Chapter 398 - Lord Fei
After coming out from the back kitchen, Lin Yan encountered a small group of well-dressed people. They all surrounded an old man who was jovially laughing at some joke that Shen Junxi told him. The old man had a distinct aura about him. He was glowing despite his aging marks and dressed in a flamboyant golden robe with a red belt tied around his juggling belly. He seemed like a heavenly deity. He stood next to Shen Junxi, smiling and patting the latter on his arm, bubbly laughter resonating in the front hall.
"Ah, and this is my nephew-in-law," said Shen Junxi with a smile. Although he repeatedly emphasized that he didn't like the Lin brothers at home, he was sensible and knew what to do outside the house. He motioned Lin Yan to come and stand beside him as he introduced the latter to the man next to him. "Honoured Lord! My nephew-in-law is married to my niece and the one in charge of this restaurant. The roast duck that you ate last time came from him. Ah Yan, this is Lord Fei."
Though Shen Junxi didn't introduce who Lord Fei was exactly, Lin Yan didn't dare to slight the latter. Just before he would greet Lord Fei, the jovial old man spoke first in his deep and resonant voice. "Oh, so this is your dear nephew-in-law? You have praised his cooking so much that I thought he was some sort of immortal residing in the mountain, but now that I have seen him, I think you were not boasting at all. His features are outstanding. He looks like a little prince if I was to describe him. No wonder your niece is smitten with him."
Neither Lin Yan nor Shen Junxi knew what to say to this. While Lin Yan was used to people praising his looks, he was still a bit embarrassed about being called a 'little prince'. Where does he look little? As for Shen Junxi, he couldn't say anything because he was gritting his teeth so hard that it was grating inside his mouth. What smitten? Was his niece any less than these beasts!!
However, in front of Lord Fei, he could only smile politely. He had some doubts in his heart about introducing Lord Fei to Lin Yan. On the one hand, he wanted to help Lin Yan, but on the other hand, he was afraid of giving a powerful backer to Lin Yan. Lord Fei was known for his passion for food. If the latter really ended up liking Lin Yan a bit too much, then it might become troublesome for his niece. "He is not as good as you say, my dear Lord. It's his honor to serve you with his menial skills, don't put him on a high horse lest he falls."
Lin Yan felt his lips twitch, though he suppressed his smile from forming. If Shen Yunxi caught him smiling, he would be the one to suffer. Lin Yan bowed his head to hide his amused expression, but Lord Fei wasn't scared of Shen Junxi. He took a few steps forward and laughed, genially patting on Shen Junxi's back. "There is no need for you to be so hard on the kid! I understand your feelings, no one will like the man who stole the apple of their eyes, but it's done deal. What can you do by all this pouting and complaining?"
Then he looked around the restaurant with his bright eyes and nodded in appreciation. "It's good, not like other restaurants where no one cares about a thing called hygiene. Clean and simple, not too overboard, gives off a homely feel. It's better than the restaurants in the capital, where all the focus is placed on the hustle and bustle, yet no one pays attention to their skill. No clear understanding of spices, yet they rank number one, tsk tsk."
Shen Junxi and Lin Yan exchanged eye contact with each other. It looks like they have met their match. This Lord Fei was an old foodie! He knew his ways around a restaurant a little too well!
"But Junxi, why are there no customers here? Didn't you say that your nephew-in-law's cooking was so good that a line long enough to cover the docks could be seen every day? What happened to that?"
Shen Junxi knew how much Lord Fei liked to travel incognito and hated to use his identity as the uncle of the Emperor. He would always scold the ministers when they tried to treat him extravagantly whenever he traveled somewhere. It could be said that Lord Fei was staying in this small town because he wanted to live his life simply and cleanly, away from the schemes of the imperial palace. So, he didn't know how to answer this tricky question for a while.
"It's like this, Lord. Right now, it's past lunchtime of the dock workers. Our customers mostly want to eat a generous amount at a reasonable price. Since our prices are reasonable and the food is good, the dockworkers rush to eat lunch at our restaurant. But currently, it's time for them to finish their work. That's why there aren't any customers around." Lin Yan immediately came to the rescue when he saw that his eldest uncle had stayed silent. It seemed like they couldn't let Lord Fei know that they reserved the entire restaurant for him.
"Ah! It's that so? I thought your restaurant was doing a bit poorly, and Junxi was just blowing rainbow farts about your skills!" Said Lord Fei at once, not even bothering to hide his thoughts.
Shen Junxi "..." what rainbow farts?! Weren't you the one ahhing after eating that roast duck?
"Dear Lord Fei, I can assure you that our restaurant is indeed good, and you will not regret coming here," Lin Yan couldn't let anyone talk bad about his wife's restaurant. Immediately he spoke up to defend it.
The guards behind Lord Fei threw a disdainful glance at Lin Yan, sneering contemptuously in their heads 'not regret coming? Have you even seen your surroundings? It stinks of fish and what not! You are so ignorant of your own status that you don't even know what to say or what not to say. With his status, what kind of delicacy has the Lord not eaten? It's better to say less, to not slap your face hard later on!'