The Game of Life-Chapter 652 - 650: Incense (4000+)
Chapter 652 -650: Incense (4000+)
If someone had asked Jiang Feng what flavor his birthday tasted like, before today, he might have answered with pork knuckle or longevity noodles, but after today, Jiang Feng’s answer would have just one—
Cream flavored.
Be it mousse ice cream, Black Forest chocolate cake, or the most traditional fruit cake, or even the recently popular old-fashioned cake, they all shared a common essence—the cream.
Oh, you say old-fashioned cake doesn’t include cream?
Jiang Feng wouldn’t know about that; he was already stuffed before he could get to the old-fashioned cake.
...
Ji Yue told Jiang Feng that, according to an incomplete count, 11 people had ordered cakes for him. But that was an incomplete count indeed, because Jiang Feng received a total of 13 cakes, the last one personally delivered by Wang Hao.
He ordered a very large, three-layered, cheap, big, and very cost-effective cake that was perfect for a cake fight. He intended it as a surprise for Jiang Feng, but it turned out to be the final blow.
There was no way Jiang Feng could finish 13 cakes, and even Jiang Zaidi and Jiang Shoucheng would have to wave the white flag and surrender in the face of 13 cakes. But these cakes were everyone’s heartfelt sentiments toward him. Although these feelings might not bring a sincere smile of thanks from Jiang Feng, they were still sentiments all the same.
Jiang Feng could only symbolically cut a small piece from each cake to taste it, but even so, by the end, he couldn’t tell if he was eating matcha cake, mousse cake, or perhaps the vanilla lemon flavor cake.
What his tongue could relay to him was just sweet, greasy, and creamy.
In addition to 13 cakes, Jiang Feng also received other gifts from the employees of Taifeng Building. Perhaps because he was the boss, both people who were close to him and those who were not had prepared a small gift, like thermal cups, crystal balls, cocktails, pens, and such, varying in price and ranging from decorative to practical.
Wu Minqi gave him a pair of shoes, which surprisingly matched the clothes that Mrs. Wang Xiulian had bought him perfectly. Jiang Feng even suspected they had discussed it beforehand. Zhang Guanghang gave Jiang Feng an expensive pair of headphones, reasoning that the sound effects might not be very good when Jiang Feng used those ten-plus yuan headphones to watch dramas.
As for why sound effects matter when watching dramas, maybe that’s just part of the simple and unadorned life of the affluent.
“Son, are you hungry? If you are, dad will go to the kitchen and get the Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall that your grandpa prepared for you!” Seeing that Jiang Feng had finally finished with all the gifts and waiting for an opportunity, Jiang Jiankang took the initiative to move in, rubbing his hands excitedly as he asked with anticipation.
Jiang Feng: ?
“Jiang Jiankang, what are you standing there for? Come over here and help with the barbecue. No one is tending to the skewers over here!” Wang Xiulian shouted from beside the grill. She didn’t know what Jiang Jiankang was saying to Jiang Feng, but her instinct told her it couldn’t be anything good.
With his wife calling, Jiang Jiankang had no choice but to walk obediently to the grill and start barbecuing skewers.
“Wife, should we grill the lamb skewers first or the beef ones?” Jiang Jiankang had also sold barbecue in his early years to make ends meet.
“Start with the lamb skewers, sprinkle some chili powder, and add plenty of cumin. Remember to turn them frequently. There’s quite a bit of fat in this lamb; don’t end up grilling just big chunks of inedible fat,” Wang Xiulian had also sold skewers with Jiang Jiankang in the past to make ends meet.
“What were you just telling the son about?” Wang Xiulian felt that the skewers Ji Yue and the others were making were not quite professional, so she started to re-skewer the lamb meat herself.
“I was just reminding the boy not to forget to eat the Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall in the kitchen. I turned off the stove before I left, and it’ll get cold if he forgets about it,” said Jiang Jiankang.
“Don’t even think about touching that Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall. It’s specially made by dad for Feng to help him recover from his illness,” Wang Xiulian said.
“Recover from illness?” Jiang Jiankang was puzzled; what kind of illness required eating Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall to recover? He’d like to have such an illness too.
“Didn’t we think Feng was sick before? Now we know he isn’t, but dad didn’t know that when he made the Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall,” Wang Xiulian said as she came to a realization, but she still forbade Jiang Jiankang from getting any ideas, “Even if Feng isn’t sick now, he’s had a hard time lately and should eat something good to replenish his body. You, as a father, even have the nerve to covet your son’s stuff. Turn over the lamb skewers; didn’t you sprinkle too much chili powder?”
“I’ve been a son to dad for nearly fifty years, and I’ve never had dad’s Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall. Feng, who’s been his grandson for just over twenty years, is getting to eat it; how could I not feel envious?” Jiang Jiankang voiced his grievances.
“Envy all you want, but don’t even think about it!” Wang Xiulian stood firm, moving her gaze away from the lamb skewers and then looked up to see Jiang Feng.
Jiang Jiankang also saw Jiang Feng and said enthusiastically, “Son, are you hungry? Just wait two more minutes, the lamb skewers will be ready soon!”
Jiang Feng: …
He wasn’t only disinterested in lamb kebabs now, but also felt sick and full.
Although Jiang Feng would occasionally indulge in a sweet little cake to satisfy his sweet tooth, gorging on so many cakes at once was a first for him. He wasn’t as fond of sweets as Jiang Jiankang and Ji Xia, and now all Jiang Feng felt was the cream churning in his stomach, rushing up his esophagus into his mouth.
If he were to add a slightly fatty, cumin and chili powder-dusted, somewhat gamey lamb kebab now, it would probably be double the trouble.
“No, no.” Jiang Feng waved his hands repeatedly.
“I just suddenly remembered that before Grandpa went to Yonghe House to eat, he seemed to turn off the fire for Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall, I am afraid that if it cools down, it won’t taste as good. Shall we go to the kitchen and eat it first?” Jiang Feng said.
Jiang Jiankang’s eyes moistened, and he even felt like making a pork knuckle on the spot for Jiang Feng to eat.
When it came to eating Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall, Jiang Feng invited not only his parents, but also Wu Minqi, Zhang Guanghang, Ji Yue, Ji Xia, Ji Xue, and Wang Hao.
If it had been in the past, when Sir had made Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall for Jiang Feng, he would have at most invited Wu Minqi and his parents to secretly finish off a pot. But times had changed; today was not quite like usual—Jiang Feng was full.
He couldn’t even think about half a pot now; fitting even one bowl into himself would be considered good.
Since he couldn’t eat it all, it was better to generously share with family and good friends, Jiang Feng thought and acted accordingly.
And so, a group of people snuck into the kitchen, stealthily, with the scent of lamb kebabs, beef kebabs, Turkish roast meat, cumin, and chili powder.
There was a pot on the stove.
A heavy and still warm pot, which looked somewhat ancient.
Jiang Feng had seen this pot before; the last time he saw it, it made a whole train carriage of kids cry with envy.
Everyone was excited.
Even Wu Minqi, who had tasted both “chicken tofu pudding” and “boiled cabbage in clear soup,” felt a bit excited; despite having plenty of boiled cabbage, she had never tasted a top-notch, carefully prepared, delicious Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall. After all, the Wu Family did not know how to make it.
The most excited of all was Jiang Jiankang.
Jiang Jianguo had been beaten as a child because of boiled cabbage, and Jiang Jiankang had also been beaten because of Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall. The difference was that Jiang Jianguo was beaten for wanting to eat a dish he had never seen before, whereas Jiang Jiankang was beaten for wanting to eat a dish that had once been placed before him.
Jiang Jiankang had also seen this pot, when Sir was still a chef at the state-owned restaurant serving leaders. Back then, Jiang Jiankang was already helping at the restaurant, and while he was keeping an eye on the fire control for his grandfather, he had attempted to steal a taste and ended up enjoying the same treatment as his brother had years before, getting strapped to the windowsill and whipped with a belt—first by Sir, and when he tired, by Mrs. Jiang.
Of course, Jiang Jiankang wasn’t punished for trying to steal a bite but because at that time, Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall couldn’t have its lid lifted. Young Jiang Jiankang didn’t understand this, which is why he got such a harsh beating.
Decades had passed, and it was the same pot with the same dish before him, but looking at this Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall brought back a flood of memories, and his eyes moistened, his mouth filled with saliva.
Right now, he didn’t want anything else but a taste.
A big taste!
A taste full of sea cucumber, abalone, and spicy fish lips.
“Son, shall we lift the lid?” Jiang Jiankang was eager.
Although Jiang Feng didn’t understand why his father suddenly got so excited, he obediently moved forward and carefully lifted the Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall from the stove onto the relatively stable kitchen counter.
Taking a bowl and spoon from Ji Yue, the ace waiter, Jiang Feng neatly arranged the bowls, as if conducting some sort of mysterious ritual, and the atmosphere immediately became solemn and respectful.
Lift the lid.
The fragrance wafts through the air.
Even though Jiang Feng had smelled similar scents before, he couldn’t help but take deep breaths, as if smelling it more now would make it taste even better later.
When it comes to the technique of preparing Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall, Jiang Weiguo certainly wasn’t as skilled as Master Sun. Even though Jiang Weiguo had now far surpassed Master Sun in age, Taifeng Building would prepare a pot of Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall every day, and Jiang Weiguo might not get the chance to make it even once in ten years, so his skill level was definitely far below that of Master Sun’s.
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But it was still very fragrant.
The aroma of seafood, the aroma of meats, the smell of proteins, the fragrance of broth, the scent of fat, the most primal scent of humans craving the richness and deliciousness of meat.
There was a time when Jiang Feng could only smell this kind of fragrance in his memories, a scent that you could smell but not touch, and certainly not taste. Now, the source of this fragrance was laid out before him.
He felt he could eat a pot.
No, ten pots!
Jiang Feng began to carefully examine the Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall in the pot.
Unlike the one he previously had at Jubao Building, which was made hastily with inadequate technique and forced thickness from heavy starch, the pot of Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall in front of him looked different at first glance.
It was a whole, yet comprised of individual parts.
Every ingredient, whether it was a whole abalone, sliced sea cucumber, chunky scallops, sliced ham, mushrooms that seemed like supporting actors or fish maw that seemed to have melded with the soup, looked vibrant and distinct, easily identifiable at a glance. Yet they also harmonized perfectly with one another, essential in their own right; missing any one of them would make one feel uneasy, as if they were strung together with sugar threads comparable to those on sweet and sour yams, closely connected, even the colors blending together, and that’s why they could emit such a rich aroma.
The lotus leaves used to seal the pot were also imbued with this fragrance, as if they were a part of the Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall itself, tempting one to tear a piece off and taste it.
Jiang Feng began to serve the dish into bowls.
He wasn’t a professional when it came to portioning the dish, and he couldn’t possibly ensure that each bowl contained the same amount or the same ingredients. The type of ingredients and their amount depended on fate, whoever Jiang Feng served it to, it was theirs.
For the others, this was a Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall that had fallen from the sky; getting to eat it was a win, and to quibble over more trivial matters would seem petty and completely miss the point.
For a moment, the kitchen was very quiet.
A bite of abalone, so fresh!
A scallop, fresh!
A piece of bamboo shoot, also fresh!
A big bite of mushroom, still fresh!
Unlike the freshness of chicken bean curd, which was light, Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall was rich.
One was the epitome of clear soup, the other a feast for the gluttonous.
Jiang Feng was full to begin with, but after eating the Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall, he felt hungry again.
All eight people present left the pot empty with less than half a bowl each, everyone caught in that frustrating state of having eaten but not being satisfied, desperately wanting more but with none left to eat.
But what Jiang Feng and the others didn’t know was, as agonizing as they felt, those outside felt even more tormented.
They had forgotten to close the kitchen door when they came in.
The children outside were already crying from craving.
It wasn’t just the kids at the barbecue restaurant who were crying out of hunger, the children sitting by the window at Yonghe House were crying as well.
All because Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall was too fragrant, and all because there was a breeze today.
Sitting by the window on the second floor, Xu Cheng felt he had chosen an excellent spot, where he could not only taste delicious dishes but also lean over to gaze at the night sky while breathing in the fresh air and enjoying the gentle breeze from outside. Suddenly, the Buddha’s Temptation shrimp in his bowl seemed less fragrant.
As a senior gourmet critic, he could of course identify the scent that wafted over.
It was Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall, and it could compete with the standard of Jubao Building from years ago.
It’s not that there were no other restaurants in the country that made good Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall, but in different places, at different restaurants, chefs with different lineages all made Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall differently. One second earlier, Xu Cheng was commiserating with Peng Changping about how Sun Guanyun’s departure might cause the Sun Family’s Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall to be lost, and the next second he smelled the aroma of the Sun Family’s Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall.
“What a fragrant Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall, what’s the restaurant across the street?” Peng Changping put down his chopsticks. “You didn’t tell me earlier there was a Chinese restaurant of this caliber right across.
Xu Cheng had never paid attention to the restaurant opposite Yonghe House before. He took a few steps to the window, looked out, and then started to question life.
“It’s a self-service barbecue restaurant,” Xu Cheng said.
Peng Changping: ?
He hadn’t been back to the country for many years. Had self-service barbecue restaurants in the country developed to this level?
“Do self-service barbecue restaurants in the country sell Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall?” Peng Changping also started to doubt his life.
“Generally… they don’t,” Xu Cheng didn’t expect there to be another establishment in Beiping City with such strength that he was unaware of.
“Why don’t we go over and take a look?” Peng Changping smiled. “The chef who can make such Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall should be someone I know. Maybe the restaurant across the street is owned by the younger generation of one of my old friends. You can smell it and certainly won’t be able to sit still.”
Xu Cheng got up immediately, helping Peng Changping to his feet.
Peng Changping waved his hand, showing no sign of fatigue from someone of his advanced age, “No need to help, I can sit on a plane for over ten hours, just standing up is nothing.”
Xu Cheng and Peng Changping headed together toward the staircase. As Xu Cheng walked, he cast a glance nearby unintentionally and felt that the group of elderly people sitting against the wall looked somewhat like the two Master Jiangs from Taifeng Building.
“By the way, when are we going to Taifeng Building to meet with the two Master Jiangs you told me about?” Xu Cheng was about to take another look when Peng Changping spoke.
“Let’s go tomorrow. Taifeng Building is closed for team building today, I called and asked yesterday,” Xu Cheng said, without giving it much thought.
How could Taifeng Building possibly come to Yonghe House for team building? Impossible, he must have been mistaken.
“I must also thank you for being willing to make a special trip over here. I originally wanted to invite the two Master Jiangs from Taifeng Building to your place, but Master Jiang Weiming was seriously ill a while ago and couldn’t withstand such long-distance travel, so I had to trouble you,” Xu Cheng said. “Other than you, I really couldn’t find a better judge.”
“I wasn’t keen on coming at first, after all, with my old bones, such traveling is indeed a bit too much for me,” Peng Changping laughed. “But since you told me on the phone that one of the Master Jiangs should be in the top 10, and they are the sons of Jiang Chengde, of course, I should come.”
“Do you know Jiang Chengde?” Xu Cheng asked while helping Peng Changping down the stairs.
“How could I know him? It was my father who knew him, and he held him in high regard. My father was once guided by Master Jiang Chengde when he was young and he always told me that he was the true number one in Chinese cuisine, unsurpassed by anyone, just a pity that he disappeared early on.”
“I’m really curious about the standard of his sons.”
