Chapter 29

Chapter 29

While Jiang Chao was busy inspecting stalls, Shen Dongqing finished writing reviews for the upcoming stalls and handed them to Xiao Ze, telling him to read from them if Jiang Chao called. He needed to head to the kitchen to cook.

"Alright, go ahead. I'll call you if anything comes up," Xiao Ze replied.

With Xiao Ze handling things, Shen Dongqing felt at ease and hurried off to the kitchen. He was already starving, and watching night market customers eat at the stalls he'd recommended only made it worse.

Shen Dongqing stepped into the kitchen, where even with the pressure cooker closed, the air was thick with the aroma of meat.

He took a deep breath. The spices were perfectly balanced, drawing out all the beef brisket's aroma. Even though the scent was on the lighter side, it still had Shen Dongqing gulping.

Almost ready—hang in there! Shen Dongqing patted his growling stomach to console himself.

He couldn't wait to find out: if the Super Chef was that critical of night market food, how amazing would his own cooking be?

Shen Dongqing started another pan to fry the potatoes. Once the potatoes were golden and crispy on the outside, he dumped them into the pressure cooker, gave them a quick stir over high heat, then covered it and turned the heat to low.

Shen Dongqing didn't step away. He waited in the kitchen for that perfect moment when the ingredients would meld together.

There was no set time—catching that perfect moment came down to your nose.

...

What Shen Dongqing didn't realize was that the smell he was getting was just a fraction—the range hood had already sucked away most of it.

The building's exhaust duct was faulty—whenever one apartment cooked, everyone else could smell it. The aroma of the braised beef slipped through the shaft and drifted into every other home.

The family directly above Shen Dongqing had four members: the husband and wife both worked, and the grandmother stayed home to look after the kid.

When the couple came home after a long day, they smelled the aroma the moment they walked in. Assuming the grandmother had made it, they were surprised at how much her cooking had improved and rushed in excitedly: "Mom, you made beef today? It smells amazing!"

Jiang Qiuhui had been in a bad mood—the workday was brutal, a coworker had set her up, and she'd gotten chewed out by her boss. But the smell lifted her spirits. Knowing a meal that good was waiting at home cheered her right up.

She glanced at the dining table—nothing on it. Hearing noise from the kitchen, she figured the food was still cooking. She pushed open the kitchen door and saw the grandmother and the little girl sitting inside, bowls in hand, eating.

But where was the beef?

The pot on the stove was empty. No beef in sight.

"You made beef, right? I could smell it from the hallway," an excited male voice said—her husband had just come in.

"What beef? That's not from our place. It's from downstairs," the grandmother said, shaking her head.

Jiang Qiuhui was crushed, and so was her husband. He'd been salivating over that smell the whole way up, thrilled at the idea that it was their dinner. And now...

"Mom, why are you and Xiaobao eating in the kitchen?" Jiang Qiuhui swallowed her disappointment, not wanting to bring the family down, and changed the subject.

"You catch a whiff and you're already drooling. You have no idea how strong it was earlier. Xiaobao and I were about to eat when she got a whiff and threw a fit demanding some," the grandmother sighed helplessly.

"So I had no choice but to bring her in here. Food's all about color, smell, and taste. My cooking looks good and tastes fine—we can just enjoy it with the aroma on the side," she went on.

But that trick only worked on the kid. Kids haven't tasted enough good food to imagine what it's like, so they're easy to fool. For the grandmother herself, it was harder—she could barely choke down a few bites.

She couldn't figure out who in the building could cook like that. She'd never smelled anything like it!

"Just take your food out to the table. It's not comfortable eating in here," the grandmother said.

The kitchen was tiny, and the grandmother and kid already took up most of it. If the couple squeezed in too, it'd be even tighter. Jiang Qiuhui and her husband each grabbed a couple of plates and headed out.

By then, the smell in the kitchen had faded a lot—the person downstairs must have finished cooking.

With the smell gone, Jiang Qiuhui felt both disappointed and relieved. Even she, a grown adult, had found it hard to resist that scent.

Still, Jiang Qiuhui was a little affected. Her first bite went to the meat dish, but compared to that aroma, it tasted totally bland. She quietly switched to the vegetables.

But as she ate, she noticed the smell from the kitchen getting stronger again. This time it wasn't braised beef—it was...

"Beef brisket with potatoes!"

Jiang Qiuhui and her husband blurted it out at the same time, recognizing the dish.

They carried their bowls back into the kitchen and took deep whiffs of the smell. If their brains hadn't been telling them to stay calm, they'd have been drooling all over the place.

Jiang Qiuhui finally understood how her daughter had felt earlier. Smelling that aroma, even as a grown-up, she wanted to throw a fit and demand some.

It wasn't just Jiang Qiuhui's family—anyone still in the building at that moment caught the smell and couldn't stop swallowing.

Those who'd already eaten were better off—being full made it easier to hold back.

But those who hadn't eaten yet were in real trouble. The more they smelled it, the hungrier they got. Then they'd look at their own food, take a couple bites, and their mouths and brains just couldn't agree. It was miserable.

Xiao Ze had been glued to the livestream, ready to pick up if Jiang Chao called, but the smell from the kitchen was getting to him too. He kept glancing over.

The smell in the kitchen was even stronger. On any other day, Shen Dongqing might have thought the dish was ready, but his brain and nose both said—no, not yet. Just a little longer.

Two seconds later, Shen Dongqing added the seasonings, cranked up the heat to thicken the sauce, and poured the potato-braised beef brisket into a big bowl.

The golden potatoes were coated in a thin layer of sauce with a faint sweet smell. That sauce was a mix of melted potato bits and beef broth, coating not just the potatoes but the brisket too.

The beef and potatoes had come together perfectly. Shen Dongqing couldn't help himself—he grabbed a piece of beef and popped it in his mouth.

He liked his beef on the drier, more savory side, so he'd seared the brisket until the outside was a little crispy, but the inside stayed tender and soft.

On the first bite, he got the rich, sweet flavor of the sauce, then the brisket's slightly dry, crispy texture. Even after pressure-cooking, that texture held up—something he'd never gotten eating out.

When eating out, customers might ask for more or less spice, but asking for that level of texture control was something chefs rarely bothered with.

Even though Shen Dongqing had unlocked the Beginner Chef skill before and could cook, he'd never tried anything like this.

That was because the Beginner Chef skill followed standard methods and never failed—the food tasted good, but trying to change things up could go either way.

That slight dryness added a unique texture to the tender brisket, and as he chewed, the beef's savory flavor burst out—salty, rich, and deep.

Shen Dongqing felt like the beef was gone after just two bites.

He grabbed a piece of potato next. It was soft, fluffy, and mealy on the tongue, with the savory outside and sweet inside coming together in a potato-only symphony—every bit as good as the brisket.

Shen Dongqing felt like crying.

So this was the Super Chef's power?

After tasting this, how could he ever go back to Beginner Chef cooking?!

He quickly opened the system store and found the Super Chef skill. He decided—as long as the price wasn't crazy, he'd find a way to save up reputation points and buy it.

Pulling other stuff was important too, but the joy of living mattered just as much.

Just looking at the price tag on the Master Chef skill, Shen Dongqing felt like a bucket of cold water had been dumped over his head, cooling the food-fueled excitement in his brain.

One million—that was the same price as the points. System, why don't you just rob me?

Shen Dongqing wanted to close the system mall, but he unconsciously tapped into the product details page. He wanted to see what made it worth so much.

After checking it out, Shen Dongqing's anger slowly faded. The Master Chef skill itself came with impressive culinary abilities, plus it came with a body upgrade that sharpened his sense of smell and taste.

When you put it that way, one million was actually...

No, still way too expensive. He'd just have to keep spinning the wheel to snag the Master Chef Card later.

Shen Dongqing sighed, carrying a big pot of Beef Brisket with Potatoes out, looking a little down.

Xiao Ze caught the aroma wafting over, saw the worried look on Shen Dongqing's face, and walked over to take the big pot from him, asking worriedly, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, it's just..." The thought of not knowing when he'd get to eat food this good again bummed him out.

Seeing Shen Dongqing didn't want to talk, Xiao Ze didn't push it. He set the big pot on the table, went to grab the rice cooker from the kitchen, and served Shen Dongqing a bowl of rice.

Seeing the rice in front of him, Shen Dongqing couldn't stay down in the dumps.

He'd just have to spin the wheel more often—he'd get the card eventually. Right now, the most important thing was eating.

Shen Dongqing dug in and wolfed it down. The Beef Brisket with Potatoes was insanely good, and with rice, it was twice as amazing.

If Shen Dongqing had used regular rice, it might've dragged the dish down, but the rice was something he'd won from the system. Before, it just tasted oily, chewy, and pretty good.

Now, with his sharper senses, he could pick up the rice's fragrance, the aroma and a hint of sweetness spreading through his mouth. Shen Dongqing felt like he could taste several different layers just from plain white rice.

This sharpened sense of taste reminded Shen Dongqing of all the trouble his sense of smell had brought him. Having such a keen palate meant he could enjoy good food even more, but if he ate something bad, then...

Shen Dongqing suddenly didn't feel so bad about not being able to afford the Master Chef Card. If he actually became a Master Chef, he'd have to cook for himself every single day, and eating out would be unbearable.

Even though he loved good food and didn't mind cooking, he'd rather do it once in a while than be forced to do it every day.

He already had one buff; he couldn't handle another one.

Xiao Ze sat down and dug in too. He was actually pretty hungry, and the smell made him even hungrier—he just hid it better than Shen Dongqing, so his face didn't give it away.

The moment the Beef Brisket with Potatoes hit his mouth, Xiao Ze froze, then looked up at Shen Dongqing. He finally got why Shen Dongqing hadn't recommended the night market food to him. If this was the standard, then the night market food was just survival fuel.

Xiao Ze's chopsticks were flying—he was eating way faster than Shen Dongqing.

Luckily, Shen Dongqing had made a ton, so even with Xiao Ze eating that fast, there was still a bunch left, and neither had to worry about running out.

Midway through, Jiang Chao called. Shen Dongqing and Xiao Ze exchanged a look, and Xiao Ze set down his chopsticks, quickly rattling off the status of the remaining stalls.

Jiang Chao was a little surprised to hear Xiao Ze's voice but didn't overthink it. After getting his answers, he got back to work.

Shen Dongqing and Xiao Ze ate happily, but everyone in the building was suffering.

The earlier aroma had made them crave the food like crazy, and now that it was gone, they were still hungry. By the time they tried to follow the scent to find which apartment was cooking, it had faded, and they couldn't track it down—it was almost hopeless.

Some who hadn't eaten dinner ordered takeout or went out, but every attempt failed. They ended up crying over their own Beef Brisket with Potatoes—the difference was just too huge.

Zhang Feiyu, trailing behind Jiang Chao, had tried several snacks he thought were amazing. Thinking about how he had Shen Dongqing to thank for letting him tag along and eat such good food, he couldn't help but text him.

"I'm at the night market and found some super tasty snacks. Want some? I can bring some back for a late-night snack," Zhang Feiyu said, sending a few food pics along with it.

Shen Dongqing saw the message, snapped a photo of his Beef Brisket with Potatoes and rice, and sent it back.

"No need, I'm eating this tonight. I won't have room for a late-night snack."

Zhang Feiyu first got the text and thought Shen Dongqing was making an excuse—until he saw the photo.

Zhang Feiyu was first blown away by the portion size, then noticed how the potatoes and beef looked.

What the heck? A home-cooked dish looked better than any snack he'd had.

Zhang Feiyu had eaten so many snacks his stomach was full, but seeing that Beef Brisket with Potatoes, his appetite suddenly came roaring back. His stomach only wanted that dish and nothing else.

"Brother Yu, what did you see? That face is so weird."

"Looks a little wistful. Who's he talking to that's got him like that?"

Seeing the comments fly by, Zhang Feiyu snorted, tapped to zoom in on the photo, and showed it to the livestream fans too—he wasn't going to be the only one drooling.

The chat went quiet for a second, then exploded as netizens called him out for posting food porn after a meal.

"I've been trying to lose weight and held out all day. Seeing this pic, I broke down and started frantically ordering takeout."

"Already headed out to eat. Target: Beef Brisket with Potatoes."

"Thinking about how the streamer gets to eat food like this later, I'm so jealous."

"Everyone, don't panic. Knowing the streamer, he can probably only look at the pic. He won't get to eat it. If he could, he wouldn't have that look on his face."

Seeing the fans' reactions, Zhang Feiyu felt a little smug, but when he saw that last comment, his face twisted. That was the power of a longtime fan—seeing right through his act in an instant.

...

Shen Dongqing had made a ton of Beef Brisket with Potatoes, and even after he and Xiao Ze ate their fill, there was still a good amount left.

"Do you want it?" Shen Dongqing asked Xiao Ze.

"You're not eating anymore?" Xiao Ze asked.

"Reheating it will mess with the flavor, and I don't think I can eat more," Shen Dongqing explained.

Confirming that Shen Dongqing didn't want a second round, Xiao Ze packed up the remaining Beef Brisket with Potatoes to take home—perfect for breakfast tomorrow.

Shen Dongqing told Xiao Ze how to reheat it while preserving the flavor, then walked him downstairs.

Once downstairs, Shen Dongqing was surprised to find quite a few people around. When they came out, many eyes landed on the large bag Xiao Ze was holding.

The dish hadn't fully cooled yet, and the aroma drifted out. Though not as strong as when it was hot, it was still just as tempting.

Seeing everyone's gaze, Xiao Ze quickly put the bag in his car, exchanged a few words with Shen Dongqing, and drove off.

As soon as Xiao Ze left, everyone's attention turned to Shen Dongqing.

Even though he'd been watched by more people during livestreams, being stared at like this in real life was a first, and Shen Dongqing instinctively quickened his pace up the stairs.

Watching Shen Dongqing disappear up the stairs, the people below started murmuring.

"Could it be him?"

"To cook something that good, it should be an experienced chef. That young man is way too young."

"But that person was carrying the braised beef brisket with potatoes, right? The smell is too similar."

The people talking weren't speaking loudly, but Shen Dongqing still overheard it and breathed a sigh of relief. He was really worried something else might happen.

Three incidents had already happened today. After eating the food, he'd regained some energy, but if anything else came up, he couldn't take any more.

When he got home, Shen Dongqing found that Jiang Chao had already made his way through the entire night market.

A few stalls had moved in after Shen Dongqing left, but Jiang Chao had been too thorough earlier—he'd flagged anything that didn't pass inspection on the spot.

Some stalls fixed their issues on the spot before he even got there, and those that couldn't fix things owned up to it when he came by.

After this sweep, about thirty percent of the night market stalls were gone—these had serious issues and had to shut down for corrections.

Others had minor issues but could stay after fixing them on the spot, but customers had watched the whole inspection, so they were left with a bad impression, and business suffered even after fixes.

The people who bought from them were just really craving the food, figuring that since the stalls had just been fixed, the food quality had to be okay.

The stalls that got praised were doing great business.

But the busiest was still the old lady selling pig blood soup. It was cheap and delicious, and even people who didn't usually like it couldn't help buying a bowl to try, given the vibe.

And once they tried it, most were won over by the texture and went back for another bowl.

The old lady hadn't brought much pig blood, and by now it was completely sold out. A lot of people who hadn't gotten a taste were calling out for her to bring more next time—it was so good, and she'd run out way too fast.

The old lady got a little shy from all the calls, but seeing how popular her snack was, she kept promising to bring more next time.

Looking at the night market now, Shen Dongqing was delighted. Honest vendors deserve to make money, so why should shady ones get to profit off dirty cash?

...

Xia Tang was almost off work and thought today would be a quiet one, until a livestream hit the local trending page.

Xia Tang got the alert and clicked in—sure enough, it was an old familiar face: Shen Dongqing.

Xia Tang didn't hesitate between calling her boss right away or waiting to see—she chose to call immediately.

Even though the public backlash from this might not fall under their jurisdiction, the livestream wasn't over yet—what if something else happened?

With Shen Dongqing, you could never be too careful.

The boss was also getting ready to leave, and when he got Xia Tang's message and saw it was the usual suspect, he felt like today might not end with any rest.

He thought the same as Xia Tang—who knew how things would play out. He called in other public relations officers to keep an eye on things, and they watched until the livestream ended, but nothing happened at all.

Had Shen Dongqing turned over a new leaf today?

Everyone exchanged looks, all a bit in disbelief.

"Boss, should we clock out now?" Xia Tang asked.

The boss hesitated, still a bit worried.

"Everyone wait a bit longer, just an hour and a half. If nothing's wrong, we head out," the boss decided.

With an hour and a half to kill, the others had someone grab food from the cafeteria or ordered takeout to pass the time.

The hour and a half went by fast, and still nothing happened.

Xia Tang was all smiles, ready to leave, when she got another public opinion alert.

"I knew I'd be working late today," Xia Tang sighed, opening the alert to find it was about food safety again—spoiled food and toxic flowers being used to decorate cakes.

"Boss, this, this isn't under our jurisdiction, right? It's not exactly a criminal case," Xia Tang said, surprised.

"Not our business?" The boss looked closely and saw it was true, especially when he saw the streamer involved wasn't Shen Dongqing—he was visibly relieved.

"Since there's nothing that requires overtime, you can all head out, but those on rotation shouldn't let their guard down. Stay alert," the boss reminded them before rushing off himself.

Xia Tang had ordered takeout, and since it was rush hour, the delivery was slow, so she was only halfway through her meal. She ate while watching livestreams for fun, really enjoying Fan Feifei's stream.

When Fan Feifei's stream ended, she followed what others were saying and went to Zhang Feiyu's stream, and the moment she saw him, he looked familiar. It took her a second to remember where she'd seen him.

He was the streamer who first broadcast that guy splashing boiling syrup on his girlfriend, and he was also the one who first filmed Shen Dongqing—apparently, he'd gotten Shen Dongqing into livestreaming.

Could Shen Dongqing be mixed up in this too?

Even though the guess was a stretch and showed she was overly sensitive about Shen Dongqing, Xia Tang somehow felt her guess might be right.

After eating, Xia Tang went home but couldn't help opening Zhang Feiyu's stream again, and there she saw Jiang Chao sweeping through the night market.

As she watched, Xia Tang's face went pale.

She knew this night market well—she sometimes bought snacks there after work, and the stalls Jiang Chao had cleared were ones she frequented.

Because they were cheap and tasty, she bought often, even giving some to her little nephew, who got diarrhea after eating.

She'd thought it was just too much oil and salt, so she stopped giving it to him. Turns out, the food itself had quality issues.

Watching Jiang Chao continue clearing stalls, Xia Tang felt her vision darken repeatedly, horrified to think how much processed junk she'd consumed.

And the good-quality stalls, she'd never bought from because she didn't like them.

Honestly, if it were just a few stalls with problems, Xia Tang wouldn't have made the connection, but with so many stalls having issues, she couldn't help wondering—what about other shops?

Just as she was thinking, Xia Tang suddenly felt discomfort in her stomach, grabbed her phone, and rushed to the bathroom. Barely out for a few minutes, her stomach churned again, and she had to go back.

After several trips, her legs were numb from squatting, and she dreaded the bathroom.

Xia Tang quickly found anti-diarrheal medicine and took it, but while the runs stopped, her stomach still felt off.

Since she was usually healthy, she'd never paid much attention to such things, but now, thinking about the problems found at those stalls, she started suspecting the takeout she'd eaten—could that restaurant have issues?

Xia Tang remembered she and a colleague had ordered from the same place, so she quickly called to ask if the colleague had diarrhea after eating.

The colleague was confused on the call, saying no diarrhea, though there was slight discomfort, but very mild—probably nothing.

Xia Tang hung up, left a bad review for the takeout, applied for a refund, and browsed the comments, finding her case wasn't isolated.

Several people had diarrhea after eating and left bad reviews, but the merchant responded sarcastically, blaming the customers' weak constitutions and calling them competitors.

Why hadn't she read the comments before? Xia Tang regretted it, discovered her refund request was rejected with mockery about trying to get a free meal, and anger surged. She opened her contacts, found someone she knew at the Market Supervision Administration, and filed a complaint.

But the call wouldn't go through, which puzzled her.

After several attempts, the call finally connected. Xia Tang indignantly reported the restaurant, then learned that several others had already reported it, and the bureau had already arranged for inspectors to check it out.

Xia Tang hung up, searched online, and found the reason.

Zhang Feiyu's livestream was extremely popular. The scene where he exposed Jiang Chao's food quality issues at the stalls was incredibly cool, and his immediate refunds and swift actions made many Ningchuan residents realize that when food has problems, calling to report it and getting the Market Supervision Administration to come out could have such a big impact.

Some people also wondered if Ningchuan was about to crack down on food safety, because they had watched from the afternoon's hotpot restaurant livestream and recognized Jiang Chao.

Realizing this, many people chose to get even right away. In the past, if they encountered food issues that weren't severe, the Market Supervision Administration wouldn't show up immediately, but now, they figured it was worth a shot.

One or two calls left the Market Supervision Administration confused, but as the calls piled up, they realized something was off, and then they checked the online buzz.

Were they supposed to be cracking down on food safety in the city? When did that happen?

The situation was quickly kicked upstairs, and it was discovered that this might reflect public sentiment. Although a decision couldn't be made immediately, the higher-ups still sent out some people to handle these reports, prioritizing those with clear evidence. The takeout restaurant where Xia Tang had eaten was at the top of the list.