West of the Haizhou City Cadre Dormitory, about a half-hour walk away, there was a small barbecue shop called Huangniu Village Barbecue.
Zi Yan lounged lazily, leaning back against the soft chair, feeling very comfortable.
It was the height of summer, and even at night, without the sun, the air was still muggy.
But this place had just the right amount of air conditioning, making the temperature neither too cold nor too hot—perfectly pleasant.
“Dad,” Zi Yan asked Zheng Quan while waiting for their food, “why don’t we have air conditioning at home?”
The clock hanging by the door had a built-in thermometer function. Zi Yan had glanced at it when he left the house—it showed 29℃.
No wonder it always felt so hot and uncomfortable staying indoors.
“I want air conditioning too,” Zheng Quan said as he grabbed some chilled beer and downed a glass with gusto. “But when this building was first constructed, the developer forgot to design for installing the outdoor AC units.”
“So, the floor slab can’t support the weight, so naturally we can’t install it. The electric fan you have in your room was actually given to each household by Property Management to make up for it.”
Oh, so the cheap-looking fan in Zi Yan’s room— the one that creaked and oscillated— is because of that?
Well, Zi Yan dropped his head in frustration.
Antwerp’s temperature was rarely high; even in summer, a few days over 30 degrees Celsius was considered extreme.
Haizhou was a different story. Zi Yan flipped through the weather forecast on his phone— fifteen straight days of highs at 36 or 37 degrees.
“Is there anything else that works like air conditioning?” he asked.
“Nope,” Zheng Quan answered decisively.
Zi Yan’s face darkened further.
Seeing his son’s mood, Zheng Quan smiled and poured himself another chilled beer.
Huangniu Village Barbecue’s house-brewed fresh beer was a specialty. They sold it in 3-liter barrels, and its taste was very similar to Belgium’s Chimay Blue.
As a regular customer, Zheng Quan had always thought their beer was both affordable and delicious.
“Son, want a glass?”
“Dad, minors aren’t allowed to drink.”
Zi Yan rolled his deadpan eyes, prompting Zheng Quan to laugh heartily.
The soundproofing in these private rooms at Huangniu Village Barbecue was genuinely impressive.
Outside the room, the corridor was filled with people dining and chatting, yet inside, almost nothing could be heard.
Inside the room, the table was lit by several small, warm yellow lights disguised as candle holders, creating a slightly dim atmosphere that still allowed clear view of the food and people.
It had the ambiance of a candlelit dinner.
Zheng Quan remembered his first date with his wife Lina— it was also at a barbecue place.
“Youth…” Zheng Quan sighed nostalgically, leaving Zi Yan puzzled.
Isn’t that just youth?
Back then, Zheng Quan and Lina weren’t even officially dating yet. After some courting, he finally got Lina out for a meal, but he was so nervous he kept embarrassing himself.
He blushed throughout the dinner, barely saying a word to Lina.
He also ended up downing ten bottles of Chimay Blue, devouring over half the meat on the table with a gusto that left Lina stunned.
Who knows how he finally managed to win her over in the end.
“Uncle Zheng, your meat’s ready~!”
Zheng Quan was lost in his memories when a waiter entered the room carrying a huge plate.
Calling him a waiter felt off— the boy looked no older than fourteen or fifteen.
But this kid was almost 1.8 meters tall and probably weighed at least two hundred pounds; his build was solid and sturdy.
“Hey, thanks for the trouble.”
Zheng Quan knew the kid— Li Bin, the owner’s son who was helping out during summer vacation.
Since Zheng Quan was a regular, the boy was familiar with him and had called him “Uncle Zheng” when he came in.
“No trouble at all! Actually, I owe you an apology.”
Li Bin, panting slightly, set the plate down by the table and explained, “The fat beef slices you ordered aren’t ready-made, so I had to cut them myself. Sorry for the wait.”
The tender slices of marbled beef were neatly arranged on a milky white porcelain plate, looking incredibly appetizing.
Wiping the sweat from his brow, Li Bin expertly adjusted the airflow for the charcoal grill.
When the pan was hot enough, he placed a piece of pure fat beef on the grill, letting the oil from the meat grease the surface.
Because of the dim lighting, Li Bin was focused on Zheng Quan and hadn’t noticed Zi Yan until now.
The girl sitting beside Zheng Quan caught his attention— a delicate, petite face with wine-red eyes shining excitedly, with a strangely captivating charm.
What a cute girl!
“Uncle Zheng? Is this young lady your daughter? She’s really pretty.”
As soon as Li Bin said that, Zheng Quan’s forehead instantly filled with black lines.
“This is my son.”
S— son?
The atmosphere froze immediately.
Li Bin laughed awkwardly. “Ah, Uncle Zheng, your son is, uh, really handsome.”
“Alright, alright, let’s get back to the barbecue.”
Li Bin felt the vibe was still off, so he quickly left.
“Eh…”
Only then did Zi Yan snap out of it.
“That boy just called me… a daughter?!” Zi Yan’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Yeah.” Zheng Quan grunted without enthusiasm as he spread a pile of beef slices across the grill.
“Sizzle~!”
The sound of grilling meat filled the air, releasing that unmistakable aroma of beef.
Since the slices were cut so thin, it only took a quick flip before they were ready to eat.
Li Bin said he cut the meat himself— his knife skills were indeed impressive.
Zheng Quan placed a piece of cooked beef onto Zi Yan’s plate.
“I told you back in Antwerp, didn’t I? Your hair’s too long— it makes you look like a girl. You should get it cut.”
What? Cut my hair?
Zi Yan was shocked and shouted, “Dad, didn’t you agree I wouldn’t cut it? No cutting, no cutting, not ever!”
I knew this was how it’d go.
Zheng Quan smirked.
“Alright, alright, your call.” He popped a piece of beef into his mouth and chewed thoughtfully. “Eat quickly— cold meat doesn’t taste good. This barbecue beef here is the specialty.”
Huangniu Village— just the name alone told you their specialty was grilled beef.
And the beef here was unlike any other barbecue place’s. It was just beef, but graded by quality and sold by weight.
You could pick which grade you wanted by paying the appropriate price.
By the way, Zheng Quan had gone for the highest-grade beef this time.
“Oh, oh…”
Zi Yan looked at his father suspiciously, leaning back and hiding his snow-white hair between the chair and his back, as if that made him feel safer.
“Keep your word—no lies!”
“Yeah, yeah, just eat.”
After Zheng Quan’s repeated assurances, Zi Yan moved closer to the table and grabbed some beef.
“Mm… mm~!”
Chewing, chewing. After a few bites, the rich aroma of the meat spread in his mouth, and Zi Yan’s expression turned blissful.
“Delicious, huh~?” Zheng Quan asked.
“Delicious~!”
As long as his child was happy, nothing else mattered.
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