The Game of Life

Zhang Zhiyuan’s family was puzzled – Jiang Feng had been in the bathroom for nearly half an hour, and they hadn’t seen him return even though the eggplant with garlic sauce and Beijing shredded pork were already on the table. Zhang Zhiyuan was about to go to find him when he saw Jiang Feng coming over with a pot of tea.

“Feng, did you order a pot of tea?” Zhang Zhiyuan asked.

“I just ran into the owner of Yonghe House. He brewed a pot of tea for me as a gift, and I remember you telling me that Sir Zhang enjoys drinking tea, so I brought it over for Sir Zhang to taste,” Jiang Feng explained.

Zhang Zhiyuan certainly hadn’t told Jiang Feng that Zhang Chu liked to drink tea, but from the two memories related to the Zhang family that Jiang Feng had, he had seen tea canisters on the shelf and guessed that Zhang Chu must drink tea normally.

“You kid, of all the things you could have talked about, you told Mr. Jiang I like to drink tea.” Zhang Chu said cheerfully.

Zhang Zhiyuan: ???

He didn’t remember ever saying that.

Lushan Cloud Mist Tea, it’s still the mist from the mountains,” Jiang Feng said, handing the teapot to Zhang Chu and sitting down.

“The mist from the mountains, that’s amazing, I am indeed fortunate today,” Zhang Chu said excitedly, picking up the pot and pouring himself a small cup of hot tea, then savored a sip.

“The tea leaves have absorbed the fragrance of the dragon’s fat, the tea soup is clear, the flavor is mellow, sweet, and rich, truly worthy of being called the mist rom the mountains,” Zhang Chu praised, then began pouring tea for everyone at the table, “This is a rare quality tea, mountain mist that money can’t buy you all should taste it.”

Jiang Feng said he preferred cold tea because even the beverages he bought would not be hot; chilled Vita Lemon Tea and iced black tea tasted better. He wouldn’t drink tea even when clients came home and tea was served; unexpectedly, he found himself drinking tea at Yonghe House today. It tasted bitter upon the first sip.

Trying again, still bitter.

It wasn’t mellow or sweet, just bitter, and more bitterness.

Jiang Feng turned to see Zhang Zhiyuan’s expression, figuring his tea-tasting skills were probably no better than his own.

“Wasting a treasure on someone who can’t appreciate it,” this phrase couldn’t be more suitable to describe the two of them.

Most of the Beijing shredded pork on the table was gone, but after everyone tried a piece of the eggplant with garlic sauce, no one touched it again The chef at Yonghe House made it mediocre at best, or perhaps it was the chef who specialized in this dish that was mediocre. It was passable, but a bit too greasy. Jiang Feng tried a bite of the eggplant with garlic sauce and immediately lost interest.

“Dad, your way of ordering dishes is really bad. You never get it right ” Zhang Zhiyuan criticized.

Zhang Chiyuan:…

“Exactly, Zhiyuan is right. If you can’t order properly, then don’t blindly pick dishes anymore, look at what you’ve chosen,” Mrs. Zhang was obviously not satisfied with the eggplant dish either.

ZhangChiyuan:…

“I won’t order next time,” Zhang Chiyuan conceded defeat.

“Where are you planning to go tomorrow?” Jiang Feng asked.

“We haven’t decided yet. We were thinking ofclimbing Fragrant Hills tomorrow, but it’s too hot. Even visiting Prince Gong’s Mansion today was unbearably hot. Climbing in this weather would be too much for my grandfather to handle,” Zhang Zhiyuan said, involuntarily fanning himself with his hand, “Tomorrow we’ll go to an art gallery or a museum, somewhere indoors with air conditioning.”

“Yes, it’s too hot. Nobody can handle being outside in this heat, I can’t take it either,” Zhang Chiyuan agreed.

While they were talking, the server brought in more dishes.

It was pot-stewed meat.

“The pot-stewed meat from Yonghe House is exceptionally delicious. Last time we came here, we ordered this dish. It’s braised with firewood, very authentic ” Jiang Feng highly recommended the pot-stewed meat from Yonghe House. The quality of the pot-stewed meat this time was still outstanding. The large chunks of pork belly shone with oil, their brownish-red color indicating a good mix of fat and lean meat, which somehow did not seem as greasy as the aforementioned eggplant dish, but rather tempting.

The men present, all carnivores at heart, eagerly reached for the meat and enjoyed it.

This dish is delicious,” Zhang Zhiyuan said in praise, already on his third piece.

“No matter how delicious, can it compare to the dishes cooked by your grandmother?” Zhang Chu, now old, couldn¹1 eat too many greasy dishes. After tasting a bite, he simply nibbled and turned to tea tasting.

“Compared to grandmother’s cooking, it’s definitely still lacking a bit,” said Zhang Zhiyuan, but in fact, he had nearly forgotten what Cao Guixiang’s cooking tasted like.

Cao Guixiang had only stayed briefly in his life for 16 years, a large part of which was a childhood and infancy he had almost completely forgotten. In recent years, apart from Sun Guanyun’s stir-fried beef with rice noodles and Jiang Feng’s failed Yun Chicken, he could seldom recall the flavors of Cao Guixiang’s meals.

“Your silver fungus and vegetable stew, please enjoy.” The server placed the silver fungus and vegetable stew on the table.

This was a very beautiful dish, with white silver fungus, black hair moss, orange-red carrots, green lettuce stems, and brown-yellow fresh mushrooms a riot of colors.

The silver fungus was rounded into a ball like a flower and placed in the very center, while the carrots and lettuce stems were peeled and cut into shapes resembling fresh mushrooms, arranged symmetrically and neatly around the silver fungus, along with the balled hair moss and small mushrooms.

The whole dish was circular, with a rich, fragrant yellow chicken broth as its base, looking like a blooming flower.

This was the first time Jiang Feng had seen silver fungus and vegetable stew with his own eyes; before this, he had only heard of it, knowing it was a famous mutual dish, a vegetarian dish, from Tan Family Cuisine.

Jiang Feng picked up a piece of carrot with his chopsticks. The chef’s knife skills were superb; the carrots were cut into small, cute rounds, similar in size each one smooth and uniform.

Upon tasting, there was the natural sweetness of the carrot, and also the salty flavor of the sauce made with chicken oil and the original broth-very light and delicious.

It was indeed no wonder that Yonghe House was privately acclaimed as Beiping’s number one restaurant by quite a few people.

Previously when Jiang Family members came to dine, Jiang Feng thought nothing special of it, considering that although the chefs at Yonghe House were skilled, their own cooking was not lacking either.

Now having tasted this silver fungus and vegetable stew, Jiang Feng could only sigh that the well-established restaurants of Beiping really had some serious skills.

If the disciple of Cao Guixiang’s second eldest apprentice could cook to such a standard, Jiang Feng couldn’t begin to imagine what flavor Cao Guixiang’s version of the dish would have been.

When Jiang Feng reached out to pick up some hair moss, he noticed that no one

at the table was moving their chopsticks.

Looking up in astonishment at the others, Jiang Feng saw their eyes were red.

Seeing Jiang Feng looking at him, Zhang Zhiyuan awkwardly wiped away tears

that were about to fall from his eyes.

“The flavor of this dish is very similar to what my grandmother used to make ” Zhang Zhiyuan explained, “It’s not as good as what my grandmother made for me on my 10th birthday, but it really is very similar.”

Sometimes people feel they have forgotten many things, that their minds no longer hold those memories, yet their bodies honestly retain them.

The eyes remember, the nose remembers, and the tongue remembers.

The tongue will help you remember the taste of a dish, the sensation while eating it, and the emotions towards the person who prepared the meal.

These are memories for a lifetime, never to be forgotten.

“Although this is a vegetable dish, it’s actually quite tricky to make. The silver fungus needs to be soaked ahead of time, and after soaking, it has to be cooked in clear soup for an hour. The carrots and lettuce stems have to be peeled, which is a waste, and the thickening sauce is made from the original soup, also using chicken oil-best if it’s from an old hen for that aromatic flavor,” said Zhang Chu, as he looked at the silver fungus and vegetable stew on the table, as if seeing through it to the person who once made this dish for him.

Jiang Feng didn’t know what to say and could only remain silent.

“What’s going on today? It’s been many years since I’ve thought of your grandmother, yet a bite of this dish brings it all back,” Zhang Chu said with a chuckle.

Suddenly, the surrounding area dimmed. Jiang Feng looked up to find the lights had gone out.

All the lights on the second floor hall were off, causing a stir among the guests.

“Dear guests, we are very sorry for the inconvenience. It seems that the power cable was accidentally cut due to road work nearby, resulting in an emergency power outage. Our restaurant does have a backup power supply. Please remain calm; power will be restored shortly. We sincerely apologize for the trouble caused,” the lobby manager came out to loudly explain to everyone.

In the summer, it gets hot, and in Beiping, it grows dark late. Not until 8 o’clock does it become dark. Although it’s already 7 o’clock, it’s still incredibly hot, and as soon as the air conditioning stops, the heat becomes noticeable.

“Yunyun, open the window, it’s too stuffy without air conditioning,” Zhang Chiyuan, already feeling some heat, needed to open the window for some air.

“Let me do it,” said Jiang Feng, whose seat was closer to the window, as he stood up to open it.