Chapter 18 Chapter Seventeen

In the evening of that day, Chao Chen arrived at the resort. What caught his eyes was a patchwork of buildings, including a main building and several villa rooms, as well as supporting swimming pools, sauna rooms, tennis courts and golf courses.All of this is surrounded by the valley, reflecting the sparkling light from the lake not far away. Because he is Mr. Gu's VIP, the front desk manager of the resort reserved a villa for him.But Chen Chao felt it was unnecessary, so he changed to an ordinary guest room in the main building.The front desk manager handed him a stack of coupons and said: "You can use these coupons to enjoy services and meals without spending money. Tonight, our general manager Pei will set up a table of 'Big Supplement Banquet' for you—but please Don't worry, it's not that unpalatable medicinal meal, it's a very delicious feast."

"Big tonic?" Super Chen was confused. The so-called tonic banquet is to prepare dishes according to the theory of traditional Chinese medicine to entertain guests, so as to achieve the purpose of reconciling yin and yang.But how effective this thing can be, Super Chen has no idea.It is estimated that this is Mr. Gu's idea again. The room consists of a living room, a bedroom and a spacious cloakroom.Chen Chao took out the books in the bag and stacked them on the table by the window, like a hill.He really doesn't want to study today. It took him a long time to take a hot bath comfortably, and then he fell asleep on the sofa and fell asleep on his own.

It was nearly dinner time when he woke up.Maybe it was because the sleeping pills were too strong, or maybe I had begun to adapt to the leisurely life of the resort. The restaurant is located at the east end of the resort complex.This is a majestic Chinese-style building with a red lacquer gate in the middle and a golden lion on the left and right.The maids in red vests and black bow ties stood on both sides of the door and bowed to Chao Chen.A head waiter led him through a huge vestibule, around a frosted glass screen, and into a private room. General Manager Pei is waiting for Chao Chen's arrival at the dining table.This is a chunky man, wearing a pair of black-rimmed glasses, smiling.There were other drinkers in the private room, including the front desk manager whom I had met before.Seeing Chen Chao walk into the private room, everyone acted enthusiastically, as if they had known each other for a long time.

"We have heard about Master Chen's name from Mr. Gu for a long time. It must be very hard to achieve your achievements, so we think this big dinner may help you." Chen Chao wondered when he became a "master".But he still wants to thank Mr. Gu for not disclosing his police identity to others, and for taking so much trouble. The waiter first brought a dish called "Buddha Head".This dish looks a bit like a human head.But it is actually carved from white melon, wrapped in lotus leaves and steamed in a drawer. "This is our special dish." Manager Pei smiled all over his face and motioned for the waiter to cut the dish with a bamboo knife.

Chen Chao watched as the waiter cut a hole in the white "skeleton" and picked out the "brains" with chopsticks—there were sparrow brains, quail brains, and pigeon brains. "So many brains in one head!" said one of the drinkers. "It's not a Buddha head, it's not surprising." Super Chen replied with a smile. "These things together are very nourishing for the brain, especially good for people who use their brains for a long time." Another accompanying drinker echoed. "The brains of so many birds are really a masterpiece of harmony between yin and yang." All kinds of praises are endless.

Eat what you eat to make up for what you eat, Super Chen has heard people say such a theory.His mother used to cook pig brains just for him, but the dish in front of him was obviously more painstaking. What was served next was steamed soft-shelled turtle in rock sugar rice wine, garnished with shredded green onion, ginger and sliced ​​ham, which was very beautiful. "Everyone knows that soft-shelled turtles are top-grade tonics. But those soft-shelled turtles sold in the market are all artificially bred, using too many hormones and antibiotics. Ours is different, it is caught directly from the lake." Manager Pei He took a sip of the wine, as if deliberately emphasizing the natural nature of this soft-shelled turtle, "When it comes to the regulation of yin and yang, people have some misunderstandings. When the weather is cold, they always want to eat some mutton, dog meat, or venison. They don't know the right medicine at all. ..."

"I heard that eating those in winter can replenish yang energy, but I don't know if it's right or not..." Super Chen interrupted Manager Pei's high-spirited speech. "Some people are full of yang energy, and eating mutton and dog meat will be harmful. In that case, eating soft-shelled turtle is the best, as it can reconcile yin and yang." Manager Pei seemed to be giving an academic report with the strength of alcohol, "still There is a misunderstanding, people think that sex between men and women will consume Yin Qi, so it is very dangerous. But they forget that doing physical work also consumes Yin Qi.”

"That's right, there are many reasons in this." Super Chen said, he thought of the diabetes he had analyzed in his thesis. "Our dishes perfectly reconcile yin and yang, which is good for both. Confucius said, 'you can't tire of fine food, and you can never tire of fine meat'. What does that mean? Of course, this has nothing to do with the enjoyment of taste. There is a deep meaning in the words. Eat and nourish the body, only in this way can we make great contributions to the country." Regardless of whether this manager Pei quoted these famous quotes purely for commercial purposes, at least Confucius still has a considerable influence on the daily life of Chinese people today.

Since then, he has been eloquently talking about the principles of diet.All kinds of delicacies are served one after another, making people dizzy and eye-opening: American ginseng fish head soup, giant salamander, white fungus, wolfberry and bird’s nest porridge... "Ah, speaking of this bird's nest," Manager Pei raised his voice while holding a spoon, "Swallows build their nests on cliffs, and use all kinds of materials they can find to mix them with their saliva. The essence of life." For a long time, bird's nest has been regarded as the best nourishing food.The bowl of sweet bird's nest porridge in front of him reminded Chao Chen of a description in the book, which mentioned that the bowl of bird's nest porridge that rich ladies eat for breakfast is more expensive than a farmer's annual ration.

"But why is the swallow's saliva so special?" Chen Chao asked. "Sometimes people feel dry mouth, especially after sex. This proves that the body's yin energy is insufficient." Manager Pei laughed. "Okay, dry mouth." Super Chen responded.There are many reasons for the mouth to be dry, and it is not necessarily because of intercourse between men and women. At this time, a bowl of braised pork was brought to the table.Chen Chao was taken aback. This was a home-cooked dish, which was in sharp contrast with the nourishing meals on the table. "This is Chairman Mao's favorite." Manager Pei seemed to see the surprise in Chen Chao's eyes. "During the War of Liberation, after a fierce battle, Chairman Mao said to the head of the guard: 'I've been tired for a while, and I used my brain too much. Get me a bowl of fatter braised pork, and eat it to nourish your brain.' It was not easy to eat meat in that era, but the Party Central Committee often tried to make braised pork for Chairman Mao. Chairman Mao led the Chinese people The People's Liberation Army has won one victory after another, how could he be wrong?"

"Yes, Chairman Mao is never wrong." Super Chen said.In fact, he also felt that the bowl of braised pork on the table was really delicious. After a while, the finale of the dinner was sent to the private room - a monkey locked in a cage, with its limbs bound and its shaved head sticking out of the cage.The waiter held a steel knife and a copper spoon in his hand, waiting for the leader's order with a smile.Chen Chao once heard people talk about this "dish", the monkey's head will be sawed open, and then the diners will enjoy its fresh brains, which is quite bloody. For a moment, Super Chen felt irritable and sweaty all over his body, just like the situation at home in the morning.Maybe he never recovered. "Master Chen, what's the matter?" Manager Pei asked with concern. "I'm fine." Chen Chao said while wiping the sweat off his forehead with a napkin, "The braised pork is good, as delicious as my mother's when I was a child. But my mother believes in Buddhism, so I want to say something from her standpoint In other words, let the monkey go. According to Buddhism, this is called 'release life'." "'Release life'?" Manager Pei didn't expect Super Chen to say that, but his mind turned quickly, "Well, Master Chen is a dutiful son. Let's just listen to him." The other drinkers also nodded in agreement.The waiter carried the cage out of the room and promised to send it to the mountain to release it.Although Chen Chao didn't believe what he said, he still expressed his gratitude. As the host, Manager Pei was very talkative, and Super Chen quickly forgot about the monkey.Outside the window, the night is slowly falling, and the afterglow of the setting sun on the distant horizon is fading away. Everything looks like a slowly rolled up landscape painting.Under the cover of the last ray of sunset, the peaks not far away seem to be painted with a touch of romance. Holding the wine glass in his hand, Chao Chen seemed lost in the beautiful scenery.If this table of "big tonic banquet" really played any role, it is probably at the spiritual level. The banquet is gone.When he returned to his room, he felt refreshed and relaxed.He leaned on the soft bed, feeling sleepy.In the city, it is usually difficult to fall asleep at night.It seemed that he didn't have to worry about insomnia tonight.Is it because of the "big tonic feast"?I don't know whether it is replenishing Yin Qi or Yang Qi, but in short, Chen Chao feels that the Yin and Yang in his body are in harmony at this moment. Thinking of these, he gradually fell asleep. He woke up several times during his sleep.But the curtains blocked the morning light outside the window, and there was no noise from cars, and the whole person was surrounded by a feeling of laziness.He didn't get up, and he didn't even look at the alarm clock on the bedside table, since he wasn't hungry anyway.Although this feeling is a bit inexplicable, it is always good for my mental state recovery. Thinking of this, he turned over and fell into a deep sleep again, as if time no longer existed.