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It was useless though. The stands were just small tricycles, so they were hard to capture. Plus, all the peddlers there knew each other. As soon as the city managing staff appeared, the news would spread all over the street in a moment. The staff worked fruitlessly, providing amusement for the customers. Every night the same process was repeated. The staff chased, the peddlers escaped, and the customers followed them to get their pre-paid food.

Qin Guan burst into laughter at the picture. That is exactly my experience as a peddler in Y city, although the people here must have been more interesting than me. Liu Xiaoyang was cheered up by his fascinated audience. "The government realized it was all in vain and decided that banning peddlers was not the way to go. Instead, they set regulations for the stands, supported the restaurants on the street, and named it the Dongnei Restaurant Street."

His listeners were relieved. In the context of this story though, "Gui" meant "ghost", not "tableware". Liu Xiaoyang spread his hands wide. "The first character was not suitable for the formal name of a street, so the government staff racked their brains to find an alternative. The bosses here resisted the change of the name, for they believed that it would destroy the Feng Shui. Finally, they picked a homophone from the dictionary, which was also related to food. Then the government made a large bronze sculpture of the character "簋", which became the symbol of the street. That is the origin of Gui Street", he concluded.

His roommates were enlightened. But how was that related to the Xiaolin Hot Pot Restaurant? Liu Xiaoyang stared at them in disdain. "A man can’t call himself a foodie if he doesn’t know this restaurant."

His roommates smacked him on the forehead. "Just go on! We are not locals, you show off!"

Liu Xiaoyang restrained himself and tapped on the menu.

"More than ten years ago, this restaurant was called Xiaolin Restaurant. Back then, there were only few shops along the small alleyway. It was a typical old-time Beijing Hutong. At the time, the locals did not use to eat at night."

"One day, a couple came to the street and opened a small restaurant, selling the simplest dishes, such as fish-flavoured pork slices, fried rice, salads, and liquor at low prices. People gradually gathered here. Every evening, before the couple closed the restaurant, there were always some light spots shining on the door, which made them feel strange."

"When they heard the stories about the street, they thought it was elves that were dropping in for dinner, so they stayed open until very late and lit all the lights. They were not just waiting for human customers, but also for ghosts and elves. Understand?"

"At the beginning, there were no customers at night. They insisted on the operation though, and gradually more and more customers heard that the restaurant was open day and night. This was rare in the capital. As the word spread, several months later the customers at night had become more than at daytime. Then the light spots disappeared, and never returned.

Liu Xiaoyang threw the menu on the table, "Waiter! We want to order!" He had finished the story.

"And then?" his audience asked.

"What do you mean?" Liu Xiaoyang asked back in confusion. "Then nothing. People heard that business was pretty good at night, and restaurants opened here one by one. The street became popular from then on."

What an anticlimactic story! They knew what the light spots were, but had no idea how the story had actually ended. "It is said that the couple guarded their secret closely, which might be the reason for their flourishing business."

All of them turned their attention to the dishes. As a smart boy, Liu Xiaoyang took this chance to order his favorites. They didn’t know that until the dishes were served though. It was okay, because the dishes were good. The spicy crays that cost four yuan each were served in a large steaming basin. They asked for 20 for each person.

Liu Xiaoyang ordered the hot pot double taste, and the juice was free of charge. Before the jardiniere was served, they all buried their faces into the pile of crays.

For a foodie, professionalism was the most important factor. Everyone could taste crays, but how many people could eat them in the right way? It was surely less than 20%.

With Liu Xiaoyang’s guidance though, everyone handled them quickly and in the most standard and tasteful way.

First, they separated the body and clamps and held them in one hand. Then they took the meat out of their tails, which was comparatively easier.

Next, they stripped off the clamps and took the meat, sucking up the sauce in the body. Finally, they licked their fingers and finished. Only in this way could one experience the true essence of crays.

Who was hungry? Hands up! Qin Guan and his roommates were eating fiercely. They didn’t look up or relax until the hot pot was boiling. Suddenly, Qin Guan saw some acquaintances.

Diagonally across their table, there were several burly chaps, among whom Qin Guan saw Bu Qinglu and Wang Hailiang. There were already two boxes of empty beer bottles piled beside them, but the dishes on their table remained almost untouched. They were drinking before eating.