Abnormal Gourmet Chronicle-Chapter 999 - 489: Oh
Qin Huai stayed at Yunzhong Restaurant until 9 p.m. before returning home. After chatting with Zhao Rong, he also exchanged a few words with An Youyou, giving her two days off to pack her things.
An Youyou had already terminated the lease on her previous apartment, so this move to Yunzhong District was essentially a relocation. The house An Youyou would be staying in belonged to Chen Huihong, who typically filled any of her properties that didn't have tenants with various group-buy items she had hoarded. Since An Youyou was considered an insider rather than a proper tenant, Chen Huihong probably wouldn't pay much attention when tidying up the place, meaning that theoretically, An Youyou could find many surprise "blind boxes" in the house.
Given An Youyou's stingy nature when it comes to throwing out even a half-used pack of tissues, those blind boxes left by Chen Huihong would definitely keep her entertained for quite a while.
Qin Huai also told An Youyou that everything in the room had been left by the previous tenant, and she could use them if she wished.
After saying goodnight to An Youyou, Qin Huai headed back with Zhao Cheng'an.
"Hey, by the way, Qin Huai, did you tell Zheng Siyuan you were back? I've heard Tan Wei'an mention Zheng Siyuan a lot, but I've never met him. He's kind of a legend in our pastry chef circle; everyone knows that Master Zheng has an exceptionally talented but eccentric son who's introverted and never attends any exchanges nor works at large restaurants, just running a pastry shop outside an old district."
"Back in the day, among the younger generation, the only other person with talent comparable to mine was Zheng Siyuan." Zhao Cheng'an was barely in his twenties yet spoke nostalgically like Wang Gen Sheng.
"I texted him on WeChat yesterday, but Zheng Siyuan seemed quite busy and only replied with 'Oh'." Qin Huai said, "He doesn't like texting much; he prefers calling or talking in person for anything important."
"I haven't chatted much with him in the past few months, so I'm not sure how he's doing here at Yunzhong Restaurant. But he's here to practice snacks, and with the large and stable customer flow at Yunzhong Restaurant, since Zang Liang returned from Huang Ji a while ago but he hasn't returned to Gusu, it must be going well."
Zhao Cheng'an suddenly understood, realizing Tan Wei'an hadn't tricked him with this gossip; Zheng Siyuan is indeed a true workaholic. They parted ways at the intersection, each heading home.
When Qin Huai got home, He Cheng was sitting on the sofa watching TV. The TV was playing anime, he was swiping short videos on his phone, chatting on WeChat on his tablet, and blasting rock music through speakers—perfectly orchestrating a revenge-like spree of electronic usage.
Seeing Qin Huai return, He Cheng panicked, unsure what to turn off first, and instinctively tossed his phone away.
Qin Huai:… This unfortunate kid must have secretly played with his phone in class a lot; he sure is adept at throwing it.
"Go ahead and play, you don't need to mind me." Qin Huai said warmly. He Cheng and Qin Luo spent an entire summer vacation tattling on and supervising each other, clearly worked hard studying, and now that tutoring is finished, it's time for some fun.
"Brother Huai." He Cheng grinned chubbily, "What time will you wake up to make buns tomorrow?"
Even though Qin Huai is now known as Master Qin to many, He Cheng's impression of him remains as the elder cousin who sold buns every morning.
"Four-thirty." Qin Huai replied, "If you want to get up early for breakfast, just be at the restaurant by six; you'll definitely get the first batch."
"Don't worry, Brother Huai, I'll definitely be up; lately I've been waking up around six to go to the restaurant to eat Brother Si Yuan's wontons!" He Cheng shouted.
Qin Huai:?
Zheng Siyuan starts work this early every day? No wonder his WeChat responses are so brief; but as a standard snack master, why is he going in so early?
Even though making wontons is quick, if He Cheng can eat them daily at around six, it means Zheng Siyuan starts work by six—which is a lot earlier than before.
Qin Huai vaguely remembered when he and Zheng Siyuan were researching snacks together at Yunzhong Restaurant, they'd arrive around seven, have a bowl of the chicken soup noodles Qin Huai made, and then begin making wontons.
Qin Huai shook his head in confusion, washed up, and relaxed.
August 21st, a day bound to be eternally remembered by the new and old patrons of Yunzhong Restaurant.
Though there are quite a few dates for Yunzhong Restaurant's patrons to remember, it's not important.
Qin Huai got up early.
His routine is consistently inconsistent, with wake-up times ranging between 4:00 and 8:00, depending on whether he's being a snack master or breakfast master that day.
Today, Qin Huai was undoubtedly the breakfast master; it was Master Qin's return to Yunzhong Restaurant on the first day, and if the restaurant's breakfast menu lacked Master Qin's signature morning treats, it would be so disappointing.
Actually, Qin Huai was a bit excited himself.
Yunzhong Restaurant is his establishment; whether at Huang Ji or Zhiwei Restaurant, Qin Huai always knew he was there for exchange and learning, a short-term guest. But only at Yunzhong Restaurant, he's the host, both here and in Qiu County, it's home.
The patrons of Yunzhong District are much like old patrons from Qiu County Third Road District; though the elderly folks didn't watch Qin Huai grow up, the most loyal customers will always be sitting in the restaurant at six sharp chatting and waiting for breakfast, starting yet another ordinary yet hopeful day.
Each time he returned from exchanges, Qin Huai had a sense of coming home in triumph.
Each time his skills had improved in some way, either elevating a snack to a new level or learning a new signature snack. Outside, it's for learning; returning home is for showcasing. If, in the first few days back, he didn't vigorously produce new signature snacks, it would be a disservice to the time spent away.
