After finishing the meat pie and fruit tea, Xue Xi wrapped up her first taste of food made to look and taste like the real thing. Overall, it had been pretty good. Seeing that she had finished eating, Kevin's bark-like face creased with wrinkles. "Well? Still disappointed, little girl?"
Xue Xi patted her belly and hopped down from the two-meter-high stool. "It was all right. At least it wasn't an energy bar. Thanks for the hospitality, Uncle Kevin."
"Oh? From the way you're talking, little girl, have you had even better food?" Kevin asked, raising an eyebrow.
Xue Xi thought for a moment, then took a still-warm Desolate Rank Braised Pork Knuckle out of her storage space. The odds of this causing any trouble were practically nonexistent, so she might as well let this Huaxia dish give the Silver Glow chef, who cooked with machines, a little culinary shock.
She set the Braised Pork Knuckle on the table and turned to leave. As she walked, she said, "Machine cooking is precise and fast, and it doesn't make mistakes. But it lacks the warmth and creativity people bring to their cooking. Food shouldn't be cold and lifeless. I'll be off now, Uncle. I hope your cooking gets even better by the next time we meet. Goodbye!"
With that, she headed back the way she had come. Kevin watched her strikingly handsome figure recede and shook his head, then turned his gaze to the still-warm Braised Pork Knuckle on the table.
He brought over a nearby testing device and checked that the dish contained nothing harmful. Only then did he pick up the plate, which was no bigger than his palm, and tip the whole thing, sauce and all, into his mouth. His blue cheeks bulged as he chewed.
A strange flavor