Chapter 72: The Heart of Xie Tuan Lang

  It was almost noon, and the golden Moscow Western restaurant wasn't very crowded, with only about twenty tables occupied in the main dining hall that could accommodate over a hundred people at the same time. Xue Xiang and Liu Ying'er were among them. They sat at the far end of the outermost side, right next to the glass cabinet, and their eyes could see the flow of people coming and going on the main street outside. This wasn't Xue Xiang's first time having lunch with Liu Ying'er, but it was his first time bringing her to try Moscow's Western food. Liu Ying'er had heard that Moscow's consumption was high-end, and at first, she refused to come here for a meal, saying that the cost of one lunch was almost equal to her salary for over ten days, and she felt sorry for Xue Xiang's wallet. It wasn't until Xue Xiang repeatedly promised that it would only be this once, just to experience it, that Liu Ying'er couldn't bear to reject his good intentions and finally nodded in agreement.

  After recovery, Xue Xiang no longer had any worries. Once the thin veil in between was lifted, he was no longer as timid and hesitant as before. He began to pursue boldly, frequently picking up Liu Ying'er from work and naturally having dinner together afterwards. Since they went through life and death together, their emotions took a qualitative leap forward. Their interactions were not like those of a lovesick couple who couldn't bear to be apart for a moment, but rather a gentle and harmonious coexistence, where they wouldn't think of each other when apart, but could understand each other's thoughts with just one glance when together, as if they had developed telepathy. This feeling was wonderful, and the two indulged in it greedily. During this time, they went to Fragrant Hills together, reciting Pushkin's long poems under the red leaves, also supported each other climbing the Great Wall, leaning on each other at Badaling, taking in the views...

  "Two comrades, what can I get for you?" asked the waitress, wearing a black "Braji" dress with a white apron, as she handed them menus.

  "Ying'er, you order." Xue handed over the menu and passed it to Liu Ying'er.

  Liu Ying'er hastily waved her hand, "You order, something simple is fine." This was her first time eating Western food, and she couldn't help but feel a bit nervous. She knew that the people who came to this place were mostly returned overseas Chinese ( embassy staff), government officials, and children of high-ranking officials, and she was afraid of making a fool of herself in front of others.

  Xue Xiangzhi knew what she was thinking, and he didn't decline. He had already eaten at Old Mo's before, so there was no need for a menu. He directly ordered the dishes: "Braised beef in pot, butter roasted fish, butter mushroom soup, butter roasted mixed vegetables, honey-glazed foie gras, canned tuna toast. Except for the soup, everything is double portions." What he ordered were all his usual favorites and also Old Mo's signature dishes.

  The waiter remembered the dish name, was about to leave, but was stopped by Liu Ying'er: "Wait a minute, give me the menu, that's what he wants, I'll order for myself." She changed her mind. Xue Xiang reported a long string of dish names, listening to her face losing color.

  The waitress smiled and handed the menu back to Liu Ying'er. Liu Ying'er's face turned red with embarrassment, she glared at Xue Xiang for a moment, opened the menu, and searched for her ideal dish. "Hmm? Braised beef in a pot, three blocks, butter roasted fish, five blocks, honey-glazed foie gras, four blocks and five... Oh my god, what prices are these?" She was shocked in her heart, according to Xue Xiang's ordering method, wouldn't this meal cost her an entire month's salary?

  "A vegetable salad, a toast bread." Liu Ying'er trembled with heartache, painfully chose two dishes, handed the menu to the waiter, and glared at Xue Xiangyi again.

  Xue nodded his head, smiled back, and motioned to the servant with his chin. The latter understood and left with a smile. Liu Yinger saw his actions and knew what he meant, so she quietly stepped on his foot under the table, which was equivalent to acknowledging it.

  "I'm taking you to enjoy yourself, not to suffer, don't look so gloomy, it'll get wrinkles. Just once, let's just try something new." Xue Xiang and she had gotten familiar with each other, their conversations became more natural, and the teasing jokes also increased.

  "It's still a pity." Liu Yu'er pouted, pursing her full red lips.

  "Don't worry, this time we won't have to pay out of our own pockets." Xue Xiang saw a familiar figure walking towards the dining area in the northwest district and thought to himself: Fan Ceng is here.

  "Huh? You're not planning to eat a king's meal, are you?" Yueliang'er's eyes sparkled with stars, and her face was filled with excitement. Apparently, she was very curious about the activity of eating a king's meal, which seemed legendary to her, and in her subconscious mind, there was a surge of impulse to try it out.

  "What are you thinking about, silly girl." Xue said with a smile, rubbing her head, "You really eat like a king, aren't you afraid?"

  Liu Ying'er pushed away his large hand with dissatisfaction: "In the future, without my consent, don't touch my head, I'm older than you." After finishing speaking, suddenly, the light in her eyes dimmed, and she had always been resentful about being two years older than Xue Xiang.

  Xue Xiang couldn't help but shut his mouth, not knowing how to comfort her, even though he thought Liu Ying'er's idea was ridiculously silly. But Liu Ying'er couldn't escape the cognitive constraints of this era, and she felt that she was inferior to Xue Xiang, which wasn't good. As for what exactly was wrong, she herself couldn't quite put it into words, the conventional ideas ingrained in her by society suffocated her. As for "a girl at 30 is like a gold brick" and such sayings, to her they carried more connotations of concealment than explanation.

  Xue Xiang stretched out his hand and gently grasped her crystal-like jade hand, exerting a slight force, giving her a warm gaze. Liu Ying'er also didn't want Tan Lang to worry, so she covered the clasped hands with her other hand and shook them slightly. The two stood silently, tenderly facing each other.

  It's you and me, too much affection!

  Ten minutes later, the first dish, butter roasted fish was brought up. A one-foot long sea bass was roasted to golden brown, and mushrooms, tomatoes, and potatoes in a ceramic plate were solidified around the sea bass with butter and cheese powder. The strong smell of milk could be smelled from afar. Two plates of roasted fish were carefully placed by the waiter, then he made a polite gesture to indicate that they could start eating, before retreating quietly.

  "It smells so good, Ying'er, would you like some red wine? The specialty here is the strong liquor Kaqiu Sha, a famous Russian wine. If you don't like strong liquor, we can have red wine instead. I know they have a domestic red wine here that's not bad either, let's get some?" Xue stood up to help Liu Ying'er tie her napkin and whispered in her ear.

  "You ordered so much, I don't have the stomach to drink wine, and it would be a waste if we didn't finish it." Liu Ying'er's peasant consciousness acted up again, and she glared at Xue Xiang: "On purpose eating Western food, wanting to see me make a fool of myself, how to use knives and forks, I don't even know, others will laugh at me."

  "Who dares to mock us? Let's have a meal together, the handsome men and beautiful women, and let them watch for free. We won't charge them even if they make money from it."

  "Your mouth is so fast, eat your meal, it's going to get cold soon."

  Liu Ying'er was indeed clumsy in using the knife and fork, even with Xue Xiang teaching her hand in hand. As she struggled, the corners of her eyebrows gathered into a peak, and her face grew colder. Xue Xiang couldn't enjoy his food alone. He took over Liu Ying'er's plate, expertly cutting the fish into thin slices that flew onto the plate like wings. The neighboring diners were drawn to the handsome young couple, and Xue Xiang's skillful technique was on full display, leaving them all stunned and applauding wildly. The commotion attracted the attention of nearby tables, with people frequently turning to look over, wondering what was happening.

  Xue Xiangchao nodded to the neighboring table, acknowledging the applause, and then pushed the sliced roasted fish back in front of Liu Yinger, "Please, esteemed lady."

  Liu Ying'er's face had already turned bright red with embarrassment, and when Xue Xiang teased her, she gave him a sideways glance without saying a word, starting to enjoy her delicious meal. The silverware on their table was specially provided by the restaurant because they had ordered a large quantity of food. Originally, Old Mo had always used silverware in the past, but for some reason (what reason do you think it is, dear reader?), the silverware disappeared quickly, and Old Mo could no longer afford such losses, so he replaced them with ordinary tableware. Liu Ying'er carefully picked up a golden-brown roasted fish with her fork and put it in her mouth; instantly, the rich milk fragrance rushed into her lungs, and the sweet molecules danced on every taste bud. The creamy roasted fish was really delicious, wasn't it? That little scamp really knew how to enjoy himself!

  Dish after dish was presented, and Xue Xiang knew that Liu Ying'er's appetite wasn't big. For each dish, he would move over more than half of it, otherwise she would be full before the next delicious dishes were even served, wouldn't that be a pity? After eating for over an hour, Liu Ying'er put down her knife and fork early, propping up her beautiful head with her small hands, gently looking at Xue Xiang as he devoured his food. She playfully stared at Xue Xiang until he finished the last drop of creamy mushroom soup, then smiled contentedly: "I told you to order so much, serves you right, are you full now? See if you know how to be more frugal in the future."

  Xue Xiang finished the last mouthful of soup, looked up and saw Liu Yinger wiping her mouth. The snow-white napkin wiped over her rosy and plump lips, extremely beautiful.

  "You're full now, I've only had half a meal." Xue Xiang was somewhat surprised. Liu Ying'er's four or five dishes were mostly finished by him, how could he be full already?

  Liu Ying'er was even more surprised and exclaimed: "Heavens, you haven't eaten enough yet?"

  Xue Xiang nodded and said, "This is just a little bit of food, I'm only 30% full." He didn't speak nonsense, it seemed like he had finished seven or eight plates of food, but Western meals are usually large portions with small servings. With his three jin (1.5 kg) appetite for dry goods, how could he be full?

  "Let's not have it, or we can go somewhere else to eat?" Liu Ying'er was really a bit heartbroken. She had looked at the menu prices and estimated that this meal would cost at least 30-40 yuan, which was unacceptable.

  Xue Xiang was speechless, he asked himself if he had reached the point where he had money but nowhere to spend it, but the fairy-like girl in front of him didn't know that. He couldn't say "I'm a millionaire, this is just small change", that would be too embarrassing. Just as Xue Xiang was about to respond, a commotion suddenly broke out at one corner of the restaurant, followed by the sound of shattering ceramic plates.

  ………

  "What? You dare to snatch the dishes I ordered?" Yin Jinghua's face was filled with disdain, his sleek white shirt unbuttoned, revealing a chest full of long hair staring at the newcomer, his feet surrounded by shattered ceramic fragments.

  "Alright, alright, you're quite bold. There's still something we can't get in this city? You don't know who Tian Shao is? Go ask around in the Fourth Ring Road and see what kind of person he is. I think you're just bored with life." A young man with a long face, wearing jeans and a dress shirt, held a lit cigarette in his hand, flicking ash at the three people from Yīn Jīng Huá, while holding a ceramic plate full of dishes in his other hand, circling around to avoid getting ash on it.

  Even a cat and dog dare to bully me? Yin Jinghua was furious, about to pounce on them, but was pulled back by Chen Fusheng, who whispered a few words in his ear. Yin Jinghua's face changed color instantly.