The Game of Life

Chapter 612: Chapter 610: First Encounter (Part 2)

The restaurant was bustling, so bustling that Jiang Feng even started to wonder if Jubao Building was hosting a wedding banquet today.

The decor in the lobby bore some resemblance to what Jiang Feng had seen in the old man’s memory, with only two types of tables, small square ones and large round ones. The overall decoration seemed a bit bland, making the place feel empty, as if it was lacking some decorative items.

“Sir, do you have a reservation? Our restaurant is now fully booked…” a waiter came over to greet him.

“Yes, my friend has already arrived; I can find my own way,” Sun Maochai said.

Hearing what Sun Maochai said, the waiter nodded with a smile and left.

Sun Maochai walked inside, looking around as if searching for someone.

Soon, a middle-aged man in a suit with a slightly plump figure stood up near a window-side square table and enthusiastically waved to Sun Maochai.

“Master Sun, it must have been a tough journey. Sit down, the dishes have just been served,” the middle-aged man shook hands with Sun Maochai and then invited him to sit down.

“Mr. He, you’ve really gone through all this trouble for me,” Sun Maochai said politely.

“It’s no trouble at all, just a small matter. I have a friend here who is well-acquainted with the owner of Jubao Building, so it was easy to reserve the Eight Treasures Chestnut Fragrant Pigeon. But for you, traveling all the way from Hong Kong City must have been quite tiring.”

“It’s not exactly a special trip; I happened to be nearby in a city attending a culinary exchange meeting. It’s just a few hours by train, very convenient,” Sun Maochai said as he sat down and began to look over the dishes on the table.

A table full of meat dishes packed the small square table to the brim, leaving not a single vegetable dish in sight.

“Master Sun, this must be your first time at Jubao Building, right? All these dishes are Jubao Building’s signature dishes. Look, Wenchang chicken, boiled geoduck, chicken and bird’s nest soup, satay beef, drunken ribs, pumpkin shark fin soup…if there’s anything else you want to eat, we can order more,” Mr. He was practically branded with the words ‘wealthy’ on his face.

“This is already more than enough; the two of us can’t possibly finish so many dishes. You really shouldn’t have,” Sun Maochai laughed.

Mr. He waved his hand, “This is nothing, really. If it weren’t for your help adding an extra table last time, I wouldn’t have even been able to meet with Mr. Xu, and that deal would never have happened. I think this lobby is too noisy, and the tables are too small. Next time you come, be sure to call me in advance, and I’ll reserve a private room upstairs.”

“A private room isn’t necessary for just two people; the lobby is nice, lively, and has the ambiance of life,” Sun Maochai said as he looked at the dishes on the table without picking up his chopsticks.

Mr. He noticed Sun Maochai’s expression and felt like he had guessed his intentions, explaining, “The Eight Treasures Chestnut Fragrant Pigeon will take a bit longer. This dish has become famous now. When it was first introduced a couple of months ago, not many people ordered it because they found it expensive. It was just a squab filled with vegetarian ingredients, selling for more than the pigeon stuffed with bird’s nest. Who would have thought that in less than two months, it would require connections to reserve? Without those connections, you wouldn’t even be able to make a reservation.”

“Well, the dish is not about the ingredients; as long as it tastes good, it’s a good dish,” Sun Maochai said.

“That’s true,” Mr. He agreed and nodded. “It’s much tastier than the common abalone, shark’s fin, and sea cucumber dishes. Before, I used to eat vegetarian all year round, and I would crave meat; now, after having had plenty of meat, switching to something halfway between vegetarian and non-vegetarian is pretty good.”

“Master Sun, as a Hong Kong City native, you might not know this, but although our place is doing quite well now, life used to be really tough in the past, not even a piece of meat to eat all year round. When I was a kid, if I could have had a table of food like this, I could have woken up laughing from a dream.” Mr. He picked up his chopsticks. “Come, let’s eat. These ribs were probably prepared by Master Sun himself, you…”

At this point, Mr. He suddenly realized and laughed, “It’s quite a coincidence that both you and Master Sun from Jubao Building have the last name Sun.”

“Yeah, quite a coincidence,” Sun Maochai said as he picked up a piece of rib and placed it into his bowl.

“Listening to your accent, Mr. He, you don’t sound like a local; you must be from Guangdong Province,” Sun Maochai started making casual conversation.

“Yes, but I’ve been doing business here for the past few years, so I spend more time here. I don’t know if Master Sun has heard of Jubao Building back in Hong Kong City. Jubao Building had quite a reputation in the past few years; I’ve heard about it even in Guangdong Province where I come from, claiming to be the number one restaurant in FJ. Originally, Jubao Building was most famous for its Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall, and I intended to invite you to try it but forgot to reserve it when I made the reservation. Next time, if there’s a chance, I’ll definitely invite you to try it.”

“A few years ago?” Sun Maochai latched onto that detail.

“Yes,” Mr. He replied with his mouth full of a big piece of rib, his speech somewhat muffled, “I heard it from my friend; it seems to be more than a decade ago, after Old Master Sun passed away. You should know about Old Master Sun, he was a famous master of Cantonese cuisine.”

“I know, highly esteemed and respected,” Sun Maochai nodded.

“He was highly respected, but unfortunately, his apprentices weren’t as virtuous. After Old Master Sun passed away, his apprentices fought over the Jewel Building so fiercely it was a mess. Eventually, it led to a culinary competition. The one who actually won that competition was Old Master Sun’s youngest apprentice, but he gave up his right to inherit the restaurant, and that’s how Master Sun took over the Jewel Building,” Mr. He said as he brought up old gossip right in front of the person involved.

Jiang Feng: …

Although he couldn’t read any change in expression on Sun Maochai’s face, he felt that Sun Maochai’s inner turmoil must be quite intense at that moment.

Mr. He got more excited as he spoke, “After that, the Jewel Building went downhill. Several leading chefs left, and it’s only in the past couple of months that business has picked up again. The most pitiful one is Old Master Sun’s youngest apprentice. He didn’t get anything and even left the Jewel Building. Now, there’s no news of him. I heard he was just over 20 years old at the time. Such a pity.”

Sun Maochai was silent for so long that Jiang Feng thought he was about to stand up and say, “I’m going to use the restroom,” just to relieve the awkwardness through a bathroom break.

But then, Sun Maochai put down his chopsticks and said, “Well, that’s not necessarily the case.”

Jiang Feng: ?

Mr. He: ?

“Huh?” Mr. He was completely baffled.

“If he really didn’t want the restaurant, he could have just thrown the match instead of winning it. Why bother winning and then refusing the inheritance?” Sun Maochai said.

Jiang Feng: 〣(ºΔº)〣

He felt like he had stumbled upon a massive scoop.

Mr. He, thrown by Sun Maochai’s comments, pondered for a while, then said, “Yeah, if he didn’t want it, he could have just lost on purpose. Why win and then say he didn’t want it?”

“Oh, I remember now, a friend of mine mentioned it. He’s quite familiar with the owner of the Jewel Building, Master Sun. He said Master Sun is a very competitive person; I guess he couldn’t bring himself to lose on purpose. That competition was quite sensational; to lose on purpose under so many watchful eyes probably wasn’t suitable.”

“What’s not suitable? On the contrary, losing on purpose would have been most appropriate. If he really didn’t want the restaurant, he could have continued working at the Jewel Building as a chef by losing the competition. Winning and then giving up the restaurant is an unnecessary step. It’s meaningless aside from earning a good reputation,” Sun Maochai said.

“Why did he give up the restaurant if he wanted it?” Mr. He had completely forgotten the original topic and was now seriously contemplating this issue, even forgetting to eat.

“Maybe he regretted it later,” Sun Maochai said, “People are fickle and always want to be the best. One second they want something, the next second they’re afraid to take it, especially when they’re young. The moment impulsiveness takes over, they forget about the consequences. Who could resist such a huge temptation?”

“Anyone would be tempted.”

“By your reasoning, Old Master Sun’s youngest apprentice ended up worse off. There was no need to win the competition; he should have just thrown the match. If I were him, I’d probably be filled with regret by now. The Jewel Building’s fame has soared recently, and I’ve heard that its chefs can name their price for side jobs outside,” Mr. He gestured a number to Sun Maochai, “Of course, that’s nothing compared to you, Master Sun.”

“I also think he probably regrets it a lot,” Sun Maochai smiled suddenly while looking at the dishes on the table, “This is just my idle chatter, Mr. He, please don’t take it to heart.”

“I know, we’re just guessing. We aren’t the ones involved, so who knows what they were actually thinking at the time.” Mr. He laughed a couple of times and continued eating.

Sun Maochai took a couple of bites and suddenly looked up as if he heard something, glancing towards the back. Following his gaze, Jiang Feng saw that there appeared to be some dispute at the table nearest to the kitchen door, where three customers and two servers had started arguing.

“What’s going on over there?” Sun Maochai asked.

Mr. He glanced up, then continued eating, “It’s normal, that table isn’t well situated. I once didn’t reserve a seat in advance, came late and sat there myself. It’s too close to the kitchen door, with people constantly going in and out, which really disrupts the dining experience. Plus, Master Sun’s grandson always likes to slip out from the back during meal times. Kids don’t watch where they’re walking and can easily bump into people.”

“Master Sun’s grandson?”

“Yeah, a real cute tiger cub, he is.”

Sun Maochai watched the table thoughtfully.@@novelbin@@