Chapter 365: Chapter 364: Inspired Wontons
Early the next morning, Jiang Feng went downstairs to discuss with Mrs. Wang Xiulian the possibility of introducing Ji Yue’s mom’s pickled vegetables into Taifeng Building’s nu.
He arrived just in ti for the al hour. Mr. Jiang Jiankang was using so leftover rice—it must have been from the previous night, as Jiang Feng had ntioned the pickled vegetables being particularly tasty with fried rice—so he probably cooked it up on the spot.
Mrs. Wang Xiulian had already started nibbling on a corn cob at the table.
Seeing Jiang Feng arrive, Mrs. Wang Xiulian put down the corn: “Son, what brings you here so early?”
“Mom, last night I discussed with Ji Yue, and now I want to talk to you about whether we can add her mom’s pickled vegetables to our restaurant’s supply list,” Jiang Feng got straight to the point.
Mrs. Wang Xiulian waved her hand dismissively and glanced towards the kitchen: “Let’s talk after we eat.”
It wasn’t two minutes before the pickled vegetable fried rice was ready.
In the matter of frying rice, the combined skills of Jiang Feng and Zhang Guanghang couldn’t match up to the over 20 years of experience Mr. Jiang Jiankang had in running a healthy snack business; he had fried more rice than Jiang Shoucheng and Jiang Zaidi had eaten combined.
Mr. Jiang Jiankang brought a large bowl of fried rice to the table.
Jiang Feng couldn’t help but swallow his saliva.
In preparing the fried rice, Mr. Jiang Jiankang didn’t just add pickled vegetables but also added shrimp and shredded at. Just on the surface alone, Jiang Feng saw no fewer than seven shrimp, and the shredded at and pickled vegetables mingled together under the rice, sending out an irresistible aroma.
“Son, have you eaten yet? If not, join us. Your mom has been on a diet lately and isn’t eating much for breakfast,” Mr. Jiang Jiankang said.
“I haven’t eaten yet,” Jiang Feng replied.
Jiang Feng deeply felt that Mr. Jiang Jiankang was just outrageous, frying such sinfully delicious rice while knowing Mrs. Wang Xiulian was on a diet! As their son, he just couldn’t stand by and watch!
Jiang Feng decided to lead by example, willingly playing the dutiful son, and resolved to help Mrs. Wang Xiulian finish the fried rice.
Not only did he eat, but he also called Wu Minqi down to join them.
The more they, as the younger generation, ate, the less Mrs. Wang Xiulian would have to eat. The less she ate, the less weight she would gain.
Such a moving display of mother-son affection.
A pot of fried rice filled the stomachs of four people. Without any further ado, Mrs. Wang Xiulian went straight past Jiang Feng to ask Ji Yue for her mom’s WeChat and phone number, proving with actions the old adage that children should not ddle in adults’ affairs.
Although having such a rich breakfast of fried rice early in the morning did feel sowhat greasy, high in calories, and not quite healthy, the perfect fusion of at, pickled vegetables, and rice grains lingered in Jiang Feng’s mind, even as he walked to work with Wu Minqi.
“Qiqi, how about we cook so extra rice tonight, so we can have fried rice for breakfast tomorrow?” Jiang Feng suggested.
Wu Minqi was tempted, but she quickly hesitated, rembering the weight she had secretly checked after Jiang Feng left ho that morning.
“I don’t really like to eat in the morning. You go ahead,” said Wu Minqi.
Jiang Feng: ?
Since when has Minqi had this habit? How had I never noticed before?
“Then forget it. Let’s bring the pickled vegetables to the store tomorrow and try frying them with lard residue to see how it tastes,” Jiang Feng said.
“Okay,” Wu Minqi nodded, her mind already entertaining other ideas.
It was ti to inquire about that gym Mrs. Wang often visited.
…
Today was Ji Yue’s exhausting first day back at work, and nothing eventful happened.
The next day, Jiang Feng brought half a jar of pickled vegetables to Taifeng Building, ready to make a dish of pickled vegetables stir-fried with lard residue after the lunch service to see just how versatile Ji Yue’s mom’s pickled vegetables really were.
The introduction of the pickled vegetables progressed swiftly. If this had been two years ago, Ji Yue’s mom wouldn’t have even considered selling pickled vegetables as too minor a business. But tis had changed, and Ji Yue’s mom had even prepared to set up a stall with her sister-in-law to sell pickled vegetables. Suddenly, she received an offer with a fair price, large and stable demand, and instantly agreed to it.
Mrs. Wang Xiulian took charge of the negotiation regarding the price and supply volu with Ji Yue’s mom, and Ji Yue’s aunt by marriage handled the paperwork and transportation issues. After all, Ji Yue’s two uncles had been in the pickled vegetable business before, and her aunt by marriage had traveled far and wide peddling pickled vegetables, so she was quite experienced in this field.
Unlike Jiang Feng, who only thought of using the pickled vegetables for fried rice, the professional rchant Mrs. Wang Xiulian had various thods and business ideas for the pickled vegetables in mind as soon as she tasted the fried rice. Not limited to stir-frying, she planned to offer the pickled vegetables as a deluxe VIP mbership gift in September, giving each mber a small jar. By October, she intended to begin selling the pickled vegetables in limited daily quantities, evidently aiming to expand the business extensively.
But these were not matters Jiang Feng needed to worry about. What he was concerned about was the fact that the kitchen seed to have run out of lard residue.
Would he really have to stay behind in the kitchen in the middle of the day to render lard residue just for a dish of pickled vegetables?
Jiang Feng fell into deep thought.
“Feng, I need three orders of the pure at wontons. No, make it three,” a staff mber of the indefinable Taifeng Building kitchen called out near the distribution area.
“Got it.”
The daily battle between the pure at wontons and the Sweet and Sour Yam for lunchti supremacy was about to start again, but today was a little different.
Hu Li had been watching closely for many days and finally spotted at table A11 a custor who had ordered the pure at wontons before and had co to order them again today. She hurried to the pass-through window at the serving station.
The kitchen had only two points of external access besides the door: the area where cold dishes were prepared and the pass-through window.
“Tang Tang, could you please inform the young boss about the custor he asked to keep an eye on? They are at table A11 right now,” Hu Li said, knowing full well that non-essential personnel weren’t allowed to enter the kitchen during operating hours, especially now.
“Sure, just give a second,” said Tang Tang, setting down her knife to fetch soone.
Hu Li then waited beside the kitchen door.
In less than two minutes, Jiang Feng ca out.
“`
“Are you sure you saw the custor who ordered the all-at wontons before?” Jiang Feng asked.
“Positive, at table A11. Two guys ca together, and it was him who ordered the all-at wontons last ti too. He was wearing black-rimd glasses, had single eyelids, naturally curly hair, a white shirt with black trim, and black capri pants. His skin is very pale, and he looks sowhat decadent,” Hu Li said.
Jiang Feng: …
Girl, you really should be working in intelligence with those observation skills.
“Hu Li, could you please help keep him here? Any reason will do. Or you could just tell him I’m doing so research stats and offer him a drink or a side dish on the house. Have him co to find after his al,” Jiang Feng said.
“Sure thing, boss. Don’t worry, consider it done,” Hu Li agreed without hesitation.
About half an hour later, Hu Li ca to find Jiang Feng again.
Jiang Feng entrusted the remaining dishes to Mr. Jiang Jiankang to fry on his behalf, and the prices on the ordering system were higher with Mr. Jiang Jiankang, so the custors were at no loss.
Jiang Feng walked to the ordering tablet and pressed the button to pause work next to his na, then went to the lobby in his Taifeng Building kitchen uniform.
A chef from the kitchen suddenly showing up in the lobby was not an uncommon sight at Taifeng Building. The custors had grown used to it, as both Sirs often ca out to cool off and enjoy the bustling scene in the lobby.
Jiang Feng approached table A11 and quickly identified the custor Hu Li had described.
“Hello,” Jiang Feng greeted him proactively. “I assu our staff has inford you about the situation?”
“Yes, yes, have a seat,” said the custor, who looked as worn-out as soone who had been through several consecutive days of overti. His eyes were slightly red, as if from prior crying that had not yet fully subsided, but he seed sowhat excited, “that waitress already told . I didn’t expect cooking could be so tough that even the good sales of a dish could be questioned. It’s true, it’s not easy in any profession these days.”
Jiang Feng: …
What on earth did Hu Li tell him…
“Actually, it’s not all that bad,” Jiang Feng sat down, “This ti, I mainly wanted to ask you a few questions about the dish.”
“Go ahead,” the young custor seed eager.
“So, how many tis have you ordered the all-at wontons?” Jiang Feng inquired.
“Three tis,” the young custor replied.
“Could you tell why you ordered that dish? After all, the taste of that dish is… a bit…”
“Ah, I know, you an it tastes bad, right?” The custor’s eyes lit up as he spoke, “Master Jiang, you may not realize, but that dish of yours, although it doesn’t taste that great, is actually very useful.”
“Useful?”
“Oh, sorry, I forgot you wouldn’t know. Let start from the beginning,” he said.
“The thing is, I’m an art student, and I stayed at the school over the sumr to prepare for a competition. Our instructor greatly appreciates the comic you posted on Taifeng Building’s official blog, particularly the close-up of the wontons, which he described as the soul of the entire comic. He even shared it in our competition group chat.”
“We have a senior who is a Master’s student ntored by this professor. He beca curious after hearing that your restaurant actually sells these wontons, so he ca to have a taste.”
“And then?” Jiang Feng pressed.
“And then he found, as expected, it tasted awful.”
Jiang Feng: ???
The young custor realized his slip-up and quickly tried to rectify, “No, I an, even though the wontons taste bad, they inspired our senior. He had been stuck on a painting for an exhibition without any inspiration for a long ti, but after eating your restaurant’s wontons, suddenly he found his muse and went back to lock himself in to paint. He hasn’t even co out of his dorm room yet.”
“So you guys…”
The young custor laughed sheepishly, “It’s just one of those things, you know. Inspiration isn’t sothing you can just summon on demand. It’s better to believe it could help, even if it doesn’t bring inspiration, than to not believe at all. Even if I didn’t find inspiration, having feelings is still good, so we just… But Master Jiang, your wontons are really sothing. I didn’t feel much the first ti, but after the second ti, I really started to feel sothing. It’s all thanks to you. I feel like my painting will stand out in our academy’s competition!”
Jiang Feng: …
The first ti he tried the dish, he cried once. Now he’s coming back for a second cry in search of inspiration. You artists are truly terrifying.
“Congratulations, congratulations! What are you painting for the competition, if you don’t mind asking?” Jiang Feng inquired casually.
“Destruction.”
Jiang Feng: ???
Jiang Feng could only cover his embarrassnt with a dry laugh, now fully aware of the reason behind the sudden popularity of the all-at wontons.
It was just a group of art students trying to find their painting inspiration through superstitions, akin to the belief in jinxes like wearing a Conan O’Brien pin or not, and, astonishingly, it worked for a few of them.
Indeed, the price of success is steep.
“Thank you so much. I’ve asked everything I wanted to ask,” Jiang Feng stood up.
“No problem at all,” the young custor replied eagerly, sowhat restrained as he spoke the words he’d longed to say, “Um, Master Jiang, would it be okay… to shake your hand? My left hand, please. I’m a lefty.”
“Huh?”
“I should finish my painting within a week, all thanks to your wontons. I want to shake your hand, maybe get… so more inspiration,” the custor’s excitent mirrored that of a fan at an idol’s handshake event.
Jiang Feng: ???
What’s with you artists…?
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