To Meng Ran's anticipation, Saturday was finally here.
On Friday afternoon, Meng Ran, who had arranged to meet Gwen the next day, skipped happily home.
After returning home, his joyful expression, of course, couldn't escape his parents' eyes; our Mr. Ghoul's mouth was almost stretched to his ears, with 'happy' written all over his face!
At the dinner table, Zhao Li and Meng Huo exchanged glances, a silent conversation between husband and wife.
Then Zhao Li asked, "Son, why are you so happy today? Tell your mom about any good news."
Meng Ran looked at his mother, whose eyes were full of curiosity and the fire of gossip was already burning, and smiled, "It's nothing, I'm happy every day."
Meng Huo heard this and also looked at his son, saying, "We've raised you for so long, do you think we don't understand you? You rascal, your mouth is practically cramping from smiling."
Meng Ran chuckled awkwardly upon hearing his father's teasing; he had thought he was hiding it well.
Zhao Li gave Meng Huo a chiding look, complaining about how direct his words were.
Meng Ran looked at his parents, then put down his bowl and said, "It's just that I've arranged to go out with a classmate tomorrow, it's really nothing."
"It's a girl, isn't it?" Meng Huo understood immediately after hearing him; it must be a female classmate. Who would look like that when going out with a male classmate?
Meng Huo took out a card and handed it to Meng Ran: "When you go out, you can't let her spend too much. Take this card."
Meng Ran gratefully accepted the card: "Dad, you look so cool right now, a man of few words but strong actions! My mom really has good taste!"
Listening to his son, Meng Huo looked at Zhao Li tenderly, then proudly declared, "You bet! When I was young, your dad was a well-known handsome young man, far and wide."
Zhao Li couldn't help but chuckle at Meng Huo's words, "You're getting ahead of yourself. You're already old and still can't be serious."
After speaking, she looked at Meng Ran again, then took out five hundred US dollars in cash from her bag and handed it to him.
"A card alone isn't enough; take some cash just in case. And remember to send her home early; it's not very safe too late."
Meng Ran nodded at this. It's indeed not safe at night; I teach several petty thieves a lesson every day.
On Saturday morning, Meng Ran woke up early and started getting ready, taking a good shower, then styling his hair and picking out his clothes.
In a short while, a handsome, sunny young man was freshly made.
Driving his little black car, Meng Ran arrived at Gwen's house according to the address she gave him.
After sending her a message that he had arrived, Meng Ran began to wait at the door.
Soon, Gwen walked out, followed by a middle-aged man who looked very stern.
Meng Ran thought this must be Gwen's father; he looked upright and righteous, truly worthy of being a police chief.
Gwen walked over, and they introduced each other.
"Hi, Meng, this is my dad. Dad, this is Meng, the classmate I told you about who plays basketball really well."
"Hello, Uncle, my name is Meng Ran, I'm Gwen's classmate." Meng Ran stepped forward to greet him.
George nodded at this and shook his hand.
"I heard from Gwen that you beat Flash. I've met that young man; to be able to beat him, your basketball skills must indeed be impressive."
Meng Ran smiled, "It's alright, not that great."
"I've only been practicing for two and a half years," Meng Ran thought mischievously to himself.
George had a good impression of Meng Ran; he was sunny, handsome, and polite.
After giving them a few instructions, George turned and went back inside.
Meng Ran also started his car and drove Gwen to the lunch spot.
His destination was a Chinese restaurant. As the son of Chef Meng Huo, he had his own opinions on Chinese cuisine.
Meng Ran had been to this Chinese restaurant once before with his family, and the taste could be said to be very good, although still a bit inferior to Meng Huo's restaurant.
But for a date with a girl, going under his own father's nose was certainly not an option, so this restaurant was his best choice.
Meng Ran and Gwen chatted and laughed along the way, and also went shopping in the surrounding area. They strolled around and arrived at the restaurant just in time for lunch at twelve o'clock.
This restaurant was opened by a Sichuan chef who had lived in New York for over ten years, and its name was 'Sichuan Flavor'.
To cater to popular tastes, the spiciness of the dishes in the restaurant had been adjusted to a certain extent.
Of course, if you wanted to challenge it, you could; just make a note when ordering, and you could enjoy the fiery passion of Sichuan cuisine.
"Gwen, is there anything you don't like to eat?" Meng Ran asked.
When dating a girl, you must understand her dietary restrictions, rather than directly letting her order.
"There's nothing I don't eat, and I want to challenge the spiciness you mentioned, the one before it was adjusted."
Gwen said excitedly, blinking her big eyes. Along the way, Meng Ran had told her about the characteristics and features of Sichuan cuisine.
After hearing it, she was very eager to challenge the unadjusted spiciness Meng Ran spoke of.
Looking at the eager Gwen, Meng Ran also smiled, "That one is very spicy, you know~ How about we order one dish to try first, to see if you can handle it? What do you think?"
Gwen nodded after hearing his suggestion; that indeed seemed more reasonable.
Then Meng Ran called the waiter and ordered a Mapo Tofu, specifically asking for the normal level of spiciness.
The waiter heard Meng Ran's order and immediately said, "Alright, sir, we recommend you also order a drink; it can help with the spiciness later."
The waiter was no stranger to people like Meng Ran who came to challenge the normal spiciness. Most of them would be so overwhelmed by the spice that they'd question their life choices, so he kindly reminded Meng Ran to order a drink to alleviate the heat.
Both of them ordered large glasses of orange juice. Icy orange juice and Sichuan cuisine are a perfect match, but one must be careful not to turn into a 'jet fighter' if it's too spicy.
Meng Ran certainly didn't want them to turn into jet fighters, so he ordered a Mapo Tofu first to let Gwen try it and give up, otherwise, how could the rest of the date proceed?
The food came quickly, and to his surprise, Gwen used chopsticks very skillfully.
Meng Ran then remembered that Gwen had mentioned it in the car, but he hadn't expected her to be so proficient; he thought she had only just learned to use them.
Gwen looked at Meng Ran's surprised expression and smiled proudly, "Hmph hmph, now you believe me, right? I used to eat Chinese food with my family often."
Gwen carefully picked up a piece of tofu; the tender white tofu was coated in bright red doubanjiang, with fresh green scallions sprinkled on top.
Before the tofu even reached their mouths, the numbing and spicy aroma had already wafted into their noses. The alluring fragrance and the overpowering spicy scent made them involuntarily swallow.
Gwen blew on the tofu and put it in her mouth. The numbing, spicy, and fresh flavors exploded in her mouth, and she was instantly conquered by the Mapo Tofu.
Meng Ran sat opposite her, looking at Gwen, who was already lost in the delicious food, and couldn't help but question his own life.
"This dish, isn't it spicy? No, that's not right, I ate it too, and it's quite spicy." Meng Ran was already ready to hand Gwen some juice.
"And this incredible chopstick skill, I might not even be able to pick up Mapo Tofu." Besides eating spicy food, Gwen's chopstick prowess also made Meng Ran look at her with new eyes.
Good heavens, if she weren't genuinely blonde and blue-eyed, Meng Ran would have suspected Gwen was a Sichuanese person abducted and sold to New York, a true 'Sichuanese New Yorker.'
Gwen looked at Meng Ran, who wasn't moving his chopsticks much, and wondered if she had eaten too much and scared him off. She immediately felt a little embarrassed.
She looked at the dazed Meng Ran and said, "Meng, why aren't you eating?"
Meng Ran snapped out of his thoughts. Looking at the slightly embarrassed Gwen, he immediately understood. It seemed his inaction with the chopsticks had caused her to misunderstand.
"I was thinking about what other dishes to add. What do you think of this level of spiciness?" Meng Ran skillfully used a new topic to dispel the awkwardness.
"It's good, I think it's delicious. I don't know much about adding dishes, I'll follow your lead." Gwen replied upon hearing this.
Meng Ran made up his mind after hearing her, encouraging himself mentally: "Can't be a wuss! If Gwen can handle this much spice, there's no reason for me, a Chinese person, to say no."
So he called the waiter again and ordered Fish-Fragrant Shredded Pork, Husband and Wife Lung Slices, and Sliced Pork in Boiled Water, all at the normal level of spiciness.
Under the waiter's surprised gaze, Meng Ran nodded again to confirm.
It was the first time the waiter had seen a customer who wasn't overwhelmed by the spice and could still add more dishes, truly impressive.
The dishes arrived one after another, and Gwen continued to eat happily.
Meng Ran, on the other hand, was a bit overwhelmed by the spice, drinking three large glasses of orange juice during the meal. Gwen even asked him concernedly if it was too spicy.
Nonsense, how could Meng Ran be spicy? He solemnly declared that he was just a little thirsty.
When it came time to pay, the Sichuanese owner, who was usually nowhere to be seen, heard that there was a blonde, blue-eyed beauty at this table who wasn't afraid of spice, and specially came to their table to see.
In the end, the owner and Gwen had a pleasant conversation and the owner gave Gwen a special VIP card, telling her she could get an 88% discount on future visits, and also gave Meng Ran a large glass of juice.
Meng Ran said he was just a little thirsty again and thanked the owner very much.
After the meal, the two went to the cinema to watch a movie, then drove around for a bit, and finally, Meng Ran safely dropped Gwen off at home.
Fortunately, Meng Ran's physique was different from ordinary people and he didn't have any 'jet' incidents, otherwise, today's date might have ended after lunch.