A Miscalculation (First Update)

The dish was clearly steaming. Even the chef carrying the plate seemed to find it hot to the touch, yet when it entered Zhao Ke's mouth, it was icy and hard, even slightly undercooked.

If not for the aroma of the dish before him, which convinced Zhao Ke that it was undoubtedly a rare delicacy, he would have suspected the little old man of deliberately making a fool of him.

"Little brother, how does it taste?"

Zhao Ke turned around and saw the little old man looking at him earnestly, waiting for his evaluation of this signature dish.

"Mm... delicious!"

Going against his conscience, Zhao Ke barely maintained the smile on his face as he swallowed the sweet-and-sour pork in his mouth.

Hearing Zhao Ke say it was good, the little old man immediately revealed a smug look and said with satisfaction, "Of course. Let me tell you, I put quite a lot of thought into this dish..."

The little old man proceeded to explain the entire process behind the dish from beginning to end. Though Zhao Ke could not taste its flavor, merely hearing the process was enough for him to form a basic assessment of it.

"Come, have some tea. You have refined tastes, little brother. How come I've never seen you before?"

The little old man personally handed Zhao Ke a cup of tea, making the other chefs in the kitchen look on with envy.

Their master had been in the Bai Family for at least three or four hundred years. He was supposedly a chef, but no one knew what his true identity was.

Some said he had originally been one of the Bai Family's elders. Others said he had been the spirit medium of the Bai Family's first generation.

But apart from the little old man himself, no one could say for certain who he was. Even the Bai Family's stewards usually greeted him warmly as Master.

In any case, after following the little old man in the kitchen for so long, they had never seen him treat anyone so warmly except the Bai Family's young lady.

Zhao Ke took the tea and sipped it at his lips. It smelled delicately fragrant, but it was cold and bitter in his mouth, like stale tea that had sat for days.

Watching the little old man sip his tea in small mouthfuls, seemingly very satisfied with it, Zhao Ke could not help but wonder, Could it be... because I'm alive?

The more Zhao Ke thought about it, the more plausible it seemed. Whether it was Cui Lan, the sweet-and-sour pork he had just tasted, or even the tea in his hand, everything made him feel completely out of place here.

In the end, it was because he was alive. No matter what it was, everything in the underworld felt ice-cold when he touched it.

Thinking of this, Zhao Ke could not help glancing at the flames on the stove. An idea popped into his mind, and he turned back to the little old man. "My master only entered the Bai Family today and has not yet completed the seven-day initiation, so naturally you haven't seen me before."

"Oh, oh, oh! So today's wedding feast was for your household." The little old man nodded repeatedly, and his gaze toward Zhao Ke gained another measure of goodwill.

"To be honest, old sir, your sweet-and-sour pork truly is exceptional. Being able to taste such a dish is this humble one's honor. How about I make a dish for you to try?"

"You?"

The little old man looked Zhao Ke over from head to toe, curiosity appearing in his eyes. He immediately nodded in agreement and followed Zhao Ke to the stove, standing aside to observe.

"Little brother, what ingredients do you need? I'll have them prepare them for you."

Hearing that, Zhao Ke looked at the basin of rice noodles on the table and raised a brow. "This will do."

"Rice noodles?"

Seeing that Zhao Ke had chosen only rice noodles, the surrounding chefs immediately looked somewhat disappointed. They could not imagine what tricks he could make with a mere basin of rice noodles.

The little old man, however, narrowed his eyes and stood behind Zhao Ke, eagerly anticipating what he would do next.

Of course, he also wanted to find fault with him. No matter how straightforward the little old man was, being challenged for no reason still made him lose face. Naturally, he wanted to win some of that face back.

But that small hope was quickly dashed. Zhao Ke picked up a chef's knife, and bang, bang, bang... The blade moved swiftly and deftly in his hand, slicing and carving. Before long, a peony carved from a radish took shape.

This knife work alone was enough to astonish the little old man. If even he was impressed, there was no need to mention the other chefs.

A chef's skill could often be judged by knife work alone. The little resentment they had felt toward Zhao Ke vanished completely the moment he made his move.

Sizzle...

He stir-fried over roaring flames. As a ladleful of hot oil flipped, flames surged up from the wok in an instant. The wave of heat rushing toward them made the surrounding chefs retreat.

Just as I thought!

Zhao Ke's heart tightened. Faced with the blazing fire in the wok, he did not feel hot at all. Instead, it felt as though an icy wind had blown over him. He shuddered, and goosebumps rose across his arms.

It was not just the fire. Even the oil already ignited in the wok was the same. Zhao Ke quickly flicked a droplet onto his hand with a spoon, yet he did not feel the slightest warmth.

It seems everything in the underworld is completely opposite to the world of the living.

Zhao Ke steadied himself. Although he could not sense heat or temperature, it did not hinder his cooking. Instead, it gave him an entirely new experience.

He deliberately turned the fire to its highest setting, added the ingredients he had prepared, and began stir-frying them rapidly. Relying on the scent wafting from the wok, Zhao Ke could still accurately judge the heat.

Salt, vinegar, sesame oil—he added the seasonings and stir-fried everything. It looked little different from ordinary fried rice noodles, but soon Zhao Ke lowered the heat, added more ingredients, mixed in the beef from the plate beside him, and stir-fried again.

Then Zhao Ke stirred the contents with his chopsticks. The rice noodles wrapped around the beef and rolled into flower-like coils before he placed them onto a plate.

"That beef seems a little raw!"

Before the little old man could speak, the other chefs nearby could not help reminding him. Although beef could be eaten rare, Zhao Ke had only stir-fried it once. It was probably only thirty percent cooked.

Zhao Ke ignored the chefs' reminder. He took a bottle of Maotai from his storage ring, poured a circle of it over the rice noodles, and lit the Maotai with his hand. At once, a streak of pure blue flame ignited on the plate.

As the flames burned, the rice noodles on the plate rapidly tightened. The beef wrapped inside was immediately squeezed, forcing out golden oil that released beef's distinctive aroma as it roasted.

"Volcanic Beef Ho Fun. Please offer your critique."

Zhao Ke bowed slightly, indicating that the little old man should taste it.

"Not bad! Using liquor for the final heating brings out the meat's aroma while preserving the texture of both the meat and rice noodles. The younger generation is truly formidable."

Though the little old man had not tasted it himself, Zhao Ke's technique gave him a clear enough idea. He could not help nodding in praise.

"I happen to be short an assistant. Would you be willing to help me here, little brother? Naturally, I won't have you work for nothing. You can serve as sous-chef here, and I'll give you a monthly stipend."

As soon as the little old man finished speaking, Zhao Ke received a prompt by his ear.

You have obtained an extended mission: Kitchen Assistant

Hint: Serving as an assistant under the Ghost Chef King will earn you decent treatment, as well as a certain status and position within the Bai Family.

Mission requirements: Prepare one main dish each day. It must receive the Ghost Chef King's approval, or the mission will fail.

Upon receiving the mission prompt, Zhao Ke raised a brow and narrowed his eyes at the little old man before him. Clearly, this three-foot-tall fellow was the Ghost Chef King mentioned in the mission.

Zhao Ke did not agree immediately. Instead, he held up a finger. "Fine, but my stipend must be settled daily!"

This main mission only gave him seven days. Though he did not know what a monthly stipend consisted of, he clearly could not wait that long.

If that was not possible, Zhao Ke would rather give up this mission and look elsewhere.

"Fine!"

To Zhao Ke's surprise, the little old man agreed without even thinking. He casually handed Zhao Ke a pouch and said, "Then start today. This is today's stipend."

Zhao Ke took the pouch and looked inside. It contained a stack of hell banknotes and several gold ingots. His mouth twitched, and regret surged through him. He had miscalculated.

Not only were these things useless to him, even if he brought them back, they would merely be a pile of spirit money. What use would that be?

But since he had already nodded in agreement, Zhao Ke could not openly go back on his word. He could only accept the job.

"I only arrived today and still have things to sort out. I'll come back tomorrow."

"Alright, alright, alright. This is the kitchen's token. Take it."

The little old man handed Zhao Ke a waist token. Zhao Ke took it and examined it. It appeared to be made of gold, but it was very light in his hand.

After putting away the token, Zhao Ke rose to take his leave.

"Master Dian, this man's cooking may be good, but he uses far too much oil. Look... more than half the oil is gone."

One of the chefs carried over the basin of oil Zhao Ke had used and complained to the little old man.

"It's not that he used too much oil. This dish simply requires a lot of it. Bring it here."

The little old man had the chef bring the oil basin closer. He grabbed the braid at the back of his head and yanked hard. Sss... A crack split open across his forehead. Lowering his head over the basin, he poured a stream of greenish-yellow oil from inside his skull into it.

There will be two more updates tonight. I'm going to take off my makeup, then I'll be right back to write.