The first thing I did was to find out

Chapter 511 The Three-Person Group for Accompanying Me to Eat

When Zheng Siyuan learned that Qin Huai was going to make crab roe and pork buns, he thought that Qin Huai wanted to practice making crab roe desserts in advance because crabs would be on the market soon. Before leaving, Zheng Siyuan specially made a lot of crab roe sauce for Qin Huai.

With that, Master Zheng waved his sleeve, leaving behind a huge pile of crab roe sauce, and left Shanshi to return to Suzhou.

Under normal circumstances, the regular customers of Yunzhong Canteen, especially the elderly people who write food reviews for Zheng Siyuan every day, should be heartbroken.

As it turned out, the elderly folks seamlessly transitioned to writing food reviews for Qinhuai's pastries, or for Zheng Siyuan's previous pastries.

After writing food reviews for so long, some of the older folks have come to love this job. They don't write food reviews to please Zheng Siyuan or to get him to make more of their favorite snacks; they just love writing.

love.

This passion inspired some elderly people, like Grandma Ding, who felt they had decent writing skills, to start a second career and join the ranks of food review writers.

As a former kindergarten principal, Grandma Ding was also a radical, believing herself to be exceptionally talented and a gifted writer, a rising star in the food criticism world who had been long overdue. She immediately took on a challenging task, submitting a piece to "Zhiwei" magazine, and unsurprisingly, it was rejected.

After being rejected by "Zhiwei" magazine eight times in a row, Grandma Ding did not lose heart. She felt that "Zhiwei" had too high standards and the editors had poor taste, and that no one appreciated her beautiful writing. So she submitted her work to several other well-known travel and food magazines in China.

Then all of them were rejected.

Grandma Ding did not back down and instead tried submitting her work to magazines within the province.

The manuscript was rejected.

In the city.

The manuscript was rejected.

It is said that Grandma Ding is currently using her connections to contact the kindergarten where she worked for many years, preparing to launch a joint initiative to publish a kindergarten food newspaper. The first issue will be written by her, the retired former principal, with a few food reviews as a sample for the children.

"The moment I tasted the fresh meat mooncake, I felt something bloom in my mind. Like a flower blossoming on a grassland, like a bird singing on a branch, like a fish leaping in a stream, like a cloud turning into evening glow by the setting sun. What a wonderful taste, what a magical experience, how..."

Zhao Cheng'an openly slacked off in the kitchen, reading Grandma Ding's latest food review. As he read, he exclaimed, "Grandma Ding is indeed worthy of being a kindergarten principal. This food review is written like a child's essay, with lots of parallel sentences, but it doesn't make sense. Is this even a food review?"

"This is Lao Ding's style of writing food reviews. She used to talk like this when she was teaching children at the kindergarten, so it's a habit." Wang Gensheng, who now sits in the kitchen of Yunzhong Canteen and has his own stool and snack table, gave a very objective evaluation. "We have also given her our opinions, but Lao Ding thinks this is her style."

"Just like my food reviews are very short."

After hearing what Wang Gensheng said, Zhao Chengan went to read Wang Gensheng's food reviews.

"Master Qin's crab roe and pork buns are very delicious recently. The crab roe is made by reprocessing and seasoning crab roe sauce. The pork is made by removing the tendons from fresh pork and mincing it. The crab roe is fresh and delicious, and the pork is salty and savory. Each bun is juicy and delicious."

Zhao Cheng'an was dumbfounded: "Gone?"

Wang Gensheng nodded.

"Uncle Wang, you spent three days writing this food review?!"

Wang Gensheng was a little embarrassed: "I also want to write more, but... that's all I can do. When I first started working, I didn't know how to write reports. Every time I wrote something dry and didn't have enough words. Maybe that's why I haven't been promoted much."

"I've already revised this seven or eight times; this is the best I can do."

Zhao Cheng'an was completely stunned. He wanted to say something more, but Qin Huai interrupted him:

"Alright, Zhao Cheng'an, you've been reading food reviews for over half an hour. Stop slacking off and come back to make some pastries. It's already 2:30 PM. If you don't make those pre-ordered pastries soon, will you be able to start selling them at 5 PM? Kindergarten and elementary school let out at 5 PM. You don't want the kids to be crying their eyes out in the cafeteria like yesterday because of the delays, do you?" Qin Huai said.

Zhao Cheng'an: ...

The sound of the children crying yesterday echoed in Zhao Cheng'an's mind again.

Well, if circumstances allowed, Zhao Cheng'an would have cried even louder than them. It was only after coming to the Cloud Canteen that Zhao Cheng'an realized how different a community canteen was from a regular white food restaurant.

The Yunzhong Cafeteria experiences morning and evening peak hours. The morning peak is when office workers buy breakfast, and the evening peak is when office workers leave work and children get out of school. While the cafeteria has a very high volume of customers, students and children make up a relatively small percentage, but this doesn't stop it from being a favorite spot for children from several nearby neighborhoods.

Many children rely on the animal-shaped red bean buns sold in the morning and the mung bean cakes and radish cakes sold in the afternoon to get by every day. An Youyou has become the most popular radish cake sister among the children in the Cloud Canteen because of her radish cake.

While many office workers enjoy mung bean cake, radish cake in the afternoon is generally reserved for children. At Yunzhong Canteen, radish cake is practically synonymous with a snack exclusively for kids.

That was then.

An Youyou is no longer the An Youyou of the past. She is now in charge of breakfast at the Cloud Cafeteria. She can no longer dedicate herself to frying radish cakes every afternoon like before. She has to work odd jobs along the Qinhuai River and learn the craft at the same time.

The responsibility of solving the problem of providing children with their own special snacks fell on Zhao Cheng'an.

Zhao Cheng'an's specialty is pastries, many of which are inexpensive, plentiful, and adorable. Radish cakes are pan-fried, while pastries are baked—both cooking methods that children enjoy.

More importantly, not only children love pastries, but adults love them too.

Previously, when An Youyou was in charge of frying radish cakes, every afternoon at 4:30, when the elementary school students in the vicinity got out of school, their parents would give them a few yuan so they could come to the Yunzhong Canteen to buy radish cakes to eat.

Things are different now. Now parents bring their kids to the cafeteria to buy pastries. The kids eat one piece, and the parents eat three. Don't ask, it's just that moms and dads have big appetites.

The children's dismissal time is fixed, but Zhao Chengan's snack-making time is not.

When no one is supervising, especially without Master Zhou acting as a deterrent, Zhao Cheng'an's procrastination becomes extremely severe.

The pastries on Zhao Cheng'an's side hadn't even been put into the oven yet, even though the children were all out of school and eagerly waiting for their snacks in the cafeteria.

Yesterday, Zhao Cheng'an was particularly slow. When parents brought their children to the store, the pastries were expected to take another half hour to be ready. Some parents who were not free had to take their children home early to do their homework and told them to come back later when they had time.

But children can't understand these things. Many of the younger children immediately burst into tears, crying all over the Cloud Cafeteria, making it the kind of carriage that every adult dreads most when rushing to catch the high-speed train.

Qin Huai's words were both a form of moral blackmail and a nuclear weapon of intimidation, scaring Zhao Cheng'an so much that he dared not slack off and hurried back to work, fearing that he would delay again and make the children cry, thus becoming a well-known "teacher who makes children cry" in the Yunzhong Canteen.

Hmm, what a strange nickname.

Zhao Cheng'an went back to make some pastries, while Wang Gensheng was still scratching his head, struggling with his overly brief food review. Gong Liang, who was sitting at a small table drinking tea, saw Wang Gensheng's expression and smiled, explaining on Zhao Cheng'an's behalf: "Accountant Wang, don't be angry about what Xiao Zhao said earlier. That's just how he is, straightforward and outspoken." "I'm not angry," Wang Gensheng said. "What Xiao Zhao said is the truth; I really don't know how to write these things."

“If you can’t write, then don’t write. I never write food reviews,” Ouyang Duntun chimed in, sipping her milk tea.

"Xiao Ou, you...we're different." Wang Gensheng ultimately didn't finish his sentence, continuing to painfully study food reviews.

Qin Huai has been practicing his skills at the Cloud Canteen for a week now, and both new and old customers have been having a great time. The canteen offers a variety of large, filling breakfasts every day, open from morning until evening, with occasional small portions of exquisite pastries.

Originally, everyone was a little sad about Zheng Siyuan's departure, but under the impact of such breakfasts, many office workers suffered from severe amnesia. They forgot that there was a popular Chef Zheng in the Cloud Cafeteria just three to five days after Zheng Siyuan left.

So now the question is, has Qin Huai made any progress in improving his proficiency?
Yes, but not much.

When Qin Huai checked this morning, the dough was still 29 points away from leveling up, which was a very disappointing progress, but Qin Huai wasn't in a hurry.

Because he is currently simultaneously increasing his proficiency and Wang Gensheng's favorability.

It's easy to increase Grandpa Wang's favorability; just give him some snacks.

First, he carefully tried to win over Grandpa Wang's heart before engaging in further communication. Qin Huai didn't intend to raise Wang Gensheng's favorability to a level where he could directly swindle Wang Gensheng out of 100 million yuan.

The main purpose was to build rapport and get Grandpa Wang to open up, ideally revealing some details about the mission while he did so. Since Qin Huai had to cook breakfast in the cafeteria every day and didn't have time for in-depth conversations with Grandpa Wang, the task of this in-depth conversation was assigned to Gong Liang.

Grandpa Wang and Gong Liang hit it off at a tea party at Luo Jun's house a while ago. The tongue-tied Grandpa Wang and the silver-tongued E's beast were a perfect match.

As for how to create an opportunity for Gong Liang to communicate with Grandpa Wang...

Let's take a look at the special snack table for those with connections at the entrance of the Cloud Cafeteria's kitchen.

Previously, Ouyang and Shi Dadan had eaten their way from outside into the kitchen while tasting snacks. A small table was set up for the two of them in the kitchen because Ouyang and Shi Dadan had large appetites, especially Shi Dadan, who could eat continuously while tasting the food.

Instead of eating out, why not sit in the kitchen and eat? It's convenient to eat and give feedback as you go.

Sitting at the small table in the kitchen might not be comfortable. After all, a small table is paired with a small stool, and Ouyang and Shi Dadan are both big guys. They were a little uncomfortable when they first sat on the small stool.

But the experience is different.

Eating in the kitchen signifies that you're a true member of the elite.

Eating your way into the kitchen is a lifelong pursuit for many diners.

Think about it: celebrities like Xu Tuqiang, Grandma Ding, and Grandpa Qian can only sit at table number 9, which is closest to the window, and have to wait patiently for the freshly cooked pastries. But you can sit directly in the kitchen and be the first to eat the freshly cooked pastries.

Eat whichever you want, as much as you want; only what's left after you've chosen will be sent to the window for sale.

Even though the kitchen is relatively stuffy and the dining environment is not good, and the lighting is not as bright as outside due to the angle, this is a privilege only for those with connections.

What does the external environment matter? The real enjoyment comes from having a choice of snacks to eat first.

Previously, only Shi Dadan and Ouyang received this treatment. Of course, Chen Huihong and Luo Jun could have it if they wanted, but neither of them wanted it. If Qin Huai really arranged for Luo Jun to sit on a small stool in the kitchen to eat snacks, Luo Jun's slap would likely come before any verbal abuse.

Now, Qin Huai has added two seats, reserved for Gong Liang and Wang Gensheng.

Wang Gensheng was utterly flattered and completely bewildered. He had always thought he was just an ordinary person with connections, receiving special treatment because he introduced Zheng Da to Qin Huai. He couldn't compare to people like Luo Jun and Chen Huihong who had genuine connections.

When Wang Gensheng went to Luo Jun's house for a tea party last time, he only thought that Qin Huai needed people to taste the food.

This time, it ended up being eaten directly in the kitchen.

Xu Tuqiang and the others were furious when they heard that Wang Gensheng's shortest food review had ended up in the kitchen. Apparently, Xu Tuqiang now studies Wang Gensheng's previous reviews several times a day, completely baffled as to why someone as delicious as Chef Qin could have such poor taste in food reviews, liking this particular style.

Wang Gensheng initially hesitated to refuse, but Qin Huai used the old trick of offering free samples, saying that it was more convenient to eat in the kitchen. He also said that if Grandpa Wang felt the kitchen environment was not good and wanted to eat outside instead, he could understand. After that, Wang Gensheng had no reason to refuse.

Feeling smug and happy, yet also a little embarrassed and as if I were unworthy of eating in the kitchen.

Ever since he started eating in the kitchen, Wang Gensheng has wished he could sit in the kitchen of Yunzhong Canteen for 10 hours a day.

As a retired man, Wang Gensheng doesn't have much to do. His grandchildren don't need him to take care of them, and he doesn't live with his children. His children and grandchildren come to visit him and his wife on weekends.

Because of his limited vocabulary and his recent fondness for reminiscing, Wang Gensheng's wife finds him too talkative and doesn't even want to go home anymore. Now, sitting in the kitchen to eat, with Gong Liang, a talkative man, keeping him company, Wang Gensheng enjoys two pots of tea and several plates of snacks every day, practically living in the kitchen.

Shi Dadan used to sit in the kitchen to eat whenever he had free time. Now that Gong Liang ate with him every day, Shi Dadan, adhering to the principle of helping out as much as he could, also stayed in the kitchen all day to eat with him.

As for Ouyang...

Ouyang has come to terms with it.

Ouyang, who had succeeded in his first business venture, felt that there was nothing special about it. He worked himself to the bone every day shaking milk tea, and his arms got thick from it, but he got nothing but cold money.

Ouyang handed over the beverage recipe to the shop assistant, becoming a hands-off manager, and then spent his days in the kitchen eating snacks and drinking to his heart's content (of course, he couldn't outeat Shi Dadan). Anyone who didn't know better would think that Ouyang was just there to eat with them.

The four-person snack-eating group would happily drink tea, eat snacks, and chat in the corner of the kitchen every day, thoroughly enjoying themselves. When Zhao Cheng'an was slacking off, he would run over to chat with them, and laughter would frequently fill the air, making the elderly men and women who could only sit outside grit their teeth in envy.

Qin Huai felt that these four people had truly fallen in love with sitting in the kitchen, treating it like a teahouse. He didn't understand, but he respected their decision.

Ouyang is a bit odd among this group of spirits.

"Zhao Cheng'an, do you really think Ouyang isn't a spirit?" Qin Huai asked.

"Believe me, Ouyang is definitely not. He's a completely normal guy," Zhao Cheng'an said with absolute certainty. "Don't you think he's way more normal than the rest of us?"

Qin Huai: ...

"Alright then." Qin Huai was reluctantly persuaded.

(End of this chapter)