In Qingshan Amusement Park in Area D, Duan and Chen Jiang came out of the screening room, lowered their heads, and did not speak for a while.
When they reached the entrance of the cinema, Chen Jiang said, "I want to go to Area A. Are you going?"
Duan was thinking about the live broadcast he had just watched. Originally, he and Chen Jiang were planning to watch a restricted live broadcast, but after buying the tickets, they went to the wrong screening room and saw Lu Yao's live broadcast.
Unlike the popular games nowadays, this NPC actually live broadcasts food. There were no challengers throughout the whole process, and there were no exciting scenes that would make people excited. She just simply showed the audience her store, watched her cook, and then sat by the window with her friends to enjoy the food.
It was the most ordinary life, but Duan couldn't move his eyes and kept swallowing his saliva.
Unfortunately, halfway through the live broadcast, there was a problem in the live broadcast room, and they did not get to see the owner eat the bowl of wonton soup, which was a real pity.
Chen Jiang's eyes lit up, and he encouraged, "Did you see those comments? Some people say that the store really exists, and it's on the 99th floor of Paradise in Area A."
Duan saw it, and he also saw someone in the barrage describing the food in that restaurant, spicy grilled wings, fermented rice meatballs, leek and egg pies, both salty and sweet, delicious and exciting.
There were naturally many people who mocked the restaurant, but there was more than one person who said that the food in that restaurant was delicious. Duan saw several similar comments floating by.
"I want to ask my brother if he wants to go. Please wait for me." Duan said.
Half an hour later, Duan went to the subway entrance alone to meet up with his friends, feeling depressed, "My brother doesn't want to go out."
Chen Jiang expressed his understanding and comforted her softly, "It's okay. We don't know if the store is still there. Let's go try it first. If it's good, ask your brother to come along next time."
Duan nodded vigorously: "Yes, you are right. I haven't thought about this. We have to go and have a look first. If there is no store in Area A, it will be bad to take my brother there."
The two took the subway to Area A, and several groups of people in the same carriage were discussing the same topic.
"I really want to eat a bowl of wonton soup. I hope the owner doesn't donkey me."
"The illusion outside the window is so real. The Ferris wheel is still turning."
"I've already arranged everything. When I get to the store, I'll just order a bowl of wonton soup and sit in the same spot the owner sat in the morning. It's so nice just thinking about it!"
"What if I get scammed? It's all the people in Area A who are talking about it."
"… If you've been cheated, just come back. I'll feel anxious if I don't go and take a look."
…
On this day, the subway trains from areas A, B, and D to the 99th Floor Station in area A were extremely crowded.
These people from other districts are undoubtedly making a "big gamble". Common sense tells them that even if there is a snack bar on the 99th floor, the food sold there will definitely be tasteless.
It’s just that the owner of this shop is very good at illusion, and may have used some secret techniques to make her food look more tempting and real than other shops.
But there was another voice in my head saying, maybe it’s true
An hour later, the first group of people who came from other districts got off the subway at the 99th floor station, and there was already a long queue for the elevator downstairs.
Duan and Chen Jiang finally squeezed into the elevator and went straight to the 99th floor.
When I got off the elevator, I saw two hopelessly long queues in front of me. The good news was that the live broadcast was indeed not a lie, and there really was a snack bar next to the 99th Floor Paradise.
The entire 99th floor was filled with a mysterious fragrance. Chen Jiang pulled Duan's arm, his eyes full of excitement: "Can you smell it? It smells so good. Is it really edible? This smell is too damn tempting."
Duan also looked expectant, "I don't know, but there are so many people lining up, there must be something different about this store."
Snack bars were once popular in this world. Three meals a day can make life more real. People who have nowhere to go use this method to comfort themselves.
Unfortunately, as time goes by, the food that they can only look at but not eat becomes a reminder of the emptiness of reality.
Soon after, theme parks appeared, replacing snack bars and becoming the most popular entertainment lifestyle here.
There are very few shops here that are so popular except for the theme park.
Duan and Chen Jiang hadn't bought any food from the snack bar yet, but they already felt that the trip was worth it.
The customer in front of them happened to be a frequent visitor to the park and the first one to know about "Luyao Snack Bar". He turned around and looked at the two of them with a little pride of being a familiar customer: "Which district are you from?"
"Area D." Chen Jiang continued.
"I live in Area A, and I ate here when this restaurant first opened. Because there were so many people buying, the items were limited in quantity. Since this is your first time here, I suggest you try everything. It's not expensive anyway."
Duan extracted an important message from this, "Uncle, are you saying that the food in this restaurant is really edible?"
The guest said meaningfully: "You will know once you try it."
The crowd slowly moved forward, and it was almost Duan and Chen Jiang's turn. They heard the uncle in front of them skillfully order a full set.
After Duan and Chen Jiang understood what the full set was, they thought of the uncle's suggestion and ordered the full set as well.
They were lucky. When they came in, a table of customers was checking out, leaving a table near the window vacant. The two of them sat down immediately.
Chen Jiang turned his head and looked around, his eyes full of surprise: "This place is exactly the same as in the live broadcast, not a single bit different."
The restaurant's layout, interior decoration and color matching were the same as what they saw in the morning. The most important thing was that one could see the scenery outside through the window.
Even if they knew it was an illusion, it was enough to amaze and fascinate them.
Duan looked at the boats passing by on the river with fascination, and murmured, "If my brother saw this, he would definitely be happy."
The "full set" for both of them was quickly served. Chen Jiang looked around but couldn't find the wontons. He couldn't help but call the waiter: "Where are the wontons? Did you forget to serve them? I watched the live broadcast and came here specifically to eat wontons."
Lu Yao posted a new job posting, but no one came for the interview yet. The waiter at the moment was still Xingzi.
Xingzi explained politely, "I'm sorry, the wontons were made by the owner for the staff for breakfast this morning, and they haven't been put in the store yet."
Chen Jiang looked disappointed. He came here just for the bowl of wonton soup. Would it be considered a "scam" if he didn't get to eat it
Xingzi seemed to know what he was thinking, "You are the sixty-third customer today who has asked about soup wontons. The owner is considering adding it as a new product. Maybe we will have it next time you come. In addition, the other dishes in our restaurant are worth a try. Believe me, you will not be disappointed."
Chen Jiang's heart sank.
He recalled the whole process of running from Area D to Area A on a whim today. He was first confused by the live broadcast, and then he excitedly pulled his friends over.
Then they were introduced to the restaurant by a strange old man at the door, and they blindly ordered a full set meal as soon as they entered. It turned out that the set meal did not include the soup wontons they saw in the morning.
But the waiter told him that the soup wontons could only be had next time, as these were the only dishes the restaurant had today that he was not interested in.
This is simply selling dog meat under the guise of selling mutton!
Faced with a table full of steaming food that all smelled delicious, Chen Jiang didn't want to eat it.
Duan was eating the spicy grilled wings, and he was unwilling to stop eating even though it made him cry. Seeing that Chen Jiang didn't move, he urged him, "Why don't you eat? These spicy grilled wings are so delicious. And the chive pancakes are so delicious too."
Duan bit into the chive pancake, and the aroma wrapped in the dough was like a "miniature bomb" that exploded between the two of them with a "bang".
With spicy grilled chicken wings in his left hand and a leek pancake in his right hand, Duan took the time to bend down and sip the sweet soup, one mouthful of spicy, one mouthful of salty, one mouthful of sweet. He felt that he could continue this cycle forever.
Chen Jiang was shocked by his friend's overly generous eating style, his expression was a little stiff, "Is it really... that delicious?"
Duan nodded vigorously, "It's delicious! It feels like I'm alive again."
Chen Jiang hesitantly picked up the leek and egg pie and took a bite. His body froze as if petrified.
Duane pushed him, "Are you okay?"
Chen Jiang came back to his senses, lowered his head to hide his emotions, and said in a low voice: "This leek and egg pie tastes very similar to the one my mother made. Suddenly I remembered that she made pancakes for me when I was a child."
He originally lived with his mother, but later his mother developed amnesia and never recovered.
The time here was too long. Chen Jiang suddenly realized that he had not thought about his mother for a long time, and his mood became even more depressed.
Duan was infected by him and thought of his brother at home. The excitement of tasting the food faded away. "If my brother eats this, will it be good?"
Chen Jiang whispered soothingly: "Give it a try."
Brother Duan’s condition is very serious, it’s better than doing nothing.
After they finished their meal, Duan called Xingzi and asked him to pack up some of the food from the store.
A customer who was about to leave heard this and couldn't help but say, "Brother, this isn't good. Everyone knows that the food here is sold in limited quantities, one portion per person. If you want to take it out, who knows if you really have a brother, or if you want to take it home and eat it yourself?"
Someone nearby agreed, "Yes, if there really is a brother, just let him come over. It's takeout, who knows if you want to have an extra portion?"
Chen Jiang went to the door to pay the bill first, and when other guests came out, he was pushed out. The door was blocked and he couldn't get in.
The customers in the store were talking to each other. Duan tried to explain but no one listened to him. He just stood there anxiously.
Lu Yao had been busy for a long time, and came out of the kitchen to get some fresh air. Seeing the noise here, he pushed through the crowd and walked over. Everyone was still blaming Duan, and he couldn't help but said, "Stop arguing. If you continue to argue, you will be sent to the small dark room."
The argument became more and more heated, and someone even stepped forward and pushed Duan.
Lu Yao frowned: "..."
It's strange, it clearly worked for Bai Ming when he used it that day.
There was a dull "bang" sound, and everyone froze, as if the pause button had been pressed, and the quarrel stopped.
The door was still closing, making a creaking sound that made one's scalp numb. Bai Ming retracted his long legs and walked out of the kitchen. His voice was cold but had an indescribable penetrating power: "Manager, what's wrong?"
The crowd automatically made way for a small path. Except for Lu Yao, everyone else was silent, as if they were afraid of something.
Lu Yao looked at Bai Ming coming over, not feeling embarrassed, and pointed at Duan, "I was just about to ask."
Xingzi stood up and explained what happened.
When Lu Yao heard this, it turned out to be such a small matter. She looked at Duan, who was about to cry, and said softly, "Don't worry, I'll pack it for you right away. Is your brother unable to come because he's busy with work?"
She believed that the young man did have a brother, and she asked this question mainly to get an explanation from other guests around.
If it's not work-related, there must be other reasons.
Duan really shook his head and whispered, "Thank you, owner. My brother has amnesia and doesn't like to go out anymore. I want him to try the food in the store, maybe he will get better."
When the other person heard the word "amnesia", his face changed and his attitude changed drastically: "So that's how it is, brother, you should have told me earlier. I'm sorry."
Others also apologized, and even Xingzi secretly said to Lu Yao: "Owner, can you make an extra bowl of wonton soup for this customer? He said he came here specially after seeing the live broadcast this morning, and maybe it will help his brother."
Amnesia can be a very serious disease. After the guest said that his brother had amnesia, the noisy guests changed their attitudes.
Lu Yao nodded, "Okay, I'll cook him a bowl."
Duan thanked him repeatedly.
Twenty minutes later, he left contentedly with two large bags of food.
After all the customers in the store left, Lu Yao secretly asked Bai Ming: "What is amnesia?"
She felt that Xingzi was too smart and didn't dare to ask too many questions.
Relatively speaking, Bai Ming is a little stupid, but he can’t be said to be stupid.
According to her observation, Lu Yao felt that Bai Ming had a lonely and cold personality, and never thought much about things that did not interest him, so she dared to ask him some common sense questions.
Bai Ming glanced at her and said calmly, "Amnesia is the only disease that can kill us. No cure has been found in the past nine hundred years."
Lu Yao wanted to ask something else, but Xingzi came in and interrupted her thoughts.
Xingzi said, "Shopkeeper, all the customers have left."
Bai Ming continued: "It just so happens that the ingredients are sold out."
Lu Yao nodded and deliberately asked, "I want to make a big dinner tonight. Would you two like to stay for dinner?"
Bai Ming's red eyes flashed a light: "Of course. But owner, what are you going to do?"
Xingzi was also very curious and made a request: "What should we eat? Can we drink the wine in the cupboard?"
Lu Yao kept it a secret: "Of course it's a big meal. I'll go prepare the ingredients. You guys go home and rest first. I'll think about it. Come back at 5:30."
After the two left, Lu Yao pushed the cart out. It took a long time to select the ingredients, but fortunately he returned with a full load.
On the way back, he met a man who asked for directions. The man was wearing an expensive-looking custom-made suit and looked a little panicked. He stopped Lu Yao on the road, took out a wad of money from his pocket, and wanted Lu Yao to take him to the nearest bus stop.
Lu Yao felt a little suspicious, so he gave the man directions without asking for money. He pushed the cart back to the store quickly, and Bai Ming was already waiting in the kitchen.