Culinary Expert

Chapter 37: Captive of Delicious Food (Part 2)

“Fat Head, I’ll trust you one more time—but let’s make a deal: I’ll pay you after the job’s done.” Wang Tuzi said to Pangtou on the other end of the phone while smoking. “Alright, payment after the job’s done is fine. But Boss Wang, I heard from my nephew Gao Ming last time that the owner of Xiaobai Restaurant seems to have a well-connected friend—apparently someone quite influential who can get the director of the Administration for Industry and Commerce to issue an order with just one phone call. You’d better watch your step, Boss Wang.” On the surface, Pangtou was trying to dissuade Wang Tuzi, but in reality, he was exaggerating the story—likely to provoke him. Sure enough, upon hearing this, Wang Tuzi cursed, “F*** you, Pangtou! If the people you find this time aren’t reliable, I’ll never trust you again, and from now on, I won’t buy any fish for my restaurant from you either.” Wang Tuzi was still fuming over the last “water meter inspection.” Not only had he failed to bring down Xiaobai Restaurant, but he’d ended up losing both his wife and his army—he’d had to pay extra and had been thoroughly scolded by Gao Ming. After all, Wang Tuzi was a major customer at Pangtou’s fish shop; losing this big spender would cost him a significant amount of money each month. On the other end of the line, Pangtou pounded his chest and said obsequiously, “Mr. Wang, rest assured. This time, it’ll be fine. But I just got in touch with Han Dali. He said he’s swamped with work lately, and with the authorities cracking down hard, it’ll take a few days.” ” “Then make it happen as soon as possible. I can’t stand it even one more day.” After dropping that line, Wang Tuzi hung up the phone. Taking a vicious drag on his cigarette, Wang Tuzi tilted his head back forty-five degrees to gaze at the starry sky, then lowered his head to glance at his crotch. At this time of night, most people were making love, but as for him… No matter how much deer penis wine I drank or how many doctors I saw, nothing worked. Damn it! I’m a useless piece of shit now—I can’t even get any action. What good is making all that money? Bai Dabai, you’re dead, but your son, Bai Xiaobai, has to pay for this. You’ve made my life miserable, so I’m going to make your son’s life miserable too. The early morning sunlight streamed through the cracks in the curtains and into the room. Bai Xiaobai was still sprawled out on the bed in a big “大” shape, covered by an air-conditioned blanket. The air conditioner was whirring, blowing cold air and keeping the room at a constant 24 degrees. It was now exactly seven o’clock— Bai Xiaobai usually got up early at this hour. Today, however, was a bit of an exception. Although he was awake, he didn’t get out of bed; instead, he stared blankly at the ceiling for a while. I really shouldn’t have read that paranormal novel late at night—it gave me a nightmare last night. In the dream, his Restaurant was ransacked; he was stabbed and bled all over the floor. He spent all his savings on hospital bills, which eventually led to the Restaurant’s closure. Abandoned by the “Gourmet System,” he ended up begging on the streets, starving, and finally died in the snow, filled with resentment. The nightmare was still fresh in his mind, and the more Bai Xiaobai thought about it, the more vividly the scene took shape in his head. But a nightmare is just a nightmare after all, and Bai Xiaobai has always believed that nightmares are the exact opposite of reality. People should be optimistic and positive; nightmares are just paper tigers—nothing to be afraid of. Believe in yourself—I can do it. Her dream is to be a master chef, and her goal is to reach the pinnacle of life. To hell with any nightmares. After comforting herself, Bai Xiaobai felt much better. The countdown for the side quest in her mind was down to just over five hours. Time was running out; it was time to get down to business. Bai Xiaobai got out of bed listlessly, shuffling along in his flip-flops, pulled back the curtains, and opened the window. He’d only intended to take a breath of fresh air and check if the floodwaters on Chaotianmen Street had completely receded. But when he peered out, he was surprised to see seven or eight people already gathered outside his shop. Everyone looked anxious; some were even stamping their feet. What’s going on? “Mr. Bai, why isn’t the shop open yet? It was the same yesterday—are you not opening in the mornings anymore?” An older regular customer had become a loyal fan ever since trying the Supreme Tea Eggs last time. He’d been coming by every day for the past few days, and after waiting for over ten minutes with Xiaobai Restaurant still closed, he was getting really impatient. “We were open yesterday morning, but pretty late,” ” said a man in a suit who worked in sales. “That’s right—I bought a ‘Supreme Tea Egg’ yesterday morning, too. But Mr. Bai’s now limiting sales to ten a day,” another guy chimed in. “No way—only ten a day? Good thing there are only seven or eight people here right now. If I’d come later, I probably wouldn’t have been able to get one,” the middle-aged man said, letting out a huge sigh of relief. “It’s no big deal if we can’t get any. The owner launched a new product yesterday called ‘Supreme Beef Noodles.’ But it’s super expensive—399 yuan a bowl. I saw it yesterday, but I didn’t have enough cash on me, so I didn’t try it. I don’t know how it tastes,” the man in the suit described nonchalantly. “399 yuan?” a young man with short hair smacked his lips. “Damn, the owner’s really something. Setting a price like that—is he sure anyone’s going to buy it? Just in the last few days, I’ve spent 150 yuan on tea eggs alone. Now I can’t even afford cigarettes anymore.” “Not smoking is actually a good thing—it’s better for your health.” “To be honest, after eating Owner Bai’s ‘Supreme Tea Eggs,’ I really don’t crave cigarettes anymore. Who knows, I might actually be able to quit.” The onlookers chattered away, each chiming in with their own thoughts, all centered on the delicious food at Xiaobai Restaurant. Zhu Yufei glanced anxiously at her watch and asked the crowd, “Does anyone here know exactly what time Xiaobai Restaurant opens for business?” When a pretty girl speaks up, people usually jump at the chance to respond. But now everyone remained silent; not a single person answered Zhu Yufei’s question. The reason was simple: no one knew exactly when Xiaobai Restaurant would actually open for business. “By the way, young man, I recognize you. You must be a friend of Mr. Bai’s, right? Do you have his number?” An elderly man with a sharp eye instantly recognized Wei Hai, who had been standing silently in the crowd. The commotion from the last water meter inspection incident had caused quite a stir and had long since spread throughout the Chaotianmen Street area. The elderly man had been among the onlookers that day, and he had repeatedly praised Wei Hai’s agility when he had taught the industrial and commercial bureau official a lesson. Wei Hai gave a wry smile. “I don’t know Mr. Bai’s number either.” Last night, he’d been so busy wolfing down his Supreme Beef Noodles that he’d completely forgotten to ask for the number. Compared to the others, however, Wei Hai seemed quite calm—because he’d already paid to reserve a Supreme Tea Egg yesterday. So he didn’t mind; since it was reserved, he could eat it anytime today. Seeing how anxious everyone else was, Wei Hai came up with a slightly offbeat idea: “Mr. Bai lives right on the second floor—he’s probably sleeping in right now. If you can’t wait, I suggest we just call out to him.” “That’s a great idea—I’m all for it,” the man in the suit said, raising both hands in approval. “Let’s all do it together—the more of us there are, the louder we’ll be,” the young man with short hair agreed. At this time of day, shouting wouldn’t exactly count as disturbing the peace. The rest of the onlookers all agreed to Wei Hai’s idea of shouting. Just as the crowd, led by Wei Hai, was about to look up and shout “Mr. Bai” in unison they suddenly noticed Bai Xiaobai standing by the second-floor window, looking down at them as if surveying the masses. “Whoa, look—Boss Bai’s shirtless. Did he just wake up?” “It really is Boss Bai.” Zhu Yufei looked at the shirtless Bai Xiaobai; her face flushed slightly, and her eyes shifted nervously. “Boss Bai, when are you opening for business? I’ve been waiting to buy your Premium Tea Eggs,” the young man with short hair shouted at the top of his lungs. “Mr. Bai, I’m here to try your new ‘Supreme Beef Noodles.’ Come on, open up already!” The man in the suit waved at Bai Xiaobai. As soon as the crowd spotted Bai Xiaobai, they erupted into a frenzy, calling him “Mr. Bai” left and right—they were incredibly affectionate. Sweat was pouring down Bai Xiaobai’s face; he’d just woken up and was currently wearing nothing but a pair of baggy boxers. Although there were fewer than ten die-hard fans waiting at the door right now, these people were just too crazy. Is this really happening? This was something Bai Xiaobai had never even dared to imagine before. It made him feel like a celebrity. And this was just from launching the Supreme Tea-Eggs and Supreme Beef Noodles. Had these people already been conquered by his food, becoming captives of his culinary art? Bai Xiaobai could imagine launching even more dishes in the future—his popularity would likely be on track to surpass that of top-tier celebrities. He was one step closer to his goal of becoming a culinary master!