Free Web NovelChapter 143: Chapter 114: Brat on the Loose, Make Way
Su Chen looked at the business card in his hand. He didn’t throw it away, but instead handed it to Chen Fei to put away.
Quanjude, a time-honored brand in the Imperial Capital!
It was founded during the Tongzhi reign of the Qing Dynasty and has over a hundred years of history. Quanjude’s roast duck is arguably one of the Imperial Capital’s hallmarks. Back in the day, it was a must-eat delicacy for many foreign dignitaries visiting the city.
The two went straight to a private room on the second floor, choosing one with a view of Wangfujing Street.
Su Chen ordered a set meal for two: one roast duck, a soup, salted duck liver, and shrimp balls. Including the private room fee, the total came to 888—a rather auspicious number!
After a wait of about twenty minutes, the door to their room opened. A middle-aged man in a chef’s uniform and a server entered, pushing a dining cart.
Once the server had placed the soup and side dishes on the table, the middle-aged man spoke. "Good afternoon, gentlemen. I am your personal carver. Shall I begin now?"
The roast duck on the cart was glistening with oil, plump and succulent, and shone with an alluring luster. A fragrant aroma wafted over, enough to make one’s mouth water.
The chef skillfully wielded his knife, carving the duck meat slice by slice and arranging the pieces neatly on a plate. He then brought out a basket of steaming hot pancakes from the cart. The shredded scallions, cucumber sticks, and other accompaniments were already laid out in front of Su Chen and Chen Fei.
Su Chen expertly spread a pancake open, picked up two slices of duck, dipped them in sweet bean sauce, and placed them on the pancake. He added some shredded scallion and cucumber, then rolled it all up and popped it into his mouth.
"Mmm~" Quanjude’s roast duck was on a whole other level.
The skin was crispy, the meat fragrant—rich, but not greasy. Su Chen couldn’t resist and devoured six rolls in a row. Seeing how fast he was eating, the chef picked up his carving pace.
Now Su Chen understood the saying, "He who has never been to the Great Wall is not a true man, and he who has not eaten roast duck has lived in vain." A trip to the Imperial Capital would be incomplete without trying its authentic roast duck!
A whole roast duck, two side dishes, and a soup were the perfect amount for two people.
"Server, I’d like one roast duck to go!" Su Chen said, wiping his shiny, greasy lips.
The server, who was helping the chef clear the cart, immediately stopped her actions. "Sir, would you like the takeout duck to be carved?"
"Yes, please carve it. And please pack some extra condiments!"
Su Chen made sure to specify this, as they had already asked for two refills of the shredded scallion and cucumber during their meal.
The server nodded and exited the private room.
Quanjude’s takeout service was impressively fast. Less than ten minutes later, the server returned with a large carrier bag.
"Sir, your roast duck is ready to go. It’s been packed in an insulated bag, so as long as you eat it within the hour, it’ll taste just as good as it does in the restaurant!"
Chen Fei deftly took the bag from the server. With the takeout order, the meal came to a total of 1156, which seemed like a reasonable price.
After settling the bill, Chen Fei walked ahead with the takeout, intending to go out and hail a cab. Just as he pushed aside the heavy, insulated door curtain, a small figure darted in and slammed right into him. The little boy was sent reeling back into the doorframe, while the bag with the roast duck flew out of Chen Fei’s hand and crashed to the floor.
"WAAAH—" A loud wail instantly erupted.
"Oh, my precious grandson! Are you hurt? Who’s the one walking around with their eyes closed? Is this what your parents taught you, how to walk all over people?" a shrill cry rang out.
A portly middle-aged woman bustled in from outside. She saw the crying child leaning against the doorframe, and after a quick check revealed he wasn’t seriously hurt, she turned her glare on Chen Fei.
"So it was you, you little punk, who ran into my grandson?" The middle-aged woman grabbed Chen Fei and immediately went on the offensive, her pudgy hand swinging straight for his face.
There was no way Chen Fei was going to take that. In a single, swift motion, he twisted her arm back and forced her to the ground.
The middle-aged woman hit the ground hard and started screaming in pain. "Ouch! He’s attacking me! Somebody help! Someone’s beating up an old woman!"
The entire scene, from the child running into Chen Fei to Chen Fei subduing the woman, unfolded in just a few seconds. The Quanjude staff hadn’t even had time to react.
Hearing the woman’s howls, a man who appeared to be the floor manager at Quanjude finally hurried over with several staff members in tow.
The floor manager’s scalp prickled as he took in the scene.
He knew that in this day and age, the trickiest people to deal with were children and women. If he handled this poorly, it would reflect badly on Quanjude.
The manager knew this was a difficult situation, but he had to face it. He reluctantly stepped forward to mediate. "Sir, let’s talk this over calmly. Could you please release the lady first?"
"Let me go, you little bastard! You son of a whore!" Feeling emboldened by the arrival of staff, the woman’s words grew even fouler.
Su Chen’s brow furrowed the moment he heard "son of a whore." He knew exactly what that insult meant...
’In old Imperial Capital slang, "丫头" (yātou) was a term for a girl working in a brothel. To be "raised by a yātou" was to call someone a bastard, a child with no known father.’
Chen Fei didn’t fully grasp the specific insult, but he knew the old hag wasn’t paying him any compliments. Besides, he saw Su Chen’s brow furrow, and since Su Chen hadn’t told him to let go, he ignored the Quanjude manager completely. He even deliberately applied more pressure, making the old woman shriek in pain.
The manager, being a man of experience, quickly picked up on the nuances of the situation.
"Sir," the manager said, leaning toward Su Chen with a pleading tone, "do you think you could ask your friend to let her go?"
Su Chen shot the manager a cold look. ’I’ve seen this act plenty of times back when I was a delivery driver. No matter who was right, the blame always fell on me. The prevailing wisdom was to just take it and walk away, since you couldn’t afford to fight back.’
"Can you guarantee that old hag won’t make a scene the moment she gets up?"
Seeing the crowd gathering at the doorway, the manager gritted his teeth and nodded firmly.
With the manager’s assurance, Su Chen gave Chen Fei a meaningful look. Chen Fei immediately released the old woman and took several quick steps back.
Sure enough, the moment she was free, the old woman tried to lunge at Chen Fei in retaliation. But he was already three or four meters away.
The old woman’s eyes darted around, and then she threw herself back on the floor and started to wail. "Oh, come and see, everyone! These little animals are bullying a poor old woman! They even hit my grandson! Is there no justice in this world?!"
The old woman was crying and shouting, wailing so heart-wrenchingly that anyone who didn’t know better might have thought her husband had just died.
Su Chen paid the old woman’s theatrics no mind. His expression was placid, as if he were merely watching a show.
The manager was fuming. Watching the old woman’s antics, he knew Quanjude was bound to end up trending online for all the wrong reasons.
"Stop your wailing! I’ve already called the police. We have security cameras, so when the officers get here, we’ll see exactly what happened!"
The manager had no desire to investigate the matter himself. Calling the police was the most appropriate course of action.
True to form, the old woman snapped her mouth shut the moment she heard the manager’s words. She knew full well that her "precious grandson" had been running too fast, crashed into the other party, and fallen.
But admit she was wrong? Impossible. She was a veteran at this: first, you cry; second, you cause a scene; third, you throw a fit. In the end, the other party always ended up apologizing and paying up.
Just as she was wondering what to do next, she heard her precious grandson’s voice from nearby.
"You want roast duck? I’ll give you some roast duck!"
The little boy, who had been wailing just moments before, had somehow gotten to his feet. He had walked over to the dropped roast duck and was now furiously stomping on the insulated carrier bag with his little feet.
When Su Chen saw this, a smile appeared on his otherwise impassive face.
’Originally, this would have been a stalemate. Even if the police came, they’d just try to calm everyone down or, seeing her as the "vulnerable party," make Chen Fei apologize. He had, after all, physically subdued her. It wouldn’t matter that it was self-defense; she was an old woman!’
But now, the little boy’s actions... had just handed all the leverage right to Su Chen.
"Tsk, tsk. The apple really doesn’t fall far from the tree."
The old woman felt a sense of vindication watching her grandson’s behavior, even cheering him on. "That’s my boy! Good job! Just like that, stomp on it a few more times!"
This scene left all the onlookers completely dumbfounded.
