Wasteland Development Diary.

Chapter 171 Secret Recipe (Ask for monthly tickets at the beginning of the month!)

Qin Shu, like most street children, didn't know why he was abandoned, nor who his parents were. But he was lucky enough to be abandoned outside a restaurant in Shagang City.

The weather was neither too cold nor too hot, so he didn't get sick, and no wild dogs took him away. He also met Lao Mo who adopted him.

When Qin Shu was able to remember, Lao Mo was already very old.

He didn't know how old Lao Mo was, maybe in his 40s or 50s, or maybe in his 60s or 70s. But Lao Mo never talked about this topic.

When asked about this, Lao Mo always said, "I'm only 30, I still have strength, I just look older because I work so hard."

Qin Shu felt that Lao Mo was definitely more than 30 years old.

Because when he moved tables and goods, he was always shaking and looked very difficult. Lao Mo would pant and cough when doing heavy work, and he would have backaches for several days afterwards.

Lao Mo works at the "Vanilla Restaurant", specializing in dealing with all kinds of garbage and cleaning, wiping tables, mopping the floor, and cleaning the kitchen. It is a very hard job.

But Lao Mo likes doing this very much.

The advantage of working in a restaurant is that you can eat leftovers.

According to restaurant rules, the leftovers that guests don’t want will be taken back to the kitchen and shared by everyone.

Qin Shu grew up eating leftovers from the Vanilla Restaurant.

What he would eat every day was unpredictable for him.

If you are unlucky, you can only drink soup. If you are luckier, you can eat beans and mushrooms. If you are extremely lucky, you can not only gnaw on bones with meat tendons, but also various preserved fruits.

Compared with other homeless people on the streets, he was very lucky because Lao Mo rarely let him go hungry.

Lao Mo’s surname is Qin, so Qin Shu’s surname is also Qin.

He said, "I had a son named Qin Shu. Really, he was about the same age as when I picked you up. But he was in poor health and kept coughing. But he was very well behaved. He didn't cry at such a young age and smiled when he saw us. He was a very good child."

"The doctor said he had a lung disease and that it could be cured with medicine, but it would cost 10 mushrooms. My wife and I couldn't afford 10 mushrooms, so our child died and my wife went crazy and fell to her death on the mountain."

"Since then, my body has broken down, I have lost my strength, my back is hunched, and I get tired easily. Fortunately, I found a job in a restaurant, and that's how I survive. Sometimes I don't know why I'm still alive, but I have to live."

Qin Shu felt sorry for him, so he assured him, "Dad, I won't die. Don't worry, I will take care of you."

Lao Mo just smiled, revealing his sparse, black teeth and deep wrinkles on his face.

"Don't worry about me, Qin Shu, you have to live well."

When Qin Shu was 13, Lao Mo was already very unskilled at work and his body gave off an unpleasant rotten smell, so the restaurant fired him and asked Qin Shu to take over the job.

Lao Mo's cough became more and more severe, and he coughed up a lot of blood.

Qin Shu was very uneasy.

Can he earn enough 10 mushrooms to save Lao Mo at the critical moment?
Qin Shu went to ask a doctor in Shagang City and learned that in Lao Mo's case, 10 mushrooms were only the cost of the first stage of treatment. There might be recurrences and complications in the future, and the cost of treatment would definitely be higher than this.

But the restaurant's income is very meager, and the only benefit is that you can eat leftovers for free. Even so, many people still want to come.

Outside, the income is high as a farmer or a craftsman, and if he lives frugally for a few years, he might be able to save enough. But he couldn't go to work in those places because he didn't have the relevant skills and experience.

Just when Qin Shu was feeling anxious and helpless, he heard that the wasteland development company in Changgu Town was recruiting workers, with a salary of up to 6000 mushrooms per month. If he worked there, he could save enough money to treat his father's illness.

There is also a hospital over there, which is open to employees free of charge for one year.

No charge for medical treatment!
Qin Shu then carried Lao Mo on his back and went to the Emerald City with Cao Dayuan who came to recruit people.

Emerald City provides very good houses for employees to live in for free. They don’t have to buy firewood for heating, so the house remains warm for a long time, which is a huge help for Lao Mo, who is weak and afraid of the cold.

While Qin Shu was working on the Guangxu Dam, he took Lao Mo to Maria Hospital for treatment.

Dr. Da Vinci gave Lao Mo a full physical examination and confirmed his condition.

"The patient has a hereditary lung disease. Based on imaging studies, it has been determined that he is now a critically ill patient and needs to be hospitalized immediately for treatment intervention."

"Considering that the patient's bone age has reached 65 years old, his body temperature and blood pressure are lower than normal, and external oxygen supply is required to maintain blood oxygen saturation."

"I will order a batch of targeted drugs to improve the patient's condition."

Qin Shu was absent-minded for several days.

The situation was more serious than he thought.

He went to see Lao Mo in the hospital ward every day. Although Lao Mo had a bottle of medicine hanging from his neck and a mask on his face, he was no longer so haggard and his complexion was gradually becoming rosy.

After a month of treatment, Dr. Da Vinci told Qin Shu: "The patient's body temperature, heart rate, respiratory rate and other indicators have returned to normal range and he can be discharged from the hospital."

"After you go back, make sure to rest and avoid catching a cold or getting tired."

“Remember to have regular check-ups.”

Qin Shu just felt it was a little unbelievable.

Lao Mo had indeed recovered. He coughed less frequently and looked visibly more energetic.

Since he couldn't work hard, Lao Mo could only clean up the house and go out for a walk. Later, he saw a vendor outside cooking chicken head soup, so he started to try making it.

After working in restaurants for many years, he also learned some kitchen skills.

The soup cooked by Lao Mo is no worse than the one cooked outside.

Seeing that he had recovered, Qin Shu calmed down and went to work on the dam every day.

One day, Lao Mo suddenly said, "Isn't the chairman calling for making some affordable food to sell to other places? I can change this soup and maybe it can be sold so that everyone can afford it and eat it."

His method is also simple, which is to dry chicken bones, beans, and mushrooms, grind them into powder, add a little salt, and then add hot water to make a bowl of soup. When going out, he wraps it in cloth and can eat it at any time.

Qin Shu tasted it and found it bland.

"I think it would be more tasty if the mushrooms were cut into small pieces and the beans were preserved."

After repeated comparisons and attempts, the two worked out a recipe that included sun-dried young cattails, dried seaweed, small dried mushrooms, and beans. Add a little salt and you have a bowl of very delicious soup.

If you cook two chicken bones in it, the taste will be even better.

Qin Shu was still not satisfied.

He grew up eating all kinds of leftovers from restaurants and knew that a dish must have core ingredients. Even the same chicken head soup would taste different in different restaurants.

For example, the vanilla restaurant’s signature dish is the vanilla chicken. Vanilla is actually cattail and another kind of wild grass with a fresh fragrance.

But only the boss knows whether the wild grass is soaked in anything and why it tastes much stronger than in the wild. This is also a unique recipe and the foundation of the restaurant.

Qin Shu felt that he must have a unique recipe to prevent it from being stolen by those cunning businessmen.

He and Lao Mo worked separately and tried many edible ingredients, but most of them had their own problems.

Like shellfish, they can add delicious flavor, but they need to be alive, which is inconvenient to carry and is expensive.

Finally, Lao Mo found a secret ingredient. When Qin Shu saw it, he couldn't believe it.

"Eat this? You're crazy. It will kill people."

"It's edible. You have to trust your father."

Lao Mo pointed at the thin dry whiskers wrapped in linen and said, "I saw that gerbils like to eat this very much. If they can eat it, so can we. Don't forget the skills I taught you."

“After having this, the taste will be completely different.”

He added the new ingredients into the boiling soup, covered it with a lid, and simmered it for a while before removing the lid. The aroma had a hint of medicinal bitterness.

Qin Shu scooped some soup with a wooden spoon, blew on it and then took a sip.

He took a deep breath and opened his eyes wide.

This soup actually has a strange sweet taste. As soon as it enters the stomach, the body becomes hot and warm, and you feel full and strong in a short time.

Lao Mo laughed and said, "How's it going? Not bad, right?"

Qin Shu also admitted: "This is the best soup I have ever tasted."

There is just one problem.

The secret ingredient added to this soup is the exploding mushroom.

To be precise, it is the mycelium of the explosive mushroom.

Lao Mo said that when he was looking for food, he saw some gerbils gnawing on the gray-brown, linear whiskers that had fallen to the ground outside the mushroom forest.

He found that these whiskers were dropped from the truck that was transporting mushrooms, and judging from their color and shape, they were from the exploding mushroom. Cao Dayuan has popularized various mushrooms for local residents to prevent them from touching these dangerous mushroom species.

For safety reasons, Lao Mo first collected some dried mycelium and then placed it on the trees in the oasis. Sure enough, it attracted birds to peck at the food, and they had no problems after eating it.

The mycelium that falls off naturally from the explosive mushroom is very special. It has a bitter smell but tastes sweet.

So he added it to the soup and found that it unexpectedly went well with it and had a wonderful flavor.

This special vegetable soup is not only delicious, but also can quickly warm the body and restore strength. It is very practical for people who work.

Lao Mo invited Cao Dayuan, who was the person the father and son trusted the most.

After tasting the secret hot soup, Cao Dayuan looked incredulous: "This soup is really good. What's its name?"

Lao Mo and Qin Shu smiled at each other.

"Emerald Soup."

This is the formula he figured out in Emerald City. Lao Mo wants to give it to the Wasteland Development Company to thank the company for giving Qin Shu a well-paid job and curing his serious illness.

Cao Dayuan shook his head and said, "No, the chairman has told me that what you invented is yours, and the company can only operate it. I still need to ask the chairman for instructions on how to distribute the profits."

"But I think that as long as you have the formula and are not afraid of being copied and imitated, you can try to sell it to the public. Now the company's trade is not only spread across several surrounding cities, but can also be delivered to the southern hub port of Shanhukou through the express delivery center. As long as it is a good product, it will definitely sell well in Shanhukou."

Lao Mo said, "Then let's try it first."

However, he repeatedly emphasized that this jade soup was invented by Qin Shu and he was just an assistant.

Qin Shu knew that his father was doing this for his own good.

"I'll go find Qian Su first and ask her courier to help deliver it to Coral Mouth, and then go to the Mechanical and Electrical City over there to evaluate the products. This is the fastest way."

Cao Dayuan went there in a hurry.

What the father and son didn't expect was that Emerald City received extremely high praise in Coral Mouth and was also very popular in the Sand Port area, with buyers coming in an endless stream. Many merchants offered high prices to buy the formula and swarmed around them like flies every day.

Qin Shu was so miserable that he had to go home and hide after work every day.

Cao Dayuan came again, but brought someone he had never expected.

The man was a young man with black hair and eyes, wearing a simple chain-link jacket and a smile on his face.

He said: "You have done a great thing, it is really amazing."

"Chairman, why are you here..."

Qin Shu was a little at a loss for a moment.

Zhou Yi joked: "Why, you don't welcome me?"

"Welcome, of course!"

Qin Shu relaxed a little.

The chairman nodded and said, "I'll get straight to the point. The Jade Soup you invented has received extremely high praise in Shanhukou, reaching Grade A. They want to cooperate with us to promote this product to various cities, but it has not yet been determined whether to cooperate. Your opinion is crucial."

"...Chairman, we'll do whatever you say." Qin Shu felt a little embarrassed.

"I think we can cooperate, it will benefit everyone. But this is your recipe, I will follow the standards of the Holy Mountain, 70 years of patent rights share of 5%... In other words, in these 70 years, 5% of the revenue generated by the company's operation of Jade Soup sales will belong to you, what do you think?"

"Ok."

Qin Shu nodded hurriedly.

The other party then said: "You can propose any conditions you want."

Qin Shu took a deep breath and said, "Well, I don't know if I need to pay for medical treatment in the future... This money is enough for my father to see a doctor. He is old, and although he has been cured, he still coughs and his condition is getting worse. Now he has gone to the hospital for a follow-up visit, and he should stay for two days for observation before coming back."

Zhou Yi was stunned for a moment, then smiled: "Don't worry, the company is currently developing well, and Maria Hospital will be open to employees for free for a long time. There is no need to worry about this."

Qin Shu breathed a sigh of relief.

"Actually, my dad...is the one who invented the Jade Soup."

He finally told the truth.

Because Qin Shu believed that since his father had done such a thing, he should be praised and respected by everyone.

Zhou Yi was slightly surprised after hearing this: "So that's what's going on."

He thought for a moment.

"Qin Shu, I asked Da Vinci, there is only one way to completely eradicate your father's lung disease."

"We are considering performing a strengthening surgery on him, using light printing to strengthen his lungs. This surgery is now very mature and has a high success rate. We will invite doctors from Recursive City to work with us and choose strengthening surgery or strengthening organ transplantation based on the actual situation."

"This will solve the problem at its root and completely cure your father's previous lung disease."

Qin Shu was stunned for a moment, then he was overjoyed: "Enhancer... That's great, that's great, Dad is saved! Thank you, thank you!"

(End of this chapter)