Chapter 83: Comfort Zone (Bonus Chapter for Moon-Holding Flying Star Alliance Leader!)

When Qin Huai returned to the Clouds Residential Complex, it was just past one in the afternoon.

As soon as the car pulled into its spot in the underground parking garage, Luo Jun got out without looking back; he didn't even call Zhang Zhang Shumei to come down and meet him, nor did he ask Qin Huai for the car keys.

He simply walked away without glancing back, as if he had made up his mind about something.

"The keys, Mr. Luo, the keys!" Qin Huai hurriedly chased after him out of the car.

"You keep them," Luo Jun said impatiently. "If you need the car next time, just drive it yourself. Don't bother me."

"Would you like something to eat? It's still early. I was planning to go to the canteen to simmer some soup and make a few pastries. I didn't prepare the ingredients for rice cakes ahead of time, so there's no way to make those in such a short window, but I can still make fermented rice steamed buns, ordinary savory crab-shell yellows, sweet crab-shell yellows, and pea-yellow cakes. Which would you prefer?"

Luo Jun stopped in his tracks.

"Crab-shell yellow," Luo Jun said. "I want two jin's worth. I'll eat them while staying up late watching TV tonight!"

"Alright, I'll make both sweet and savory versions, one jin of each. I'll message you when they're nearly out of the oven, and you can have Aunt Zhang come pick them up."

"You talk too much. If I'm not having Little Zhang fetch them, do you expect me to go over there and wait?" Luo Jun's tone improved considerably; his back no longer looked quite so puffed up with anger as he slowly made his way toward the elevator lobby.

Qin Huai let out a long sigh of relief. He had successfully coaxed him into a better mood.

That temper of You You Bifang's was truly explosive.

Qin Huai then called Zhao Rong. Learning that Qin Congwen's medical checkup was not yet finished, he told Zhao Rong that he had already brought Luo Jun back, then headed toward the canteen.

Although today was theoretically a day off, since matters had been settled ahead of schedule, the broth-simmering practice still had to be done.

Qin Huai had realized that as more and more quests were triggered, he no longer needed to consult the dream recipes; merely completing the quests revealed that his current skill level was insufficient.

Longevity noodles required top-tier high stock; locust-flower steamed buns demanded maxed-out techniques across the board; Qu Jing's side quest required high-level Suzhou-style pastries tailored to her taste.

The quests were becoming increasingly difficult; if he remained stagnant, he would soon find himself completely stuck.

Although failing to complete a quest seemed to carry no consequences and imposed no penalty upon himself, still...

Qin Huai pursed his lips. He couldn't just stand by and watch these spirits he knew fail their tribulations one by one and dissipate.

What if he truly was that crucial straw? It would be terribly embarrassing if the straw itself was of such poor quality that it snapped under pressure.

At 1:39 PM, Qin Huai entered the Clouds Canteen through the inner door.

At this hour, there were hardly any dining guests left in the canteen. Only a few residents of the complex who had arrived late and did not need to work remained, along with a group of elderly men and women led by Xu Tuqiang and Elder Qian, who loved morning runs, loitering for pastries, and sitting idly in the canteen chatting while enjoying the air conditioning.

However, Xu Tuqiang was not present today; Elder Qian was sitting by the window chatting.

Seeing that Qin Huai had actually shown up, Elder Qian asked excitedly, "Master Xiao Qin, aren't you off today? How do you have time to come to the canteen?"

"I finished my errands, and since idling is just idling, I thought I'd come to the canteen to make some pastries and practice my skills. I haven't simmered today's soup yet."

Elder Qian:!

He knew it; waiting would surely yield rewards, and an old man who loved mooching air conditioning, bragging, and chatting was bound to have good luck.

"Then... Master Xiao Qin, what pastries are you planning to practice making?" Elder Qian asked, nearly jumping up with excitement.

"Crab-shell yellow." After saying this, Qin Huai went to the changing room to change his clothes and entered the kitchen.

The old man sitting beside Elder Qian was so excited he immediately wanted to send a WeChat message to his friends with the good news, but Elder Qian stopped him directly.

"Are you foolish? Crab-shell yellows taste best straight out of the oven. Every batch Master Xiao Qin bakes is limited in quantity. If you tell them now, what will be left for us to eat by the time they arrive?" Elder Qian whispered in a low voice.

"But the few of us can't buy them all either," another old man weakly countered.

"I didn't say not to tell them. Tell them later. Wait until the timing is such that they can only arrive three to five minutes after they come out of the oven, then say something."

The several old men suddenly understood, concluding that Elder Qian was indeed resourceful and wise. After changing his clothes and entering the kitchen, Qin Huai gathered all the ingredients needed for making crab-shell yellows and simmering beef soup, then sent a message to Huang Huang Huang Shengli. Confirming that Huang Huang Huang Shengli was available, he initiated a video call.

When the video connected, the person on the other end was not Huang Huang Huang Shengli, but rather Huang Huang Huang Shengli's last disciple, Dong Shi.

As someone who loved sharing gossip and talked incessantly, Dong Shi spoke before Qin Huai could open his mouth.

"Qin Huai, aren't you off today? Why are you simmering broth even on your day off?"

"I finished my errands and thought I'd practice a bit," Qin Huai explained briefly. "Where is Master Huang?"

"Master went for a massage. He gave me his phone and asked me to watch it for him. Go ahead and start," Dong Shi said, beginning to crack melon seeds.

Qin Huai nodded, placed the phone on a stand, and began working.

By now, Qin Huai was extremely proficient at simmering beef soup; handling the beef, cutting it into chunks, soaking it in clear water to remove the blood—watching his movements, one would think he was a professional master from a beef soup shop.

"Qin Huai, have you noticed that your talent for savory dishes is actually quite good?" Dong Shi said while cracking seeds. "You're only slightly worse than me. Look how long you've been simmering soup; every day you just cut some beef and some pork. Your knife skills have improved greatly."

Clearly, Dong Shi had learned his master's method of praising people through education.

"Oh, how much have I improved?" Qin Huai asked.

"Hmm... I started learning cooking at seven. Your current knife skills are probably around the level I was at just before turning eight."

Qin Huai:...

He had learned the method of praising people through education, but not very well.

"That's not what I meant. For us in savory cooking, knife skills are very important; since they are 'childhood kung fu,' they must be practiced from a young age. For you pastry chefs, knife skills aren't that important; being passable is enough. No, what I mean is that you just practice casually, not... I mean regarding your knife skills..." Dong Shi tried to backpedal, but the more he tried to fix it, the worse it got.

"There's a wedding banquet tonight. You go prepare the ingredients; I'll watch," Dong Shi's older brother, Dong Li, forcefully entered the frame.

Dong Li was also Huang Huang Huang Shengli's disciple; the two brothers were taken as disciples by Huang Huang Huang Shengli at the same time, except Dong Shi was younger, making him the last disciple.

In contrast to Dong Shi's chatterbox nature, Dong Li basically never spoke, having yielded his entire quota of words to his younger brother.

Dong Li sat down in front of the phone and quietly watched Qin Huai simmer the beef soup.

Only after Qin Huai had placed the beef into cold water, adjusted the heat, and covered the pot did Dong Li begin his commentary: "Not bad. The amount of yellow wine added this time is very appropriate."

Knowing that Dong Li did not enjoy chatting, Qin Huai simply nodded and began making the crab-shell yellows.

There were two types of fillings: one with lard and white sugar, the other pure meat filling. During the process of making the crab-shell yellows, Qin Huai checked the heat several times and made slight adjustments. Dong Li watched the entire time without saying a word, only speaking when Qin Huai was about to plate the crab-shell yellows and put them into the oven.

"I recall that crab-shell yellows were originally baked on a stove," Dong Li said.

Qin Huai hadn't expected Dong Li to be interested in crab-shell yellows; he paused for a moment, then nodded. "That's correct, but that's a very old-fashioned method. Nowadays, to increase output, ovens are basically always used."

"Have you ever considered trying it?" Dong Li asked.

"Huh?"

"You are a pastry chef; pastry work is your comfort zone. When simmering soup, many factors unrelated to heat control affect the flavor of the broth you produce. Compared to half a month ago, I think your control over heat has actually improved significantly, though you may not have noticed it yourself."

"You don't need to pay attention to the nonsense my brother said about knife skills; your knife skills are still very poor."

"Since pastry work is your comfort zone, I suggest you attempt to test your control over heat within that comfort zone."

"Crab-shell yellow is an excellent choice for this."

"You can give it a try."

(End of Chapter)