Chapter 141: Chopsticks
Daniel and Brown knew they were in the wrong—especially when they saw some foreign guests pointing and whispering about them—so they could only swallow their pride and accept defeat.
After John, Su He taught the two foreigners another Chinese phrase: “Dui Bu Qi” (I’m sorry).
Supervisor Lu stiffly accepted the $150 fine.
She couldn’t believe it—Su He had actually made the foreigners apologize? And even pay a fine?
Su He reminded her, “Don’t forget to issue them a receipt. We’re handling this by the book. And remember, it’s already 1975—the people of China have stood tall once again!”
Supervisor Lu’s face turned pale, then flushed. She lowered her head in shame.
Su He returned to her seat and continued eating—after all, eating is the most important thing in the world.
Principal Chen watched Su He eat happily and silently thought: Where does this girl get her nerves of steel?
Although he didn’t understand English, from the way the two foreigners apologized and paid up, he could tell Su He had handled them properly.
The old principal felt proud. Even if he had to share this subordinate with several departments, she was still under him!
Meanwhile, Daniel and Brown sat down, getting more upset the more they thought about it. Daniel, distracted, accidentally stuffed the bread he had used to wipe the table into his mouth.
Brown looked at the knife and fork in his hand, then at the chopsticks Su He was using, and said to Daniel, “Some countries are backward for a reason. Take their utensils, for example—totally primitive compared to ours!”
Daniel paused, then sneered, “Exactly! Their steel production is low, so they can’t afford knives and forks. They’re stuck using two sticks—just like savages!”
Their words sparked some agreement among other foreign guests, who began chattering noisily.
The general sentiment was: knives and forks represent civilization, while chopsticks are a symbol of backwardness.
Su He bit into her fried egg, visibly irritated. Why is it so hard to just eat in peace?!
She stood up, chopsticks in hand, and spoke:
“Chopsticks, with their round tips and square ends, symbolize ‘round heaven and square earth.’ Their length of 7.6 inches represents the seven emotions and six desires of humans. Holding them in the middle reflects the harmony of heaven, earth, and man. When using chopsticks, one is active while the other follows. The active one represents yang, the passive one yin—this is the concept of yin and yang. A small pair of chopsticks carries the wisdom and heritage of our China people. In fact, we used forks 4,000 years ago—but over time, chopsticks replaced them.”
She paused, waving her chopsticks gently.
“I’m not saying chopsticks are better than knives and forks. There’s no such thing as a ‘superior’ utensil—it’s simply a matter of custom. We always refer to chopsticks as ‘a pair,’ not ‘two sticks,’ because only when both cooperate can they grasp food. Neither is dispensable. This is just like the relationship between China and other nations—we all need cooperation and mutual benefit to achieve win-win outcomes. Perhaps in the near future, more Chinese will use knives and forks, while more foreigners will fall in love with chopsticks. The world is one big family. We should be united, supportive, and live like family.”
Someone started clapping, and soon the restaurant erupted in thunderous applause.
Even Principal Chen, not understanding a word, clapped enthusiastically. In that moment, he resolved to start learning English—he was tired of always being stuck eating plain boiled melon while others spoke fluently.
No sooner had Su He finished her meal than she was swarmed by a crowd of foreign guests.
“Su, we didn’t quite understand the deeper meanings of chopsticks you mentioned earlier—could you explain again?”
“Su, are you a translator for the Foreign Trade Ministry? How come we’ve never seen you before?”
“Su, will you teach us Chinese?”
…
Principal Chen, pushed outside the crowd: “…”
Thankfully, Director Qu arrived in time to extract Su He from the mob.
She followed him to his office, with the tagalong Principal Chen trotting happily behind. As long as you don’t kick me out, I’ll pretend I belong here.
Director Qu had actually arrived at the restaurant during the confrontation between Su He and Daniel. He stood quietly in the back, observing.
As the person in charge of Jinxiang Hotel, he was torn. On one hand, he disliked arrogant foreign behavior; on the other, he had to ensure good service.
So he had decided to watch how Su He handled the situation. If things got out of hand, he’d step in to mediate.
But to his surprise, Su He exceeded all expectations—bold, eloquent, and impressively knowledgeable. No wonder Elder Gu had arranged for her to stay and eat at the hotel for free.
Director Qu thanked her sincerely, and Su He responded humbly.
Then he asked, “Little Su, how should we write the receipt? Just say ‘fine’?”
Su He nodded, “Yes, just write ‘fine.’ And also, please draft a formal dining regulation. From now on, anyone wasting food should be fined. We need to stop this kind of thing from happening again. Oh—and backdate the policy to a month ago, so we’ll have solid grounds.”
Director Qu: “…Okay.”
As soon as Su He stepped out of the office, she was surrounded by waitstaff.
Wu Xiaoshuang looked at her with admiration. “Comrade Su He, you’re amazing! You don’t know how arrogant those foreigners can be—wasting food on purpose, nitpicking everything. We never dared say a word and had to swallow a lot of frustration. But today—today was so satisfying! Comrade Su He, could you write something encouraging for me? I want to keep it as a souvenir!”
As she spoke, Wu Xiaoshuang handed over a notebook and a pen.
Su He didn’t want to turn her down, so she wrote something encouraging and handed it back.
Then—the whole group of waiters pulled out their notebooks and pens.
Su He: “…”
What the—did I accidentally become their idol?!
Principal Chen stood off to the side, feeling jealous and… a little itchy in the hands.
It took a long while for Su He to finish writing in all those notebooks.
When she finally returned to her room, a tray of fresh fruit and various pastries was delivered by a staff member.
Principal Chen, who got absolutely nothing: “…”
Su He passed him a slice of watermelon and said, “Principal, let’s go check out the S City Food Factory this afternoon.”
Before leaving, she folded a bunch of hotel shopping bags and stuffed them into his briefcase.
Principal Chen was baffled. “Why are you packing these?”
Su He blinked innocently. “The briefcase looks too flat. This makes it look better!”
Principal Chen: …You little liar. I don’t believe a word.
