When Ji Yue found the plastic container that w.a.n.g Xiulian had shoved into the storage room, Professor Li had already left with Li Ming."W… what should we do with the Buddha"s Temptation?" Ji Yue asked while holding the container.
The customer had left the food untouched.
w.a.n.g Hao drooled as he stared at the dish. "Why don"t we have a taste?"
Even though the Buddha"s Temptation was covered, the aroma still lingered throughout the restaurant.
"No!" Ji Yue scolded as she blocked w.a.n.g Hao.
"Hao"zi, I remember you noted down Professor Li"s phone number yesterday, right? Do you still have it in your bag?" Jiang Feng recalled.
"Oh, right! I do have it in my bag!" w.a.n.g Hao exclaimed and ran to the counter to grab his bag.
w.a.n.g Hao then pulled out his textbook for Information and Systems. On the first page were Professor Li"s full name, Li Mingjun, and his phone number.
Since most students would jot down their professor"s name and number on the textbook, from time to time, professors of A University would get calls from restaurants telling them that they left their books in the shop.
Jiang Feng took out his phone and called Li Mingjun.
The call was picked up 20 seconds later.
"Professor Li? It"s Jiang Feng," Jiang Feng greeted. "You left the Buddha"s Temptation at the restaurant."
"Oh, right, I"m so sorry," Professor Li apologized as coughs from an old man could be heard from the other side of the phone. "I"ll go back to the restaurant with my wife later."
After hanging up the call, Jiang Feng took the jar with the dish inside back to the kitchen. w.a.n.g Hao helped Ji Yue take out the trash. Disappointment could be evidently seen on w.a.n.g Hao"s face. The others who helped out at the restaurant went back to the campus as they had cla.s.ses after lunch. They would have to stay in the ocean of knowledge until six before they could return to the sh.o.r.e.
Even though Jiang Jiankang wasn"t showing it on his face, Jiang Feng, as his son, could tell that Jiang Jiankang was also disappointed. Every roll of fat and every meaty bone in Jiang Jiankang"s body was in a bad mood.
"Dad? Is everything okay?" Jiang Feng asked as he followed Jiang Jiankang into the kitchen.
Jiang Jiankang took his knife and started to cut the peppers in front of him into slices. Every cut was filled with power as if the peppers had wronged him.
"I could not believe I"ve ruined such great ingredients…" Jiang Jiankang sighed.
"Really? But I think the dish came out quite good," Jiang Feng lied.
Jiang Feng knew that the Buddha"s Temptation wasn"t anywhere near good. He was even lazy to look at the remarks from the system on the dish. Overcooked, too much shark"s fin, the abalone was cut too big, the shark"s lip wasn"t softened enough. These were only a few of the problems.
But Jiang Jiankang shouldn"t blame himself as it was a difficult dish to make.
"My precious ham…" Jiang Jiankang sobbed. "And I didn"t have the time to braise my pork hock today…"
"…" Jiang Feng looked at his father, speechlessly.
Sorry for interrupting.
Jiang Jiankang was once again in charge of the kitchen. The aroma from the Buddha"s Temptation had attracted a lot of customers. Most of them were enchanted by the smell and hadn"t ordered anything yet. The first floor was already fully seated. Jiang Jiankang started his usual busy work again.
Jiang Feng went back to helping out with cutting and plating again, a position where he couldn"t gain experience.
Not long after that, four students from the Chinese chess club who were supposed to help out rushed into the kitchen without even putting down their bags first. They opened the fridge and took out either a cup of Sour Prune Juice or a bowl of Mung Bean Soup for themselves. After treating themselves like hungry wolves, they finally put their bags down and helped with the front desk.
As Jiang Feng looked at the four members, he started to worry about the member recruitment starting next week.
Most other clubs would have students who exceled in a certain aspect or members who have good looks. But for the Chinese chess club, they didn"t have anything, not even fees to operate.
While other clubs could perform to attract freshmen, there was nothing the Chinese chess club could do.
All they did in the previous year was have a mock game between members just for show. Jiang Feng had no idea what they should do.
No way I"m going to give out free Sour Prune Juice, right?
Jiang Feng couldn"t help but worry about the club"s future as he julienned the carrots in front of him.
What"s with all the carrots mom has been buying everyday? Are they on sale?
After the carrots were cut into strips, Jiang Feng went out of the kitchen as Li Mingjun and his wife came back to the restaurant.
Even though taking the whole jar back was the best way to keep the original flavor, it was too much to ask of the restaurant. Ji Yue carefully transferred the food, which possibly cost a year"s worth of her pay, into the plastic container.
"Jiang Feng, I have a favor to ask of you," Li Mingjun said as he handed Jiang Feng a letter. "My father… he has stage IV stomach cancer, and it has been affecting his appet.i.te. I hope you can help cook his lunch and dinner for the next few days."
The importance of the request scared Jiang Feng a little. As he was about to refuse, the system message rang in his head.
"Ding! Side Quest found. Please accept to proceed."
It was another side quest.
Jiang Feng was shocked by it. At the moment, he already had two quests centered around Li Ming. He couldn"t help but wonder why the game system placed such a high value on the old man.
Jiang Feng took the letter and said. "I think you should look for my dad. His skill is so much better than mine."
"My father specifically says he wants you to cook. It seems he likes you a lot," Li Mingjun replied with a warm smile. "It has been quite some time since I last saw my father this happy."
Jiang Feng couldn"t help but touch his own face.
I don"t remember having a face that could make people happy…
Even though Jiang Feng thought that his looks were decent, it wasn"t to the point of charming.
"I"ll leave the task to you then," Li Mingjun thanked.
"Leave it to me," Jiang Feng replied. Being treated friendly by Li Mingjun, who was famous for being strict to his students, frightened Jiang Feng a little.
After Ji Yue transferred the food into the container, Li Mingjun"s wife took the food and left with her husband. She did not forget to smile at Jiang Feng warmly before leaving.
"Looks like your professor likes you a lot," Ji Yue said.
"What?"
"I thought he was quite a strict teacher when I saw him this afternoon, just like my English teacher during my freshman year," Ji Yue said as she recalled the lecturer from the Philippines. "That old woman! Always scolding me in English because I couldn"t understand it."
Looks like people were right. Women are scary when you offend them.
After Ji Yue left, Jiang Feng opened the letter. In it were a few banknotes and a note.
The note was written vigorously onto the paper. It was a recipe for a Healthy Congee.
It was almost the same as Jiang Jiankang"s recipe, with a few minor changes and pork liver added into it.
And Jiang Jiankang"s recipe was pa.s.sed down to him by Jiang Weiguo.
Jiang Feng was awestruck. He wondered why his professor had the recipe for Jiang family cuisine"s congee.
Jiang Feng quickly ran into the kitchen and asked Jiang Jiankang. "Dad, the recipe for the Healthy Congee, grandpa gave it to you, right?"
"Of course. It was pa.s.sed down from generation to generation in the Jiang family," Jiang Jiankang nodded as he tossed ingredients into the wok.
Could it be… that Professor Li is actually a relative?
Jiang Feng couldn"t help but make a wild a.s.sumption.
What if one of grandpa"s brothers did not die? What if one of them lived and changed his last name to Li?
I should get w.a.n.g Hao to help me with the story. He should be able to make it more complete with his imagination.
Jiang Feng then went into the storeroom and opened the quest list.
[The Last Consolation]: Li Ming has lost his appet.i.te due to his Stage IV stomach cancer and the painful chemotherapy that came with it. As a chef, you have the responsibility to console him with foods. This will be his last consolation. Make sure that Li Ming eats and drinks normally for the next 15 days. [Accept/Decline]
Jiang Feng touched on the [Accept] b.u.t.ton.
[The Last Consolation]: Li Ming has lost his appet.i.te due to his Stage IV stomach cancer and the painful chemotherapy that came with it. As a chef, you have the responsibility to console him with foods. This will be his last consolation. Make sure that Li Ming eats and drinks normally for the next 15 days. Progress (0/15)
Tips: Cook accordingly to the recipes provided by Li Mingjun to complete the quest.
Reward: A fragment of Li Ming"s memory
Jiang Feng finally realized that the cancer was the reason Li Ming looked unhealthily skinny. He initially thought it was due to his old age.
Jiang Feng noticed it was the first time that the system has told him what the reward was. But it was a piece of the old man"s memory.
Could the memory be related to Taifeng Restaurant?