Locals in Cangzhou stood on their own soil, watching tourists from other places explore this city they knew so well with eyes full of curiosity and excitement...
Their hearts were filled with mixed feelings.
In other cities, when a certain attraction or feature suddenly becomes popular, locals often view it with a "bystander" mentality.
After all, what seems novel to tourists is already commonplace to them and nothing special.
But putting everything else aside, those attractions or features are indeed unique and worth visiting.
Therefore, most locals enthusiastically recommend that tourists explore places that truly represent the soul of the city, rather than just focusing on its superficial prosperity.
However, the situation in Cangzhou is completely different, even diametrically opposed.
The "Cangzhou Cultural Tourism Creative Cuisine" launched by the Cangzhou Culture and Tourism Bureau is like a boulder thrown into a calm lake, creating ripples.
Creative dishes like strawberry tofu pudding, spicy hot pot bread, and lamb intestine buns...
Undeniably, they are indeed full of creativity and novelty.
Let alone outsiders who have never heard of it, seen it, or tasted it, even locals in Cangzhou have never heard of it.
This situation also made the locals of Cangzhou feel an indescribable sense of "discomfort".
They understand and respect the freedom and innovation of creators, but deep down, their adherence to and pride in the authentic Cangzhou flavor makes it difficult for them to fully accept these "reimagined" delicacies.
Among these, what the locals of Cangzhou find most unacceptable is the so-called "Hot Pot Chicken Manchu Han Imperial Feast".
In their view, this is not just a matter of a dish, but a "desecration" of Cangzhou's food culture.
Hot pot chicken is a culinary icon of Cangzhou, and its unique flavor and cooking method have long been deeply rooted in people's hearts. It is also a hometown flavor in the hearts of locals.
However, when it is given the name "Manchu Han Imperial Feast" and presented to tourists in a completely new, and perhaps even exaggerated, form...
The locals of Cangzhou felt a deep sense of helplessness and anger, completely unable to accept such an absurd thing.
For the vast majority of locals in Cangzhou, there is only one thought when they think about Cangzhou suddenly becoming a hot topic online.
The Cangzhou Culture and Tourism Bureau has gone mad, and so have the tourists from other places who come to Cangzhou.
Instead of eating the perfectly good food at home, they insist on traveling all the way to Cangzhou, this godforsaken place, to eat some kind of "creative cuisine," acting like it's some kind of trendy thing to do.
If this trend isn't completely stopped, the locals in Cangzhou are genuinely worried...
Such innovations may mislead tourists' understanding of Cangzhou cuisine, making them mistakenly believe that this is all there is to Cangzhou's flavors, while ignoring the authentic local delicacies that truly represent the taste of Cangzhou.
Cangzhou is their hometown, the place that has been the backdrop for their entire lives.
Nobody wants others to think of exotic food, especially food that is so bad it's almost unpalatable, when they mention their hometown.
As a result, the voices of local Cangzhou residents began to converge into a powerful force online and on the streets, sparking a huge wave of discussion.
"I can't take it anymore!!! Cangzhou Culture and Tourism Bureau, what are you doing??? I would rather Cangzhou had never become famous than to become an internet sensation like this. This is simply the greatest desecration of Cangzhou's local cuisine."
"This Cangzhou local is really crazy! An old classmate I haven't contacted in ages messaged me saying he's coming to Cangzhou for tourism, and he specifically asked me to take him to eat strawberry tofu pudding. Is he crazy??? Who in their right mind would eat strawberry tofu pudding? Isn't that supposed to be savory?"
"My fellow Harbin locals, I shouldn't have laughed at you back then. Director Qin really doesn't care about the lives of us locals, he's developed so many bizarre and outlandish dishes. Let alone eating them, just hearing the names of them makes me feel nauseous."
"To put it another way, there's nothing wrong with that. After all, Cangzhou is quite famous now. Before, when I said I was from Cangzhou, very few people from other places knew that. Now it's different. Everyone calls me 'the guy from the hometown who has hot pot chicken and a Manchu Han Imperial Feast.' I'm really speechless."
"Honestly! There's no need for everyone to be so rebellious. I initially thought the Cangzhou Culture and Tourism Bureau had gone mad, but after tasting those dishes today (I don't mean to betray the people of Cangzhou, I was dragged there by friends from out of town), to be fair, the food was pretty good, it's just that the names were a bit dark."
"Family members, I'm so sorry. It's really not that I wanted to be a traitor; it's just that I've been recruited by the authorities. Let me make it clear beforehand that it's absolutely not because I saw the strawberry tofu pudding became a hit and begged the Cangzhou Culture and Tourism Bureau for the recipe. Finally, let me give a shout-out to our tofu pudding. Tomorrow morning at six o'clock, our shop will officially start selling strawberry tofu pudding, absolutely authentic Cangzhou flavor."
Locals in Cangzhou either frankly expressed their dissatisfaction and concerns, or they joked about the phenomenon in a humorous way.
Regardless, the locals' love and dedication to their hometown's food culture were fully demonstrated in their words.
They hope that both tourists and the cultural and tourism bureau can better respect and cherish Cangzhou's food culture, so that this precious asset can be passed on and carried forward.
However, as time went on, locals in Cangzhou gradually realized the significance behind this trend. They discovered that their once-unknown local delicacies had become a bridge connecting the outside world with Cangzhou, allowing more people to understand and fall in love with the city. Tourists not only tasted the food but also discovered Cangzhou's profound cultural heritage and unique urban charm through exploration.
As a result, the attitudes of more and more locals in Cangzhou began to change. They went from being confused and clueless at first to enthusiastically participating later, and even took the initiative to act as "tour guides" to introduce tourists to the history, culture and customs of their hometown.
They began to cherish this unexpected "attention" and welcomed every friend who came from afar with a more open and inclusive attitude.
Seeing that Cangzhou is becoming more and more open, travel blogger A-Zhan couldn't sit still any longer.
He went to another city to record a travel video, and it was less than a week later, how come he came back so quickly...?
The house has collapsed?!
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