The Remington single-barreled shotgun in Zhuang Rui's hand was likely imported. It had two tulip patterns on the barrel and the portrait of Elifalette Remington, the founder of Remington shotguns, in the center. It was exquisitely crafted. The gun seemed to have been modified, as the barrel was shorter than the original imported version. The entire gun was only about 90 centimeters long and not very heavy. Zhuang Rui weighed it in his hand and estimated it to be around five or six pounds. If he wore a coat and tucked the gun under his arm, it would be completely undetectable unless one looked closely.
Inside the compartment were five boxes of Remington shotgun pellets. The 120 thumb-sized bullets were neatly arranged in five rows. Zhuang Rui reached out and picked up a bullet, preparing to chamber it, but Liu Chuan saw it in the rearview mirror. Startled, Liu Chuan quickly swerved the car to the side of the road and slammed on the brakes.
Zhuang Rui didn't comment on Liu Chuan's actions. The inertia of braking caused him to slam his head against the back of the front seat. Just as he was about to get angry, he heard Liu Chuan shout first: "Hey bro, if you want to play with guns, let's do it when we get to the location. You can play with them however you want, but if it goes off in the car, I'm not wearing a bulletproof vest."
"It's okay, we went through military training in school, so this is familiar to us."
Knowing he was in the wrong, Zhuang Rui boasted that he had only fired three bullets with the old Type 56 semi-automatic rifle during school military training, and his knowledge of the Remington shotgun mostly came from reading about it in military magazines.
"Keep bragging, but don't play with your gun on the street. Put it away quickly, or you'll be in trouble if someone finds it."
Liu Chuan curled his lip and started the car, clearly unconvinced by Zhuang Rui's words. The gun belonged to one of his father's old comrades-in-arms, who had risen to the rank of division commander in the army. Even Liu Chuan himself had rarely handled it before. He had only managed to borrow it after pestering that elder for over half a month during the Spring Festival. It was only because people in the military were bold enough to lend it to Liu Chuan that he dared to do so. If it were a friend from the civilian world, even if they owned the gun, they would never dare to lend it to anyone else.
However, what Liu Chuan said was true. The car they were driving was incredibly flashy and attracted a lot of attention. If someone found out there was a gun in the car, they might call the police. Why invite trouble for no reason?
As Liu Chuan spoke, his eyes were fixed on the GPS global positioning system on the LCD screen on the lower right of the steering wheel. He turned the steering wheel and drove the car off the national highway. It was almost noon, and he planned to go to Hefei City to eat something and rest before continuing his journey. Although there was plenty of food in the car, it was all reserved for when they entered Tibet. Besides, eating those vacuum-packed fast food items was far less comfortable than finding a place to drink something hot.
Chapter 50 Bao Gong Fish, Cao Cao Chicken (Part 1)
There are two routes to choose from when driving from Pengcheng to Tibet. One route goes through Henan and Shaanxi to Xi'an, then takes the expressway from Xi'an to Chengdu, Sichuan, and then from Chengdu to Tibet. However, once you enter Shaanxi Province, the roads are not very good, with many winding mountain roads.
Considering Zhuang Rui's driving skills, Liu Chuan rejected this route. Zhuang Rui was a little disappointed, as he had originally planned to visit his college roommate, Lao San, in Xi'an on the way. They hadn't seen each other for almost two years since graduation.
The second route is to enter Anhui Province, and after arriving in Hefei, take the Shanghai-Chengdu Expressway directly. It passes through Hefei, Lu'an, Wuhan, Jingmen, Wanzhou, and Nanchong before reaching Chengdu. The total length is about 1,600 kilometers. This route is the fastest and has the best road conditions, making it suitable for people like Zhuang Rui who have obtained their driver's licenses but haven't driven much to practice.
"You rascal, why don't we just find somewhere to eat and be done with it? Where are you going with all this winding paths?"
Zhuang Rui saw Liu Chuan driving around the streets of Hefei, passing several restaurants without stopping, and asked him curiously.
"Hey, no rush. I'll take you to try some local Hefei snacks. You can rest well this afternoon, and I'll drive all night while you sleep. You can drive all day tomorrow, and we should be in Chengdu soon..."
Liu Chuan was clearly familiar with Hefei. After driving for about 20 minutes, he drove the Hummer into the parking lot of a hotel that looked very luxurious. After getting out of the car and entering the hotel, what Liu Chuan did left Zhuang Rui puzzled. After checking into a room, he pulled Zhuang Rui away from the hotel.
"Hey, where are you going? You were so anxious before we arrived, but now you're not in such a hurry anymore. Aren't we going to eat here?"
Zhuang Rui hadn't expected that Liu Chuan had come to this hotel just to rest in the afternoon, rather than to have a meal here.
Upon hearing this, Liu Chuan curled his lip and said, "Only an idiot would eat at a hotel like that. The food is expensive and the price is steep; they rip you off without you even seeing the blood. The place I'm taking you to is not only reasonably priced, but you can also eat authentic Hefei cuisine. Just come with me."
The place Liu Chuan mentioned wasn't far, only a five or six-minute walk from the hotel. The restaurant occupied a considerable area, a two-story building, but the entrance wasn't large. Above the entrance hung a simple sign that read "Local Cuisine Restaurant." When Zhuang Rui went inside, he found the business to be surprisingly good. The hall, which was about four or five hundred square meters in size, was completely full of people, and more than a dozen waiters were bustling between the tables serving dishes. If he had only looked at the restaurant from the outside, Zhuang Rui would never have believed that the business inside was so good.
"What are you standing there for? Let's go."
Liu Chuan pulled Zhuang Rui, who was stunned on the spot, and walked towards the second floor.
The second floor of the restaurant had the same layout as the first floor, except that it was divided into small private rooms. Liu Chuan didn't call for a waiter and led Zhuang Rui down to the rooms one by one. When they reached the door of a private room, they stopped and pushed the door open and went in.
The private room wasn't big, probably only able to seat seven or eight people at most. The soundproofing didn't seem to be very good; the laughter and conversation from the next room could be heard very clearly. However, the room was very warm. After Liu Chuan went in, he took off his thick coat and looked at Zhuang Rui smugly, saying, "How about that, buddy? I'm pretty good at this, aren't I? I can tell this room is empty just by listening."
Zhuang Rui suppressed a laugh, nodded in agreement with Liu Chuan's statement, and then said, "Your ears are good. I think we shouldn't go to Tibet. Let's just go back from here. When we get back, you can just lie in Brother Song's villa all day and be his Tibetan Mastiff."
As he spoke, Zhuang Rui burst into laughter. He had noticed earlier in the corridor that all the private rooms had signs that said "occupied" hanging on the handles. Liu Chuan must have chosen this room because he saw that the sign was flipped over. This guy was actually bragging about that, so Zhuang Rui naturally had to put him down.
"You're the Tibetan Mastiff, you can't say anything nice. Can't you let your buddy show off a little..."
Liu Chuan retorted angrily, but before he could finish speaking, the door to the private room was pushed open from the outside.
The waitress who came in was a young girl. She poured tea for the two of them and then took out the menu. Liu Chuan waved his hand and said in a affected tone, mimicking the Hefei dialect, "No need for the menu. Bring a large plate of 'Cao Cao Chicken,' a 'Bao Gong Fish,' and 'Li Hongzhang Stew.' Also, one serving each of the four kinds of snacks: sesame seed cake, baked rice cake, 'cun jin' (a type of pastry), and boiled white slices. Okay, bring them on."
Liu Chuan quickly ordered the dishes without ordering any alcohol. Although he and Zhuang Rui both had a good tolerance for alcohol, they were out of town and had to drive, so Liu Chuan knew his limits.
There are some differences between Hefei dialect and Pengcheng dialect. Apart from knowing only the 26 letters of the English alphabet, Liu Chuan is very good at learning local dialects. At least the girl in front of him did not realize that Liu Chuan was from out of town. Seeing that the dishes he ordered were all famous local specialties, she agreed, refilled their water, and then went out.
"Hey rascal, what kind of dishes did you order? Are we having a big feast today?"
Zhuang Rui was currently quite confused by the names of the dishes Liu Chuan had ordered. Cao Cao, Bao Gong, and Li Hongzhang—these names all sounded rather sinister. Only the desserts ordered later were somewhat normal.
Liu Chuan gave Zhuang Rui a disdainful look and said, "You're so ignorant, aren't you? Let me tell you, the dishes I ordered are all local specialties of Hefei. You can't find them anywhere else. Take this 'Bao Gong Fish' for example. It comes from the Bao River, the moat around the Bao Gong Temple. The crucian carp from this river have black backs, which look a bit like Bao Heizi's black face, so people call it Bao Gong Fish..."
"What is the origin of Cao Cao Chicken?"
Zhuang Rui listened with fascination; he was amazed that a dish could have such a legend.
"Speaking of 'Cao Cao Chicken,' it is a traditional famous dish that originated in the Three Kingdoms period. Legend has it that during the Three Kingdoms period, Hefei was a strategic location due to its location at the border of Wu and Chu. After Cao Cao unified the north, he led an army of 830,000 south to fight against that guy named Sun. When he arrived in Hefei, this young man was so busy with military and political affairs that he suffered from a headache and was bedridden."
At that time, Cao Cao's chef followed the prescription left by Hua Tuo, selected local chickens from Hefei, and carefully cooked them with Chinese medicine to make medicinal chicken. Cao Cao found the taste delicious and liked it very much. Gradually, his illness was cured and his body recovered quickly. After that, he ate this chicken with every meal.
So, brother, what we're eating today is all about. If Cao Cao were in the Three Kingdoms period, he'd be practically an emperor.
To be honest, Liu Chuan is quite the foodie. He never passed his history exams from junior high to high school, but now he can actually quote classical texts, which has made Zhuang Rui look at him with some new respect.
Chapter 51 Bao Gong Fish, Cao Cao Chicken (Part 2)
While the two were talking, the "Bao Gong Fish" was actually ready. The waiter pushed a small cart and put the "Bao Gong Fish" and several plates of braised pork with peanuts and other side dishes on the table. After seeing the "Bao Gong Fish" with his own eyes, Zhuang Rui realized that it was actually a cold dish.
Actually, this dish is a traditional cold dish from Hefei. It was created by researching and restoring the Bao family cuisine and is a testament to Bao Zheng's incorruptibility and simple lifestyle. The dish uses small crucian carp from Baohe River, lotus root from Baohe River, scallions, ginger slices, soy sauce, rock sugar, vinegar, Shaoxing wine, sesame oil, etc. as ingredients. The ingredients are sealed with lotus leaves, covered and boiled in a pot over high heat until dry, then simmered over low heat for about 5 hours. After cooling completely, it is inverted onto a large plate and drizzled with sesame oil. 'Bao Gong Fish' is considered a signature dish of this restaurant, and many customers always order it. Therefore, even though it is made in advance every day, there are never any leftovers.
The lotus root served as a side dish in Baohe is also unique, as it is all broken and without fibers, which is said to be a symbol of Bao Gong's "iron face and impartiality".
Zhuang Rui had only eaten some steamed buns and fried dough sticks early in the morning, and he was already starving. Since he wasn't drinking, he started eating right away. He picked up a crucian carp and put it in his mouth. A delicious taste immediately traveled through Zhuang Rui's taste buds to his brain. Moreover, the fish, which had been simmered over low heat for more than five hours, was already cooked until the bones were soft and the meat was tender. It melted in his mouth and had a faint fragrance of lotus.
"good!"
Zhuang Rui couldn't help but praise it, his chopsticks moving non-stop as he picked up another fish and put it in his mouth. Liu Chuan, who was standing next to him, had wanted to hear Zhuang Rui praise it a few more times, but in the blink of an eye, half of the 'Bao Gong Fish' was gone. Liu Chuan hurriedly grabbed his chopsticks and started fighting with Zhuang Rui for the leftovers.
The second dish served was "Li Hongzhang's Mixed Stew." When it was served, it looked reddish and glossy, and smelled delicious, making the two men's mouths water. By this time, the "Bao Gong Fish" had already been eaten by the two men. Having learned his lesson earlier, Liu Chuan started eating voraciously as soon as the dish was served. Zhuang Rui originally wanted this guy to continue explaining, but seeing Liu Chuan's actions, he knew that the Nationalists were very cunning and would not fall for it.
After grabbing the last piece of shiitake mushroom and putting it in his mouth, Liu Chuan smacked his lips, looked at Zhuang Rui triumphantly, and said, "Let me tell you about this dish now, buddy. Damn, if our history teacher had treated us to a meal every day back in school, would I have failed my history exam?"
Zhuang Rui: "..."
The dish "Li Hongzhang's Stew" also has a story behind it. Legend has it that when Li Hongzhang went to Russia to attend the coronation ceremony of Nicholas II and visited Europe and America along the way, he ate Western food for all three meals a day, which he found very unaccustomed to. After arriving in Europe and America, Li Hongzhang instructed his accompanying chefs to cook the vegetables and meats he had purchased locally in a "one-pot" manner, following the Chinese cooking method. The resulting "one-pot" dish was delicious and palatable, suitable for both drinking and eating with rice, and it did not delay his official business due to the tedious frying, stir-frying, boiling, and cooking. Li Hongzhang simply ate this every day. Sometimes when he entertained foreigners, when they asked him the name of the dish after the meal, Li Hongzhang would casually say "stew". Since then, many people in Europe and America have known about the famous Chinese dish called "stew".
After Li Hongzhang returned to China, he continued to instruct his family to cook this dish often, and he frequently used it to entertain guests. Subsequently, "Mixed Stew" became popular throughout the country, and "Li Hongzhang's Mixed Stew" became a signature dish of Hefei.
The final main course was naturally "Cao Cao Chicken." This dish uses high-quality local young chicken as the main ingredient, along with Gujing Gongjiu from Anhui and 18 kinds of appetizing and health-promoting ingredients such as gastrodia elata, eucommia ulmoides, shiitake mushrooms, winter bamboo shoots, Sichuan peppercorns, star anise, cinnamon, fennel, scallions, and ginger. It is nutritious and has the effect of dietary therapy and health care. After Zhuang Rui finished eating, he immediately felt a warm feeling in his stomach, which was very comfortable.
"You rascal, I'm starting to envy you. Putting everything else aside, the food from all over the country is truly as good as it sounds."
Zhuang Rui patted his slightly full stomach and looked at Liu Chuan, saying that these were his true feelings. Just in Hefei alone, one could find such delicious food. Moreover, China is so vast, with its eight major cuisines—Shandong, Guangdong, Sichuan, Jiangsu, Fujian, Zhejiang, Hunan, and Anhui—each having its own strengths. Only someone like Liu Chuan, who travels around all the time, can taste these authentic regional specialties. Although there are restaurants serving various cuisines in some big cities, the taste is ultimately different.
Just like Quanjude Peking duck in Beijing, its branches have spread all over the country, but when people go to Beijing, they still prefer to eat at the original Beijing store. The reason is simple: to eat the original flavor.
"Alright, wood, stop making fun of me. You see me driving around every day, looking quite comfortable and carefree, but you have no idea how hard it is to go out. Like last time when I drove to Kunming, one of the four major police dog bases in China, to buy a puppy, my car broke down on the mountain road, and there was no cell phone signal. I was completely helpless, without food or water for a whole day and night."
Liu Chuan still felt a bit emotional when he talked about the past. That time, he took a shortcut and drove on a side road, but after his car broke down, he couldn't flag down any passing cars. He listened to the howling of wolves all night in the desolate mountains, which scared him quite a bit. This time, he asked Zhuang Rui to join him on his trip to Tibet, hoping to gain some courage.
Upon hearing this, Zhuang Rui understood why Liu Chuan had packed so much food in the Hummer; it turned out this guy had suffered psychological trauma.
The portion of Cao Cao Chicken was quite generous. After the two finished eating, they couldn't eat any more of the desserts that followed, so they simply asked the waiter to pack them up to take on the road. When they paid the bill, the meal only cost a little over a hundred yuan. Zhuang Rui even considered packing up a few more portions of the dishes to take away.
"Waiter, are there any large private rooms upstairs? Our boss, Mr. Zhao, is treating us today, so please prepare one quickly."
After Zhuang Rui and Liu Chuan paid their bill, they had just reached the second-floor stairwell when they were greeted by seven or eight people. They seemed to be regular customers, and the waiter was smiling and greeting them.
"Boss Zhao, you've really hit the jackpot this time. You'll make at least 100,000 or 200,000 yuan in profit. Don't forget your brothers when you make your fortune!"
The person who had just called for the waiter spoke to a middle-aged, overweight man who was surrounded by a crowd.
"Finding a bargain?"
These words reached Zhuang Rui's ears as they passed by, immediately catching his attention. Ever since the spiritual energy appeared in his eyes, he had paid much more attention to the antique trade.
After leaving the restaurant, Zhuang Rui said to Liu Chuan, "You rascal, did you hear what those guys were saying? Looks like I'm not the only one who's lucky; there are plenty of others like me."
"Of course! Don't you see where this is? That's Sihui Tower. All the antique dealers in Anhui gather here. Every day, some people get ripped off, and some people make a fortune. It's all very normal here."
Liu Chuan pointed to a five-story pagoda that was tens of meters tall not far away and replied dismissively.
Chapter 52 City God Temple
"There's an antique market here? How did you know?"
Upon hearing Liu Chuan's words, Zhuang Rui felt a surge of excitement. It seemed a bit unreasonable to enter a treasure trove and return empty-handed, relying solely on the spiritual energy in his eyes. Judging from Liu Chuan's words, this market was much larger than Pengcheng's, and perhaps there would be more items available.
"Hey, what a novel question! Not only is there an antique market here, but also the largest pet and bird market in Hefei. I come here seven or eight times a year, how could I not know? The pet turtles and hamsters in my shop are from here, which I bought a few days ago. Otherwise, how would I do business? Alright, enough rambling, go back and get some sleep so you can get ready tonight..."
Liu Chuan explained impatiently for a few minutes. Now that he was full, he just wanted to go back to the hotel and get a good night's sleep. Driving all night was not a pleasant experience. Although the Hummer was sturdy, if it hit something at a speed of about 200 kilometers per hour, either someone else would be unlucky or he would be unlucky.
After hearing Liu Chuan's words, Zhuang Rui finally understood. It turned out that this guy was so familiar with this place. Just now, seeing him wandering around the streets and alleys looking at cars, he thought he had lived here for a long time.
Zhuang Rui looked at the tall tower called Sihui Tower that Liu Chuan had mentioned and said, "You rascal, you go back to the hotel first. I'm going to wander around the antique market here. It's rare for me to come to Hefei. If people ask me what I did in Hefei, am I supposed to just say I ate a meal, took a nap, and left?"
Liu Chuan paused for a moment upon hearing this, his eyes darting around. He chuckled and patted Zhuang Rui on the shoulder, adopting a lecturing tone, saying, "Do you think I don't know what you're up to? Let me tell you this upfront: I know a few people in Hefei, but if anything happens, it's definitely not as convenient as dealing with things at home. I know you want to try your luck and find a bargain, but the antique business has its rules, so don't cause any trouble."
Liu Chuan didn't object to Zhuang Rui wanting to go to the market. After all, Zhuang Rui could sleep in the car at night when Liu Chuan drove. The Hummer's shock absorption system was excellent, and driving on the highway felt almost like riding a train.
"Get lost! Every time we're together, it's always you who gets into trouble and I'm the one cleaning up your mess. Alright, alright, go back now. Leave your phone with me, and I'll call you from your hotel room if anything comes up."
Zhuang Rui suddenly realized that he might need to buy a cell phone. A regular phone would only cost a little over 2,000 yuan, which might have been a significant expense for him a few months ago, but now it was nothing. Only now did Zhuang Rui begin to realize the kind of awareness one should have with a net worth of several million.
Liu Chuan took out his phone, held it in his hand for a moment, and then, instead of handing it to Zhuang Rui, entered a number into the phone before handing it to Zhuang Rui, saying, "If you need anything, just call the hotel front desk and have them send someone to room 302 to call me. I've entered the number into my phone."
"The hotel room doesn't have an extension phone?"
Zhuang Rui didn't even get to his hotel room before Liu Chuan dragged him to dinner. However, he found it hard to believe that such a luxuriously decorated hotel wouldn't have a telephone in the room.
"What are you talking about? It's not like I'm staying in a private guesthouse, how could I not have a phone? I'm just afraid of being bothered by those 'Sir, do you need any services? Do you have the Nine Heavens of Ice and Fire?' calls. Oh, by the way, you're still a virgin, right? Hmm, I'll arrange one for you later." Zhuang Rui laughed heartily at Liu Chuan's affected, high-pitched manner of imitating a prostitute. Hearing his next words and seeing his lewd grin, he couldn't help but kick him in the butt, saying, "Get lost! I'll just wander around the market for a bit and then come back. If I see a prostitute when I come in, I'll call the police and have Lei Lei come to the police station to pick you up."
After dodging Zhuang Rui's kick, Liu Chuan was about to leave when he seemed to remember something. He turned around, looked around to make sure no one was watching, took out a thick wad of RMB from his handbag (estimated to be around ten thousand), unzipped Zhuang Rui's leather jacket, stuffed it into an inside pocket, and said, "I know you don't have any cash. Don't withdraw money here, you'll attract attention. Keep this money close to your body. If you're not sure about something, don't take it out. Don't worry about the manuscript from last time, but if you find anything good today, you have to count me in."
"Alright, go back to sleep. I'm having a lucky streak lately, I might just find a treasure."
Zhuang Rui was also a little touched. Although Liu Chuan had many flaws, he was an impeccable person. This was why he was able to make a name for himself in the Pengcheng antique market at such a young age.
Liu Chuan nodded, lit a cigarette and put it in his mouth, then leisurely returned to the hotel. He had complete confidence in Zhuang Rui. From childhood to adulthood, no matter what Zhuang Rui did, he always planned carefully before acting and rarely suffered losses. In addition, in recent years, the collecting craze has become popular, and with more people paying attention, the City God Temple Antique Market has become much more regulated. Those forced buying and selling, and those who cause trouble and extort money, have basically stopped happening.
Zhuang Rui zipped up his jacket and headed toward the Sihui Tower that Liu Chuan had mentioned. As the saying goes, "looking at a mountain makes a horse run itself to death," and although it looked close, it took Zhuang Rui more than 20 minutes to reach the entrance of the City God Temple on the outskirts of the tower. Flagpoles stood in front of the City God Temple, and stone lions faced each other at the entrance. The gate was wide open, and from the outside, one could see incense burning in front of the tower, with a constant stream of visitors.
Zhuang Rui asked a passerby and learned that the antique market at the City God Temple was located to the left of the "Sihui Tower." The entire antique market could be seen from the top of the tower. Intrigued, he decided not to rush to the antique market and simply took out fifteen yuan to buy a ticket. He also picked up a brochure about the "Sihui Tower" from the ticket office and followed the tourists who came to worship Guanyin Bodhisattva into the City God Temple.
Upon entering the main gate, Zhuang Rui saw that the entire temple was built around the "Sihui Building." There were five rooms on each side of the main gate, all of which were relatively small, like two ears hanging on either side of the gate. The introduction called these rooms "ear rooms," which was a very apt description. Many old houses still retain ear rooms. However, in the past, the main house in the middle was for the elders, while the ear rooms were for the younger generation, reflecting a difference in status. Now, the main house is used for living, while the ear rooms are used for storing things.
Walking further in, he saw several opera stages, with people performing on them. However, Zhuang Rui didn't have time to look closely at the time. Holding the brochure of the City God Temple in his hand, he walked towards the Pagoda Hall located in the very center of the City God Temple.