Congee

The girl finished paying the bill via WeChat and left with her boyfriend. Jiang Feng efficiently cleared the tables while Qiu Chen watched, dumbfounded.

"Brother Feng, is your restaurant's 'clean plate' policy that strict?" Qiu Chen hadn't finished editing his social media post and was completely shocked by the young woman's forceful actions.

"She misunderstood," Jiang Feng explained.

"Ding, gained 1 Fame, Quest Progress (3/100)."

"Brother Feng, we'll help you!" Liu Zixuan, having posted his update first, eagerly took a plate.

Jiang Feng didn't stop him. "It's just my parents in the kitchen. You can put the plates in the dishwasher; they won't question my mom."

Liu Zixuan claimed he knew how to use the dishwasher and carried the plates into the kitchen.

"Ding, gained 1 Fame, Quest Progress (4/100)."

"Ding, gained 1 Fame, Quest Progress (5/100)."

"Ding, gained 1 Fame, Quest Progress (6/100)."

The other three also started helping, taking orders and clearing simple items from the tables. Though not as skilled as Jiang Feng, they didn't make any mistakes.

Jiang Feng realized his planning had been insufficient. He had always thought the old small shop didn't need extra staff, but now he saw the need to hire some student workers.

He used to think nearby small restaurants that hired student workers for a few hundred yuan a month plus two meals were exploiting them. Now that he was hiring, he realized student workers were the best option.

They were cheap during meal times and saved money on labor.

Liu Zixuan was in the kitchen for a long time. When he came out, he was holding a plate of shredded pork with garlic sauce, a trace of sauce still on his lips.

"You little thief, you ate some!" Wang Hao immediately noticed the unusual mark on Liu Zixuan's mouth. Thinking about the meal they had just finished, he sighed, "How could you still eat?"

"Auntie gave me a cup of herbal tea," Liu Zixuan replied, savoring the memory.

Upon entering the kitchen, he had been surprised by the size difference between Jiang Feng's parents and himself. After drinking the herbal tea, he couldn't think of anything else.

Auntie Jiang was truly an angel.

Though a bit on the plump side.

The professors were the last guests to leave.

As the professors departed, Professor Li smiled and said a few words to Jiang Feng, which made Liu Zixuan, standing at a distance, freeze in surprise.

Of the group, only Liu Zixuan had taken Professor Li's class. He knew how stern the old professor was, how he never smiled at students, and how mercilessly he failed people during finals – a veritable elderly Rakshasa.

"Brother Feng, what did Professor Li say just now?" Liu Zixuan asked curiously after the professors had left.

"The professor asked if I was from Yanjing and if my grandfather's generation was from Yanjing," Jiang Feng replied, finding it strange. Why would Professor Li ask that after just one meal?

Jiang Jiankang's specialty was Lu Cuisine, not Beijing Cuisine. Although the two had similarities, it wasn't enough to make someone think Jiang Jiankang was from Yanjing.

"Your family's specialty is Lu Cuisine, right?" Liu Zixuan had some knowledge about food.

"Perhaps Professor Li drank the sour plum drink and found it tasted authentically like Yanjing, so he asked," Jiang Feng said.

"Right, do you guys..." Jiang Feng was about to ask if they wanted to eat together, but then he remembered they had already eaten. He quickly changed his question, "Do you want to join us for dinner tonight?"

The four nodded so rapidly their heads were almost vibrating at 20Hz.

Qiu Chen and the other three left happily, each holding a cup of herbal tea. Wang Hao, despite having sneakily drunk a lot of sour plum drink, herbal tea, and mung bean soup, heroically maintained his normal appetite. Jiang Feng estimated that if Wang Hao continued eating at this rate, he would soon surpass his elder cousin, Jiang Zaide, in size.

In the afternoon, Jiang Feng wrote a notice for part-time jobs and posted it on the glass outside the restaurant.

Hiring: Part-time workers, delivery drivers. Two meals provided. Salary negotiable.

After posting the hiring notice, Jiang Feng went inside and found a corner to check his status panel.

His knife skills had improved by 326 proficiency points from cutting vegetables all morning. The main quest progress was now (19/100), which was very encouraging. He estimated that if he continued the "clean plate" discount for a few more days, he could complete the quest.

"Ding, Activity gained 1 Fame, Quest Progress (20/100)."

He had gained a point of Fame out of nowhere!

Jiang Feng was momentarily stunned but quickly realized.

It was likely that customers from lunch had recommended Healthy Stir-fry Restaurant to their friends, similar to posting on social media, and both actions could earn Fame.

It seemed the main quest would be completed soon.

Jiang Jiankang and Wang Xiulian, tired from a long day, went upstairs to rest. Jiang Feng took the opportunity to start a fire in the kitchen and cook several pots of congee.

He hadn't cooked congee since acquiring the Congee Making (Intermediate) skill, so this was a perfect chance to see how it tasted.

Jiang Feng cooked two pots of congee: one Preserved Egg and Lean Pork Congee and one Black Rice Congee.

One sweet, one savory. The Sour Plum Drink had sold out, so tonight he would serve congee, a small bowl for each person, just enough to fill their stomachs.

Guided by his Intermediate Congee Making skill, Jiang Feng could expertly sense when to use high heat, when to use low heat, when to stir, and when to add ingredients, as if possessed by a culinary god. Normally, one would need decades of congee-making experience to have such keen intuition.

The two pots of congee were ready.

[Preserved Egg and Lean Pork Congee: Taste is acceptable, preserved egg not finely minced, lean pork not marinated long enough.]

[Black Rice Congee: Taste is acceptable, oats not fresh.]

Jiang Feng tasted them. The flavor was already comparable to the congee made by Jiang Jiankang.

He went to the shop entrance and changed the special offer to "Receive a free bowl of congee with dine-in." Jiang Feng prepared to open for business.

Go upstairs and wake up Comrade Jiang Jiankang and Comrade Wang Xiulian, who had already fallen asleep. While you're at it, have them come down to taste the freshly brewed congee.

Jiang Jiankang sleepily took a sip of the congee.

"Ding, you have gained 9 experience points."

Comrade Wang Xiulian yawned and took a sip of the congee.

"Ding, you have gained 11 experience points."

Jiang Feng: ...

Just then, Wang Hao came to help at the restaurant.

"Haozi, try this freshly brewed black rice congee." Wang Hao has a sweet tooth, so Jiang Feng offered him the sweet congee.

"Ding, you have gained 31 experience points."

Jiang Feng: ...

Haozi, you've changed. You weren't like this yesterday.