I Have a Countryside Gourmet Restaurant

Chapter 198: Chapter 194: Missed 1 Century of Wonders

Xie Feng agreed.

Xiaohai started to chop up the braised chicken.

Murmuring in amazement, the group found seats and sat down, occupying a total of four tables.

Da Bai came over to take their order.

What should they eat?

The group huddled together, discussing the ”Today’s Menu.”

Just as they’d thought, besides Yangchun Noodles and beef noodles, there were stir-fried dishes as well.

There wasn’t a huge selection, but it was decent enough.

’First, let’s get twenty bowls of Yangchun Noodles.’

’Two people can share a bowl. We just want to get a taste.’

’We’ll skip the beef noodles for now.’

’Then, eight orders each of Twice-Cooked Pork with Garlic Sprouts, Mapo Tofu, Crucian Carp with Aromatic Herbs, and Stir-fried Shredded Potatoes, plus four orders of Tomato and Egg Soup.’

’That should be about enough.’

’We can eat first, and if it’s not enough, we can always order more.’

After Da Bai noted down their order, they left.

Then, one of the guests spoke up. ”Hey, they have alcohol here. For those of us not driving, who wants a drink?”

Xie Feng heard him and said, ”That’s up to you. If you want a drink, go ahead. But I’d advise against it. We’re going to the canyon after this. Drinking probably isn’t a good idea.”

”That’s true. We’re here to have fun. We shouldn’t drink.”

”Yeah, let’s not.”

”...”

Everyone quickly agreed not to drink.

Just then, a customer in a white shirt at the next table asked with a friendly laugh, ”Is this your first time eating here? Are you all from the county, or did you come from the city?”

Xie Feng was sitting nearby, so he answered, ”We’re from the county. And yes, this is our first time.”

The man in the white shirt nodded. ”I knew it. Since it’s your first time, I have to strongly recommend the alcohol. Of course, that’s for anyone who isn’t driving or doesn’t drink. Let me tell you, the wine here is so good that even the contemporary Painting Saint, Master Guyi, praised it as something ’fit for the heavens.’ You absolutely can’t get anything like it anywhere else.”

Xie Feng and his group all wanted to laugh.

’Is this guy a shill for the restaurant, hired to push their alcohol?’

’Saying Master Guyi praised it as ’fit for the heavens’... He makes it sound like Master Guyi himself actually came here for a drink.’

’What a blatant exaggeration!’

Xie Feng said, ”My friend, are you saying that Master Guyi has actually had a drink here?”

The man in white nodded. ”I am! Just the day before yesterday, and yesterday too. You guys are too late. If you’d come yesterday, you would’ve been able to see Master Guyi. You could have even become drinking buddies with him.”

Xie Feng’s group was stunned.

It wasn’t because they believed him. They were just surprised at how convincingly he could spout such obvious nonsense.

’This guy’s a hell of an actor!’

’He can make a lie sound just like the truth.’

Xie Feng said, ”You make it sound so real.”

”That’s because it is real,” the man in white replied. ”If you don’t believe me, just ask the others.”

Just then, other customers nearby chimed in. ”It’s true. Ancient came for the food and wine here.”

”You’ve probably heard that Master Guyi has a taste for fine food and wine, right? That’s what attracted him to this place.”

”If you’d come yesterday, you wouldn’t just have seen Master Guyi, you really could have become his drinking buddy.”

”We’re not just bragging or trying to sound cool. Master Guyi said it himself—that we’re his drinking buddies.”

”And not just drinking buddies. You could have watched Master Guyi paint with your own eyes.”

”That’s right. Besides drinking and making merry with us yesterday at noon, Master Guyi also painted a piece right here on the spot. He even gave the painting to the owner when he was done.”

”You really should’ve come yesterday.”

”...”

As they listened to the other customers, Xie Feng and his group grew more and more shocked.

’Could it actually be true?’

’But that’s just too unbelievable, isn’t it?’

’Who was Guyi?’

’The foremost figure in the Art World, the contemporary Painting Saint, a man of great international renown.’

’Would a figure like that really come to such a remote little restaurant?’

’And become drinking buddies with these people?’

’What a joke.’

’What about Master Guyi’s status? Why would he become drinking buddies with a bunch of strangers?’

’And he painted something here on the spot? And gave it to the owner?’

’That’s even more ridiculous!’

’If that were true, why would the owner even bother running this place anymore?’

’He could just sell the painting and be set for life!’

’Hasn’t it been almost ten years since a new work by Guyi has surfaced?’

’If one of his paintings actually appeared on the market now, it would cause an absolute sensation.’

’It would sell for at least ten million at auction, wouldn’t it?’

’How many years would it take to earn that much money running a restaurant?’

’At least a hundred years, probably.’

’These guys... their stories are getting more and more ridiculous.’

’Don’t tell me all these people are shills for the restaurant?’

’That’s way too many of them.’

’But, to be honest, none of them really look like shills.’

’So why are they all saying such unbelievable things?’

Xie Feng and his group couldn’t figure it out.

’Hmm, wait a second... that painting on the wall...’

Xie Feng and his group had noticed the painting on the wall when they first came in.

They hadn’t paid it much attention at the time. A landscape painting hanging in a restaurant for decoration was as normal as could be.

’But now... could that be the painting Guyi did yesterday?’

’It does look very well-painted. It has a powerful presence and a deep artistic mood.’

’Is it really one of Guyi’s works?’

For a moment, Xie Feng and his group couldn’t tell.

They didn’t know anything about art, so all they could say was that it was a very good painting.

’But was it a genuine Guyi? They couldn’t tell.’

The other customers saw Xie Feng’s group staring at the painting on the wall and guessed what they were thinking.

The man in white chuckled again. ”That’s not Master Guyi’s painting. It was painted by a beautiful young lady who’s a regular here. But, you could say that painting has something to do with why Master Guyi was inspired to paint yesterday.”

”What does it have to do with it?” Xie Feng and his group asked in unison.

They still didn’t believe what everyone was saying, but after hearing the man in white’s latest comment, they couldn’t help but feel curious.

And they asked the question almost subconsciously.

”Alright, let me tell you the whole story about Master Guyi’s visit. It all started the day before yesterday at noon. Master Guyi came in, and as soon as he stepped through the door, he took an interest in that painting—the very one you’re looking at now...” The man in white launched into his story with great enthusiasm.

He was more than happy to tell these visitors from the county all about Guyi’s time here.

It filled him with a sense of pride, as he was both a resident of Wenxian Town and a regular at this restaurant.

When it came to visitors from out of town, he felt a bit like a host himself, in a way.

So naturally, he had to share these pride-worthy events with them in great detail.

The more Xie Feng’s group listened, the more astonished they became. It all seemed too incredible.

But slowly, they began to believe the man’s story.

It was starting to feel more and more real.

And the more real it felt, the more unbelievable and incredible it all became.

By the end, a sense of deep regret began to set in alongside their disbelief. Why hadn’t they come yesterday?

They were only a day late, but it felt like they had missed out on a century’s worth of wonders.

...