Abnormal Gourmet Chronicle

Chapter 1355: Chen Huixi Side Story (4)_2

Qin Huai is feeling anxious right now.

He didn’t show it, just silently anxious.

Because of the anxiety, he didn’t really want to return to the hotel; he wanted to find someone to talk to and relieve his anxiety. Otherwise, he feared he might fail at the critical moment tomorrow.

"Do you have something troubling you?"

Just as Qin Huai was pondering what lie to make up while chatting awkwardly with Zheng Siyuan, who doesn’t enjoy talking, for an hour at Zheng Siyuan’s house, Zheng Siyuan spoke up first.

"Huh?"

"You seem a bit absent-minded. Just now, Dong Shi told you so much gossip, and you didn’t react much," Zheng Siyuan said. "Did you encounter problems while making snacks?"

"No, I was thinking about Huihui’s birthday tomorrow."

"This birthday... is very important to Huihui."

Zheng Siyuan was silent for dozens of seconds. Just as Qin Huai was preparing to change the topic, Zheng Siyuan hesitantly asked, "Is Huihui... sick?"

Although Zheng Siyuan said "sick," his eyes were full of concern that Huihui might have a terminal illness, with not much time left, and that this might be her last birthday.

Qin Huai: ...

Although the situation wasn’t the same, it was pretty close.

"No, she’s not sick." Qin Huai wanted to say something witty to lighten the slightly somber atmosphere for some unknown reason, but the anxiety and irritation in his heart made it difficult for him to say such things.

The next second, an elaborate lie provided Qin Huai with a way to speak some truth to Zheng Siyuan, allowing him to understand his current situation.

"Isn’t it that Huihui’s birthday is being celebrated at Taifeng Building tomorrow," said Qin Huai, "I’ve been to Taifeng Building several times over the past few years, and Jiang Feng’s culinary skills have improved significantly, especially after reaching number 6 on the Chef Record."

"The dishes for tomorrow were ordered by me, and barring any surprises, those dishes will be made by Jiang Feng."

"But the Longevity Noodles will be made by me."

"We’ve rented a room next to Taifeng Building, and tomorrow afternoon we’ll bring the chicken soup from your place to the rented room to make the Longevity Noodles and then serve them."

"I want to make this bowl of Longevity Noodles the best."

"So good that it doesn’t fall short."

"So good that it doesn’t embarrass my master."

"Perhaps it’s just a bowl of Longevity Noodles, after all, its essence is just Chicken Soup Noodles. It won’t turn into Buddha Jumps Over the Wall or Jiang’s Ginseng Soup. Most of the time, Longevity Noodles are a side dish at a birthday feast, served simply to the birthday star after the other dishes are finished."

"But tomorrow’s Longevity Noodles are the main character, the first staple food for Huihui, to be eaten under everyone’s gaze and blessings."

"It’s very important; it’s the most important main character of the day."

"I know I’m a highly skilled chef now, and I know the Longevity Noodles I make will be absolutely delicious, but I want to make them impeccably good. Good enough to change some things, at least worthy of Huihui’s 16th birthday."

"I wasn’t this nervous before my college entrance exam."

"Maybe it’s because my academic performance in high school was just so-so. I knew that even with an extraordinary performance, I couldn’t score much higher."

"But it’s different now. Now I know my skills are good, and I know I’ll perform well, but I hope I can perform extraordinarily well, perform to the extreme."

Qin Huai seemed to drift into a stream of consciousness at the end.

Zheng Siyuan’s gaze shifted from wondering about the deep grudges between the Qin Family and Jiang Family to a brotherly understanding look.

Zheng Siyuan is not a man of many words.

He thought for a long time and then slowly said, "My dad once told me about the time he quit the State-owned Restaurant, deciding to switch to business and not being a chef anymore. On his last day at the State-owned Restaurant, he had a lot on his mind."

"He hoped to make snacks that were not inferior to those made by his master on that day, to astound every neighbor, to make the managers who disagreed with him being the main chef regret their decision. He hoped that even on his last day, he could have a spectacular exit like a tragic main character, so that his craftsmanship would become a legend in the State-owned Restaurant, and the snacks sold on that day would remain forever in every customer’s heart."

"But he couldn’t achieve that. In fact, he made many mistakes that day due to a bad mood, and the snacks he made were even worse than usual."

"But the customers didn’t blame him."

"The old customers, who occasionally gossiped behind his back that his skills were not as good as his master’s, all comforted him on that day, saying the manager was short-sighted and inflexible and questioned why the State-owned Restaurant couldn’t have two main chefs. No one criticized his skills, nor his decision to resign; everyone encouraged him, telling him to give his best in business after switching to it, and if he ever wanted to open his own snack shop after a business loss, everyone would support him."

It was rare for Zheng Siyuan to say so much at once; he even surprisingly provided a concluding statement: "The skills of a good snack master are obvious to all. Even if occasional problems occur, occasional poor reviews are received, and occasionally they may not be as good as others, his crafts and reputation always remain in the customers’ hearts."

"Everyone has a balance in their heart. As Huihui eats at Yunzhong Restaurant daily, even if the Longevity Noodles you make tomorrow aren’t the best, they will still be the best in Huihui’s heart."

Although Zheng Siyuan’s comfort was slightly off, Qin Huai felt much better, and the irritation and anxiety had dissipated significantly. He even thought about recommending Chen Huihong to chat with Zheng Siyuan to avoid being so anxious.

"Indeed, you’ve changed after years apart, with new talents that merit a renewed appreciation. I didn’t expect, Siyaun, that you’re so good at comforting people now," Qin Huai exclaimed.

Zheng Siyuan paused for a moment: "Boss Ling often comforts people like this."

"Hearing it often, I learned a bit."

The comfort from Zheng Siyuan allowed Qin Huai to have a good sleep, and when he woke up the next morning, he was anxious again.

The anxious Qin Huai checked the "Loving Family" group chat and found that Chen Huihong had sent over 999+ messages.

Well, he’s just anxious, and Chen Huihong seems to have gone crazy.

Anxious Qin Huai chose someone from his contacts who was likely to be awake and able to comfort him to call.

The call connected.

"Hello, Dad."

Mr. Xu’s voice came from the other end: "Little Nuo, how come you’re calling so early today? Are you a bit nervous about Huihui’s birthday today? When I woke up today, I saw all those messages from Chen Huihong in the group; being nervous is normal, don’t worry about it too much."

"Dad, I’m just nervous."

"That’s normal; when I heard from Xiao Gong that there was a young man named Qin Huai, and the granddaughter of our old headmaster, coming to the nursing home to see me, I was also very nervous."

"That night, I barely slept and got up at 3 am, cleaning the room in the dark, afraid you’d think I wasn’t living well in the nursing home when you came."

Mr. Xu’s way of comforting people is different from Zheng Siyuan’s.

Qin Huai said, "But Dad, I’m just nervous and very anxious."

"Then eat a banana, eat something you like. Is there a fruit store around you? If not, I’ll order you takeout, I just learned how to order takeout with an app a couple of months ago," Mr. Xu said cheerfully. "Little Nuo, when do you plan to come to Gusu?"

"Mid-July, to check the accounts of Qin’s Steamed Bun Shop. Huang An Yao bought a new car, it’s quite stable, I’ll borrow it to take you around, and if Lin Qi is awake, I can even take you to Shanghai to see him."

"Alright, how’s your appetite recently? I’ve noticed you’ve lost some weight."

"I’ve lost a few pounds; the heat makes me lose my appetite. Ouyang started a new business with a bubble tea shop, and I’ve been gaining weight drinking bubble tea there every day."

"Drink less bubble tea. Although you are not human, you still need to take care of your body."

"I know, Dad."

"How’s Luoluo doing in school? Will she graduate this year?"

"I think it’s unlikely; she hasn’t posted on her Weibo alt for 7 days now, just like last year when she extended her studies."

"Sigh, this child is as stubborn as you were when you were young. I remember back then..."

Qin Huai and Mr. Xu just kept chatting, going further and further off-topic, until Mr. Xu had to go play chess, ending the call.

Though Mr. Xu didn’t provide any comfort, Qin Huai felt much better and less anxious after the chat.

There was only a little bit of nervousness left.

Qin Huai looked through his contacts for the next person to talk to for peace of mind, ultimately choosing his good buddy.

"Hey, Old Shi, I’m feeling a bit nervous now, how about you?" As soon as the call connected, Qin Huai got straight to the point.

Shi Dadan’s steady voice revealed certainty: "I’m not nervous. I believe Xu Nuo, you’ll definitely manage it, and Huihui will definitely wake up today!"

"You are Feifei, after all!"

No reasoning, just full trust and confidence in Qin Huai.

The last bit of nervousness in Qin Huai’s heart vanished instantly.

"I think so too," Qin Huai said, "Enough talk. I’m going to knead the dough, and tonight I’ll make sure Huihui has the best Longevity Noodles."