Chapter 92
Yes, they, the Pineapple Travel Group, were the ones who had passed by Zhu Yuan several times and had smelled the delicious aroma but never managed to taste the roast duck.
The first time they passed by, a local nearby said, “That’s the famous Zhu Yuan roast duck, not something that ordinary people can afford.”
Though they were drooling from the aroma, they reluctantly covered their wallets and walked away.
The next day, they passed by the same street again and once more smelled that unforgettable roast duck fragrance.
Not only that, they saw several people on the roadside crying because they couldn’t get any roast duck!
The roast duck must be really delicious to make people so upset for not getting any.
The tourists, smelling the lingering fragrance in the air, couldn’t help but salivate, and their cravings were ignited. They had been in the capital for several days, visiting many places and trying several famous roast ducks, but none of them had the same appeal as the one they smelled in front of Zhu Yuan.
It seemed that the expensive ones had their reasons for being expensive.
Today was their travel group’s last day in the capital. Tomorrow, they were heading to the next city. The thought that they might never have the chance to taste such fragrant roast duck again made them anxious.
Even if the roast duck cost two or three thousand yuan, they could pool their money together as a group to buy one. At least everyone could get a taste, satisfying their hunger and curiosity, so it wouldn’t be a waste.
— After all, travel is all about leaving no regrets!
Finally, after much insistence from the group, the tour guide reluctantly agreed to bring them here to see if they could buy a duck.
“But I must warn you in advance,” the guide, Huang, reminded them before they left. “I can’t guarantee that we’ll be able to buy one. Zhu Yuan works on a membership reservation system. Even the wealthy have to wait in line for a long time to get a seat.”
Although they knew the odds were low, they still wanted to give it a try.
As soon as they arrived at Zhu Yuan, they saw a street food stall in front, with a sign next to it reading “Zhu Yuan Head Chef: Chef Song” and “Fresh Roast Duck.”
Chef Song, the head chef, was reclining on a bamboo chair. Upon seeing the customers, he didn’t get up to greet them; he merely glanced at them lazily.
— Chef Song usually dealt with important people, so he didn’t care about ordinary tourists like them. It was already a privilege for them to taste his roast duck.
The tourists noticed Chef Song’s attitude right away.
Though a bit awkward, they tried to comfort themselves inwardly:
Forget it, he’s a master chef; a bit of a temper is normal. Isn’t that how it always goes in the TV shows?
Still, the tourists couldn’t help but feel a little uncomfortable.
Fortunately, Chef Song’s apprentices quickly came over to greet them, putting the tourists’ discomfort at ease.
“You’re in luck,” Apprentice One explained to the tourists, “Normally, Zhu Yuan operates on a member reservation basis, but today we’re holding an event, which is why we’re selling roast duck outside. This kind of opportunity doesn’t come often!”
The tourists were immediately excited:
“How lucky! On our last day in the capital, we just happened to catch their event.”
“It’s like the heavens want us to have roast duck!”
“I can’t wait any longer…”
However, the tour guide, Huang, couldn’t shake his doubts.
Why did Zhu Yuan suddenly have an event today? He had lived in the capital for many years and had never heard of anything like this…
Also, Huang had another concern.
Was that fragrance they smelled the other day really from Zhu Yuan? Could it have been from someone else?
But the thought seemed too bold and uncertain, so he kept it to himself.
Apprentice One smiled and looked at the crowd, asking, “There are twenty of you, so you’ll need twenty ducks, right? Each roast duck costs four thousand yuan.”
The tourists, who had been so excited just moments ago, froze at the mention of the price.
The tour guide, Huang, cleared his throat awkwardly and said, “No, we’ll just buy one, everyone already had lunch, we just want to try the taste.”
Upon hearing this, Old Song’s three apprentices raised their eyebrows, clicked their tongues, but didn’t say anything.
The enthusiastic service attitude immediately faded.
“Not enough money? Then why are you eating roast duck…”
Lying on his chair, Old Song sneered in an ambiguous way.
‘Penny-pinching.’
His unspoken thoughts were practically written on his face.
The tourists immediately turned pale, feeling extremely uncomfortable. They were consumers, not fools, and being treated like this after paying for the food didn’t sit well with them. If it weren’t for the irresistible smell of the roast duck they had smelled earlier, they would have already stormed off.
With displeased faces, they reluctantly lined up in front of Old Song’s stall.
Among the tourists, there was a middle-aged woman, dressed modestly but wearing a Patek Philippe antique watch, who noticed the attitude of Old Song and his apprentices. She frowned, and her rebellious side was instantly triggered.
The woman’s name was He Duojin. She had changed her name to this ten years ago, which also reflected her life story. She had been in business since she was young, rode the wave of opportunity, and had built up a massive fortune. Now, she was the richest person in the western city.
She had joined this tour group mainly to accompany her parents. They were getting old, and though they didn’t lack money, they still insisted on being frugal and joining a group tour.
At first, everything was fine. The people in the group were friendly, and her parents had made many friends.
But at this moment, seeing her fellow tourists ridiculed for being poor, especially watching her elderly parents being given the cold shoulder, He Duojin couldn’t hold back and stood up immediately.
“It’s just four thousand yuan for one, right? I’ll take twenty. Let everyone in the group have one, okay? Stop looking down on people!”
With that, she pulled out a black card from her pocket.
It was just 80,000 yuan.
She usually bought a bag worth several hundred thousand, so 80,000 yuan was nothing. Was it really worth her parents being treated like this?
Old Song and his apprentices immediately recognized the black card and realized they were dealing with a big shot. The apprentices immediately switched to a flattering smile:
“Ah, I’m so sorry, we didn’t recognize your importance.”
“Twenty ducks, right? We’ll roast them for you right away!”
Even Old Song, who had been reclining on his chair, couldn’t help but sit up straight and lean forward slightly: “Alright, please wait a moment.”
The change in attitude was a complete 180-degree turn.
A group of sycophants. He Duojin’s eyes were filled with even more disdain.
The tourists all looked at He Duojin with envy and surprise. After spending several days together, no one had realized that she was such a big shot!
However, her parents tugged at her sleeve, wincing in pain, “80,000 yuan is so expensive, and they’re so rude. By buying their roast ducks, aren’t you just giving them what they want?”
He Duojin shook her head and whispered, “I have my reasons.”
Finally, the fire in Old Song’s roast duck stall flared up.
The tourists also lined up in front of his stall.
At the same time, another batch of customers arrived from the end of the street in a bustling crowd.
The leader of the group was Aunt Wang, who was riding an electric scooter and encouraging everyone: “Come on! It’s just ahead, we’ll be able to eat Little Lan’s roast duck soon!”
Behind her, there were four or five dozen people—all of them customers from yesterday who had been entranced by the roast duck aroma.
They had originally planned to intercept Little Blue on his way to Zhu Yuan and force him to pack up early.
But Aunt Wang had tried this plan yesterday, only to be told by Little Lan that he could only set up his stall across from Zhu Yuan and couldn’t sell early.
So, intercepting Little Lan ahead of time was not going to work.
“Since we can’t intercept him early, let’s just go wait in front of Zhu Yuan, wait for the rabbit to come, and we won’t be afraid of missing Little Lan!” someone suggested.
Everyone quickly agreed.
So, the neighbors rode bicycles, electric scooters, and tricycles, following Aunt Wang toward Zhu Yuan.
As soon as they arrived at Zhu Yuan, they saw that a line had already formed in front of the stall!
At first glance, there were nearly twenty people.
Because there were so many people, they couldn’t clearly see what the stall looked like, but the only one who had been setting up stalls in front of Zhu Yuan recently was Little Blue, so they naturally assumed that the line was for him.
“It’s only 11:50, and they’re already lining up?” Aunt Wang rubbed her eyes. “Little Lan’s starting early today…”
The neighbors began discussing excitedly:
“Well, with how good Little Lan’s roast duck is, it’s normal for people to line up early.”
“The roast duck is limited in quantity. If we come too late, we might not get any!”
“I hesitated for just two seconds yesterday, and I missed it. I regretted it so much!”
“We can’t let that happen, let’s hurry up and line up!!”
Through Aunt Wang’s words, everyone knew that Little Lan’s roast duck was limited in supply. Fearing that they might miss out, they rushed to join the line without even looking closely at who was actually running the stall.
It wasn’t just Aunt Wang.
Madam Huo, who had just arrived, frowned when she saw Aunt Wang joining the line.
After thinking for a moment, Madam Huo also decided to join the line with her bodyguards.
— Madam Huo had been tempted by Aunt Wang’s roast duck yesterday. She had heard from Aunt Wang that it was here, but she had never been to Zhu Yuan herself, so she wasn’t sure which stall it was.
But she did recognize Aunt Wang’s face.
Since Aunt Wang was already in line, it must be right, right?
“Ordinary roast duck isn’t worth my time to queue for,” Mrs. Huo snorted, “This roast duck better not disappoint me…”
With Mrs. Huo’s status, she was always greeted with respect wherever she went. Even at Zhu Yuan, if she desired, they would send someone to deliver it to her.
But privileges didn’t work at a street food stall, so Mrs. Huo decided to queue up in person.
Today, she was determined to taste the roast duck she had been thinking about all night!
Meanwhile, the line at Old Song’s stall continued to grow longer and longer, soon blocking the entire street…
Looking at the queue, Old Song proudly stroked his beard, almost gloating, “I told you, as long as I’m involved, even a small food stall is no problem. Heh, that three-year-old’s stall is no match for me!”
As he spoke, he instructed his apprentices to stuff more ducks into the roasting oven: “So many people here, stuff a few more in, we can still fit ten more!”
At 4,000 yuan per duck, Old Song stood to make a nice commission. With so many people, anyone who didn’t sell would be a fool!
The ideal number of ducks for this roasting oven was twenty; thirty was pushing it, and if there were more, the ducks would cook unevenly, affecting their flavor, aroma, and color.
This was one of the reasons why Little Lan only sold twenty ducks each time.
At this moment, Old Song’s oven already had nearly fifty ducks inside.
The apprentices were sweating profusely, and couldn’t help but advise, “Master, there’s too many. What if we don’t sell all of them…”
“Don’t sell all of them?” Old Song snapped, blowing out his cheeks and glaring, “There are already over a hundred people in line, the problem is that there aren’t enough ducks! Stuff in two more!”
The apprentices were reluctant but didn’t dare argue. They just bent over and continued filling the oven with more ducks.
The crowd at Old Song’s stall grew larger and larger.
Meanwhile, Xu Shishi and Mu Mingqiu, who were waiting for Little Lan, noticed the long line as well. But Mu Mingqiu was only concerned with Little Lan, not the other people. Fewer competitors meant it would be easier for him to get a roast duck.
Xu Shishi muttered, “These people are so foolish, or are they just being scammed? The roast duck at Zhu Yuan isn’t even that good, and it’s expensive. A bunch of suckers…”
With that, she turned her attention back to waiting for Little Lan.
Passersby couldn’t help but glance over and began discussing:
“What’s this line for?”
“I don’t know, I heard it’s for some good food.”
“Good food? So many people are lining up, I’ll join too.”
It must be said that deep down, many Chinese people have a “watching the fun” gene. When they see others lining up, they can’t help but feel the urge to join, or they’ll feel uneasy if they don’t.
Seeing people of all ages lined up in front of the stall, and not knowing what was going on, many just instinctively joined the queue.
So, the line at Old Song’s stall kept growing longer and longer…
Old Hu, the manager of Zhu Yuan, saw this spectacle and couldn’t contain his joy.
“I told you! That three-year-old’s stall was able to win only because it was more down-to-earth. As long as Zhu Yuan lowers its status, we’ll crush him in no time!”
As he spoke, Old Hu instructed his staff to grab their phones and start a live stream.
As one of the core members of Zhu Yuan, Old Hu had some instinct for new media.
The live stream was titled: “4,000 yuan a duck, over a hundred people waiting in line! Zhu Yuan, a century-old famous restaurant, is revitalized!”
As soon as the live stream began, it immediately attracted many viewers, and the popularity soared.
[Wow, there are so many rich people? People are actually lining up to buy a 4,000 yuan roast duck?!]
[No wonder, this is Beijing, a place for the wealthy and powerful…]
[Can I have some of your money, rich people? I’m going crazy with envy :))]
Seeing the lively scene in front of the food stall and in the live stream, both Old Hu and Old Song were delighted.
With the ducks almost ready and the money soon to be collected, Old Song was already imagining the joy of counting his earnings.
The customers were eagerly waiting.
Gradually, some started to notice something wasn’t right:
“Do you smell the roast duck?”
“I smell a bit, but it doesn’t seem quite right.”
“Yeah, it doesn’t smell like yesterday. Yesterday, it was pure roast duck aroma, but now it smells like there’s some spices or chemicals mixed in…”
But the crowd kept murmuring to themselves, and the line continued to move forward as usual.
Maybe the boss changed the recipe? It doesn’t smell as good, but it should still taste delicious, right?
Many people thought to themselves.
They had been queuing for most of the day, so they couldn’t let the time go to waste.
Aunt Wang, while waiting in line, struck up a conversation with the person ahead of her. “How long have you been in line? By the way, how much is the roast duck?”
“We’ve been waiting for more than twenty minutes,” the tourist in front of her replied. “It’s 4,000 yuan per duck, actually. We couldn’t afford it, but Aunt He from our group is treating us…”
“4,000 yuan?!” Aunt Wang gasped, “When did Little Lan raise the price?”
“Wait, hold on, that’s not right—”
Hearing this, the other customers also froze.
4,000 yuan? Wasn’t it said that Little Lan’s roast duck was only 100 yuan each?
Could it be that they were in the wrong line?
No way!
At that moment, a small three-wheeled cart slowly passed by the crowded queue.
The little boy riding the cart blinked and looked at the long line, his round eyes filled with confusion.
Meanwhile, the roast ducks in the boy’s cart, perfectly cooked, emitted a rich, tempting aroma that spread irresistibly through the air…
The familiar smell instantly made everyone think of roast ducks sizzling in the oven, with that glossy, golden, crispy skin and tender meat.
…And it quickly overshadowed the heavy seasoning scent of Old Song’s roast ducks.
The customers looked at the line they were in.
Then, they looked at Little Lan’s cart.
Then back at their line.
Then at Little Lan again.
The customers: “…”
The customers: “…………”
No way.
Many faces were filled with confusion.
The atmosphere became eerily quiet.
Finally, Aunt Wang’s scream broke the silence:
“Little Lan, what are you doing over there??!!” Aunt Wang’s eyes widened in disbelief, “Then what is this line we’ve been waiting in all this time???”
So Jian Yunlan going set up with Taotie being looked as Jian Yunlan’s boyfriend?