Food: Randomly set up stalls, even the little guy is drooling.

Chapter 88: When you're going through the story, can you please stop dragging me into it all the time?

Ah Xing, is this the Ah Xing I'm thinking of?

Lu Feng thought to himself, "System, is this some kind of culinary world that's making me glow? It should be that otherworldly gourmet food story from last time! Come to think of it, the name Jie Lu, isn't it from there?"

Did they just throw me into the story scene? They didn't even give me the tutorial level.

Furthermore, can't you come up with a different opening plot? Don't always start by mocking and looking down on them. Do you even know what "Don't underestimate a young person's potential" means?

If we insist on following this storyline, can we at least change the person who gets beaten up?

Look at the boy next to him named Xing. Although he was also covered in dust, he had obviously only been pushed.

But the girl in front of him bypassed him and went straight for him. "Ah Xing, are you alright? Are you hurt anywhere?"

'

Lu Feng, "???"

Hey pretty girl, why aren't you worried about me? This boy named Ah Xing wasn't hit at all! I'm the one who got hit!! Ah Xing looks perfectly fine, like he could run five blocks straight!

The arrogant young man saw the girl running over and said, "Dudu, don't defend them. It's true that any Tom, Dick, or Harry wants to steal our Yangquan Restaurant's secrets."

"Zhou Lingfeng, you've gone too far!" the girl muttered angrily. "It was Master Jidi who made them join. How could you, as their disciple, do this?"

"I only made them do odd jobs, but I didn't expect them to be here spying on me while I'm cooking." Zhou Lingfeng was clearly unconvinced.

"Brother Lingfeng, what you're saying isn't right." Ah Xing stood up, dusted himself off, and straightened his back. Although his clothes were worn, his eyes were clear and firm. "We didn't intend to steal their skills, much less tarnish the restaurant's reputation. We just admired the culinary skills of Yangquan Restaurant and wanted to see if we could get a chance through our own abilities."

As Lu Feng rubbed his wrist and stood up, he pondered to himself. This plot seemed quite different from the version he remembered.

"Admiration? Skill?" Zhou Lingfeng laughed as if he'd heard the biggest joke in the world. "Who doesn't admire our No. 1 restaurant in all of Guangdong? You guys? You're not even fully grown up yet, you probably don't even know how to hold a kitchen knife!"

He and his two henchmen burst into laughter. "Brother Lingfeng, these two are like toads yawning, talking big!"

Lu Feng, to be honest, I never said that when you're doing story quests, could you please stop dragging me into it all the time?

"Then tell me, how can we prove that we are qualified?" Ah Xing was not angered by Zhou Lingfeng's ridicule, but asked calmly instead.

Zhou Lingfeng's laughter stopped abruptly; he hadn't expected the kid to be so composed. His eyes darted around, and he pointed to a broken basket in the corner of the kitchen, inside which lay a head of bok choy covered in mud.

"Just make one simple dish, a bok choy." Zhou Lingfeng said, glancing at the leftover rice in the pot, then turning a mocking look to Lu Feng, who had just gotten up. "As for you—"

Lu Feng's heart skipped a beat. "Wait, bro, you guys are fighting your battles, how did the flames of war suddenly spill over onto me, an innocent bystander? I'm just an extra who wandered onto the set by mistake!"

"You were the one spying here just now, otherwise I, Zhou Lingfeng, wouldn't be bullying you for no reason. I won't make things difficult for you, just make a fried rice dish."

Lu Feng: "————" This is too difficult, really too difficult. What on earth did the original owner do? Who the hell did I offend? I didn't even say a word, no, I didn't utter a single sound!

Ah Xing was also stunned for a moment, looking at Lu Feng with a questioning look and a hint of worry in his eyes.

"I—" Lu Feng opened his mouth.

"What do you mean, 'what do you mean, 'what do you mean, '!'" Zhou Lingfeng interrupted him, "You each have twenty minutes. If you can't finish, get out of Yangquan Restaurant!"

"No way, that fast?!" Lu Feng was dumbfounded. According to the normal plot, shouldn't the villain make a threat, then the protagonist group diligently trains, searches for secret manuals, encounters fortuitous events, and finally stage a magnificent comeback under the spotlight?

Why did we fast-forward straight to the live competition? What happened to the newbie protection period? Didn't we have to train in seclusion for several days first last time?

While Lu Feng was still internally ranting, Ah Xing silently walked to the vegetable basket and picked up the bok choy.

"Bok choy is delicious in both aroma and taste, and it's a representative vegetable of Chinese cuisine. This should be the same whether it's Guangdong or Sichuan!" Ah Xing muttered to himself.

Ah Xing lit two pots, one to boil water and the other to heat until it smoked. He first blanched the chopped bok choy in the boiling water.

This scene made Zhou Lingfeng's eyes show a hint of seriousness. "If you don't do it this way, the bok choy won't cook through easily. Also, the soil and water here are different from those in his hometown of Sichuan Province. He coated the bok choy with a thin layer of oil, which removed the earthy taste. He's done his homework."

"Wait, the next step is to stir-fry, why is he adding fermented soybean paste? I can understand the other seasonings, but why fermented soybean paste?!"

Zhou Lingfeng, who had initially shown some appreciation, couldn't help but complain that, as a native of Guangdong, he couldn't appreciate Doubanjiang (fermented broad bean paste).

In no time at all, the stir-fried bok choy was ready.

Ah Xing placed the plate on the table. "Please enjoy."

The glossy green vegetables gleamed in the dish, their edges slightly charred from being stir-fried over high heat. A few scattered chili flakes, like lit flames, brought the whole dish to life.

Zhou Lingfeng and his two henchmen each picked up a chopstick of stir-fried bok choy. Before they even got close, the pungent aroma filled their nostrils. The unique salty and fragrant fermented bean paste, combined with the fresh sweetness of the stir-fried bok choy, was like a summer night in Sichuan Province, hot and spicy with the refreshing scent of grass and trees. Just smelling it made their mouths water.

The moment it enters your mouth, your teeth break through the crisp, tender leaves, and the juices, mixed with the scalding aroma of hot oil, burst in your mouth. The slight bitterness of the bok choy is masked by the spiciness, yet a hint of sweetness emerges at the back of your tongue. The spiciness of the chili slowly climbs to the tip of your tongue, like countless tiny electric currents dancing, warming you all the way down to your stomach.

The crispness of the stems, the tenderness of the leaves, the spiciness of the chili, and the delicate fragrance of the vegetables intertwine in the mouth. After swallowing, one can't help but take another bite. This is no ordinary stir-fry; it's as if the fiery and vibrant energy of Sichuan province has been infused into this plate of green vegetables.

"Good!" Zhou Lingfeng wasn't one to back down from a loss. "Ah Xing, I misjudged you. You did your homework beforehand, and you've already proven yourself with this stir-fried bok choy."

All eyes turned to Lu Feng, and Zhou Lingfeng continued, "Alright, it's your turn to make fried rice."

My fried rice was rated worse than even a D grade by the system. It was like an old lady crawling into bed and making the old man laugh.

He was caught in a dilemma. Lu Feng took a deep breath and walked to the pot of leftovers. If he couldn't get into Yangquan Restaurant, this dream cultivation session might be completely wasted.

We had no choice but to bite the bullet and go for it.

Twenty minutes later, Zhou Lingfeng looked at the egg fried rice in the wok that was obviously stuck to the pan and showed an incredulous expression. "Brother, where the hell did you get the confidence to do that?"

Lu Feng muttered to himself, "Damn it, what a waste of dream cultivation?"