When Jiang Zhou and Wen Yan went out, Lu Dalang had already set up the pot.

Not much soup was added to the pot, and the thin layer of red soup simmered loudly, filling the air with the aroma of boiled bean sprouts and chicken.

Lu Dalang specially opened a small jar of wine. “This is the wine your sister-in-law brewed last year. Try it.”

Jiang Zhou pulled Wen Yan to sit down, feeling Wen Yan squeeze his hand. He smiled at him and said to Lu Dalang, “I don’t have a high tolerance for alcohol, so just a small drink.”

Lu Dalang didn’t stop him, recalling the last time Jiang Zhou got drunk at his place. With such a small amount of alcohol, no one could handle it.

Xuchang was a bit restrained, so Jiang Zhou offered him some meat. “Come here, eat the chicken.”

Xuchang took a piece.

A cook always made comparisons when they ate dishes cooked by others. Every aspect, color, flavor, taste, must surpassed the previous. It was said scholars always favored themselves over others, but in reality, which profession didn’t make comparisons? Scholars just expressed it more openly.

Xuchang picked up the piece of meat and observed the knife skills first. Some cooks were careless when chopping meat with a big knife, resulting in either too big pieces or full of broken bones and dregs. Though this piece of meat seemed to have average knife skills, those with a discerning eye could tell it was carefully crafted.

Xuchang scored silently and stuffed the meat into his mouth.

First, he was burned by the hot soup, then the aroma invaded his taste buds. The chicken had a strong flavor, mixed with the smell of spices, and the fried chicken was very tender and soft—not melting but separating with a slight bite.

“How does it taste?” Lu Dalang’s eyes lit up slightly.

Xuchang slowly put down his chopsticks and gave a thumbs up. “Not bad.”

Having been a chef at Sihe Restaurant, he remembered a rare chicken stew there, somewhat similar to this one. However, at Sihe, the chicken was stewed directly without any prior preparation. It was fried, so although very soft, it lacked texture and the chicken melted into the soup.

He heard the new owner wasn’t a chef with specialized cooking skills. It was truly impressive to achieve this.

Though praising, he still added something: “Although this chicken is good, if you let me cook it, there are still some things that can be improved.”

For example, they had been sitting for a while, and the chicken had been cooked for some time. Despite its strong taste, if it were in a store, diners might not be able to take the first bite and had to wait for it to be serve.

The chicken, although just fried, would be in a somewhat low temperature when served, affecting its taste. It wouldn’t be as delicious as it was now and might even tasted like old chicken.

Jiang Zhou was not annoyed after hearing this: “You are a professional chef, after all. If you were like me, we wouldn’t invite you. It’s good to be able to innovate and make breakthroughs.”

Several people toasted each other, and then they said, “Let’s eat.”

Wen Yan didn’t like drinking, so he held a cup of rice soup and drank it in small sips. Jiang Zhou gave him a chopstick of yuba: “This is the most delicious, try it.”

Wen Yan tried it, and sure enough, it tasted better, so he ate the bean sprouts and yuba.

.

The five of them ate a large pot of chicken, and the meat was almost gone. Jiang Zhou added some noodle, meatballs, and other things to it. He did not add boiling water for fear of the taste would be too bland, so he just used the boiled soup. Several people were sweating and steaming from the food they ate.

Jiang Zhou wanted to take off his clothes when he was halfway through eating but was stopped by Wen Yan. At this time, his whole back was covered with sweat. He could only look at Wen Yan and whispered: “It’s hot.”

Wen Yan was also hot. His cheeks were all red, and he stared at Jiang Zhou with wet eyes. His lips were also red from eating spicy food.

Seeing that Jiang Zhou couldn’t stand the heat anymore, he tugged on his clothes and said, “Take off your clothes if it’s hot.”

Lu Dalang suddenly took a breath and said, “If I eat this in this summer, I’m afraid it’s not too hot, I won’t be able to stand it.”

Jiang Zhou said: “Some people like to eat this in hot weather. It’s refreshing. In addition, I dug a cellar under my house. When it is repaired, I will store ice in it. It will be perfect for summer.”

“It’s so hot in the summer, you are worried about not having enough ice.”

Jiang Zhou shook his head: “It’s enough to survive the hottest two days. If it’s not enough, I’ll collect more later.”

Lu Dalang frowned: “Alright. I went to the tea house that day and saw that I could dig out a cellar in the backyard. I also have a cellar here. Three storage spaces should be enough.”

Xuchang was secretly surprised after hearing this – Sihe Restaurant wasn’t like this. The restaurant didn’t even mention they provided ice cubes to cool down in the summer, but his two new owners were really good.

The three of them discussed the details for a while and planned to go to the tea house after dinner to see how to decorate it, and sign the deed at the same time.

.

After eating, Jiang Zhou sent Wen Yan back first.

Wen Yan felt a little uneasy: “Are you okay?”

Jiang Zhou stared at him with bright eyes: “It’s okay. I didn’t drink much.”

Wen Yan was still a little worried.

Jiang Zhou pressed him against the door and kissed him. It was a warm kiss with a hint of alcohol. After a while, he asked, “Look, I didn’t drink too much, right?”

Wen Yan had already turned red with shame, even though he had done more intimate things with Jiang Zhou countless times. Still, he blushed when kissed by Jiang Zhou.

Jiang Zhou claimed he wasn’t drunk, but he was a little tipsy, not entirely intoxicated. Leaning next to Wen Yan’s ear, he watched as Wen Yan’s ears turned red from the heat of his breath, chuckling under his breath.

He said, “Be good, wait for me to come back?”

His voice, though normal, sounded ordinary when sober. Yet, when under the influence, it resembled the sound of bubbles exploding after being soaked in water, making legs felt weak.

Wen Yan’s face was about to burn up, and he could only hesitantly answer: “Okay.”

Jiang Zhou kissed him again before letting him go and headed out to board the boat.

Lu Dalang looked at him with some knowing looks.