Chapter 155: That’s Enough Effort for Today
Wang Daguo was afraid he’d miss dinner if he got back late, but by the time he ran to the shop, Cai Su had already saved a plate for him.
"Thanks, Sister Cai."
"It was no trouble."
Before digging in, Wang Daguo set aside a few pieces of chicken and a large chunk of steamed egg in his small lunchbox. Only after closing the lid did he start to wolf down his meal.
After eating, Wang Daguo cleaned up for a little while before clocking out.
When he got home, Wang Daguo took out the small lunchbox. His family gathered around the table, eating the contents along with some Insect Cakes.
"Xiao Ci, why did you ask for steamed buns instead of money?" Wang Daguo asked his sister. "You’re going to cause trouble for Boss Shen."
Wang Xiaoci looked up, at a loss. "Did I do something wrong?"
"What’s this all about?" Grandma Wang asked.
So, Wang Daguo explained what had happened. "Boss Shen is already busy enough as it is. Making steamed buns isn’t as simple as you think, Xiao Ci. You should have talked to me about it first."
Wang Xiaoci said, "I..."
Grandma Wang shot Wang Daguo a look, signaling for him to be quiet. She stroked Wang Xiaoci’s hair and asked in a gentle tone, "Xiao Ci, what was on your mind?"
Wang Xiaoci looked from her grandmother to her brother, her voice small. "Xiao Hui and I just wanted Grandma and Mom to be able to eat something nice."
If they brought back Star Coins, their grandmother would just save them for a rainy day.
But it was different with food. It had a shelf life and couldn’t be stored for long.
The adults were, of course, gratified to see their children being so filial.
Now that Grandma Wang understood her granddaughter’s intentions, she couldn’t scold her too harshly. "Xiao Ci, we’re very touched by your and Xiao Hui’s kind gesture, but this is the only time. You can’t trouble Boss Shen again next time."
Wang Xiaoci and Wang Xiaohui nodded in unison. "We understand, Grandma."
...
After her shower, Shen Lu began her daily accounting. Just as she finished calculating the day’s revenue, she received a message from Bai Lei.
Bai Lei: I’ll come pick you up in a couple of days. Make sure you get things at the shop sorted out beforehand.
Shen Lu let out a little "ah." She checked her calendar and realized Bai Lei’s birthday was just a few days away.
Shen Lu: OK, no problem.
Her reply was casual, but Shen Lu had a lot of things bothering her.
The wave of hype Li Zexing had brought wouldn’t die down in just a day or two. In fact, she might even see a massive surge in customers.
After all, Li Zexing lived in the Upper City District and almost never made appearances in the Lower City District.
For his fans in the Lower City District, visiting her shop to try the same food was the most affordable way to show their support. The cheapest pass to the Upper City District cost 1,000 Star Coins, and for that price, they could eat her set meal eight times.
’What a great opportunity to farm popularity value.’
Shen Lu sighed in frustration. It was a shame. She’d already promised Bai Lei and even accepted his payment. Backing out now would be a breach of trust.
’Where is my new employee? My new head chef?’
’I’m in desperate need.’
She decided not to use today’s Lottery Ticket, saving it along with yesterday’s.
Shen Lu had discovered a little trick to using the Lottery Tickets.
Unless absolutely necessary, it was better to save them up. Who knew? They might have a miraculous effect in an emergency.
For example, at Shen Lan’s last birthday banquet, she’d used a Lottery Ticket to get a True Heart Potion, which had been incredibly useful.
And another time, when she was investigating that pharmaceutical company, she’d drawn a nano-freezer, which ended up saving Zeng Xiaodao’s life.
Of course, Shen Lu also toyed with the idea of saving up a bunch for one satisfying, all-out lottery session.
With a yawn, Shen Lu flopped onto her big, soft bed.
’That’s enough work for one day.’
The next day, before Shen Lu even opened her eyes, she heard the sound of huge raindrops pelting her window.
"What the hell," Shen Lu muttered, crawling out from under her covers. "It cleared up yesterday afternoon. Why is it pouring rain today?"
The rain outside was coming down hard. Visibility was low; you couldn’t see anything clearly beyond twenty meters.
Shen Lu got out of bed and washed up, her heart heavy with worry.
Yesterday’s light drizzle hadn’t affected foot traffic, so business had been normal. Then, with the added boost from Li Zexing, it had become incredibly good.
But today’s downpour was another story. It was torrential, and the stench that came with it was overwhelming.
Based on her experience from the last downpour, this kind of stench would only dissipate after the rain stopped and the government sprayed deodorizer.
’Looks like I won’t be completing my tasks for the next couple of days.’
Shen Lu pinched the bridge of her nose. ’Honestly, couldn’t this rain have held off for two more days?’
’It would have been perfect if it rained on the two days I’m supposed to be cooking for the Bai Family. Isn’t this downpour just intentionally getting in my way?’
Shen Lu went downstairs and ran right into a drenched Wang Daguo coming into the shop.
Wang Daguo took off his raincoat and wiped his face. "This rain is insane."
Shen Lu blinked, then remembered she had told Wang Daguo to come in early.
"Go take a shower first," Shen Lu said. "The rainwater is filthy. You can’t go into the kitchen like this."
"Right, I’ll go right now."
Cai Su and her son were also awake by this time. They helped put Wang Daguo’s discarded clothes into the washer-dryer, so they would be dry by the time he finished his shower.
Xiao Lang carried the dry clothes to the bathroom door and called out to Wang Daguo.
"Big Brother, your clothes are ready! Open the door and grab them."
"Thank you." Wang Daguo opened the door a crack to take the clothes.
Xiao Lang’s cheeks were flushed, clearly happy that he could be helpful.
Shen Lu took out the dough she had let rise overnight. When Wang Daguo came over after changing, she began to teach him how to knead it.
"Boss, are you teaching me how to cook?" Wang Daguo asked, a little panicked. "I-I’m kind of slow. I might not be able to learn."
"No, I just need you to knead the dough," Shen Lu reassured him. "Kneading is manual labor. You’re perfect for the job."
Cai Su nodded in profound agreement. Kneading dough really was exhausting.
Wang Daguo began kneading under Shen Lu’s guidance. Was it difficult?
It didn’t seem too difficult, but you couldn’t call it simple, either. There were a few little tricks to it. Wang Daguo kneaded with intense focus, putting his full strength into every motion.
Shen Lu glanced at Wang Daguo, who was getting into the swing of things, and sighed to herself. ’Goes to show that brute force can overcome a lack of skill.’
Wang Daguo was so strong that ten minutes of his kneading was equivalent to thirty minutes of her own.
The next step was to shape the individual portions of dough into buns. This was a technical skill, not something Wang Daguo could learn in a moment, so Shen Lu and Cai Su had to do it.
Shen Lu had prepared 55 pounds of dough, enough for over 200 steamed buns, which had to be steamed in several batches.
For breakfast, they naturally had steamed buns, served with soy milk and radish skins that had been seasoned the previous night.
After bringing breakfast upstairs, Shen Lu greeted Fu Cheng as usual. She adjusted the head of his bed, set up the overbed table, and was about to tear a steamed bun into small pieces when Fu Cheng’s left hand suddenly shot out and gently grabbed her arm.
"Hm?" Shen Lu glanced at him, raising an eyebrow. "What is it?"
Fu Cheng: I can eat the steamed bun myself.
Shen Lu’s eyes widened slightly. "You... you can eat by yourself now?"
Her surprise was plain to see. Fu Cheng was quite satisfied with her reaction, but the message he sent was modest.
Fu Cheng: Eating a steamed bun is no problem.
He had managed to eat a flower roll by himself last time, so a steamed bun today should be no issue. Besides, he’d been doing his rehabilitation exercises for some time now; it was about time to see the results.
Fu Cheng took the steamed bun and brought it to his lips. Shen Lu watched as he took one bite, then another a moment later, and continued until he had finished the whole thing.
’He really can do it!’
’I thought it would be like last time, that he wouldn’t be able to hold on to it.’