Chapter 101 These questions were incredibly varied and bizarre, for example: "...
These questions were incredibly varied and bizarre, for example:
"Sister Qiao, do zombies really exist in the real world? Do they really suck blood? They look so ugly."
"Sister Qiao, does the protagonist actually use magic? Have you ever encountered someone who uses magic like that?"
"Sister Qiao..."
Most people would have been overwhelmed by He Zhao's questions, but Qiao Yanyu was incredibly patient, able to provide lengthy answers to each one. He Zhao was very satisfied; her curiosity was satisfied, and she had heard many stories that felt like tales.
Halfway through the movie, He Zhao started sitting slouching, leaning against Qiao Yanyu's shoulder, who had fractured ribs but didn't utter a sound as she leaned on him. He Zhao also went to the kitchen to get some soda, which she had secretly hidden in the refrigerator; and went to her room to get some junk food.
For example, spicy snack strips and potato chips.
She seemed to have planned this all along; the spicy snacks she bought were the extra spicy kind, which she herself didn't like but Qiao Yanyu would definitely love. The two of them huddled together and ate quite a few snacks, leaving a lot of trash on the table.
After watching the entire movie, He Zhao couldn't help but get up and stretch. Then, abandoning her usual laziness, she took the initiative to clean up all the trash on the coffee table. After doing this, the fresh food delivery that He Zhao had ordered during the movie arrived.
He Zhao originally planned to go to the market to buy the food herself, but time always flies when watching a movie, and she also had lunch and tidied up for a while. Going to the market would be a bit of a hassle, so she just ordered takeout online.
The vegetables arrived, and He Zhao checked the time and carried them into the kitchen. But just as she was about to start washing them, she was stunned.
After systematic training, He Zhao was no longer clueless about grains; now, he could roughly tell the quality of vegetables just by looking at them. However, He Zhao didn't expect that there were red threadworms in this spinach.
Actually, red threadworms are quite common; they can be found in many vegetables and even on fish tails. They are characterized by a very thin red thread that anchors itself in the roots of these organisms, and you might easily be fooled if you're not careful.
But to be honest, this thing is relatively easy to control, so you won't find it in high-quality spinach. He Zhao broke open a spinach leaf and found the red threadworm. There was a red line running through the middle of the bright green leaves, connecting it to the stem; it was very clear once you broke it open and washed it.
If you cut off the rootstock, you can still see the red threads twisting and turning.
Yeah, that does sound pretty disgusting.
If it were the old He Zhao, seeing such a thing would have made him scream at the top of his lungs, making sure everyone could hear him. But after being tortured by the system, He Zhao is no longer surprised.
Red threadworms sound scary, like horsehair worms, but their harm to humans is very limited. Eating them raw can be more harmful, causing vomiting and diarrhea. Once cooked, they are similar to ordinary protein and are not parasites.
However, it has another problem: it absorbs all the nutrients from the vegetables, leaving them with no nutritional value. Therefore, it's the vegetable the system specifically names as rotten. He Zhao spent a considerable amount of money on this vegetable, but still ended up with this kind of result. Looking at the others—eggs, meat, etc.—these are the easiest to distinguish; their quality is obviously mediocre.
Well, it seems I can't take the easy way out; I'll have to go to the market myself and pick out the ingredients myself.
But what could He Zhao, a poor man, do after already buying it? He had to swallow his pride and accept it; it was just his laziness acting up, who else could he blame? Even so, He Zhao still cursed the food delivery service: "So expensive and slow delivery, and the quality is terrible! That awful company will go out of business sooner or later!"
He Zhao removed the spinach stalks with red threadworms and tossed them aside, then began washing the rest. Once he was mostly done, he put on an apron and started cooking.
The aprons in Qiao Yanyu's house used to be just decorations. Qiao Yanyu was so busy that she never really used them. It wasn't until He Zhao came to her house that she started using the kitchen, starting with a bowl of instant noodles. From then on, those expensive kitchen utensils were no longer just for show.
Cooking isn't exactly troublesome; she learned quick and easy recipes from the system, so it didn't take much effort. But it's definitely not easy either. The most troublesome part of cooking is the preparation and the cleanup.
The initial preparation involved washing and preparing the vegetables. Although He Zhao didn't have much to wash this time, it still took him twenty minutes, mainly just picking the spinach. Then, he chopped the vegetables and added other ingredients, which took almost an hour. This might be because the kitchen utensils in the real world were different from those in the system space, and He Zhao wasn't used to them.
Finally, the firing process took place. He Zhao was busy from 4:30 to almost 6:00, and only after everything was finished was it served on the table.
During this time, Qiao Yanyu wheeled herself over to He Zhao outside the kitchen and asked if she needed help. He Zhao immediately refused; if she needed help from Qiao Yanyu, who was injured, what kind of person would she be? However, she didn't take all the blame herself and told Qiao Yanyu the truth: "Sister Qiao, you can have a little free time now, but once you're healed, I won't spoil you. After you finish eating, washing the dishes and cleaning the kitchen will all be your responsibilities."
Qiao Yanyu had no objection to this; on the contrary, she was quite happy about it. How could someone like Qiao Yanyu feel comfortable standing at home empty-handed? She only thought about doing more so that He Zhao could do less.
In the past, He Zhao would have preferred to stay at home doing nothing and be a lazy bum. But after actually falling in love, she started thinking – what can I do for the person I like? Once this thought took hold, she would do more for Qiao Yanyu.
When two people are together, they are meant to support each other.
He Zhao beckoned Qiao Yanyu to come and eat. Qiao Yanyu swung her wheelchair to the dining table. She was so agile that she didn't need He Zhao's help to get from the wheelchair to the chair, giving He Zhao no chance to show off.
However, seeing Qiao Yanyu like this, He Zhao was also very gratified. If Qiao Yanyu were the kind of person who couldn't take care of herself and needed someone to help her go to the toilet, He Zhao would definitely not feel at ease with her and wouldn't even go to the night market.
She had to rest during the day since she was setting up her stall at night. How could she take care of Qiao Yanyu then? She needed to be alone and independent most of the time. Only when Qiao Yanyu could move around on her own could He Zhao feel at ease setting up her stall.
Getting back to the main point, although He Zhao was a student in the accelerated training program and his success fell far short of the system's requirements, he could still easily outshine many chefs in the real world. After all—most chefs these days also complete their training in accelerated programs. They accumulate experience through practical experience later on, but the dishes they create are more in line with their own preferences.
There are very few chefs these days who can truly hone their skills over a decade.
Regardless of his background, He Zhao received formal, systematic training, mentored by renowned chefs—someone who spends a long time honing even a single dish. Even if he isn't at the top of the industry, he's certainly above average. Besides, he's only making simple home-style stir-fries.
Even though many people believe that a well-made home-style stir-fry can be just as delicious as a fancy dish, in terms of its heritage and flavor, it is indeed inferior to fancy dishes.
Home-style stir-fries are easy to make quickly.
Now, having half-mastered his craft, He Zhao presented three dishes, each a feast for the eyes and the palate. Three stir-fries sat on the table: the spinach was vibrant green, the scrambled eggs with tomatoes were a striking mix of red and white, garnished with scallions, and the stir-fried greens with shredded pork were equally colorful. Each dish possessed exquisite color, vying for attention yet complementing each other perfectly.
The aroma is also pleasant; it's not strong, with the green pepper flavor being more prominent, yet it feels exceptionally harmonious.
He Zhao served two bowls of rice, untied his apron, sat down in a chair, and invited Qiao Yanyu to try some.
Qiao Yanyu, a fan of spicy food, nodded after picking up her chopsticks and launched her attack on the stir-fried green peppers and shredded pork. As a member of the crash course, the renowned instructor had used some clever tricks when tutoring He Zhao. The green of the green peppers blended slightly with the soy sauce-soaked shredded pork, resulting in a slightly indistinct color. Adding some red chili peppers at this point would make the colors more vibrant.
Too many red chili threads are not advisable; just a little is enough, making them stand out when mixed with green peppers. Their bright red color adds a touch of playfulness and vibrancy to what would otherwise be a somewhat dull color.
Besides that, there's the taste.
Qiao Yanyu took a bite of the green pepper and immediately noticed that this green pepper and pork shredded pork was slightly different from what others made. The green pepper wasn't limp; it had a slight crispness. It was definitely cooked through, but biting into it gave it a crispness that made it seem not quite fully cooked.
It has a slightly raw, spicy taste, but once you eat it, you know it's definitely cooked through. Honestly, the texture is truly amazing.
Pick up another shred of meat and put it in your mouth. The perfect balance of spiciness, saltiness, and tender meat is enough to make you fall in love with it.
The dishes He Zhao made today were all exceptionally appetizing. Qiao Yanyu felt she could easily devour two bowls of rice with just this one bowl of stir-fried green peppers and shredded pork. Not to mention, there was also scrambled eggs with tomatoes, another perfect accompaniment to rice. The stir-fried spinach, at this point, felt like an afterthought, making Qiao Yanyu less inclined to eat it.
But He Zhao had spent a lot of time picking these out, so she certainly couldn't let Qiao Yanyu waste them. She pouted at Qiao Yanyu and said, "Sister Qiao, you can't just eat meat dishes. Try the stir-fried spinach; it's sure to be delicious."
In the past, when Qiao Yanyu ate stir-fried spinach, she would always add some garlic. The garlic and spinach together made it much more flavorful. She had never really eaten it like this before, just plain stir-fried spinach with only oil and salt. She subconsciously felt that this kind of spinach probably wouldn't taste very good, but since He Zhao made it, she definitely wouldn't leave any.
Qiao Yanyu picked up a spinach with her chopsticks and examined it, thinking it looked quite appealing. The stir-fried spinach was a brighter green than the raw kind, and the slight oil on it made it look like dew had settled on it.
Looking at the spinach, Qiao Yanyu couldn't help but think of the Chinese idiom "a secluded orchid in a secluded valley".
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