Chapter 9: Crying over the Delicious Porridge

"Doctor Qin, what are you going to cook?" asked Zhang Dafu enthusiastically as they got to the kitchen. "Tang Tang has just recovered from her illness, so she'd better have a light meal. I'll just make her some porridge," Qin Haodong replied. "Do we have the ingredients for eight-treasure rice porridge?" "Yes, but it's raw and hasn't been soaked. Porridge takes time to prepare." "Never mind, just give me the ingredients!" Qin Haodong insisted. Zhang Dafu silently despised Qin Haodong. It was pretty common knowledge that the ingredients for eight-treasure rice porridge needed to be soaked for no fewer than four hours prior to cooking. He was wasting his ingredients on a complete layman! But Mr. Lin had given orders to let Qin Haodong do what he wanted, so he gathered a small bowl of the ingredients and handed them over. After all, he wouldn’t be the one losing face. Qin Haodong took a look at the bowl and said, "That's too little. I'm sure Tang Tang is not the only one who will eat it. Please get some more." Zhang Dafu was speechless. Since he’d become the Lins’ cook, they had become very fussy about their food. Ordinary food could not arouse their appetite at all. Why would they want to eat ordinary eight-treasure rice porridge? He just sighed and scooped up a large bowl of ingredients. After washing the ingredients, Qin Haodong began to cook the porridge. He knew that the ingredients for porridge usually needed to be soaked for several hours, but he, the Emperor Green Wood, didn't need to do that. He was born with an abundance of the wood element, and his divinity belonged to the highest wood element, so he could manipulate plants with ease. The grains in his hands released their flavor, and ten minutes later, a strong ambrosial aroma of food filled the kitchen. "Wow, it smells good. Doctor Magic, your porridge smells delicious! When can I have it?" The little girl stood by, staring at the boiling porridge in the pot. She put a small white finger into her mouth, like a little foodie. "Tang Tang, that's unsanitary," Qin Haodong said, taking the little girl's finger out of her mouth. "But Doctor Magic, I really want to have some porridge now!" "Just wait until it’s served!" Qin Haodong said, turning off the fire on the stove and bringing down the porridge pot. Zhang Dafu watched from the sidelines. When he smelled the porridge, he was startled, baffled at how undercooked porridge could smell so good. Watching Qin Haodong bring down the porridge pot, he couldn't help but say, "Doctor Qin, the soaked grain has to boil for about half an hour to eat. The porridge has only been cooking for 10 minutes." "Never mind. My cooking method is unique, and the porridge is already done," replied Qin Haodong, holding the pot in one hand and the little girl in the other. "Let's go, the porridge is ready!" "Yay! The delicious porridge is finally ready!" Tang Tang was thrilled to return to the table with Qin Haodong, her big eyes fixing on the porridge pot, never leaving. Out of politeness, Lin Zhiyuan and Lin Momo sat at the table and waited for Qin Haodong without moving the chopsticks. They were taken aback when they saw him return so soon with a pot of sweet-smelling porridge in his hand. "Doctor Magic, come on, come on, I can't wait!" Tang Tang said. Qin Haodong then filled a bowl of eight-treasure rice porridge, stirred it with a spoon and sent a little bit of Icy Life Energy through his hand to cool it down. Soon a bowl of porridge with the right temperature was brought to Tang Tang. He put a spoonful of eight-treasure rice porridge into the little girl's mouth and asked, "How is it?" Tang Tang didn't answer him, instead grabbing the spoon from Qin Haodong's hand and devouring it quickly. Everyone was amused with her performance. After laughing, Lin Momo felt a little curious. Tang Tang was a family treasure. She had eaten all kinds of delicacies and was very picky about food. Lin Momo had never seen her like eating something so much. Sensing Lin Momo's confusion, Qin Haodong filled two more bowls of porridge and placed them in front of Lin Zhiyuan and Lin Momo respectively. "Here, try it." Lin Momo picked up the spoon and began eating in a ladylike way. After a few bites, she scooped up the porridge as quickly as the little girl did, as if she were competing with others. Her ice queen façade was dropped as she shoveled the food into her mouth. Watching his daughter and granddaughter eat, Lin Zhiyuan could not help feeling contempt for them. They were a wealthy family and had eaten all kinds of delicious food. How could a bowl of porridge make them behave like this? He picked up his spoon and took a bite. When the porridge made it to his mouth, his eyes widened and he began to devour it. His porridge was soon finished. "Oh, my god! This tastes so good! I've never had porridge so good before," Lin Zhiyuan exclaimed. "Doctor Qin, you're a great cook. Can I have another bowl of porridge?" Qin Haodong smiled and filled Lin Zhiyuan's bowl. Meanwhile, Lin Momo also ate up her porridge. Though her cheeks were flushed with embarrassment, she still handed the bowl to Qin Haodong. Qin Haodong filled her bowl with porridge, and Tang Tang became anxious. "Leave some porridge for me! Leave some porridge for me! Doctor Magic, leave some porridge for me... " she slurred as she ate. Qin Haodong dotingly patted her little head and said, "Don't worry. There is more!" "Doctor Qin, can I have a taste?" Qin Haodong looked over his shoulder. It was Zhang Dafu, the chef. Zhang Dafu was full of curiosity. He had never seen the Lins eat with complete disregard for etiquette. If it wasn't for Lin Zhiyuan being a billionaire, he'd really think he was Qin Haodong's capper . After all, it was just a bowl of rice porridge. Still, he was curious to have a taste. "Okay, I’m happy to give you some advice!" Qin Haodong said and gave the cook a bowl. Zhang Dafu put a spoonful of porridge into his mouth and immediately felt a strong aroma hitting his taste buds, a thousand times stronger than what he had just smelled. "The delicate fragrance of dried longan, the rich fragrance of dates, the sweet coix seed... " He chewed slowly, enjoying the satisfaction the eight-treasure porridge brought to his taste buds. Now he understood why the Lins were so obsessed with this porridge — it was awesome! Zhang Dafu felt hot tears on his cheeks. The porridge was so perfect, it had moved him to tears. Lin Zhiyuan glanced at Zhang Dafu with renewed disdain. How can a chef cry over a bowl of porridge? How shameful! Even as he was mentally chiding the chef, he brought the empty bowl back to Qin Haodong and asked for more. Zhang Dafu quickly finished his. He desperately wanted another bowl, but as a cook, it wasn’t right for him to eat more than the host, so he reluctantly put the bowl on the table. He had no idea how Qin Haodong could make such toothsome rice porridge. He’d watched the whole cooking process and hadn’t seen him use any special techniques. Pressing down on his doubts, he said to Qin Haodong, "Doctor Qin, I've eaten all kinds of delicacies in my life, but I've never tasted such delicious porridge before. I'm impressed with your cooking and apologize for what I said." Zhang Dafu bowed apologetically to Qin Haodong and continued, "Doctor Qin, I think you are more talented in cooking than I am. If you want, I can recommend you to the capital right now. With your skills, you could be a top chef of China, even an imperial chef." Qin Haodong just smiled. How could he, the Emperor Green Wood, possibly be a cook? Only his relatives were entitled to his food. "Thank you, Chef Zhang, but I prefer to be a doctor." "But... Doctor Qin, please consider it. It's really a pity not to be a chef with your talent... " Zhang Dafu continued with persuasion. "There's no need to think about it. I just made Tang Tang something to eat. I'm not interested in being a cook." Disappointment flashed across Zhang Dafu's face, and he said quickly, "Doctor Qin, since you don't want to be a cook, could you teach me how to cook? I am willing to worship you as my teacher!" Qin Haodong waved and said, "You can't learn my cooking!" This wasn’t just pride — Zhang Dafu really could not learn his cooking techniques. He, the Emperor Green Wood, was the only person in the world who could use them. "Oh." The disappointment on Zhang Dafu's face grew, but he could not say anything. He retreated to silently. "Doctor Qin, is there any porridge left?" Lin Zhiyuan asked, holding up his bowl again. "No more, Mr. Lin!" Qin Haodong answered. He had deliberately cooked too much porridge and hadn’t expected it all to be eaten so soon. Lin Zhiyuan reddened as he realized that Qin Haodong hadn't eaten yet. Tang Tang little girl patted her round belly and said, "Doctor Magic, your porridge is so yummy. I want more!" "You have just recovered from your illness. You must not eat too much at one time. I'll do it for you another day!" said Qin Haodong. "All right then!" said the little girl obediently. "Doctor Magic, can you take me to kindergarten?" "Not today. I have something to do later. I'll take you tomorrow, okay?" "All right. Doctor Magic, let's pinky swear!" The little girl said, putting out her little finger and entwining it with Qin Haodong's. After breakfast, Lin Momo took Tang Tang to kindergarten, and Qin Haodong left. Tang Tang's fever reminded him that little kids were prone to getting sick. The best way to change this situation was to strengthen her immune system with a Marrow-Cleansing Pill. Refining Marrow-Cleansing Pills was a simple matter for him. All he had to do now was gather up the herbs. He headed to the medicine market located in the western suburbs of Jiangnan City.