The first thing I did was to find out

Chapter 534 The best desserts are of course eaten with the closest people.
Zhao Cheng'an finished the fermented rice bun in his hand in two or three bites, and felt that he could have eight more if he wanted more.

Zhao Cheng'an's gaze fell on the steaming hot fermented rice buns in the steamer. He smacked his lips, his eyes filled with longing, and his hands were itching to grab them, but he didn't reach out and take them directly.

In the past, Zhao Cheng'an would have definitely taken matters into his own hands and been self-sufficient. What was his relationship with Qin Huai? They were close brothers who had seen art exhibitions together, chatted about gossip at Zhiweiju, and dined at Fenyuan. Qin Huai had even seen him before.

We're all buddies, what's wrong with eating a few steamed buns from one of our brothers? Zhao Cheng'an not only took them, but also packed a bag to take back for dinner.

It's different now.

Now Zhao Cheng'an felt that he should call Qin Huai "Master Qin" and be more careful when speaking to Master Qin. He couldn't be as unrestrained as before. He had to use his brain and pay attention to what to say in what situation, what Master Qin liked to hear, and what Master Qin wanted to do.

Zhao Cheng'an stated that his many years as an apprentice were not for nothing, and that he still possessed the basic qualities of an apprentice to the number one person in the Bai family.

Zhao Cheng'an looked at Qin Huai and found that Qin Huai was still staring at the steamed buns in the steamer and showed no intention of eating them.

Zhao Cheng'an tried to speculate.

I can't figure it out.

Zhao Cheng'an attempted to analyze it.

Unable to analyze.

Zhao Cheng'an thought for a moment, then, as if he had made up his mind, gritted his teeth and said, "Qin Huai, why don't you stuff another steamed bun into my mouth? I can let you stuff a few more in."

Qin Huai: ...?
Whenever Qin Huai felt that something might be wrong with his mind, someone would jump out and tell him that it was nothing serious.

"Eat if you want, there are two more batches that will be ready to steam soon," Qin Huai said.

Zhao Cheng'an then felt relieved and began to eat heartily, one in his left hand, one in his right hand, and one in his mouth, eating with great gusto.

Qin Huai quickly picked out the steamed buns from the steamer and distributed them one by one. Now, each of the five people at the small table received three buns. Despite Ouyang's disdainful look, Qin Huai insisted on giving Ouyang only three buns.

Immediately afterwards, Qin Huai distributed fermented rice buns to the elderly people sitting outside.

Before the distribution, Qin Huai made it very clear that this batch of steamed buns would be free, as they were new premium fermented rice steamed buns, and the price had not yet been set. The only requirement was that each person needed to submit a food review.

The elderly folks all said it was no problem. At their age, they diligently read food reviews, subscribed to various food and travel magazines, and single-handedly increased the stock of related magazines at the newsstands near Yunzhong Community. They honed their writing skills, all for this moment.

It's just food reviews, right? Regardless of what these elderly folks did before, they're now professional food review writers!
The ordinary elderly people were given one steamed bun each, Xu Tuqiang and Grandma Ding were given three steamed buns each, and Grandpa Qian and a few others who looked familiar to Qin Huai were given two steamed buns each. The first batch of steamed buns was quickly distributed.

Xu Tuqiang looked at the three steamed buns on his plate, straightening his back. As soon as Qin Huai left, he boasted to Grandpa Qian, "Look, you said Master Zhou's luck-changing talisman was useless? The reason I have three steamed buns is because..."

"Because you write good food reviews." Grandpa Qian looked at Xu Tuqiang speechlessly. "Xu Tuqiang, are you at the age where you're easily scammed? Why is your mind full of feudal superstitions now? You can't wait to praise your Master Zhou to everyone you meet, you didn't even spare Boss Gong, a friend of Chef Qin."

"If Boss Gong gets scammed out of a hundred or two hundred thousand yuan because of you, be careful that Yunzhong Canteen puts up a picture of you at the entrance and says that this person and the swindler are not allowed to enter."

Xu Tuqiang was so angry that he couldn't say a word for a long time. He decided to take a bite of his steamed bun to calm down and argue with the man surnamed Qian later.

Earlier, Xu Tuqiang took a big bite of a steamed bun, still angry from a failed argument. But the moment the bun entered his mouth, the anger vanished, replaced by peace, happiness, contentment, and joy.

Xu Tuqiang radiates peace and love.

After taking a bite of the steamed bun, Xu Tuqiang exclaimed with tears in his eyes, "Master Qin actually gave me three steamed buns, but I haven't submitted a food review to Master Qin for three days. I'm so ashamed!"

Because he wasn't hungry, Grandpa Qian wasn't in a hurry to eat the steamed bun: ?

It is almost certain that Wang Gensheng's Alzheimer's disease was a misdiagnosis, but Xu Tuqiang's Alzheimer's disease seems to be real.

"Old Ding, what do you think of Xu Tuqiang's condition..." Grandpa Qian turned his head to discuss Xu Tuqiang's condition with Grandma Ding, only to find that Grandma Ding wasn't listening to him at all; she was completely absorbed in the world of fermented rice and steamed buns.

Grandpa Qian: ?

What's going on with these two?
Grandpa Qian looked back at the others and found that their expressions and states while eating steamed buns were all similar. If Grandpa Qian hadn't been confident in Qin Huai's character, he would have really suspected that Qin Huai had added something to the steamed buns.

Grandpa Qian cautiously took a small bite of the fermented rice bun.

Grandpa Qian instantly forgot about Xu Tuqiang's illness and joined the group, immersing himself in the world of fermented rice and steamed buns.

Oh, this world is so wonderful, everywhere you look there are steamed buns with the aroma of fermented rice wine, full of sweet fragrance.

The guests at the Cloud Canteen were all immersed in the wonderful aroma of the fermented rice steamed buns. The air was filled with the fragrance of the steamed buns, and everyone's mouth was filled with the delicious taste of the buns.

So what are the creators of this wonderful creation doing?

Qin Huai is making pastries.

Almost everyone in the Cloud Canteen got to eat the fermented rice buns. Those who arrived late after hearing the news and missed out sat in the hall, staring longingly at the window, waiting to get their turn.

Except for Qinhuai.

Qin Huai didn't eat a single bite of the fermented rice bun from beginning to end.

"Qin Huai, why aren't you eating?" Zhao Cheng'an had just finished eating five steamed buns in one go, and was so full that he kept burping. He didn't dare to drink water, afraid that a cup of water would make the steamed buns in his stomach bloat and make him vomit them up. He noticed that Qin Huai hadn't eaten a single steamed bun and asked.

"I had a super luxurious pork trotter rice for lunch, but I can't finish it," Qin Huai said.

Zhao Cheng'an: "...You've already made S-grade fermented rice buns, and you still have the mood to eat braised pork trotters?"

Qin Huai looked completely innocent: "When I was eating braised pork trotters, I didn't know I could make S-grade fermented rice buns. I thought I was at most an A+."

"So what are you going to do now?"

“Four Happiness Dumplings,” Qin Huai said. “Of all the recipes I’ve come up with so far, Sister Hong’s elm bark recipe isn’t very useful. I’ve already made a breakthrough with fermented rice buns, but locust flower buns… I don’t have any locust honey right now, so I have to wait for Grandma Ding to get me some.”

"I can make longevity noodles, but I'm not very good at making chicken broth, and I don't have time to make chicken broth right now, so I'll pass."

"The essence of tangerine peel tea is tangerine peel, white fungus and lotus seed soup. To cook it to A+ grade, I think you need at least master-level skill, and you don't need to try it."

"I have made apple pasta to an A+ grade, but I need Master Huang to help me. I feel like I could never make an A+ grade on my own."

"Not to mention stewed pigeon with gastrodia elata, it's a classic hot-dish dish."

"Crab roe shumai needs to be made with fresh crab roe, but we don't have any crabs in the shop right now, so we can't get the roe. We'll have to wait a couple of days. The three-ingredient buns are already steaming in the steamer, and we'll see the quality soon. Qu Jing's rice cake soup and glutinous rice cakes don't have any ingredients right now. I used up all the rice cakes this morning."

"Stir-fried cabbage with pork is a hot dish, and I can't make the flower-shaped palace lantern buns. I can make vegetable and pork buns, but they're a bit too simple, and the recipe isn't very good, just like your potato dumplings. I plan to make them last."

"Pork and crab roe buns are definitely possible; I made a lot of crab roe sauce recently. Lotus root starch balls are also an option, but I don't know if upgrading the dough to Master level will affect the lotus root starch balls. Come to think of it, it seems like I haven't made lotus root starch balls in a while; I would have almost forgotten about this dessert if I hadn't just looked at the recipe again."

Qin Huai started counting on his fingers as he spoke: "I'm making Four Happiness Tangyuan now, and later I'll make rice cakes, yam cakes, vegetable and meat buns, crab roe and pork buns, lotus root starch balls, coconut mooncakes, coconut milk cakes, 'Fanpo' cakes, potato dumplings, and potato buns."

"Oh dear, I can't talk to you anymore. There are too many desserts to make, and some of them have to be done on time. Otherwise, I won't be able to finish making them by the time Luo Luo gets home from school."

Zhao Cheng'an: ? ? ? Why wait for Luo Luo to come home from school? What role did Qin Luo play in these snacks?
Zhao Cheng'an didn't ask the question aloud, and Qin Huai didn't answer him either. She just kept making pastries, making them but not eating them.

Qin Huai spent the entire afternoon making snacks, continuing until evening business hours.

Many elderly people ate until they couldn't eat anymore, so they could only choose what to eat.

Even when preparing special meals for the elderly at Yunzhong Canteen, Qin Huai still remembered the seniors who had supported the canteen and his business. He had witnessed their support over the years. No matter how many people came to buy pastries—nearly convenience store owners, office workers skipping work, or delivery drivers coming to buy orders—Qin Huai always prioritized serving the seniors.

The elderly folks were so full they could only slump in their chairs, feeling dizzy and still savoring the meal. They couldn't eat a single bite of the snacks, looking like overfed seals.

Silver-haired seal.

Ouyang was stuffed.

Only Shi Dadan was left with the last bite.

Wang Gensheng logged off early and shamelessly packed up a few snacks that he thought his wife and children would like to eat to take home.

Zhao Cheng'an, on the other hand, was like a walking encyclopedia of questions, asking Qin Huai every time a new pastry was made if it contained any traces of the virus. He would even ask the exact same question again after an identical pastry was cooked. For a time, the ordinary employees in the kitchen of Yunzhong Canteen couldn't tell whether the boss's condition was more serious or that of Chef Zhao.

Qin Huai knew why Zhao Cheng'an kept asking, because Qin Huai had spent the whole afternoon making pastries but hadn't managed to make a second S-grade pastry.

It seems that only fermented rice buns are an exception. Only fermented rice buns, which are made by adding the skillful element of fermented rice to the simplest bun, can be rated S-level by master dough makers.

They couldn't make any other snacks, not even plain steamed buns.

Qin Huai also made a batch of white flour steamed buns. Although the white flour steamed buns did not have a rating, Zhao Cheng'an had a sense of taste and could judge the grade of the white flour steamed buns by tasting them.

According to Zhao Cheng'an, there is definitely no S-grade white flour steamed bun. Although it is also very delicious and is undoubtedly a top-notch steamed bun, there is an insurmountable gap between it and fermented rice wine steamed bun.

White flour steamed buns can only be rated A+ at most.

Actually, A+ grade is already very high, but with the S- grade fermented rice buns being such a gem, these pastries that could reach A+ grade suddenly seem insignificant.

Furthermore, Qin Huai didn't have many snacks that made it to A+ level.

Aside from the fermented rice buns, only the crab roe and pork buns and the three-ingredient buns from Qinhuai received an A+ grade.

Most of the other snacks are still grade A or A-, while potato dumplings, potato buns, and vegetable and meat buns are only grade B and B- due to the inherent limitations of the recipes.

Qin Huai's understanding of this is that mastering the art of dough preparation can improve a dim sum to a certain extent, but not entirely, because most dim sum is complex and cannot be improved solely by dough preparation.

The skills of dough preparation and seasoning can cover most of the skills required for making pastries, but there are still some skills that cannot be covered, such as knife skills, finger techniques, and heat control.

These are all weaknesses of Qinhuai.

Complex desserts require a lot of skill to improve, while simple desserts are very difficult to improve.

Steamed buns are the simplest snack, and making steamed buns basically only requires skills related to dough fermentation, but even white flour steamed buns cannot achieve an S rank.

Because it's too simple, and unless your skill level is really high, it's hard to make a dessert stand out.

Only the fermented rice buns are special. While simple, they are also a bit difficult to make. Making fermented rice buns requires skill and unique techniques. A hundred years ago, they could be considered a secret recipe.

Qin Huai thought that perhaps only special snacks like fermented rice buns could unexpectedly reach the S- level with the help of a master dough maker.

As for the crab roe and pork bun… the crab roe and pork bun is actually quite special. Its recipe is excellent; after all, the filling alone is an A-grade recipe, and this filling is best suited for buns.

The crab roe and pork filling doesn't require high-level knife skills or precise cooking time; the high skill lies in the filling preparation. Qin Huai's filling preparation is masterful, and combined with masterful dough preparation, it seems only natural that the crab roe and pork bun would become Qin Huai's second A+ grade dim sum.

The same applies to the San Ding Bao (Three-Ingredient Bun). Although the filling of the San Ding Bao requires slightly higher cooking time, it's not high enough to affect the overall score. Unfortunately, even if the San Ding Bao is rated A+, it's useless because the recipe itself is rated S-, and an A+ rated San Ding Bao won't trigger the buff.

Now, all that's left to complete the main quest is one last A+ grade dessert.

Success was just one step away, which sounded a little regrettable, but Qin Huai didn't care about these regrets right now; he had more important things to do.

At 6:12 p.m., Qin Huai's home was bustling with activity like never before.

Zhao Rong was cooking in the kitchen, simple home-style dishes, her skills not as good as those at the Cloud Canteen.

Qin Congwen was watching TV in the living room, cracking sunflower seeds as he watched. He said to Qin Huai with a smile, "Huaihuai, you know what? Your TV is bigger than the ones we have back home. It's so much more enjoyable to watch TV on such a big TV. I'll come over to your house to watch TV in the afternoons from now on."

Qin Huai smiled and said, "Okay, Dad, come over to watch TV whenever you're free in the afternoons, and help me get some fruit. There's plenty of fruit in the fridge; Sister Hong often brings fruit to my house, and I can't possibly eat it all."

"You're such a picky eater. Your favorite fruit is bananas, and you've always been like that since you were little."

No sooner had Qin Congwen finished speaking than Qin Luo's cheerful voice and urgent knocking came from outside the door: "Brother, Dad, Mom, open the door! I don't have a key, and I haven't registered my fingerprint on your door. I'm starving! Why are we suddenly eating at your house today?!"

Qin Huai hurriedly went to open the door, slightly turning to the side, and watched as Qin Luo rushed in like a small cannonball, threw down her schoolbag, and slumped onto the sofa.

"I'm exhausted! Going to school is so tiring! When will this ever end?" Qin Luo groaned.

"Brother, what are we having for dinner today?" Qin Luo asked.

Qin Huai smiled mysteriously: "Of course it's delicious."

"I spent the whole morning reading martial arts manuals, and my pastry-making skills have improved by leaps and bounds. Tonight's pastries will absolutely blow your mind."

If Qin Huai had said this to Zhao Cheng'an or Tan Weian, they would have given him a "you're kidding" look, while secretly hoping for the best.

Qin Luo wouldn't.

Qin Luo, who had been sprawled on the sofa like a dead fish, suddenly sat up with a jolt, his eyes shining, and exclaimed excitedly, "Wow, bro, you're amazing!"

Where did you buy the recipe? Did you find it online?

"What are we having for dinner today? Is it a new dessert? It must be really delicious! Bro, you're amazing, I love you so much!"

"I'm going to eat three pounds of pastries tonight!"

Qin Congwen smacked Qin Luo on the head in an annoyed tone: "Three pounds of pastries? Do you want to end up in the hospital eating so much so late at night?"

"Just eat a little, two pounds is enough. Your mom rarely cooks, so you should eat a bit more, right?"

Qin Luo nodded hesitantly: "Alright, then I'll have a couple of bites of food and two pounds of pastries!"

"hey-hey."

(End of this chapter)