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墨書 Inktalez
A Land Rover Range Rover slowly cruised along the second ring road of Shengjing, stopping patiently behind a bus whenever it halted, and moving forward gently as the bus resumed its journey, trailing behind at a leisurely pace.
In the back seat of the bus, a dozen eager men jostled for a view of the girl in the Range Rover, their eyes wide with anticipation as they whistled occasionally in her direction.
Inside the Range Rover, Huang Mengni blushed deeply, nearly burying her face in the steering wheel, only held back by the constraints of her seatbelt that prevented such an extreme action.
In the back seat, the Doll-Faced Girl was already in fits of laughter, lying back and gasping for breath, while Zheng Yifan also broke into rare laughter, releasing all the pent-up tension from recent days.
Huang Mengni was not only directionally challenged but also struggled with GPS navigation; she had managed to get lost even with the map on her screen. In the end, she had no choice but to follow the bus because she had forgotten the name of that incredibly delicious restaurant and could only recall the bus route.
She really was quite scatterbrained.
The Doll-Faced Girl had no idea what exactly he had recommended; she only remembered they had visited once long ago.
After a series of stops and even being overtaken by two bicycles, they finally caught sight of Huang Mengni's excited smile as they arrived at their destination.
The car slowly parked among a cluster of low buildings in the Old Town Area. As they gently closed the doors, Huang Mengni's eyes nearly turned into hearts, and beside her, the Doll-Faced Girl wore an expression of realization.
"Stupid Mengni! If you had told me you were coming here earlier, I could have directed you! You insisted on driving yourself when it should have been just a ten-minute ride. You took over half an hour! I want to strangle you!" The Doll-Faced Girl playfully pinched Huang Mengni's soft waist and then turned to Zheng Yifan with a pout.
Zheng Yifan looked up. A few meters ahead at the alley entrance was a neon sign with large letters spelling "Red Pavilion."
From a distance, a rich aroma wafted through the street. Cars continued to pull over along the side streets as people followed the enticing scent into the alley.
Red Pavilion was a two-story building. The exterior walls lacked tiles or paint; only raw concrete showed signs of wear. The cement was crumbling and softening, trembling in the wind as if it could fall apart at any moment. Faintly visible inside were red bricks, some of which had lost their cement covering, revealing faint inscriptions like "Cultural Greatness Forever" and "Mao... Long Live."
As they entered the alley, it became clear that business was booming here. A sleek Mercedes-Benz parked alongside an old black bicycle, polished shoes brushed against dusty work boots on the same step.
Many people laughed loudly and exchanged drinks; their faces flushed with joy. Occasionally, waiters passed by with steaming trays carrying six dishes each—no more, no less—while hands quickly reached out from tables to snatch up food for feasting.
The two beautiful women and Zheng Yifan stood in line for three or four minutes before finally entering the establishment.
Inside, nearly everyone was hunched over bowls slurping noodles noisily. The strong scents of ginger and scallions mixed with rich broth filled the entire dining hall.
"Right here," Huang Mengni said happily as she held up a number card and led them to a corner table that could seat four. At that moment, an eleven or twelve-year-old boy sat in one corner slurping his noodles.
After Zheng Yifan sat down, he immediately noticed that no waiter was attending to him, and no one came to take his order. Only Huang Mengni was rolling up her sleeves, looking as if she was ready to rob the place. The child beside her seemed unfazed, merely shrinking back in his seat, afraid of getting splashed.
Well, at least it was soup and not blood.
He watched as a waiter slowly approached with a tray. They were seated in the second row, and before the waiter reached them, two dishes had mysteriously disappeared from the tray, leaving only four.
Huang Mengni scrutinized the three remaining dishes. Then, like a hunting wolf, she sprang into action as the waiter passed by, grabbing one dish in each hand while balancing a bowl of soup between her thumbs as if it were not hot at all.
Her speed was lightning-fast; Zheng Yifan felt as if he were witnessing a martial arts master in action. The bowl of soup, perfectly balanced between her thumbs, landed steadily on the table before she placed the two dishes in front of Doll-Faced Girl and Zheng Yifan.
The child beside them looked at Huang Mengni in astonishment and silently gave her a thumbs-up.
With the dishes now on the table, Zheng Yifan was about to dig in when another waiter arrived carrying a steaming pot. Below it was a compact alcohol stove cheerfully emitting a blue flame, while the broth inside gently released white steam accompanied by bubbling sounds. Of course, there was also an incredibly enticing aroma wafting through the air.
Huang Mengni picked up a bowl and ladled half of it full. He saw white scallions bobbing up and down in dark red pig's blood, with droplets of oil floating on top of the clear broth mixed with rich ginger and scallion flavors that made his stomach churn with hunger.
Zheng Yifan mimicked Huang Mengni and scooped half a bowl for himself. As he brought the spoon to his mouth and applied slight pressure, he felt the tender pig's blood spring slightly before breaking apart into countless pieces that slid onto his tongue and down his throat effortlessly.
In just a few minutes, the pot began to reveal its bottom. At this point, Huang Mengni beckoned Zheng Yifan and her friend to start eating the dishes on the table.
In front of Zheng Yifan was a dish of red-and-white tofu. Before tasting it, Huang Mengni slowly introduced it: this dish was made from high-quality stone-ground tofu mixed with pig spine marrow, pig brain, and pig's blood cooked using a special method. Just smelling it was enough to make one feel overwhelmed by its fragrance; eating it was almost irresistible.
In no time at all, half of it had already been transferred to Zheng Yifan's plate and was making its way into his stomach.
In front of Doll-Faced Girl was a plate of blood sausage; however, she seemed somewhat amused yet helpless as she simply sipped from the broth in her bowl.
Zheng Yifan barely had time to savor a few bites before Huang Mengni had cleaned everything off her plate.
That dish was a cold appetizer made from pig intestines. Seasoned pig's blood was funneled into them, cooked until done, then sliced. It had a sweet and icy taste reminiscent of ice cream cones; biting into it revealed soft intestines with great chewiness while the pig's blood inside was tender and delicious, melting in his mouth.
As for the last dish—a bowl of sweet soup—Huang Mengni held it tightly within her hands, making it impossible for Zheng Yifan to sneak a taste.
By this point, Zheng Yifan had developed quite an appetite; rather than feeling full, he felt hungrier than ever. When another waiter passed by him again, he caught sight of more dishes on their tray. In a flash-like motion, he snatched two plates for himself before placing one in front of Doll-Faced Girl while two empty plates were already stacked on the waiter's tray.
The waiter paused in surprise at Zheng Yifan's speed and shot him an incredulous look. All Zheng Yifan could do was smile awkwardly; his speed had been so fast that it was almost invisible to the naked eye.
In the eyes of the waiter, it was as if two plates of food had mysteriously vanished, leaving only empty dishes behind.
On the table were two plates: one was Braised Pork Ribs, and the other was Shredded Meat, both without any pig's blood, entirely for the Doll-Faced Girl. Zheng Yifan had noticed that the girl wasn't particularly fond of pig's blood and always avoided it while drinking soup.
Gratefully glancing at Zheng Yifan, the girl began to eat the Shredded Meat in front of her. When the waiter passed by again, she casually snatched a bowl of sweet soup. Zheng Yifan then showcased his impressive appetite, continuously grabbing various dishes and quickly devouring them. The two girls across from him ended up watching his personal performance for a full five minutes after finishing their sweet soup. Eventually, when the waiter brought more dishes, they awkwardly stopped their gluttonous display, barely managing to feel eighty percent full.
When it came time to settle the bill, Zheng Yifan realized that this place offered incredible value for money. He had eaten over twenty plates of food, and it only cost a little over five hundred yuan. No wonder the business here was so good; it could be described as bustling with customers.
The main reason for this commendable price was the portion sizes. For an average group of three, they could probably eat well for around fifty or sixty yuan. Of course, this also factored in Zheng Yifan's voracious appetite, which meant he was ordering relatively expensive dishes.
With their bellies full, the three of them stepped out of the Red Pavilion, and Zheng Yifan felt a sense of revival. Dining with Huang Mengni always felt refreshing—unrestrained and genuine.
"Big beauty, do you need anything else to eat? I'm all set to play Santa Claus today. I didn't expect you to be so considerate; it's making me feel a bit embarrassed," Zheng Yifan said, patting his belly while feeling that he still had the potential to be a foodie.
"No thanks, I'm already full. I was originally just passing time there until my interview at the Exhibition Committee for a car show model position. But with your interruption, I completely forgot about it and will have to check back this afternoon. However, I fear they might already have enough people since they have professional modeling agencies providing services. This time, they are also hosting some charity events and need college models; opportunities like this are rare." At this point, Huang Mengni's expression turned a bit forlorn, but within seconds she regained her tough-girl demeanor and raised her right hand in a fist.
"I'll go for another interview this afternoon; hopefully there's still a chance!" (To be continued)
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