Western Restaurant

In Renjia Town, Zhang Chulan followed behind Uncle Jiu, constantly looking around with curiosity in his eyes.

After all, as a modern person who had come here, how could he not be curious?

Earlier, he had been focused on cultivation and had rarely left the Mourning Hall.

Now that he had finally come out, he naturally had to take a good look at this Republic-era world.

However, while Zhang Chulan was observing everyone else, they were also constantly observing him.

Especially Zhang Chulan's outfit—it was obvious at a glance that it was not something an ordinary person could own.

Though it was a school uniform, to people of this era, it was something they did not have here, something only the big cities would possess.

Seeing this, how could these country folk not be curious?

Before long, the three of them arrived at the Western Restaurant.

The moment they arrived, they were stopped. The waiter said arrogantly,

"Do you have a reservation?"

Seeing this, Zhang Chulan, standing behind them, said speechlessly,

"You need a reservation just to come to this dump? What kind of joke is that?"

The moment he said that, everyone's attention turned toward him.

"Who are you?"

Zhang Chulan said, "I'm Zhang Chulan. Forget it, what's the point of telling you so much?

That... uh... Uncle Jiu, what was that man's name again?"

Wen Cai was also dumbfounded and quietly said, "It's Ren Fa!"

Hearing that, Zhang Chulan seemed to remember and said impatiently,

"Oh, right, that Ren Fa guy. He invited Uncle Jiu here. Didn't he make arrangements with you beforehand?"

As soon as he said that, the man's original arrogance vanished, replaced by extreme caution.

He even bent forward slightly and said,

"So you three are the distinguished guests Master Ren mentioned. This way, please, this way. Master Ren has already arranged a place for the three distinguished guests.

Please follow me. I'll lead the way!!!"

As he spoke, he led them into a small private room.

As soon as they arrived, Zhang Chulan pulled out a chair for Uncle Jiu and had him sit down.

Then he glanced at the waiter behind them, frowned, and said,

"No, do you really have no sense at all? The guests are already seated. Fine, maybe you don't let them order, but you won't even bring out a menu.

You won't even pour us a glass of water? Is this how your restaurant treats its guests?"

As soon as Zhang Chulan said that, the waiter, who had been standing there waiting for Master Ren to arrive and hoping to leave a good impression on him, immediately looked embarrassed.

"I'm terribly sorry. Please wait, please wait!"

After saying that, he took a water pitcher and a menu from nearby, handed the menu to Zhang Chulan, and began pouring water for the three of them one by one.

Seeing this, Zhang Chulan curled his lip and said,

"Uncle Jiu! What would you like to eat?"

Uncle Jiu glanced at the menu in Zhang Chulan's hand and found that he did not recognize a single item.

He then said, "You decide. We'll have the same as you. But wouldn't it be inappropriate for us to order now?

After all, Master Ren hasn't arrived yet, and this time, he..."

But Zhang Chulan shook his head and said, "Uncle Jiu, you're just too upright.

Since this Ren Fa invited you here to look into something, he should have arrived early and waited for you, instead of making you wait for him.

He's clearly trying to put you in your place. But don't worry about it. I'll handle it for you later. As for the meal, hehe, you don't need to worry either.

We don't need Ren Fa to treat us. I'm paying for this meal. Hehe, the big boss gave me quite a few silver dollars when I came out this time."

After hearing that, Uncle Jiu remembered that Ren Fa had indeed invited him to inspect the feng shui.

Not only had they been given a hard time upon arrival, but the person who had invited them had not even shown up yet. That was truly disrespectful.

And Zhang Chulan had said he would pay for the meal, so Uncle Jiu said nothing more.

Zhang Chulan flipped through the menu, then chuckled and said,

"Your dishes are pretty mediocre. They can't be called anything special at all.

Three cups of coffee, one for each person, and three well-done steaks. Remember, I want them well done. I'm not used to anything else.

And bring one egg tart and one small cake for each person."

After saying that, Zhang Chulan closed the menu in his hand, tossed it to the waiter, then took out several silver dollars and threw them to him.

"This is for the meal. Hurry up and bring it out first."

Seeing this, the waiter immediately said with a broad smile,

"Please wait a moment, gentlemen. We'll bring it right up!"

Then he left the private room. At that moment, Uncle Jiu asked quietly,

"Chulan, do you recognize the words on that menu?"

Zhang Chulan smiled and said,

"Of course. People from my era learned quite a few foreign languages.

I can still understand this stuff. Besides, there were plenty of Western restaurants in my time. Although I never had the chance to eat at one, I'd seen them before.

When the food comes, Uncle Jiu, don't worry about it. I'll show you what to do.

Brother Wen Cai, just watch what I do and do the same, all right?"

Wen Cai still looked completely confused, making Uncle Jiu so helpless that he gave him a kick and said,

"Did you hear what Chulan said?"

Only then did Wen Cai grin foolishly and nod.

Very soon, the waiter came over carrying coffee and several egg tarts.

"Sir, here is your coffee and your egg tarts. The small cakes and steaks will need a little more time!"

Hearing that, Zhang Chulan did not mind and merely nodded.

"Fine, I understand. You can go now!"

Soon, Uncle Jiu looked at the coffee before him with a bewildered expression.

At that moment, Zhang Chulan stood up with a smile and said,

"Uncle Jiu, I'll help you. You don't need to worry about it!"

As he spoke, Zhang Chulan walked over and picked up the coffee cup and milk.

He slowly poured the milk into the coffee, then glanced around and asked,

"Waiter, do you only have white sugar here?"

At that, the waiter looked confused and said,

"Sir, is there something wrong with our coffee?"

Zhang Chulan placed the coffee in front of Uncle Jiu and said,

"You only have white sugar?"

The waiter nodded. "Yes, sir. Is there a problem?"

Zhang Chulan frowned, then waved his hand impatiently.

"Fine, white sugar it is. Uncle Jiu, add the white sugar to your coffee yourself. I don't know your taste.

If it were sugar cubes, one or two would be about right.

Sugar cubes are compressed blocks of sugar. They're much more convenient to add, and the amount is easier to control.

With white sugar, I can't say for sure. Add one or two spoonfuls and taste it. If it's not enough, add more, but don't add too much."

The waiter beside them listened with great curiosity and asked,

"Sir, what are these sugar cubes you mentioned? Are they the kind children eat?"

Zhang Chulan shook his head and said,

"Of course not. Sugar cubes are block sugar made by compressing crystalline sugar. They do not break easily, but they dissolve in water and are very fine.

And because they are compressed, they are a little sweeter, so it is easier to control the amount you add.

Forget it if you don't have them." After saying that, Zhang Chulan began preparing his own coffee.

On the other side, after seeing Zhang Chulan's movements, Wen Cai also began copying him.

Once he had finished preparing it, Zhang Chulan said with a smile,

"Uncle Jiu, try this egg tart. I wonder what the egg tarts made here are like.

I hope they're not like the one I had before. That thing tasted awful!!!"

Hearing that, Uncle Jiu smiled and nodded. Then, like Zhang Chulan, he picked up an egg tart and began eating it.

"Mm... It's barely acceptable. But that's all. At least it's edible!"

Not far away, the waiter at the door secretly thought,

"Who knows where this young master came from? He's so picky!"

Very soon, the waiter came over carrying the steaks and small cakes.

After placing the steaks down, Zhang Chulan casually waved his hand and said,

"Seriously, they're just ordinary steaks. Forget it, help us cut the steaks.

Oh, and bring me a salad too. No problem, right?"

"No problem, sir!"

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