My Hotel Is Famous All Over the World

Chapter 58

Shen Ning is a reporter for the local magazine ‘Full Moon’ in City S. On this day, she and her partner Cheng Dong drove to a certain location together.

“Wutong Lane… Number 126, is this the place?” Shen Ning looked at the doorplate and then at the address on her phone, confirming that it was indeed the right location.

“Knock knock, knock knock.”

Cheng Dong knocked on the door in front of them. Soon, the door creaked open, revealing a middle-aged woman with curly hair who looked at them cautiously. “Who are you?”

Shen Ning smiled gently, “We are reporters from ‘Full Moon’ magazine. I’m Shen Ning and he’s Cheng Dong. Here are our press credentials, please take a look.”

After inspecting their credentials, the middle-aged woman seemed to ponder for a moment. “Are you the ones who called earlier from that magazine, wanting to interview my son?”

Shen Ning replied, “Yes, ma’am. We are here to interview Li Yi, who happens to be the top scorer in our City S.”

It turned out that the middle-aged woman was Li Yi’s mother, Aunt Wang. Hearing others praise her son, she couldn’t help but lift her chin with pride. In her otherwise unremarkable life, achieving the pinnacle of life through her son’s high exam scores made her feel like she was on top of the world. Everywhere she went, people praised her son in front of her, expressing their envy. This put her in a constantly elevated state.

Shen Ning understood the mindset of a top scorer’s mother very well. If she had a son like that, she would want the whole world to know too. She smiled and said, “So, Li’s mother, where is Li Yi now? We would like to start the interview.”

Aunt Wang’s face showed a bit of embarrassment. “Well, when you called that day, I was busy with something else and forgot to tell Xiao Yi. But he’s actually working in a small restaurant not far from here. The restaurant is called ‘Three Thousand Food House’. You can find him there.”

After some thought, Aunt Wang changed her mind and said, “Actually, I’ll take you there.”

The three of them walked down the alley, with Cheng Dong carrying the equipment and whispering to Shen Ning, “Sister Ning, the name of this restaurant sounds familiar.”

Shen Ning nodded, “I thought so too. It’s possible it’s a famous restaurant that has been covered by some media. We’ll find out when we get there.”

Cheng Dong acknowledged with a sound, and Shen Ning sped up a little to catch up with Aunt Wang. She asked, “Aunt Wang, may I ask why Li Yi chose to work at a restaurant?”

Hearing this question, Li’s mother’s eyes narrowed as she smiled, “Xiao Yi is thoughtful. His father passed away early, so it’s just the two of us relying on each other. He wants to earn some extra money. He’ll be going to Jing City next semester, and he said he wants to spend this summer break with me. Coincidentally, Little Bai’s restaurant needed help, so he took a summer job there.”

Shen Ning nodded. In her mind, a picture had already formed of a mother and son struggling through life. The mother persisted through hardships just to ensure her son’s education.

But is that really the case?

Later, Li Yi’s face turned black as he read reports in the media. While it was true that his father had passed away early, he died in the line of duty, and their family received a significant compensation. His mother used this compensation to purchase several properties. Although their family wasn’t wealthy, they had a stable income every month, and their livelihood was secure. And as for his mother having a job? She spent her time playing mahjong, to put it bluntly.

However, that’s a story for later. Right now, Shen Ning and Cheng Dong from ‘Full Moon’ magazine were being led by Li’s mother to Three Thousand Food House. When they saw the long queue at the entrance, both of them were surprised. Shouldn’t such a remote place be unlikely to have connections for special treatment? So, are all these people genuinely queuing up?!

Noticing their surprise, Li’s mother smiled, “Oh, ever since Little Bai’s restaurant opened, our alley has become much livelier. Even the convenience store’s business has improved. You folks from these magazines must be aware, right? About Little Bai’s video from a few days ago?”

A lightbulb went off in Shen Ning’s mind, “Are you talking about the video where he confronted the mentally ill person?”

“Yes, yes, yes!” Li’s mother nodded eagerly, “Do you know, when we heard about that news, the people in our alley were so scared? Our alley is full of elderly folks and middle-aged women, not really able to defend themselves. If they encountered a knife-wielding criminal, it would have been disastrous. But after watching that video, we felt relieved. Having someone like Little Bai, a young person, in our alley is great!”

Shen Ning still hadn’t fully processed it when Cheng Dong checked his phone and said, “Sister Ning, it’s true. The video of the shop owner who confronted the mentally ill person was filmed here in Wutong Lane! This owner even received a commendation from the police. People online are calling him the hero of City S!”

Shen Ning: “…” So, the top scorer is working in the shop of a local hero?

Something feels off, but when she thought about it, there wasn’t actually anything wrong.

Li’s mother guided them into the back of the shop, had them see her son, and then left for home. Shen Ning and Cheng Dong had no choice but to wait since the shop was so busy. Seeing the top scorer bustling around, they couldn’t ask him to take a break.

After waiting for a full hour, the shop finally became less busy. Li Yi washed his hands, took off his apron, and apologized to them, “I’m sorry for the wait.”

Shen Ning smiled, “No worries, let’s get started.”

Interviews about top scorers like this one usually followed a set process. The focus would naturally be on sharing study methods, which was what most parents were interested in. After the top scorer finished talking about his study methods, Shen Ning asked him about his daily life during his final year of high school. She recalled a previous year’s top scorer saying he played games for an hour each day to relax. At the time, online media wasn’t as popular, but with the sensational headline “Top Scorer Plays Games Every Day,” their magazine issue sold out. Although print media wasn’t as strong now, she believed that if this top scorer mentioned something similarly contrasting, like playing games during his final year, their online article would garner significant views.

However, in the end, Shen Ning was disappointed. The top scorer stated that he spent a lot of time daily on practice problems, earning his top spot through diligent effort, rather than “playing” his way to it.

As the interview approached its end, Shen Ning asked a question she had asked Li’s mother before, “Can you tell us why you chose to work here?”

Shen Ning had a purpose in asking this question. She was thinking of creating a parallel between the beginning and end, creating a touching narrative about the mother and son’s deep bond. But what she didn’t expect was Li Yi’s response: “Because the food here is delicious.”

Shen Ning: “So, you’re working here just because the food is good?”

Li Yi looked at her, “Do I need any other reason?”

Shen Ning: “…” Okay.

After leaving Three Thousand Food House, Bai Xianzhi looked at Li Yi and smiled, “Thanks, Xiao Yi!” It was clear to anyone that Li Yi’s final reason for working at the shop was actually an advertisement for Three Thousand Food House.

Li Yi smiled slightly, “Haha, I was telling the truth. The dishes that Brother Bai makes are really delicious!”

Meanwhile, the two who had finished the interview returned to the magazine’s office and worked tirelessly for two days to finalize the interview with the top scorer and publish it on their platform.

….

The morning bus was always crowded, with office workers and early risers squeezed together. It was also the summer vacation, and the hot weather made even more elderly people venture out early. The bus felt like a can of sardines.

Grandma Yan struggled to board the bus and found a spot at the back. Today, she was heading a few stops away to the comprehensive farmers’ market to buy fresh pork ribs. She wanted to provide her grandson, who was about to enter his senior year of high school, with the nutrition he needed.

The bus swayed along the city avenue during the morning rush hour. Grandma Yan held onto the seat back tightly. She noticed the small TV playing something on the bus – “Interview with the S City High School Exam Top Scorer!”

The top scorer! Grandma Yan’s eyes lit up at those words. Her grandson had good grades, but he still had a long way to go to become the top scorer! It had always been the wish of the elderly in the neighborhood for a top scorer to emerge from their families!

The words “top scorer” caught Grandma Yan’s attention. She stared at the small TV without blinking. The interview was almost over by now. She heard the female reporter ask, “Why did you choose to work here?”

The top scorer was also working? Grandma Yan perked up her ears. She heard the polite and refined voice of the young student on the TV say, “Because the food here is delicious.”

What’s all this about? Grandma Yan was confused. She couldn’t make sense of it. Just then, the bus arrived at her stop. She got off, bought the pork ribs, and returned home. Her grandson was sitting on the couch, playing with his phone after just waking up. Grandma Yan put away the pork ribs and asked her grandson to find the video of the interview with the top scorer. She sat down on the couch to watch it.

After watching it from start to finish, Grandma Yan finally understood. It turned out that the top scorer had chosen to work here because his family was financially struggling, and he was studying very diligently!

Thinking about how difficult it had been to support her son’s education in the past, Grandma Yan could empathize. Tears welled up in her eyes. She wiped them away, headed to the kitchen to prepare the pork ribs.

…

After having dinner in the afternoon, Grandma Yan took a stroll in the residential area. Coincidentally, she ran into Grandma Zhang from across the street who was heading out as well. The two elderly ladies naturally ended up walking together. Since they were both out, striking up a conversation was only natural.

Grandma Zhang’s grandson had recently completed his college entrance exams with good results and had been admitted to a prestigious university. Grandma Zhang had been in high spirits for the past few days, practically wanting the whole world to know about her grandson’s achievement. So, as the two elderly ladies walked together, Grandma Zhang couldn’t help but talk about her grandson again.

Grandma Yan wasn’t too pleased about this. This person had been going on about her grandson for days now, telling everyone she met, regardless of whether they had heard it before or not. It was just like that annoying character, Xianglin’s wife, that her grandson had told her about – truly irritating!

However, this time, though Grandma Zhang was still talking about her grandson, she was sharing something new. It turned out that her grandson had performed poorly in his sophomore year of high school and almost ended up last in the class. In his senior year, they managed to use connections to get him transferred to the classroom of a few students who had successfully entered Peking University. Moreover, her grandson rotated seats with these Peking University-bound students. Once senior year came, her grandson’s grades shot up dramatically, and he was directly admitted to a prestigious university!

Grandma Zhang was smiling from ear to ear, saying that luck was also on the side of a good student – changing classrooms and seats had worked out well for them!

Grandma Yan chuckled and said that it was because her grandson had worked hard. Even the best seat wouldn’t be of use if he hadn’t put in the effort.

Upon hearing this, Grandma Zhang laughed even more joyfully.

Back at home, Grandma Yan had her grandson find the video of the interview with the top scorer again. After watching it, she looked at the gate with a hint of disdain. “Your grandson merely got a seat among those who got into Peking University. Tomorrow, my grandson will eat the same food that the top scorer has eaten!”

….

At 10:30 AM that day, Bai Xianzhi went to the Three Thousand Worlds’ shop to take a look. The newly acquired space overlay device was already in use, and the shop had expanded its area significantly. To ensure the quality of service, the entire shop was divided into ten zones, each with three waitstaff responsible. This way, as soon as the customers pressed the wine bell, they would be attended to immediately, and there would be no mix-up with orders.

Meanwhile, the number of apprentices had increased again, and the kitchen area had expanded by more than double. The apprentices had arrived early at the shop and were practicing diligently. As more and more customers visited Three Thousand Food House, the kitchen needed sufficient manpower to ensure prompt service.

Things were running smoothly at Three Thousand Food House and the Three Thousand Worlds’ side. Bai Xianzhi checked the time and went to the other side to turn off the fire under the stewed pork. The newly recruited apprentices were busy chopping vegetables and meat. Bai Xianzhi then stir-fried a large pot of spicy chicken dices. It was about time, so he walked to the front and opened the door.

Hey!

Bai Xianzhi was taken aback for a moment. He didn’t expect to see an elderly lady standing at the door, looking at him intently, as soon as he opened the door.

“Cough, ma’am, are you coming in for a meal?”

Grandma Yan didn’t respond. She walked into the shop without a word, taking a look around. Not finding what she was looking for, she asked, “Wasn’t it said that the top scorer works at your shop?”

Bai Xianzhi hesitated. “Um, are you referring to this year’s top scorer in S City?”

Grandma Yan nodded.

Bai Xianzhi continued, “He will be here shortly. Do you need to speak with him?”

Grandma Yan shook her head without speaking. Her eyes were still scanning the environment of the shop. Bai Xianzhi asked, “Would you like to order something, ma’am?”

Grandma Yan shook her head. “I’ll order later.” She found it amusing – she definitely wanted to make sure the top scorer was really here before placing an order!

However, Grandma Yan didn’t expect the shop’s business to be this good. When she arrived, there were hardly any customers, but after sitting outside the shop for less than half an hour, a queue had formed at the door. And more people were joining the queue.

Getting restless, Grandma Yan saw Li Yi, who had arrived belatedly. She took out her phone and carefully compared the top scorer’s photo online before resolutely joining the back of the queue.

…

Shi Tian was a game streamer. He had come to S City recently and had heard about the heroic young man making waves online. He had a clever idea – he planned to have a meal at the young man’s restaurant and livestream it. This would be a treat for his fans, especially since he had quite a few female fans. After hearing about his visit to S City, many of them had recommended that he try the food here.

As a young person, Shi Tian understood very well how many people would be queuing up for a trendy shop. He specifically chose a time about half an hour after Three Thousand Food House opened to avoid the initial rush. Yet, he still underestimated it – even within just half an hour, a queue had already formed at the entrance. Fortunately, it wasn’t too long.

Standing in line, Shi Tian spoke into his phone, which was broadcasting live. “Everyone, take a look at how popular the shop of our heroic young man is. It’s only been half an hour since the shop opened, and there’s already a line!”

In the live chat, his fans responded –

【666, I heard the food at the young man’s shop is incredibly delicious, so it’s natural there are so many people!】

【Wow, so many people! The food must really be good. I wish I could go to S City to try it!】

【Envious that Xiao Tian will get to meet the heroic young man soon! I’d love to see him too!】

【Hey, Xiao Tian, is that an old grandma in front of you? Has the heroic young man’s charm spread to the grandmas now?】

Shi Tian had been paying attention to fan messages but hadn’t noticed the person in front of him. At this moment, prompted by a fan’s reminder, he looked ahead and indeed saw a gray-haired elderly lady standing in front of him in the queue. Shi Tian was curious, and the fans in the livestream room were even more curious, urging Shi Tian to ask the grandma about her reason for being there.

【’Ah, I know it must be because the young man is too handsome!’】

【’The person upstairs doesn’t get it, grandma isn’t concerned about handsome or not. It’s definitely because the food in the young man’s restaurant is delicious!’】

【’I think it’s because the young man’s courage to stand up for justice. The older generation can’t resist someone like him who takes down criminals!’】

Numerous speculations about the reason the grandma was queuing up emerged in the livestream room. Shi Tian simply patted the old lady’s shoulder gently and, after she turned around, politely said, ‘Hello, ma’am, I’m a livestream host currently broadcasting,’ pointing with his other hand to the selfie stick he held.

‘May I ask why you’re queuing up here, ma’am? What’s so appealing about this restaurant that you’re willing to wait in line for its food?’

Grandma Yan wasn’t quite familiar with livestreaming, briefly glancing at the colorful mobile screen before returning her gaze. Upon hearing the question, her initial reaction was, ‘Haven’t you been to school?’

Shi Tian: ‘Uh, I graduated from college several years ago.’

Granny Yan nodded and said, ‘Well, I’ll tell you, but young man, you mustn’t tell anyone.’ Shi Tian: ‘…Alright.’

Grandma Yan spoke in a hushed tone, ‘Do you know who works at this restaurant?’

Years after graduating and no longer paying attention to college entrance exams, Shi Tian shook his head: ‘Who?’

Grandma Yan shared with him as if revealing a great secret: ‘The top scorer of the college entrance exams in s city!’

‘The college entrance exam top scorer works at this restaurant! So, you see, why would I come here? The top scorer loves the food here, so I had to come. I also want to take some back for my grandson! He’s going to take the college entrance exams next year!’

These words contained quite a bit of information. Shi Tian was momentarily stunned, and the fans in the livestream room were too—

【’???? Who????’】

【’The top scorer of s city!!! Is it the one I’m thinking of????’】

【’I can’t believe it! Seriously? The top scorer of the college entrance exams works here? They must have won a lot of money. Why would they work at a restaurant?’】

【’It’s true!! Quick, go check the interview from “Full Moon” magazine. Li Yi, the top scorer from s city, is really working at Three Thousand Food House!’】

【’!!!! I’m amazed! Not only is the young man handsome and skilled, but even the top scorer of s city is working here! What kind of place is this that even the top scorer wants to work at?!’】

【’Am I the only one noticing that the top scorer is quite good-looking? There are two handsome guys in the same shop. What kind of magical place is this?!’】

【’Hehe, I have a slightly different focus. Granny makes a lot of sense. Everyone should go and read the top scorer’s interview. He said he works here because the food is delicious. But seriously, a food loved by the top scorer… don’t you all have any other thoughts? [sly smirk.jpg]’】

【’The person above is really interesting. If the dishes here were labeled with a top scorer’s endorsement…’】

…

The fans in the livestream room had an animated discussion. Shi Tian smiled and told the old lady, ‘I see, even the top scorer says the food is worth trying.’

After that, he didn’t dwell on the matter. When his turn came, he treated his fans to a feast on the livestream, leading to a stream of complaints in the comments about being envious yet unwilling to order the food.

Returning to his girlfriend’s place, Shi Tian forgot about the episode with the old lady. Little did he know, some fans had captured the segment of his conversation with the grandma on video and combined it with an interview from “Full Moon” magazine, creating a post online. Phrases like ‘top scorer,’ ‘working,’ and ‘brave young man’ caught attention and intrigued many. The ‘Three Thousand Food House’ gained even more popularity after an evening of online dissemination.

After a night of brewing, the story morphed into ‘High School Senior Eats at Restaurant and Becomes Top Scorer!’ on the web. While most young people laughed it off, some grandparents and parents, especially those with children, started pondering the news.

In a plain neighborhood in s city, a mother saw the news and said to her son, ‘Let’s eat at Three Thousand Food House tomorrow.’

Her son, who had been persistently denied a visit there, asked in surprise, ‘Why the change of heart?’

Mom replied, ‘Look, even the top scorer has eaten and worked there. Maybe you’ll catch some of their luck by eating there.’

The son sighed. It seemed his mom never missed a chance to link everything to studying.

Similar scenes were unfolding across many parts of s city. As Bai Xianzhi opened his restaurant the next day after a day off, he was shocked to find the place filled with elderly folks, middle-aged women, and children!

After understanding the situation, Bai Xianzhi was speechless. The influx of parents wasn’t the issue; what bothered him was when he overheard parents saying to their children, ‘Sweetie, after eating here, you might become a top scorer too!’

Bai Xianzhi: ‘…’

This kind of thing wasn’t rare. Throughout the day, he heard variations of that line from parents at least ten times. He didn’t understand why his restaurant had become a hub for superstition. Seeing the trend, he printed several notices to put both inside and outside the restaurant:

“Dear valued customers and friends,

All ingredients used in our dishes are sourced from the Wutong Lane Market, ensuring safety and peace of mind. Our restaurant offers a diverse and delicious menu, making it one of the best choices for satisfying your hunger. However, it’s important to note that our dishes do not possess the ability to enhance academic performance, boost intelligence, or increase luck. We kindly urge parents and friends to approach our food with reason, treat online discourse rationally, believe in science, and shun superstition!

A warm reminder from the top scorer Li Yi: A child’s academic performance is the result of the combined efforts of the family, school, and the child themselves. Creating a warm and comfortable learning environment for your child is more effective than focusing solely on their diet.

— Three Thousand Food House

—–

The author has something to say: Thank you to the little angels who voted for me or provided nourishment between 2020-08-14 14:42:38 and 2020-08-15 14:34:50!

Special thanks to the little angel who sent a “landmine”: White Peach Oolong Duck (1 item);

Thanks to the little angels who provided nourishment: White Peach Oolong Duck (10 bottles); Dyed Ink (5 bottles); Prayer, Luo: Xiaoyao Gongzi, Yan Zhan, Xiao Fei Jiu (1 bottle each);

I am very grateful for everyone’s support. I will continue to work hard!

1TL: YSIAD “You can support me if you like my translations by leaving a comment below, or by sending me a Ko-fi. Thank you ”