Chapter 163: The Ultraviolet Restaurant, Nanjing’s Late-Night Supper
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Cheng Yao was immensely pleased by the adoration in Zhang Ya’s eyes.
Not even Lu Mengyao, Lin Ketong, or either of the Ouyang sisters could give him the same feeling.
The worship of one’s own girlfriend—
There was simply no greater boost to one’s superiority.
So Cheng Yao opened his phone and showed her that he had more than a million followers, thanks mainly to his excellent advertising.
Some videos of him singing at school and eating gourmet food had inexplicably gone viral as well, prompting people to say that he was neglecting his proper work.
Why run a perfectly good company when you could become an internet celebrity instead?
Some people appeared to be internet celebrities on the surface, but secretly served as the heads of influencer agencies, chairmen of technology companies, or domineering corporate presidents.
Even Cheng Yao could not help laughing at the idea, while Zhang Ya was thoroughly amused.
He planned to get his account verified on Weibo after a while. He had originally intended to uninstall that digital trash can, but now he was thinking of bringing it back.
There were certainly plenty of feminist attack dogs there, but wealthy men could still find a moderate amount of amusement on the platform. After all, there were simply too many shameless sycophants.
At last, the car stopped on Zhongshan East First Road.
Ultraviolet by Paul Pairet, also known as UV.
It was the highest-standard three-Michelin-star restaurant in Shanghai and one of the finest Western restaurants in the city. It occupied the sixth floor of Number 18, Zhongshan East First Road.
It was Zhang Ya’s first time there. Holding Cheng Yao’s arm, she entered the financial building with him and took the elevator to the sixteenth floor. The first thing that caught her eye was a striking string of English words.
The restaurant was commonly called UV. Without describing its appearance, one could never imagine that a restaurant like this existed. It was the first multisensory restaurant in the world.
The restaurant served only ten guests at a time. Reservations could be made exclusively through its official website, generally a month in advance, and fifty percent of the cost had to be paid at the time of booking. The reservation fee was nonrefundable in the event of cancellation.
Cheng Yao had been lucky. Otherwise, they would have had to dine somewhere else that evening.
“Sir, miss, may I ask whether you have a reservation?”
“Yes.”
“Please come this way.”
After confirming their information, the server invited them inside.
Under the server’s guidance, they entered a dimly lit room. A projection on the wall already displayed Cheng Yao and Zhang Ya’s names.
Zhang Ya looked slightly astonished. The sense of ceremony was almost overwhelming—so intense that it was a little embarrassing, especially with their names hanging on the wall.
Eight guests were already seated around the table, wearing aprons and waiting expectantly. Every pair of eyes turned toward them, all wearing expressions that seemed to say they could finally begin eating.
Because of the restaurant’s ridiculous rule that everyone had to arrive before the meal could begin, they had been forced to wait patiently.
Among them were two foreigners with blond hair and blue eyes—one bearded man and one Black man.
They were all strangers, so naturally no one spoke. They merely exchanged a few glances.
At last, the server brought out the pre-meal snacks.
“Sir, miss, please enjoy the bread. Dinner is ready and will be served shortly. We ask that you wait patiently.”
“Thank you.”
Once seated, the two of them donned disposable scarves with the server’s assistance.
Four of the guests at the table were foreigners. Shanghai truly had an astonishing number of foreigners; they could be seen almost everywhere. It was said that the magnificent city even had neighborhoods where foreigners gathered.
Cheng Yao withdrew his gaze and began tasting the snacks.
Zhang Ya dipped hers in jam before taking a bite. She found the whole experience highly ceremonial.
The only thing she found difficult to get used to was eating with strangers. Although everyone minded their own business and had nothing to do with one another, it still felt somewhat strange.
The restaurant specialized in creative French cuisine. Its innovative menu consisted of a set course with more than twenty dishes, divided into different themes. The name and details of each dish appeared on the projection wall, while the presentation and inventive cooking continually brought fresh surprises.
About seven or eight minutes later, ten servers simultaneously brought out beautifully plated foie gras chocolate pies.
The projection wall displayed the dish and information about the wine paired with it. Depending on the theme presented by each course, the lighting and images on the table and walls changed in unison.
The music served as a catalyst for the atmosphere. As diners savored the food, it gave wings to their imagination, sending them soaring through the dreamlike paradise personally created for them by UV.
They lifted the delicacy to their mouths with knife and fork.
The rich aroma of chocolate covered much of the foie gras’s distinctive flavor, making it completely different from the foie gras served in other Western restaurants.
“This dish is a little rich. Have some champagne.”
The recipe was displayed on the wall, but no one paid much attention to it.
After all, who had the time to investigate such things? Even if one had the recipe, it would be useless without the proportions and preparation process. Otherwise, Coca-Cola would have sued the entire world long ago.
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The servers attended to the guests throughout the entire meal. It was an experience dozens of times more elaborate than dining at an ordinary Michelin-starred restaurant.
It was somewhat like watching a five-hour performance of Wagner’s complete opera Parsifal. After being overwhelmed by the stage production and the symphony orchestra, one did not feel that the entire work had ended with its final note. Instead, the profound reflection continued into the last silence.
The food was supremely delicious—that was the basic requirement of any top-tier restaurant. Add to that the perfectly matched wines, superb sound and lighting, exquisite colors, and musical images that made one smile at precisely the right moments.
Some people might complain that it was too expensive and excessively luxurious.
Spending tens of thousands on a single dinner was indeed extravagant. But when wealthy people attended a performance, listened to a popular Broadway musical from the best seats while drinking a few good wines, or enjoyed an afternoon tea, such extravagance could easily cost tens of thousands as well.
What people pursued was quality—the quality of life and an attitude toward living.
After a full hour, dinner finally came to a satisfying end. Aside from the instant noodles known as the “Deluxe Version of Royco Ramen,” which left a deep impression on him, Cheng Yao found everything else acceptable.
Even with the champagne, the dinner for two came to just over twenty thousand yuan. The champagne accounted for most of the expense.
After paying the bill, the two of them walked along the streets of the Bund.
The crowds flowed endlessly around them. Enjoying his time with Zhang Ya, Cheng Yao asked with a smile, “Would you like to come home with me?”
“Tonight?”
“Of course. Can you really bear to let me go home alone?”
“Don’t try that line on me.”
Zhang Ya gave him a coquettish glare. That was exactly how he had tricked her into going to a hotel last time.
Cheng Yao nodded lightly. “I was actually going to say that once we got back, I’d take you out for lobster. It’s the last lobster of the month. We can bring Little One along.”
“All right, then. I’ll do it for Little One’s sake.”
“I’ll buy the tickets.”
“Mm.”
Zhang Ya nodded lightly. She had already told her teacher that she would be taking the next day off.
“Let’s walk around a little, then head back early. It’ll still take two hours to reach Jinling.”
“Okay.”
The two of them wandered along the road until they reached the observation deck.
At that moment, the Bund’s observation deck was packed with tourists. The crowds bustled and surged, creating a lively scene.
Cheng Yao and Zhang Ya did not join them. Neither of them liked squeezing into places that were too crowded. It was lively, certainly, but almost excessively so.
After walking around long enough to aid digestion, Cheng Yao hailed a car.
Once they were inside, he called Cheng Cheng. She was still out shopping with Jiang Yuexi, and became very excited when she heard that Zhang Ya was coming over.
“She’s staying at home with a classmate now. They seem to get along quite well.”
“You don’t need many friends. It’s enough to have people you genuinely enjoy spending time with.”
“Exactly.”
Cheng Yao felt the same way. Someone like him, with hardly any friends, could still live quite comfortably. It was just that most of his friends happened to be women.
They arrived at Hongqiao without incident. After waiting for a short while, the two boarded the high-speed train bound for Jinling.
…
…
At the same time, a series of bespoke packages at the Peninsula Hotel were beginning to take shape.
M12 wagyu beef,
black and white caviar,
French black-gold abalone,
Spanish Iberian ham,
blue lobster,
white Alba truffles from Italy…
These were all the finest ingredients. As birthday-party fare, they were already close to the pinnacle of extravagance.
The ingredients alone cost nearly eight hundred thousand yuan.
Inside the presidential suite, Ren Xiaoran, the person in charge of the Peninsula Hotel, was arranging the birthday celebration. Since the client would be using the room the following afternoon, she could only work through the night with her assistants.
“What style does the client prefer?”
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“Something simple.”
“More than ten thousand flowers, and ingredients costing nearly eight hundred thousand. What a ridiculously wealthy family. Going all out for a birthday is truly excessive.”
Ren Xiaoran laughed. “That’s the rich for you. Anyone who can afford to stay in a presidential suite won’t care about this amount of money. And that doesn’t even include the cake, gifts, and all the other odds and ends. The total won’t come to less than two million.”
Rumor had it that the client was an extraordinarily handsome young man, though no one knew whether that was true.
He was probably the son of some wealthy family. He certainly doted on his girlfriend.
…
…
In the blink of an eye, two hours passed, and the time reached half past eight.
Cheng Yao had already arranged for a designated driver on the high-speed train. By the time he reached the parking garage, the driver was waiting at the entrance.
“Mr. Cheng.”
“The keys.”
“Certainly.”
Cheng Yao and Zhang Ya sat in the back as the Mercedes E-Class left the station and headed straight for Xianlin.
Around half past nine, the car stopped in the garage. Upstairs, Cheng Cheng was watching a movie with Jiang Yuexi. The moment she saw Zhang Ya return, she rushed over barefoot.
“Sister-in-law…”
“Don’t catch a chill.”
Jiang Yuexi also obediently greeted Zhang Ya. Zhang Ya smiled and returned the greeting before turning to Cheng Yao.
“Weren’t you going to the television station? Hurry up and go.”
“All right. I’ll order takeout when I get back.”
Only after Cheng Yao had left did Zhang Ya ask Cheng Cheng, “Come on, tell me. Has your brother been hiding any other women from me?”
“No…”
Even Cheng Cheng lacked complete confidence, but she still shook her head firmly.
Sister-in-law, the money you give me isn’t nearly as much as what my brother gives me. He gives me far too much.
She was her brother’s dear little sister. How could she possibly betray him?
“Sister-in-law, you don’t know how famous Big Brother has become. He doesn’t even come home on Saturdays and Sundays anymore. He’s always busy at the company…”
Cheng Cheng took the opportunity to complain, though she did not dare mention anything else.
…
…
“Mr. Cheng, do you work at the television station?”
The designated driver looked at Cheng Yao. He was so young, and television-station jobs were known for being well paid and secure.
Cheng Yao shook his head. “No. I just have something to take care of here.”
“Would you like me to wait for you?”
“Then wait for a while.”
“Of course. Just call me whenever you’re ready to leave. I’ll find a Starbucks and sit there for a bit.”
The moment the designated driver left, Cheng Yao’s phone rang. It was Guan Yiqiu.
On the other end, Guan Yiqiu asked, “Junior, where are you now?”
“I’m at the entrance to the television station. How do I get inside?”
“Wait there. I’ll come down to get you.”
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