Cooking System: Street Food Rules

"Where on earth did Boss Jiang go?"

"Isn't he in Hangzhou anymore?"

"It's been a long time since there was any news about him."

"I heard from passersby that he was seen walking his dog in the park—that little black one of his—so he should still be in Hangzhou."

"Then why can't he be found?"

In a certain MCN agency work group, a large group of minor streamers were idly chatting about Jiang Feng. For these small-time streamers, always looking for a trend to ride, Jiang Feng—who naturally attracted attention without even seeking it—was the perfect target to boost their own visibility. Hangzhou is a city famous for its online celebrities; the influencer industry there is highly developed, and countless people yearn to strike it rich overnight through the web. But as beautiful as dreams are, reality is often harsh. Not only online celebrities but many local foodies, as well as curious netizens online, were also very inquisitive: Where exactly had Jiang Feng gone?

"Please don't keep falling for brother, oh brother is just a legend~"

"Although I'm reluctant, I still have to say~"

Inside the shop, Sun Zhuangfei's phone started playing a tune. Hearing this music, Jiang Feng immediately frowned. Good grief, what year is this? This song must be at least twenty years old, yet someone is still listening to it. Sun Zhuangfei's tastes are always so unique.

Sun Zhuangfei hurried to answer the call, while the other two employees chuckled. The atmosphere in the shop was good.

Little Black rested its head on the doorstep, poking its nose out and gazing outside. It wanted to go for a walk, but Jiang Feng wouldn't let it. It couldn't be helped. Even if Little Black was an exceptional dog, it was still a rural breed. If it were caught by some unscrupulous dog trafficker, not even the police could get it back. Little Black was "found," and without a purchase receipt, it had no monetary value and couldn't be counted as a property loss. Little Black was very obedient and just lay there quietly.

After a busy afternoon, once the clay-baked chickens were all ready, Jiang Feng hurried to the industrial park with a cartload of them to continue his stall business. This was the final week of the Hangzhou street stall mission. As long as this week's tasks were completed, he would earn another restaurant as a reward. The thought alone was exciting.

Soon, the clay-baked chickens were transported to the stall, and it began operating. By this time, company employees had already started arriving. Once they reached the cafeteria, they all headed straight for Jiang Feng's stall. On the first day, only employees from the floors immediately above and below came. On the second day, employees from the entire building showed up. Today, the third day, some employees from other buildings also came over. It was just a short walk, after all. Word had spread that this clay-baked chicken was delicious, so many people knew about it. After all, news traveled fast within the company. A long line formed in front of the stall.

Lin Qiaoqiao and Liu Yao were in the queue again. For them to eat at the same place for three consecutive evenings was a rare occurrence.

"Where do you think Boss Jiang could be?" Liu Yao wondered, looking at her phone. She typed "Boss Jiang's recent stall location" into the search bar, but all the videos that popped up were from several days ago. There had been no news at all in the past few days. Liu Yao was one of the many people searching for Jiang Feng online.

Over the past few days, Liu Yao had successfully pitched Jiang Feng to Lin Qiaoqiao, who then looked him up. She watched many videos of Jiang Feng interacting closely with his customers and of him cooking. He was quite charming. She had also grown to like Jiang Feng a bit—the kind of admiration one has for a well-known internet personality.

"Maybe he went to another city, or perhaps he's just resting," Lin Qiaoqiao speculated. "Or maybe he's in seclusion, developing new recipes. Having made so many different kinds of gourmet dishes, he surely needs time to reflect and perfect them."

Jiang Feng truly was a man shrouded in mystery. He always kept people guessing. The more elusive he was, the more curious people became about his whereabouts.

At this very moment, Jiang Feng was in the kitchen not too far away, his spatula a blur of motion. He was making egg fried rice. Egg fried rice was a side dish for the clay-baked chicken, and it had to be made fresh to taste its best. If left in the wok for even tens of minutes after cooking, the eggs would lose their delicate texture and freshness.

For Jiang Feng, making egg fried rice was very simple. He picked up two eggs, tapping one lightly.

CRACK!

Two eggs went into a bowl and were whisked briskly. Then he took some scallions and ham sausage, dicing them finely. His knife skills were steady and swift. Next, he grabbed a ladle, scooped up some oil, and poured it along the rim of the hot wok. The soybean oil spread evenly down the sides, pooling in the center at the bottom of the wok.

As the oil heated up, he poured the beaten eggs into the wok.

SIZZLE!

The eggs immediately started to bubble. He stirred them with an iron ladle for a moment until the eggs formed golden, fluffy strands. At that precise moment, Jiang Feng added the rice. Pressing down on the rice with the iron ladle, he broke it apart and then, gripping the wok handle, expertly began to toss the contents. As he tossed the wok, the rice and egg danced in the air, their increased surface area allowing them to combine perfectly. A fragrant aroma wafted out.

When the stir-frying was almost complete, he added the diced ham and continued to fry. For the final step, he sprinkled salt and scattered the chopped scallions. Finally, he scraped everything into a large bowl.

A bowl of glistening, delicious egg fried rice, a culinary work of art, was complete. Under the overhead lights, the bowl of egg fried rice seemed to glow. It looked utterly mouth-watering.

Many customers ordered the clay-baked chicken just to savor this bowl of fragrant and exquisite egg fried rice!

As Lin Qiaoqiao and Liu Yao speculated about Jiang Feng's whereabouts, little did they know he was in the kitchen just nearby, expertly tossing fried rice.

「Inside the canteen.」

Two men in their forties came downstairs together. Seeing them, many employees greeted them one after another.

"Hello, Mr. Li. Hello, Mr. Wang."

"Hello, General Managers!"

These two were senior executives of the company. Normally, they dined in the exclusive executive cafeteria and wouldn't come down here. But today was an exception. Yesterday, Zhang Fu had brought them clay-baked chicken, and both men had only planned to sample it. After one bite, they were instantly captivated by the flavor of the clay-baked chicken. The taste was simply intoxicating. They had never eaten anything so satisfying.

The two clay-baked chickens were mildly spicy. Although only slightly hot, the flavor had penetrated every part of the meat, creating a comprehensive spicy aroma in their mouths. The spiciness was incredibly satisfying. Besides the clay-baked chicken, the egg fried rice was even more spectacular. They were already somewhat full from the chicken, but once they started on the egg fried rice, they couldn't stop.

Therefore, the two had come down today specifically to eat the clay-baked chicken in the main cafeteria.

They lined up in the queue. Many people who had been chatting and joking around instantly tensed up and fell silent when they saw the two executives. The employees in front of them, in particular, felt on edge, as if they had thorns in their backs or a fishbone stuck in their throats. Should they offer their spots or not? If they did, would it seem like they were fawning over the leaders? If they didn't, with the leaders right behind them, wouldn't that suggest they lacked social grace?

The young man hesitated for a moment, then turned around, stepping back as he said, "Mr. Li, Mr. Wang, please go ahead."

Hearing this, Mr. Li gently stopped him, smiling as he said, "There's no need to be so courteous. You stay right there; we'll queue up just like everyone else. Everyone, please carry on as you were. Just pretend we're not here."

Leaders often said things like, "Just pretend I'm not here," but employees couldn't really take such words at face value. Could they truly act as if their bosses didn't exist? And regarding letting them cut in line: the bosses might not actually cut, but employees were expected to make the offer. Showing such consideration pleased the leadership. That's just how the workplace operated.

So, everyone queued up just like that. Lin Qiaoqiao and Liu Yao were at the front of the line. They also saw the two senior managers further back in the line.

"Wow, Mr. Li and Mr. Wang are down here too! Seems they also know how delicious this clay-baked chicken is," Lin Qiaoqiao exclaimed in surprise.

"Yeah, it's really good. I even saw colleagues from other departments come to our building. A lot of people from customer service are here," Liu Yao nodded and replied.

The clay-baked chicken stall was becoming increasingly popular. However, Jiang Feng had only signed a short-term agreement for this location, and the rent wasn't cheap, so he wouldn't be there for long.

Just then, an employee at the very front of the line looked at Sun Zhuangfei, who was managing the stall. A look of shock suddenly crossed his face, and he exclaimed, "No way! Aren't you one of Boss Jiang's employees? Is this clay-baked chicken stall Boss Jiang's?"

Hearing his words, Sun Zhuangfei froze again. What should he say?

"You're that guy! I remember you! You're the one who played the violin at the roadside steak stall, right?"

"Is Boss Jiang here?"

"Is he at our company?"

"Wow, I'm a huge fan!"

The young employee was quite excited. Many people heard his words and looked over.

Boss Jiang? Which Boss Jiang? The one who sells amazing food all over the city? No way!

At this moment, it finally dawned on Liu Yao. She pointed towards the stall, her hand trembling with excitement.

"I remember now! I knew that person looked familiar!" Liu Yao exclaimed to Lin Qiaoqiao. "He works for Boss Jiang! This clay-baked chicken stall is owned by Boss Jiang! It must be his cooking! I knew it tasted this good for a reason! It's definitely him, no mistake!"

Hearing Liu Yao, Lin Qiaoqiao was also stunned. No way! Could it really be him? We were just wondering where Boss Jiang was, and he turns out to be right here in our company? And I've been eating the clay-baked chicken he made for two days now? This is too much of a coincidence!

"The clay-baked chicken is his? And he made the egg fried rice too?" Lin Qiaoqiao pressed.

"Definitely!" Liu Yao exclaimed, growing more excited. "It just hit me! I was wondering why this chicken tasted so incredible, just as amazing as the roast duck I had last week! It turns out Boss Jiang made both! Amazing, truly amazing!"

The cafeteria, which had quieted down due to the presence of the two senior managers, now buzzed with hushed conversations.

Sun Zhuangfei, utterly bewildered, said nothing unnecessary. He simply asked customers what they wanted to buy and handed over the clay-baked chicken, ignoring all other conversation.

"You're Boss Jiang's employee, right? Is Boss Jiang in the kitchen?" the young man persisted.

Sun Zhuangfei didn't respond. He just looked at the person behind the young man and asked, "Next, what would you like?"

The person stepped forward. "I'll take a single-serving clay-baked chicken combo."

"Alright."

Sun Zhuangfei quickly took out a tightly wrapped foil package from the insulated container, prepared the other side dishes, and handed them over.

Now that their identities had been exposed, pretending not to hear seemed the best strategy.

Jiang Feng also heard the commotion outside. He sighed. To think they'd be recognized even like this. It's just outrageous, especially since they were all wearing masks. He shrugged nonchalantly. Whatever, I'm used to it by now. For some reason, Sun Zhuangfei's ringtone echoed in his mind: "Please don't keep falling for Brother, oh~ Brother is just a legend!"

...