Chapter 571: Chapter 557: Ate Yourself Thin

The festival on the eighth day of the first lunar month is called the Smooth Star Festival.

It’s the first festival after the New Year that falls on a day with the number eight.

In our folk beliefs, "eight" represents "prosperity" and is a symbol of great fortune, smooth sailing, and thriving business. Many businesses choose to open on this day, wishing for a prosperous new year.

The Delicious Restaurant owned by Huang Tao is no exception!

It also opens on this day!

Ding Suqin and the other employees arrived at the restaurant before four in the morning.

Once at the restaurant, she, along with Li Chengzhan and Lin Qiuyu, busily cleaned the place, while Ren Meilan and Yang Huiru were busy washing vegetables. Jiang Chao, Xu Hao, and Lin Zifeng started with cleaning various kitchen utensils and wiping down the stove.

The crew split into three groups, each attending to their tasks. 𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

Logically, after ten days without cleaning, the restaurant should have a lot of dust. However, at the moment, there was hardly any dust in the restaurant, and the tables, chairs, and transparent counters became spotless with just a swipe of the cloth. Even the floors gleamed after just one mop.

The kitchen and bathrooms were the same—just a wipe with a damp cloth, and they were clean.

This saved them a lot of cleaning effort.

This quite unusual circumstance left Ding Suqin and the others puzzled, unable to figure out the reason.

They could only attribute it to the excellent quality of materials bought by the boss, making cleaning effortless.

In fact, it was all thanks to the system’s permanent cleanliness reward, but the employees were unaware.

Once tidying up was complete.

Temporarily free, Li Chengzhan, thinking about the boss’s breakfast available soon, couldn’t help but feel happy. As he chatted with Lin Qiuyu and the others, he shared the hardships he’d gone through recently: "Finally, I can have our boss’s breakfast this morning. You have no idea how I’ve managed these past days."

"I’ve gotten by looking at the pictures of food from our Delicious Restaurant’s official Weibo while eating hotel food."

Finally, he put on an expression of "Is it easy for me?"

"Me too! Food doesn’t taste good, nothing feels right, and at mealtimes, I can only look at the photos of our restaurant’s food to get through."

Lin Qiuyu helplessly shook his head and said, "Sigh! These past days, it hasn’t felt like I’m celebrating New Year but like I’m enduring a trial."

Ever since they tasted Huang Tao’s cooking skills, they turned their noses up at the food from other hotels and restaurants, even the dishes made by the highly paid chef at home didn’t taste good anymore.

More than ten days without the staff meal from the restaurant, feasting on meat at home during the New Year, and they ended up losing weight.

It’s just ridiculous.

In the kitchen, although Xu Hao and the others didn’t have much of an appetite during this time, it was better than what Li Chengzhan and the others experienced; at least their weight remained stable.

Xu Hao said with a smile, "I’m alright. When I’m home and craving the restaurant’s food, I use the method taught by the boss to make some stewed dishes to satisfy my cravings."

"I also use the boss’s method to make some pan-fried buns for a treat."

Jiang Chao chimed in, "During the New Year, the most popular food at my home was the pan-fried buns I made. Although they don’t taste as good as the boss’s, thanks to the boss’s skills I learned, the buns are not 100% the same but a good 90% similarity. Moreover, they’re much tastier than those made by other chefs outside..."

That’s the biggest benefit of learning to cook from the boss!

Lin Qiuyu: "..."

Li Chengzhan: "..."

Envious!

Also a bit jealous!

At this moment, the unnoticed desire hidden deep in their hearts to learn cooking was stirring restlessly.

Wanted to learn cooking.

Yearned to learn from the boss!

Desperately wanted to!

If they learned, they could be self-sufficient and well-fed!

Of course, they also understood that learning to cook wasn’t something they could just decide to do.

Learning to cook also depends on aptitude!

The mere thought that Jiang Chao made so many pan-fried buns and never invited his buddies over to try them, well...

It was infuriating.

Although the pan-fried buns made by Jiang Chao surely didn’t match the boss’s in taste, they were nine parts similar, and his buddies could use them to satisfy their cravings without a doubt.

But this guy...

Didn’t even think of them at all...

Hmph, friendship over!

Both of them cast aggrieved, accusatory gazes at Jiang Chao, as if saying, "Weren’t we supposed to share good times? But I’m just drooling over food photos while you’re secretly enjoying pan-fried buns."

Feeling the two unfriendly gazes, Jiang Chao: ???

He felt very uncomfortable under the stare from Li Chengzhan and the others, so he furrowed his brow and, with a slightly off-tone voice, asked the two brothers, "Why are you guys suddenly staring at me like that? What, do I have something dirty on my face?"

Li Chengzhan didn’t respond but turned to Lin Qiuyu beside him and asked, "Qiuyu, do you know the saying about the old sow eating alone?"

"I know this one."

Lin Qiuyu quickly chimed in, "Only cares about the mouth, only cares about its own mouth!"

An enlightened Jiang Chao: "..."

Oh, good grief!

This is subtly calling him out for being selfish, isn’t it!

Jiang Chao was both amused and exasperated!

The pan-fried buns he made weren’t even enough for his own family, let alone have any left for his buddies!

Understanding why his two friends were upset, he explained to Li Chengzhan and the others, and offered to make some for them later.

But!

Li Chengzhan and the others were no longer interested!

Who could blame them when they now had a better option?

When they could have authentic pan-fried buns made by the owner himself, who would want Jiang Chao’s substitute buns...

Oh well!

The little boat of friendship capsized just like that, and the Jiang Chao version of the pan-fried buns they longed for was instantly forgotten!

While feeling mentally exhausted, Jiang Chao silently muttered to himself: Friendship over!

Meanwhile, outside the store, a number of nearby neighbors and some rich kids started lining up.

Having gone without Huang Tao’s cooking for more than ten days, they all looked visibly thinner.

It was as if instead of feasting over the New Year, they had gone hungry for over ten days.

With their arrival, the previously quiet and customer-less West City Old Street suddenly filled with lively chatter.

"Oh my heavens, Boss Huang’s restaurant is finally open as scheduled!"

"These days, I was wishing upon stars and moons, finally awaiting the opening of Boss Huang’s place, it wasn’t easy, not easy at all!"

"This year, my biggest hope was for Boss Huang to open earlier!"

"Who wouldn’t agree! I was dreaming every night of tempting pan-fried buns, sweet dumplings, marinated pig trotters, roast duck, oil-braised prawns, Dongpo Pork from Boss Huang’s restaurant, all so fragrant! But alas, just as I’d take a bite, I’d wake up, wake up, wake up, can you understand this kind of agony?"

"I understand, I understand, I’m just the same, now neither home-cooked meals nor dishes from other hotels satisfy me, during the New Year I was only eating to survive."

"Sigh! Don’t mention you; my great-grandson throws a tantrum daily, not wanting to eat anything but food from the Delicious Restaurant!"

Spoiled by Huang Tao’s food, they found everything else tasteless.

In four words, it was utterly insipid!

Seeing Huang Tao arrive, the neighbors’ eyes all lit up!

"Oh my, Boss Huang, good morning! Finally, you’re here."

"Boss Huang, happy New Year!"

"Boss Huang, do you know? During the New Year, because I couldn’t eat your food, I almost starved to death! Luckily, I have strong willpower, otherwise, you wouldn’t see me here."

"Boss Huang, you don’t know, I got through the New Year by looking at food photos from your store."

"Boss Huang, look, because I couldn’t eat your cooking, my whole face has slimmed down! How are you going to compensate me for the weight I lost?"

"They say during the holidays you gain ten pounds, but I didn’t gain even one pound and lost several pounds instead."

"Alright, let’s not crowd Boss Huang, let him quickly get inside and get things ready, we’re starving."

Hearing the neighbors’ laments, Huang Tao tried to comfort them with a bittersweet smile, "Everyone, there will be leek and egg pan-fried buns in the morning, make sure to have a few..."

With these words!

The neighbors’ eyes lit up yet again!

"Boss Huang is making a new flavor of pan-fried buns this morning?"

"That’s fantastic news!"

"We’re in for a treat this morning, I’ll definitely savor it later!"

"Say no more, I’m claiming the first batch of buns!"

"..."

Huang Tao smiled helplessly.

He chatted with the neighbors for a bit.

Then he picked up a large pot and walked into the restaurant.

To prepare for the first breakfast of the New Year opening.