Volume 6: Summer Chapter 7 Waist Circumference
More than half an hour later, Xiao Liu arrived at the store. She looked at the bookstore, which was almost decorated , and said, "Sister Chen, you guys should go eat quickly. I'll take care of this."
Chen Nan glanced at the time. It was past eleven o'clock. She looked at Jiang You and Lin Yu and said, "Why don't we just eat something nearby?"
"Okay, let's eat lighter. I've lost two kilograms, and I need to maintain it," Jiang You said, measuring his waistline with his hand. He asked Chen Nan, "Do you think my waist is a little thinner?"
Chen Nan took a closer look and said, "I said she's thinner. She's a little thinner."
Buzz...buzz...
Jiang You took out his vibrating phone from his pocket. It was Liu Boyang calling. He picked up the phone, "Hello... Oh... You're in my store? Wait a minute."
He held the phone in his hand, looked at Chen Nan and said, "I have a friend coming over?"
"Then let's have dinner together. You guys can chat about your own things. I'll come back after I'm full. "
"There's still time," Jiang You put the phone to his ear again, "I'm in a nearby bookstore, Guanghe Bookstore, come over... Turn left and walk straight along the street. Turn left at the first intersection, and you'll see it after a while. There's a sign with an anime character outside. It's very conspicuous."
After the call ended, Jiang You said to Chen Nan: "My yard was designed by him. I told him this morning that I wanted to build a flower wall, but he strongly opposed it."
"Why do you object?" Lin Yu asked.
“Maybe you think it ruins your aesthetic?” Jiang You thought for a moment and said, “Then let’s go to that Cantonese restaurant.”
Chen Nan said, "I'll listen to you."
After a while, Liu Boyang stuck half of his body in from outside the door. He looked inside and after seeing Jiang You, he took a few quick steps and walked in front of Jiang You.
"You are here. Let me introduce you. This is my sister Nan, the owner of this bookstore. This is Mr. Lin, my weight loss coach." Jiang You then introduced Liu Boyang to Chen Nan and Lin Yu, "This is Mr. Liu who helped me design the yard."
After watching them get to know each other, Jiang You said, "Then let's go eat?"
"I don't……"
Liu Boyang was about to refuse when he heard Jiang You say, "Come on, come on, I just have something to consult you about."
Jiang You took the lead and walked out, followed by Chen Nan and Lin Yu. Liu Boyang hesitated for a few seconds and then caught up.
When the four of them walked to the Cantonese restaurant, they found that it was full and they had to wait for a table. A newly opened Chu cuisine restaurant next door still had empty tables and was offering a 38% discount. Jiang You and the other four discussed it and walked into the Chu cuisine restaurant and sat down. The waiter served tea and asked them to scan the QR code on the table to place their order.
Jiang You took out his phone and scanned the code. He said, "Do you have any dietary restrictions? If not, I'll just order whatever you want."
Liu Boyang hesitated for a moment, "I can't eat spicy food."
"I just want to eat something light."
Chen Nan leaned towards Jiang You and looked at the menu on her phone. "Stir-fried lotus root tips, see if you have any. It's famous in Chu cuisine. I remember there was also a soup, lotus root and pork ribs soup."
Jiang You's finger slid across the screen of his mobile phone. "There is lotus root soup, but there is no lotus root and pork ribs soup..."
"This is tofu balls stewed with fish cakes," Chen Nan pointed at a dish, "Fish cakes are best made in Chu cuisine. There is also a fish cake festival there every year."
Jiang You nodded and asked, "How do you know so much?"
"I was watching a and happened to see this."
"This show is suitable for me. What is its name?"
“'Old Taste' is a very good film.”
"I'll go back and look today. There's nothing good to watch recently." Jiang You ordered the dishes and placed the order on his phone. Then he looked up at Liu Boyang and said, "Is it really impossible to make a flower wall?"
"It will destroy the entire style of the courtyard now," Liu Boyang drank a sip of barley tea. "When I designed it, I treated the courtyard as a whole. Every scene is echoed. For example, in the morning, the sun shines from the east and shines through the greenhouse. There are patterns on the top of the glass of the greenhouse. I don't know if you have noticed that when it falls to the ground, it will form light spots, which blend in with the flowers and plants in the flower bed, forming a dynamic landscape..."
"I don't think I've seen it," Jiang You thought for a moment, "Is it because I got up too late in the morning?"
"You can't see it after nine o'clock," said Liu Boyang.
"I'll get up early tomorrow and take a look."
"So it looks like you just built a flower wall, but the yard is not big to begin with, and the wall has the purpose of leaving blank space. Flower walls are usually very full, so it will... it will feel like the whole yard is filled with things, without a sense of hierarchy, and each element seems isolated, which is ugly."
"I see. Fortunately I asked you."
The stir-fried lotus root tips were served first.
Jiang You picked up one and took a bite.
Very little seasoning was used, and the taste was a little light, tender and crisp, with a unique fragrance. Jiang You ate many lotus roots in a row. He said, "I have only eaten lotus roots and lotus seeds before. This is the first time I have eaten lotus root tips." He asked Chen Nan, "I don't think Tangjiang has this dish?"
"No."
"I want to build a flower wall. I want the branches to grow outside the wall, so that people passing by can see it and think it's beautiful. Then they can look into my yard and think it's even more beautiful. This way people will be attracted to come in," Jiang You put down his chopsticks and looked at Liu Boyang. "I'm worried about how to attract people in and make my business better. Do you think there's any other way?"
"Attractive..." Liu Boyang pondered.
"You can open the store on time every day, which is better than anything else." Chen Nan exposed Jiang You's plan.
"I want to, but I've been trying to lose weight recently. I think I should bring the trick back to the store and let it lie by the door. It might work."
"Recruiting talents?" Liu Boyang looked at Jiang You in confusion.
"It's a cute cat, round and round."
"oh."
Stone pot pepper river prawns and stewed fish cakes were also served.
Jiang You first took a bite of the shrimp, which was very fragrant, and the spicy taste did not cover up the freshness.
Then he scooped a bowl of soup and ate a bite of fish cake.
Fresh, smooth and refreshing.
He commented: "It's pretty good, light, I'll eat here often in the future, and the food is served pretty quickly."
After Lin Yu drank a bowl of soup, he said, "I think we should just put some special potted plants or rockery at the door, or something like that?"
"That's one way to do it," Liu Boyang nodded. He said, "Let me think about how to design it."
"Teacher Liu, thank you for your help."
"No trouble, no trouble. I just said," Liu Boyang glanced at Jiang You, "the camphor tree seems to have grown a lot taller."
“It’s nutritious.”
“I see.”
"By the way, are you free on Children's Day?"
"It's empty, what's wrong?"
"My son is holding an art exhibition. He has been painting every day recently and has hardly played games. I'm afraid that if there are not many people coming, he will be sad, so you must come to support him."
"Okay, I'll definitely come." Liu Boyang agreed.
