The Gourmet Customizer

Chapter 103: Chapter 77: I, Li Mingtao: Body in the Cao Camp, Heart with Han

As usual, Wang Rui was the first to walk into Delicious.

"The usual?" Aunt Fang was now quite familiar with the folks from Xinghui.

"The usual. Two buns and a bowl of congee." Wang Rui didn’t know when he’d picked up the habit, but every time he came in and ordered, he had to take a stroll around the restaurant before he felt at ease.

It was just like he was on an inspection tour.

When he reached the canteen entrance, Wang Rui stared at the new sheet of A4 paper taped to the door. "Tea eggs? 5 yuan?"

Aunt Fang brought out his packed order. "Yep. Want to try one? They’re really quite good."

"Even if they’re delicious, they can’t be 5 yuan each, can they? Isn’t that a total rip-off?"

"Suit yourself. But they really are delicious."

Wang Rui shook his head. "It’s just a tea-flavored egg. How good could it possibly be? I’m fine with my buns. Meat tastes better anyway."

Carrying his takeaway, Wang Rui headed to work in a great mood.

Passing by Liu Ahbao, he wondered, ’Is Delicious expanding this quickly? They’re hiring again?’

After Wang Rui got back to the office, Liu Xia from the warehouse arrived not long after.

As was their custom, everyone placed their millet congee on their desks, then took out their buns and prepared to enjoy breakfast.

This was the tradition in Xinghui Company’s General Affairs Department: work started at 8 AM, but that was also when breakfast time truly began.

"Liu Xia, what are you eating? Why does it smell so good?" Wang Rui craned his neck to look. For some reason, the whole office was filled with the fragrance of tea—a delicate and elegant scent.

He glanced down at his own buns. Though they were delicious, they suddenly seemed a little greasy in contrast to the fresh, clean scent.

"A tea egg. Didn’t you buy one?" Liu Xia picked up the egg she had just peeled. "A 5-yuan tea egg. Had to splurge for once!"

With that, she bit off half of it right in front of him.

"So, how is it?" Wang Rui hadn’t expected anyone to actually be willing to spend 5 yuan on a tea egg.

’What a sucker.’

"Huh? This tea egg..." Liu Xia chewed on the first half for a moment, then stuffed the other half into her mouth. "It’s so good! I feel like I should’ve bought more."

"For real?" Wang Rui was still skeptical.

’No matter how delicious it is, it’s still just a tea egg, right?’

"It’s really, really good. I just wish I’d bought more," Liu Xia said in all seriousness.

Wang Rui wolfed down a bun in two bites, immediately filled out a leave request on DingTalk, and bolted straight for Delicious.

’I got paid today, so I’m gonna splurge too!’

High on the thrill of this impulse purchase, Wang Rui raced over to Delicious. He ran into the canteen, panting heavily, "Auntie, I’ll take o—... two! Two tea eggs!"

Aunt Fang was holding a bucket, pouring out a dark liquid—the leftover broth from boiling the Coca-Cola and spice packets. "No more tea eggs. They’re all sold out."

"Sold out?" Wang Rui scratched his head. "You guys should make more."

"The boss made over two hundred this morning. It’s you folks from your company who are such big eaters. Everyone who came after the first rush bought five or six each."

"Damn!" Speechless, Wang Rui turned and ran back again.

’Fine, those animals in the design department earn more money,’ he thought, ’but do they have to eat so many damn tea eggs too?’

’Aren’t they worried about their cholesterol?’

Frustrated, Wang Rui returned to the office and deliberately peeked into the design department. Sure enough, almost every single one of those animals was clutching a tea egg.

’That blissful look on their faces has to be deliberate, right?’

Speechless, Wang Rui went back to his own office and silently finished his second big meat bun, but he just couldn’t shake the feeling of dissatisfaction!

It’s a truly awful feeling when there’s something delicious that everyone around you has tried except for you.

"You really want to try one, don’t you?" Liu Xia felt bad just watching Wang Rui sigh so miserably.

"It’s not that I’m dying to eat one," Wang Rui said, slumping over his desk. "I just want to know what the big deal is. Are 5-yuan eggs really that good? Especially those animals in the design department—five per person! They can seriously eat!"

Liu Xia slumped over her desk as well, and the two chatted through the gap between their computer monitors. "If you really want to try one, I’ve got an idea."

"What is it?" Wang Rui immediately perked up.

"When I was coming up, I saw Director Zhou carrying a huge bag of eggs—there must have been at least ten! Can he and Director Li really eat that many? If you hurry over there now, you might be able to bum one off them!"

Without a second thought, Wang Rui declared, "I have a document that needs Director Li’s signature!"

He immediately shot up and headed for the director’s office.

"Oh, Director Li, you’ve really solved a major problem for all of us! Haha, these eggs are incredible. I wonder how Boss Su makes them? I’m taking a few home for my wife tonight." Zhou Kai peeled an egg, held it to his nose for a deep sniff, and then took a delicate bite.

An expression of pure bliss instantly appeared on his face. It felt like every single one of his body’s three million pores was sighing in pleasure.

"Let’s not talk about this at the company anymore." Li Mingtao was also holding an egg, thinking, ’Back when I worked at Delicious, how come I never saw Boss Su make so many delicious dishes? Now I don’t even get an employee discount.’

"You’re the real hero in all this. If you ask me, we should hold a commendation ceremony for you!"

This was, of course, a joke. If word of something like this got out, it would only bring shame upon their own company’s cafeteria.

Li Mingtao smiled. "Success doesn’t have to be my own." After quickly finishing an egg, he changed the subject. "By the way, do you know what’s going on with the relocation of the Mechanical Kindergarten?"

Just thinking about it gave Li Mingtao a headache.

Work was already giving him enough to worry about, and now things at home were in turmoil too.