Chapter 7: The Unforgettable Story of Green Pepper 3
Our car stopped in front of the largest hotel in the city, Mandarin Hotel. The 42-story building looks like a towering tree. Standing on the parking lot in front of the hotel, I looked up at almost 90 degrees but couldn't see the top floor. Compared with the 28-story Nie Building in my memory, the Nie Building suddenly looked much smaller.
Ling Jiao took us to the nearest elevator with ease. After the fully transparent sightseeing elevator reached the top floor, she led us out of the elevator.
The elevator door opened and natural light shone in. When I stepped out of the elevator, I was stunned by the scene in front of me. Natural light penetrated the huge glass dome and refracted colorful light. A huge crystal chandelier hung in the center of the dome, which looked like a goddess's gauze skirt left in the world. The restaurant is several hundred square meters, but there are only dozens of seats. The elegant leather dining table is matched with rosewood dining chairs. There are exquisite crystal decorations on the table. Platinum dinner plates and silver knives and forks all show the nobility of the restaurant. The guests who have already taken their seats are all dressed in formal clothes. The men are in suits and the women are in long dresses with light makeup. I am very glad that our black uniforms with small stand-up collars do not look too abrupt.
A waiter saw us and came over to greet us, saying respectfully, "Miss, good afternoon. This way please." He led us through the hall and walked behind a hollow black and gold partition wall. A corridor appeared in front of us. Famous paintings and flowers were hung on both sides of the corridor, and at the end was a closed door.
The waiter opened the door for us, and I felt suddenly enlightened. The sun poured in from the roof and fell on the glass dining table. The elegant room was full of warmth. There was a French window in front of us, with a white carpet in front of the window and small blankets on several rattan cushions. Unlike the hall, we had this piece of heaven and earth to ourselves.
Zhou Mian pulled out a chair and sat down, saying with some emotion: "This place is still so comfortable."
The waiter pulled out a chair next to Ling Jiao. Ling Jiao sat down gracefully, tapped her fingers on the table briskly, and said loudly, "Of course. As usual, four servings, please. What's the dessert today?"
The waiter came around to me again, pulled out a chair for me, and replied, "The signature Napoleon and..."
"Okay, that's it. Go ahead." Ling Jiao seemed to see that I was uncomfortable, so she stopped the waiter from talking and waved her hand to let him go out.
I smiled gratefully at Ling Jiao, but Ling Jiao turned her head away as if she didn't see it. As soon as I sat down on the chair, the waiter came up with a bread basket, with two kinds of French top-grade butter, salted and unsalted. Hongze and I had eaten half of the basket of bread without realizing it.
While eating, Hongze nodded and praised: "Not bad, not bad, baker, your bread is really delicious."
"Hmph, although the bread here is not bad, wait until you have tried the bread I make and then tell me what really delicious bread is." Ling Jiao seemed to be in a good mood and did not mind Hongze calling her "baker".
I took another bite of the cheese bun and suddenly felt a little bitter. I stuffed the bread into my mouth and took a sip of water, but I choked unexpectedly. Fortunately, the waiter came in with the appetizer and covered up my embarrassment.
When the appetizers came, Hongze was completely immersed in the world , and Zhou Mian and Ling Jiao also ate with gusto. French chicken consommé with seasonal vegetables, French cheese ravioli, crispy pizza, raw hamachi carpaccio with sea urchin and crispy waffles. I was just eating the third dish, but I felt a little full.
The delicious food, comfortable environment, and cozy mood actually made me relax so much that I wanted to go to the bathroom. I said a little embarrassedly: "Well, that... the bathroom, how do I get there?"
Fortunately, Ling Jiao didn't care: "It's next to the elevator we just came out of, or you can go out and ask the waiter."
"Ah? So far?" I hesitated a little, and looked towards Hongze unconsciously. The distance we just walked was definitely more than ten meters. If I went alone, I would have to find an excuse to leave the Soul Binding Cage here. But, how could I cover it up in front of Ling Jiao?
I was still thinking about what to do when Hongze stood up and opened the door: "Come together, I want to go too."
I hurriedly followed him, and under Hongze's guidance, we successfully found the bathroom. I came out of the bathroom, but I didn't see Hongze, which made me a little uneasy.
After waiting for a while, I began to search the hall with my eyes. Sure enough, in front of the wine cabinet full of red wine, I saw Hongze fiddling with a bottle of red wine curiously.
I rushed over, pulled Hongze away, and whispered, "Are you trying to scare me to death? If we wait at such a distance, what if the distance between us exceeds ten meters? A living person disappears in public, have you thought about the consequences?"
"It's abnormal to wait for you in front of the toilet. I'm fine." Hongze complained, his eyes rolled, and he immediately asked me casually, "What was that just now? It looks edible! Actually, I don't really want to eat it, but if you have to please me and give it to me in order to get my forgiveness, I can still reluctantly try it."
As soon as Hongze said this, I felt a chill on my back. I pushed Hongze forward with big strides, just wanting to get away from that pile of expensive red wine as soon as possible : "It's nothing! You can't eat it! You can't even touch it. I think you touched it just now. Let's go to the infirmary to disinfect you after we return to school."
"Human, do you think I'm a little koi? How dare you treat me like this?" Hongze stood there unwillingly, and even though I tried my best, I couldn't move him even a little bit.
“This…” Seeing that I couldn’t fool him, I had to adjust my thinking and scare him instead, “Do you still remember the Dragon King’s Imperial Brew? This is something that is ten times stronger than the Dragon King’s Imperial Brew. No, it’s a hundred times stronger.”
As soon as the words "Dragon King's Imperial Brew" came out, I clearly saw Hongze shudder. I quickly covered my mouth to prevent myself from laughing and irritating him again. While Hongze was still not coming to his senses, I quickly pushed Hongze into the corridor behind the partition wall.
Hongze, who was a little reluctant at first, pushed open the door and rushed to the table immediately, digging into his meal. Without Hongze's tall figure blocking the way, I could see clearly that the fourth dish on the table was the main course, American vanilla steak.
I couldn't help laughing. I thought this guy would definitely be kidnapped with steak in the future.
I pulled out a chair and sat down. Zhou Mian handed me the plate of steak he had just cut and said jokingly, "You must have come back because of the smell. The waiter brought the food and I had just finished cutting it when you came back."
I smiled and picked up the steak in front of me and was about to exchange it with Zhou Mian, when Ling Jiao suddenly said, "I thought it was cut for me. I kept waiting! I don't care, this plate is mine."
"Huh?" I felt awkward as I held the steak Zhou Mian had cut. I looked at Zhou Mian and then at Ling Jiao, not knowing what to do.
"Hey, Fu Lingmiao, although I'm treating you to steak, the steak in your hand is mine. Do you understand?" Ling Jiao pointed at me with a dinner knife in one hand and spoke in a domineering tone, leaving me no doubt that if I said no, she would kill me with the dinner knife without blinking an eye.
I blinked innocently and glanced at Zhou Mian. If Zhou Mian didn't mind, I wouldn't mind getting rid of this "hot potato" as soon as possible.
"Give this to Lingmiao, I'll cut another one for you." Zhou Mian took my steak and placed it in front of him, then picked up the knife and started cutting again.
"No! Zhou Mian, I tell you, I want that portion, I want the first portion you cut automatically, consciously and voluntarily today. I'm afraid that if I eat the one you cut now, I'll shorten my life." Although Ling Jiao was talking to Zhou Mian, her eyes never left the steak I was holding.
"Eat steak while it's hot!" Hongze suddenly stood up and said with emotion. Then he leaned forward and quickly cut the steak in front of Ling Jiao into two, put one piece on his plate, put down his knife and fork, and quickly exchanged the steak in my hand with the one in front of Ling Jiao.
After finishing all this, he clapped his hands excitedly, "Perfect! Let's eat!"
Looking at the steak in front of her, Ling Jiao smiled with satisfaction, picked up a piece with her knife and put it into her mouth: "Yes, perfect!"
"You!" Zhou Mian laughed at the sudden change. He turned to me and asked, "Is it enough? Do you want to exchange with me?"
"Haha... That's enough, that's enough." I smiled miserably, "It's good like this, I'm actually almost full."
Although I said this, I couldn't help crying in my heart. Although I am not like Hongze, who can't walk when he sees steak, this is the signature dish made by the chef of the three-star Michelin restaurant! If I miss it this time, I don't know if I can have it next time!
Hongze finished half a steak in two or three bites. He looked up at me, tilted his head and smiled, as if to say, if you don’t eat it, I will eat it for you.
I was startled and quickly cut a piece and put it in my mouth. The tender taste of the beef spread between my lips and teeth, and the fragrance filled my mouth. A feeling of happiness arose spontaneously. As soon as I swallowed it, I quickly cut another piece and ate it, fearing that this feeling would not last.
