Zhang Hupan could not understand Liu Xizhen's excitement at all. Since childhood, Liu Xizhen had been showered with endless love. Although Liu Zhiyi was a man who valued settling grudges and repaying kindness, he had always cared for Liu Xizhen meticulously, never daring to be careless in the slightest. No matter how busy he was with work, every weekend Liu Zhiyi would personally cook the dishes Liu Xizhen liked. So many years had passed, yet the warmth of that family life still inspired endless nostalgia. Although Liu Xizhen was now a mother, she had been spoiled from childhood and did not know how to cook. Thus, ever since her father's death, Liu Xizhen had never eaten at home. To ordinary people, eating at home might be a very mundane thing, but to Liu Xizhen, it was an unattainable luxury! To Liu Xizhen, home had become something very distant. After her father died, Liu Xizhen never again experienced the warmth of a family, and the two women had only each other to depend on. Now, Zhang Hupan's suggestion had reminded her of that familial warmth and made her yearn to experience that long-lost family atmosphere once more.
Women were born shopaholics. Whether strolling through a department store or browsing street stalls, even shopping at a supermarket was no exception. Since she had not cooked at home for several years, aside from relatively permanent kitchen fixtures like the range hood and gas stove, the house was practically devoid of kitchenware and dining utensils. The amount of shopping required was enormous! What was more, women were naturally fond of picking and choosing. Even with his cultivation at the Nascent Soul Stage, Zhang Hupan cried out inwardly for mercy! After more than an hour of shopping, Liu Xizhen finally stopped her frenzy. Under the cashier's astonished gaze, poor Zhang Hupan left the supermarket carrying bags of all sizes like a peasant worker heading out for employment. If the cashier knew that all this was merely for cooking a meal at home, who knew what her expression would have been?
There were simply too many things, and Zhang Hupan could not very well put them into his storage ring in broad daylight. On top of that, Liu Xizhen was eager to get home and cook, so even though her home was not far from the supermarket and they had free labor available, they still called a taxi. When they passed Western Paradise, Zhang Hupan suddenly remembered something. He asked Liu Xizhen for the bar's key, hurried back inside, and fetched some bartending equipment and foreign liquor. Liu Xizhen was very curious about his actions. Could he actually mix drinks? It was a difficult and artistic profession that took several years to master. Zhang Hupan had only been at the bar for a little over a month, so Liu Xizhen simply could not associate him with bartending. When she asked what he wanted those things for, Zhang Hupan looked at her as if she were an idiot and said, "What else? To mix drinks, of course!"
"Giggle, giggle, giggle! I'm dying of laughter! You know how to mix drinks? Stop bragging!" For some reason, Liu Xizhen found herself especially uninhibited whenever she was with Zhang Hupan. Already convinced that he absolutely could not mix drinks, she burst into unrestrained laughter when she heard him claim that he could.
As an expert at the Nascent Soul Stage, Zhang Hupan did not merely know how to mix drinks. He could brew alcohol directly in his hands simply by picking up the ingredients. Poor Zhang Hupan was the supreme existence of Wudang, yet he was mocked by an ordinary woman of the mundane world. He could not show even the slightest displeasure and could only console himself inwardly that he would not stoop to arguing with a woman.
All women seemed to have a touch of cleanliness obsession, especially noble women like Liu Xizhen, who came from a good background and possessed extraordinary looks. Their symptoms were even more severe. The moment they arrived home, she dropped onto the sofa and said coquettishly, "I'm exhausted!" Her delicate hand kept fanning herself up and down with a tissue. Before Zhang Hupan could fully appreciate Liu Xizhen's graceful, charming, and alluringly languid appearance, Liu Xizhen had already knitted her brows slightly and dashed toward the second floor. Nearing the stairs, she turned back and gave Zhang Hupan a coquettish smile. "Hupan, I'll leave downstairs to you. I'm going to take a quick shower!" With that, she vanished like a gust of wind, leaving behind only a string of delicate laughter. Liu Xizhen was clearly in an excellent mood today!
The kitchen and dining room were both on the first floor, so Zhang Hupan did not follow Liu Xizhen upstairs, even though he really wanted to. Modern society was filled with advanced technology everywhere, and kitchens were no exception. Range hoods, gas stoves, pressure cookers, and the like were all unfamiliar to Zhang Hupan, who had once cooked with firewood and iron pots. Zhang Hupan was an exceptionally intelligent man; otherwise, how could he have broken through to the Golden Core Stage at the age of one hundred, become a Nascent Soul Stage expert, and create a miracle in the cultivation world? Even so, these unfamiliar kitchen appliances took him fifteen minutes to figure out. Fortunately, Liu Xizhen was showering. Otherwise, if she had seen the curiosity in Zhang Hupan's eyes as he examined the appliances, she would probably have ordered takeout or gone out to eat immediately. However, the splashing sound of Liu Xizhen showering upstairs also distracted Zhang Hupan, whose ears were far sharper than ordinary people's, reducing his learning efficiency. Otherwise, he should have figured out how to use all the appliances within ten minutes.
Now that he had overcome the crucial problem of learning to use the kitchen appliances, cooking was an effortless task for Zhang Hupan, who had worked in the culinary profession for nearly a century.
Since Liu Xizhen was not around, Zhang Hupan did not need to deliberately conceal his astonishingly superb skills. If anyone—or any chef—had happened to pass by, they would certainly have been left dumbfounded, unable to believe what was happening before their eyes.
To Zhang Hupan, chopping vegetables, killing fish, and scraping scales required no knives at all. Any true martial arts expert could reach the state where "I am the blade, and the blade is me," let alone Zhang Hupan, who was already practically an immortal. Zhang Hupan merely used a little spiritual power, and all the vegetables and fish were prepared in an instant. All that remained was cooking.
In the Xuanwu Immortal Realm, Zhang Hupan had once studied diligently to satisfy Zhang Sanfeng's appetite, learning all kinds of famous dishes from ancient and modern times, from China and abroad, as well as local cuisines. He had even concocted various highly unique seasonings himself. Their flavor was absolutely beyond comparison with modern-day monosodium glutamate and soy sauce. Since there were only two people, he did not prepare too many dishes, but he still cooked six dishes and one soup, all of them Hangzhou Cuisine.
In truth, Hangzhou Cuisine was a "melting-pot cuisine." Its origins could be traced back more than a thousand years to the Southern Song dynasty. At the time, Lin'an was a prosperous capital where famous chefs from north and south gathered, along with merchants from every region, bringing Hangzhou Cuisine to its peak. Historically, Hangzhou Cuisine was divided into the "Lake Style" and "City Style" schools. The former primarily used fish, shrimp, and poultry, specializing in techniques such as stir-frying raw ingredients, clear simmering, and tender-sliding. It emphasized clean, fresh, crisp, and tender flavors while preserving the ingredients' original taste. The latter used more meat and focused on steaming, braising, poaching, and roasting. It emphasized light oil, light sauce, and clean, delicate flavors, combining freshness with saltiness.
Perhaps Zhang Hupan was the only person throughout history to work as a chef for a hundred years. It was therefore destined that his cooking would be without precedent and without equal. Although Zhang Hupan's dishes were derived from Hangzhou Cuisine and bore the deep marks of both the "Lake Style" and "City Style" schools, they had far surpassed them both.
"West Lake Vinegar Fish," "Braised Pork Ribs," "Garlic Mashed Amaranth," "Deep-fried Eggplant with Garlic Crumbs," "Crispy Winter Melon," "Eye-brightening Bitter Gourd," and "West Lake Water Shield Soup." The six dishes and one soup came effortlessly to him. Thick aromas immediately filled the kitchen, stirring boundless appetites.
Women always took their time when bathing, carefully perfecting every detail. Men, unlike women, could finish the arduous task of bathing after one vigorous wolf howl of a song. Sure enough, after Zhang Hupan had arranged all the dishes on the dining table, the beautiful woman still had not emerged from the bath. Of course, with a century of experience as a chef and cultivation at the Nascent Soul Stage, Zhang Hupan cooked four or five times faster than ordinary people. That was one reason the food was ready long before the female lead appeared.
After finishing the meal, Zhang Hupan began worrying about Liu Xizhen's birthday present again! His Universe Ring contained countless pieces of fine jade, and Zhang Hupan now knew their value. Giving one to Liu Xizhen certainly would not seem stingy. Although the jadeite he had given Liu Feifei last time had not attracted Liu Xizhen's attention—she had merely thought it was a high-quality imitation—Zhang Hupan did not want to take out another piece of jadeite worth a fortune to give away. On one hand, the fact that Liu Xizhen had failed to recognize the jadeite's value last time did not mean she would fail to recognize it this time! Once Liu Xizhen learned its value, Zhang Hupan would have trouble coming up with a suitable explanation. On the other hand, if Liu Xizhen thought the jadeite was merely an imitation, Zhang Hupan would feel even worse. They were both adults, yet he was giving her a fake. That was too low-class and too embarrassing! (To be continued)
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