New Store

Jiang Feng's family of three boarded the high-speed rail with bags of all sizes. At first, Jiang Jiankang had wanted to bring his beloved kitchen knives and tools aboard too. Even Comrade Wang Xiulian couldn't stop him, but fortunately, the state did.

He wanted to bring controlled knives onto the high-speed rail? Keep dreaming!

Jiang Jiankang had partitioned off a twenty-square-meter room on the second floor of the new restaurant for living quarters. If they wanted to bathe, they would have to go to the bathhouse near the university. At first, Jiang Feng had suggested renting an apartment near the school, or even renting a faculty apartment on campus, but Comrade Jiang Jiankang had firmly opposed it, so they had no choice but to drop the matter.

Comrade Jiang Jiankang, with his strong territorial instincts, did not like living on someone else's turf. In his words, if he was going to live somewhere, it had to be his own place.

Jiang Feng calculated A City's housing prices. Their family would probably have to price their dishes like a three-star Michelin restaurant if they wanted to repay their debts and buy a home outright before he graduated from college.

Sitting on the high-speed rail, Jiang Feng used WeChat to tell Wang Hao when their train would arrive. They had brought far too much stuff, and Jiang Jiankang and Comrade Wang Xiulian had only been to A City once, so they were unfamiliar with the place and needed someone to meet them. Wang Hao had been waiting for Jiang Feng so eagerly he was practically staring holes through the horizon, and he readily agreed to pick them up.

Comrade Jiang Jiankang and Comrade Wang Xiulian sat in the business-class carriage. The seats in first and second class were both too cramped for them.

Comrade Wang Xiulian had already written many letters of complaint to the railway authorities about that.

The new restaurant had already been renovated. Next door, Jiang Jiandang's pharmacy was still undergoing its final touches. The pharmacy's business license was taking a while, and there was still some dispute over the final portion of Jiang Jiandang's demolition compensation, so he could not go to A City yet.

Jiang Feng's eldest uncle, Fourth Uncle, and Fifth Uncle had had it rough lately. They had been overseeing the renovations for both shops. The three of them had been out in the blazing heat every day, exposed to sun and wind, and they had not even gotten a bite of the food Grandpa had cooked for over half a month.

How tragic!

While expressing his deep sympathy for his eldest uncle, Fourth Uncle, and Fifth Uncle, Jiang Feng scrolled through Wang Hao's WeChat Moments.

Without fail, Wang Hao promoted Healthy Stir-fry Restaurant every single day, turning his Moments into pure advertising space. Whenever he advertised it, he did not forget to mention Jiang Feng, making sure everyone knew that this restaurant had been opened by Jiang Feng's family after taking on enormous debts and burdening the entire household for the sake of a dream.

What a waste that Wang Hao did not write television dramas.

Jiang Feng's cooking might not have been famous throughout the university, but it had at least earned a reputation in the dormitory buildings around theirs. Combined with Wang Hao's exaggerated and sentimental ad copy, every post in his Moments had a long string of likes beneath it.

After spending more than half a month learning to cook under Grandpa's supervision, Jiang Feng had begun to suspect that he had been cut off from the world.

At first, every day had consisted of nothing but chopping vegetables and sleeping. Later, it became nothing but wok-tossing and sleeping. Even checking his status panel was something he only did when he occasionally found a spare moment.

Playing on his phone?

Not a chance.

He spent the train ride catching up on the WeChat Moments he had not checked for more than half a month, and time passed quickly.

Wang Hao had been waiting at the high-speed rail station early. The moment he saw Jiang Feng exit, he excitedly waved at him like mad, then bounded over in leaps and hops. In that short fifty-meter dash, he displayed astonishing agility that did not match his one-hundred-and-seventy-pound build.

Jiang Feng carried a large duffel bag in his left hand and dragged an extra-large suitcase with his right. Wang Hao casually took the duffel bag from him.

The bag weighed at least forty or fifty pounds. Wang Hao had not paid attention and nearly dropped it when he took it one-handed.

Heh. All fat, no strength.

Jiang Feng did not make things difficult for him and took the bag back. "My mom has a small, lighter bag. Go help her carry it. I'm worried she has too much stuff to manage."

Wang Hao looked behind him, craning his neck for a long while without finding anyone. "Where are Uncle and Auntie?"

"Right behind me!" Jiang Feng turned around. Jiang Jiankang and Comrade Wang Xiulian were right behind him, each pulling a suitcase with several bags stacked on top.

Wang Hao: ...

They really did not look like one family...

"Hello, Uncle and Auntie!" Wang Hao greeted them enthusiastically.

"Hello, hello." Jiang Jiankang responded with a beaming smile.

"Brother Feng, is that restaurant really your family's?" Ever since learning that the newly renovated two-story storefront belonged to Jiang Feng's family, Wang Hao slowed down every time he passed by to inspect it carefully. The more he looked, the more alarmed he became. With that location and that much space, Jiang Feng's family would have had to borrow several million to buy such a large place!

"Did you get it wrong? I saw that there's a smaller one-story place beside the two-story storefront that's also being renovated. Isn't that one your family's?" Wang Hao asked quietly.

"That belongs to my Second Brother's family. He's opening a pharmacy there," Jiang Feng explained.

Wang Hao was startled. He asked mysteriously, "Brother Feng, tell me honestly. Are you secretly the heir to some huge conglomerate, hiding your identity to experience ordinary life with us?"

Jiang Feng: ...

It really would be a waste of talent if this guy did not write television drama scripts.

"My Second Brother's family used to run a small clinic. Then their place was demolished, and they received a large compensation payment. That's the money he lent us," Jiang Feng said. Wang Hao liked making things up in his head anyway, so Jiang Feng trusted that he would piece together a complete version of the story himself.

Sure enough, Wang Hao nodded in sudden understanding.

As for whether what he imagined was true, that had nothing to do with Jiang Feng.

A University was nearly two hours away from the train station. Wang Hao was a local of A City and good at socializing, so he spent the journey introducing Jiang Feng's parents to A City's news, famous foods, scenic spots, and the like. By the end, Comrade Jiang Jiankang was starting to have second thoughts.

Competition in A City's food industry... was this fierce?

With his heart in turmoil, Jiang Jiankang arrived at the restaurant.

Under Jiang Jianguo's full supervision, Healthy Stir-fry Restaurant had finished renovations a week ago. Only the sign had yet to be put up. The interior had been designed by Jiang Feng's eldest cousin Jiang Zaide, Eldest Uncle's son, and it perfectly suited Comrade Jiang Jiankang's plain, unpretentious tastes.

The first floor was filled with small square tables, mainly tables for four and six. By the windows was a row of tables for two. Every table and chair was grayish white, arranged in neat rows. The walls were painted green, several pots of spider plants sat on the windowsills, and wooden menus hung in a long line along the wall, covering nearly half of it.

"The second floor is all large round tables, and there are private rooms too." Jiang Jianguo said with a cheerful smile. "I told that boy Zaide to design it properly, not come up with any of those flashy schemes to fool customers. Third Brother, what do you think? Everything was done according to your requirements."

What else could he say? This restaurant was ten, even a hundred times better than the State-run Restaurant where Jiang Jiankang had once worked!

Jiang Jiankang nodded repeatedly. "Tonight, call Eldest Sister-in-law, Zaide, Fourth Brother, Fifth Brother, and their families over. I'll cook everyone a big feast to celebrate! Jiang Feng's classmate, you come too. Uncle will make you a few signature dishes."

"I see Third Sister-in-law has put on some weight lately. Has your cooking improved again, Third Brother?" Jiang Jianguo asked.

Comrade Wang Xiulian had spent this whole period fighting on the front lines of sneaking bites under the excuse of helping wash vegetables. She had gained at least another ten pounds.

"His cooking is the same as always. It's Dad's cooking that got even better. Those Four Happiness Meatballs, that braised chicken... tsk, tsk." As she spoke, Wang Xiulian could not help swallowing.

"Dad?" Jiang Jianguo's smile froze.

"Yes, Dad stayed with us for half a month to teach Jiang Feng how to cook. He fed me and Second Brother's entire family until we all gained weight." Jiang Jiankang's face was full of nostalgia. "Dad's cooking has improved quite a bit since last New Year."

Jiang Jianguo stood there as though struck by lightning. Two streams of tears immediately poured down his face.

"I'm such an unfilial son. I never even thought to go back and visit Dad." Jiang Jianguo wiped his tears.

Grandpa had cooked for over half a month, yet he had not gotten a single bite.

"Jiang Feng... Jiang Feng is so blessed!" Jiang Jianguo was speechless for a long time. Thinking of his own son, who did not possess the slightest talent for cooking and was now a designer, he sighed. "That useless kid in our family, ah!"

"Big Brother, it's fine. There will be plenty of chances to see Dad. It's inconvenient for you to go to the countryside, but Dad said he'll come teach Jiang Feng every summer and winter break from now on, just like before," Jiang Jiankang said.

"Jiang Feng!" Jiang Jianguo walked up to him and heavily patted his shoulder with his thick palm. "Learn to cook properly from your grandfather!"

Jiang Feng: ...

Wang Hao: ???

Jiang Jianguo took Jiang Jiankang and Wang Xiulian upstairs to look at the decor. Wang Hao took the chance to quietly ask Jiang Feng, "What's going on with your eldest uncle?"

He laughed one moment and cried the next. Tears fell whenever he wanted them to. Even Oscar was no match for him.

Jiang Feng helplessly looked up at the sky.

"If you'd tasted my grandpa's cooking, you'd cry too."