Chapter 30: Chapter 10 Qingfeng Vegetarian Restaurant (Middle)_1
The update is here, and Xiao San surely didn't mean to seduce everyone's appetite, hehe. Please vote and bookmark. VIP tickets go to the Air-speed section. Thanks a lot.
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Nian Bing stood on Central Street, looking at Dacheng Restaurant on the left and Qingfeng Vegetarian Restaurant on the right, feeling a bit indecisive about where to go. According to his personal preference, he preferred the elegant style of Qingfeng Vegetarian Restaurant. However, the couplet hung on their door read, "A place for distinguished scholars and cultured guests". Despite not being illiterate, he was only taught to write during his childhood by his father, so he couldn't consider himself a refined scholar or even a scholar's apprentice. Therefore, his only option seemed to be Dacheng Restaurant. With this thought, he turned towards Dacheng Restaurant on the left side of the street.
The eight young women at the entrance of Dacheng were entertaining guests. When Nian Bing approached them, they were instantly attracted to his handsome face. Their sweet and charming gazes made him feel a bit uncomfortable. One of the girls giggled at Nian Bing's awkwardness and said, "Where did this country bumpkin come from? He looks pretty good, though."
Another girl chimed in, but her words were much more sarcastic, "Yeah, he looks good, so he must have many admirers. Too bad we are not a brothel."
Those who could afford to dine in Dacheng Restaurant were all high-ranking officials and nobles in fine clothes. These hostesses stationed at the entrance had learned to read people and gauge their statuses. Seeing Nian Bing's naive appearance and his attire, they knew he was not a noble, so they started to poke fun at him.
A touch of anger flared up in Nian Bing's heart. However, he wasn't here to pick a fight. Suppressing his anger, he asked, "Does Dacheng Restaurant hire chefs? I can prepare the ingredients." Preparing ingredients refers to chopping and organizing various materials before handing them over to the head chef for cooking.
The first girl chuckled, "Oh, so he's a chef! Which culinary school did you graduate from?"
Culinary school? This was the first time Nian Bing had heard of such a thing. There were schools specifically for chefs now? His master had mentioned that chefs usually started as apprentices!
The girl sneered at him, saying, "You don't even know about culinary schools, yet you want to work in Dacheng Restaurant? I suggest you go. Not everyone can come in here."
As Nian Bing was unsure of what to do, a tall, burly man in his forties with a fierce expression walked out from Dacheng Restaurant. He carried a large, heavy fan in his right hand as he tapped at his left palm. His fan was huge, about a foot and a half long, and judging by the way he swung it, it wasn't made of wood. As soon as he came out, he saw Nian Bing and walked over, asking, "What's happening?"
The eight girls, who were previously smiling, instantly straightened up and wiped the smiles off their faces when they saw the middle-aged man. The girl who had been talking to Nian Bing said, "Treasurer Three, this man wants to work here, but he doesn't even know about culinary schools. I was about to tell him to leave."
The middle-aged man glanced at Nian Bing impatiently and said, "Go away, you're an eyesore. Even to shine my shoes, you're not worthy."
A chill flared in Nian Bing's eyes, and he was about to retaliate when a clear voice rose from behind him, "Oh, looks like Treasurer Three Liao is asserting his authority again. I didn't know when Liao the mangy dog started wearing shoes."
Turning around, Nian Bing saw a young woman mounted on a large horse, not far behind him. The horse was extremely tall and majestic, similar to the horses ridden by the Silver Wing Knights, purely white without a single mixed hair. The girl was dressed in red clothes, her figure slender and athletic, her brows full of valor. A long red sheathed sword hung at her waist. Although her beauty did not match that of Feng Nu, there was an energetic beauty about her. Her long brown hair curled and spread on her back. With her red clothes and white horse, she was a stunning sight on Central Street.
Upon hearing the young girl's mockery, Shopkeeper Liao San became furious, standing on the spot, huffing angrily, "Xue Jing, don't think I wouldn't dare to do anything to you just because you have your father backing you up."
Xue Jing jumped down from the horseback, walked over to Nian Bing, looked at Shopkeeper Liao San and smiled, "Really? Come on! I want to see how you'd dare to do anything to me! And I remember last time, it was someone who fell flat on their face. Dacheng Restaurant, huh, spit." Shopkeeper Liao San obviously takes Xue Jing very seriously; although his ugly face was red with anger, he absolutely dared not explode. His gaze shifted and quickly found a new outlet for his rage. The fan in his hand suddenly whipped towards Nian Bing's shoulder, "You little bastard, get lost."
Nian Bing's heart was already full of hatred. Hearing the wind brought about by Shopkeeper Liao San's fan, he knew very well if it hit, he might have a shattered shoulder. But, the cunning him didn't react, just staggered and stumbled behind the girl in the red dress. Her wrist shook and a surge of red Fighting Qi burst forth. With a bang, Shopkeeper Liao San fell back several steps, almost falling to the ground. Snow-clad girl Xue Jing snorted in contempt, and said: "If this mangy dog tries to bite people again, and I don't teach it a lesson, then I'm not Xue Jing."
"Miss Xue, let's just forget about it for my sake." A loud voice suddenly rang out, and another person came out of the Dacheng Restaurant. This man looked to be in his fifties, short and fat, wearing a golden robe with golden flowers embroidered on it. His face was full of fat, and his small eyes, squished between layers of fat, twinkled as he blinked.
"Boss, Xue Jing is causing trouble at our door again, you must teach her a lesson." Shopkeeper Liao San urgently pleaded for help from the short and fat man. The fat man furrowed his brows, slapped him, and coldly said: "Go back in, isn't it enough that you already made a fool of ourselves?" Liao San's expression flickered slightly, but he dared not say anything more and returned to the Dacheng Restaurant. As soon as he left, the fatty's face immediately filled with smiles, his facial flab shook within the creases of his smile, "Miss Xue, our Dacheng Restaurant and your Qingfeng Vegetarian Restaurant have always stuck to their own affairs. Let's continue to make money peacefully."
Xue Jing sneered, "Oh, so the Store Manager has come out. Fine, when beating a dog, one should give some respect to its master. Let's just leave it at that for today. But you, Liao San, should remember, if I see you bullying others again, hmph!" She turned around and was about to leave, but then she saw Nian Bing standing behind her. Looking at the panic on his face, Xue Jing said irritably: "You're such a tall guy, but utterly useless. Men nowadays!"
Nian Bing originally had a bit of a favorable impression of Xue Jing, but hearing her domineering language, his good feelings quickly faded. Just as he was about to say something, he heard Xue Jing continue: "Looking for a job, aren't you? Come with me, our Qingfeng Vegetarian Restaurant needs someone to chop firewood." After saying this, she went over to her own white horse and headed towards the side door of Qingfeng Vegetarian Restaurant.
Chopping firewood? Surely not, after chopping for so many years, I still have to chop firewood after leaving home. A bitter smile couldn't help but appear on Nian Bing's face. Although he was fed up with chopping wood, if he wanted to enter Qingfeng Vegetarian Restaurant without revealing his cooking skills, he probably had no other choice. Helplessly, he followed Xue Jing through the side door of Qingfeng Vegetarian Restaurant.
As soon as he entered through the side door, Nian Bing immediately smelled a faint fragrance of vegetation. The air seemed to have turned a lot fresher, looking around, apart from a small path paved with stone, everything was green. In the middle of all the green was a small lake, not big, only covering three to four hundred square meters. A corridor meandered over the lake, four pavilions were interspersed across it, the elegant and refined atmosphere was very strong.
"Hey, what are you looking at? Hurry up." Xue Jing impatiently said to Nian Bing. At this moment, she was finally able to see Nian Bing's face clearly, and thought to herself: He is handsome, but completely useless. Heaven has bestowed him with such looks, but it's wasted.
Two servants in green clothes came over. One of them took the reins from Xue Jing's hand and respectfully said: "Young lady, you are back. The Dragon Spirit Mage has been waiting for you for a long time."
"Ling'er is here? Great, I was just looking for her. Where is she?" Excitement flashed across Xue Jing's face.
The servant said: "The Dragon Spirit Mage is in the Lan Yue Pavilion."
"Okay, I'll go there now. Oh, right, I picked up this guy from the street. Let him go chop firewood in the firewood room. I remember that place needing a person."
"Yes, young lady." Xue Jing quickly ran off, disappearing in the blink of an eye as she passed through the corridor. One servant took her horse away, while the other led Nian Bing, saying: "Follow me."