, "This must be what my second sister meant when she said, 'Bad bamboo produces good shoots.'"
At this moment, the waiter came out. He walked up to the man but did not ask him to leave. Instead, he asked him to order.
Without even glancing at the wooden sign on the wall, the man ordered a dish: "Ice Frost Jade Marrow Washed in Green Silk".
Huh? Xie Mianmian looked up curiously to check, but the dish wasn't on the wooden sign.
Such an ugly and poor-looking man is actually a regular customer of this old shop; he's truly a hidden talent.
Eunuch Li glared at the waiter with ill intent. Wasn't he still serving customers? What, were they taking advantage of the old servant having two children with him? But the guards behind them were no pushovers.
The waiter felt a chill down his spine, turned around, and saw that Eunuch Li had immediately put on a kind smile. The waiter scratched his head and ran back to the kitchen.
Eunuch Li glared at the person behind the curtain again, his expression changing. It wasn't that he was weak, but that he wouldn't make enemies with them in the restaurant.
After all, it was food that the masters would eat, and Eunuch Li was afraid that those vile people would add something disgusting to it. Thinking of this, he felt extremely disgusted.
Soon, the waiter brought out the dishes. Three dishes were placed on a wooden tray, and he arranged them on the table one by one. "The dishes are all served. Please enjoy your meal, sir."
The three of them looked at the table in unison, their expressions filled with disbelief.
Xie Mianmian pointed to one of the plates and asked, "What is this? Is this the dish I ordered?"
The waiter replied, "This is our signature dish, Frost and Snow Reflecting Glass."
"Don't think Mianmian doesn't know much. This is clearly just sugar mixed with tomatoes!"
"Please calm down, sir. This is a crystal fruit, a tribute from the Western Regions. Eating it can grant you immortality!"
"And what about this dish?" she asked angrily, pointing to another plate.
The waiter explained, "The jade hairpin, glistening with dew, washes the green silk. This dish needs to be marinated with dew at midnight and seasoned with Kunlun salt..."
Eunuch Li put his hands on his hips and said, "It's just smashed cucumber with soy sauce!"
Before Xie Mianmian could continue pointing, the waiter spontaneously announced the third dish, "This is Broken Gold and Floating Clouds Stewed with Danxia. It uses the first egg laid by a golden pheasant, and eating it can keep you young forever!"
The Seventh Prince said coldly, "Absurd." Did he think he'd never eaten scrambled eggs before?
The waiter protested his innocence, saying, "We use only precious and fresh ingredients in our shop. We would never dare to deceive our customers. They can tell the difference once they taste it."
"Fine, if it doesn't taste good, the first thing I'll do is tear down your century-old shop's signboard!"
Eunuch Li took out silver needles from his pocket and inserted them into the dishes one by one to test for poison.
"Your Majesty, it's not poisonous. Let this old servant taste it."
Xie Mianmian shook her head, grabbed her chopsticks, and steadily picked up a slice of tomato. The bright red tomato slice was as thin as a cicada's wing and covered with fine white sugar.
To be honest, the translucent, reddish-jade-like texture of this slice is quite similar to glass.
Xie Mianmian took a big bite and savored the soft, fluffy fruit. The small pieces of white sugar crunched in her mouth, creating a sweet and sour flavor. Her eyes lit up with surprise. It was... quite delicious.
"Young Master Zhou, please try some. Mianmian really likes it."
After saying that, she picked up another slice of cucumber with her chopsticks and ate it.
The fresh melon flesh bursts in your mouth, with a savory and salty flavor thanks to the soy sauce marinade, and a hint of spiciness, probably from the addition of chili peppers. It's refreshing and addictive.
Xie Mianmian immediately fell in love with the complex and layered flavors. She nodded as she ate, "It's really delicious. The chef is really skilled."
Seeing Xie Mianmian's praise, the waiter raised his head high and looked at Eunuch Li with a smug sidelong glance.
Eunuch Li snorted coldly, feeling that something was amiss. Indeed, fresh ingredients would taste good no matter how they were prepared.
However, it's wrong for this restaurant to use fancy but impractical dish names and high-sounding rhetoric to deceive its customers.
Eunuch Li squinted, thinking that when he got back, he would definitely report it and shut down this shop that cheated customers!
"Your signboard says it's a century-old shop, is that a lie too?"
The waiter chuckled and said, "What are you saying? We are honest and upright business people. Come, please come out and take a look."
The group followed him out with some skepticism, looking up at the signboard.
The waiter pointed to the tiny characters, about the size of ants, before and after the words "Centennial Old Shop," and said, "Please take a close look."
Eunuch Li squinted desperately, feeling that his eyesight was about to deteriorate due to old age.
Xie Mianmian, however, had the sharpest eyes. She read out each word carefully: "This shop is still ninety-eight years away from becoming a century-old establishment."
Good heavens, upon hearing this, even the usually composed Seventh Prince stumbled slightly. What an honest and upright merchant!
Eunuch Li was so angry that his fingertips trembled and he screamed silently. This was a black shop! He was going to complain to the Emperor! He was going to complain to the Emperor!
Xie Mianmian couldn't bear to part with the delicious food, saying, "The food is innocent; Mianmian doesn't want to waste it." Everyone sat back down.
Xie Mianmian was unaware of the eerie atmosphere in the shop; all she knew was that her taste buds were tingling and her little mouth was chewing.
Suddenly, Xie Mianmian's foot, which was hidden under the table, was gently poked by something.
It was a pink tail tip.
It encircled Xie Mianmian's ankles, swaying slightly.
What's so delicious? Let it have a taste too.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
