Chapter 22: Good Heavens!

The guests were watching with bated breath, all waiting for Lin Zhiqiang's sharp critique.

Standing at the kitchen doorway, Zhou Yan was also looking forward to Lin Zhiqiang's review.

"The soup is fresh and delicious, the beef is tender, the tripe is crisp, the intestines are soft, and the beef tendon is chewy. The perfect control of the heat has brought every ingredient to its optimal state for eating. It's incredibly satisfying!" Lin Zhiqiang praised. "This dipping sauce is also a masterpiece; it adds a spicy aroma to the meat, serving as the perfect finishing touch."

"Moreover, I feel this soup truly has the effect of dispelling the cold. After half a bowl, I feel my whole body warming up, and most of the chill has vanished."

"At sixty cents a bowl, I think it's great value!"

Lin Zhiqiang's evaluation made the onlookers' eyes light up.

This was a very high praise!

It would be a lie to say that the people in Suji Town didn't know about the soup pots in Zhou Village, known for their beef slaughtering.

The soup pots often tasted bland, and if the offal wasn't handled well, it would have a gamey smell that many couldn't stomach.

Furthermore, the Qiaojiao Beef at Zhao Erwa's Restaurant cost sixty cents a bowl, which was enough to make many people hesitate.

But Deputy Factory Director Lin's comments overturned everyone's perception of Qiaojiao Beef, sparking a desire to try it.

Tripe is delicious in a hotpot, but it's a hassle to make at home, and if you aren't careful, you'll overcook it.

Besides, this one bowl contains beef intestines, beef tendon, and beef—at least 150 grams. Calculating it that way, it didn't seem too expensive after all.

"However, I think there's an even better way to eat this. Landlady, bring me another small dish and add some salt to it." Lin Zhiqiang called out, then pulled a bottle of Donghu Vinegar from his briefcase.

"Old Lin, what are you..." Zhao Dong watched Lin Zhiqiang unscrew the vinegar bottle, his expression turning a bit strange.

"Old Zhao, let me teach you a new way to eat it." Lin Zhiqiang took the small dish handed to him by Zhao Tieying, poured in a portion of vinegar, then picked up a piece of beef, dipped it in the vinegar, and popped it into his mouth, nodding repeatedly. "Mmm! This is the flavor! So authentic!"

"Tsk!"

"Huh!"

"Good heavens!"

Exclamations erupted throughout the restaurant, trailing off with notes of disdain.

If he weren't the Deputy Factory Director, they would have surely rushed up and splashed that vinegar on him!

What kind of household eats clear soup with vinegar?

"I'll have one order of Qiaojiao Beef, with the chili dipping sauce," Zhao Dong said, looking at Zhao Tieying.

"Coming right up," Zhao Tieying replied with a smile.

"Auntie Zhao, I want an order of Qiaojiao Beef and a bowl of rice too."

"Auntie Zhao, I want a bowl of Qiaojiao Beef, with a double serving of chili powder! I love spicy food! I have to eat spicy food every day."

"Me too! If I don't eat spicy food for a day, I feel terrible all over!"

Spurred by Lin Zhiqiang, several customers immediately ordered Qiaojiao Beef, if only to vindicate the chili dipping sauce.

Zhou Yan smiled as he turned back into the kitchen. Lin Zhiqiang was truly his benefactor; he had helped open the reputation for the noodles, and unexpectedly, he was doing the same for the Qiaojiao Beef.

He was truly the "best food tester"!

"Alright, I'll make them for you right away," Zhao Tieying responded with a beaming smile.

Before long, bowls of Qiaojiao Beef were served to the customers' tables.

"Oh my! This beef is so tender! And why is this chili powder so fragrant!"

"The tripe is so crisp! Only fresh tripe has this kind of crunchy texture! Amazing!"

"The beef tendon is so soft it just melts in your mouth. So fragrant!"

"The soup is so fresh! It's so fresh it'll make your eyebrows fall off! This is different from the soup pots at other places!"

The customers praised it one after another, expressing absolute satisfaction with the Qiaojiao Beef.

Aside from the soup, what surprised most people was the dipping sauce—fragrant and spicy, it was indeed the crowning glory of the Qiaojiao Beef.

With or without the sauce, it could be considered two different dishes.

A dish of chili powder turned the originally mild Qiaojiao Beef into a perfect accompaniment for rice; paired with the delicious soup, the rice tasted wonderful.

After a few bites, Zhao Dong also ordered a bowl of rice; it was indeed a great accompaniment to the meal.

His favorite was the beef intestines.

The intestines were processed exceptionally well, with no smell at all. Coated in chili powder, they were rich without being greasy—truly delicious!

He had a heavy palate and loved eating large intestines, enjoying the tender texture with a bit of fat and the sensation of the oil bursting between his teeth.

Of course, it had to be delicious.

"Old Zhao, want to try?" Lin Zhiqiang pushed the dish of vinegar slightly toward him.

"You enjoy it yourself; I prefer the dry dip." Zhao Dong quickly pushed the vinegar back and straightened the dry dip. "Qiaojiao Beef must be eaten with chili powder."

"I think dipping in vinegar is quite good," Lin Zhiqiang insisted on his view.

Fine, everyone has their preferences; no one could convince the other.

When Zhao Dong's rice arrived, he took a mouthful, chewed, and swallowed, nodding repeatedly. "This rice is steamed really well!"

It was soft and tasty, with distinct grains that weren't sticky at all. The moisture was just right, much better than what was steamed at the canteen.

He loved rice even more than noodles. When he was a poor child, he rarely had the chance to eat rice. Every year during the New Year, what he looked forward to most was his mother steaming rice in a wooden bucket.

His mother used to steam large communal pots of rice for the village canteen, and her steaming skills were the best in the village. The rice she steamed was just like this—distinct grains, not sticky, yet the aroma of the rice was perfectly preserved, with a faint hint of woodiness.

Later, he started working, joined the textile factory, and eventually became a workshop director. His life improved day by day, and he could eat rice every day.

But in the last two years, his mother's mind had become less sharp; she often forgot things and sometimes even failed to recognize him.

Even her specialty, steaming rice, had been burned twice; once, she almost set the kitchen on fire, so they didn't dare let her into the kitchen anymore.

Unexpectedly, the rice Zhou Yan steamed today brought back that feeling from his childhood.

The moisture and the heat control were flawless.

It was almost identical to the perfect *zhenzi* rice in his memory.

"Old Zhao, what are you thinking about? You're dead silent," Lin Zhiqiang asked with a laugh.

"Eating this rice makes me think of my old mother. She used to steam large communal pots of rice for our village, feeding over a hundred people, and everyone would praise it," Zhao Dong said with a smile. "Little Zhou's rice steaming is quite skilled; it's comparable to my mother's."

"You're lucky your mother is still around, kid. I don't even have a place to go to miss my mother," Lin Zhiqiang remarked with a hint of envious sentiment, then curled his lip. "What's so good about rice? It's not even a side dish for meals. No matter how good it is, could it possibly be as delicious as Little Zhou's pulled noodles?"

"Old Lin, you just don't get it," Zhao Dong said, shaking his head with a smile.

Just then, Zhao Hong brought up their two bowls of noodles.

"Did you hire a new waiter?" Lin Zhiqiang joked. "It shows the restaurant's business is improving and the scale is expanding."

"The two of us couldn't keep up, so we asked my niece-in-law to come help out in the shop," Zhao Tieying replied with a smile.

"That's good," Lin Zhiqiang said, first sipping the Qiaojiao Beef soup from his ceramic bowl.

After finishing that large bowl of soup and the 150 grams of offal, his whole body felt warm. After breaking a light sweat, he felt much more energetic and stopped sneezing.

"This Qiaojiao Beef soup is really excellent; I feel much better after drinking it," Lin Zhiqiang praised.

"Then I'll ladle you another bowl of soup." Zhao Tieying picked up the ceramic bowl and refilled it for him.

"I couldn't possibly... I still have a bowl of noodles to eat," Lin Zhiqiang waved his hands repeatedly.

"Don't be shy. When you eat Qiaojiao Beef in our shop, the soup can be refilled for free, no extra charge," Zhao Tieying set the bowl down and said with a smile, "It's the same for everyone."

"That's great," Lin Zhiqiang nodded.

"Good!" The customers who had ordered Qiaojiao Beef also smiled.

The soup was so delicious that they could easily finish another bowl; it was much better than plain water.

With Lin Zhiqiang and Zhao Dong establishing the reputation of the Qiaojiao Beef, many customers were ordering it and eating heartily.

Customers who arrived later would get strong recommendations from their colleagues through casual inquiries, leading many more to order it.

Taking the opportunity to serve the customers, Zhou Yan stepped out specifically to greet Lin Zhiqiang and Zhao Dong.

"Little Zhou, your Qiaojiao Beef is truly excellent. Not only is the taste great, but my cold even feels better after eating it," Lin Zhiqiang gave a thumbs up, looking at Zhou Yan with full appreciation.

"I've eaten at several places that serve Zhou Village's soup pots, but none are as good as Little Zhou's. It seems the true skill has been passed down to you," Zhao Dong also said with a smile. "And your rice steaming is excellent, much better than the canteen's."

"You both overpraise me," Zhou Yan replied with a modest smile.

"When will the stir-fried dishes be served? Setting aside everything else, those three toppings—braised ribs, beef with dried bamboo shoots, and shredded beef—could easily be standalone dishes. They would be perfect with rice," Zhao Dong asked with an expression of eager concern.