Cooking System: Street Food Rules

Jiang Feng started his street stall at nine in the morning. He was busy at his stall the whole time. Customers kept coming; it hadn't stopped since morning! Because he had prepared plenty of ingredients, with enough crabs and rice cakes, Jiang Feng didn't take a break either, only resting for a moment occasionally.

The Cultural and Tourism Bureau had specially assigned two cleaners to handle food waste and clean the tables and chairs. Sun Zhuangfei assisted Jiang Feng in the truck. Stir-frying non-stop, Jiang Feng had already cooked several woks dry of oil. He didn't seem particularly affected, his expression still at ease.

The live broadcast continued. Many netizens tuned in, watched for a while, left a few comments, and then logged off. When they returned, they saw Jiang Feng still calmly stir-frying crabs.

「By four in the afternoon.」

A netizen named Liu Ai entered the live stream and, seeing Jiang Feng still frying crabs, asked, "[Holy cow, Boss Jiang is still frying crabs? Hasn't he taken a break?]"

Seeing his comment, others in the live chat responded:

"[Some whale has been watching his live stream the entire time; he hasn't taken a break at all!]"

"[Boss Jiang is truly invincible!]"

"[Is he trying to cook all the crabs in the city?]"

"[What a beast!]"

The netizens were dumbstruck. Standing for several hours was exhausting enough, let alone stir-frying non-stop. Only those who had cooked before knew how intense Jiang Feng's efforts were.

"[Boss Jiang's stamina must be incredible!]"

"[He's still frying crabs!]"

"[I want to go too!]"

"[I thought the stall would close after two hours!]"

Many people were watching the spectacle on-site. Some, thinking they wouldn't make it to the front of the queue, hadn't bothered to join. But after watching for a while, they realized something was off. The kid who had been at the very end of the line was now in the middle, almost about to get his plate of crab. Only then did they come to their senses and hurriedly join the queue.

In front of the stall, Jiang Feng continued to work at a steady pace. Given the high temperature from the stove, the Cultural and Tourism Bureau had specially provided Jiang Feng with a large fan to cool him down. Jiang Feng didn't feel very tired, just slightly fatigued.

His task for the day was to serve 300 diners, which Jiang Feng had completed long ago. But with an event making such a big splash, he felt he still needed to deliver impressive results.

A few locals strolling down Wuma Street in the afternoon were astonished to see such a large crowd gathered.

"He's still at it!"

"It's unbelievable! So many people gathered for just one dish!"

"I heard it tastes great; everyone who's tried it says it's amazing!"

"How many portions must he be selling today!"

"His culinary skills are indeed incredible! A true master chef!"

Running a stall was inherently tough work, and many owners operated all day, so Jiang Feng didn't find it particularly remarkable. It's just stir-frying crabs and rice cakes. He still looked very composed. Wearing an apron, he processed the ingredients without any rush. His attention was fixed on the cutting board, though he occasionally glanced up to observe the commotion outside. Despite the large crowd, he wasn't disturbed at all.

The Cultural and Tourism Bureau's official live broadcast account had broken viewership records long ago. Previously, when the bureau live-streamed natural scenery or promoted local travel packages, only three to five hundred people would be watching. It was the same story for many other city tourism accounts; as soon as viewers realized it was an advertisement, they'd tune out. But this time was an exception. The live stream featured no ads, instead promoting local delicacies through Jiang Feng's street vending event. Coupled with Jiang Feng's own popularity, the number of viewers remained consistently high.

「An hour passed.」

「Wenzhou City.」

「Inside a certain restaurant.」

A family of three entered. The husband immediately ordered, "Waiter, I'd like a portion of Stir-fried Swimmer Crab with Rice Cakes to start."

Hearing his request, the waiter hurried over. "Sir, I'm sorry, but we've sold out of Stir-fried Swimmer Crab with Rice Cakes. In fact, all our swimmer crabs are gone for today."

The husband was slightly stunned. "Sold out?" he asked immediately. "Isn't it just past five o'clock? Dinner service hasn't even started yet."

The waiter explained, "Actually, the Stir-fried Swimmer Crab with Rice Cakes sold out at lunchtime. I don't know what happened today, but all the lunch customers were ordering it. We didn't have many swimmer crabs to begin with, so they were gone in no time."

At that, the husband looked at his wife. They had come out today specifically to eat Stir-fried Swimmer Crab with Rice Cakes. After all, the buzz about the streamer Jiang Feng had spread far and wide. Many locals knew that the incredibly popular stall owner was nearby, selling his signature Stir-fried Swimmer Crab with Rice Cakes. The news had left everyone craving it. Although they couldn't taste Jiang Feng's version, they figured a restaurant's rendition could still satisfy their desire.

The wife said, "How about we try another place? I really want Stir-fried Swimmer Crab with Rice Cakes."

"Alright."

The family of three left that restaurant and went to another. Unexpectedly, this one had also run out of Stir-fried Swimmer Crab with Rice Cakes; all their swimmer crabs were sold out too.

"Gone again?" the husband said in surprise.

The front desk staff explained, "A lot of people came for lunch, and this dish sold out very quickly. All the swimmer crabs were snapped up."

The husband understood now. It seemed all the swimmer crabs in the city had been bought up today. In ancient times, paper was priceless in Luoyang due to high demand; today, swimmer crabs are eaten to extinction. It seems people, both ancient and modern, are the same—they love to chase trends and try similar things.

The family of three walked out of the restaurant. The husband opened the Meituan app and called several other restaurants, only to be told that their Stir-fried Swimmer Crab with Rice Cakes were all sold out.

"None left, all sold out," the husband said in disbelief. "This is outrageous! How many people ate this dish at noon?!"

"It's quite normal," his wife responded. "Those swimmer crabs are usually in short supply anyway. With everyone rushing to eat them, of course, they'd run out!"

"Let's just buy some ingredients and make it at home!" the husband suggested.

"Okay."

And so, the couple went to a fresh market. Unsurprisingly, not a single swimmer crab was left. Many people were gathered around the seafood counter, asking if there were any swimmer crabs. The clerk kept repeating they were out and had even put up a sign: "SWIMMER CRABS - SOLD OUT."

"Even the supermarket crabs are sold out! This is insane!" the husband exclaimed, his face a mask of disbelief.

"Looks like we won't be eating crab today," his wife suggested. "Let's just have stir-fried rice cakes."

The two then went to buy rice cakes. When they reached the shelf where rice cakes were usually stocked, they found a large section completely empty. The rice cakes were sold out too!

Could it really be this unbelievable? The couple stared at the empty shelves, momentarily speechless. They had impulsively decided to have Stir-fried Swimmer Crab with Rice Cakes, never imagining countless others had the exact same idea. Truly outrageous.

That day, it seemed as if every swimmer crab in Wenzhou had been sold out. Jiang Feng was set to operate his stall for a week, and for that entire week, he planned to cook swimmer crabs. This meant Wenzhou's supply of swimmer crabs would definitely fall short of demand. Many seafood merchants noticed this shift and began looking for suppliers in surrounding cities. In all their years of business, this was the first time they had to purchase swimmer crabs in such large quantities from other regions. One could only imagine the magnitude of Jiang Feng's impact.

That's what happens when you become popular. Popularity has a siphoning effect: the more attention someone gets, the faster they attract even more, until they reach an extremely high level. Take Dong Yuhui, for example, who became a top influencer in just a few days, his fame skyrocketing. Jiang Feng himself wasn't active online, but with so many people filming him, his reach was now immense. This kind of popularity was exactly what many places, businesses, and organizations craved.

Meanwhile, Jiang Feng was still calmly processing swimmer crabs. He had taken about a half-hour break around four o'clock to eat and recharge. Then he had returned and continued frying. Frying four swimmer crabs per wok was no longer enough to satisfy the crowd; since that morning, Jiang Feng had been frying eight at a time, serving eight orders with each batch. The system showed that Jiang Feng had served 612 customers that day. This number was already extraordinary for a street stall, especially since stir-frying wasn't a particularly fast cooking method.

Every customer who tasted the Stir-fried Swimmer Crab with Rice Cakes had nothing but praise. The swimmer crab was incredibly flavorful, chunky, and delicious—tender and exceptionally savory. The incomparable taste had customers singing its praises endlessly. It was precisely because of Jiang Feng's exquisite culinary skills that he had gained such immense popularity; this was the foundation of his success.

Jiang Feng continued to work, and before he knew it, the lights on Wuma Street flickered on, brightly illuminating the entire road. The street was lined with numerous shops, its architectural style a blend of old and new, featuring modern high-rises alongside Republican-era archways. In this environment, a modest stall operated quietly, attracting a large crowd of customers who had heard the news. Every time people saw this scene, they couldn't help but admire Jiang Feng.

"Boss Jiang is still amazing, not even tired. I'm starting to think he's an alien!"

"Most people couldn't keep this up for a whole day!"

"He's practically a superhero!"

"So charming—tall, handsome, an amazing cook, and with a super nice personality. Simply perfect!"

"It's been a whole day, and there are still so many people queuing!"

In the midst of the bustle, Jiang Feng looked up. There were still many people. He said to Li Yuan, who was managing the crowd, "Li Yuan, tell the people at the back of the line not to queue anymore. After we serve these last customers, we'll call it a day. For this week, we'll operate from 10:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. daily. We need to set clear hours; otherwise, it gets a bit tiring."

Hearing Jiang Feng's words, Li Yuan hurriedly replied, "Okay, I'll let them know right away. We'll finish up after serving these people." Then he asked, "Boss Jiang, are you really just a bit tired? It's been a whole day."

Jiang Feng appeared very calm. "It's not too bad. I'm used to it."

His physical condition was indeed very strong, and his spirits remained high. After all, he had the system on his side.

So, he kept busy for a while longer, and the day's vending finally came to an end. Although the queue had dispersed, a large crowd still lingered, many of them taking pictures.

Jiang Feng waved to everyone. "That's all for today! Business continues tomorrow. You're all welcome to come by!"

Seeing his relaxed and confident manner, the crowd cheered in response.

"Boss Jiang, we'll be back tomorrow!"

"You're truly amazing!"

"The stir-fried swimmer crabs were incredible! A big thumbs up!"

The atmosphere on-site was extraordinarily vibrant.