Crossing Over to Yamada Love

Mo Lan looked at him and found him adorable, her eyes sparkling with laughter, but she said with a serious face, "I only sell mountain vegetables, not smiles."

"You..." The chubby boy was speechless after hearing her words, while the other two young masters looked at Mo Lan with a mixture of amusement and surprise.

Just as Mo Lan was about to say something, a figure flashed at the door. Liu Shi and Qiu Dajun came in, probably because they saw that she had been in for so long and hadn't come out, so they came in to check on the situation.

"Lanlan, how is it? If no one buys it, let's leave. Don't disturb the young master's meal." Madam Liu didn't get too close and called out softly to Molan.

“Auntie, it’s alright. This young master has already bought our mountain vegetables. I want to wait until they taste them before leaving. If they don’t like them, they can ask me for a refund, right? Auntie, you and Dajun should go buy rice, noodles, meat, and other necessities first. Buy a lot and send it to Grandpa Liu. Come back here to pick me up after you’ve bought everything. By then, these young masters should have finished tasting the food. We can go back together.” Mo Lan walked up to Liu Shi and explained the situation to her, telling her and Qiu Dajun to go buy the necessities first.

"This? Are you sure you can manage here all by yourself?" Liu asked, looking at Mo Lan with some concern.

"It's alright, these gentlemen are distinguished guests, and the restaurant is a long-established brand, so please don't worry, Auntie." Mo Lan nodded repeatedly, looking every bit the little adult.

"Alright then, Dajun and I will go buy things first. You wait here and don't wander off. We'll come pick you up later." Liu thought of Molan's sensible nature, nodded reluctantly, told the waiter and the shopkeeper, and then left with Qiu Dajun.

"So your name is Lanlan. Haha, see, you didn't tell me before, but now I know." The chubby boy, who had become well-behaved since Liu came in, returned to his normal self after she left, smiling smugly at Mo Lan.

"Yes, yes, you're really amazing. I admire you for knowing all this. This is bracken fern. Let the chef here stir-fry a plate for you to try. It's delicious." Mo Lan replied while taking a handful of fresh bracken fern from the basket and handing it to the chubby boy.

"Waiter, take this down and have the head chef stir-fry it for us to eat," the chubby boy shouted at the waiter.

"Alright, sir, please wait a moment. I'll have Chef Zhu stir-fry it for you right away." The waiter ran over with a smile, took the bracken, and went to the back. A middle-aged man at another table stood up and followed the waiter into the backyard.

"What's your surname? Is your family very poor? Why are you selling this?" The chubby boy was curious about Mo Lan and kept asking her questions.

Mo Lan smiled as she responded to the chubby boy's words, but out of the corner of her eye, she glanced at the other two young masters. From the moment the chubby boy started talking to her, these two hadn't uttered a single word, ignoring the boy's attempts to stop him. Their expressions were inscrutable.

"Young master, your dish is here. Chef Zhu washed it several times and stir-fried it with shredded pork. Please try it and see how it tastes." The waiter placed the stir-fried bracken with shredded pork on the table with a tray. The middle-aged man who had followed him returned to his table and nodded slightly to the table.

Mo Lan looked up and saw that the ferns were dark green and the shredded meat was dark brown. It looked quite appetizing and smelled fragrant. But what about the taste?

"Hey, it smells pretty good, Fifth Brother, Seventh Brother, let's try some." The chubby boy called to the two of them and reached out with his chopsticks to pick some up.

The other two men didn't touch their chopsticks. The man in blue glanced at Mo Lan and called out, "Tenth Brother..."

Before he could finish speaking, the chubby boy spat out the bracken in his mouth, picked up the tea in front of him, took a few sips, and said, "So bitter, so bitter, what is this? It tastes awful."

Mo Lan's eyes flashed with amusement. It seemed that this master chef had made the same mistake as her. He hadn't blanched the bracken with boiling water before stir-frying it. No wonder it was bitter. It was a pity that the other two didn't get to taste such a delicious flavor. Otherwise, she would have liked to see if those two handsome men would change their expressions.

Mo Lan, who was inwardly criticizing the dish, felt two sharp gazes fall upon her. She quickly suppressed the smile in her eyes, frowned, and asked, "Is it bitter? No, Lan Lan ate it last night, and it was delicious. How could it be bitter?" After saying that, she carefully examined the dish, as if she couldn't understand why it was bitter.

"It's really bitter. You should try it if you don't believe me. I'm not lying to you." The chubby boy complained to Mo Lan with a bitter face.

Mo Lan looked at it for a long time, then suddenly clapped her hands. Su Zhan frowned and said, "I know! It must be that the head chef who made it wrong. These mountain vegetables need to be cooked in a special way to taste good. They don't know how. How about this, since the young master bought my mountain vegetables, I'll go and cook them for you gentlemen myself, okay?"

"You? You're so young, how can you cook? Can you even reach the stove?" The chubby boy looked at Mo Lan in disbelief, and even the other two young masters glanced at her curiously.

“Children of poor families learn to be independent early. I may be young, but that doesn’t mean I can’t do it. As long as you tell the manager to have the chefs listen to me, I’m sure I can make something delicious for you to try.” Mo Lan’s eyes dimmed at first, but then she raised her head with confidence and said to the chubby boy.

**********************

Fifteen minutes later, in the kitchen at the back.

"Excuse me, could you please cut this for me as well?" Mo Lan pointed to the uncut wild vegetables on the cutting board.

"I want the sugar finely chopped and rolled into dough," Mo Lan said, pointing to the large chunks of sugar and asking another chef for help.

"Just stir the vegetables a few times, don't overcook them," Mo Lan instructed, looking at the blanched wild vegetables in the pot.

"I want chili oil. Heat the oil until it's hot, then put it in this big bowl with the chili pepper pieces," Mo Lan said, pointing to the last young chef.

The head chef and three junior chefs were incredibly frustrated. They were supposed to be cooking or chopping vegetables, but today they were being bossed around by a little girl. They were tempted to quit, but they couldn't afford to offend those three gentlemen outside.

After much effort, the group finished preparing everything according to Mo Lan's instructions. Looking at the blanched and chopped mountain vegetables placed in the bowl, Mo Lan began adding seasonings. Salt was essential; since there was no thirteen-spice powder or MSG, these were unnecessary. She had previously added star anise and Sichuan peppercorns to the oil in which the chili peppers were cooked, making a chili-flavored oil, which would be very fragrant if sprinkled on top. She also added a tiny bit of sugar to enhance the flavor. After stirring well, the enticing aroma immediately filled their nostrils.

"Alright, you guys help me take this out. Also, get me a bowl and a pair of chopsticks." Mo Lan placed the dishes on a tray and instructed them to come out with her.

The dishes were placed on the table: a plate of cold-dressed ham with cucumber, a plate of stir-fried shredded pork with bracken, and an empty bowl and chopsticks.

"Hey, this looks pretty good. Did you make it?" The chubby boy looked at the two simple dishes and asked Mo Lan with a puzzled expression.

Mo Lan chuckled, "They helped me make it, I guarantee it will taste different from last time, you guys should try it."

The chubby boy looked at the two dishes, hesitated, and didn't dare to pick up his chopsticks. The dish of stir-fried ferns and shredded pork looked no different from last time, and he was afraid it would still be bitter. He dared not eat the other dish either; it looked like grass, and he seriously doubted whether it would pierce his throat.

Seeing the chubby boy's dilemma, and knowing that the other two young masters would definitely not touch their chopsticks, Mo Lan took the empty bowl and plate, picked up some food with her chopsticks and put it in the bowl, saying, "I brought these mountain vegetables. I'll taste them for you first. I hope you three young masters won't mind."

After saying that, she picked up a piece of cucumber from the bowl and took a bite. Mmm, it was fragrant and refreshing, tender and delicious. It was really good. Then she ate a piece of hairy leg. It was so crisp and tender. Then she picked up a piece of bracken. There was no bitterness at all. Only the light fragrance of the wild vegetables filled her mouth.

She finished eating everything she had put in her bowl. Feeling some grease around her mouth, and not having a handkerchief or the ability to wipe it with her sleeve, she instinctively stuck out her little tongue and licked her lips. But she only went halfway before realizing that this action was unacceptable in ancient times, so she quickly withdrew her tongue and closed her mouth.

"Haha." Her actions made the chubby boy laugh uncontrollably, and even the other two young masters had smiles in their eyes.

Mo Lan was a little annoyed. She glared at the chubby boy and asked, "Are you going to eat or not?"

"Eat, I'll eat. Seeing how much you're enjoying yours, I'll have a taste too." The chubby boy chuckled as he picked up a piece of wild vegetable with his chopsticks and put it in his mouth.

"Hey, it tastes pretty good, just a little spicy, but it's very refreshing." The chubby boy, who was holding the bag to try it, took a bite and was quite surprised. He hadn't expected that these unassuming wild herbs would taste so good.

He picked up another piece of bracken with his chopsticks, frowned at first, and then said excitedly, "It's not bitter anymore, it's not bitter anymore, and it's quite crunchy. Hmm, not bad, Fifth Brother and Seventh Brother, you should try it too. Lanlan has already tried it, so it's definitely not poisonous. You should eat it quickly."

The fifth and seventh brothers he mentioned responded with a smile, but they gave Mo Lan a deep look. This little girl actually tasted the food first. Did she sense their doubts?

Both of them symbolically picked up a piece with their chopsticks and put it in their mouths. It was not bad; it had a light fragrance and a refreshing taste. It was quite rare to eat such a fragrant and refreshing dish at this time of year.

This little girl is not to be underestimated. She entered the door unfazed by the waiter's attempts to shoo her away, her eyes showing no anger or humiliation. A smile was enough to catch her younger brother's attention, and she successfully turned around to sell her wild vegetables. She was neither arrogant nor servile towards them, and she handled Lao Shi with ease. She told the cook to stir-fry the bracken first, knowing it would be bitter, so she could then demonstrate her skill and sincerity by preparing it herself. This woman is definitely not simple. Most peasant girls would either be speechless with fear or fawn over them, unlike her, who is so relaxed and natural. The two young masters were secretly pondering this.

"Hmm, the taste is alright," the young man in blue said. His voice was clear and melodious, and it sounded wonderful to the ear. The only drawback was that it was a bit cold.

"Young lady, your cooking skills are quite good. You can make such delicious mountain vegetables. I wonder if you can cook anything else?" The young man in purple spoke up. His voice was as pleasant as a spring breeze, much more comfortable and approachable than the young man in green.

"Of course I can! I can cook a lot of wild vegetables too. There are so many wild vegetables that I can't bring them all. This is just a little bit. I'm glad you like it, young master." Mo Lan smiled gently and said without any modesty.

"Oh? We bought your wild vegetables. How about you tell us how to cook them?" The young man in purple looked her over with interest and asked.