In years of famine and drought, their village even rejected fatty meat.

Chapter 702 Lively

However, Chencun Avenue today is quite different from the past. Although Chencun Avenue used to be lively, most of the people you could see were elderly people, children, and some young adults who did not work in Chenjia Village.

Today, Chencun Avenue is filled with men, women, and children. Some workers bring their families to shop after receiving their wages, while female workers go shopping with their familiar colleagues after receiving their pay. In addition, many children gather in groups on Chencun Avenue to watch the excitement and buy snacks...

In short, Chencun Avenue was bustling with activity at the moment, giving one the feeling of being shoulder to shoulder with people.

"Let's go, I'll take you to eat."

Li Qiao patted Zhao Xiaoliang on the shoulder and led the three of them to Chencun Restaurant.

The restaurant was just as lively as the street. The workers, having received their wages, naturally wanted to satisfy their hunger and reward themselves for their hard work over the past few days.

Therefore, when Li Qiao and his three companions entered the restaurant, they were greeted by a scene of overcrowding. The lobby on the first floor was almost full of guests, and the air was filled with laughter and cheerful conversation.

The waiter in the restaurant finally led Li Qiao and his companions to an empty seat. After settling them down, he handed Li Qiao the menu: "Sir, what would you like to order?"

"to make."

Since Zhao Xiaoliang and the other two were illiterate, Li Qiao naturally took on the task of ordering the food. Soon, Li Qiao had ordered the dishes, and then the waiter left.

"Brother Li."

Seeing the waiter leave, Zhao Xiaoliang couldn't help but worry, "Isn't it expensive to eat a meal here?"

Although Zhao Xiaoliang had never eaten at Chencun Restaurant, he had heard of its reputation.

According to what he learned from his coworkers, although the food at Chencun Restaurant was cheap, it was still beyond the reach of workers like them. Even the wealthy villagers of Chenjia Village had to split the cost among themselves to afford a meal there.

"fine."

Li Qiao waved his hand dismissively. He had already calculated the total price when ordering the dishes. He had chosen the cheaper ones, and the total price was around 400 coins. With his wages of 500 coins, he could easily afford it.

What happens after all 500 coins are spent...?

Of course, he would just freeload off Uncle Li. Uncle Li worked at the school and earned much more than him. In addition, Uncle Li had some savings, so he didn't have to worry about food at all.

"correct."

Li Qiao seemed to remember something and asked Zhao Xiaoliang, "Xiaoliang, have you guys drunk alcohol?"

"no!"

Zhao Xiaoliang and the other two shook their heads in unison. Alcohol was a real luxury for ordinary people. All three of them came from poor backgrounds and could not afford to drink alcohol.

"Would you like to try it?"

"Uh……"

Zhao Xiaoliang and his two companions hesitated. Young people are always curious about the taste of wine, but they were too embarrassed to ask because Li Qiao was the one who was treating them, and they didn't want him to spend money.

"Does not speaking mean you're thinking about it?"

Li Qiao smiled, beckoned a waiter over, and said, "Waiter, give us a pound of Shaoxing wine."

"okay!"

Before long, the waiter brought over the wine, and at the same time, the dishes were served one after another.

Li Qiao didn't order many dishes, only four in total: half a roast duck, a plate of stir-fried chicken, and two plates of stir-fried vegetables.

"This is too extravagant, Brother Li."

Looking at the dishes that were served, Zhao Xiaoliang clicked his tongue and said that the roast duck with its bright red skin and the stir-fried chicken with its golden color looked expensive.

"What's with the luxury? Let's eat!"

Li Qiao didn't take it seriously. He poured a cup of rice wine for each of Zhao Xiaoliang and the other two, raised his cup, and said, "Come on, let's drink!"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Xiaoliang and the other two couldn't refuse, so they raised their glasses and clinked them together with Li Qiao, then took a sip of the yellow wine in their glasses.

After taking a sip of rice wine, Zhao Xiaoliang's facial features instantly contorted.

"Brother Li, this wine is awful!"

Not only Zhao Xiaoliang, but Zhao Wan and Zhao Shitou also frowned. This wine was bitter and astringent, and it didn't seem like something a human would drink.

"Ha ha!"

Upon seeing the three of them looking like this, Li Qiao burst into laughter. The taste of alcohol was indeed not pleasant for someone drinking it for the first time; in fact, it could be described as extremely unpleasant.

"Eat vegetables, eat vegetables."

Seeing that the three of them couldn't get used to the taste of the wine, Li Qiao didn't force them and warmly invited them to eat.

"Xiao Liang, try this roast duck."

Li Qiao placed a piece of sliced ​​roast duck into Zhao Xiaoliang's bowl.

Zhao Xiaoliang looked at the piece of roasted duck meat with its bright red and translucent skin and swallowed hard.

Without further hesitation, he picked up a piece of roast duck and put it in his mouth.

The moment the roast duck enters the mouth, a rich aroma explodes in the mouth. Zhao Xiaoliang bites down, and the crispy duck skin cracks open, followed by the spread of the hidden fat in the duck meat in his mouth.

"It smells so good!"

Zhao Xiaoliang's eyes lit up instantly, and he chewed faster.

Meanwhile, Zhao Wan and Zhao Shitou also started eating, enjoying the delicious roast duck and stir-fried chicken on the table.

"too delicious!"

"It tastes even better than the food we get on the construction site."

The two men showered each other with praise, abandoning all restraint as they devoured the food on the table like gluttons.

Li Qiao sipped his yellow wine, smiling as he watched the three boys wolfing down their food.

Having been taught by Li Mingyuan since childhood, Li Qiao never looked down on ordinary people. In fact, he enjoyed mingling among them to experience their simplicity and enthusiasm.

It was precisely because Li Qiao often mingled among the common people that his interactions with Zhao Xiaoliang and the other two, as well as the workers on the construction site, went unnoticed.

In his heart, he did indeed regard Zhao Xiaoliang and the other two as friends, which is why he invited them to this meal.

"Brother Li, why aren't you eating?"

At that moment, Zhao Xiaoliang looked up at Li Qiao and asked curiously.

Upon hearing this, Li Qiao replied, "Let's eat now."

With Li Gang's arrival, the food on the table disappeared noticeably faster.

In less than fifteen minutes, all four dishes were completely devoured.

The vast majority of the meat dishes were eaten by Zhao Xiaoliang and his two companions, while Li Qiao, the big-bellied man, ate far less than the other two because he had been drinking.

"Brother Li."

Looking at the empty plates on the table, Zhao Xiaoliang said apologetically, "Sorry! We ate a bit too much."

"fine."

Li Qiao said nonchalantly, "I'm treating you to dinner, and I'll be unhappy if you don't eat enough."

"hey-hey!"

Zhao Shitou scratched his head and said, "Brother Li, thank you. This is the most sumptuous meal I've ever had."

"Me too."

Zhao Wan nodded frantically. He thoroughly enjoyed the meal today. Both the roast duck and the stir-fried chicken were to his liking, and even the two plates of stir-fried vegetables tasted far better than the food at home.