Lu Zhou is also known as the Angel City, because they excel at being angel investors, providing assistance to innovative companies, thereby infusing the city with vitality and development.
Their first stop was naturally the provincial capital, Lu Zhou.
When Lin Yang and his companions arrived in Hui Province, the program team happened to announce the general itinerary for the competition in Hui Province.
The competition in Hui Province is divided into four events.
The general locations of these four competitions were also directly announced by the program team.
This is because Hui Province is home to a very developed and characteristic water system.
The geographical location of Hui Province is between longitudes 114.9 degrees to 119.8 degrees east, and latitudes 29.4 degrees to 34.6 degrees north, with its main rivers belonging to the Huai River, Yangtze River, and Qiantang River systems.
In the northern region of Su County, there is a small part belonging to the Yellow River, which is the former Ancient Yellow River, strictly speaking also considered part of the Yellow River system.
Thus, within just one province, there are the Yangtze River, Yellow River, Huai River, and Qiantang River, the four most famous river systems in China.
This is unique nationwide.
Considering that the area of Hui Province is actually not large, and the latitude span is not extremely large, achieving this is even more remarkable.
Encompassing four major river systems, coincidentally there are also four competitions, so the program team naturally prepared to choose one competition point in each of these four major river systems to carry out four events.
The order is from south to north, held successively.
Starting from the southernmost Qiantang River, Yangtze River, to the Huai River, and then to the Ancient Yellow River.
Thus, the four competitions will fish in four different river systems, offering a unique charm.
As for the specific locations and target fish for each competition, they will be announced when the competition is about to begin.
Lin Yang and others arrived in Lu Zhou, and as usual, they experienced the local natural scenery and some cultural features.
Finally, everyone arrived at a hotel, which is also one of the most famous restaurants in Hui Province.
Its specialty is Huizhou cuisine.
Huizhou is the ancient name for Hui Province.
It is a very famous and historically profound region in the land of China.
And Huizhou cuisine is also one of the most renowned cuisines in China, listed among the eight major cuisines.
Coming to Hui Province, naturally, one must taste Huizhou cuisine.
After everyone was seated in a private room, the waiters began serving dishes.
The most famous feature of Huizhou cooking is sourcing ingredients locally, achieving excellence with freshness.
The Hui region is rich in various mountain delicacies and fresh poultry.
Sourcing locally ensures the dishes have distinct local characteristics and remain fresh.
The first dish served highlighted this feature.
In a not very large plate were arranged dozens of bright green bamboo shoots.
Among the jade-like shoots were some translucent cured meats, with a balance of fat and lean.
The crispy pairing with the fresh red meat looked incredibly tender, whetting the appetite!
"The first dish is Wenzheng Mountain Bamboo Shoots."
A beautiful waitress announced the dish’s name with a gentle voice and a warm smile.
Li Xiaopeng, sitting nearby, immediately spoke up:
"Oh? We’ve tried bamboo shoots from various places, we have bamboo shoots locally too, what’s different about your Huizhou bamboo shoots?"
Yue’er also asked, "What is this dish called... Wenzheng Mountain Bamboo Shoots? The name sounds quite strange, is there any significance?"
Hearing their questions, the beautiful waitress smiled warmly.
"Let me introduce this dish to our distinguished guests.
This Wenzheng Mountain Bamboo Shoots is a traditional specialty dish of the Huizhou region, made by stewing bamboo shoots harvested from Wenzheng Mountain in She County, hence the name ’Wenzheng Mountain Bamboo Shoots’.
This variety of bamboo shoots is limited in quantity each year from Wenzheng Mountain, making it a seasonal dish, and it’s truly fortunate for you to enjoy it today.
There’s also a legend associated with this dish.
I heard that you distinguished guests came from Zhe Province, and having this dish as the first course is truly serendipitous.
Legend has it that during the Southern Song era, the Hui merchants rose to prominence, and the Huizhou people doing business in Hang City were filled with homesickness, often asking people to bring Wenzheng Mountain bamboo shoots to relieve their longing for home and reminisce about their hometown dreams.
The family would get up early to dig out the spring shoots breaking through the soil, peel them clean while sailing the Xin’an River, cut them up and then simmer with river water in a clay pot over charcoal fire.
Upon opening the pot in Hang City, the bamboo shoots would be aromatic and crispy, tasting just as delicious as fresh shoots at home.
This authentic local Hui dish has since become a nostalgic delicacy associated with Hui merchants!"