Chapter 13: The Strange Customer of the Beef Noodle Stall (Seeking Collection)

  If someone asks what is the most famous food in Northwest China, I reckon everyone in China will tell you in unison that it's beef noodles!

  This beef noodle soup is said to have originated in China during the Tang Dynasty, but it wasn't until recently, over the past one or two hundred years, that it became famous throughout China. It emphasizes "one red, two whites, three yellows, and four greens". The red refers to chili oil, white refers to radish, yellow is the golden noodles, and green refers to scallions and cilantro. When all these ingredients are placed in a giant bowl, locally known as a "cow big bowl", along with special beef broth and several slices of local specialty braised beef, it's a sight that makes one's mouth water, making you want to pick up the "cow big bowl" and devour the whole thing!

  In the northwest of China, this kind of beef noodle shop can be found everywhere, even on some bustling streets. They just set up a simple stall with a few tables and chairs, push a small cart with a stove and a big pot, prepare all the ingredients and beef soup in advance, and wait for customers to order. After ordering, the chef, usually a sturdy northwest man, will vigorously toss a large piece of dough on the counter until it reaches a certain level of toughness, then tear off a piece, pull it a few times like magic, and quickly create a steaming hot bowl of beef noodles!

  In Huaxian, Weinan City, Shaanxi Province, Zhang Fugui and his wife were running a beef noodle stall on Xiguan Street. Their daughter, Zhang Cuihua, would help out at the stall after school, especially during peak hours when there were many customers. However, over the past week or so, a strange customer had been coming to their stall for every meal of the day - breakfast, lunch, and dinner. He would eat his fill of beef noodles and then stare blankly at Zhang Fugui as he performed his noodle-making art. This had been going on for a whole week, from dawn till dusk, without fail. The customer's clothes were getting increasingly dusty and his face was taking on a worn look, filling Zhang Fugui and his wife with curiosity. However, they didn't dare ask him anything, fearing that they might touch on some painful memory and cause him more distress. So they kept their questions to themselves.

  "Hey, kiddo's dad, do you think that kid will come again tomorrow? I reckon he doesn't even have a place to sleep, otherwise how would the dust on him keep getting thicker? And his handsome face has been blown by this cold wind to the point of being unrecognizable! I think he's probably a poor soul too. Why don't we ask him tomorrow if he really needs help and do a good deed for him?"

  That night, after closing the stall, Zhang Fugui's wife Wang Caixia, a kind and simple rural woman, always had her heart on that poor child who had been eating at their beef noodle stall for a week. She couldn't help but say to her husband Zhang Fugui again:

  "I think that kid is not simple, you haven't seen how every time he interacts with us, he behaves in a refined and courteous manner, and even when his body and face are covered in dust, the unique temperament that naturally emanates from him is still very different from ours as common people!" Honest and down-to-earth Zhang Fugui analyzed this strange guest with his thick Northwestern accent and decades of experience in reading people.

  "You're always like this, pretending to be a high-ranking official! Even if that child's identity is not ordinary, he's already in trouble now. Shouldn't we help him out at this critical moment? If he really is a noble person, then maybe in the future he can help our Cuihua too, even letting her stay in Lancheng after graduating from university! When we're old, we can go to Lancheng and buy a house, enjoying the life of a big city!" Wang Caixia was complaining about Zhang Fugui while also daydreaming about their family's beautiful future life, but in her heart, she had secretly made up her mind to help that child in trouble.

  "Alright, alright, let's see how you're going to handle it. If that kid comes again tomorrow, I'll ask him if he needs help and if we can afford it, we'll help him out!" Zhang Fugui knew his wife's temper and once she made up her mind, not even a nine-headed cow could change it, so he just pretended to agree with her.

  "This is my good husband! Tonight, I will reward you well!" Wang Caixia looked at her goal and was excited to give Zhang Fugui a hint.

  "Really? That's great! We haven't had that in a long time!" Zhang Fugui was overjoyed when he heard this, and he couldn't wait to put down what he was doing and go to the bedroom to experience that long-untried taste.

  "Go to one side! Finish the work at hand first, and Cuihua is still reviewing her lessons. Let's talk about it after the child falls asleep?" Wang Caixia pushed Zhang Fugui, who was anxious like a monkey, to one side, pointed to their daughter Zhang Cuihua's room, and whispered to him;

  "Alas! It's always the same outcome, by the second half of the night, even if one has interest, they don't have the energy!" Zhang Fugui sighed and continued to prepare for tomorrow's business. This is the sorrowful state of laborers at the bottom rung of society, who are forced by their livelihood to not fully enjoy even the most beautiful love between husband and wife in life.

  "Dad, Mom, I've finished my homework. You two go ahead and busy yourselves, I'm going to sleep!" Just after Zhang Fugui sighed a couple of times, their obedient daughter Zhang Cuihua walked out of her room, pretended to yawn, made some excuses to them, washed up briefly, and then returned to her own room to sleep.

  "Alright, wife, isn't this finally it?" Zhang Fugui took advantage of the rare opportunity and after hastily finishing his tasks, he looked at his wife Wang Caixia with longing eyes and asked.

  "You're so anxious, can't you see? Haven't you noticed that our daughter has grown up? The expression she had just now was clearly fake, she's intentionally creating an opportunity for us!" Wang Caixia said in a low voice to Zhang Fugui after casting a complex glance at their daughter Zhang Cuifang's room.

  "Good daughter, Dad really didn't spoil you in vain!" Zhang Fugui exclaimed, after praising his own daughter, he swept Wang Caixia off her feet and carried her into the bedroom...

  Just as Zhang Fugui and his wife were indulging in the romantic atmosphere that belonged only to them, Chen Dabing stood frozen in the cold wind with the last 10 yuan in his hand, worrying about the sun that would rise tomorrow.

  (PS: Brother Drunkenness isn't satisfied with just one chapter today, so I'll add another chapter. However, starting from tomorrow, it will be two chapters a day! Next week will resume to three chapters.)