Cooking System: Street Food Rules
Chapter 71: Another New Mission Released!

Chapter 71: Chapter 71: Another New Mission Released!

City Public Security Bureau canteen.

The usually noisy canteen was exceptionally quiet today.

Everyone ate, not daring to speak loudly.

At the leaders’ table sat all the important figures. They were here for an inspection at the bureau, so naturally, they needed to perform well.

Ji Weiguo carefully tasted the dishes on the table.

He had thought they would be everyday dishes, but to his surprise, each of the Shandong Cuisine dishes was of authentic chef-level quality.

It’s too satisfying to eat.

He didn’t usually eat much, but his appetite was good at lunch today, and he couldn’t help but eat a lot.

The accompanying city leaders were very pleased to see Ji Weiguo happy.

They privately praised Yang Zheng for handling the day’s affairs beautifully. The young chef they hired is truly a master.

「Meanwhile, Jiang Feng had already gone home.」

Making some extra money is also a form of expanding my business, as far as I’m concerned.

Once home, he took out the tuna knife, his system reward.

It was a long knife used for cutting large pieces of meat, such as a tuna over a meter long. It could also be used to cut a whole pig.

A chef often has various kitchen utensils, so it’s not bad to accumulate some.

The system indicated that a new mission would unlock in two days.

Jiang Feng took advantage of these two days to rest well: walking the dog, playing games, watching dramas, and the like. His pace of life remained very slow.

「Two days later, as promised, the system’s mission arrived:」

[New Mission: Set up a stall in the University of Science and Technology canteen for 7 consecutive days, selling 200 servings of gourmet food each day, with no restrictions on variety]

[Mission Reward: One pair of Top-Grade Mutton-Fat Jade Chopsticks (weighing 100 grams each)]

[Gained Recipes: Braised Eggplant, Stewed Pork Rice, Yellow Braised Chicken]

Jiang Feng read the mission and pondered for a moment.

This time, it’s at a university. But the reward is just a pair of chopsticks?

Jiang Feng took out his cell phone and immediately searched for "how much is mutton-fat jade worth."

The answer he found was that top-grade mutton-fat jade costs 20,000 to 30,000 yuan per gram, ordinary mutton-fat jade 11,000 yuan per gram, and even lesser qualities go for several thousand or hundreds of yuan per gram.

A quick calculation meant the pair of mutton-fat jade chopsticks rewarded by the system would have a market price of about 4 to 6 million yuan.

This kind of top-quality jade couldn’t be faked; an expert would recognize its value at a glance. Moreover, a pair of slender mutton-fat jade chopsticks would be even more valuable. After all, such items were exceedingly rare. Even encountering a single mutton-fat jade chopstick was difficult, let alone a pair—its value would at least double.

Jiang Feng had already planned to accept the mission; he just hadn’t expected mutton-fat jade to be worth so much.

I was too shortsighted. Four million for a pair of chopsticks. They’d be great just for display.

He chose to accept the mission. Shortly after he did, his phone rang.

It was the manager of the University of Science and Technology canteen. He called to inform Jiang Feng that a stall had been prepared for him for the next day and asked him to come early.

Jiang Feng readily agreed.

He began to consider what to sell at the university canteen stall.

This time the mission hasn’t specified what to sell. I’ll start with hot dishes, since I’m familiar with those. I can also prepare some Yellow Braised Chicken in advance. At the university, it should just be a couple of busy hours around lunch and dinner. University life is great!

Jiang Feng made his decision.

After resting for two days, he felt refreshed all over and ready to get busy with work.

So, Jiang Feng started preparing ingredients, then drove to the university canteen to check out the situation.

The University of Science and Technology had two canteens, and his stall was in the second one. His stall was in a corner, not a prime location.

But that didn’t matter. For university students, only two things were paramount: sleeping and eating. When mealtimes arrived, the canteen would be overrun by hungry students, and queues would form at every stall.

Below Jiang Feng’s stall window was an electronic screen where he could display the dishes he was selling. Behind the stall window was the canteen’s main kitchen, where he had a dedicated stove. It looked much like a stall in a shopping mall food court.

I’ll prepare the dishes in advance and pack them. When the students come to buy, I’ll just need to serve them. There definitely won’t be any regulars at a university. It shouldn’t be too tiring. Jiang Feng thought to himself.

But he was sorely mistaken, for he had underestimated the sheer eating power of hungry university students. If a cafeteria stall was particularly delicious, it would attract an almost endless queue.

For convenience, Jiang Feng also needed to hire a helper for odd jobs. The helper’s job would be to manage the window: ask students what they wanted, enter the amount on the card machine, and have them swipe their meal cards. This way, Jiang Feng would save time from having to go back and forth. For two hours at noon and two hours in the afternoon, the pay was 200 yuan.

When Jiang Feng mentioned this to the canteen manager, the manager quickly found a helper for him. This was the legendary ’cafeteria auntie’. These aunties had often mastered the ’shaky hand skill’; with just a couple of flicks, they could precisely shake two pieces of meat from the ladle, leaving only vegetables.

Everything was ready. He just needed to arrive early at the university canteen tomorrow to start preparing.

I haven’t been back to a university since graduation. I quite miss it.

After leaving the back kitchen, Jiang Feng strolled through the university campus. It was four o’clock in the afternoon. Some people were already running on the school playground. The air was brimming with youthful energy.

Jiang Feng watched for a while, a touch of wistfulness in his heart.

Then, he hopped into his million-yuan SUV and drove back to his luxurious little villa. Life is just this simple and unadorned, he mused.

「The next day, Jiang Feng arrived early at the back kitchen of the university’s second canteen.」

The meat vendor had delivered all the ingredients Jiang Feng had ordered.

Jiang Feng checked the meat and vegetables. Finding no issues, he immediately began his preparations.

It was nine o’clock in the morning. In less than three hours, the hungry students would descend upon the ’battlefield’. In these three hours, Jiang Feng had to prepare an abundance of delicious food at his stove.

He put on a white apron, washed his hands thoroughly, and arranged the prepped ingredients and seasonings to one side. He added water to the large iron wok and gave it a few scrapes with his spatula.

Then, he methodically set to work.

The kitchen was his domain.

His culinary skills were superb. Though the work was physically tiring, his spirit was relaxed. Every step was second nature to him. He didn’t need a scale for the seasonings; with a flick of his spoon, he’d scoop up the perfect amount and sprinkle it evenly into the wok.

Before the actual cooking began, the most crucial step was prepping the ingredients—getting everything ready to go straight into the wok. This way, dishes could be stir-fried and served quickly.

The main dishes at Jiang Feng’s window included: Sweet and Sour Pork Fillet, Braised Eggplant, Shredded Pork with Garlic Sauce, Kung Pao Chicken, and Yellow Braised Chicken.

Meat dishes were priced at 6 yuan each, and vegetarian dishes at 4 yuan. The university had fairly uniform pricing, and vendors couldn’t set their prices too high. However, since each serving was just a ladleful, it wasn’t a losing proposition; selling in large volumes could still yield significant profits. Although the prices set by catering brands collaborating with the university seemed low, every one of them was making a fortune.

Jiang Feng had also done the math: if he sold out completely, he’d make a net profit of at least 1,000 yuan a day.

Time passed, minute by minute.

Jiang Feng moved swiftly.

The main kitchen was bustling with other cooks, each busy at their own stove. The university had numerous food stalls. Some vendors prepared their food off-campus and transported it in to sell directly. Others were small operations that cooked in the main kitchen before bringing the food out to sell. Everyone was focused on their own business.

Jiang Feng quickly caught the attention of the other cooks.

He was young and handsome, with a good physique and clear skin—not at all like a cook who had toiled for years amidst firewood, rice, oil, and salt. Yet, when he cooked, his movements were fluid and efficient, exuding an air of calm competence. His actions were skillful, and the aroma of the meat he stir-fried was so enticing it seemed to carry for miles.

The other cooks, while busy with their own tasks, found themselves glancing over whenever they caught a whiff of Jiang Feng’s stir-frying meat. One could often judge the quality of a dish by its aroma alone. For example, burnt meat had one smell, poorly cooked meat another, and perfectly cooked meat yet another. The aroma emanating from Jiang Feng’s wok was that of perfectly cooked meat.

A few of the cooks watched Jiang Feng, amazed.

Who is this young man? He seems quite skilled. When did the university get someone like him?