Chapter 257: Chew, Chew, Chew

A bowl of tangyuan, 4 tangyuan with different shapes, all were beautiful white porcelain colors, and one could tell at a glance that they were boiled well.

When boiling the tangyuan, they were boiled in four pots, and it was also very easy to scoop when serving. All the tangyuan were scooped by Dong Shi, scooped bowl by bowl, Qin Huai counted down 3 minutes and 50 seconds on the side, and Qin Luo stood on tiptoe at the kitchen door, waiting with longing eyes.

Although Qin Luo didn't need to wait for 3 minutes and 50 seconds, eating hot food too much was not good for the body, so let the child wait a little longer.

3 minutes and 50 seconds.

Qin Huai carried the two bowls of scooped tangyuan and walked out. Outside the kitchen, Qin Luo, Chen Huihong, and Chen Huihui were already sitting on small stools. The small stools weren't Huang Ji's; Chen Huihong probably bought them herself, and the equipment was very complete.

"Four-joy tangyuan," Qin Huai said, handing the bowls to Qin Luo and Chen Huihong.

Qin Luo took the tangyuan for the first time, scooped up a bean paste filling one with lightning speed, stuffed it into her mouth, bit off more than half of it in one bite, and chewed, chewed, chewed frantically.

After one went down, Qin Luo had time to sigh.

"Brother, it's too delicious! Freshly made four-joy tangyuan are really delicious, much better than the frozen ones in the refrigerator! I want to eat this tomorrow too!"

Supporting, Qin Luo was professional.

After saying the words, Qin Luo continued to bury her head and eat hard, because her mouth was stuffed too full, she couldn't even make a "hmm" sound, and could only turn into a heartless tangyuan-chewing machine.

While Qin Luo was eating tangyuan fiercely, Chen Huihong on the other side wasn't idle either. In many cases, Chen Huihong could still shine with the light of maternal love, not eating alone, remembering to share a bite with her daughter no matter what she ate.

"Come, Huihui, open your mouth, Mom will feed you." The bowl of tangyuan was relatively large, and Chen Huihong was afraid that Chen Huihui couldn't hold it, so she fed it directly to her.

Chen Huihui opened her mouth wide, bit off a small piece fiercely, learned Qin Luo's appearance, and chewed, chewed, chewed, chewing until her whole cheeks bulged, like a hamster.

While chewing, Chen Huihui wanted to speak, but her mouth couldn't open, and she could only make "hmm hmm" sounds.

Chen Huihong didn't notice her daughter's situation, because at this moment, her maternal love was no longer very much.

Chen Huihong had just picked a sesame sugar filling tangyuan, which was the sweet-mouthed tangyuan most widely known by the public, the raw material for the sesame glutinous rice skin soup that President Qin was most proficient in.

Chen Huihui bit off a small piece, more than half of the tangyuan remained in the spoon, the tangyuan that was missing a corner collapsed a bit, and the black sesame sugar filling slowly flowed out.

It was really flowing out.

Thick black, looking very dense, just like the silky smooth chocolate flow that only appeared in TV commercials. The black sesame filling wrapped in white glutinous rice skin was full, and the sesame filling was black and bright, like melted chocolate flow, making people feel as if they could eat the sweet taste of sesame filling just by looking at it.

Not only sweet, but also the fragrance of crushed sesame.

That was the taste of tangyuan, and also the taste of the festival.

Only tangyuan remained in Chen Huihong's eyes.

Chen Huihong felt that she hadn't seen such a sesame filling tangyuan for about a few lifetimes. Chen Huihong, who had eaten quite a few dim sum made by Qin Huai and had eaten more excellent dim sum than Qin Huai made in her first life, swallowed a mouthful of saliva very unpromisingly at this moment.

Almost subconsciously, Chen Huihong stuffed the tangyuan into her mouth, trying to pack it in one bite.

Packing failed.

Chen Huihong could only settle for the next best thing, biting off more than half in one bite.

The rich sesame sugar flavor instantly occupied the entire oral cavity. Chen Huihong didn't dare to open her mouth, fearing that if she opened her mouth, this wonderful feeling would disperse, and could only learn the appearance of Qin Luo and Chen Huihui, chewing, chewing, chewing, chewing, chewing, chewing.

At this moment, the actions of the three reached unity.

No one spoke.

Finally, Chen Huihui, who bit the smallest, finished chewing first, swallowed, and said loudly: "Mom, this big tangyuan is delicious!"

Chen Huihong, whose maternal love returned, stuffed the remaining tangyuan in the spoon to her daughter, and Chen Huihui continued to chew, chew, chew with bulging cheeks.

A bowl of four-joy tangyuan only had 4, which sounded like a small portion, but in reality, the tangyuan were large, and the glutinous rice dim sum itself was very difficult to chew and hard to swallow, so it took a not-short time to eat.

Seeing that Qin Luo, who was known for eating fast, had only eaten the 2nd tangyuan, Qin Huai decided to go back and eat a bowl first, then come out to refill for Qin Luo.

Based on Qin Huai's understanding of his sister, when encountering such delicious dim sum she ate for the first time, one bowl was definitely not enough, at least starting from 2 bowls.

As for exactly how many bowls she ate, it depended on whether Qin Luo still wanted to eat Zheng Siyuan's crepe wontons and bubble wontons, and whether she still had interest in xiaolongbao, rice cake, shumai, and rice cake.

When Qin Huai carried the bowl into the kitchen, the Huang Ji back kitchen had already been occupied by four-joy tangyuan.

Almost everyone was holding a bowl of tangyuan, one hand holding a spoon, their mouths chewing, chewing, chewing, occasionally making the highest praise of "hmm."

Among the crowd eating tangyuan, the one with the richest expression was undoubtedly Tan Weian.

I saw Tan Weian take a bite of tangyuan and look at the filling. The look in his eyes was three parts shocked, three parts puzzled, and four parts doubting life, chewing and thinking for a second, chewing and emptying for a second. Looking at that appearance, it didn't look like he was eating tangyuan, but like he was being eaten by tangyuan.

As if there was a huge four-joy tangyuan on his head, gnawing on his soul bite by bite, making a "hmm" sound every time he gnawed, and Tan Weian's eyes became more dull every time he chewed more.

Tan Weian was stupid.

He knew that Qin Huai was a very excellent white-case dim sum chef, an object worth learning from, and Master Qin who was worth respecting in everyone's mouth.

He also knew that Qin Huai had amazing learning ability and self-correction ability. He learned everything fast, even overturning

Moreover, Qin Huai comes from an unconventional background; he isn't bound by rules, possesses an innovative spirit and creativity, is always eager to learn and research, and is never satisfied with the status quo.

For a person like this, no matter what kind of results he achieves, it seems it wouldn't surprise anyone.

Tan Weian tried to convince himself that it was perfectly normal for Qin Huai to suddenly master the Four-Joy Tangyuan within a few days, taking the overall dish to a higher level—not only making a breakthrough with the mixed-fruit filling but also suddenly having an epiphany with fillings he hadn't specifically studied before, like red bean paste, sesame sugar, and meat, making them all taste a level better.

After all, it's Master Qin; any achievement he attains is acceptable.

He should accept it, understand it...

Accept and understand my foot!

Deep inside, a little version of Tan Weian was breaking down, screaming, smashing bowls, tearing down houses, rolling on the floor, twisting, struggling, and crawling in the shadows.

How is he supposed to accept this?!

Doesn't Qin Huai work with him every single day?

Didn't he not make Four-Joy Tangyuan for the past two days?

Didn't he just arrive at Huang Ji an hour earlier than usual yesterday and today?

Does Qin Huai have 48 hours in a day? Or does he actually have a habit of sleepwalking, making Four-Joy Tangyuan every night while sleepwalking, until he suddenly had an epiphany last night?

No, brother.

What is going on?

Even if you secretly practiced hard at home after work every day, that's only a few hours.

Even if your dark circles are a bit severe these past two days, it doesn't look like you stayed up all night practicing.

Does staying up all night have such miraculous effects?

Should he also go back and practice all night tonight?

Tan Weian took another bite of the Tangyuan; he was eating the red bean paste one.

This perfect level of sweetness, this delicate texture, this grainy filling combined with the soft, sticky glutinous rice—with just a slight press of the lips, one could feel the red bean paste flowing in the mouth.

Tan Weian has eaten many red bean paste Tangyuan, and he has eaten many red bean paste pastries. As a professional pastry chef, Tan Weian knows that the simpler the filling, the harder it is to perfect.

It's not about the difficulty of making it, but the difficulty of elevating it. It's easy to make red bean paste or sesame sugar fillings passably, easy to make them average, and not too hard to make them taste good. But if you want to make someone remember the taste after just one bite, and feel that the filling and the pastry are a match made in heaven, that is as difficult as ascending to the heavens.

Qin Huai's Four-Joy Tangyuan hasn't reached that realm, but Tan Weian feels he has touched it.

Because this filling is a perfect match.

Tan Weian keenly discovered that this was a bowl of well-paired Four-Joy Tangyuan; its four types of fillings were harmonious and unified. While they were delicious, they didn't stand out individually, yet they each had a distinct personality.

Tan Weian savored the warm red bean paste in his mouth.

Exceptionally delicious.

Zheng Siyuan carried the Tangyuan to Qin Huai and asked in a firm tone: "Did you make the filling you used yesterday specifically for today's Tangyuan?"

Qin Huai was scooping the Tangyuan and nodded upon hearing this: "You could say that. It is indeed a specialized Tangyuan filling, but there isn't actually much change in the flavor; it's more about changing the texture and simultaneously increasing the compatibility between the filling and the glutinous rice skin."

Zheng Siyuan took a bite of the Tangyuan, chewed calmly, and asked: "Did you research this during this period?"

"Yes," Qin Huai said without hesitation.

These past two days are also part of this period.

Then Qin Huai began his performance: "Four-Joy Tangyuan originally has four flavors. We practiced the mixed-fruit filling before because we couldn't find the right way to do it, so we had to keep trying. Now that the suitable mixed-fruit filling recipe has been practiced, the other fillings naturally need to be practiced too. Only when all four flavors are complete is it truly Four-Joy Tangyuan."

"If you only pursue one flavor of Tangyuan, highlighting one while ignoring the other three, it will appear as if one stands alone, relegating the other three to supporting roles."

"But in reality, the four of them are a whole, so naturally, you cannot favor one over the others."

Zheng Siyuan nodded in agreement: "Indeed, it was my oversight."

"During this time, I was fixated on the mixed-fruit filling and completely ignored the other three. Actually, I only realized it the day you came to my house to make Tangyuan two days ago. When I ate the four flavors of Tangyuan that noon, I suddenly realized I hadn't eaten proper Four-Joy Tangyuan in a long time."

"My father and I were making, wrapping, and eating mixed-fruit filling every day. My mother and sister complained several times that they were going to vomit from eating mixed-fruit Tangyuan, but my father and I didn't pay attention. Actually, my mother and sister were already reminding us back then that eating only mixed-fruit Tangyuan isn't good; Four-Joy Tangyuan must have four flavors to be complete."

"I originally wanted to mention this, but yesterday I saw you making filling instead of Tangyuan, so I didn't say anything. I didn't expect you to have already thought of it."

This speech from Zheng Siyuan left Qin Huai stunned. Qin Huai thought to himself that he hadn't even continued making up his story yet, so how did Zheng Siyuan help him finish it?

Qin Huai could only say: "Do you want me to give you the recipes for the new red bean and sesame sugar fillings?"

"I don't think the pure meat filling I made is good enough yet. Wait for me to research it for two more days."

When making Tangyuan in the morning, Qin Huai felt that the pure meat Tangyuan wasn't as easy to make as the other three sweet fillings. He decided to go back and watch the tutorial videos a few more times tonight, watching them every night before bed until he could recite them by heart.

It's all knowledge; must learn it!

The teacher will test it.

Tan Weian felt he seemed to understand.

Qin Huai appeared to have only practiced the mixed-fruit Tangyuan during this time, but in reality, he was practicing the other three flavors diligently every day at home.

When he, Tan Weian, was still struggling with how to pair the many ingredients of the mixed-fruit filling so as not to fail so severely, Qin Huai was already looking at the big picture, preparing for the great success of the Four-Joy Tangyuan.

When he felt that the research on Four-Joy Tangyuan could come to an end and the mixed-fruit filling was successful and no longer failing, Master Qin began to consider how the four flavors of Tangyuan should be paired and improved as a whole.

Qin Huai is always one step ahead of him—no, more than one step.

As expected, his vision was too narrow.

Master Qin is indeed far-sighted!

In this instant, Tan Weian looked upon Qin Huai with awe.

He felt he seemed to understand a lot and comprehend a lot.

So, the reason Qin Huai suddenly stopped practicing the mixed-fruit Tangyuan before wasn't because he was fickle or only had a three-minute interest in new pastries; he was researching other things, preparing for a better improvement of the Four-Joy Tangyuan.

Qin Huai didn't slack off, nor did he goof off; he had been working hard in silence, quietly amazing everyone!

"Qin Huai, you are truly amazing!" Tan Weian exclaimed from the bottom of his heart.

Qin Huai:...

What did Tan Weian imagine this time?

Qin Huai said nothing, just silently ate his Tangyuan.

Chew, chew, chew.

So delicious.

Master Jing Lixiang's video tutorials are truly very useful.

On the other side, Dong Shi also found a reason for Qin Huai.

Dong Shi held his bowl, hunched over, looking like an underground operative on the street, and leaned over to Dong Li's side to whisper: "Brother, I think I've discovered the pattern of Qin Huai's progress in making pastries!"

Dong Li was rarely interested in his younger brother's gossip: "Oh?"

There's a pattern to Qin Huai's pastry progress? Hasn't he always just improved as he went along? There's no logic or reason to it at all.

"Do you remember the last time Qin Huai came back from Shancheng, the San Ding Bao made a sudden leap and became exceptionally delicious?" Dong Shi asked.

Dong Li nodded.

Qi Tian was attracted by Dong Shi's gossip and quietly moved closer.

"Haven't you noticed any changes around Qin Huai recently?" Dong Shi continued to ask mysteriously.

Huang Jia was also attracted and moved directly closer.

"What?" Dong Li asked.

"His sister Did Luo Luo is here!"

Dong Li:?

"It was the same last time he returned to Shancheng; Did Luo Luo was in Shancheng then. Qin Huai must have gone back and made San Ding Bao for Did Luo Luo for a few days, and the San Ding Bao made a sudden leap."

"Now that Did Luo Luo has just arrived, Qin Huai made Four-Joy Tangyuan for Did Luo Luo for two days, and the Four-Joy Tangyuan made a sudden leap!"

"What does this mean? It means Qin Huai didn't lie to us; he has been making pastries since he was a child just for his sister. He only improves exceptionally fast when making pastries for his sister!"

Everyone:?!

Just at this moment, Qin Luo, who was outside the kitchen, finished her Tangyuan and excitedly shouted to Qin Huai inside: "Brother, I'm done! I want to eat another bowl; I want to eat another bowl of the pure meat one!"

"I want to eat Tangyuan tomorrow too!!"

Almost instantly, all the people at Huang Ji who had heard Dong Shi's brilliant deduction looked toward the door in unison, staring at Qin Luo with burning gazes.

Qin Luo:...?

Qin Luo was stared at and took a step back, silently putting down the bowl she had originally picked up, and asked cautiously: "Are we... only allowed to eat one bowl of Tangyuan here?"

(End of chapter)