Chapter 10: The Incredibly Delicious Shredded Radish

Five minutes later.

“You… you cooked this?” Hu Daniu stared in disbelief at the plate of julienned radish before him, its appearance a hundred times more appealing than any he had ever made.

“I did, Master. Weren’t you watching me the whole time?” Chen Yun asked, puzzled.

“No, I mean, you followed the exact same steps as I did. Why does it look so incredible once you plated it?” Hu Daniu asked, his hands trembling.

“I… I don’t know. I was just muddling through, and suddenly it turned out like this.” Chen Yun hadn’t expected the dish to look so stunning once served. Every strand of radish was sharply cut, slender and almost translucent, like a work of art—so enticing that it whetted the appetite, yet made one reluctant to dig in.

“That feeling again?” Hu Daniu asked with a wry smile.

“Yes, exactly that feeling,” Chen Yun replied quickly, as if clutching at a lifeline.

“Sigh… That feeling… After twenty years of cooking, I, Hu Daniu, find myself outdone by a newcomer frying his very first dish. Ha… ha…” Hu Daniu laughed at himself. “They say talent matters more than effort. I never believed that until I met you. But now, damn it, I do!”

“Master, how much would this plate of julienned radish sell for?” Seeing his master’s dejected expression, Chen Yun felt a pang of guilt and hurriedly changed the subject.

“The radish I fry sells for five copper coins a plate. But this? Just the appearance alone is worth over a hundred copper coins! This isn’t food anymore—it’s art. Do you understand? Art! Forget it, cook as you please. I’m going to lie down. Don’t mind me.”

Chen Yun scratched his head awkwardly as his master left the kitchen, shaking his head with every step. He hadn’t meant to upset him so much with just a simple dish. What a crime.

He took a bite and his eyes widened in shock.

My god! Is this really just radish? I’d believe it if you told me it was celestial meat!

“Player Chen Yun consumes green consumable ‘Stir-fried Julienne Radish’: Health +1, Mana +1, Spirit permanently +1. Effective bonus uses: 0/1.”

What? Chen Yun was stunned. He quickly checked the attributes of the dish he had just made.

“Stir-fried Julienne Radish. Green level 1 consumable. Use: Health +30, Mana +30, permanently increases Spirit by 1. Effective bonus uses: 0/1.”

What kind of crazy world is this? You can actually permanently boost your attributes just by eating a dish? Chen Yun then glanced at the plate of radish his master had cooked.

“Stir-fried Julienne Radish. White level 1 consumable. Use: Health +15.”

Strange. Why does his own dish increase both health and mana, while his master’s only restores health? And the description says +30 health and +30 mana, but after eating it, he only got +1 health and +1 mana?

He ate another mouthful. This time the system only prompted health +1, mana +1; nothing else.

Suddenly, Chen Yun understood. The permanent Spirit increase only works the first time you eat it; after that, it doesn’t. And you need to finish the whole plate to get the total 30 health and 30 mana—the system is so user-friendly.

Wait, another question: his health was already full, so why didn’t he throw up this time? Could it be that excess health is stored?

“Player Chen Yun’s reserve health slot has been unlocked. Current stored: 2/100. Reserve health slot maximum increases with player level.”

“Player Chen Yun’s reserve mana slot has been unlocked. Current stored: 0/100. Reserve mana slot maximum increases with player level.”

Delighted, Chen Yun grinned. This system is incredible—even this feature exists! Now he’d never have to worry about overeating and throwing up again.

“Uncle Hu, I’m starving! Can you make me braised pork… huh? Who are you? Why are you sneaking food here?” A crisp female voice suddenly rang out.

Chen Yun snapped to attention and looked up. A short-haired girl of about sixteen stood at the kitchen door, curiosity bright in her eyes.

“Oh, hello. I’m the new kitchen apprentice. My name’s Chen Yun,” he replied.

“New?” She walked over and gave him a scrutinizing look, then her eyes lit up as she spotted the plate of stir-fried radish next to him. “Wow, it’s beautiful!”

Lan Lan picked up the plate excitedly, only to notice that a piece had already been eaten. Annoyed, she scolded, “How could you bear to eat such a beautiful dish? Have you no heart?”

…Chen Yun was speechless. Wasn’t that a bit much? He’d only taken a single bite. How did that make him heartless?

“It’s so pretty, and it smells amazing. I can’t help it—I just have to try…” Lan Lan snatched the chopsticks from his hand and, without a second thought, took a bite…

Twenty minutes later.

“Brother Chen, please, cook me another plate. It’s just too delicious.”

“No, I’ve already made you two plates. Any more and you’ll burst.”

“Come on, just one more. I promise—just one last plate.”

“That’s what you said last time. I don’t believe you anymore.”

“Hmph! Will you or won’t you? If you don’t, I’ll tell my dad you were stealing food, and he’ll fire you.”

“Go ahead. If you don’t want to eat my cooking again, you’re free to complain. I don’t mind.”

“You… you’re bullying me! After eating your food, I can’t eat anything else. Are you really just an apprentice? Are all kitchen apprentices this amazing now? Uncle Hu is a junior chef, but your dishes are a thousand times better than his. How could you possibly be a beginner?”

“Believe it or not, today really is my first time cooking. Enough—customers will be here soon. I need to prepare.”

Annoyed by her questions, Chen Yun finally ushered her out.

“Cooking?” Lan Lan glanced at the clock on the kitchen wall and grinned. “It’s almost mealtime. Let me help you, okay?”

“You’re only helping your own stomach, aren’t you?” Chen Yun saw right through her intentions.

“It’s all the same! I’ll help you, and you save me a little bit of each dish. Deal! I’ll just drop off my bag and come right back.”

Watching her dash out of the kitchen, Chen Yun chuckled, then picked up the plate she’d cleaned more thoroughly than any wash and began to scrub it.

Restaurant dining hall.

“Old Hu, what did you say? You’re not cooking tonight—you want Xiao Chen to cook? Are you kidding me?” The restaurant owner, Xi Jiu, stared at Hu Daniu in disbelief. “That kid just came from a village—at best, he’s an apprentice. And you’re telling me he can cook?”

“He has the potential to become a master chef. What do you think?” Hu Daniu replied with a bitter smile. “Don’t blame you for doubting. I didn’t believe it myself at first. But then he shook me to the core. Have you ever seen an apprentice who could slice vegetables like an artist the first time he picked up a knife? Or a first-time cook who could turn out dishes as beautiful as a painting?”