I Can Turn into a Fish

David and Hong Chenghai saw Chu Xian’s confident expression and they each expectantly took a piece of dried fish.

“Oh, oh my god!” David exclaimed through his chewing after he put the dried fish in his mouth.

“This… delicious!” Hong Chenghai’s eyes fell wide open as he chewed furiously without any of the calm composure of a government official.

“This is amazing! Chu Xian, I never imagined you could make such delicious food! Fantastic! This is the best thing I’ve ever eaten!” David said, giving him a thumbs up while he reached his other hand out to take another piece.

“That’s right, that’s right. I didn’t think after eating your dried fish, Xiao Xian, that I’d feel like the food from Gu Dao Recipe is only mediocre!” Hong Chenghai echoed his agreement and nodded.

Chu Xian laughed heartily and also reached out his chopsticks to take a piece. “I have three flavors here: numb, sour, and tomato. I didn’t bring the numb and spicy one!”

“No can do, Chu Xian. When I leave, you definitely have to let me take some with me!” David said with an intense gaze.

“No problem!” Chu Xian smiled and nodded then glanced at the expectant Hong Chenghai. “Haha, if Brother Hong wants to eat some more, you can just call me. We’re always pretty close!”

“Haha, that’s great!” Hong Chenghai laughed. “Come, let’s drink another!”

“Cheers!” The trio raised their cups.

“Peng! Peng! Ka cha!”

At that moment, someone knocked on the door and came in without waiting for a response. Chu Xian and the others frowned and looked at the door unhappily.

“Is there a problem? Did we call you? Why are you coming in so casually?” Hong Chenghai said unhappily to the young man at the door.

“Sorry to bother you.” The young man wore a nice suit, and although he was apologizing, his gaze was focused on the table. “Please excuse me gentlemen, but I’ll have to ask you to put away the food you brought. Our restaurant does not allow food brought from outside!”

“Eh?” Hong Chenghai furrowed his eyebrows. “Can’t you just let it go this time?”

“Gentlemen, our Gu Dao Recipe is the best restaurant in Hai Qing City. We have our own standards. Please cooperate. If you’d like to eat dried fish, you can order it here. We also make this dish, and it isn’t expensive either.” The young man in the suit shook his head as he spoke.

“Oh? You think your Gu Dao Recipe’s dried fish is as good as ours? Don’t embarrass yourself!” David said scornfully. He already disliked the impolite young man.

“Heh. ” The young man’s face turned cold at David’s tone. “Gentlemen, you might not know it, but our Gu Dao Recipe is famous throughout the entire Hai Feng province. Our flavors are definitely ten times better than yours, yet you actually come here and bring your own food?”

The young man shook his head slightly.

David laughed and slapped the table. “What will you do if your dried fish doesn’t taste as good as the ones we have here?”

“Puh!” The young man couldn’t help laughing and he glanced at the dried fish in the bowl. “When it comes to seafood, there’s nobody in the entire Hai Feng province as good as us. Dried fish might be a more niche dish, but ours is still made by our chef with a special recipe. It will definitely taste better than yours!”

“Really?” David stood up and laughed. “Alright, you said your dried fish is delicious, so let’s compete. If it is as you said and your dried fish tastes better than ours, I’ll pay you double today’s bill, but if not, then we eat here for free forever. How about that?”

“Okay. These are your words!!” The young man thought for a moment and agreed, cocking his eyebrows a little and looking at them confidently.

“Bring a plate!” David said to him with a smile on his face.

“Heh, you wait here. I’ll show you what true dried fish tastes like in five minutes. I hope you won’t regret your words!” The young man in the suit turned around and left the room.

“David, you really know how to play!” After the young man in the suit left, Chu Xian gave David a thumbs up.

“Haha, he didn’t want us to be happy, so it was only fair to have some fun with him!” David said happily.

Hong Chenghai shook his head, but he had a small smile on his face.

About five minutes later, the young man in the suit walked over confidently, followed by a fat cook in uniform.

“Try this, the special garlic dried fish from our Gu Dao Recipe made from dried abalones, one hundred and eighty-eight RMB each!” The young man in the suit declared proudly as he put the plate in front of David.

“Okay!” David smiled at Chu Xian and Hong Chenghai, and all three of them each took one!

David opened his mouth and bit into the piece of fish. After chewing and tasting the flavor, he spat it out. “Ew… this tastes so bad. This is your so-called dried fish? Ay, Gu Dao Recipe is just so-so but really good at bragging!”Chu Xian chewed with a smile and shook his head a little. It wasn’t even as good as the ones his uncle made.

“You!” The young man in the suit shouted when David spat the food out and his face changed color. The cook also felt a little uncomfortable. “Gentlemen, are you here to cause trouble?”

“Haha!” David couldn’t help laughing. He picked up a piece of dried fish with a pair of backup chopsticks. “Come, these two brothers. To thank you for the free food, I’ll let you try the dried fish we brought!”

The young man’s expression darkened as he frowned and ate the dried fish. The cook beside him also ate one.

David laughed at their expressions.

The more the young man and the cook chewed, the worse their expressions became, and the delicious food tasted like wax in their mouths.

“Okay guys, thank you for the free food. Please get out; don’t bother us when we’re eating!” Chu Xian said mockingly as he looked at them.

“You…” The young man’s facial color changed rapidly. He glared at Chu Xian angrily.

“What? Are you not going to keep your word? Or do you not admit that you lost?” David crossed one leg over the other and looked at them with a big smile.

“Okay, we’ll definitely keep our word!” The young man in the suit said through clenched teeth.

“Haha, thanks so much. That’s right, how about we order more? It’ll be best if we get some takeaway!” David said mockingly.

The young man’s eyes glistened angrily. He turned and stomped away with an angry face.

“Haha!”

Chu Xian and the others laughed as the young man and the chef left in embarrassment. Hong Chenghai gave David a thumbs up. “Amazing!”

“Heehee, it’s all because Chu Xian’s dried fish really are delicious.”

Chu Xian nodded slightly. He narrowed his eyes and asked, “What do you guys think if I used the dried fish as a main dish and opened a seafood restaurant?”

David and Hong Chenghai were stunned for a moment then nodded without hesitation.

“If you really open a seafood restaurant, the business will definitely be good. It might even be better than Gu Dao Recipe’s.”

Chu Xin nodded silently. Opening a restaurant had always been a dream in his heart, but carrying it out would still need lots of preparation.