Chapter 292: Giving Away the Duck Carcass

At that moment, Director Li spoke up again. “Quickly apologize to this comrade’s younger brother and sister.”

Wang Defa had no choice but to follow along. “Sorry, we shouldn’t have insulted farmers.”

After saying that, he hurried off. After all, he had completely lost face—what was the point of sticking around?

Truth be told, many people in the city carried a bit of prejudice against those from the countryside. They considered themselves superior, cleaner, and more cultured.

Zhou Yimin took Laifu and the other two and left as well. First, he brought them to Wangfujing Street and bought each of them a new outfit.

Laifu and the others were overjoyed, especially Laifang—girls always love new clothes more.

As for whether they’d get scolded by their mother when they got back—that was unknown.

But even getting scolded would be worth it. New clothes!

As the saying goes, clothes make the man, and gold makes the Buddha. Once they changed into their new clothes, their whole demeanor and energy changed completely.

Next, Zhou Yimin took them to the zoo.

The capital’s zoo has a long history dating back to the late Qing Dynasty. It was the first zoo to open in China and has the largest variety of animals on display.

Finally, he took them to Quanjude for roast duck.

As soon as Laifang and the others heard the words “roast duck,” they nearly started drooling.

Roast duck in the capital has a long-standing tradition, and Quanjude is one of its most iconic representatives, known for its unique preparation process.

High-quality force-fed ducks are selected, then inflated, cleaned, glazed, air-dried, and finally roasted in a hanging oven at high temperatures. Quanjude’s roast duck is famous for its crispy skin, tender meat, and juiciness.

The history of Quanjude roast duck dates back to 1864, when it was founded by Yang Shoushan. After generations of effort, Quanjude has become a nationally renowned brand and earned the title of a “famous trademark.”

Upon entering, a staff member led them to their seats.

Zhou Yimin called out directly, “Two roast ducks, please!”

“One roast duck is eight yuan, so that’ll be sixteen yuan altogether, plus two roast duck coupons,” the server replied.

Now, payment and tickets were required upfront before food was served. Without them, how would they know if you could pay?

Zhou Yimin promptly pulled out sixteen yuan and two roast duck coupons. He had quite a few of these, mostly rewards from the factory or upper-level leaders, so he was never short on them.

Laifu was stunned—his family didn’t even save up that much money in a year. Now, a single meal cost his big brother sixteen yuan.

If their parents found out, they’d definitely get a beating.

“Big bro, maybe we should eat somewhere else? Sixteen yuan is too expensive,” he whispered into Zhou Yimin’s ear.

Laicai and Laifang were still young and didn’t quite understand.

Zhou Yimin didn’t mind. “It’s fine. I can afford a meal. Just eat to your heart’s content.”

Even without counting his black-market earnings, just his salary alone could cover a roast duck meal. What could people say about it?

After the waiter took the money and coupons, they went to prepare the food.

Before long, a chef arrived pushing a cart, with two roast ducks displayed on it.

When Laifu and the other two saw the ducks, they couldn’t help drooling.

Zhou Yimin teased, “Wipe your mouths—your drool’s about to hit the floor.”

The three little ones snapped out of it and quickly wiped the drool off their chins.

The chef stood beside the cart, first showing the ducks to assure them they were freshly roasted.

Laicai reached out to touch one, but the chef stopped him in time. “Careful, kiddo. These ducks just came out of the oven—they’re hot. You could burn yourself.”

Zhou Yimin spoke up, “Laicai, be good and wait. Or else you won’t get any.”

As soon as Laicai heard that, he obediently sat down.

The chef began carving the duck. At Quanjude, each duck had to be carved into exactly 108 slices. Every slice must include both skin and meat to be considered up to standard.

Also, the carving had to be completed in under eight minutes. If it took longer, it meant the chef’s knife skills weren’t up to par.

As the chef worked, Zhou Yimin picked up a lotus-leaf pancake, used chopsticks to grab a few freshly sliced pieces of duck, dipped them in sweet bean sauce, added julienned scallions and cucumber strips, and handed the wrap to Laifang.

He repeated the process several times, and soon, each of the three had fresh roast duck to enjoy.

“So good!” Laifang exclaimed after one bite.

Laifu and Laicai wouldn’t be outdone—they stuffed whole bites into their mouths, barely tasting the flavor before swallowing.

Zhou Yimin was more composed. He had tasted many delicacies in his life.

That said, even by modern standards, this roast duck didn’t disappoint.

As expected of Quanjude, the flavor was exquisite—crispy skin, tender and juicy meat, and the rich sweetness of the bean sauce combined with the fresh crunch of scallions added a delightful complexity to every bite.

“Delicious!”

The three little ones held their own—two-thirds of the ducks disappeared into their bellies.

The rest went into Zhou Yimin’s stomach.

Usually, once the 108 slices were carved, the leftover duck carcass would be thrown away. But in these times, when many couldn’t get enough to eat, it was a waste to toss it.

So now, the leftover bones would be made into a pepper-salt-flavored dish that customers could take home.

Whether used for soup stock or just eaten as is, the bones were incredibly tasty.

Seeing it was getting late, Zhou Yimin brought the three little ones back to the courtyard.

Back in the courtyard, he first went to Widow Ma’s house and gave one of the roast duck carcasses to her family.

“Thank you, Yimin,” Widow Ma said gratefully.

Zhou Yimin waved it off. “No need to be polite, Auntie Ma.”

Then he took the remaining bones to Granny Huang, whose household was in even tougher straits than Widow Ma’s.

Granny Huang initially tried to decline, but Zhou Yimin said he had work tomorrow and asked if she could help cook a meal for his three younger siblings.

Hearing that, she accepted and told him to go to work without worry.

As soon as he left, Granny Huang sighed, “Yimin really is something else. He just gave us such a good duck carcass.”

Everyone in the house was thrilled—the bones smelled incredible. Even though there wasn’t much meat left, simmering them in a pot would make a broth that could help them down several cornbread buns.

“That’s right! Yimin’s the most promising one in our courtyard. We all benefit from his success.”

…

Soon, they ran into Dapeng and his group.

Dapeng was surprised. “Hey! Laifu, Laicai, Laifang—it’s you guys? Tomorrow, Big Brother Dapeng will take you out to play. Have you eaten? Come to my place for a bite.”

“Big Brother Dapeng, we already ate! Big bro took us out for roast duck,” Laicai replied proudly.

“Then tomorrow, Big Brother Dapeng will take you for hot pot—how about that?”

“Awesome!” Laicai and Laifang didn’t hold back—they were already close with Dapeng.

(End of Chapter)