Abnormal Gourmet Chronicle

Chapter 1251 598: Uncle Wang Woke Up Pretty Fast (2)

"Brother, you took too long in the restroom. I saw your noodles were getting cold. Afraid of wasting them and also worried cold noodles might upset your stomach, I went ahead and ate them for you." Qin Luo, knowing she was in the wrong, quickly made up an excuse to build her image as a good sister upon seeing Qin Huai returning. "I specifically left you a beef pie, but it's probably cold too. How about I heat it up for you?"

Qin Huai didn't pay much attention. After watching the video tutorial three times in the restroom, he reckoned all the snacks would have cooled off, and at the moment, he wasn't in the mood to eat anyway.

"No need, Luoluo, are you full?" Qin Huai asked.

"I'm full!"

"If you're full, go back and do your homework. Did your school assign a lot of homework for New Year's Day? I might be heading to Gusu tomorrow. I remember you mentioning you wanted to try Huang Ji's Three Course Duck and Squirrel Mandarin Fish last time. Finish your homework by this afternoon and tomorrow morning, and if we're early, we can head to Gusu tomorrow afternoon," Qin Huai said.

Qin Luo was not concerned at all about why they were suddenly going to Gusu. He only heard the keywords Three Course Duck and Squirrel Mandarin Fish, immediately cheered, and with unprecedented enthusiasm and motivation, dashed back home to do his homework.

Just like Qin Huai before, he disappeared like the wind.

Qin Huai then turned his gaze to Ouyang.

"Ouyang, are you full?"

Ouyang burped in response.

"You can head back now. I have something I want to discuss with Uncle Wang and Old Shi," Qin Huai said.

Ouyang, though unsure of what Qin Huai needed to discuss privately with Wang Gen Sheng and Shi Dadan, chose to respect it. After all, Ouyang was really full and felt like lying down at home now.

Ouyang left too.

At the small table, only Wang Gen Sheng and Shi Dadan remained. Shi Dadan seemed to have an inkling of what was about to happen and remained calm throughout. He asked Qin Huai if he wanted the beef pie and, upon hearing Qin Huai's refusal, took it onto his own plate and started eating.

Wang Gen Sheng was quite anxious.

Uncle Wang, a person good at self-reflecting, immediately wondered if he hadn't been performing well recently when Qin Huai asked him to stay behind for a private talk.

Not just not well, quite terrible actually.

Wang Gen Sheng thought Qin Huai might be about to tell him that starting tomorrow, he was not suited to eat in the kitchen, and the small table outside was more appropriate for him. As an unqualified insider, the ineloquent Uncle Wang was about to be expelled from the group from tomorrow.

"Uncle Wang, are you full?" Qin Huai asked.

"I... I'm full,"

"Can you eat some more?"

"Huh?" Wang Gen Sheng, not expecting the turn of events, nodded in confusion, "I probably can eat a few more bites."

Qin Huai smiled, "I just figured out how to make the authentic Red Silk Cake. Could you please wait here for a while, and take this time to digest a bit? I'll make you a full version of the Red Silk Cake. You can taste if it's like what you imagined."

Having said that, Qin Huai went off to find the ingredients for the Red Silk Cake.

When watching the video tutorial, the reason Qin Huai recognized that the recipe Xu Nuo used for the Red Silk Cake was quite mature was due to the reasonable combination of fillings.

Candied rose, pine nuts, raspberry jam, and a bit of white sesame, just the listing told you this was a standard sweet pastry. The process of making the filling wasn't complicated, involving standard stewing and stir-frying methods, except that it required more effort in ingredient proportions.

Qin Huai thought that Xu Nuo's Red Silk Cake recipe should normally achieve Level A. If the chef's skill was exceptionally high, reaching Level S was also possible. But the one Xu Nuo made was Level B, mainly because it was the result of a trial.

What Xu Nuo said in Wang Gen Sheng's dorm and to Wang Gen Sheng seemed true. He indeed hadn't made Red Silk Cake for a long time. Watching the video, Qin Huai felt Xu Nuo was both skillful yet unfamiliar with the process, making several minor mistakes that shouldn't have been made.

Qin Huai was confident he could make the Red Silk Cake to Level A, provided he practiced for a while.

As for today's first attempt...

Level B was sufficient, and Xu Nuo's version was Level B, aligning better with the original.

Qin Huai went on, busying himself making the last batch of pastries in the kitchen. Wang Gen Sheng couldn't quite understand what was happening today. Why was Qin Huai staying so late in the kitchen and sending Ouyang away, leaving just him and Shi Dadan?

Wang Gen Sheng wanted to ask Shi Dadan for information, but Shi Dadan perfectly played the role of a bewildered clam, silently sipping tea and playing on the phone without uttering a word.

Wang Gen Sheng's anxiety only subsided when Qin Huai brought the Red Silk Cake to the table.

It was still the version wrapped in red silk.

With a smiling face, Qin Huai pushed the Red Silk Cake towards Wang Gen Sheng, his expectations almost oozing off his face, "Uncle Wang, give it a try, see if this Red Silk Cake is the taste you remember."

Wang Gen Sheng, not understanding, complied, untying the red silk and picking up a piece of Red Silk Cake.

Though Wang Gen Sheng didn't understand cooking or how to make pastries, he knew how to eat. He could tell that the Red Silk Cake Qin Huai made this time was different from the ones made before.

Wang Gen Sheng sincerely took a big bite, even though he was already full.

Chewing.

The taste was altogether different.

Though they all looked the same, all filled with candied rose, the taste was not the same.

They were all delicious.

When Wang Gen Sheng ate Red Silk Cake before, he would constantly think while eating. He knew the taste wasn't right, but he didn't know what the correct taste was, so he could only ponder what was missing, what was different.

As a result, eating Red Silk Cakes was quite exhausting for him, like a struggling student unable to solve a single question, trapped in an endless exam, just doing questions non-stop until he could hardly breathe.

When Wang Gen Sheng picked up the Red Silk Cake this time, his subconscious began comparing and pondering again. But after the first bite, he stopped thinking about those things.

He felt a sense of familiarity and nostalgia, as if that struggling student finally solved the question, and the exam was about to end.

Not just this exam, but all exams were coming to an end.

As Wang Gen Sheng continued eating, his gaze turned vacant, and the chewing motion ceased, as he remained still in his seat.

Qin Huai was all too familiar with this state; every spirit woke up in the same manner.

Qin Huai couldn't help but exclaim, "Uncle Wang woke up quite quickly."

The first bite wasn't even swallowed yet, and he awoke.

Shi Dadan merely drank his tea in silence.

After approximately two or three minutes, Wang Gen Sheng stirred.

If every spirit displayed a complex look and expression when they woke, then Wang Gen Sheng's was definitely double, or even triple, quadruplize more complex.

The complexity was such that Qin Huai couldn't comprehend what this status was. Just how chaotic were the memories to make Uncle Wang show such an expression?

In Wang Gen Sheng's eyes, Qin Huai discerned bewilderment, sadness, agony, confusion, comfort, and relief.

It was hard to explain how someone's eyes could harbor so many emotions concurrently.

Matching Wang Gen Sheng's gaze, Qin Huai interrupted him before he could speak, face full of complexity.

"Uncle Wang, I know you must have a lot of confusion now. By rights, I should introduce you to the whole situation, but there's a question I want to ask you first."

"Let me first introduce Old Shi; he is Dang Kang, in his past life, he was Xu Mo, whom you know."

Wang Gen Sheng glanced at Shi Dadan, nodding towards him slightly; Shi Dadan also nodded and smiled back.

"You've recalled all the memories earlier, and I believe you can guess that Xu Nuo is a spirit."

"Before I explain everything to you, I want you to tell me, what exactly happened with Xu Nuo? Why did he die back then, and what happened after that?"

"You can take your time to organize your thoughts and speak slowly."

"If you're willing, we can visit Mr. Xu in Gusu tomorrow."