TL: FallenMoon

Ling Zi is now incredibly grateful.

Fortunately, she listened to the advice of the street vendor and waited a little longer before eating the teppanyaki tofu. Otherwise, she would have definitely been scalded by it!

But Ling Zi didn’t have time to think much as a salty, sweet, and spicy aroma instantly swept over her taste buds.

Ling Zi loves spicy food, so when she bought the teppanyaki tofu, she asked Yu Bai to add a bit more spice for her.

So, Yu Bai really “added a bit more spice” for her.

However, the spiciness of the teppanyaki tofu wasn’t the kind of torturous sensation. Instead, it was a warm and fiery heat that spread from head to toe, making Ling Zi feel incredibly comfortable and satisfied.

Moreover, the spiciness didn’t overpower the dish. The tofu had a crispy and tender skin, while the sauce was perfectly seasoned with a balance of saltiness and sweetness, skillfully showcased by Yu Bai.

For the teppanyaki tofu, the spiciness was merely an additional element that enhanced its flavor.

One bite, two bites, three bites…

Ling Zi seemed addicted and couldn’t stop herself from eating several pieces of teppanyaki tofu. She couldn’t even put down the bamboo skewer she used to pick up the tofu.

Before long, fine beads of sweat started appearing on Ling Zi’s nose – and it was in the midst of the freezing winter! She was actually sweating from eating teppanyaki tofu!

Immersed in the world of teppanyaki tofu, Ling Zi completely forgot about her friend, Ning Ning.

Beside her, Ning Ning: …

Weren’t they supposed to share snacks together every day as good friends?

Why was Ling Zi enjoying the teppanyaki tofu all by herself?

Now, the box of tofu was almost empty, and Ling Zi hadn’t even thought about letting her good friend taste the flavor of teppanyaki tofu!!!

Is this what they call forgetting about friendship for the sake of food?!

Angry!

Ning Ning coughed forcefully twice to get Lingzi’s attention.

Concerned, Ling Zi asked, “What’s wrong, Ning Ning? Are you coughing? Did you catch a cold? You shouldn’t eat spicy food then, or else it will make your throat more prone to coughing… Don’t worry, I’ll eat this teppanyaki tofu for you!”

Ning Ning: Thank you, but it’s not necessary.

Seeing Ning Ning’s changing expression, Ling Zi couldn’t help but grin.

Ling Zi laughed and said, “I was just teasing you. How could I not leave any for you? Here, take this.”

Ning Ning’s face finally relaxed, and she took the new bamboo skewer, pierced a piece of teppanyaki tofu, and put it into her mouth.

Ling Zi asked, “How is it? Delicious, right?”

Ning Ning couldn’t handle spicy food as well as Ling Zi. As the spiciness spread through her taste buds and the hot sensation coursed through her body, Ning Ning’s face instantly turned red up to her neck.

So spicy!

But it feels so good!

The savory and sweet secret sauce was the perfect seasoning for the teppanyaki tofu. The spiciness complemented the cold winter, instantly warming the chilled body.

Although the teppanyaki tofu had the heat of chili peppers, it lacked the sharp and intense pain typically associated with spiciness. Even those who couldn’t tolerate spicy food could somewhat accept this level of spiciness.

Just one piece of teppanyaki tofu had completely captivated Ning Ning’s heart.

Now, Ning Ning started looking forward to how her own portion of teppanyaki tofu would taste.

Meanwhile, Ling Zi continued eating her teppanyaki tofu, feeling fortunate.

Luckily, Ning Ning coughed, or else Ling Zi would have definitely forgotten to share the teppanyaki tofu with her.

Ning Ning would have been angry for sure.

But… the teppanyaki tofu was really too delicious!

A box of teppanyaki tofu may seem like a lot, but Ling Zi quickly finished it.

Reluctant to swallow the last piece of teppanyaki tofu, Ling Zi confidently turned to Yu Bai and said, without any hesitation, “Boss, give me another serving of teppanyaki tofu and a serving of teppanyaki rice cake!”

“Okay.”

While Ning Ning and Ling Zi were waiting for their respective teppanyaki dishes, other curious students gathered around, intrigued by the teppanyaki cooking.

Students always have a curiosity for new things, and once someone tried the dish and expressed their approval, their enthusiasm for new and fresh experiences increased exponentially.

Furthermore, the aroma of this teppanyaki cooking completely overwhelmed the greasy fried chicken scent from the nearby stall!

Lastly, Ling Zi, who had a strong desire for socializing, passionately recommended, “This teppanyaki cooking place offers excellent food at an affordable price. You’ll regret it if you don’t try it! Chinese people don’t deceive Chinese people!”

—All because Yu Bai added two extra pieces of teppanyaki tofu in Ling Zi’s second serving.

If it weren’t for seeing Ling Zi wearing the Qingqiao Junior High School uniform, the other students would have almost thought that Ling Zi was a paid helper brought in by the stall owner.

Under Ling Zi’s passionate recommendation and the tempting aroma of the teppanyaki cooking, the students couldn’t resist the charm of the teppanyaki dishes and started queuing up to buy them.

Gradually, more and more students arrived at Yu Bai’s food stall.

Twenty minutes ago, Yu Bai’s food stall was empty, but twenty minutes later, there was a long queue of students in front of his stall, making it the liveliest spot in Sanjiaokou.

Less than two hours later, almost all the skewers were wiped out by the students, and the rice cakes and teppanyaki tofu were sold out an hour ago.

In the end, when Yu Bai attempted to sell scallion pancakes alongside his other offerings, the students were eager to try them as well.

Students of this age group are innocent and easily believe others.

Many students thought that if Yu Bai’s teppanyaki cooking was excellent, his scallion pancakes must be equally good.

Today was the most enjoyable day for Ning Ning and Ling Zi in terms of snacking. After finishing their meal, they each bought a scallion pancake from Yu Bai to take home and reheat for breakfast tomorrow.

“See you tomorrow, boss!”

“See you tomorrow!”

Yu Bai waved goodbye to the students, and Xing Xing, who was standing beside him, mimicked his gesture and waved toward the departing students.

A high school student who arrived late asked, “Boss, do you still have any teppanyaki dishes left?”

“Sorry. I didn’t prepare enough ingredients, and everything is sold out.”

“Well, that’s okay.”

The high school student could only regretfully turn to other food stalls.

Yu Bai, who had sold out all his ingredients ahead of time, pushed his packed-up food cart and happily went home with Xing Xing.

The other food stall owners at Sanjiaokou couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief after seeing Yu Bai leave.

Finally, that father and son are gone!

Initially, when no one was eating Yu Bai’s teppanyaki dishes, their food stalls were as prosperous as before.

However, ever since Yu Bai served his first customer with his teppanyaki cooking, their business plummeted.

Almost all the students who had just left school couldn’t resist the tantalizing aroma that wafted from Yu Bai’s teppanyaki cooking.

Experienced food stall owners could easily guess that the enticing aroma was coming from the row of sauces on Yu Bai’s food cart. Whenever Yu Bai poured the sauce over the teppanyaki dishes, a rich and fragrant aroma would fill the air.

This fragrance was overpowering, causing one’s mouth to water incessantly.

Even those who were at a distance from the teppanyaki food stalls could smell the aroma.

The auntie selling fried chicken strips was particularly frustrated.

Her fried chicken strips were meant to attract customers with their fried aroma, but now, ever since the teppanyaki dishes appeared, apart from the students who already liked her fried chicken strips, almost all the other students were drawn to the aroma of the iron plate dishes.

Her fried aroma simply couldn’t compete with the aroma of the teppanyaki dishes!

Fortunately, the teppanyaki dish stall owner didn’t prepare a large number of ingredients; otherwise, she would have wasted her day.

After Yu Bai left, several food stall owners exchanged glances from a distance, and they could see the deep helplessness in each other’s eyes.

They initially thought this new food stall owner was an inexperienced newcomer, but they didn’t expect that he was clearly a wolf in sheep’s clothing.

Look at his culinary skills and the aroma of his teppanyaki dishes… Why would a stall owner with such cooking skills not open a restaurant instead of setting up a stall here just to join in the fun?

——

Some students had mobile phones, so they paid for the teppanyaki dishes directly through mobile transfers. However, some students had strict parental restrictions and could only provide coins and banknotes, so Yu Bai ended up with a bunch of loose changes today.

But Yu Bai estimated that he could figure out that he wouldn’t earn less from selling teppanyaki dishes for three to four hours in the afternoon!

After Yu Bai returned home, he didn’t rush to count the money.

The first thing he did after returning home was to take a bath with his son!

They stood next to the teppanyaki dishes for four hours today, and within those four hours, Yu Bai only took a break for half an hour at most. The wind always seemed to blow the fumes in their direction, so by the end of the four hours, both he and Xing Xing had a strong smell of cooking oil on them.

Yu Bai was a clean person, and he couldn’t stand seeing his tender and fragrant son turned into a little dried meat by the cooking oil fumes.

“Dad, shall you take a bath first?”

Yu Bai was undressing and asked, “Sure… what’s the matter?”

When Yu Bai took off his shirt sleeves, he noticed that his son seemed a bit hesitant. The expression on Xing Xing’s face seemed like he didn’t want to take a bath together.

Yu Bai chuckled.

Since Xing Xing was born, he had always taken baths with him — it was convenient and saved him from the ordeal of getting soaked and having to take another bath and change clothes when the young Xing Xing, who didn’t understand anything at that time, would splash dirty water all over him.

Moreover, Xing Xing used to enjoy taking baths with him because they would play with little rubber duck toys. Yu Bai always found ways to make Xing Xing giggle.

Yu Bai wanted to enhance their father-son bond while taking a bath together with Xing Xing, but he didn’t expect his own son to refuse bathing with him!

Is it because the little rubber ducks aren’t fun anymore? Or has Xing Xing started to dislike his old father?

Yu Bai’s old father’s heart shattered into pieces.

Yu Bai asked with a hint of sourness, “What’s wrong? Don’t you want to take a bath with Dad anymore? Do you despise Dad now? Don’t you like Dad anymore?”

“No, no, no! I would never despise Dad! You are the person I love the most in the whole world, Dad!”

Xing Xing anxiously waved his chubby hand and made a big heart gesture to Yu Bai.

Yu Bai’s heart warmed up.

“Then why don’t you want to take a bath with Dad?”

“Well… um…”

Author’s Note:

Yubai: An old father’s heart is easily broken but also easily healed ●ｖ●