After thanking his uncle, Xu Mingxuan entered the Party School campus. Chen Lan and Er Zhuang, along with the four siblings Jia Yao, were waiting at the entrance of the Party School courtyard. Chen Lan peered through the fence gate into the schoolyard, noting the lush greenery, shady trees, and the chirping of birds on the branches.
While waiting for Xu Mingxuan, Chen Lan inquired with the gatekeeper about the proximity of a post office. The uncle, very enthusiastically, informed her that there was one just under five hundred meters away, around the corner, and even provided directions to Chen Lan and Er Zhuang.
Once Er Zhuang had a clear understanding of the post office's location, he took Jia Yao to send money to Baozi and his comrades, and also to send Baozi an urgent telegram.
The group waited at the main gate of the Party School for only a short while before Xu Mingxuan emerged, empty-handed. Chen Lan, surprised, asked, "Brother Mingxuan, why did you finish registering so quickly? Where's your new book?"
Xu Mingxuan replied with a smile, "I just paid the registration fee. I haven't collected the books yet! The teacher said the books will be distributed to students uniformly before the formal classes begin. They told me to go home and move my luggage first, and I don't need to stay at the school tonight. Lan'er, shall we find a good inn to settle down first, or go to a restaurant to eat?"
Chen Lan waved her hand and said, "Let's go! We'll go to the post office ahead to meet Er Zhuang and Jia Yao, who are sending money and a telegram, and then we'll have a big meal at the state-run Gengxin Restaurant. Brother Mingxuan, you probably didn't eat enough at lunch, did you? Let's go now. At this time, there shouldn't be many customers at the restaurant, so we won't have to queue. We can order whatever good dishes we want. Let's eat first, and then go to the inn after we're done. I noticed on the way here that there's a Renmin Inn about two hundred meters from the Party School."
Indeed, the state-run Gengxin Restaurant was very easy to find. After asking two helpful passersby, the group arrived at the restaurant's entrance shortly. Standing at the entrance, they observed the overall exterior of the restaurant and found it to be quite similar to an inn they had recently stayed in.
As the group entered the restaurant from the main entrance, they found the interior to be rather cramped, but the environment was clean and tidy. The decor possessed a distinct style and architectural flair typical of the 1970s.
Since it wasn't yet mealtime, there were no queues for tickets. At that time, eating at a state-run restaurant required purchasing meal tickets before collecting food from the counter.
Chen Lan ordered a bowl of wontons and a donkey burger for each person. She didn't concern herself with what the others wanted, handing over the money and tickets to Xu Mingxuan and the others, telling them to order their own dishes. One dish each would be enough for everyone.
However, arriving early had its advantages. The waiter didn't limit the children's order of two portions of braised beef. Su Dan Novel Network.
Since not many people were ordering at the moment, the wontons and donkey burgers were prepared quickly. The waiter loudly called out from the counter, "Wontons and donkey burgers, they're ready! Come and get them." Chen Lan thought to herself, "No wonder people say state-run restaurants have poor service. It's indeed a bit unsatisfactory."
The four children immediately got up and went to the counter to collect their food. It had to be said, people from the Northeast are honest. A bowl of wontons was a large serving, and the wontons themselves were thin-skinned and generously filled, clearly made with ample ingredients.
Looking at the full bowls of wontons, Chen Lan felt that people in the Northeast were truly honest in business. It was a bit too much, and she knew she couldn't finish it all. Besides, she wanted to try the donkey burgers. She then looked at the others. Except for Jia Hui, who was delicately eating small bites, everyone else, including Xu Mingxuan and Er Zhuang, was engrossed in their meals, eating with relish without even lifting their heads.
Chen Lan divided a few wontons from her bowl among the three boys with larger appetites before starting to taste the delicious food. She first took a sip of the soup, which was quite good and very flavorful. Chen Lan estimated it was a broth made from chicken and pork bones.
Using a spoon, she scooped up a wonton, bit into it, and found the taste to be delicious, with plump meat filling. It was so good that it was hard to stop eating. It was no wonder the children had fallen silent and were so focused on their food.
As for the donkey burgers, they looked very crispy from being grilled. Taking a bite, they were indeed crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. The crust of the burger was so crumbly it was falling off, and it was incredibly fragrant! While that might sound like an exaggeration, one only had to see the look of utter bliss on the faces of brothers Jia Xing and Jia He as they ate.
Not long after, the dishes they had ordered were gradually prepared. The waiter again called out loudly from the counter. The children found the waiter's calls to be quite lively and cheerfully went to the counter together to collect their food.
Chen Lan ate her donkey burger while looking at the restaurant's menu and listening to nearby diners discuss the establishment's popular dishes. She heard one person, after taking a bite of a golden-brown flatbread, say, "I love the flatbread here with tofu pudding; it's absolutely amazing. The flatbread's crust is crispy, and the inside is soft. The seasoning is just right."
Saying this, he lowered his head and scooped a spoonful of the white, tender tofu pudding into his mouth. Chen Lan looked at the bowl of tofu pudding in front of him, which seemed to have some kind of secret sauce and a bit of chili oil on top. It looked very appetizing. He ate a whole bowl of tofu pudding in one go, still looking as if he wanted more.
Seeing Chen Lan lost in thought, Xu Mingxuan gave her a piece of braised beef with his chopsticks and said, "Lan'er, try the braised beef here. It's very good. There's no gamey smell at all, just a rich beef aroma."
Chen Lan picked up a slice, dipped it in sauce, and tasted it. As Xu Mingxuan had said, the beef had no gamey smell, only a rich, pure aroma of the beef itself.
Chen Lan thought the beef at this restaurant was truly excellent. She decided to buy a few of the restaurant's signature flatbreads after the meal and also pack some beef to take back, in case the children got hungry for a late-night snack.
Chen Lan had a smaller appetite and was the first to finish her meal, so she went to queue to buy beef and flatbreads. However, the waiter said the beef was limited, but the flatbreads were not. Chen Lan thought that flatbreads might not be as fragrant when cold as when hot, so she decided not to buy them at all. If they wanted to try them, they could come back tomorrow morning to sample other items.