The restaurant was huge, styled like a simple factory built with colored steel awnings. Beneath the awnings, tables and chairs filled the space—it could probably accommodate six to seven hundred people at its peak. At this mealtime, there were only about two hundred people scattered around, most of whom had arrived in several large buses parked outside. Many of them were just sitting and had not gotten their food.
The dishes were big-pot style, not much different from a high school cafeteria.
This reminded Zhou Li of a noodle restaurant in the school's commercial street. They also served meals there at noon—ten yuan each, allowing a choice of two meat and one vegetable dish plus an egg. It was roughly enough to fill one up.
Although the restaurant claimed to offer unlimited servings, how much could one really eat?
Suddenly, Huai Xu nudged Zhou Li with his elbow on his right side and blurted out in Yi Province dialect, "If you're not eager to eat, there's something wrong with your head."
To his left was Brother Nan.
The trio had been attracting a lot of attention since they walked in, appealing to men and women, young and old alike. The younger crowd was better. The uncles, aunts, and grandparents, however, stared without even blinking, not minding at all if you caught them.
Zhou Li looked around a bit and picked up some green vegetables, spicy shredded potatoes, and konjac braised duck.
When serving the vegetables, the auntie was very generous, cheerily telling Zhou Li to eat his fill and even complimenting him on his looks. But when it came to the meat dishes, she seemed to forget her own words. She even gave a little shake of the spoon as she served, ending up with only four pieces of meat in Zhou Li's bowl.
So stingy! Zhou Li grumbled inwardly but was too embarrassed to say anything.
However, Huai Xu beside him couldn't hold back, his voice tinged with urgency, "Add some more meat, a bit more meat..."
The auntie was still smiling, unruffled. "Come back for more if you finish. Don't rush, eat up..."
Huai Xu thought for a moment and gave an OK sign with his hand.
Brother Nan, however, stood there with her plate, not moving. She was full of curiosity about the earrings and necklace the auntie wore. "Sister, is your jewelry unique to your ethnic minority?"
"Yes, yes."
"What ethnicity? It's really beautiful!"
"..."
Seeing Brother Nan still chatting with the auntie, Zhou Li didn't bother waiting. He glanced down at Tuanzi by his feet, and then he and Huai Xu carried their plates to find a table.
"How about we sit here?" Zhou Li put down his plate.
"Alright!"
"Meow..."
Lord Dumpling leaped up gracefully, leaving a few dusty little plum paw prints on the table.
Zhou Li laughed and said, "I should put shoes on you."
Tuanzi stood on the table looking up at him and said seriously, "Lord Dumpling turns into kitty food and then back again, and gets all clean!"
"Is it that magical?"
"Yes, oh~"
"Amazing!"
"Where's Lord Dumpling's deep-sea silver fish jerky?"
"Don't rush."
Not knowing what Brother Nan was still chatting about with the auntie, Zhou Li had already eaten half his meal by the time she came over with her plate.
Her plate was full of meat.
Not only did she get more, it seemed the auntie had specifically picked out the best pieces for her. A dish like "potatoes stewed with pork ribs" sounded comforting and was even advertised on the restaurant's sign, but the reality in the bowls was mostly potatoes. Only her bowl was full of ribs.
Zhou Li and Huai Xu exchanged looks, feeling quite discontent for a moment.
Seeing this, Brother Nan, beaming, didn't think twice before grabbing some meat and putting it on Zhou Li's plate. "Here, eat, eat, eat more..."
Then, she pushed her own plate towards Huai Xu. "Please, don't be shy, just take it!"
「Ten minutes later.」
Zhou Li put down his chopsticks and wiped his mouth.
Tuanzi, beside him, cried out to have her mouth wiped too, so Zhou Li cleaned up the crumbs around her mouth. From the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of Huai Xu standing up and heading towards the food station with his plate again.
This was the third time.
Seeing that Brother Nan would take a while to finish her meal, Zhou Li picked up Tuanzi and said, "I'll go outside for some fresh air."
Brother Nan waved her hand.
Thus, Zhou Li reached the doorway.
The restaurant was located a distance from the national road, avoiding the dust from it. The space between had been cemented over to create a parking lot, which currently held four buses and three private cars. The glaring sunlight and lush surrounding trees gave a distinct travel vibe.
Zhou Li tried to put Tuanzi down, but she wouldn't have it, clutching desperately at Zhou Li's clothes—
"Hold on to Lord Dumpling!"
"Come down and walk a bit."
"No! Lord Dumpling feels dizzy~"
"Feeling dizzy is all the more reason to come down and walk around. Walking a bit will make you feel better," Zhou Li coaxed her.
"Lord Dumpling won't go down!"
"Really."
"No!"
"..."
Zhou Li had no choice but to hold her and pace around.
After twenty minutes, Brother Nan bounced up behind him, shouting in an attempt to scare him, but alas, it didn't work.
"What are you doing?" she asked, with her hands behind her back.
"Helping digestion," Zhou Li said.
"Guess what I found at the little kiosk over there?" Brother Nan brought out a pack of snacks from behind her back. "Ta-da, look what this is!"
"Enmmm..."
Zhou Li looked closely and said uncertainly, "Is it spicy papaya or mango?"
"Mango, mango dipped in chili."
"I see."
"Want some?" Brother Nan offered it to Zhou Li.
"No thanks."
"Come on, you must try it. You've definitely never had it before," Brother Nan urged. "Give it a taste!"
"Oh."
So, Brother Nan found a step to squat on, ripped open the bag, and while extending the opening toward him, said, "Earlier, when Huai Xu went to get more food, he took his plate to the serving counter and told the auntie, 'Auntie, I'm back again!' His expression was just hilarious, hahaha..."
Zhou Li had no choice but to put Tuanzi down. He also squatted next to her, picking up a piece of mango with his fingers and putting it in his mouth.
Surprisingly tasty!
The mango used was green, lacking in sweetness but rather sour. It wasn't mushy but crunchy. Wrapped with chili, it created a unique sour and spicy flavor typical of the region, also carrying the distinctive aroma of mango.
Sour, spicy, crunchy, fragrant...
Brother Nan continued beside Zhou Li, "In the end, they even sent someone to watch him, to see if he was throwing away all the food he'd taken. It was so hilarious, hahaha..."
Zhou Li listened and took another piece from Brother Nan's bag.
Brother Nan, very smug, exclaimed, "I thought you weren't eating any?"
Zhou Li pretended not to hear and pointed at the scenery outside, saying, "Doesn't it give you a kind of comfortable and leisurely feeling?"
"The taste of a journey."
"Hmm..."
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing," Zhou Li waved his hand and then hesitated before saying, "I've heard that the best way to test if two people are suited to be together is to go on a long trip…"
"Eh? Hahaha..."
Brother Nan paused and then chuckled a few times. "This isn't really a long trip. It's not even as long or tiring as going to Dali."
Zhou Li nodded thoughtfully. "That's true."
Just then, Huai Xu's voice emerged from behind them—
"Shall we go?"
"Eh?"
Brother Nan turned around and saw Huai Xu burping. "Finished eating?" she asked.
"All done."
"Tsk tsk."
"Shall we go?"
"Let's go!"
Brother Nan and Zhou Li exchanged glances, stood up, and headed towards the car. To Huai Xu, Brother Nan said, "You can drive this afternoon… I'll see how you do. Zhou Li says you drive better than I do, and I want to see if that's really true. But watch out for traffic cops!"
Huai Xu was thrilled.
Getting into the driver's seat, he muttered a mantra and followed the steps he had mentally rehearsed countless times…
Zhou Li was about to sit in the passenger seat but was stopped by Brother Nan.
"You sit in the back."
"Oh, okay."
Zhou Li thought Brother Nan wanted to sit in the passenger seat to direct Huai Xu. However, Brother Nan also moved to the back. She placed Tuanzi in the passenger seat, adding, "Huai Xu said you get carsick. You're less likely to feel nauseous in the passenger seat."
Made sense.