Food: Senior year internship, you take over the university cafeteria

The one in the lead was a girl dragging a silver suitcase.

Wearing a simple white dress, with fair skin and delicate features, she looked like someone who had stepped out of a traditional Chinese ink painting from Jiangnan.

Behind her followed a middle-aged couple. The man was slightly overweight and had a friendly smile, while the woman was well-maintained and carrying an elegant handbag, looking around at the cafeteria.

"Weiwei, is this the cafeteria at Jinling University?"

The middle-aged woman frowned slightly, her tone carrying an obvious hint of criticism:

"It looks... a bit brighter than your high school. But breakfast is just something to make do with; Mom will take you out for a nice lunch."

The girl called Weiwei, whose full name is Su Weiwei, is a freshman in the College of Veterinary Medicine (commonly known as the veterinary medicine major) this year.

At this moment, she also had a bit of trepidation on her face.

canteen……

These two words made her reflexively recall her senior year of high school, when she went to the neighboring key high school to participate in a competition and was treated to a meal in the cafeteria at noon.

The potatoes in the braised chicken with potatoes looked like they hadn't been peeled, and the seaweed soup had a suspicious layer of oil on it...

She barely managed to hold it in and not vomit on the spot, and from then on, she developed a severe psychological trauma towards "cafeteria food".

Su Weiwei's gaze swept across a row of windows.

Steamed buns, fried dough sticks, tofu pudding—just ordinary stuff.

Her gaze swept over the brightly lit signs and suddenly stopped in the far corner.

There was a small window there, decorated in a style completely different from the greasy stalls around it. It was a clean and bright open kitchen counter with warm lighting, and a young man dressed in a clean chef's uniform was sitting inside.

Above the window, there were no fancy light boxes, only a small blackboard with a line of chalk writing on it:

[Today's offering: Soup dumplings]

Price: 12 yuan/cage (8 birds)

[Limited Time Offer: 6:30 AM - 9:00 AM, while supplies last]

The handwriting is quite neat.

The key point is that on the worktable in front of the young man, there was a bowl of filling and a lump of risen dough.

He kept his head down, his hands moving deftly.

Su Weiwei involuntarily took a few steps closer.

Her family owns several well-known local restaurants in a city in southern Jiangsu. Growing up surrounded by them, she developed a keen eye for cooking, even though she never formally studied it.

She watched as the young man rolled out a round, full-moon-shaped dough with a rolling pin, thicker in the middle and thinner around the edges. He scooped up a spoonful of filling that was translucent and pinkish-red. With nimble fingers, he pinched the dough into fine pleats, rotated it, sealed it, and finally gently pinched the top.

The movements were fluid and graceful, with a strange sense of rhythm.

The neatly shaped steamed buns stood upright in the steamer lined with pine needles, resembling chrysanthemums in posture, with mouths like fish mouths, and a faint golden glow at the top, giving them a somewhat artistic feel.

That technique... it's pretty good.

She seems to be just as good as the master chefs in her kitchen who specialize in making pastries.

No, it's even neater, even... better looking.

"Freshly made?"

Su Weiwei's father, Su Mingyuan, also noticed it, and a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes.

He's a gourmet and an expert; it's rare to find a canteen window that's willing to make and steam xiaolongbao (soup dumplings) to order.

Most of them are pre-made and frozen, then simply steamed to make do.

"Dad, Mom, shall we eat this?"

Su Weiwei pointed to window number 07, her initial resistance to the cafeteria replaced by curiosity.

"Xiao long bao? Twelve yuan a basket?"

Su's mother glanced at the price, then frowned again. "The school cafeteria sells it for this price... Weiwei, should we just forget about it?"

"Since we're already here, let's have a taste."

Su Mingyuan became interested and took the lead.

Wang Sheng had noticed the family of three long ago, especially the girl who looked like a delicate white flower, who stared at his technique of wrapping steamed buns for a long time.

Seeing someone approaching, he quickly stood up, flashing a practiced, as genuine a smile as possible.

"Hey classmate, uncles and aunties, wanna eat some xiaolongbao? They're freshly made and steamed, guaranteed fresh."

Su Mingyuan didn't speak. His gaze lingered for a moment on the bowl of filling and the jar of crab roe powder next to it, then he looked at the bit of flour still clinging to Wang Sheng's hands and nodded.

"Three baskets, please. Let's eat here."

"Alright! Three baskets of soup dumplings! Coming right away!"

Wang Sheng's spirits lifted, and his voice became several decibels louder. The first order since opening!

It's a big order!

He deftly stacked the three baskets of pre-wrapped xiaolongbao (soup dumplings) into the steamer and set the timer.

While the food was steaming, he quickly wrapped up new ones and added them to the serving basket next to him.

We must give them the best experience!

Almost at the same moment Su Mingyuan said "Three cages, please"—

【Ding! 】

[Valid order detected! The main quest for "Gourmet King" has officially begun!]

Main Quest: Food King (Stage 1)

[Task Description: True heroes begin in humble beginnings. Let the reputation of "Window 07 of the First Canteen at Jinling University" spread from this small campus!]

[Beginner Task: First Steps]

[Goal: To make your store known and recognized by at least 100 people (1/100)]

[Reward: 1 chance to win a random breakfast skill]

[Advanced Goal: Collect 100 genuine positive reviews (0/100)]

[Reward: Special Skill - Eye of Ingredients (Beginner)]

[Hidden Objective: Collect 1000 genuine positive reviews]

[Reward: 1 chance to win a random breakfast/snack skill]

[Time Limit: None (but progress in Phase 1 will affect the unlocking of subsequent missions)]

Wang Sheng's mind went blank for a moment, and he almost dropped the rolling pin.

It's here! The main quest!

And this beginner task... 100 people know about it? 100 positive reviews? 1000 positive reviews and there's a hidden reward?

His heart raced, and his gaze involuntarily drifted toward Su Weiwei and her family who were waiting.

This first wave of positive word-of-mouth depends on you guys!

Steam over high heat for four minutes, then turn off the heat and let it sit for one minute.

When the clock struck the last second, Wang Sheng decisively turned off the heat and opened the steamer.

"laugh--"

An even more surging white steam, carrying an amazing aroma, burst forth!

The aroma was complex and layered:

The pure aroma of wheat after being steamed just right, the rich meaty flavor of pork filling released after being heated, the sweet and salty base flavor of soy sauce and brown sugar, the irresistible rich aroma of pork skin jelly after melting, and finally, that last little bit, like the finishing touch, the extremely precious and tempting seafood aroma of crab roe!

The aroma was like a tangible hook, instantly grabbing the olfactory nerves of everyone in the entire cafeteria hall!

The third-year student next door, who was munching on a meat bun, paused, looked up blankly, and sniffed hard:

"What's that smell? It smells so good!"

A few girls queuing to buy soy milk whispered to each other:

"It smells so good... Is it wafting from over there?"

"Is it xiaolongbao? It smells so good!"

Even the elderly woman behind the food serving window couldn't help but peek out and look towards window number 07.

The Su Weiwei family, who were standing closest to the window, felt the impact most directly and strongly.

The critical look on Su's mother's face froze instantly, turning into surprise.

Su Mingyuan narrowed his eyes, and his Adam's apple bobbed almost imperceptibly.

Su Weiwei's eyes widened slightly. Her family owned a restaurant, so she was extremely sensitive to aromas.

The aroma... rich yet not cloying, sweet and fresh, reaching deep into the nasal cavity, stimulating the most primal appetite.

Just smelling it makes your mouth water.