Cooking System: Street Food Rules

Liu Yao always felt the employee selling clay oven-baked chickens looked familiar. It seemed she had seen him somewhere before, but she couldn't recall. The feeling was quite uncomfortable.

Previously, when she went to University Town Square to check in on Jiang Feng's roast duck, her attention was entirely on Jiang Feng, and she barely noticed Sun Zhuangfei. At most, she only glanced a few times. She couldn't help it; Jiang Feng was too eye-catching.

At the time, Liu Yao's gaze was fixed on him. Having finally seen him in person, she certainly had to get her fill in one go.

Jiang Feng was used to this and was always very gentle.

This time at the stall, Jiang Feng supervised from behind. Later, he would come to set up the food truck himself.

Soon, all the prepared clay oven-baked chickens were sold out. After the chickens were gone, they packed up and closed shop. In business, one must be decisive.

After work, Jiang Feng went home to walk the dog. One downside of owning a dog was having to walk it often, unlike cats.

Little Black, upon seeing Jiang Feng, immediately came out to greet him, wagging its tail. By now, its habits were completely those of a pet dog – very gentle, never fierce, with a smile resembling that of a Golden Retriever. Its fur, pitch black, was shiny and dense. When standing up, it held its head high and chest out, full of vigor.

"Little Black, how about I find you a companion? I'm not home all the time; you should have a friend, right?" Jiang Feng asked with a smile.

"WOOF!"

Little Black seemed to understand Jiang Feng's words and immediately retorted with a bark. Dogs certainly didn't want to share their owner's affection with others, especially Golden Retrievers, who were quite scheming and often hostile towards other dogs. But Little Black was fine; it had no bad intentions and overall lived a happy life.

"Next time, I'll take you to the pet market to look around. If you see a cat or dog you like, just let me know.

"Getting another one will make it more lively," Jiang Feng said as he patted its head.

Jiang Feng also wanted to get a cat, preferably one with a round head, round eyes, and great looks. It should also be well-behaved and affectionate. That way, he would have both a cat and a dog.

Little Black barked once, but it was unclear what it meant.

Walking the dog was always relaxing. Jiang Feng took it to the park. Although it was around eight in the evening, there were still many people around. Some aunties were dancing to square dance music, while others were walking their dogs.

It was at this time that an auntie walking a white Samoyed noticed Little Black. She immediately came over and exclaimed with surprise,

"Oh my, what kind of dog is this? It looks so magnificent!

"Its chest is wide enough, and the proportions of its face are good.

"This breed is really nice."

Upon hearing the auntie's words, Jiang Feng couldn't help but laugh. Looking at Little Black, its eyes were slightly narrowed, its head held high, its chest puffed out, exuding an indisputable confidence. It seemed to understand it was being praised. This fellow indeed had spirit.

"I picked it up from the roadside," Jiang Feng said with a smile. "I thought it was cute, so I kept it."

Hearing this, the auntie seemed somewhat incredulous. "This little guy was picked up? You picked up quite the gem! It looks so cute."

Jiang Feng just smiled. Little Black indeed had good looks that couldn't be criticized. Jiang Feng then looked at the auntie's Samoyed, which was also particularly well-behaved and cute.

The auntie gazed at Little Black with joy, then left.

Little Black still held its head up high, exceptionally majestic.

"Alright, stop being so vain. Let's go," Jiang Feng said as he walked on.

Little Black happily trotted along.

Life was just like this: busy at times, relaxed at others.

On the way, two people recognized Jiang Feng and came over to take a photo with him. Jiang Feng agreed with a smile.

After walking the dog, he bought some sausages, eggs, green onions, and other ingredients on the way home.

Jiang Feng made himself a pot of exquisite egg fried rice at home. When cooking for oneself, one naturally used quality ingredients. Moreover, he was able to adjust the ratio of various ingredients according to his own taste.

He added some slices of sausage and chopped green onions on top of the egg and rice. The firm and elastic sausage, mixed with the crystal-clear white rice and tender eggs, added a rich meaty aroma to the fried rice. It looked very delicious.

Little Black waited quietly by his side. It also had its portion of the rice. With Jiang Feng, it would naturally not be neglected.

After preparing the exquisite sausage and egg fried rice, Jiang Feng scooped out some pickles from the jar. He then stir-fried wood ear mushrooms with green beans and pork slices, adding a premium stewed pig's trotter he had bought on his way home. This took care of dinner.

Jiang Feng prepared a large portion for himself and gave the rest to Little Black. The meal was quite satisfying.

After dinner, Jiang Feng went to bed to rest.

「The next day.」

Another busy day awaited. Inside the shop, employees began marinating chicken using Jiang Feng's method. Jiang Feng arrived early and prepared a delicious marinade. Adding a spoonful when marinating the chicken would make it even tastier.

Jiang Feng also participated, marinating chicken while observing how they handled it. All three employees were very serious. They strictly followed Jiang Feng's ratio for the seasonings. Only by doing so would the taste be consistent.

The chicken was quickly refrigerated, arranged in several layers. After marinating for over two hours, they would be ready for the oven. The clay oven-baked chicken, after experiencing both ice and fire, tasted even better.

Amid the hustle and bustle, as soon as the clay oven-baked chicken was ready, Jiang Feng removed the foil, placed them in insulated buckets, and then hurried towards Alibaba Technology Park.

The place was huge. Jiang Feng only ran a stall in one of the employee cafeterias, which wasn't very large. Nevertheless, his business was by no means inferior.

Once Jiang Feng and Sun Zhuangfei arrived at the stall, Jiang Feng began to stir-fry rice while Sun Zhuangfei handled the front, serving chicken to the customers. Many employees came, hearing the news. Even those working on the higher floors made a special trip down to try out the new clay oven-baked chicken stall and see just how tasty it was.

「Meanwhile, on the 23rd floor.」

This building had three cafeterias: an employee cafeteria on the lower floors, another on the higher floors, and one for executives.

Generally, people on the 23rd floor ate in the cafeteria on the higher floors. But today was a bit different.

Two employees chatted leisurely.

"Let's go! Let's try the new place on the 8th floor today. I heard it's really good."

"The 8th floor? Isn't that cafeteria pretty small? There's not much to eat there."

"I heard from someone in the planning department that the new clay oven-baked chicken there is incredibly delicious. Let's go check it out."

"Sure, let's go have a taste."

Deciding on their plan, the two headed to the 8th-floor cafeteria.

News spread fast. By the time they got there, many employees were already at Jiang Feng's stall. Everyone was queuing up in an orderly fashion. The line was long. This was quite a rare sight.

The two hadn't expected so many people, but they too joined the back of the queue, ready to try the taste of the clay oven-baked chicken.

Lin Qiaoqiao and Liu Yao were also there today. The clay oven-baked chicken was indeed delicious and left them longing for more.

Liu Yao glanced twice at Sun Zhuangfei through the serving window. Sun Zhuangfei was also wearing a mask, his facial features obscured; only an outline was discernible. But Liu Yao still thought he looked familiar.

If it had been Jiang Feng, she would have recognized him at a glance, even with a mask on. But she had no recollection of Sun Zhuangfei.

Nevertheless, Jiang Feng was indeed famous, and this being Alibaba Park, many people spent a lot of time surfing the internet daily. Quite a few had seen Jiang Feng's videos, so they recognized him and also had some memory of Sun Zhuangfei.

Just then, a guy staring at Sun Zhuangfei commented, "Damn, bro, you look a lot like an employee of Boss Jiang."

Hearing this, Sun Zhuangfei became a bit nervous for a moment. Oh no, I've been recognized! The boss said to avoid being recognized as much as possible. What should I do now? Fear and panic flickered in Sun Zhuangfei's eyes.

However, the guy did not pursue the matter further, simply assuming it was a coincidence. After buying the clay oven-baked chicken, he just left.

Sun Zhuangfei finally breathed a sigh of relief. It's good that I wasn't discovered. He also understood why the boss preferred to stay in the kitchen and not show himself. Being recognized even while wearing a mask was simply outrageous. Jiang Feng's popularity was still enormous.

The employees who managed to get clay oven-baked chicken happily found places to sit and began to eat with satisfaction.

At that moment, a middle-aged man around thirty-six or thirty-seven heard about the delicious clay oven-baked chicken and immediately bought two whole chicken meals, requesting to have them packed to go.

This place was a corporate behemoth, a battlefield for careers. Some employees only cared about their own meals, but some junior leaders were already thinking of catering to their superiors at every moment.

This man, named Zhang Fu, was middle management with little hope for promotion. He had overheard two vice-presidents discussing the clay oven-baked chicken while he was upstairs.

The speakers were casual, but the listener was keen. A new employee might not even get to hear such conversations. But it was different for Zhang Fu; he was all too familiar with office politics.

So, he queued up immediately, bought two clay oven-baked chickens, and delivered them to the two vice-presidents, along with fried rice, heat-resistant gloves, disposable gloves, napkins, and so on. He really knew how to play the game.

However, to gain promotion, one needed real skill on top of just being good at networking.

Soon, Zhang Fu reached the 30th floor, found out that the two vice-presidents were resting in the tea room, and hurried over to brown-nose them. The vice-presidents, seeing his efforts, were very polite, expressed their gratitude, and even offered to reimburse him for the clay oven-baked chickens.

Zhang Fu naturally declined. "This clay oven-baked chicken really has a unique taste; lots of people are eating it, and the queue was terribly long," he said. "You two enjoy. I won't interrupt any further."

Bowing and beaming, Zhang Fu left.

The vice-presidents watched him go, getting ready to eat the clay oven-baked chicken while casually chatting.

"He does work hard. Why can't he ever get promoted?" one asked.

"Without any real talent, it's good enough that he doesn't get cut. These days, positions are competitive; achieving promotion isn't so easy," the other replied.

"Still, he is really good at arranging things. Maybe we can think about adjusting his role during the next meeting."

They then opened the foil to reveal the golden, crispy clay oven-baked chicken oozing with juice. The fragrance instantly filled the air. Seeing how appetizing the clay oven-baked chicken looked, their appetite soared.

They immediately started to eat. Instantly, the incredible taste took them by surprise.

"This clay oven-baked chicken is really well made; it tastes great!"

"It sure is!"

They had their share of fine foods; their daily meals were quite good. But compared to this clay oven-baked chicken, there was still something missing. They wondered how it was made.

The two tore the chicken with their hands and stuffed it into their mouths, no longer caring about appearances, eating mouthfuls with gusto. It only tasted right when they ate like this.

Vice-presidents are under a lot of pressure, weighed down by many matters. They had been discussing business just a while ago. But now, enjoying the delicious clay oven-baked chicken, they could momentarily escape from the pressure and indulge in a brief respite of pleasure.