Free Web NovelChapter 287: Chapter 282: Fatty with a Story_1
Zhao Xinli heard it, grinned and tilted his chin upward at Zhou Ning.
"It’s Mr. Xia who really gets me."
The car wasn’t slow, and it looked like they were about to leave the center of Rudong City. However, no one asked any further questions. After making several turns, they arrived at a small storefront. At the very top hung an embroidered banner with a huge character for "noodle" being very eye-catching.
Beneath it hung a black signboard that said Fatty’s Noodle House. It wasn’t fancy but had an ancient charm, and the inside looked very clean, with all the tables and chairs made of natural wood. Mr. Zhao stopped the car, and he was the first to jump out.
As he entered, he shouted:
"Is Fatty here?"
A fat old man with a head full of silver hair waddled out from behind a curtain, his belly swaying. Seeing Mr. Zhao, he broke into a smile that resembled Maitreya Buddha.
"Kid, what brings you here?"
Zhao Xinli turned and pointed to the group of people behind him, saying:
"We’re here in Rudong on business and just so happened to be hungry. Fatty, please take care of us. We have a big group, and we don’t want anything that takes too long to make. Let’s just have noodles. Oh, and we’d like to have some potstickers too. How about we get a pot of mixed filling for everyone?"
"Sure, come on in and have a seat!"
The fat old man laughed, patting Mr. Zhao’s back and ushering everyone to hurry inside and sit down. The ten or so people filled up half of the noodle house, taking up four tables.
Mr. Zhao went off to chat with the fat old man. Soon after, a young man came out holding a large square tray that carried various small dishes of appetizers, though they were in generous variety.
Seasoned seaweed, spicy cabbage, shredded potato salad, kelp strips, spicy tofu skin, smashed cucumber, boiled peanuts, and hot and sour bean sprouts—each table was served eight different dishes, taking up a large part of the table’s center space.
While everyone was slightly puzzled, Mr. Zhao and the fat old man came out pushing a cart.
On it were over a dozen bowls of noodles, clearly boiled in plain water, but without a doubt, the noodles were hand-rolled and hand-pulled, thin at the edges and slightly thicker in the middle, with each bowl nearly the size of an ordinary household basin. Most conspicuous was a dish of beef slices next to it, thin as cicada wings, and a soup bucket.
Inside the bucket was a light yellow, thick broth with large bones visible. Stirring it released the aromatic scent of beef bone soup, prompting both men and women alike to salivate uncontrollably.
The fat old man grabbed a bowl of noodles, put on a transparent glove, and looked over at Xu Dayuan’s table with a smile.
"Anyone doesn’t eat green onions, cilantro, or chili peppers?" ƒгeeweɓn૦vel.com
Xu Dayuan, Zhou Ning, and the rest all shook their heads. The fat old man moved quickly, grabbing the beef slices and tossing them into the bowls, instantly covering the noodles underneath as if the bowl was full of beef.
Then he added green onions, cilantro, chili peppers, and Sichuan pepper salt directly into the bowl. As the beef bone broth was poured over the top, the rich aroma rose to another level. The fat old man smiled, indicating they should help themselves to carry the bowls.
After that, he hurried to the next table with the cart. Within a few minutes, people at all four tables had received their bowls of noodles. Zhou Ning stirred the soup a bit, took a sip of the hot, meaty broth and swallowed, feeling an instant warmth in his stomach, and his taste buds were awakened.
Sitting opposite, Mr. Zhao saw Zhou Ning’s reaction and laughed.
"Actually, there are many ways to eat this. You can put shredded tofu and kelp in the noodles, add a bit of sesame oil and vinegar, specifically Old Lighthouse vinegar from Qindao—it tastes incredibly good!"
Hearing this, everyone went straight for the dishes without any ado. Zhou Ning added a bit of each to his bowl and tasted. Indeed, the flavor was even more delicious.
"It’s no wonder you’re not thin; you really know how to eat. This beef looks as thin as cicada wings, but the texture when it’s eaten is really good, and the noodles are particularly chewy and springy."
Mr. Zhao laughed contentedly and glanced over at the other three tables where everyone was holding their bowls, already finished with them. The small dishes on the tables were all wiped clean, leaving no need for additional flavor, just clean plates.
The group called out for another bowl, to which Mr. Zhao shook his head.
"Take your time eating. The noodles are cooked a bit al dente so that when the soup cools down a bit, it’ll be perfect to eat. Eating it while it’s too hot can be too filling. We’ve also got potstickers coming up. Fatty used to be an executive chef, right across our compound at the Qindao Grand Hotel. His skills are unquestionable."
Xu Dayuan suddenly realized the reason for the delicious taste. As soon as Mr. Zhao finished speaking, Fatty came out carrying the potstickers, with a huge plate at least fifty centimeters in diameter, arranged neatly with potstickers, their crispy golden backs looking like carefully carved openwork that almost seemed a shame to puncture with chopsticks.
Mr. Zhao stood up.
"Fatty, give me a plate of the pork and three delicacies; I’ve been craving it for a year."
The fat old man laughed even harder and quickly handed him a plate. Then, the remaining plates were divided among the other three tables. Zhou Ning picked up one and took a bite, instantly feeling a burst of soup explode in his mouth. He paused slightly, and Xia Momo and Zhu Xingxing both looked at him.
"Is it not tasty?"
Zhou Ning shook his head.
"It’s not just tasty, it’s bursting with juice. When you bite into it, you get a mouthful of shrimp, and the chives are still incredibly green. The craftsmanship is truly unbeatable."
Upon hearing this, everyone hurriedly started to grab the potstickers, with Xu Dayuan nodding continuously.
"The flavor is incredible, but why open a small place in such a spot? If this was in Qindao, in a better location, people would be fighting to get in."
Mr. Zhao glanced towards the kitchen and, with a fade of his smile, shook his head quietly and said,
"Fatty has moved on now. His son opened a big hotel in Qindao ten years ago, and the business was doing really well. But others eyed it with envy. In 2004, his whole family was kidnapped; a ransom of eight million was demanded, which was a huge amount of money at that time. Fatty paid as demanded, but the kidnappers had already killed the hostages."
"After so many years, the city center is still a heartbreaking place for him since he lost both his family and his wealth. So, he moved here to Rudong to live. Part of the eight-million ransom was borrowed money, and he continues to run the shop in hopes of repaying his debts sooner. That way, he wouldn’t have any concerns left."
Xu Dayuan squinted, his face showing shock.
"I remember now, this case, I have an impression of it. At the end of April 2004, they reported a case, the 4.14 major kidnapping and murder. The victims were the owner of the Qindao Jiangning Clubhouse and his wife and daughter."
"The person who reported the case was Zhu Yantao. At that time, he went to report the crime with a bag that contained three fingers. Upon identification, the fingers were said to belong to his son Zhu Guotai, his daughter-in-law Fang Yue, and his granddaughter Zhu Li. Fang Yue was an actress, probably you all recognize her."
"After he reported the crime, the police formed a special case group to investigate. However, the news spread fast and the kidnappers, realizing he had called the police in desperation, sent two more ears along with several photos of Fang Yue being tortured."
"Zhu Yantao panicked, begging the police to withdraw, and when the money was ready, he took it to the outskirts of the Ocean World as designated by the kidnappers. The kidnappers canceled the transaction, stating over the phone that Zhu Yantao had broken the agreement and should prepare to collect the corpses of the three. Zhu Yantao was stunned. He drove alone to the location the kidnappers had demanded and changed the spot."
"After being led around several times, Zhu Yantao threw the bag of eight million in cash over a cliff. From then on, there was no word from the kidnappers. Seven days later, someone reported to the police that they had found three bodies by the sea."
"The forensic doctor determined that the bodies were indeed the kidnapped family and that the time of death was estimated to be on the day the ransom was paid. Fatty always says that if they hadn’t called the police at that time, maybe..."
Xu Dayuan didn’t continue; everyone knew that there was no maybe as the people were already dead.
At this point, Zhou Ning recalled some information, he seemed to have seen these details online before, but the headlines were too sensational back then. However, he didn’t know at the time that the case occurred in Qindao.
Mr. Zhao sighed, anger showing on his usually smiling face for once.
"If there hadn’t been a leak from the inside, it wouldn’t have come to such an uncontrollable pass. The key is that everyone didn’t blame the person who leaked the information but instead directed their anger at Fatty, accusing him of why he called the police, saying it was he who forced his son’s family to their deaths."
"With such turmoil, Fatty couldn’t withstand the pressure, sold off his properties, but still had a lot of debts. The landlord of his son’s hotel outright evicted Fatty, calling him bad luck. With no choice, Fatty came to Rudong City and opened a shop under a hidden identity. It was only last year that he managed to pay off all the external debts."
"The grief of losing a child in old age is unimaginable for most people, especially for the little granddaughter who was only two years old. Her death was particularly brutal. It’s said that her abdomen was slit open, her mouth torn at the corners, and all three were tortured to death, with the kidnapper still at large."
Everyone fell silent, heads bowed, finishing their potstickers. Unnoticed, Fatty had walked up next to Mr. Zhao.
"Young man, are you on a diet lately? You’ve eaten too little!"
Zhao Xinli replied a bit embarrassingly, in a lower voice,
"Actually, I had breakfast at ten o’clock, but passing by here, I couldn’t resist your noodles. Not hungry, yet I could still eat a bowl of noodles and a big plate of potstickers."
Both of them laughed. Mr. Tao had already gone to pay the bill. After exchanging a few pleasantries, everyone got into their cars. Fatty came out to see them off, waving at the cars continuously. Mr. Zhao honked twice and followed the other police cars onto the road.
The atmosphere inside the car was oppressing. Mr. Zhao glanced at Xu Dayuan through the rearview mirror.
"What’s up, boss? Did this matter get you down?"
Xu Dayuan glanced at Zhao Xinli, his eyes revealing an understanding.
"Don’t beat around the bush with me. You wouldn’t have brought us here to eat without a reason. Speak up, what’s your angle? In the pending cases reported from each district, this case isn’t listed. Do you hope our task force will handle this case?
You should know that Mr. Hu wants quick results, and this is a kidnapping case. There’s already little evidence left, and it hasn’t been mentioned by anyone; this indicates that at least there isn’t much physical evidence, making it very hard to solve in the short term."
Mr. Zhao smiled, showing a simple and honest expression.
"Nothing much, the task force’s work is the priority, but, when we are done, can we pay some attention to this case?"
Xu Dayuan looked at Mr. Zhao and sighed lightly. How could he not understand what Mr. Zhao was thinking?
"Alright, I agree!"
