ARLQLCC chapter 11

 

The afternoon passed in a flash, and the ingredients for the next day were almost fully prepared. The mung beans were still soaking, and after dinner he would be able to start making mung bean cakes.

Su Ji had promised to make pickled chili fish head for Chu Zhaoye that evening, so as soon as the time came, he went to the pond and scattered a handful of fish food.

The spirit fish in the pond swam over one after another to compete for the food. With quick eyes and hands, he scooped up the live fish he had bought a few days ago, then headed to the kitchen.

Su Ji had originally thought that, as a kitten cub, Ma Tuan should not be able to eat spicy food. But not long ago, he discovered that while he was not paying attention, the little cat had calmly eaten a piece of spicy stir-fried beef tenderloin.

Su Ji had been nervous to death at the time, but when he brought over some cold water, he found that the kitten was still eating and showed no sign of being affected by the spice.

Only then did he realize that little cats could actually handle spicy food quite well.

This discovery added many more options to Ma Tuan’s menu. As long as it was not too spicy, he could appropriately make it for the kitten to eat.

For example, today’s pickled chili fish head, in which the spice played a supporting role, while the main flavor was savory and fragrant.

Su Ji chopped off the fish head, cleaned it, and made a few cuts on the back side so it would absorb flavor more easily.

He added cooking wine, scallion segments, and ginger to the fish head, rubbed everything evenly over it, and set it aside to marinate.

Su Ji was particularly fond of spicy dishes, so he had bought plenty of chopped chilies and pickled chilies to keep in the kitchen for unexpected needs.

Once the oil in the wok was hot, he added the chopped red chilies and pickled chilies, then a spoonful of white sugar to enhance the flavor. After that, he added one spoonful of light soy sauce and one spoonful of pepper powder, stir-frying until fragrant.

The combination of chopped chilies and pickled chilies released an extremely enticing aroma. Su Ji picked up a small bite with his chopsticks to taste it. The seasoning was just right, so he transferred it directly to a bowl for later use.

He added water to the wok and brought it to a boil. Then he took a steaming plate from the utensil rack and laid ginger slices and scallion segments on it for a second round of deodorizing.

He placed the marinated fish head in the center of the steaming plate and evenly spread the prepared chopped chili sauce over the surface. Then he set it over the boiling water to steam until cooked.

During this time, Su Ji processed the remaining fish body and made a milky white, fresh and fragrant tofu fish soup.

After stir-frying a vegetable dish, he took the steamed fish head out and set it on the table.

Chu Zhaoye, who had been waiting for a long time, was already fully prepared to eat. As soon as the bright red pickled chili fish head was placed on the table, he immediately stood up.

Chu Zhaoye: “Meow!”

Su Ji placed the bowl in front of him, chose the meatiest part of the fish head, dipped it in the broth and chopped chili sauce, and placed it on top of the snowy white rice.

The rich sauce soaked into the rice, and the aroma was absolutely irresistible. Before even taking a bite, Chu Zhaoye could already imagine how wonderful this mouthful of fish and rice would taste.

The chopped chilies used today were fairly spicy. Although steaming for a long time would reduce some of the spiciness, Su Ji was still worried about the kitten’s stomach, so just as Chu Zhaoye was about to take a bite, he first served him a bowl of fish soup.

“Ma Tuan, don’t eat just yet. Drink a few sips of soup first to line your stomach.”

Looking at the fish soup in front of him, Chu Zhaoye wanted to say that he had cultivated for several thousand years. Although his body was still in the cub stage, a mere bit of chopped chili sauce had no threat to his stomach.

But he knew Su Ji was caring about him, so he happily took a sip of the soup.

The fish soup had been simmered until milky white, fully drawing out the essence of the fish into the broth. It was seasoned only with salt and cooking wine, preserving the soup’s own rich freshness. The two blended together perfectly.

Chu Zhaoye felt troubled that he had been unable to transform into human form during the day and throw Yan Shao out. In order to recover his Demon King form more quickly, he ate far more than usual.

Su Ji thought he had not eaten his fill at noon, so at first he indulged him quite a bit. However, seeing the kitten eat more and more, with his belly visibly round and swollen yet showing no intention of stopping, he immediately confiscated the kitten’s right to continue eating and firmly wiped Chu Zhaoye’s mouth, rinsed it, and carried him back to the bedroom.

Chu Zhaoye protested all the way, but it was useless. He was even scolded by Su Ji.

Placing the kitten on the bed, Su Ji said seriously, “Ma Tuan, what’s going on with you today? Once you’re full, you shouldn’t keep eating. Look at your belly—it’s so swollen it’s about to burst!”

Chu Zhaoye also felt terribly stuffed, but subconsciously still thought he could eat a little more. After being scolded by Su Ji, he lowered his head in grievance.

Wasn’t he eating this much to recover his strength faster so he could protect Su Ji from that big guy? As a little cat, all he could do was act cute. He couldn’t do anything else. Even when he meowed a few times, he was told that little children shouldn’t say bad words. In all his years as the Demon King, he had never felt so aggrieved.

Besides, he was already several thousand years old. The real little child should be Su Ji.

Seeing the kitten’s dejected expression, Su Ji’s heart softened immediately. He rubbed Ma Tuan’s head and said softly, “I’m not trying to be mean to you, but eating too much is bad for your stomach. What if you upset it?”

Chu Zhaoye: “Meow…”

Su Ji kissed his forehead. “Alright, you’re not allowed to eat that much next time. I’m going to wash the dishes, and later I’ll make mung bean cakes for you to try.”

After being kissed, Chu Zhaoye became completely disoriented. He stood obediently on the bed, watching Su Ji’s departing figure, feeling as though he were a husband waiting for his wife to return.

He stared for a while longer, then suddenly jolted back to his senses.

Why was he using descriptions like wife and husband?!

Those two words had naturally appeared in his mind. They were completely baseless, yet somehow extremely fitting.

Caught off guard by his own imagination, Chu Zhaoye stood dumbfounded on the bed, blankly staring at the doorway.

…

In the kitchen, Su Ji had already washed the dishes at top speed and began peeling the mung beans, preparing to make mung bean cakes.

After peeling the mung beans, he rinsed them several times with clean water to wash away the raw bean smell. The cleaned mung beans were then placed in a pot with an appropriate amount of water and boiled until soft.

The next step was to mash the softened mung beans into a paste. Su Ji took a sieve, scooped out the cooked mung beans, and pressed them repeatedly through the mesh with a soft spoon. By the fourth pass, the mung bean paste in the bowl had become extremely smooth.

Su Ji rinsed the sieve clean and rubbed his slightly sore hands.

The strained mung bean paste was returned to the pot. He added corn oil and an appropriate amount of white sugar, then stir-fried continuously until it formed a mass that no longer stuck to his hands.

Su Ji still had mooncake molds left over in his storage artifact from before, and they were just right for use now.

One flower-shaped mung bean cake after another appeared on the board. Su Ji picked one up, broke it in half, and tasted it. The texture was delicate, and the sweetness was moderate—not overly cloying, but with a gentle sweetness.

He planned to give the remaining half to Ma Tuan to try.

Originally, he had intended to give Ma Tuan a whole piece, but who would have thought this little cat would eat so recklessly earlier? As a result, Su Ji reduced the mung bean cake to only half a piece.

The remaining mung bean cakes were packed into a box and placed among ice cubes. Chilling them overnight would make them even more delicious.

Su Ji brought the half piece of mung bean cake back to the bedroom, only to find that the kitten was still sitting in the same place as before, barely having moved at all, staring blankly at one spot.

Only when Su Ji entered did he snap back to his senses and let out a weak meow.

Su Ji said, “What’s wrong? Is your stomach uncomfortable?”

Chu Zhaoye weakly nodded, but his eyes remained fixed unblinkingly on the half piece of mung bean cake in Su Ji’s hand.

Su Ji said helplessly, “How are you such a little pig? Has what you just ate already been digested?”

Chu Zhaoye protested, “Meow!”

“Alright.” Su Ji placed the mung bean cake by his mouth. “Come eat by the edge of the bed. Don’t get crumbs on the bed.”

The mung bean cake was pitifully small and took up almost no room in his stomach. After Chu Zhaoye finished eating it, he looked at Su Ji pitifully again, but Su Ji refused sternly, “No. You can eat the rest tomorrow!”

Fine.

Chu Zhaoye thought.

You’re the chef, so what you say goes.

As he lay back on the pillow preparing to sleep, his thoughts began to wander again: Does this count as being henpecked?

…

Chu Zhaoye buried his head in the pillow, trying to suffocate himself.

What exactly was he thinking about tonight?!

.

After tossing and turning for the entire night, Chu Zhaoye did not fall asleep until the sky was faintly turning white. When Su Ji got up, he noticed that the kitten beside him seemed to be sleeping more soundly than usual.

Su Ji had not slept the previous night, choosing to cultivate instead. During that time, he had heard the kitten tossing and turning. Combined with the current situation, Su Ji guessed that he had not slept well because he had eaten too much.

After thinking for a moment, he decided not to wake Chu Zhaoye for breakfast and let him sleep a little longer.

Ma Tuan was a spirit pet, so missing one breakfast would not have much of an impact.

Su Ji ate a simple breakfast, tended to the spirit field in the backyard as usual, and then went to prepare lunch for the cafeteria.

That little pig Ma Tuan was still sleeping deeply, and Su Ji did not wake him. Only after he efficiently finished preparing the dishes for today’s menu did he go to wake the still-groggy kitten.

Today, they planned to finish lunch first before opening for business. Su Ji had a feeling that many people would come to the cafeteria today, and he was worried they might be too busy to eat if they waited.

After all, Chu Zhaoye still had to help him collect payment. He had not eaten in the morning, and if lunch was delayed too long, Su Ji was afraid he might faint from hunger.

Only after finishing his meal did Chu Zhaoye fully wake up. He slowly moved from the serving area to the cashier area and waited with Su Ji for the sect disciples to finish class.

Perhaps because the management of Yunxian Sect was more humane, classes ended earlier there than in other sects. The first to rush over were still Yun Xicheng and Yun Che.

As soon as they entered, they smelled the fragrance filling the air. Yun Xicheng rushed to the serving area at top speed and greeted Su Ji.

When Su Ji saw the two of them arrive, he first served them their food, then took out the mung bean cakes he had prepared the night before and handed them over. “I made these last night. To thank you for helping spread the word, these are for you.”

Yun Xicheng and Yun Che exchanged a glance. Neither had expected that simply coming to eat the next day would bring such an unexpected surprise.

They accepted the pastries, thanking him over and over.

Su Ji added, “Although you said you’re already sick of eating pastries, this one should be a little different from what you usually eat.”

Hearing that, Yun Xicheng took out a piece of cake from the box and exclaimed, “So delicate!”

Yun Che also said, “It’s cold too.”

Su Ji explained, “I chilled it overnight on purpose. Want to try it?”

Yun Xicheng was still somewhat resistant to pastries at the moment, but he also felt that anything Su Ji made would definitely be different from the dry, unappetizing pastries in their sect. So he put the cake into his mouth and took a small bite.

The delicate cake melted in his mouth. The light sweetness blended with the fragrance of mung beans, and the deliciousness nearly knocked Yun Xicheng over.

His eyes lit up astonishingly bright as he praised, “Su Ji, are you a genius? This is too delicious! It feels like all the pastries I ate before don’t even count as pastries!”

Seeing that his enthusiasm did not seem fake, Su Ji finally relaxed. “I was worried you might not like it.”

By now, Yun Xicheng had already finished an entire mung bean cake. Speaking with his mouth full, he said, “Delicious. I love it. Chef Su, have you considered selling pastries? I’d buy them for breakfast!”

Su Ji nodded. “I have thought about it, so I just made a small batch first to test the waters.”

Yun Xicheng gave a thumbs-up. “You’ll definitely have business if you sell pastries. At the very least, the disciples of our Yunxian Sect will definitely buy them! The pastries from our sect’s pastry shop don’t taste that great either.”

As he spoke, the teleportation array lit up with its familiar glow. Upon seeing it, Yun Xicheng grabbed Yun Che and headed to the dining area, saying as he walked, “Everyone’s here, so we won’t block the area any longer. Today’s dishes are different, so I need to be the first to eat them!”

One familiar face after another appeared in the teleportation array. They were the Yunxian Sect disciples who had come to the cafeteria in the later batch yesterday.

Among them, a tall disciple walked at the front.

Yan Shao quickly stepped up to Su Ji. With the same awkward shyness on his face as yesterday, he said, “Chef Su…, I… I’m here.”

Chu Zhaoye: “……”

This lingering ghost has come again.

 

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