Chapter 9: Utterly Depraved
Lu Yuan realized that what this world lacked wasn’t just zongzi.
He flipped through the menu of Shiweixuan. One of his goals for coming here was to assess their level—if they were truly excellent, then a small street-stall boss like him wouldn’t be needed at all.
But one look, and his confidence immediately surged. Not only did Shiweixuan have pitifully few dishes, they were all simple items like egg fried rice, vegetable meatball soup, and steamed ribs.
There was no fish-flavored shredded pork, cumin lamb, sweet and sour ribs, or other slightly more complex dishes. These were staples of any proper restaurant—you could have no customers ordering them, but you absolutely couldn’t not have them.
At that moment, Lu Yuan already had a plan in mind. It seemed this world’s food culture was missing a huge chunk. Zongzi was practically a legendary food!
So what kind of terrifying disaster had happened that made the Huaxia people forget how to eat? God!
But this was good news for Lu Yuan. He knew his mother’s medical expenses were basically secured now.
“Chef Wang.” Passing by him, Lu Yuan casually struck up a conversation, “I learned a bit of cooking before. My specialty is sweet and sour ribs.”
Chef Wang wiped his hands with a rag, his face full of confusion. “Sweet and sour ribs? Sugar and vinegar together? Wouldn’t that mess up the taste?”
Lu Yuan’s heart leapt with joy, though he kept a slightly reserved expression. “How about I make a portion, and you give me a rating?”
Chef Wang hesitated slightly. Chefs generally didn’t like outsiders touching their tools. At that moment, Xiaobing immediately stepped in to support her brother. “Chef Wang, my brother’s cooking is really delicious! Really!”
She thought of the egg-filled pancake she had eaten that morning.
Only then did Chef Wang nod. He had to give Xiaobing some face.
At the stove, Lu Yuan washed and dried his hands before standing in position. The equipment was all complete: knives on the rack, spatula and ladle hanging at the side, seasoning bowls filled with all kinds of condiments.
Everything felt incredibly familiar. He had labored in this small space for many years.
Taking a deep breath, Lu Yuan swiftly began selecting ingredients.
The ribs were fresh—just needed chopping. Rock sugar, scallions, ginger were all fine. Only the vinegar wasn’t quite authentic… but it would do.
Chop! Chop! Chop! Chop!
While Lu Yuan prepared, Chef Wang chatted with the manager on the side. He didn’t pay much attention—after all, what skill could a high school student have?
But when the rhythmic chopping sounds came, Chef Wang raised his eyebrows in surprise.
“Oh, I misjudged him,” he whispered to the manager. “He’s a pro.”
When an expert makes a move, you can tell immediately. A beginner would never chop ribs like that—so fast and precise, they’d end up chopping their own fingers off.
The manager was shocked. Chef Wang had been personally recruited by the boss with great effort. Though he looked honest, his skills were unquestionable. If even he said Lu Yuan was a pro, then this young man was definitely not simple.
Lu Yuan was completely focused.
In his previous life, he had failed the college entrance exam, but he hadn’t sunk into despair.
He attended a culinary school, studied hard, and became the top student.
Because he wanted to live with dignity. He remembered his father’s words:
A person should work hard. Even as a chef, you can achieve great things.
In his previous life, Lu Yuan’s cooking skills were already quite high. In this food desert of a Divine Land world, they were even more extraordinary.
High heat to blanch, drain, mix the sauce, then low heat to caramelize sugar.
Chef Wang watched intently the entire time, but at this step, he couldn’t understand anymore.
Why put rock sugar into hot oil?
He had never heard of such a technique. Was this kid just messing around?
While Lu Yuan worked, the other kitchen staff were chatting, resting, or scrolling their phones. No one paid attention—they didn’t have Chef Wang’s eye.
But when the wok suddenly erupted with a burst of flames half a person tall, everyone was startled. Several people dropped their phones.
“Fire!”
One kitchen assistant shouted, frantically looking for a rag. Others panicked as well—this world didn’t have such aggressive wok techniques.
“What are you panicking for!”
Without turning his head, Lu Yuan spoke calmly. His hands pushed, pulled, and flipped the wok in one smooth motion. Amid the flickering flames, there was a kind of overwhelming dominance. The kitchen staff, influenced by his composure, gradually calmed down. They realized this must be some extremely advanced wok technique.
Xiaobing stood with her hands on her hips, utterly proud. “See? I told you my brother is amazing!”
Moments later, a full plate of sweet and sour ribs was done. The caramelized color alone made mouths water.
“Chef Wang, could you help check it?”
Lu Yuan politely invited him. He was a bit worried—what if people in this world had different taste buds? Then all his cooking skills would be useless.
Chef Wang didn’t dare be careless. He took a small bowl and portioned out two pieces.
Not just him—more than ten kitchen staff each took a piece into their bowls.
This was a rule in the culinary world: tasting dishes.
Everyone stood there, taking small bites with spoons.
Xiaobing’s eyes narrowed in bliss as she ate.
Everyone was immersed in a flavor they had never experienced before. For a moment, no one spoke.
But then, people at the door suddenly started shouting angrily:
“So this is how you run a restaurant?”
“This is outrageous! You have something this delicious and don’t tell customers?”
“Hiding inside and eating it yourselves?!”
Four or five customers stood at the entrance, yelling. They had been eating in the front hall when suddenly they smelled an unfamiliar aroma—sweet with a hint of sour, sour with a hint of sweet. They had never smelled anything like it, but it had to be delicious!
Following the scent, they came to the kitchen—only to witness such a depraved scene!
A restaurant hiding good food from customers and secretly eating it in the back—what else could that be if not utterly immoral? The customers were furious!
Among them was a middle-aged woman carrying a handbag—the same picky woman who had argued earlier in the front hall! No one knew why she came back after already eating.
She pointed at the manager, drooling as she scolded, “I’m going to report you!”
The manager thought, I’m innocent! Fortunately, Xiaobing was quick-witted and ran over to explain. “Miss, you misunderstood. We’re testing a new dish. If you like it, we’ll serve you one immediately!”
The woman snorted. “Bring two first!”
Chef Lu stepped up without hesitation. That night, he made over two hundred portions of sweet and sour ribs in Shiweixuan’s kitchen, stopping only when all the ribs in the refrigerator were used up.
Originally, there weren’t that many customers, but almost everyone who tasted it asked for extra portions to take away. After all, it was something they had never eaten before—they wanted their families to try it too.
Manager Zhang happily calculated the revenue. She felt the siblings were her lucky stars. At closing time, she counted out 500 yuan and stuffed it into Lu Yuan’s hands. After all, the tens of thousands in extra revenue were all thanks to him.
Lu Yuan declined the payment. He had a bigger goal.
What happened tonight would soon reach the ears of the boss. But relying on just sweet and sour ribs probably wouldn’t be enough to make a big boss willingly pay 1.5 million. No one’s money came from the wind, and the recipe wasn’t that difficult—Chef Wang had likely already learned it.
He wasn’t just a simple student. He always considered the worst-case scenario. Others could easily just sell sweet and sour ribs themselves—there was no such thing as copyright in cooking.
So Lu Yuan needed a blockbuster dish to make the boss understand the necessity of cooperation.
And just so happened, a blockbuster was right in front of him.
“Aunt Zhang.” After refusing the 500 yuan, Lu Yuan spoke with the manager, “You said rice cakes for the Dragon Boat Festival don’t sell well. I happen to know a traditional snack that’s simple to make. I guarantee it will sell extremely well. Do you want to try selling it?”
If Lu Yuan had said this a few hours earlier, Manager Zhang definitely wouldn’t have believed him.
But now, the revenue in the register was real. She and Chef Wang exchanged a glance and nodded together.
“Let’s try it!”
So Lu Yuan arranged the procurement of ingredients and gave instructions. They agreed he would return the next day. Then the siblings left Shiweixuan.
It was late. Time to go home and sleep.
On the way back, Xiaobing happily spun around her brother. She didn’t yet understand his plan—she just felt her brother was incredibly amazing.
Lu Yuan, meanwhile, was imagining the future.
This Divine Land world was a food desert. He could almost see a massive culinary empire rising rapidly—and he, Lu Yuan, would be its ruler!
At that very moment, a high-level cultivator flew overhead.
Under the moonlight, the cultivator’s robes were white as snow, his figure carefree and elegant.
Below, the siblings stared up eagerly.
Damn it, who wants to be a chef? I want to be a cultivator!
The culinary empire instantly collapsed!
ns216.73.217.39da2
and then Add to home screen.