Chapter 25 (1/2)

Translated by Karcessel of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

After shopping for a few hours, Lin ShuYi and Shen Fu only ended up buying two phone cases. Xiao Wan, on the other hand, bought much more than two phone cases. It seemed that she was a typical girl after all, and had absolutely no resistance to flashy, pretty little trinkets.

Time passed and the three continued looking around, but it was only when lunch time came around that Lin ShuYi’s spirits appeared.

While chatting, Shen Fu, Lin ShuYi and Xiao Wan headed towards a popular food destination, a street lined with all kinds of restaurants. This street was already a little old, but it was situated right in the city’s center, and it was unique in its style. The buildings all around were designed with the simple and elegant architecture style of Jiangnan, and there were few who wouldn’t pay this place a visit as long as they were in S City.

Restaurants and shops around this street encompassed cuisines from all over China, from delicate little pastures to signature regional dishes, everything one could think of and more were to be found here.

As expected, Xiao Wan was the most familiar with this location. She introduced shops along the way, explaining what foods were available here and there as they walked. Finally, her introductions finished, she turned around and asked Lin ShuYi what he wanted to eat.

Lin ShuYi froze in his tracks, a deer caught in headlights look in his eyes. He had a serious issue with indecision when it came to making decisions concerning food, and this type of question, asking what he wanted to eat among an endless list of options, was just not something he could answer.

Xiao Wan, of course, had no idea what he might want to eat. Shen Fu however understood Lin ShuYi much more clearly, and came to the rescue. Resting an arm across Lin ShuYi’s shoulders, he shook his head with a laugh at Xiao Wan. “Oh no, a person like Lin ShuYi, you can only tell him what to eat, you can’t ask him what to eat. There is no way he could make a decision.”

Especially when it came to food.

Shen Fu thought for a second, then spoke again. “Lin ShuYi can’t handle spicy food, so that’s off the table. It’s also lunchtime right now, so we can leave all the little finger foods and street foods to the afternoon, what we want right now is a full meal. Xiao Wan, I remember you telling me about a famous old duck blood pudding vermicelli soup shop nearby, was that right?”

Xiao Wan nodded.

Shen Fu grinned and gently squished Lin ShuYi’s face with his other hand. “Then how about we go eat that?”

With that sentence, the decision was set. Xiao Wan didn’t catch Shen Fu’s teasing, and thought to herself that Shen Fu’s appearance while analyzing and contemplating a decision was extremely handsome.

Lin ShuYi shot Shen Fu a cold look, but didn’t bother saying anything. This person didn’t just like invading people’s personal space, he also liked poking and prodding at them annoyingly. He was nothing like a well-mannered gentleman and much more like some punk kid.

By the time the three of them reached the restaurant’s front doors, Lin ShuYi’s animosity had all but vanished. He couldn’t care less about Shen Fu anymore. The aroma of deliciously fragrant soup reached Lin ShuYi’s senses, moving his taste buds and making his eyes water. He looked just like a dog that had spied a large, meaty bone. It was so cute that Shen Fu couldn’t help but hold back a laugh.

This was the first time Xiao Wan had seen such a look on Lin ShuYi’s face, and she was quite surprised as well. How could the usually cold and stone-faced Xiao Yi gege have such a cute look on his face? This was completely unscientific.

Shen Fu itched to pat Lin ShuYi on the head, but stopped himself, and lead them into the restaurant instead.

The graceful Jiangnan style building did not look large from the outside, but in fact it had two stories on the inside. The simple wooden plaque above the entrance was unlike the brightly lit flashy signs of the other restaurants as well, and on it was written four words in bold, black ink. Hundred Year Old Restaurant. On the lower right corner was written another four words. Duck Blood Vermicelli Soup.

The aroma that Lin ShuYi had smelled outside turned out to have come from right inside the front doors, where a large copper pot half a man’s height rested on a burning stove, the total height of which came close to Xiao Wan’s height. The steaming hot soup inside was duck bone soup, rolling in perpetual white waves from the constant heat, and spreading the mouth-watering scent far and wide.

The copper pot looked as if it had seen some wear and tear. In face, Xiao Wan had mentioned that this restaurant had been around for quite a while now. This copper pot had been around since the opening of the shop, and had since then become a signature of the restaurant itself.

The interior of the restaurant had long since packed full with people, and only a few seats on the upper floor were left, so up the three of them went.

The decorations on the second floor of the restaurant were also as simple as the exterior appearance. The wooden tables and chairs were covered with a thin layer of clear varnish, and each table was separated by a carved folding screen half a person’s height. The overall appearance was quite rustic.

The back wall seemed to be the only modern-looking part of this floor, and it was covered side to side with photographs. The photos were casually but not messily pinned around, and each seemed to feature the same person with various other different people. All the photos seemed to be taken in this restaurant, and many of them had the copper pot in the background.

Lin ShuYi scanned every picture, but couldn’t spy anyone he recognized.

Seeing Lin ShuYi glance at the pictures, Xiao Wan couldn’t help but pipe up. “This restaurant has been open for so long it’s gained quite a reputation, so lots of famous stars have come here to eat. Look over here, this is Mister Xi. And over there, look, that’s FanFan. She’s my favorite.”

Lin ShuYi listened as Xiao Wan named the stars in the photos one by one, but when he looked over them again, he still had absolutely no impression of who anyone was.

After Xiao Wan talked for awhile about famous stars without a single reply from Lin ShuYi, she started to feel a bit self-conscious, like maybe she had said too much. After all, Lin ShuYi was only one year older than her, how could he not know at least some of these stars? Even though, she had always felt that he was much older than he looked.

After she stopped talking, Xiao Wan took another look at Lin ShuYi, and was shocked to see him looking at the stars she had just named with blank confusion. Could it really be that he didn’t know any of them?

Shen Fu, meanwhile, didn’t follow the other two’s conversation at all. He was sitting on his chair, engrossed in his cellphone. Lately, his phone had been pinging much more frequently. Sometimes it was a text, sometimes it was a call, but Shen Fu only seemed to reply to the occasional text, and never picked up any calls.

The restaurant didn’t just have good food, they also had efficient service. It seemed like the three had just placed their orders before they were served with steaming hot bowls of soup.

Like the restaurant itself, the blue and white porcelain bowls were nothing special, but it was what was inside the bowls that was special.

A thick, white soup base and crystal clear vermicelli noodles were topped with thick sliced of duck blood pudding, and thin slices of duck gizzards, duck intestines, and duck liver. Two halves of bean curd and a sprinkle of fresh green coriander topped the bowl off. The sight and scent was enough to make anyone drool.