Ye Feng wasn't going to do anything fancy. Anyway, these diners hadn't seen much of the world, so even if he made them the original flavor, they would still eat it and exclaim how delicious it was.
I happened to have quite a few red beans on hand, so I decided to make red bean dishes.
Moreover, red bean is the most traditional Cantonese flavor.
Red beans have a very long history in China, with countless legends associated with them.
During the Han Dynasty, there was a man named Aqiang from the Minyue Kingdom who was conscripted to guard the border. His wife, Azhen, longed for his return every day. Later, all the other conscripts returned, but Aqiang did not. Azhen cried her heart out and died of grief. A tree nearby, which was watching a play, was deeply moved, and its fruit grew into "red beans" and "love seeds".
Another legend tells of a man named Han Ping, a retainer of King Kang of Song during the Spring and Autumn Period, who married a very beautiful woman named Zhen. However, the king also fell in love with Zhen, who naturally objected. The king then began to obstruct her marriage in various ways. After Han Ping committed suicide, his wife Zhen threw herself onto a platform and committed suicide as well. In her will, she wished to be buried with Han Ping. The king was furious and did not bury them together. Instead, he set their graves facing each other from a distance, saying, "You two love each other, don't you? If you can bring your graves together, I will not stop you."
In a very short time, two large catalpa trees sprouted from the ends of the two graves, growing to a thickness of one arm's length within ten days. The trunks of the two trees were curved and close together, their roots intertwined underground, and their branches intertwined above. A male and female mandarin duck perched on the tree, never leaving morning or evening, their mournful cries echoing through the air, a sound so poignant it brought tears to the eyes of all who heard it. The people of Song were saddened by their cries and thus called the tree the "tree of longing." The story of longing for one's love begins here. Southerners say that these mandarin ducks are the spirits of Han Ping and his wife.
When Ye Feng was little, his grandmother often held him and sat at the door telling him stories.
On a cool night, a gentle breeze blows, the moonlight shines down, and countless stars twinkle in the sky, accompanied by the chirping of insects.
Ye Feng could always fall asleep quickly in the old man's warm embrace.
After his grandmother passed away, Ye Feng never heard any more stories.
Thinking of the kind-faced old man who had taken such good care of him, Ye Feng's eyes unconsciously welled up with tears.
He looked up, trying to hold back his tears, but he had clearly forgotten that looking up couldn't stop the tears from falling.
"Tick-tock".
With a soft sound, a crystal tear rolled down her chin and landed precisely in the bowl containing red beans.
Ye Feng quickly composed himself. Just as he was about to replace the pot of red beans, he was surprised to find that the properties of a few of the love beans had changed.
[A red bean filled with the love and longing of family, temporarily rated 6 stars. Originally an ordinary red bean, it has acquired special attributes after being soaked in the tears of its host. Please use it as soon as possible; its rating will drop to 3 stars after one day.]
[Effect: When given to someone of the opposite sex, a special connection will be formed between the two, allowing them to borrow 30% of each other's cultivation level; within a certain range, it can also slightly increase the spiritual energy absorption and conversion speed of both parties. After cooking using different methods, even more attributes can be unlocked.]
Ye Feng looked at the dozens of special red beans, unsure of what expression to make.
After all, these 6-star raw materials are the highest grade I've ever encountered.
The reason these six stars were formed was simply because of a single tear.
If I had known this earlier, should I have shed more tears?
Ye Feng picked out the dozens of red beans and put them in another pot before starting to cook them.
The traditional method is very simple: cook the red beans until they are soft and mushy, so that they can be easily mashed into red bean paste.
Place the cooked red beans into small bowls, and then put all the bowls on a steamer.
Next, mix glutinous rice flour and wheat starch to make a batter, add yellow rock sugar water, and pour it into a small bowl in a steamer to steam.
Although the production process was incredibly simple, Ye Feng was extremely careful while making it.
Thinking of the kind old woman, he felt that he could give his grandmother a taste of the steamed rice cakes he had made.
The result of his intense concentration was that all the steamed red bean rice cakes, except for the one made with 6-star red beans, reached a 5.5-star rating.
[A perfect red bean rice cake, brimming with tender affection, rated 5.5 stars. Red beans grow in the south, sprouting many branches in spring. I wish you would gather more, for this is the most cherished token of longing.]
[Effect: After consumption, one can learn the innate skill - Emotional Control]
[Emotional Control: For fifteen minutes, it fills your enemy with affection for you, making them reluctant to attack. The effect weakens as the difference in cultivation level between the two parties increases. Side effect: You will be unable to stop crying and sobbing for three hours after consumption.]
I'll blanch it!
Ye Feng was completely dumbfounded by this amazing property.
Noticing Ye Feng's unusual behavior, Ning Yue asked curiously, "Junior Uncle, what's wrong?"
Ningyue's presence here was naturally due to Qiye's successful scheme.
Although Ningyue felt that teaming up to beat her junior brother was beneath her status as a former chief disciple, being eliminated first every time was indeed making her temperamental side.
This time, together with Qi Ye, Jue Ming, Zhao Xing, and Qing You, they beat those disciples until they were screaming and covered in bumps. They finally got into the kitchen as they wished and also vented their anger.
Hearing Ningyue's words, Ye Feng replied, "It's alright. Go and get some more red beans. I'm going to keep these."
Ningyue's eyes lit up immediately upon hearing this.
There's only one reason why Junior Uncle wanted to put it away: the culinary properties of this pot are absolutely extraordinary.
As for the possibility of failure, Ningyue had never considered it, and it would never happen.
Ye Feng quickly cooked the newly acquired red beans and made another steamer of red bean rice cakes.
Without the emotional boost, these finished products lost their 5.5-star rating and dropped directly to four stars.
In terms of effect, there are no more innate skills, only...
[Perfect Red Bean Rice Cake, Rating: 4 stars. Made with ordinary red beans, nothing special.]
[Effects: Increases spiritual energy release speed by 50% for up to 15 minutes after consumption. For ordinary people or pregnant women, it can strengthen the spleen and kidneys, promote lactation, reduce swelling, regulate blood sugar, and nourish blood. Side effects: May cause memories of deceased relatives.]
Upon seeing the attributes listed, Ye Feng couldn't help but pose a profound question to the system.
[System, are you doing this on purpose? Where were those later attributes before?]
No, I just accidentally...
I don't believe you, you must be doing this on purpose.
[Waaaaah, you still think about your grandma? I don't even know if I have a grandma, waaaah...]
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