Cooking System: Street Food Rules

Jiang Feng's bone soup restaurant had become a resting station for weary guests.

Several groups of guests came in at noon, casually eating something after taking their departed loved ones to be cremated.

Upon entering, their expressions were all steeped in sorrow, their moods deeply somber.

But when they left, their emotions seemed much more stable, and their footsteps also appeared more steady.

This was the power of good food. Subtle yet undeniable, it carried a profoundly uplifting significance.

By 2 p.m., Jiang Feng had served over forty customers.

He was still over fifty people short of completing his task. Given the current flow of customers, it was uncertain whether he would complete the task. But such matters were left to fate, as promotional tactics were of little use unless he made a callout on Jiangyue Terrace's public account. However, that would seem too mercenary, and he couldn't bring himself to do it.

"Looks like we'll have to work late tonight," Jiang Feng said to Sun Zhuangfei. "We'll see. If it's not too busy, we'll close at 10 p.m. The evenings tend to be busier."

"No problem, Boss," Sun Zhuangfei replied.

He looked somewhat nervous. He was usually timid, and since they were next to the funeral home, there were rumors about many invisible spirits lingering around. Sun Zhuangfei was scared, but too embarrassed to show it, so he kept close to Little Black. He drew courage from the dog.

Soon after, a few more customers came in. Spotting the sign, they all ordered the signature bone soup rice noodles.

In the kitchen, the Big Bone Soup showed a pale white hue. Many who made bone soup struggled to achieve such a milky color, which required skill. The taste of the soup was exceptionally fresh. Freshness is elusive to describe. But between two bowls of soup with the same taste, the "fresher" one always tastes better. Jiang Feng evidently knew how to achieve this.

Soon, bowls of rice noodles were served one after another. Upon tasting the noodles, diners' faces brightened with smiles. The flavor of the noodles was indeed impressive. Especially the soup. It was as if some magical ingredient had been added.

After preparing the noodles, Jiang Feng would sit in the restaurant, quietly enjoying the tranquility of the small town. Tranquility meant fewer people and cars, less modernization, and not many shops. Slowing down once in a while didn't feel so bad.

Noticing Jiang Feng, a customer immediately asked, "Boss, did you add something special to these noodles? The soup is so tasty!"

Jiang Feng replied with a light smile, "It's a regular recipe, made from fresh-cut beef bones, simmered just right."

Hearing this, the customer exclaimed, "It's indeed delicious. You're quite skilled."

Jiang Feng merely smiled.

The customers polished off their noodles, wood ear mushrooms, enokitake, and greens, then took a spoon and sipped on the soup. Each mouthful of the Bone Soup brought a savory saltiness. Far from cloying, instead, it was a comfort to the tongue. The Bone Soup slid down their throats into their stomachs, warming from the inside. Then, the warmth spread from the stomach through the blood to the entire body. Every part felt cozy.

Sipping the soup, they eventually lifted the bowl, draining the last of it in one gulp. A belly full of soup naturally felt filling, but the sensation was one of complete satisfaction.

"Hah!" The customers let out a contented sigh, rested briefly, and then slowly departed.

In such small towns, many run little eateries. Everyone's business was just average. No one made much money. Jiang Feng hadn't set out to make a fortune with it. He simply hoped to complete his task.

The afternoon was relatively quiet, especially around three or four o'clock, when there were hardly any customers. Jiang Feng sat on a small stool by the door, placing the kitten on his lap and stroking it gently. Little Black lay faithfully at his feet, like a loyal guardian. Sun Zhuangfei sat inside, looking at his phone, studying music-related knowledge.

The little black cat was well-behaved and clingy, an energetic little creature fond of moving about. It got along well with Little Black now, the two animals often playing together, much to Jiang Feng's delight.

This peaceful time lasted into the evening.

Customers arrived in dribs and drabs. The nights in the small town were rather dark. The occasional patron could be quite startling. While Jiang Feng was unfazed, Sun Zhuangfei was more restrained, always wary of unwanted visitors.

As the bone soup rice noodles tasted exceptionally good, several people from the funeral home came over to eat in the evening. Clearly, word had spread internally. This was fortunate since their patronage meant he could easily complete his task.

「Meanwhile.」

「Downtown Hangzhou.」

Many food lovers were still searching for Jiang Feng. Jiang Feng's cuisine was a hit locally, and each time he set up his stall, it was bustling with customers. After his last appearance in Alibaba Technology Park, he seemed to vanish, only seen later at a restaurant by West Lake.

In several fan groups run by small-time live streamers, many enjoyed discussing Jiang Feng. In fact, these group members were fans who had joined after seeing the live streams about Jiang Feng, essentially making them all Jiang Feng's fans.

"Where has Boss Jiang gone off to do business this time?"

"He's becoming harder and harder to find."

"I'm seriously considering putting up a missing person notice!"

"Logically, given his popularity, wherever he sets up his stall should be discovered by people fairly quickly."

Everyone was discussing animatedly.

Just then, a group member with the nickname "Amazing Detective Di Renjie" spoke up, "If nothing unexpected has occurred, Boss Jiang should currently be in a suburban county this time. If it were in the city center, with his level of popularity, he would definitely be found quickly. Moreover, since his restaurant is being renovated, he won't be leaving Hangzhou for a short period of time. He's also the type who likes the ease of setting up a stall. The only reasonable explanation is that he is now in a remote county. I have a few guesses in my mind."

This person spoke confidently, even pinpointing a few locations.

Seeing this, other group members responded, "Not bad, you really are an amazing detective!"

"You could deduce all that?"

"Guessing it all by yourself, huh!"

Hearing this, Amazing Detective Di Renjie spoke again, "I personally think the likelihood is greatest that he's in one of these two small towns. The population there is relatively sparse."

That said, Di Renjie actually went ahead and named two county locations. One of them was the very small county where Jiang Feng was located.

Jiang Feng himself hadn't expected someone to guess correctly. It was quite absurd.

Fortunately, at this time, the group members didn't take it seriously, just laughing it off. They thought he was joking around. Others also started guessing.

This week's stall setting was supposed to be carefree. In the small county, there were fewer people and the work wasn't demanding. Jiang Feng was planning to rest peacefully for a few days. After all, each business venture before had been surrounded by a massive crowd, leaving him with no opportunity to finish his work.

The pot of bone soup was stewing. This carefully prepared pot of bone soup was rich and delicious, nothing short of perfection. Sometimes Jiang Feng would serve himself a bowl, and after drinking it, he would feel warmed throughout.

Little Black was lying at the entrance of the store, smelling the aroma of the bone soup, a look of satisfaction on its face as it dozed off in the fragrance. Seemingly in a blissful dream, it had a slight smile at the corners of its mouth, which looked pretty healing to see.

The kitten was also asleep in its cage.

「Contrary to the buzz around Jiang Feng, at this moment, in an online influencers' group chat for a training institution.」

There weren't any hot topics lately, resulting in very low viewership for many small streamers. Even with the hard-earned hundreds of thousands of followers, only a couple hundred were watching when they went live. Their followers didn't have strong loyalty, or perhaps didn't like them that much.

But Jiang Feng was different. Netizens really liked his personality and the stories about him. More and more people, after seeing his videos, were drawn to his story, even if they had never tasted his food.

There were many outrageous stories about Jiang Feng. Heir to the Culinary God, diligently studying culinary arts from a young age, family business, immeasurably deep ancestral wealth...

When Jiang Feng saw these tags, he was dumbfounded for several seconds. Who are they talking about? Are they talking about me? How could I not know this?

Online matters were just for fun.

In the streamers' group chat, a genius suddenly came up with a brilliant idea.

"What if we organize an outdoor event called 'Finding Boss Jiang'?"

"A bunch of streamers could search for him together, and the daily streaming content would be visiting various food streets to look for him."

"Then broadcast it live."

"That would definitely draw a crowd."

"If a lot of people watch and find it interesting, how could we not get plenty of tips?"

Seeing this idea, the other streamers were suddenly enthusiastic.

Right! What a great idea! You're truly talented! To come up with such a plan. Wouldn't this go viral? You really know how to play the internet game.

Everyone was worried about how to gain more viewership, how to have more people watching their streams. Wasn't this idea the solution?

Other streamers chimed in, "Great idea! You're really smart!"

"Let's do it!"

"Find him!"

"Genius, let's make a video about it in a bit."

"Who's free these days to run outdoor streams, let's sign up together."

"We'll call this mission: 'Finding Chef Jiang Feng'."

"Interesting, count me in!"

"I'll sign up!"

"Let's first confirm if he's in Hangzhou!"

"Whether he's here or not is not important, we need to get this event started before someone discovers him!"

They all got excited.

Jiang Feng had not anticipated that he would become the subject of a city-wide search. It was like a game of hide and seek. He was still leisurely enjoying the tranquility. Little did he know, a whole host of searchers had already started their quest.