An authentic Singaporean breakfast (technique)

My new job was simple. All I had to do was contact suppliers, check invoices, and tally delivery slips.

The company even had a break room that offered coffee, desserts, and more. Compared with my old days of eating everything boiled, it was a world of difference.

I got off work on time, which left me with plenty of extra time in the evenings to read the books Master had left me.

One evening, while I was reading, someone knocked on our bedroom door.

I opened it to find Brother Wei and an unfamiliar man standing outside.

"Brother Wei?" I was surprised. In all the time I had lived here, this was the first time he had knocked on my door.

We rarely visited each other's rooms.

"Sanhe, this is the landlord," Brother Wei introduced him.

"The landlord?" I was even more surprised. "The legendary landlord? Here to see me?"

Brother Wei and the landlord both laughed.

"My name is Chen Wenjie," the landlord introduced himself. "Mr. Cai mentioned you to me. There's something I'd like your help with. Asking over the phone didn't seem sincere enough, so I wanted to meet you in person."

"Hello, President Chen." I nodded in greeting.

Birds of a feather really did flock together. Mr. Cai was considerate down to the smallest detail, and President Chen was equally gentle and courteous in his speech.

From the moment I opened the door, I had been studying President Chen's features.

His eyebrows were light and fine, with skin visible between the individual hairs, and were elegant, straight, and smooth. These indicated the favor of auspicious stars, keen intuition, and good fortune.

Many people assumed that thick eyebrows and large eyes were signs of a favorable face.

In fact, eyebrows that were dense, dark, coarse, and long indicated a cold-hearted nature. If they grew against the natural direction, they also suggested a volatile temper and impulsiveness.

People with clearly defined eyebrows and skin visible between the hairs tended to be intellectual types.

Those with thick, robust eyebrows tended to be military types. Such people were impatient and bold, fond of charging into battle, but comparatively lacking in intuition.

All these thoughts passed through my mind in a flash.

"Are you free right now? Would it be convenient to go somewhere and sit down together?" President Chen asked.

It probably concerned something private that he didn't feel comfortable discussing here.

I nodded and followed him downstairs.

"My job's done, so I'll leave you two to talk," Brother Wei said with a smile.

"Thanks for your help, Wei." President Chen nodded in thanks.

After Wei went back inside, only President Chen and I remained, walking out together.

We found a nearby café by the entrance. There weren't many people around the villa district, so it was fairly quiet.

After a little small talk, President Chen explained why he had come. "I'm here today because of my daughter. She's sixteen this year, but she can't leave the house. Whenever she does, she throws up. The hospital couldn't find anything wrong, and we don't know whether Feng Shui might be the cause. Could I ask you to come and take a look, sir?"

I had already read well over half of the books Master had given me.

Deep down, I trusted the accuracy of what Master had taught me, but I wanted even more to test it for myself in real life. Given an opportunity to put it into practice, I was more than happy to take a look.

I checked the time. "It's a little late today. Tomorrow happens to be the weekend. Could we make it tomorrow morning? I work on weekdays."

"Hmm..." President Chen hesitated. "We have an appointment with a psychologist tomorrow morning. We don't know whether it's a psychological issue or a Feng Shui problem. Would you mind, sir? Or we could make it the day after tomorrow."

"It's understandable to seek help wherever you can when someone's ill. I don't mind, as long as the psychologist doesn't," I said frankly.

President Chen visibly relaxed. "He's visited before and had a private talk with her. Tomorrow, he'll just be administering a set of psychological tests. Other people can be present."

We happily settled on a time to meet the next day.

Early the next morning, when I went downstairs, President Chen was already waiting at the entrance.

"I'll take you to try an authentic Singaporean breakfast first. After we eat, we'll head over," Mr. Chen said.

"Sounds good. I've been in Singapore all this time, but I really don't know what an authentic Singaporean breakfast is like."

I wasn't fussy about food, and I hadn't looked into Singaporean cuisine.

President Chen took me to Ya Kun and went ahead and ordered two set meals.

Four slices of bread, two cups of coffee, and four eggs were brought over.

The eggs were soaking in hot water.

"You take the eggs out after soaking them for a few minutes. They're half-cooked and taste best with soy sauce," President Chen said as he demonstrated.

I copied him. I had never eaten raw eggs before. Wouldn't they taste fishy? I wondered uneasily.

I added soy sauce and stirred. To my surprise, they tasted pretty good-even better than fully cooked eggs.

The toast tasted even better. It was just white bread, toasted and spread with jam, crisp and sweet, with a lovely aroma.

"Ya Kun's coffee is quite authentic," President Chen explained.

Coffee was something I really didn't know how to appreciate.

"Coffee all tastes pretty much the same to me. The only difference I can really tell is whether it has sugar," I said.

"Ha ha, Mr. Sanhe, you really are a straightforward man." President Chen laughed heartily.

Well, people of real standing lift each other up. Even not knowing how to appreciate coffee can earn you praise for your character, I mused.