Culinary Expert

Chapter 47: Income Outpaces Spending

As soon as Bai Xiaobai pulled open the roll-up door, he saw Guo Zhaohui standing outside, holding a takeout bag. “Boss, you’re finally open,” Guo Zhaohui said, a smile lighting up his face. He hadn’t expected a customer to show up the moment he opened the door. And it was a regular—the very first person to order the Supreme Beef Noodles. Bai Xiaobai smiled at Guo Zhaohui and said, “Welcome. What would you like to eat? We just launched the Supreme Set Menu today.” Holding his takeout bag, Guo Zhaohui said somewhat awkwardly, “Boss, I’m not ordering anything. Can I just use your place to eat my takeout?” Bai Xiaobai was a bit speechless. “If you’re eating takeout, why come to my shop?” Guo Zhaohui scratched the back of his head, looking a bit embarrassed. “Boss, I really can’t afford anything on your menu, so I plan to eat the takeout beef noodles right here in your shop. That way, it’ll be like I’m actually eating your Supreme Beef Noodles.” As soon as Bai Xiaobai heard this, it clicked. YY This is blatant YY The middle-aged man looked pretty mature on the outside, but who would’ve thought he was such a goofball on the inside? Anyway, there weren’t any customers in the shop right now. Bai Xiaobai didn’t mind Guo Zhaohui eating takeout beef ramen in the shop. “Go ahead,” Bai Xiaobai said, making a gesture of invitation. “Thanks, boss,” Guo Zhaohui said with a smile, revealing a row of white teeth. He found a seat at random, removed the plastic bag from outside, and set down the takeout cup. Bai Xiaobai had thought Guo Zhaohui would start eating right away, but to his surprise, he showed no intention of eating at all—instead, he started playing with his phone. What’s going on? If you leave regular ramen sitting for even a little while, the noodles tend to get soggy from the broth and lose all their chewiness. Oh well, maybe that’s just how he likes it. To each their own. Bai Xiaobai didn’t plan on getting involved. For the moment, there were no other customers in the shop. Bai Xiaobai was getting a little hungry himself, so he went back to the kitchen to prepare a Supreme Combo. After a busy spell, Bai Xiaobai carried the Supreme Combo over, found a seat, picked up his chopsticks, and slurped a mouthful of the Supreme Beef Noodles. Over on Guo Zhaohui’s side, he put down his phone, picked up his chopsticks, and slurped a mouthful of his takeout beef noodle soup. Bai Xiaobai took a sip of the broth. Guo Zhaohui followed suit and took a sip of the broth as well. Bai Xiaobai took a bite of his Supreme tea-eggs. Guo Zhaohui paused for a moment, realized he didn’t have an egg, and could only pout before pretending he’d eaten a Supreme tea-leaf egg too. Bai Xiaobai watched Guo Zhaohui’s perfectly synchronized movements and found them utterly hilarious. Deciding to join in the fun, she said, “Want me to get you one of those big bowls from the shop so you can pretend to eat from it?” “That would be perfect—thanks, boss.” Guo Zhaohui had actually planned to do just that before walking in, but he’d been too embarrassed to ask. Bai Xiaobai went back to the kitchen and brought Guo Zhaohui a large bowl used for the Supreme Beef Noodles. Guo Zhaohui took the bowl, poured all the soup and noodles into it, and then took it upon himself to dispose of the takeout cup and plastic bag. Bai Xiaobai wasn’t used to people watching her eat, so she simply looked down at her phone, pretending not to notice. Slurp… slurp… Bai Xiaobai played Match-3 while eating her Supreme Set Meal. Guo Zhaohui carried on as usual. He copied her every move, continuing to mirror Bai Xiaobai’s actions perfectly. Except that while their movements were identical, what they were actually eating was completely different. The beef noodle soup in the large bowl did indeed look more like Xiaobai Restaurant’s Supreme Beef Noodles. But Guo Zhaohui knew deep down. This was nothing more than self-deception. The noodles in the takeout beef noodle soup had already become mushy from soaking, completely lacking any chewiness or the slightest hint of a noodle’s natural aroma. Although the broth was milky white and looked very tempting, the noodles tasted incredibly bland, and it was heavily seasoned with MSG. It was savory, yes, but the flavor came entirely from the MSG—there wasn’t a hint of meatiness. Take a look at the slices of braised beef in the large bowl—some thick, some thin—but they tasted as bland as chewing wax with not a hint of beefy aroma—it was completely overpowered by the sauce. In short, there’s no pain without comparison. Guo Zhaohui knew full well that his takeout beef noodle soup was light-years behind the “Supreme Beef Noodle Soup.” While Bai Xiaobai was eating to his heart’s content, Guo Zhaohui managed to finish the noodles and meat, but he couldn’t bring himself to take even a single sip of the broth. “Boss, I’ll wash this bowl myself,” Guo Zhaohui said as he picked up the bowl. He really should have washed it himself, but the problem was that Guo Zhaohui couldn’t even get into the kitchen. “No need. Just leave it there; I’ll wash them all together later,” Bai Xiaobai said casually. Seeing how easygoing Bai Xiaobai was, Guo Zhaohui suddenly blurted out, “Boss, I’m a motorcycle taxi driver. If you’re heading out, go to the Chaotianmen Street bus stop—that’s where I usually pick up passengers. If you take my ride, I won’t charge you a thing.” Being generous really does pay off. The middle-aged man was indeed a straightforward guy. “Alright, I’ll go if I need to,” Bai Xiaobai replied. After Guo Zhaohui left, Xiaobai Restaurant gradually welcomed a steady stream of customers. Some of the customers who walked in were referred by regulars that morning; others had come to check out the buzz after hearing rumors; and, of course, there were plenty of first-time visitors. “Boss, I heard your restaurant launched a ‘Supreme Set Menu.’ They say it’s pretty tasty—I’ll have one.” “Boss, I’ll have a Supreme Beef Noodle Soup.” “Boss, your ‘Customer Notice’ is way too rip-off.” “Boss, can you give me a discount?” “Holy crap, it’s so expensive! I can’t afford this…” ” “Boss, one Supreme Set Meal, hurry up—and make the Supreme Chili Sauce ‘mild.’ ” The reactions of these customers upon seeing the “Customer Guidelines” varied widely. Some ordered right away, some were scared off by the prices, and others muttered under their breath about how bizarre the shop’s rules were. As one group of customers left, another arrived. In each group, about one or two customers would end up staying to order. Some of these customers ordered the Ultimate Combo, while others ordered the Ultimate Beef Noodles à la carte. Bai Xiaobai was busy as can be—on one hand, he had to keep track of which customer ordered what; on the other, he had to devote himself entirely to preparing the food. Fortunately, Bai Xiaobai had a good memory, so everything proceeded smoothly. It was a little past 8:00 p. m. After seeing off the last customer, Bai Xiaobai rubbed his slightly aching arms. Just then, a cool, electronic voice sounded in his mind. [Ding-dong—Host, today’s 6-hour operating hours are up. It’s time to close. ] There weren’t many customers left anyway. After lowering the roll-up gate, Bai Xiaobai returned to the kitchen and, seeing the pile of dishes in the sink, felt a bit daunted. “System, if the shop gets really busy in the future, I’m going to work myself to death washing dishes. Is there any high-tech gadget—like a dishwasher—that can help out?” A cool, electronic voice rang out in her mind. 【Host, a high-tech dishwasher is scheduled to arrive tomorrow at noon. Please be sure to receive it. 】 It seems that sometimes, you have to ask for rewards yourself. Looking at it this way, the aloof System does seem to have just a tiny bit of humanity after all. Hearing that a high-tech dishwasher would arrive tomorrow at noon, Bai Xiaobai was quite pleased. After washing the last bowl, Bai Xiaobai dried his hands and tapped to check the progress of his “Awesome” mission. The progress bar showed On the first day of the “Awesome” mission, he’d sold 12 Supreme Set Meals—a pretty impressive achievement. After checking her task progress, Bai Xiaobai opened her mobile banking app. This mobile banking account was automatically linked by the system. All commission income and her own food expenses were deposited or deducted by the system through unconventional means. Bai Xiaobai felt a bit anxious. In the past, the balance in this account had mostly been negative—meaning his daily food expenses exceeded his daily earnings. The mobile banking page slowly loaded. When he saw the new income displayed there, Bai Xiaobai’s excitement took a long time to subside. He’d known he’d made a decent amount today, but he never expected that a single day’s earnings would be roughly equal to what he used to make in half a month. 2,200 yuan It wasn’t a huge amount, but it was a complete turnaround.