For noodle restaurants, the busiest time is Chinese New Year's Eve. The day of the East China Sea Coast Noodle Restaurant has been busy since the beginning of the day.

The street, which is usually very lively until 12 o'clock at night, is very quiet on the night of Chinese New Year's Eve.

Just as the last customer went out and the owner said it was closing, the door creaked open. A woman of the Demon Clan with beast ears and demon patterns walked in with two children. Two boys, six and ten years old, one in brand new sportswear. The woman, on the other hand, wore a short coat of unseasonable slanted checker.

"Welcome!" the elf's proprietress stepped forward to greet her.

"Ah,...... Water dragon noodle ...... A bowl of ...... Is that okay?" the woman asked timidly. The two little boys hid behind their mother, and also looked timidly at the proprietress as well.

"Okay, please, please sit here," said the proprietress as she led the mother and son to sit down at table number two near the heater, and shouted to the counter, "A bowl of water dragon noodles!"

The boss, who heard the shouting, glanced up at the three of them, and replied, "Okay!

The board had been prepared for a long time, piled up like a hill of noodles, each for one person. The boss grabbed a bunch of noodles, then added half of them and put them in the pot together. The proprietress immediately realized that this was specially given to the mother and son by her husband.

The hot and fragrant water dragon noodles were put on the table, and the mother and son immediately gathered around the bowl of noodles and ate them head to head.

"It's delicious!" said my brother.

"Mom eats it too!" the younger brother took a chopstick of noodles and sent it to his mother's mouth.

After a while, the noodles were finished and I paid 150 gold randots.

"Thank you for your hospitality," the mother and son nodded together and walked out of the store.

"Thank you, and have a great year!" replied the boss and the hostess.

After the New Year, the Tokai noodle restaurant is still busy every day. A year passed quickly, and in the blink of an eye, it was Chinese New Year's Eve.

As with the previous Chinese New Year's Eve, the busy day is coming to an end. At ten o'clock in the evening, just as the store was about to close, the door was opened again, and a woman walked in with two boys.

When the lady saw the unseasonal tarnified short coat on the woman's body, she remembered the three last customers on Chinese New Year's Eve last year.

“...... This one...... A bowl of water dragon noodles...... Is that okay?"

"Please, please sit inside," the proprietress led them to table number two from last year, "a bowl of water dragon noodles—" "Okay, a bowl of water dragon noodles—" the boss replied, rekindling the fire that had been extinguished.

"Hey, kid daddy, give them three bowls, okay?"

The proprietress whispered in the boss's ear.

"No, if that were the case, they might be embarrassed. ”

The boss said, grabbed half of the noodles and put them in the pot.

There was a bowl of water dragon noodles on the table, and the mother and son were eating and talking, and the boss and the proprietress at the counter could also hear their voices.

"It's delicious......"

"This year, I can eat water dragon noodles from the East China Sea again. ”

"If only I could come back next year......

After eating, I paid 150 gold ranto. The proprietress looked at their backs, "Thank you, I wish you all a good year!"

On this day, I was sent away by this blessing that has been said dozens or even hundreds of times.

With the booming business of the East China Sea Noodle Restaurant, it is the third year of Chinese New Year's Eve.

From half past nine, although neither the boss nor the proprietress said anything, they all seemed a little unsettled. Just after ten o'clock, the employees left after work, the boss and the proprietress immediately turned over the price cards of various noodles hanging on the wall one by one, and quickly wrote "water dragon noodles 150 yuan", in fact, from this summer, with the rise in prices, the price of water dragon noodles has been 200 yuan a bowl.

At table 2, 30 minutes ago, the proprietress had already set up a sign for "reserved seats".

By half past ten, there were no more customers in the store, but the boss and the proprietress were still waiting for the arrival of the mother and son. They're coming. The elder brother was wearing the uniform of the Demon Clan Hache Middle School, and the younger brother was wearing the slightly larger old clothes that the elder brother wore last year. Mother was still wearing the unseasonable, somewhat faded coat.

"Welcome," the proprietress smiled as she stepped forward.

“...... Yes...... Two bowls of water dragon noodles...... Is that okay?" asked the mother timidly.

"Okay, please, please sit inside!"

The proprietress led them to table two, and while casually hiding the reservation card on the table, she shouted to the counter:

"Two bowls of water dragon noodles!"

"Okay, two bowls of water dragon noodles-"

The boss replied and put the three bowls of noodles into the pot.

The mother and son ate two bowls of water dragon noodles, talking and laughing.

"Da'er, Chun'er, today, as a mother, I want to thank you. "Thank you, ?...... to us Why?"

"Really, because your father died in a traffic accident and owed money to eight people during his lifetime. I paid off all the debts of the pension, and the part that was not enough, I repaid it in installments of 50,000 yuan per month. ”

"We all know that. ”

The proprietress and hostess were at the counter, listening intently.

"The rest of the debt will be paid off in March next year, but in fact, it can be paid off in full today. ”

"Ah, is that true, Mom?"

"It's true. My eldest brother supports me by delivering newspapers every day, and Chun'er helps me with grocery shopping and cooking every day, so I can work with peace of mind. Because I worked hard and received a special allowance from the company, I am now able to pay off my debts in full. ”

"Okay, Mom, brother, from now on, the daily cooking is still contracted to me!" "I continue to deliver newspapers. Brother, let's work together!"

"Thank you, thank you...... Thank you ......"

"My brother and I also have something to hide from our mother, and we can talk about it today. It was a Sunday in November, and I went to my brother's school for a parent-teacher conference. At this time, the younger brother had already hidden a letter from the teacher to his mother...... If the essay written by the younger brother is selected as the representative of the East China Sea, he can participate in the stiff essay contest. Because of this, on the day of the parent-teacher conference, the teacher asked my younger brother to read the essay aloud by himself. If the teacher's letter had been shown to my mother, my mother would have asked the company for leave to listen to my brother read the composition, so my brother did not give the letter to my mother. I heard about this from my brother's friend. So, on the day of the parent-teacher conference, I went. "Oh, I see...... And what about later?"

"The title of the teacher's essay was, 'What kind of person do you want to be in the future?' and all the students wrote it, and my younger brother's title was 'A Bowl of Water Dragon Noodles.' As soon as I heard this title, I knew that it was about the East China Sea Noodle Restaurant. My brother, how can I write such an embarrassing thing, I thought so at the time. ”

"The essay is written that my father died in a traffic accident, leaving behind a large debt. My mother worked hard from morning to night, and I went to deliver the morning and evening newspapers...... My brother wrote it all. Then he wrote that on the night of December 31, the mother and son ate a bowl of water dragon noodles, which was very delicious...... The three of us only bought a bowl of water dragon noodles, and the uncles and aunts of the noodle restaurant still received us very warmly, thanked us, and blessed us with a good New Year. Hearing this voice, my younger brother couldn't help shouting in his heart: We must not fail, we must work hard, and we must live well! Therefore, when my younger brother grows up, he wants to open a No. 1 noodle restaurant in the East China Sea, and he also wants to say to customers, work hard, I wish you happiness, thank you. The younger brother read the composition aloud......" At this moment, the boss and the proprietress who were listening attentively to the mother and son at the counter were nowhere to be seen. Behind the counter, I saw the two of them squatting facing each other, a towel, each holding one end, wiping the tears that came out of their eyes.

"After reading the essay, the teacher said, 'Today, Junjun's brother came to our parent-teacher conference in place of his mother, and now we ask him to say a few ......words.'"

"Why did my brother ...... at this time?" the younger brother looked at his brother suspiciously.

"Because I was suddenly called up to speak, at first, I couldn't say anything...... You have always been very good with my brother, and I would like to thank you all. My younger brother made dinner every day, gave up the club activities, and came home halfway, and I felt embarrassed to be my brother's. Just now, when my brother's "A Bowl of Water Dragon Noodles" was first read aloud, I felt very ashamed, but when I saw my brother reading aloud excitedly, I felt even more ashamed in my heart, and then I thought, I must not forget my mother's courage in buying a bowl of water dragon noodles, brothers, work together to protect our mother! From now on, please be friends with my brother better. That's all I have to say......" The mother and son held each other's hands quietly for a long time. Then he laughed merrily. Compared to last year, it seems to have completely changed.

The water dragon noodles that were used as Chinese New Year's Eve dinner were finished and paid 150 yuan.

"Thank you for your hospitality," the mother and son bowed their heads deeply and walked out of the store.

"Thank you and have a great year!"

The proprietress and the hostess shouted their blessings and watched them go......

It's Chinese New Year's Eve again. In the Donghai Pavilion Noodle Restaurant, after nine o'clock in the evening, there was a sign for reservation seats on the second table, waiting for the arrival of the mother and son. However, the three of them were never seen on this day.

One year and another year, Table 2 waited silently. But the mother and son still didn't show up.

As business became more and more prosperous, the store was renovated. The tables and chairs were replaced, but Table No. 2 remained the same, and the owner and his wife did not feel incongruous, but placed Table No. 2 in the center of the store. "Why did you put this old table in the middle of the store?" said some customers.

So, the boss and his wife told them the story of "a bowl of water dragon noodles". And said that seeing this table is an incentive for himself. Moreover, maybe the mother and son will come one day, and at this time, I want to use this table to greet them.

In this way, the story about Table 2 made Table 2 a table of happiness. Customers spread the word everywhere, some people came from far away, some schoolgirls and some young couples, all to table 2 for a bowl of water dragon noodles. Table 2 also became famous.

Time passes, year after year. This year's Chinese New Year's Eve has come again.

At this time, Donghaiting Noodle Restaurant is already the main member of the street chamber of commerce, on the day of Chinese New Year's Eve, friends, neighbors, and peers who are like family, after finishing a day's work, all come to Donghaiting, eat New Year's noodles in Donghaiting, listen to the bells of Chinese New Year's Eve, and then relatives and friends gather together to burn incense and kowtow to a nearby shrine to ask for the blessing of the gods. This has been the case for five or six years. This year's Chinese New Year's Eve is certainly no exception. At half past nine, the fish shop owner and his wife came in with a large plate full of sashimi, and more than 30 friends from the neighborhood also gathered at the Donghai Pavilion one after another with food and drinks. The atmosphere in the shop suddenly became lively.

Friends who knew the origin of the No. 2 table didn't say anything in their mouths, but they were all thinking in their hearts, maybe the No. 2 table would be empty again this year, right? The sign for the reserved seat had already been quietly placed on the No. 2 table.

Between the cramped seats, the guests moved little by little to sit down, and some greeted their friends who were late. Eating noodles, drinking wine, and holding each other's dishes. Someone went to the counter to help, someone opened the refrigerator at random to get something. What a cheap business, a glamorous anecdote about sea bathing, and something about adding a grandson. At half past ten, the lively atmosphere in the Tokai Pavilion reached its peak. Just then, the door creaked open. People looked towards the door, and there was a sudden silence in the room.

Two young men in straight suits and overcoats on their arms walked in. At this time, everyone breathed a sigh of relief, and with a gentle sigh, the store resumed its bustleness just now.

"It's a misfortune, it's full," the proprietress said apologetically.

Just as the two youths were rejected, a woman in a kimono walked in with her head bowed deeply and stood in the middle of the two youths. The people in the store held their breath and their ears pricked up.

"Ah...... Three bowls of water dragon noodles, is it okay?" said the woman in the traditional clothes of the demon clan calmly.

Hearing this, the proprietress 's face changed suddenly. The impression of the mother and son who remained in my mind more than ten years ago overlapped with the image of the three people in front of me.

The proprietress pointed to the three visitors, and her eyes collided with those of her husband, who was busy at the counter.

"Ahh,......h The child is ...... father."

Faced with the overwhelmed proprietress of the house, one of the young men spoke.

"We are the customers who ate a bowl of water dragon noodles on Chinese New Year's Eve fourteen years ago. At that time, it was the encouragement of this bowl of water dragon noodles that made the three of us work together to get through the difficult years. After that, we moved to Shiga Prefecture, my mother's in-laws. "I passed the national exam for doctors this year and am now working as an intern at a university hospital in Kyoto. In April next year, I will work at a general hospital in Sapporo. My younger brother, who hasn't opened a noodle shop yet, now works in a bank in Kyoto. My brother and I consulted and planned our first extravagant move. That's it, today, the three of us, mother and son, came to visit Tokai Pavilion in Sapporo, and wanted to trouble you to cook three bowls of water dragon noodles. ”

The boss couple who nodded while listening shed tears one by one.

The owner of the vegetable shop, who was sitting near the door, listened with a mouthful of noodles in his mouth, and only then did he swallow the noodles and stand up.

"Hey, what are you doing standing there? Every Chinese New Year's Eve in the past ten years, aren't you all ready to wait for their arrival? Quick, invite them to their seats, quickly!" was bumped on the shoulder by the owner of the vegetable shop, and the lady came to her senses.

"Huan...... Welcome, please, please be seated...... Daddy, kid, three bowls of water faucet noodles on table two-"

"Okay—three bowls of water dragon noodles—" The tearful husband almost couldn't make a sound.

Inside, there was a sudden burst of cheers and applause.

Outside the store, the snowflakes that were still fluttering just now have stopped at this moment. The snow-covered windows reflect the clear windows, and the curtain with the words "Tokai Pavilion" swaying and floating in the breeze of the first month......