Culinary Expert

Chapter 7: Mission Accomplished

Bai Xiaobai glanced toward the door. What “approaching killing intent”? The street looked no different from usual. However, a striking sight did catch his eye. A beautiful woman with short hair and dressed in a business suit was striding gracefully toward him, her feet in thick-soled stilettos. The heels on the back of her shoes were incredibly exaggerated; at a glance, they appeared to be at least ten centimeters high—definitely a lethal weapon capable of instantly taking down any lecherous pervert. A man followed behind the beautiful woman. Although the man was dressed appropriately, he looked a bit sleazy. His hair was curly and permed, styled to be very voluminous; from a distance, it looked like he was wearing a bird’s nest on his head. These two were members of “Black Strike.” The beautiful woman was none other than Li Lili, and the “bird’s nest” guy beside her was a new recruit to “Black Strike,” still in his probationary period. The “Black Strike” team usually operates in pairs, posing as a couple to lower the merchants’ guard—one draws out information while the other secretly takes photos to gather evidence. For example, Li Lili is in charge of drawing out information, while the “bird’s nest” guy by her side is responsible for secretly taking photos as evidence. Click, click. After the “bird’s nest” guy secretly took a few photos with his hidden camera, he said to Li Lili beside him, “Sis Li, this is the shady shop mentioned on the forum.” “We’ll go in a moment—watch my cues,” Li Lili instructed the man with the bird’s nest hairstyle before heading straight toward Bai Xiaobai’s shop. Before she even got close to the shop, a rich aroma of tea eggs wafted toward her. She hadn’t expected the tea eggs to smell this good. Could they have used additives like artificial flavoring? Li Lili thought to herself, but said nothing. With light, graceful steps, she stepped into Bai Xiaobai’s shop. Her sky-high heels tapped rhythmically on the marble floor, producing a very rhythmic sound. “Welcome,” Bai Xiaobai greeted them with a smile—a habit he’d developed over the many years he’d been running the shop. Li Lili chose a table near the door and sat down elegantly, with the “bird’s nest-haired guy” following suit and sitting beside her. “Owner, do you have a menu?” Li Lili’s sensual red lips parted slightly. “Beautiful lady, we only sell ‘Supreme Tea Eggs’ here right now. How many would you like?” Bai Xiaobai replied calmly and composedly. “Premium Tea Eggs?” Li Lili hadn’t expected this rip-off shop to give even a regular tea egg such a fancy name. “So how much is one of these Premium Tea Eggs?” After a moment of surprise, Li Lili asked very gently. “Fifty each. Two for a hundred,” Bai Xiaobai replied as soon as he finished quoting the price. The guy with the bird’s nest haircut standing nearby frowned and said, “Boss, tea eggs go for 1. 5 yuan each out there. Why are yours so much more expensive?” In the past, people would just walk away the moment they heard the price; no one ever asked why they were so expensive. Bai Xiaobai thought to himself that explaining it the way the system did—talking about top-grade eggs and top-grade tea leaves—would be too long-winded. Besides, he was too lazy to go into detail, and even if he did, the other person might not believe him anyway. “You get what you pay for. We use only the best ingredients here, and they taste better than what you’ll find elsewhere,” Bai Xiaobai replied bluntly and to the point. The man with the bird’s nest hairstyle took offense at this remark and pressed on aggressively, “Boss, you say they taste better than what’s out there—what proof do you have?” Hearing the sarcasm in his words, Bai Xiaobai knew the customer meant trouble, so he replied calmly, “I don’t actually have any proof—you’ll just have to try it to find out.” You can’t force a sweet melon—even though he was on a mission, Bai Xiaobai wasn’t about to pester the customer into buying his tea eggs. The “Bird’s Nest” guy wouldn’t let it go and was about to say something else when Li Lili, standing nearby, immediately shot him a sharp look, signaling him to shut up. Normally, an “Undercover Strike” operation would end right here. All Li Lili had to do was hand over the audio recordings, along with the secretly taken photos and videos, to her maternal uncle at the police department, her third uncle at the Labor Bureau, and her second aunt at the Public Security Bureau—and then give a vivid account of what happened. Barring any surprises, this shop would be ordered to make corrections next week and shut down for good. But today, things were a little different. The young shop owner standing before her looked quite upstanding and was actually quite handsome—nothing like the unscrupulous, shady shopkeepers she’d encountered before, whose faces were the very picture of a crooked businessman. Moreover, the aroma of these “Supreme Tea Eggs” truly had a magical allure, completely whetting Li Lili’s appetite. “Boss, give us two tea eggs,” Li Lili said after much deliberation, deciding to make her final decision after trying them. If they really were just ordinary tea eggs—even with a handsome owner who was genuinely honest—this shop would still have to shut down next week. Although the “Bird’s Nest Guy” was reluctant to shell out fifty-one for tea eggs, he had no choice but to give in after hearing Li Lili speak up. He’d been with Black Strike for less than two weeks; this was his first mission, so he had to follow his superiors’ orders and couldn’t make decisions on his own. At first, these two customers asked all sorts of questions as soon as they walked in, and Bai Xiaobai thought this deal was doomed to fall through. Unexpectedly, the deal went through after all. He was just one step away from completing his rookie mission. He just happened to have two tea-eggs left to fulfill the mission. Just thinking about it got Bai Xiaobai excited. He specifically picked out what he considered to be the two best “Supreme” tea-eggs, divided them between two bowls, and brought them over to Li Lili and the “Bird’s Nest Guy.” Li Lili took a close look at the tea eggs in the bowls. The color was as beautiful as purple clay, and the aroma was very fragrant, but no matter how she looked at them, they were just tea eggs—not much different from the ones sold outside. How dare he charge fifty for tea eggs like this? Li Lili furrowed her brow and began peeling them leisurely with her slender, scallion-like fingers. The “Bird’s Nest Guy” followed suit and began peeling his tea-eggs as well. Bai Xiaobai watched the two of them peel the eggs the whole time, silently praying in her heart. If only they had ice-crack patterns. Once the two tea-eggs were peeled, they both revealed ordinary brown cracks—not ice-crack patterns. With a one-in-ten-thousand chance, ice-crack patterns were indeed a rare find. Bai Xiaobai was deeply disappointed. After peeling the shell, Li Lili took a bite of the tea-flavored egg without much expectation. A tea-flavored egg is just an egg boiled in tea water; she didn’t think it could be anything special. But after taking a bite, Li Lili realized she was completely wrong. “This flavor… it’s simply a rare delicacy.” Why? Three “whys” sprang to Li Lili’s mind; she didn’t know how to describe the flavor in her mouth. Why was this tea-flavored egg so delicious? The egg white had fully absorbed the tea broth and sauce; with every bite, it felt full of life, as if it might burst with tea broth and sauce. Given the long cooking time, the egg yolk inside the tea-flavored egg should, in theory, have become dry and tough—but this yolk wasn’t dry at all; instead, it was even more fragrant, soft, and silky. The savory, salty egg white paired perfectly with the soft, fragrant, and silky yolk—a seamless combination. Li Lili could feel the aroma lingering on her palate; the more she chewed, the more fragrant it became. Although it has a savory sauce flavor, the taste is surprisingly fresh and refreshing—neither heavy nor greasy. Li Lili is a senior executive at her company, and her status is far from ordinary. Since childhood, she has frequently attended all kinds of high-end banquets and has tasted countless delicacies, yet this seemingly unremarkable little tea-leaf egg right in front of her—how could it be so delicious? Compared to this, the tea eggs made by those star chefs at five-star hotels were simply rubbish. Li Lili was completely immersed in the taste experience brought by the Supreme Tea Egg—a strong sense of happiness and satisfaction—to the point that she even forgot she was here to carry out a “covert operation.” Bai Xiaobai used to think that cooking was just a way to earn a living; he had never considered anything more noble. But seeing the immense satisfaction and happiness on the faces of these two customers now, he couldn’t help but recall a line from *China Ichiban! * spoken by Little Chef. “Cooking is something that brings people happiness.” With the Culinary System, he could not only make money but also bring people happiness—it was truly killing two birds with one stone. The man with the bird’s-nest haircut polished off a tea-egg in just two bites. He gently wiped the egg yolk lingering at the corner of his mouth with his finger, tilted his head to one side, and secretly popped it back into his mouth. The man’s movements were quite unseemly—it looked just like picking his teeth—but Bai Xiaobai saw it and said nothing. After all, this Supreme Tea-Egg was indeed a rare delicacy. Although Li Lili took several bites to finish her tea-egg, she was left wanting more. She couldn’t resist the urge to use the tip of her tongue to lick the egg yolk and savory sauce clean from the corners of her red lips, but mindful of her higher education and her status as a woman, she refrained. Li Lili had originally intended to ask for a few more, but remembering the reason she’d come in the first place, she suddenly felt a bit awkward. “Boss, do you have any more of these tea eggs? I’ll take two more.” The “Bird’s Nest Guy” now had a completely different attitude from when he first entered the shop; he had shed his previous arrogance and become very sincere. “I’m sorry, we’ve already sold out for today—these are the last two,” Bai Xiaobai didn’t make an exception just because of the “Bird’s Nest Guy’s” attitude. The rule was that each person could only purchase one Supreme Tea Egg per day at the shop. The man with the bird’s nest hair was clearly reluctant. His eyes, like those of a hungry wolf, darted toward the kitchen several times. “Boss, you could make them fresh. I’ll wait—no matter how long it takes.” Those words echoed Li Lili’s own thoughts. Although she was very punctual and hated wasting time, for the sake of this delicious tea egg, she’d be willing to wait half an hour or even an hour. “I’m sorry, but we have a rule: each person can only eat one Supreme Tea Egg here per day.” Bai Xiaobai was a woman of principle and flatly refused the “Bird’s Nest Guy’s” request. “Are you kidding me, boss? You’re turning down money?” The “Bird’s Nest Guy” was getting a little annoyed and was about to say more. Li Lili, standing nearby, cleared her throat. The “Bird’s Nest Guy” took this as a signal to back off and obediently shut his mouth. After paying, Li Lili and the “Bird’s Nest Guy” quickly left the shop. Walking down the street, the “Bird’s Nest Guy” held his covert surveillance equipment in his hand. After a moment’s hesitation, he spoke up, “Sister Li, regarding this ‘Black Strike’ operation…” “The operation is canceled,” Li Lili said matter-of-factly. Although she detested unscrupulous businesses, she was also a woman of principle. This shop wasn’t a shady establishment at all—it was a genuine gourmet restaurant. A place that could make tea eggs to this level of perfection—you wouldn’t find another one like it in all of Jianghai City, even if you searched high and low. This was a major blow to her pride. Li Lili glanced back at Bai Xiaobai’s little shop, her gaze holding a meaning that was hard for ordinary people to fathom. Almost the moment Li Lili and the “Bird’s Nest Guy” left. The money in Bai Xiaobai’s hand vanished, and the system’s electronic voice echoed in his mind. [Congratulations, Host, on completing the Beginner Quest ahead of schedule. Experience points have doubled again! You’ve leveled up to “Da Bai”! Your Host Profile Gold Card has been updated! 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