Chapter 31: Just Some Farmer’s Dishes?

Chapter 31: Chapter 31: Just Some Farmer’s Dishes?

Zhang Zhao watched, stunned, as his parents walked hand-in-hand toward the service center.

’Does anyone know what it’s like to be constantly third-wheeling your own parents?’

He could only sigh and follow them.

By the time they reached the service center, Zhang Ergen and Zhang Dong’s family were already there. They had come on a motorcycle and a scooter, so they didn’t need to use the parking lot.

After getting off his bike, Zhang Ergen said to Zhang He, "So this is Lin’s service center? It must be a third of an acre, right? He did a great job!"

"Yeah, it has a lot of character," Zhang He agreed with a nod. ’This style of architecture has a very comfortable feel, and it’s a perfect fit for a farm.’

Just then, another group of people approached from the direction of the rapeseed Flower Sea. The man in the lead spotted Zhang He and Ergen and called out a greeting, "Zhang He, Ergen, you’re here too."

Zhang He smiled and greeted him back. "Da Lin, when is your family’s grocery store opening?"

"It’s still under renovation. I’ll be sure to invite you all over when it’s ready," Zhang Da Lin replied with a smile.

As the two of them spoke, the rest of the group started exchanging greetings as well.

Zhang Da Lin then added with praise, "You all have to go see the rapeseed Flower Sea that Lin put together. It’s absolutely gorgeous."

As soon as he said that, another person chimed in, "That’s right. I don’t think any other flower sea I’ve seen is as good as the one Lin has here."

Zhang Lin came out to greet them. Seeing Zhang He and Zhang Ergen, he walked over. "Uncle, Ergen, you’re here! Everyone, please, come on in and have a seat!"

’He was deeply grateful to these friends and relatives who had lent his father money. His gratitude wasn’t just for the loans themselves, but for the fact that they never came to collect the debts after his father passed away. They simply kept quiet, acting as if it had never happened.’

’His mother’s health had already collapsed back then. If debt collectors had been showing up at their door every day, the emotional distress might have pushed her from just being in poor health to developing a serious illness.’

’To be honest, he really envied his father. Not everyone is lucky enough to have brothers and friends with that kind of loyalty.’

’With anyone else, they might have shown up with an IOU before the first seven days of mourning were even over.’

’No, that’s not right. Someone else wouldn’t have been able to borrow hundreds of thousands—they probably couldn’t even have borrowed ten thousand.’

’But that kind of loyalty was something only the older generation seemed to have. It was basically impossible for the younger generation; modern society just squeezed young people too hard.’

’He knew this from personal experience. After entering the workforce, the pressures of making a living and the corrosive influence of a superficial society left him with no extra energy to cultivate such deep bonds.’

’He didn’t even know who lived next door to him.’

At Zhang Lin’s invitation, Zhang He, Ergen, and the others all headed inside the service center.

The moment they stepped inside, they all felt a strange sensation, as if their moods had suddenly lifted. They didn’t think much of it, though. They certainly couldn’t have known it was an effect of the service center’s game-like properties; they just chalked it up to the simple joy of a rare get-together.

After Zhang Lin led everyone into the restaurant, Mucheng, the head waiter, was already busy directing his staff to set the tables with clean dinnerware.

The servers were all dressed in matching uniforms, each bearing the Li Yuan Farm logo.

Over the past week, besides arranging the kitchen equipment and purchasing tools, he had also been finalizing the details. The matching uniforms, for example, were custom-ordered from a specialized online shop.

Lin Nan, the head chef, came out of the kitchen and approached Zhang Lin. "Boss, we’re just about ready."

Zhang Lin nodded and followed Lin Nan into the kitchen. It was tradition for the owner to cook the first dish when a new kitchen was opened.

Even though many people no longer understood the meaning behind it, they still treated it as a cherished ritual.

In truth, Zhang Lin wasn’t much of a cook. Back when he had an office job, he mostly lived on takeout, or at best, would boil some simple noodles or stir-fry some vegetables.

Still, ritual was ritual, and he had to stir-fry a vegetable dish.

After lighting the stove, he got to work at the wok. Unsurprisingly, he burned the dish. The heat from a commercial stove was vastly different from what he was used to at home; he couldn’t control the flame at all.

But the fact that it was burnt wasn’t the main point. The main point was that despite being burnt, he smelled a fragrant aroma that made his mouth water.

’This makes no damn sense.’

He immediately realized it was probably the effect of his "Delicious Cuisine +1" attribute.

A moment later, he plated the stir-fried vegetables. They were obviously scorched. By all rights, the dish should have been inedible.

Zhang Lin, however, immediately grabbed a pair of chopsticks and put a piece in his mouth. The moment he tasted it, the surprise on his face intensified. The flavor was unbelievably good. He’d eaten at all sorts of fancy restaurants, and he found that some of those chefs’ dishes couldn’t even compare to his own burnt stir-fry.

’So this is the "Delicious Cuisine +1" attribute?’

’And this was from him, someone who barely knew how to cook. If it were one of the professional chefs recruited through the game, like Lin Nan, the taste would be even more incredible.’

’He was suddenly very glad he could recruit employees through the game.’

’Otherwise, if he hired employees from the outside world, an attribute like this would immediately arouse suspicion.’

’Any chef would know the limits of their own skill. If the food they cooked here was that much more delicious than what they usually made, they’d be bound to notice and might start investigating.’

"Alright, you can all start cooking. Get the guests’ dishes out first," Zhang Lin instructed Lin Nan.

He had planned for the employees to join the opening feast today, but guests always came first.

"Let’s get to work!" Lin Nan called out, clapping his hands to get the other chefs’ attention.

In an instant, the chefs were bustling with activity. The temperature in the kitchen rose quickly from the powerful flames of the stoves.

Back in the dining room, Lin Yan, who had just come inside, was making the rounds with Zhang He and the others. "Zhang He, Ergen, Da Lin," she said, "Lin plans to serve tourists with this restaurant, and this is our grand opening meal. Please, give him plenty of feedback later. If there’s anything you don’t like about the food, he needs to know so he can fix it!"

Hearing this, Zhang Ergen immediately said, "Lin Yan, you should be asking Zhang He about that! The man got a chef’s certificate just so his wife wouldn’t have to cook."

Zhang Da Lin chimed in, "That’s right. He’s a good husband, and a great cook. He can definitely offer some advice."

The others began to chime in, though their agreement was laced with a bit of passive-aggressive teasing. Zhang He was setting the bar too high. There should be a limit to doting on your wife; he was making the rest of them look bad. Whenever their own wives got angry, they’d hear the same old line: "Why did I marry you? Just look at Zhang He! He cooks, he washes the dishes, he even mops the floor!"

Zhang He could clearly feel the playful hostility and gave Ergen and the others a sheepish smile.

’Loving his wife was just instinct for him; after all, he promised to cherish her for a lifetime when he married her. He didn’t mean to cause any collateral damage.’

Still, he was confident when it came to his culinary skills. He immediately said to Lin Yan, "Sister-in-law, don’t you worry. As his uncle, would I let Lin get the short end of the stick? A farm restaurant’s menu is just a collection of rustic, homestyle dishes. I have no problem going into the kitchen to give him some personal guidance."

Just as he spoke, servers began bringing out plates of food, starting with the simple vegetable dishes.

A farm’s menu doesn’t need to be as flashy as what you’d find in city restaurants. People come to a place like this for a rustic, back-to-nature experience.

Of course, the prerequisite is that the food has to be delicious. If it isn’t, customers will leave bad reviews, and no amount of hyping up the "authentic, natural" experience will help.

That’s why some people just don’t get it. They’ll serve you a plate of shit, hype it up as "authentic and original," and treat everyone else like an idiot. In the end, they’re the only ones who end up looking like fools.

Zhang He saw the dishes and nodded to himself. It was just as he expected: simple, rustic fare.

He cooked these kinds of dishes at home all the time, so giving a few pointers would be easy. Besides, he genuinely wanted Zhang Lin to succeed with his business.

As a dish was set on the table, he picked up his chopsticks and took a bite. That single bite was enough to make him freeze. He tried another dish, and his confident expression slowly gave way to embarrassment.

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