sbdcsierra Chapter 2004 Swan and Ground Frog 8 Jin Spring City also knows the Tiger Subduer
Chapter 2004 Swan and Ground Frog 8 Jin Spring City also knows the Tiger Subduer
Chapter 2004 Swan, Eighteen Jin of Ground Sparrow, Spring City Also Knows the Tiger-Taming General
After having a full meal in the Xiuhai Hall of the Changbai Mountain Hotel, Zhao Jun and his group took the elevator downstairs.
There's still one more flight to pick up. The plane from Guangzhou is arriving at 4:05, and it's already 3:10. We have to leave immediately.
Upon reaching the first floor, they split into two groups. Lin Xiangshun, Li Baoyu, and Zhao Jinhui drove three jeeps to pick up the people. Jie Chen drove a Jiefang truck, carrying the people from Xishantun as guards, following behind.
Five of the guests who arrived in the afternoon were invited by Huang Chongshan, so Huang Chongshan left with Li Baoyu's car.
Zhao Jun stayed behind and helped Tian Guozhong and the others check in.
First, we chose a room. The receptionist told us that the Changbai Mountain Hotel has deluxe suites, fully furnished, with a restaurant and a living room. The price for a one-night stay in a suite is 150 yuan.
Given Zhao Jun's personality, he readily agreed to buy ten sets, his every move exuding the message: he's rich.
But then the waitress said that their hotel only had four suites in total. And that only vice-ministerial level leaders or foreign guests could stay there.
Hearing the waitress's words, Zhao Jun would have gotten angry with her if there hadn't been other customers nearby.
It's like ordering food earlier; if you don't even have bear paws, what's the point of introducing them to me?
Suppressing his anger, Zhao Junqiang chose a deluxe standard room. The room was well-furnished, with air conditioning, a refrigerator, a sofa, a telephone, and a large bed.
The standard room costs 50 yuan per day, and the deposit is one and a half days' rent, which is 75 yuan.
Zhao Jun first opened eight rooms and let Tian Guozhong and his group of eight check in first.
The receipts for the room fee and deposit were issued separately, on carbon paper in both red and blue; the blue one was given to Zhao Jun. The deposit receipt was presented upon check-out for a refund.
After issuing the tickets, the process wasn't over. The front desk then filled out a "Guest Registration Book" for them, including their name, gender, age, ethnicity, ID number, work information, home address, and reason for visiting Kunming...
When Tian Guozhong and eight others checked in, the front desk filled out nine forms, which Huang Chongshan and the others then signed one by one.
The receptionist checked the signature and the name on the ID card to make sure they matched. Only after confirming that everything was correct did they take out the rubber tag with the room number and the corresponding brass key.
"This is too much trouble." Zhao Jun couldn't help but complain, then turned around and distributed the keys and rubber tags to Tian Guozhong and the other eight people.
Now that they knew which room they were staying in, Zhao Jun thought Huang Chongshan and the others could go to their rooms. But that wasn't the case; the front desk issued them accommodation passes as well.
A piece of cardboard, about the size of a business card, with the room number, name, and expiration date written on it.
The receptionist said this thing is quite important; if you leave the hotel midway, you need to take it with you. When you come back and take the elevator, the elevator operator will check it. Without it, they won't take you up.
After finally settling Huang Chongshan and his group, Zhao Jun led Liu Erbao and the Shao family out of the Changbai Mountain Hotel.
Not only did the people of Xishantun not have ID cards, but Liu Erbao and the Shao family father and son also did not.
There is a guesthouse about 400-500 meters away from the Changbai Mountain Hotel.
Zhao Jun went in and booked seventeen double rooms. It was just the four of them, plus thirty people from Xishan Village, so they were divided into two rooms.
As for Li Baoyu and his three companions, Zhao Jun planned to have them stay in a deluxe standard room at the Changbai Mountain Hotel along with the other guests.
Having finally managed to get out of town, Zhao Jun wanted them to experience it and enjoy themselves.
As for himself, Zhao Jun thought that someone needed to be in charge of the guesthouse as well.
Moreover, he was the one who led the people from Xishantun out, and he stayed for 51 yuan a night while letting them stay for only 5 yuan a night. No matter what the people from Xishantun thought, Zhao Jun was not happy about it.
Compared to the Changbai Mountain Hotel, the guesthouse was much less formal. Zhao Jun simply showed his company's letter of introduction and booked a room before everyone had even arrived.
The guesthouse director rarely sees big clients like Zhao Jun throughout the year, so he enthusiastically goes out of his way to serve him.
Thinking that the lunch was mediocre, Zhao Jun asked the guesthouse director if there were any upscale restaurants nearby. The guesthouse director pointed Zhao Jun to a place.
After leaving the guesthouse, Zhao Jun took a car across the street and arrived at the Qianlong Hotel, which was recommended by the guesthouse director.
Upon seeing the name, Zhao Jun suddenly thought of the Empress Dowager Restaurant.
As Zhao Jun and his three companions entered the room, they immediately felt a chill. There were two electric fans on either side of the hotel reception desk, their heads rotating and oscillating rather than blowing directly on the room.
The receptionist at the Qianlong Hotel was named Han Xiaoli, a young woman with a ponytail and wearing a white shirt. Seeing Zhao Jun and his group of four enter, Han Xiaoli stood up to greet them, "Hello, sirs, how many of you are dining here?"
As Zhao Jun looked around the hall, he said, "Let me take a look at the menu first."
Upon hearing Zhao Jun's words, Han Xiaoli immediately took out a menu and handed it to Zhao Jun with both hands.
Zhao Jun took it and opened the first page, where he saw a row of bear paw dishes.
"Do you have bear paws today?" Zhao Jun asked. Han Xiaoli was taken aback and said, "Sir, please wait a moment, I'll go ask our manager."
After saying that, Han Xiaoli left the front desk and went to the back without waiting for Zhao Jun to speak.
But soon, Han Xiaoli returned.
"Sir, we just received a set of bear paws today, they're all fresh," Han Xiaoli said. Zhao Jun asked, "A set only has four?"
Han Xiaoli nodded, and Zhao Jun asked again, "There are fifty-seven of us eating, so we need six tables, right? Could you arrange six servings of orchid bear paws for me instead of just these four?"
Orchid-shaped bear paw – the pinnacle of Liaoning cuisine. Perhaps in a few years, few will even know the term "Liaoning cuisine." But these days, Liaoning cuisine is undoubtedly a leader in the culinary world.
Moreover, in the 1983 National Culinary Competition, Liaoning cuisine master Liu Jingxian won the championship with his Orchid Bear Paw dish, becoming the champion of the year.
"Sure, no problem." Han Xiaoli agreed readily. Shao Jun, who was standing next to her, glanced at it and immediately clicked his tongue in amazement, "Brother Jun, this 'Orchid Bear Paw' thing doesn't have a price listed?"
Upon hearing this, Zhao Jun looked at Han Xiaoli, who said, "In this season, the price of orchid bear paws is normally 120 for the front paw and 80 for the back paw. If you take all four paws, it will be 400."
"Okay," Zhao Jun said. "We'll come around 6:30 tonight, is that alright?"
"No problem," Han Xiaoli said. "If we can finalize it, I'll tell the kitchen to get ready right away."
"Does that mean it will take a long time to stew?" Zhao Jun pressed. Han Xiaoli replied, "Well... we can use a pressure cooker, it'll be faster."
Hearing her say that, Zhao Jun didn't say anything more. That's how it is with bear paw dishes; if you were to stew it at home in a wood-fired pot, it would take at least four hours before it's ready to serve.
But to be honest, Zhao Jun always believed that meat and vegetables cooked in a pressure cooker were not as fragrant as those simmered in a large pot over low heat.
But there's no other way right now. We're entertaining guests, and even the best dishes can't wait until 9 PM. Besides, we have to get up early tomorrow, so a pressure cooker will do.
"Huh?" Zhao Jun suddenly remembered something, pointed to a dish on the menu, and asked Han Xiaoli, "What's this?"
"Huh?" Han Xiaoli was taken aback when she heard this, but she quickly realized what was going on. She tilted her head and glanced at the menu, where she saw Zhao Jun pointing to three words: "Braised Ground Cuttlefish".
"Ah..." Han Xiaoli smiled and said, "Burning ground sparrow."
"A pheasant?" Shao Zhiqiang and Liu Erbao exclaimed in unison from behind Zhao Jun, "There's such a thing?"
This character is normally pronounced in the first tone, but in Northeast China, it is commonly pronounced in the third tone.
Zhao Jun looked at Han Xiaoli with the same curiosity. Han Xiaoli smiled and nodded, saying, "Sir, it's better to arrive at the right time than early. We just arrived with the bear paw, and there are two quails here."
"Is it alive?" Zhao Jun asked. Han Xiaoli replied, "It's alive, we haven't killed it yet."
"Oh my goodness!" Zhao Jun laughed upon hearing this. "I haven't seen this thing in years. Would it be convenient for us to take a look?"
"Convenient, convenient." Han Xiaoli raised her hand to signal Zhao Jun and the others to follow her to the back, leading the four of them out through the side door to the hotel's backyard.
At this moment, a jeep was parked in the backyard, with a large cage on it containing two large birds.
The bird was twice the size of a goose, with yellowish-brown feathers and dense black horizontal stripes. From a distance, it looked like two large, yellowish-brown grass mounds.
The two large birds, whether injured or not, lay there motionless with their necks tucked in.
Upon closer inspection, they have round, grayish-black heads with a black stripe on the top and long, white beard-like hairs on both sides of their chins.
Zhao Jun recognized the bird as a Great Bustard, also known as a Ground Bustard. Mountain people call it a "鵏" (a type of bird), but almost no one in the mountains knows how to write the character.
At that moment, two men stood beside the large cage, smoking and chatting.
"Manager Xu," Han Xiaoli called out, and the two men turned to look at them.
The man on the left, wearing a blue polyester short-sleeved shirt, nodded slightly to Han Xiaoli. Han Xiaoli said, "Our guests said they want to see our quail."
"Go ahead and look," Manager Xu said with a smile, waving his hand. "Take a look."
As he spoke, he and the man next to him stepped aside, giving Zhao Jun and his group the spot next to the cage.
Zhao Jun and his three companions approached and looked around the cage.
“I haven’t seen one of these in years,” Shao Zhiqiang said. Zhao Jun replied, “We don’t have these in our forest area. If we do, they’re probably lost with Qun’er. You’d only find them in Dadianzi.”
The man who had just been chatting with Manager Xu was wearing a faded white shirt. When he heard Zhao Jun and Shao Zhiqiang talking, he immediately asked, "Where are you from?"
He asked about you, so Zhao Jun replied, "We are from the area below Zhangguangcai Ridge."
"Ah..." The man nodded, and then Zhao Jun asked, "Are there large meadows around Chuncheng?"
"Yes, there are." The man replied readily, "Going west from Chuncheng, to Nong'an and Boluo Lake, isn't that all of them?"
"Oh my." Zhao Jun said upon hearing this, "I know about Lake Boluo. It's the most famous place for hunting wild birds."
“That’s right!” Upon hearing Zhao Jun’s words, the man’s interest was immediately piqued. He counted on his fingers and said, “Willow, wild goose, oil can, hemp can, water fry, wild duck, crane, just tell me what you don’t have?”
"Hehe..." Zhao Jun chuckled, lightly tapping the cage containing the quail with the tip of his shoe, and looked at Manager Xu, asking, "How many kilograms do these two quails weigh?"
“One weighs thirty-two jin, and the other thirty jin with a little extra,” the man replied.
There was an old saying that goes, "A swan is worth eighteen catties."
The swans here are mute swans, which the older generation calls "big geese" (wō). And the "eighteen jin" mentioned here does not refer to the weight limit of these two wild birds, but only the weight of a common individual.
"Okay, I'll take both of them," Zhao Jun said with a smile. "I'll use them to cook two good dishes for us tonight."
"Huh?" Manager Xu was taken aback upon hearing Zhao Jun's words and asked, "How many of you are eating?"
"Manager Xu." Before Zhao Jun could speak, Han Xiaoli approached Manager Xu and said, "These gentlemen have fifty-seven people dining together."
No matter where you go, big clients are always welcome. Hearing Zhao Jun's words, Manager Xu's eyes lit up, and he said, "No problem then, shall we have a 'burning ground sparrow'?"
“Absolutely,” Zhao Jun said. “I’ve heard that braised ground bream is a dish only served at the traditional Manchu-Han Imperial Feast.”
This was something Zhao Youcai had mentioned. Several families ate together every day, chatting about everything under the sun, from birds to beasts.
“That’s right.” Hearing Zhao Jun’s words, Manager Xu laughed and said, “Let’s not talk about anything else, just talk about crosstalk, right? There’s that segment where they recite the names of dishes, you know? Just a long string of them.”
Zhao Jun and the others nodded, and Manager Xu continued, "They say that the way they announce the dishes is based on the Manchu Han Imperial Feast. Now I see that they don't say 'braised ground worm' when announcing the dishes, but twenty or thirty years ago, the old folks here used to include 'braised ground worm' in the dishes when they were performing crosstalk."
After saying this, Manager Xu paused for a moment and said, "I've heard all of that."
Zhao Jun and his three companions didn't respond to Manager Xu's words. They were fine with food, but when it came to this, they were out of luck.
"For braised quail, use the breast meat. It's the most tender meat and not dry at all." Manager Xu continued, not caring whether anyone responded. "Normally, the breast meat from one male quail is enough to make three to four plates of braised quail."
Since you say you want both of them, then I'll make them for you, and serve them on big plates—six plates should be enough, right?
"Okay, that's great." No sooner had Zhao Jun said this than Manager Xu added, "The thigh and shoulder meat, we'll stir-fry it. And the neck and back meat, what do you want, soup or filling?"
“Making filling… won’t be enough for more than fifty people?” Zhao Jun said. Manager Xu blinked and then laughed, “Then make soup with dried mushrooms. They’re really delicious in soup.”
Hearing what Manager Xu said, Zhao Jun smiled and said, "Okay, let's arrange it that way then. I'll order a few more dishes later."
"Huh?" Upon hearing this, Manager Xu hurriedly asked Zhao Jun, "My classmate even sent me a big oil jar. That stuff is great for stewing, especially in an earthenware pot."
"A big oil tank?" Zhao Jun asked. "The red-waisted one, or the white-waisted one?"
The big oil pot's scientific name is Eurasian Curlew, and it also has a common name in Northeast China: "old oil pot".
It is called this because it becomes plump and strong after autumn arrives, and people used to use it to make oil. Therefore, in the Qing Dynasty's "Bird Manual", it was called "Oil Jar".
There is another bird called the White-rumped Curlew, which many people also call the Big Oil Jar.
As its name suggests, the White-rumped Curlew has a white rump. The Eurasian Curlew, on the other hand, has a red rump, hence Zhao Jun's question about whether it was a red-rumped or white-rumped Curlew.
“They’re all red-waisted, all of them are red-waisted.” The one who answered Zhao Jun’s question was not Manager Xu, but the man next to him wearing a yellowish-white cloth shirt. It seemed that this man was the classmate that Manager Xu was talking about.
"Okay," Zhao Jun said, "Braise a few more for us."
"I've only caught six live ones in the last two days, that's all," the man said at first, then added, "It's too hot today, unlike winter, so even if I catch them now, they won't keep alive."
"Hehe..." Zhao Jun chuckled upon hearing this and said, "There's no such thing in winter; it's gone by then."
Eurasian Curlews and ground shrikes are migratory birds; they fly south when the weather gets cooler.
"That's for sure, you can't catch them in winter either." The man laughed, and then Zhao Jun pointed to the cage containing the pheasants and asked, "Master, did you catch these too?"
"This isn't it. This is what I and two old hands got from each other." The man curled his lip slightly and said, "I can't fucking catch this."
At this point, the man raised his hands and gestured to Zhao Jun, saying, "I couldn't catch the quail even with the biggest tongs. I watched it fly away and it was taken away by my tongs. That made me so angry."
Hearing this, everyone chuckled softly. Zhao Jun laughed and said, "Those quails, even the females weigh seven or eight pounds. The males are huge; if they put their strength in, what kind of trap can hold them down?"
When the man heard Zhao Jun's words, he didn't pay much attention at first, and only said: "I'm just wondering, what are those old men doing?"
As he spoke, he took out cigarettes from his pocket, pulled out a few to give to Zhao Jun and the others.
"Thank you, but I don't know how." After politely declining, Zhao Jun smiled at the man and said, "To catch a quail, you can't use tongs; you have to use a flipper."
"Hey!" Upon hearing this, the man paused in his hand, which was offering Shao Zhiqiang a cigarette, and his eyes lit up instantly: "Young man, you understand this? You know how to flip a car?"
After saying this, he suddenly frowned. Zhao Jun was about to speak, but the man's strange gaze silenced him.
Suddenly, the man raised his hand and pointed at Zhao Jun, then frowned and squinted, saying, "Young man, why do you look so strange? What's your surname?"
"My surname is Zhao," Zhao Jun said. The man still seemed not to remember who Zhao Jun was, so he continued to ask, "And what is your name, Zhao something?"
"My name is Zhao Jun," Zhao Jun announced, but he didn't think much of it. In Zhao Jun's memory, he had never known the person in front of him in either of his previous lives.
"Ah!" The man exclaimed, startling Zhao Jun. Then, he pointed at Zhao Jun and said, "You're Zhao Jun from the Shanhe Forestry Bureau, the one who catches tigers!"
"Huh?" Zhao Jun was taken aback, unable to understand how he had been recognized.
"Is it you?" the man asked excitedly. Zhao Jun nodded and said, "Ah, it's me!"
"Hey!" The man grabbed Zhao Jun's hand and said, "I'm from Nong'an, my name is Song Dapeng!"
"Ah..." Zhao Jun's face showed an unnatural smile. Although the other party knew him, he still didn't recognize the person in front of him.
Song Dapeng also noticed something amiss and immediately asked Zhao Jun, "Do you know Zhao Jicheng?"
"Zhao Jicheng?" Zhao Jun frowned, feeling that the name sounded so familiar.
“He’s from the security department of the Shanhe Forestry Bureau.” As soon as Song Dapeng said this, Zhao Jun immediately realized that Zhao Jicheng was a master in the security department of the Forestry Bureau and had chased tigers twice with Zhao Youcai.
During their second chase of the black tiger, they encountered the bear demon.
As a result, the four experts from the Forestry Bureau were dealt with by Xiong Guizi. If it weren't for Zhao Youcai's miraculous intervention, Chu Anmin would have had to give them all compensation.
As a result, three of the four ended up in the hospital, which angered Chu Anmin so much that he called them useless idiots.
"Ah...you know Officer Zhao?" Zhao Jun said, but a question still lingered in his mind. Even if Zhao Jicheng had mentioned him to him, he shouldn't have been able to recognize him on the spot.
Just as Zhao Jun was having some doubts, Song Dapeng said to Manager Xu beside him, "Tianyuan, we were blind to his greatness. This person in front of you is quite remarkable!"
Judging from the way Song Dapeng speaks, this person must have listened to a lot of storytelling.
Sure enough, when Xu Tianyuan looked at Zhao Jun, he heard Song Dapeng continue, "This man is known in the martial arts world as the Tiger Subduer and Little Zhao Cannon. Just look at how many Northeast Tigers he has sent in."
"Send it in?" Song Dapeng's words not only shocked Xu Tianyuan, but also stunned Han Xiaoli who was standing next to him.
They can understand the fight against tigers, after all, with guns in hand, they can take down anything. But how are they arrested?
"No, no," Zhao Jun said with a smile, waving his hand. "There weren't that many. We only caught two."
Xu Tianyuan and Han Xiaoli: "..."
I was planning to write more today, aiming for 10,000 words. My spirits have been alright lately, but I haven't been feeling well in the evenings… What a day! Okay, I'll add more tomorrow. There are still four days left this month; I'll try my best to finish writing about this Ginseng King Conference.