Chapter 13

Chapter 13: Ate… Ate Until Crying?

Monday arrived quickly.

Zhu Nan was starting to doubt himself.

He had almost finished editing the footage from Chen’s Restaurant. In the process, to rewrite the review and commentary, he even went to eat there once more.

“Do you think we’re waiting for nothing? Is that kindergarten’s lion’s head really that good? I do believe in the cost performance, but the head chef at Chen’s Restaurant is Chen Boduan’s own younger brother, you know?”

The cameraman was a bit bored, carefully cleaning his lens.

“Doesn’t matter if it’s tasty or not, as long as there’s a gimmick. Compared to some big restaurant, people definitely prefer watching the hidden top chef in a kindergarten.”

Indeed.

Zhu Nan nodded. As long as the lion’s head was even a little bit better than Chen’s Restaurant’s, he could hype it up wildly.

“Alright, let’s go! Shoot well over there. If the lion’s head is half as good as Ms. Wang said, this gimmick will definitely blow up!”

The hidden master chef lurking in the kindergarten—what a great story. Even though he was a complete rookie now, this should get his channel started successfully, right?

“Also, screenshot those comments we saw before and include them in the editing.”

The two grabbed their gear and went downstairs, where Ms. Wang was already waiting.

Today, she hadn’t brought a driver but was driving herself, motioning them to get in.

“Let’s go. The kindergarten said lunch starts right at noon.”

When Zhu Nan got in the car, he saw a young woman in the passenger seat who looked a bit scholarly but whose skin was already honey-brown from the sun.

“Hello, hello, I’m a food exploration media creator, called Zhu Nan. Going together today?”

Qiu Xian smiled warmly and added him on WeChat: “I’m interning at Talk Eats magazine, and I actually came across your videos before!”

Zhu Nan hadn’t followed print media for a long time, so he didn’t know that Famous Chef Record was actually affiliated with Talk Eats magazine.

He just politely said twice, “Nice to meet you! We might be too busy filming to chat later, please don’t mind!”

The two exchanged polite greetings, but Ms. Wang didn’t join the conversation at all.

She had tasted the lion’s head!

If any of these people had tried that lion’s head, they wouldn’t be so polite now.

That lingering fragrance in the mouth from that day had haunted Ms. Wang for days.

She even lost half a kilogram.

All the way, Ms. Wang drove steadily but quickly. When the car stopped at the kindergarten gate, it was five minutes earlier than scheduled.

The kindergarten director personally came out to greet them.

“Ms. Wang, this is…? So young to be a reporter? Such a capable young lady!”

As she reached out to Zhu Nan, she hesitated a little and glanced at Ms. Wang: “Which one of these two is the streamer?”

Zhu Nan quickly held out both hands and said, “That’s me, that’s me, and this is my cameraman.”“Oh, the photographer,” the kindergarten director thought to herself as she led the group inside, a little uncertain. “I forgot to tell Rǎn Rǎn there’s a photographer, not sure if there’s enough food... but this photographer really looks artistic.”

The photographer had seen scenes like this many times before.

Besides, after following Zhu Nan for so long, he figured he wasn’t that interested in food anymore.

If he really was, how could he be so skinny, just skin and bones?

“No worries, don’t worry, we’re absolutely professional! I’ll just film, then go nibble on some bread myself. My share will all go to Zhu Nan anyway!”

The photographer confidently assured them and followed the group into an empty classroom.

In the middle of the classroom, the food was already laid out. On the table were four fresh-looking small dishes, and in the center sat a clay pot with a lid.

“Please enjoy.”

After seating the group, the kindergarten director left. She had done her best to create the opportunity; now it was up to Rǎn Rǎn’s cooking skills.

She had confidence in Rǎn Rǎn’s culinary ability.

Zhu Nan and the photographer began setting up their equipment and lights, apologizing sheepishly.

“Sorry, I’m a bit slow here, please start eating first!”

However, from what he knew of Ms. Wang, this elegant lady would likely wait...

Wait? She’s already lifting the lid of the clay pot?

Ms. Wang smiled gracefully, every movement elegant and calm, but quick.

At the last visit event! She hadn’t had a chance to eat anything then, just accompanying Zhu Nan.

“There are six lion’s heads in total. The photographer isn’t eating, right? Then two each.”

Qiu Xian beside them was a little stunned.

Ms. Wang was the connection introduced by the magazine after Qiu Xian had sought help. Without that, she wouldn’t have gotten into this kindergarten.

Today was her first time meeting Ms. Wang.

Even just a brief encounter, Ms. Wang was the most elegant and noble lady Qiu Xian had ever seen!

And now, this noblewoman was already standing up from her chair!

Her impeccably tailored suit sleeves were rolled up to her elbows. In her hand was a spoon quite unbefitting of her refined image, with which she swiftly and decisively scooped two lion’s heads into her bowl!

After grabbing those two lion’s heads, she even ladled some soup...

Zhu Nan was dumbfounded.

But Qiu Xian was experienced!

She picked up her small bowl and smiled sweetly as she offered, “Sister, I want to eat too! This soup with rice looks amazing!”

Ms. Wang, having missed the soup last time at the kindergarten, nodded and quickly, accurately, and decisively ladled half a spoon of soup for herself before reluctantly handing the communal ladle to Qiu Xian.

“This lion’s head really must be savored slowly.”

Qiu Xian nodded vigorously!Following this sister was enough; if such an elegant sister treasured even a bit of the soup, she could already imagine how delicious the lion’s head must be.

Just after sitting down with her small bowl, she eagerly cut a small piece of the lion’s head with her spoon and slowly put it into her mouth.

Her imagination... had still been somewhat conservative.

She chose to work as an investigative reporter for Ming Chu Lu because she herself had a passion for food.

The silky smoothness and tender fragrance of the lion’s head almost rivaled those from Zhìwèizhāi in the capital.

“It’s three parts fat to seven parts lean.”

Ms. Wang also nodded; today’s lion’s head seemed to have a slightly adjusted amount of fat compared to the first time she ate it.

However, because the pork quality was excellent, this adjustment only made it more flavorful, without a trace of greasiness.

“Maybe even a bit more than three parts fat.”

Ms. Wang tried to recall the taste from last time but was surprised to find she couldn’t remember it at all.

Her entire mind was filled with the domineering and overwhelming flavor of this lion’s head.

No... it wasn’t just this feeling.

“I remember, I think I’ve tasted this flavor before.”

Ms. Wang was born into a family that favored sons over daughters. Her original name, “Wáng Zhāodì,” was given under such circumstances.

She was the family’s second daughter.

Life in that original family was suffocating and despairing, but thankfully, she had a good older sister.

When they went up the mountain to gather pigweed, her sister would pick sweet stems for her to suck on; when the two sisters laboriously carried baskets as tall as themselves to sell vegetables, her sister secretly saved a few cents.

Later, that saved few cents turned into meatballs her sister secretly bought for her to eat.

The meat at home was all for the younger brother; only the meatballs her sister bought were hers to eat.

Those meatballs were bought only after her sister pleaded with the vendor.

They were dry, small, even a bit burnt—by every standard, far inferior to the lion’s head before her now.

But eating this lion’s head made her recall the happiness of those times.

She thought of her sister’s shining eyes and how she had taken a big bite but only lightly licked it.

Ms. Wang lowered her head and took another bite of the lion’s head.

In those harsh years, in that suffocating family environment, the mutual care between the sisters now recalled was such a precious happiness.

Zhu Nan had finished setting up the camera equipment and was about to sit down to start filming when he glanced up and saw tears at the corner of Ms. Wang’s eyes.

He hurriedly pulled out a tissue and handed it over: “Is it really that good?”

Ms. Wang took the tissue with a bit of embarrassment, gently dabbing at her eyes.

A hint of a little girl’s delight crept into her voice: “It really is delicious!”

Qiu Xian was also enthusiastically nodding beside her.The reason she was so determined to stay with Ming Chu Lu was that the happiest times of her childhood were following her cousin everywhere to eat delicious food.

Who wouldn’t love a cousin who took her to eat the junk snacks that adults forbade?

She cautiously took another bite of the lion’s head, her tone full of irrepressible regret: “If only I could bring some to my sister to try…”

This fragrant, tender richness melted on her tongue, like the sunshine after elementary school when she just ran out the door and saw her cousin smiling with curved eyes, holding an egg burger.

So delicious.

Whether it was that egg burger back then, or the lion’s head on her spoon now.

She carefully scooped up the thick, savory broth and mixed it with rice, squinting as she stuffed a bite into her mouth.

The rice was slightly firm in texture, and combined with the lion’s head broth, they complemented each other perfectly.

“Really, so delicious…”

Unlike Ms. Wang’s smile through tears, Qiu Xian couldn’t wait to share her feeling: “I don’t know if it’s just my imagination, but I seem to feel that this lion’s head has some kind of magical power.”

“Maybe it’s just so delicious that it makes me recall every tasty bite I had as a child…”

Zhu Nan couldn’t hold back.

He quickly scooped some lion’s head into his own small bowl, cut off a piece with his spoon, and stuffed it into his mouth.

So fragrant!

His feeling was completely different from the other two.

This bite reminded him of running and playing with childhood friends across that snowy field, then being dragged home by parents for a scolding, clutching a bowl stuffed full of rice in his hand.

Such a rich aroma was like that black soil—the vastness that forever tugged at his soul!

Tears welled at the corner of Zhu Nan’s eyes. Forgetting the camera was still rolling, he wiped his eyes with his sleeve, scooped up a piece of lion’s head and a large spoonful of rice, and shoved it into his mouth.

The photographer behind the camera was dumbfounded.

One lion’s head dish had made two people cry? The only one who hadn’t cried was the little girl happily sucking her spoon and giggling.

He couldn’t help but regret—could he still take back the food portion he just gave away?