Chapter 21

Nanjing is a city rich in legend. Since the reform and opening up, in just a few short years, it has transformed from an ordinary county town into one of the four major first-tier cities in the country. Of course, this is closely related to its status as a special economic zone.

Zhou Ming and Lin Muqing got off the train at Nanjing station and followed the crowd out of the station. As soon as they exited, Zhou Ming saw a figure holding a sign with "Lin Muqing" written on it. He knew it was Lin Muqing's cousin, Tang Ran. Lin Muqing had contacted her before coming to Shenzhen, and Tang Ran, who was on her day off, had come to the station to pick them up.

Zhou Ming and Lin Muqing approached Tang Ran. Tang Ran was wearing a white shirt and a red skirt, with a pair of sunglasses, looking like a typical urban girl, a beautiful sight at the exit. Beside her was a man in a Zhongshan suit, who was likely her boyfriend.

Lin Muqing greeted her, "Ranran, you're getting more and more beautiful. I almost didn't recognize you."

"Of course, this is Nanjing!" Tang Ran said proudly, then introduced the man beside her to Lin Muqing, "Sister Muqing, this is my boyfriend, Wei Hua. He's a local from Nanjing, and his family is in business. He earns a lot of money every month. If you need any help in Nanjing, he can assist you."

"Beautiful Miss Lin Muqing, it's a pleasure to meet you. If you have any difficulties in Nanjing, feel free to ask me, and I'll do my best to help you," Wei Hua said in broken Mandarin, trying to show his gentlemanly manners. However, his eyes kept wandering over Lin Muqing's charming face and curvaceous figure, and he didn't want to let go of her hand, looking like a lecherous man.

Fortunately, Lin Muqing had seen many men like him before. She quietly pulled her hand back and introduced Zhou Ming to him. Wei Hua merely nodded at Zhou Ming without saying much, clearly not interested in the man who had come with Lin Muqing.

Wei Hua said to Lin Muqing, "You must be tired from the journey. Ranran told me you've already booked a room at Tianyun Hotel. I'll take you there first. You can drop off your luggage, and then we'll have lunch, okay?"

Lin Muqing, though repulsed by Wei Hua, nodded without showing it.

Tang Ran happily linked arms with Lin Muqing and walked ahead, while Wei Hua and Zhou Ming followed behind. Wei Hua glanced at Zhou Ming and asked, "You're Zhou Ming, right? Are you here to work? What can you do? I can help you find a factory. If you don't have any special skills, I can introduce you to some foremen. Nanjing is developing quickly, and many construction sites need workers."

Zhou Ming thought to himself, "Do I look like a migrant worker?" But he kept his composure and said, "Sorry, I'm not here to work. I have business to do."

"Business?" Wei Hua looked Zhou Ming up and down, shaking his head disdainfully. "People from inland always think they can do business in Nanjing. You're overestimating yourselves. Do you think money in Nanjing is just lying around? I think you'd be better off working on a construction site. I can talk to the foreman for you, and you can earn a few hundred yuan a month. That's more than you'd earn in the inland."

The wages in Nanjing were indeed much higher than in Nanhu County, but Zhou Ming wasn't interested in such a small amount. He didn't want to explain himself to Wei Hua and simply said, "Thank you, but no."

"We'll take a taxi to the hotel. Do you know what a taxi is?" Wei Hua asked Zhou Ming deliberately.

Zhou Ming frowned. Wei Hua had been showing off his superiority as a Nanjing resident since they met. Now he was even asking such a question. Was it only in Nanjing that there were taxis? Zhou Ming understood this was regional discrimination. After Nanjing was designated as a special economic zone, the economy developed rapidly, giving Nanjing residents a sense of superiority over people from other places. Zhou Ming found this very repulsive, but he didn't want to create a conflict with Wei Hua, as he might need Tang Ran's help in the future. So he endured it.

"I know, we have taxis in Linyang too," Zhou Ming said.

"Really? So you've taken a taxi before? I didn't think people from Jingchu could afford to take taxis. Isn't that a bit extravagant?" Wei Hua said exaggeratedly, as if he were talking about a rare event. Zhou Ming ignored him.

Wei Hua took Zhou Ming, Lin Muqing, and Tang Ran to the hotel by taxi. After Zhou Ming and Lin Muqing put their luggage in the room, Wei Hua took them to the East Gate.

Zhou Ming got out of the car and looked up at a large M-shaped sign. He asked Wei Hua, puzzled, "You said you'd take us to a different kind of feast. Are we eating at McDonald's?"

"You know McDonald's?" Wei Hua was surprised. "It's a world-famous restaurant chain that just entered the country. This is the first store in the nation. You definitely don't have it in Jingchu. I'm taking you to try Western food."

Zhou Ming almost burst out laughing. Wei Hua's words reminded him of the joke about people treating McDonald's as Western food twenty years later. But that was after McDonald's had become widespread. In this era, McDonald's had just entered the country, and as Wei Hua said, this was the first McDonald's in the country. For those who had never seen it, it was a new and trendy thing, and it wasn't wrong to consider it Western food.

Inside the McDonald's, the place was already full of people. Wei Hua told Zhou Ming and the others to sit down while he went to order. A while later, he brought back four cups of cola, four burgers, and a pile of fries.

"One for each of you," Wei Hua said, handing a burger to Zhou Ming and deliberately teasing him, "No chopsticks. I wonder if you can eat it."

Zhou Ming smiled, "Of course. In my hometown, if a family is poor and can't afford chopsticks, they eat with their hands."

Lin Muqing laughed, clearly understanding that Zhou Ming was mocking Wei Hua. Tang Ran tugged at Wei Hua's clothes, telling him not to make things difficult for Zhou Ming. Wei Hua's face turned red, and he huffed, "Rude and uncultured!"

Zhou Ming ignored Wei Hua and asked, "Didn't you get ketchup?"

"Ketchup?"

Wei Hua looked at Zhou Ming, confused. Zhou Ming then remembered that this was the first McDonald's in the country, not twenty years later. Eating fries with ketchup wasn't a common habit yet, and most people didn't know about it.

"Never mind, I'll get it."

Zhou Ming got up, but Wei Hua grabbed his arm, "What are you doing? Don't take things without permission. This place is expensive, and you can't afford it."

"Don't worry, I can afford it."

Zhou Ming went to the counter and got four packets of ketchup, giving one to Lin Muqing and Tang Ran. He skillfully opened the ketchup packets and dipped two fries, handing them to Lin Muqing and Tang Ran, "Try it. It's much better than before."

Lin Muqing put it in her mouth without hesitation, while Tang Ran ate it hesitantly. Then both women's eyes lit up, and they said in unison, "It's really delicious, sweet and sour. It's much better than before."

"Of course. Fries are high-calorie, fried food, and ketchup can neutralize the greasy taste, improving the flavor," Zhou Ming explained.

"Oh, I see. How did you know to eat fries with ketchup, Zhou Ming?" Tang Ran asked.

"It's common knowledge. Otherwise, Western fast-food chains like McDonald's and KFC wouldn't provide free ketchup for their customers."

Lin Muqing picked up on the key point in Zhou Ming's words, "Zhou Ming, you said the ketchup is free?"

Zhou Ming nodded, "Yes, look, many people are taking ketchup. Wei Hua probably didn't know because it was his first time. The store saves where it can, so they didn't give him any."

Lin Muqing and Tang Ran looked at Wei Hua, who turned his head away, embarrassed, muttering, "It's like you've eaten it before."

Zhou Ming smiled, "You're right, I have."

As a person who had been reborn, how could he not have eaten McDonald's, a type of junk food?

However, Zhou Ming didn't want to say more at that moment and quickly changed the subject, "Actually, as far as I know, McDonald's is just a Western fast-food chain. It's only because it's new in Nanjing that Wei Hua is mistaken. Steak, salad, and wine are the typical Western meal combinations."

"Really?" Tang Ran turned to Wei Hua, "Then let's take Sister Muqing and Zhou Ming to a real Western restaurant for dinner, okay?"

Wei Hua stammered, not knowing what to say. Zhou Ming came to his rescue, "Don't make it hard for him. Real Western restaurants are very expensive. A meal can cost a few hundred yuan, and you don't get much food. It's not worth it."

Hearing the price, Tang Ran's eyes widened, "A few hundred yuan for a meal? That's equal to Wei Hua's monthly salary!"

Zhou Ming raised an eyebrow, "Wei Hua's monthly salary is only a few hundred yuan?"

Tang Ran nodded, and Lin Muqing laughed, "It seems the salary level in Nanjing isn't that great. Zhou Ming earns at least a few ten thousand yuan a month doing business in Linyang."

"Wow! That's a lot, Zhou Ming, you're amazing!" Tang Ran said, full of admiration.

Zhou Ming found Lin Muqing's cousin very cute, with a natural and innocent charm. He knew she wasn't being malicious, but she had inadvertently revealed Wei Hua's shortcomings.

Wei Hua's face turned red. He felt like a ridiculous clown in front of Zhou Ming, his face burning with shame. He had tried to educate Zhou Ming to work on a construction site, but now he learned that Zhou Ming earned tens of thousands of yuan a month, over a hundred times his own salary. If that was true, how could he have the confidence to show off his superiority?

Wei Hua had been trying to win Lin Muqing's favor, but now she probably looked at him with disdain. Even if she didn't, he couldn't bear to stay there any longer.

Thinking this, Wei Hua couldn't help but stand up and say, "I'm sorry, I have something to do. I'll leave first."