Chapter 37

Luo Buyu’s shout not only stopped Shen Cui in her tracks, but also made Mu Er Pang stand up abruptly from the desk.

Shen Cui found the cute Q-version characters on the semi-transparent screen very appealing, which had been displaying the map of the academy.

Visibly, both Luo Buyu and Mu Er Pang’s mood values dropped. Mu Er Pang, being the biological son, fared slightly better, probably dropping from near 100 to 70.

The Q-version of Luo Buyu, on the other hand, dropped by half a gauge.

Only Wei Xi, who was not directly involved, remained unaffected, his mood still full. Seeing Luo Buyu and Mu Er Pang squeezing to the window, he stood up as well.

The three of them stared at Shen Cui. Despite feeling embarrassed, Shen Cui lifted her chin slightly. “What’s wrong? Can’t I go into my own kitchen?”

“You can, you can.” Luo Buyu realized he had overreacted and coughed lightly before asking, “I was just curious, yes, curious, so I asked.”

In fact, there was no need to ask. What else could she do in the kitchen besides cooking?

Shen Cui ignored them and quickly went inside.

Although the kitchen in the old house had not been used for several days, Zhou Shi was diligent. She thought that Luo Buyu and Wei Xi might get hungry even in the middle of the night, so she didn’t move the things they used when they lived there. She would come to clean up from time to time, and when she went into town to replenish supplies for the family, she also set aside a portion for this place.

So, there was nothing lacking.

After inspecting everything, Shen Cui opened the system store, studied the recipes, and prepared to buy ingredients.

“Didn’t you just swear not to spend shopping points today, saying you’d miss out on extra rewards?”

“That was then, this is now.”

Now that Luo Buyu and Mu Er Pang’s mood values had dropped, they must have already guessed what she was going to do. They probably didn’t feel like reading anymore.

Moreover, Shen Cui didn’t want to affect their mood in the first place, which is why she firmly said she wouldn’t use items from the system.

Since it had already affected them, why not minimize the loss and at least get the extra rewards for the task?

After studying the system’s basic recipes, Shen Cui decided to make dumplings today. After all, the stinky tofu had left a psychological shadow on them, so she needed to change things up.

Dumplings required four ingredients: flour, pickled cabbage for seasoning, pork, and water. These items were all placed in the old kitchen by Zhou Shi, so she didn’t need to come up with a lie about where these ingredients came from.

Moreover, Water Cloud Village was located in the northern region and followed northern customs. Eating dumplings during festivals or happy occasions was very appropriate.

The total cost for the four ingredients was 40 points.

Shen Cui had 790 shopping points in her account, so 40 points was really nothing.

The system was quite cunning. The portion of ingredients could only make up to five dumplings, far from enough for each person to have a small bowl. Shen Cui needed to make at least two portions, ten dumplings in total, so that everyone could have a “meal.”

After spending 80 shopping points, Shen Cui embarked on her culinary journey for the day.

Due to the terrifying power of the previous “ultimate failure,” Shen Cui, despite expecting another likely failure, didn’t dare to be careless and approached the task with utmost seriousness.

First, she mixed water with flour to make dough, then let it sit for fifteen minutes. During this time, she chopped up the pickled cabbage, squeezed out the excess juice, and minced the pork, stirring it in one direction to make the filling.

Next, she kneaded the dough, divided it into small pieces, rolled it out into wrappers, filled them with the meat filling, and pinched the edges to create small flower-shaped dumplings.

As Shen Cui expected, Luo Buyu noticed that she had entered the kitchen and had the two children return to the desk to continue their studies. However, he, as their teacher, was also absent-minded, let alone the two students.

After about fifteen minutes, Luo Buyu felt uneasy and decided, “It’s almost time for lunch. There’s no rush to study hard right now. Let’s finish class for now and continue after lunch.”

Mu Er Pang and Wei Xi naturally followed suit.

Later, Luo Buyu and Mu Er Pang coincidentally went to the kitchen, and Wei Xi, confused, followed them.

When the three of them came over, Shen Cui naturally noticed but didn’t make a fuss, continuing with her work.

In just half an hour, ten round dumplings were formed in her hands, lying one by one on the floured cutting board.

Wei Xi was still puzzled and whispered, “I know Madam is good at cooking, but are Master and Senior Brother so hungry that they rushed over?”

Mu Er Pang didn’t want to speak ill of his own mother, so he moved his lips but then closed his mouth.

Luo Buyu wanted to explain, but Shen Cui shot him a look that made him shut up. He could only awkwardly close his mouth and make eye contact with Wei Xi, conveying a message.

He and Mu Er Pang were definitely caught, but Wei Xi wasn’t. Wei Xi spent money to study and live properly, so he could definitely provide suggestions!

Wei Xi didn’t understand what was happening. Besides, Shen Cui’s dumplings were right there, all plump and adorable. Who could think of those things while looking at those dumplings?

He frowned and thought for a while, then whispered, “Does the gentleman think there aren’t enough dumplings made by Madam, afraid they won’t be enough to eat? It’s okay, I have a small appetite, so it’s no problem if I eat less or don’t eat at all. The gentleman doesn’t need to be polite; you can eat my portion.”

As soon as he said this, Lao Buyu’s face turned pale.

In the kitchen, Shen Cui had already boiled all the dumplings. She said, “Don’t worry, although there are fewer dumplings, there are enough for all of you. Everyone will have a share, and no one will miss out.”

For some reason, Lao Buyu couldn’t help but think of a play he had seen when he was young. A demon with a bloody big knife, looking at people who were powerless, grinned and said, “No one can escape!”

After boiling the dumplings, Shen Cui left, took off her apron, and said, “I’m quick with my hands and feet. The food over there should be ready too. Since you’re not reading anymore, help me watch the fire.”

After she finished speaking, she left. Lao Buyu and Mu Er Pang instinctively stepped back and didn’t want to go into the kitchen.

Finally, Wei Xi said he would go, so he went into the kitchen to watch the fire.

As Shen Cui expected, in the new courtyard, Zheng Shi and the others had already cooked a table full of dishes.

Chen Shi’s mouth was almost dry from talking, but she still hadn’t persuaded Zheng Shi to agree.

When Shen Cui came over, before Chen Shi could approach her, Zheng Shi said, “Cuihua, go call the Master and the two children over. The elders should bring out the bowls and chopsticks.”

With that, the two people who were supposed to meet were separated.

While Shen Cui was busy back and forth, the dumplings in the old house’s kitchen had also boiled in hot water. Although Lao Buyu was a little scared, he still instructed Wei Xi to add cold water twice.

When Shen Cui finally came back and lifted the lid, the system immediately gave a rating—

Without surprise, this time it was “a failed product that can generate random gains after consumption.”

So, when Shen Cui looked into the pot, she couldn’t see the plump dumplings she had made. They had turned into a pot of soup—

White minced dumpling skin, brown-green pickled cabbage, and white pork minced meat combined into some kind of unknown, vomit-like soup.

After the stinky tofu was rated by the system, its stinky characteristics were amplified, making it unbearably foul-smelling.

This failed product looked disgusting and its smell was just unpleasant!

And Shen Cui also thought that if the system released daily food making tasks in the future, she would only need to buy the ingredients for dumplings. After all, she could always end up with a pot of soup.

Not to mention the current scale of the academy, even if ten or eight more people came, they could all be guaranteed a bowl per person!

So Shen Cui sincerely praised, “Not bad.”

Mu Er Pang hesitated, Lao Buyu’s eye twitched, and only Wei Xi blamed himself, “Madam’s dumplings were especially good. It must be because I didn’t watch the fire properly and ruined them.”

He really blamed himself, and his mood dropped slightly.

“It’s not your fault.” Shen Cui smiled and shook her head at him, then looked at Lao Buyu and Mu Er Pang, “Besides, you will all eat it, and once the food is in your stomach, it’s not considered wasted, right?”

Lao Buyu wanted to escape, but hearing this, he had to stop in his tracks.

Facing Wei Xi’s admiration and respect, even he couldn’t bear to let Wei Xi blame himself.

“Yes, yes, Xiao Xi, don’t think too much. It’s dry today, so having some soup to moisten your throat is not a bad idea, hahaha,” Lao Buyu laughed awkwardly and echoed a few words.

Mu Er Pang hadn’t planned to hide, and today’s dumpling soup was nothing compared to the stinky tofu earlier, so he sincerely said, “Mother is right, once it’s in your stomach, it’s not wasted!”

Later, Shen Cui asked them if they wanted to eat now or later.

Lao Buyu said, “Let’s eat later. The old lady over there has prepared a lot of food. Let’s drink the soup last.”

He felt that if they drank this bowl of soup first, they might not have the appetite to eat anything else.

Seeing that there was still half of the time limit left for the task, Shen Cui didn’t rush and poured the pot of dumpling soup into a sand pot and took it home.

On the other side, Zheng Shi and the others had put two eight immortals’ square tables together and brought out the hot dishes and bowls and chopsticks.

When Lao Buyu and Wei Xi came over, they were asked to sit down first, and then Zheng Shi spoke, and everyone found their seats.

Shen Cui put the sand pot in the corner of the table, glanced over it, and then went back to the kitchen to get a large plate that was only used during the New Year to serve whole fish.

After getting it, Shen Cui used chopsticks to pick up some of the various dishes that no one had touched and put them on the plate at a distance.

The Shen family was used to her habit of eating and taking more. They thought she was preparing for Wei Xi, afraid that Mu Er Pang wouldn’t have enough. However, after Shen Cui finished, she placed the plate in front of Wei Xi.

“Farmers don’t have the habit of using public chopsticks, and there aren’t enough chopsticks at home for everyone to have an extra pair. See if there’s anything else you want to eat. Before the banquet starts, I’ll pick some more for you.”

Wei Xi usually ate with Lao Buyu. He regarded Lao Buyu as his spiritual idol, so naturally, he wouldn’t dislike him. However, with so many strangers present, Shen Cui thought he might not be used to it.

And his physical condition was indeed not good, so it was good to pay attention to it a little.

Wei Xi felt warm in his heart and quickly said, “Please don’t bother, I’m fine. I can manage.”

“Oh, it’s still our Cuihua who knows how to care for the younger generation.” Chen Shi was just worried that she couldn’t find a topic to chat with Shen Cui, but now she immediately took the opportunity to say, “You should also care for your nephew, not just the young master of the Wei family.”

As she was speaking, Chen Shi’s son had already lifted the lid of the sand pot in the corner of the dining table…

Top of Form