The War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression Begins in Songhu

Chapter 511 Hot Pot and Something's Wrong (Two-in-One Chapter)

Time: A little after 5 p.m. on the first day after returning to the modern world.

Location: Guangzhou, in a well-known budget hotel.

As he sat up in bed and stretched, Cross heard a series of cracking sounds from all his joints.

After stretching, the young man felt incredibly refreshed.

So, here comes a local resident of Guangzhou, Shizi, whose family is well-off and whose housing is quite nice. Why is he now staying in a budget hotel?

Could it be that after experiencing a difficult and bloody journey, he had some 'post-traumatic stress disorder' and called his girlfriend out to enjoy the air conditioning and relax?
Of course not, he just doesn't feel comfortable sleeping in at home.

Although the journey was short, lasting only a few days, the entire process was incredibly difficult. We couldn't eat or sleep well, and we were constantly fighting or running.

Even the donkeys in the production team weren't subjected to such abuse.

Although the injuries on Cross's body were perfectly healed after returning to the modern world.

However, a tremendous sense of mental exhaustion washed over him like a tidal wave, making him want to collapse into bed and sleep for a whole day and night.

He still has a lot of money to burn.

What time is it now? It's not like I just graduated from university and moved back home three days ago.

For the first three days, he was still his mother's precious son; no matter what she did to him, she always looked at him with amusement and made him delicious food.

Unfortunately, those three wonderful days are now completely over, and she finds herself increasingly displeasing, with a strong sense of disgust, as if she thought, "I would have been better off giving birth to a piece of barbecued pork."

If I really dared to stay home and not eat breakfast, lunch, or dinner, and just sleep all day long...

Believe it or not, you'll sleep until noon at the latest, and then your mom will come into your room with a feather duster and give you a double attack, both physical and magical.

That is, while cursing, they also hit each other with a feather duster.

So he quickly glanced around the room to confirm that he hadn't brought back any spoils of war this time.

Shizi left a note for his parents in the living room. The note said that he was going to ride his bike for exercise early in the morning and then go to a gathering with his classmates. He wouldn't be coming back during the day.

In fact, he left home around 4 a.m. and rode his bike for 20 minutes to reach this budget hotel.

I booked a double room at random, took a quick shower, and collapsed onto the bed without even drying my hair. I slept for at least 12 hours straight until now.

After waking up, I felt full of energy, and I felt halfway recovered.

Why did he only recover halfway? Naturally, it's because the most profound memory for this newcomer, Shizi, during this journey, besides being exhausted, was that immense feeling of hunger.

And the scenes of them stuffing raw shepherd's purse into their mouths like livestock, cooking wolf meat offal and bones in pig kidney lunchboxes and steel helmets, and eating and drinking as if they wanted to swallow their tongues as well.

I finally got a good night's sleep and recovered from my mental fatigue.

Cross immediately felt a strong hunger, feeling as if he could eat a whole cow.

Driven by this hunger, Shizi hurriedly checked out of the hotel and headed straight for an old Beijing-style hot pot restaurant that he remembered, ready to enjoy a delicious hot pot meal.

Firstly, I don't know why, maybe I was thinking about that hot pot meal I never got to have, because right now I'm really craving hot pot.

It's not the plain broth hot pot that's most common in Guangdong, the authentic way to eat it. Instead, it's a northern-style hot pot with a stronger flavor, like mutton hot pot.

As for the spicy hot pot from Sichuan and Guizhou, forget about it; as a native of Guangzhou, he can't handle that much spiciness.

If I eat this today, I might have to go see a proctologist tomorrow or the day after.

Secondly, he remembered that this all-you-can-eat hot pot restaurant was not expensive, costing only 39 yuan per person, which was especially suitable for the current super-powerful Shizi.

In the following time, Shizi demonstrated to the waiters and diners of the self-service hot pot restaurant what it means to be a human rice bucket.

This former college athlete, who is 185 cm tall and weighs 190 catties, originally had a pretty good appetite.

In addition, there was an unprecedented feeling of hunger, as well as energy expenditure due to the enhanced physical fitness.

In less than an hour, Cross lost count of how many times he went to get lamb rolls, or how many plates he had in total; in any case, three stacks of empty plates were now piled high on his table.

So much so that many diners couldn't help but ask if Shizi was the legendary mukbang streamer, what platform he streamed on, and what his ID was.

"If I ever can't make a living, it seems like it's not bad to just earn enough to eat and drink and make money off my family."

Touching his stomach, which was only seven or eight tenths full from eating, but which had been so horrifying by his enormous appetite that he had to stop eating and drinking, he thought to himself.

It was only after he had eaten and drunk his fill that he had the mind to pick up his phone and check it.

Then he discovered that someone named "Deyuelou Hu Biao" had sent him a friend request in a certain email.

Only then did he realize that he had only been eating and sleeping since he came back, and hadn't joined the chat group of the transmigrators. He quickly clicked "accept".

Then, he didn't even have time to click into Hu Biao's WeChat Moments to see the daily life of this deadbeat.

Hu Biao has already sent a message, the content of which is:

"Cross! How's your programming and maintenance skills? Like those WeChat ordering apps on your phone, can you handle that?"

Upon hearing this, the cross immediately expressed its confidence:

"I thought it was nothing serious, of course I could handle it."

Although I majored in Electronic Information Engineering, my computer skills are quite good; during university, I even took on several freelance projects in this area with classmates, and I had no problems with them at all.

"Great!" Hu Biao sent this emoji before stating his request:

"So you added a new feature to Deyuelou's ordering mini-program; that is, a small feature that will let me know immediately in the background when Zhou Kun orders food next time."

I'll be able to make some nutritious soup and serve it as a complimentary soup, so this kid can get some nourishment.

"By the way! You'd better hurry up, the last time I saw Zhou Kun on TV, he seemed a bit weak. He should drink some bull penis soup to nourish himself."

Regarding the beneficial changes that each of their time travels brought to the modern world of China; and Zhou Kun, a former time traveler, was responsible for these beneficial changes and ultimately for implementing the key mission.

Back when I was traveling through time, I had heard the Cross mention it more than once from a group of veterans.

He naturally understood the importance of the task Hu Biao had assigned him.

He immediately agreed, saying, "Okay, I'll get it done as soon as I get back. I'll try my best—no, I'll definitely get it done tonight."

Because of this unexpected task, Cross gave up his idea of ​​taking a stroll after dinner and went out on his bicycle.

When he got home, it wasn't even 7 p.m. yet, and his parents were having dinner. Seeing him return, his mother casually greeted him:
"Son, have you eaten yet?"
Tonight I made a soup with green olives, figs, and dendrobium; it's cooling and nourishing. Would you like to come over and have some?

Faced with such a gesture, Shizi, who had devoured at least dozens of plates of mutton just half an hour earlier, suddenly felt that he could still eat some more.

After drinking two bowls of soup, three bowls of rice, and a lot of dishes, he finally went back to his room to start working on the tasks that Hu Biao had assigned him.

At first, he didn't think anything of it, but as he analyzed the code, he gradually realized that something was wrong.

After realizing something, his expression changed drastically, and he immediately sent a video call to Hu Biao...

*****
Before receiving the video call from Shizi, Hu Biao was in a pretty good mood.

On the one hand, Hu Biao was originally thinking of finding the company that developed the food ordering mini-program for him and getting that backdoor feature working again.

As a result, Cross took on the job, and for free.

Although adding such a new feature to the existing mini-program doesn't seem to cost much money.

But Annie was focused on paying off her debts as soon as possible, then buying a decent car so she could take her to Shanghai to meet her future father-in-law and mother-in-law.

Hu Biao said that he would then go back to his hometown in Hunan Province to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival with his family.

He even uses a 15 yuan monthly membership on a certain video website by borrowing from AT (Alibaba's instant messaging platform), let alone the cost of adding new features, which is a huge sum of money for him. Now that he can save money, he is naturally as happy as if he found money on the street.

Another aspect is that after this time travel, he received a master-level expertise in all types of Chinese hot pot from a mysterious being, which was a generous reward.

Sichuan-style spicy hot pot, Northeastern sauerkraut and pork hot pot, and Beijing-style copper pot hot pot and lamb spine hot pot.

There are dozens of hot pot varieties, including seafood hot pot in the south, congee hot pot, beef hot pot in Chaoshan, and various mushroom hot pots in Yunnan Province.

Now, Hu Biao has reached the top level in everything.

More importantly, what is the most popular type of hot pot on the market right now, with the largest number of diners? Of course, it's Shuangqing Hot Pot.

The most crucial element of this dish lies in the hot pot broth, which is also the signature ingredient of every hot pot restaurant.

This is also one of the key reasons why they can maintain consistent quality despite having opened so many chain stores.

As for other meat rolls, various offal, and vegetables, as long as they are fresh and of good quality, there is frankly not much difference between them.

What does this mean? It means that as long as Hu Biao personally prepares the most crucial hot pot broth, the procurement and harvesting of other ingredients will be strictly controlled.

Then, at Deyuelou and other branches, the new Shuangqing hot pot will be launched on a large scale.

As for other hot pot categories, it doesn't matter if they can't be promoted on a large scale, because they can not only be used to cook for oneself, but also introduced in private kitchens.

Of course! Whether the above ideas can be realized in practice still needs to be verified personally.

Based on these wonderful ideas, Hu Biao got busy early in the morning.

He drove his Wuling minivan around to buy all sorts of ingredients for making hot pot broth, selecting the best available on the market.

After finishing today's lunch service, I started brewing the spicy hot pot broth in the brewing warehouse.

The reason for not simmering it directly in the kitchen is naturally due to the need to keep some of the recipe and ingredients confidential.

The whole process of making it is actually quite simple: first, render the fat from the best grassland butter into tallow, and then add rapeseed oil in a ratio of three to one.

Once the oil is heated, add the scallions, ginger, garlic, and other spices, and fry until golden brown. Then remove and set aside.

At this point, it's time to stir-fry the fermented broad bean paste until fragrant, then add the fermented chili paste and dried chilies to the pan and stir-fry together.

According to Hu Biao's experience, there is a little trick to this step: the glutinous rice chili paste needs to be cooked in three batches, and each time it needs to be stir-fried until the moisture is dried out and the aroma is brought out. It is absolutely important not to burn it.

Then add Sichuan peppercorns that have been soaked in white wine for a while, and some secret spice powder.

Finally, rock sugar, rice wine, Guangxi briefcase (a type of rice noodle), and salt were added, making about 50 jin (25 catties) of hot pot base. This was Hu Biao's first attempt at making it.

Although the process is quite simple, when Hu Biao makes it by hand, it seems to have some kind of mysterious enhancement, making it significantly more delicious.

In addition, both the rice wine and the Guangxi briefcase were brewed by Hu Biao himself, and they can be considered top-quality condiments.

This effectively improved the quality of these hot pot bases by as much as 20%.

Having finished today's filming, Annie arrived at the warehouse and saw a pot of bright red hot pot broth emitting an enticing aroma. She even had the urge to take a spoonful.

It's obviously impossible to get Annie to drink the hot pot broth directly.

As early as when he came over to prepare the hot pot broth, Hu Biao had several kitchen helpers prepare a whole host of hot pot ingredients, including mutton rolls, duck intestines, tofu puffs, duck blood, tripe, and cabbage.

Now, it's time for everyone in the store to have an early lunch before opening for business in the evening.

However, we won't be having any stir-fries today. Instead, we'll have hot pot together and see if Boss Hu's newly learned cooking skills are up to par.

The main branch of Deyuelou happened to be located here, which used to be a Shuangqing hot pot restaurant. All the utensils were readily available, which was incredibly convenient.

So at 5 p.m., a total of three tables were set up: two for spicy hot pot and one for a yin-yang hot pot.

Under everyone's watchful eyes, Annie, the proprietress, was naturally the first to take a bite; she picked up a piece of tripe and quickly dipped it in and out of the hot pot for a total of 15 seconds.

Then, without even bothering to dip their food in the condiment dish in front of them, they stuffed it directly into their mouths.

Although it was a little too hot to eat, the girl's eyes lit up the moment she put it in her mouth.

After swallowing it quickly, he first gave Hu Biao a thumbs up and said his opinion: "Delicious! Much better than that hot pot."

Then, he called out to everyone, "Let's get started! Except for alcohol, you can have any rice wine or drinks you like today."

Upon hearing Annie's statement, Ling Lanfang and the other waiters and kitchen staff cheered loudly.

Not only did the owner praise it, but the delicious rice wine, which was much better than any other hot pot, and even the private kitchen dishes that were limited to customers, made them look forward to these delicacies.

More importantly, these working people saw hope; they saw the possibility of becoming a branch manager or head chef, with significantly improved wages and benefits.

After all, their boss and his wife are really nice people; they actually give you the promises, not just empty words.

The shop's business is booming, which is something they are very happy to see.

In short, in this atmosphere, everyone at Deyuelou, from the owner to the waiters and cleaning ladies, was filled with genuine joy...

As for Deyuelou's business, the fact that it will only get better and better in the future, and that its upcoming hot pot will be incredibly popular, has soon been strongly proven.

At 5:20, a few people, mistaking this place for a regular cafeteria customer, pushed open the door and walked in.

Seeing this, the proprietress greeted them very appropriately:
"Please wait a few minutes, everyone. We'll finish our lunch soon, and then we'll give each of you a big chicken leg as compensation."

When Annie greeted them, the chubby boy at the head of the group stood on tiptoe, craned his neck, and stared intently at their table for a few moments.

He said with a mouthful of saliva in his mouth, "Boss lady, forget about the big chicken leg and stuff."

This Shuangqing hot pot, is it a new product from Deyuelou? I'm really curious, it looks delicious, can I have a pot today too?

Upon hearing this, Hu Biao, the boss, stopped eating and drinking in silence, got up, took out a pack of Shazi cigarettes from his left trouser pocket, and then switched to a pack of Huazi cigarettes after feeling that it was not suitable.

While handing one to each of several regular customers, he said apologetically:

"Sorry, brothers! Deyuelou is indeed planning to launch hot pot, but today is the first time our internal staff will be trying the food."

Aside from having too much hot pot broth, we had just enough other ingredients, and we're almost finished eating, so there's really no hot pot left.

The moment the words fell, another tall, thin man next to him immediately became agitated and started shouting:
"Boss Hu, why are you so stubborn? The aroma of your broth is so strong, it would be delicious even for washing shoe soles."

So all you need is hot pot base; you can buy the other ingredients at a nearby supermarket.

Even if it can't compare to the ingredients you've carefully selected, it'll still be delicious, so hot pot is definitely on the menu today. We're fine with waiting a little while.

Seeing that the others had gone this far, Hu Biao had no choice but to agree.

Then, while Annie led her people to a nearby fresh food supermarket to urgently purchase some hot pot ingredients, these diners were already frantically making phone calls to invite others to come and eat hot pot.

Ultimately, Deyuelou stayed open until a little after 10 p.m. tonight, and its revenue reached a new high.

Because in addition to the three tables of private dishes, all the rice bowls and braised dishes prepared in advance were sold out, and the 50 jin of hot pot base was also used up completely.

There's no way around it! They're all regular customers. Since we sold to the first group, it's not easy to refuse those who come later.

Annie insisted on taking people to the fresh food supermarket three times to finally meet their food needs.

However, throughout the entire process, this girl seemed even happier than if she had just signed an endorsement contract with a major brand.

This means that her family's business of making pig trotters is becoming increasingly popular.

This continued until the two of them were happily settling their accounts behind the bar when suddenly a video call came in from Cross.

After exchanging only a few words, Hu Biao and Annie's expressions became unusually serious...

(End of this chapter)