Gourmet: Midnight Vending-Chapter 333 - 310: The Evil Lion’s Head!

When Chen Mo leisurely drove to the North Gate, he instantly understood why no one was setting up stalls here.

Earlier in the afternoon, it was fine when he came; it was quiet with nothing around. But as dusk fell and he returned, it looked completely different from the afternoon.

"No wonder those vendors don’t come here to set up stalls, damn it..."

The North Gate and South Gate of the Ecological Garden present two completely different scenes.

The south side is just a normal botanical garden entrance; the flow of people is sparse, appearing deserted.

And the north side?

As soon as Chen Mo got out of the car, he was hit by the aroma of barbecue. The roadside was packed with vehicles, mostly electric cars.

On the curb along the street, every ten meters or so, there was a group of people, gathered around barbecue grills, cheerfully eating skewers. Some even pulled out power strips from their electric cars, barbecuing while having hot pot!

Indeed.

Apart from being slightly deserted, the scenery here in the Ecological Garden is quite good, and the air is excellent, making it the perfect choice for a picnic.

While the adults barbecued and enjoyed hot pot by the roadside, children chased each other joyfully on the lawn. From time to time, you could see an irritable mom giving her son a few kicks on the butt.

The scene was rich with the breath of life, and just watching it made one feel very comfortable.

As for why the vendors don’t come here to set up stalls, it’s normal because everyone brings their own food, with skewers and barbecue aplenty.

Their stinky tofu and fried sausages have no competitive edge here; who doesn’t prepare a few sausages when having a barbecue?

Chen Mo was too lazy to drive the motorhome back; he just found an empty spot by the roadside and parked the car.

Inside the food truck, there were still nearly a hundred lion’s head meatballs. Although the soy sauce lion’s head could always be soaked in the broth, it wouldn’t be good overnight. If they couldn’t sell them all, they’d likely have to freeze them to eat themselves later.

The thought alone was annoying.

"This is going to be a disaster of Waterloo proportions!" Chen Mo stood in the food truck, feeling that those picnickers around him didn’t pay any attention to him.

It showed that the people out for a picnic had no intention of buying any snacks.

Meanwhile, after Chen Mo left, Liu Xu wandered around the Ecological Garden alone, feeling overwhelmed with worry.

Unknowingly, he found himself walking to the North Gate.

"Just as well, let me see how that little boss’s business is doing over here."

Liu Xu walked out of the North Gate; at first glance, he didn’t see Chen Mo but saw another familiar figure.

"Director Zhang?"

Zhang Huixiang turned his head upon hearing his name, looking a bit awkward, "Oh dear, I was supposed to go home, but a friend called, saying they’re barbecuing at the Ecological Garden, so I had to come over."

Actually, he didn’t even need to come to the Ecological Garden today for work instructions... It was all just an office group picnic organized spontaneously, and coordinating work was just a side task.

Liu Xu understood Zhang Huixiang’s implied meaning, knowing that a few harmless lies between adults were beneficial for everyone. There’s no need to burst the bubble of a lie; doing so would just make the situation uncomfortable for all.

Moreover, for a private little gathering like this, Liu Xu didn’t take the initiative to greet Zhang Huixiang’s colleagues. Nowadays, with strict regulations, it wasn’t that barbecuing outdoors was forbidden, but the fear was that someone might record a video, take things out of context, and stir up unnecessary trouble.

However, since they ran into each other again, Zhang Huixiang still pulled Liu Xu by the arm, "Come on, we’re just about to start the barbecue, have a bite before you go back."

Liu Xu waved his hand as he declined, "No, no, I’ve just eaten." 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

"What?" Zhang Huixiang let go of Liu Xu’s arm, "We just parted ways not long ago, and you’ve already eaten?"

Liu Xu realized that his excuse was indeed unconvincing, as if he were deliberately finding an excuse. He glanced down the street right away, pointing to that yellow food truck, "Yes, I had that. Hey, let’s go, Director Zhang. That lion’s head is absolutely delicious. It’s such a loss if you haven’t tried it yet. Let’s go now; it’s my treat!"

"What’s that?"

"Just trust me." Liu Xu looked over at where Zhang Huixiang’s group was seated, "Eight people? Let’s go, I’ll get eight lion’s heads for everyone."

Zhang Huixiang, unable to beat Liu Xu’s insistence, accompanied him over.

Although he knew Liu Xu meant well, Zhang Huixiang still couldn’t help but find the price on the food truck’s menu a bit glaring.

Eighty-eight yuan each!

When they do reception for business invites, the prices for lion’s head meatballs at high-end restaurants aren’t even this steep!

Moreover, those chefs making lion’s head in restaurants are well-known figures locally in Yangzhou; not only is the taste guaranteed not to disappoint, but you can also boast about it afterward.

You could casually say, "Oh, we went to such and such a place and had lion’s head meatballs, cooked by so-and-so." It sounds impressive afterward.

Especially seeing Chen Mo merely open the pot lid, scoop out a lion’s head into eight bowls using a ladle, and pour in some dark liquid—probably soy sauce or some flavor-enhancing seasoning.

Made Zhang Huixiang feel even worse.

Isn’t this a waste of that 250g pork belly?

When Liu Xu scanned and paid nearly seven hundred yuan, Zhang Huixiang patted him on the arm, "Bro, I can give you some advice, but whether it works or not, you still have to rely on yourself!"

Liu Xu was momentarily stunned, not expecting the lion’s head to serve such a purpose.

Usually, such words are only whispered at a banquet at Moutai’s level. He dared not delay and borrowed a tray from Boss Chen, carrying the eight lion’s head portions, "Director Zhang, enjoy!"

This time, Zhang Huixiang laid it all out.

"The city recently wants to taste the sweetness of internet traffic, seeing how cities like Shandong and Northeast are booming one after the other; they’re getting antsy! But currently, there’s no clear plan on how to achieve it. In short, whoever can pull this off becomes the star figure of the year; do you get what I mean?"

"I get it, I get it!" Liu Xu quickly agreed.

In today’s society, who wouldn’t want a piece of the internet traffic pie?

Mastering traffic is equivalent to mastering the wealth password. Although the idea seemed useless to Liu Xu, at least Director Zhang’s intentions were good.

"Alright, you all eat slowly then; I’ll be on my way."

Liu Xu said goodbye to Zhang Huixiang’s colleagues and headed back into the park, while still muttering and pondering along the way, figuring out how to generate traffic?

Meanwhile, outside.

Zhang Huixiang pointed at the lion’s head on the table, which Liu Xu had treated them to, "Hey, Director Liu insisted on treating us to this; it’s eighty-eight yuan a piece, what a waste!"

One male colleague picked up the Little Yellow Bowl, "Lion’s Head?"

Then he glanced over at the yellow food truck not far away, "It’s the first time hearing of lion’s head being sold roadside, and with soy sauce too, haha. Let me try it first."

The others didn’t pay much attention, busying themselves with their tasks—some grilling skewers, others threading them.

This male colleague, named Gao Hao, was famous within the unit for being a foodie.

Whenever there was a picnic event, Gao Hao was the most enthusiastic participant.

Gao Hao picked a piece of meat, dipped it in the vinegar below, and gently delivered it to his mouth.

"How is it, Haozi?" Zhang Huixiang asked casually while flipping the meat skewers on the grill.

Gao Hao kept his lips tightly shut, his pupils trembling!

He pursed his lips, swallowing the meatball, and let out a long sigh.

His eyes darted around.

"It’s... it’s just alright, not tasty at all!"

Seeing that Zhang Huixiang wasn’t paying attention to him anymore, Gao Hao grinned.

Evil Lion’s Head, activate!