Abnormal Gourmet Chronicle

"I am reluctant to spend money, so every day it's cabbage with rice. The cabbage in our cafeteria is boiled in such a clear and bland soup that it seems like they don't even use a drop of oil. My friend saw me eating like this every day and worried I might starve myself to death, so he specially gave me two cans of Crab Yellow Sauce to eat with my rice."

"I originally planned to eat it sparingly, to make it last a year."

"But then my friend told me that the Crab Yellow Sauce wouldn't last long and that I should finish it within two months. Oh, I felt so distressed..." Wang Gen Sheng said as he smacked his lips, not showing any distress but rather a bit of craving.

"So, what's the specific difference between the Crab Yellow Sauce you had before and the one you have now?" Qin Huai asked.

Wang Gen Sheng thought hard again, somewhat unsure, "The taste... the taste? No, it's not the taste. It's indeed the flavor of Crab Yellow Sauce, there's no spice flavor, but it definitely feels different, different in... in..."

"That one's milder. No, you can't say milder, it also has a rich taste but... it's milder."

It was clear that Wang Gen Sheng desperately wanted to use more vivid language to describe it, but he was limited in ability, even trembling his lips in urgency, as if he wanted to slap himself to make his mouth speak faster.

"Does it feel different?" Qin Huai asked, "This Crab Yellow Sauce doesn't have the sensation you got when eating it before. It's not about the saltiness, the flavor is generally the same. The mild richness you're talking about, I think I understand a bit, it should be a problem with the thickening, maybe the final thickening didn't give you the feeling you wanted?"

"Yes, yes, yes." Wang Gen Sheng nodded repeatedly, "It's just like Master Xiao Qin said earlier, it doesn't have the feeling, not like the Crab Yellow Sauce I had before."

"Actually, that Crab Yellow Sauce wasn't something to eat with rice at all, but at the time it really tasted particularly good. Dab a bit of Crab Yellow Sauce, mix it with cabbage soup and rice, that cabbage soup was so basic you couldn't even see an oil slick, but with the sauce it immediately became delicious, more effective than any pickle."

"If you say it was as strong-tasting as pickles, it wasn't. Our pickles back then were genuinely salty, purely for eating with rice, a bit of pickle could accompany a large bowl of rice."

"That Crab Yellow Sauce was different, you had to dab a bit, take a bite of Crab Yellow Sauce with a bite of rice. The rice soaked in cabbage soup was soft and fluffy, it went down the throat smoothly in one big bite, it was just delicious."

Saying this, Wang Gen Sheng once again smacked his lips.

"But it was just two cans, finished less than three months. Later my friend gave me two cans of pickled vegetables, said it was a method from the Shu region, not sure where they got it from, also quite delicious, great with rice."

You could tell, Xu Nuo had quite the connections, to actually get pickled vegetables from the Shu region in Gusu during that time.

Uncle Wang finished his commentary and looked eagerly at Qin Huai, wanting to know how he performed today and whether he could barely pass.

Qin Huai said with a smile, "Thank you for your hard work, Uncle Wang. I'll have to trouble you to stay at the cafeteria for a few more hours; later there's a Double Crab Bun for you to taste test."

"I know the current Crab Yellow Sauce might not be quite right, but improvement takes time. Please try it first, let me know if there are any issues, and tell me whenever you think of something."

"Alright, alright, alright." Wang Gen Sheng nodded repeatedly, "Oh right, later my friend also gave me two cans of pickled sauce, said it was a method from the north."

Qin Huai: ... There's no need to mention that, let's think about things related to the Double Crab Bun, Uncle Wang.

Wang Gen Sheng left the kitchen door and found an empty seat to wait for the bun to eat.

Qin Huai looked at Zang Liang, "Did you get it? It's still a sensation thing, the thickening must be a problem, your thickening hasn't hit the feeling."

"But I think the urgent matter isn't finding the thickening feeling, it's finding the feeling in the Crab Yellow Sauce first."

"The Crab Yellow Sauce can be thickened more generously, don't be afraid to waste it. As you can see, we have many customers willing to eat noodles and rice with Crab Yellow Sauce. If it really doesn't work, we can directly sell the Crab Yellow Sauce, I'm sure there will be no shortage of customers willing to buy it, sales aren't a worry."

"Still, you have to practice more and find that feeling."

"Try to find that feeling before I come back. By then, I'll learn the thickening technique from Master Cao, and once you've found the sensation in the Crab Yellow Sauce, we can study thickening together. Your skills are better than mine, so you'll certainly take the lead in thickening."

"Zheng Siyuan and I are handling the preparation of sea cucumber. In this time, I've also practiced sea cucumber quite a bit. My level is not as high as Zheng Siyuan's, but it should be enough for making buns. The Double Crab Bun doesn't require much of the sea cucumber preparation, it's mainly challenging in the seasoning."

"So let's settle it like this for now. You practice more to find the feeling, is there a problem?" Qin Huai looked at Zang Liang.

Zang Liang:...

There is a problem.

Just now, what did Uncle Wang say at all? Clearly, nothing was said and yet with one statement about feeling, the conversation is finished.

Zang Liang feels like his thickening today has a bit of a feeling, but what exactly is that feeling? Which feeling is he supposed to find? Is the feeling you're talking about the felt feeling he has?

Why are there so many feelings!