Chapter 8. The giant snake and the stinky bird (starfruit yuzu bubble tea)

Phương spotted a large wave in the ocean, but the guest didn’t come by sea.

Rather, there was a huge gold-red-blue-green phoenix flying through the air. The phoenix spotted Phương and descended onto the beach.

In a flash of light, the phoenix turned into a handsome human with dazzling red-gold hair and gold-blue-red robes with extravagant sleeves.

“Oh, oh, I’ve been flying for so long!! Ohh, I smell something sweet!” the phoenix man rushed forward, showing not a single speck of caution. “Hello! Who are you?”

“Hello,” Phương said with a smile. “Interested in something to drink?”

“Do you have fruit? Do you have starfruit?” The phoenix stepped into the house, full of curiosity. “Wow! Fruit cushions! That’s amazing, what a great idea! I want them! Do you have any starfruit cushions? How much does it cost?”

“No starfruit cushions—yet. Would you like me to make you one?”

The phoenix’s eyes lit up. “Yes!”

“I can also make a starfruit drink for you.”

“Yes!” The phoenix hesitated between the various cushioned chairs but then ultimately took a seat on the tall chair right in front of the kitchen counter—all the better to watch the human make the starfruit drink (he loved starfruit!).

Phương began by brewing some oolong tea. While it was steeping, he took out yuzu syrup and fresh starfruit. He crushed fresh starfruit and filled a glass with jelly, crushed starfruit, yuzu syrup and oolong tea. He hooked a slice of starfruit on the rim as decoration and slid in a big straw. “Here you go.”

The phoenix ate the slice of starfruit first. Then he took a small sip of the drink, then a huge glug. “Wow! This is delicious! Give me more! I really like starfruit!”

“Very well.”

This time, Phương made a version with added osmanthus tapioca pearls and candied starfruit on top.

“Wow! Delicious! Give me more! I love starfruit!”

This repeated several times until the phoenix drank ten cups of tea in row. “That was delicious.” The phoenix patted his stomach. “My name is Phượng Hoàng Vũ,” he said. His eyes widened and then he started patting his body. “I forgot my little money pouch! I don’t have any money with me!”

Phương got ready to close the front wall to stop the phoenix from escaping—

“How about I carry you to my island!” Phượng Hoàng Vũ leaned forward, raising his arms/wings. “Do you have a bag that is a handspan-by-handspan wide? I have a lot of gold and spiritual gems on my island to pay! For the drinks and the starfruit cushions too!”

Phương relaxed. “That sounds—”

“Oh, no,” Phượng Hoàng Vũ deflated and slumped over the kitchen counter. “I recently lost a lot of money. I didn’t expect that human’s starfruits to be so expensive, he took away two big bags of gold and gems.” He gave Phương a plaintive look. “His younger brother didn’t ask for so much money! It was so heavy carrying him and he even fell from my back and dropped the bags into the sea!”

Phương was amused. “How about you take me to your island? Consider this: I can make starfruit drinks, starfruit cushions, and starfruit desserts. Isn’t it worth it to give me your money?”

Phượng Hoàng Vũ perked up. “It’s worth it! And if there isn’t enough, I can just ask my dad, he has piles of gold—” He suddenly stiffen as he sensed something.

SPLASH!

A large azure dragon burst out of the water, and after a flash of light, a handsome humanoid dragon landed on the beach.

Phượng Hoàng Vũ turned around and gasped. “Ah! Giant snake! Don’t eat me!”

Phương brightened and smiled. “Little Long Quang!”

Long Quang, who had already been spotted, could only walk up to the house. He gave Phượng Hoàng Vũ an annoyed look. “Stinky bird. Why is a bird like you here?”

Phượng Hoàng Vũ raised his arms, his long sleeves flapping like wings. “Hey!”

“This is yours, isn’t?” Two large sacks appeared in Long Quang’s hand. He threw them onto the sand—they made a clinking sound as they landed. “Dropped into the ocean not long ago and they stink like you,” he added, disgruntled. “You should look where you’re flying!”

“My treasure!” Phượng Hoàng Vũ rushed out to check the sacks.

“Does little Long Quang want a cup of bubble tea?” Phương asked.

“Hm.” Long Quang made a face at the bird smell on the chairs in front of the kitchen counter and took at seat at the dining table instead. He took out a spiritual stone and placed it on the table casually.

Phương’s sword immediately dashed out to take the spiritual stone.

Long Quang narrowed his eyes. “Did you change your sword?”

“Oh, it just wanted some new clothes,” Phương said as he prepared Long Quang’s drink. He brewed some black tea and took out a jar of brown sugar syrup and another jar of caramel sauce. The bowl of dark tapioca pearls was already on the kitchen counter. Phương combined all the ingredients in a tall glass cup, layering dark tapioca pearls, brown sugar syrup, caramel sauce, black tea and milk.

Long Quang accepted the cup and inserted the provided straw. After a little mix, he took a sip. The annoyance of having two heavy sacks of gold drop on him while he was swimming was washed away with the super sweet tea and chewy pearls. More relaxed, he looked around, glancing first at the menu and then at the display shelf. Were those fat little animal ornaments?

A waft of bird smell made Long Quang wrinkle his nose.

Phượng Hoàng Vũ gathered up the sacks and dragged them into the shop.

Long Quang gave him a disgusted look. “Where is your spatial storage, bird?”

“Huh? But I need to pay the shopkeeper!” Phượng Hoàng Vũ turned to Phương. “Here you go! And what is he drinking? Can I have that too?”

Long Quang pulled his cup closer, alert.

“It doesn’t have starfruit,” Phương said.

“Oh, right,” Phượng Hoàng Vũ said, visibly deflating.

“But I can make it anyway, it’s quite sweet,” Phương said. “It doesn’t cost much.”

Phượng Hoàng Vũ smiled foolishly. “I’m rich again, it’s true.” He sat down on his previous chair by the kitchen counter.

Thus, Phương made another cup of caramel bubble tea.

“Hm, this isn’t bad,” Phượng Hoàng Vũ said.

Long Quang snorted. Not bad?? This bubble tea was delicious! He sipped his own bubble tea, hoping that the bird would scram as soon as possible.

“Wait!” Phượng Hoàng Vũ suddenly straightened and stared at Long Quang. “You’re not a snake, you’re a dragon!”

Long Quang rolled his eyes. “I already know you’re a phoenix, bird.”

Phượng Hoàng Vũ gasped. “Please don’t eat me!”

Phương hid a smile. Their bickering was quite cute.

Long Quang looked over. “Anh Phương, can you cook him deliciously?”

Phượng Hoàng Vũ gasped. “Huh?!”

Phương smiled helplessly. “No, I don’t have a habit of cooking phoenixes.”

Phượng Hoàng Vũ gave a sigh of relief.

“It’s almost lunch time, do you want to eat?” Phương asked.

“Oh, I really should get going…” Phượng Hoàng Vũ started.

“Yes!” Long Quang said.

Phượng Hoàng Vũ was curious about Long Quang’s reaction. “Oh, then I want to eat something too. It must be delicious if an ocean dragon wants to eat it.”

Long Quang shot an annoyed look back. “You should get going.”

“I had boiled a big pot of beef and pork stock earlier,” Phương said. “So today we’ll be having bún bò Huế for lunch.”

Both Long Quang and Phượng Hoàng Vũ both had blank looks.

Ah. Phương had forgotten that Huế didn’t exist in this world. “It’s a spicy noodle soup.”

“I’m staying for lunch,” Phượng Hoàng Vũ declared.

Phương started by reheating the stock. The fragrance of savoury meat, lemongrass and the complex notes of fish sauce and hint of shrimp paste filled the air.

Phượng Hoàng Vũ breathed in deeply. “That smells delicious!”

“It tastes even better,” Phương said. While the noodles boiled, he prepared all the other toppings. His sword went outside to harvest a load of fresh herbs, including a lot of mint.

Thinking about his guests’ true sizes, and thus their appetites, Phương found the biggest serving bowls he had to serve the noodles.

The bowls were filled with the cooked rice noodles and the soup broth and topped with cooked pork blood jelly, Vietnamese pork sausage, slices of beef, and an artful sprinkle of sliced scallions and coriander. On two plates, Phương piled bean sprouts, thinly sliced banana blossom and herbs and lemon wedges. He also placed down a small bowl of shrimp paste and a small bowl of spice sate sauce on the side.

One set for Long Quang, one set for Phượng Hoàng Vũ.

Phương also made two cups of mango bubble tea for these two sugar addicts.

Long Quang’s mouth watered. How was the food getting better and better? He eagerly added all the mint into his bowl.

Phượng Hoàng Vũ tucked in whole-heartedly. “Hmm!! This is so good! Ahhh, I should just come here to eat half of the time!”

Long Quang shot him an annoyed look. “I found this place first.”

“Oh...” Phượng Hoàng Vũ was puzzled for a moment but then returned to eating, problems forgotten. “Delicious!”

With the food in front of him, Long Quang couldn’t be bothered arguing further. He also tucked right in to the most delicious bowl of noodle soup he had ever had.

Phương: Look at the two cute young cultivators playing around *smiles like a wise old man*

Long Quang:You’re barely older than me! And tch, why is someone else here again…

Phượng Hoàng Vũ: *scatters gold* You get some gold, you get some gold! I’m rich ^_^

Long Quang:   (╯°□°)╯︵ ┻━┻ Why is everyone wealthier than me???

Notes:

Anh: older brother / big brother

Phượng Hoàng: means “phoenix”.

The story that Phượng Hoàng Vũ talks about is directly lifted from the Vietnamese folktale called “Ăn khế trả vàng”, literally “eat starfruit, pay gold”. The phoenix eats starfruit from a tree; the poor human owner complains and so the phoenix tells him to make a little pouch, carries him to his gold island, and thus the poor human owner is no longer poor. The human’s greedy older brother sees this and wants the starfruit tree instead. So when the phoenix comes back and eats more starfruit, the older brother also requests money, and the phoenix tells him to make a little pouch. But instead of a little pouch, the older brother brings a big sack, filling it with so much gold that the phoenix can no longer handle the weight…

Lunch menu: bún bò Huế, literally Huế beef noodles, is a famous noodle soup from Huế, albeit less famous than phở. It features stronger, spicy favours compared to phở, with a lot lemongrass. Highly recommend it if you never had it before (っ˘ڡ˘ς)