Chapter 42: Launching Kaishui Baicai
After digging for a while, he suddenly caught a glimpse of something not far off in his peripheral vision.
He turned his head for a closer look and was pleasantly surprised.
Two very large termite mushrooms.
The cap of one of them was at least 15 centimeters in diameter.
The other one was slightly smaller.
Termite mushrooms this large were quite rare.
"Ingredient: Termite Mushroom.
Quality: Superior."
’They’re actually Superior quality.’
Li You was surprised yet again. This was the first time he had found a Superior-quality ingredient in the wild.
The termite mushrooms Ye Shengge had bought last time were only Medium quality.
Overjoyed, he carefully plucked the two termite mushrooms.
’Great stuff!’
’I can have a wonderful meal with these.’
He placed them in the Storage Pavilion.
He continued digging up the pomegranate tree.
After another half hour of digging, he finally got it out.
He stored it in the Storage Pavilion.
He tossed the hoe into the Storage Pavilion as well.
He headed for home.
This trip into the mountains had been incredibly fruitful.
...
After returning to his restaurant, he opened the door.
Then, Li You went to the orchard area. He took the pomegranate tree out of the Storage Pavilion.
He dug a hole and planted the tree.
After it was planted.
"Congratulations, Host. Side Quest ’Orchard in Front of the Store’ is complete.
Reward granted: Potatoes (550 lbs, Quality: Superior).
Green Peppers (55 lbs, Quality: Superior).
Red Peppers (55 lbs, Quality: Superior).
One lottery draw.
Special Reward ’Strengthen Body’ has taken effect."
’It’s complete.’
’It seems a mulberry tree really does count as a fruit tree.’
Li You stretched his body a bit.
His physical condition had clearly improved again. His body felt lighter, and he had much more strength.
The potatoes, green peppers, and red peppers were all Superior ingredients.
Combined with the termite mushrooms he had just gathered in the mountains, he now had four different kinds of Superior-quality ingredients.
It was a delightful development.
Now, all he was missing were Supreme-quality ingredients.
Compared to Superior-quality ingredients, Supreme-quality ones were much rarer and harder to come by.
But that only made the prospect of finding them more exciting.
There was also the lottery draw.
That was equally exciting.
’Time for the lottery draw.’
"System, bring up the lottery interface."
"Lottery interface is now open."
He started the draw.
The wheel spun rapidly before coming to a stop, the pointer landing on the "Other" category.
’The "Other" category again. Let’s see what the prize is.’
A very beautiful gift box appeared.
Colorful ribbons fluttered as the gift box opened.
"Seven-Orifice Fish Bait (1 lb)."
"Description: Can be used to fish for rare fish-type ingredients."
It was actually fish bait.
Li You was very surprised.
But he was also excited. The thought of fishing for rare fish ingredients was something to look forward to!
Of course, that was on the condition that there were rare fish in the waters he fished.
There were many deep pools in Jiulong Gorge, which were good fishing spots.
But it was unclear if there were any rare fish inside them.
Maybe there were, maybe there weren’t.
’I can go try it out someday.’
Li You opened the Storage Pavilion and took out the Seven-Orifice Fish Bait.
It was pink, shaped like dough, and soft to the touch.
Compared to ordinary fish bait, it didn’t seem that different.
After looking at it for a while, he put it back in the Storage Pavilion.
Then, he took out some of the fruit tree fertilizer that had previously dropped in the game instance.
It was white and consisted of fine granules.
He decided to put some fertilizer on the newly planted pomegranate tree.
Generally speaking, newly planted fruit trees shouldn’t be fertilized right away.
It’s easy to burn the roots.
However, the fertilizer dropped from the game instance didn’t have the problem of burning roots.
Not only would it not burn the roots, but it also had a rooting effect that could promote better growth for the fruit tree.
After fertilizing the pomegranate tree, he also fertilized the other fruit trees while he was at it.
After a flurry of activity, everything was done.
Li You returned to the front of his shop.
He now had the supreme broth for Boiled Cabbage in Supreme Broth. He already had plenty of cabbage, especially after the recent drops from the game instance.
That meant he could officially add Boiled Cabbage in Supreme Broth to the menu.
Li You added "Boiled Cabbage in Supreme Broth" to the "Today’s Specials" plaque.
"Boiled Cabbage in Supreme Broth: 568 yuan."
Authentic Boiled Cabbage in Supreme Broth is a very expensive dish.
Some big hotels even sell it for over a thousand yuan.
The value was there.
So, Li You couldn’t set the price too low either.
Even if it was just a small shop in the mountains, the price should reflect the dish’s inherent value.
There certainly wouldn’t be many customers who would eat it at this price, but that was fine.
He’d just sell as many as he could.
Afterwards, Li You took out his phone and sent a message to Ye Shengge.
"Hi, Miss Ye. I’ve launched a new dish. Boiled Cabbage in Supreme Broth!"
The last time Ye Shengge left, he had promised her that he would tell her right away as soon as he launched a new dish.
Ye Shengge quickly replied, "Boiled Cabbage in Supreme Broth is a classic, famous dish. I didn’t expect your new item to be that. I’m so looking forward to it! I’ll come by tomorrow to try it."
It seemed the first serving of Boiled Cabbage in Supreme Broth was sold.
Li You was in a good mood. He replied, "You’re welcome anytime!"
"Huh? Boss, do you have a new dish?" A voice reached Li You’s ears.
It was a familiar voice—Chu Yiwei’s.
He turned around, and sure enough, it was Chu Yiwei and Lin Xin.
He smiled. "Ah, Teacher Chu and Teacher Lin. Welcome, both of you."
"You’re too kind, Boss," Chu Yiwei and Lin Xin both said.
Li You added, "By the way, thank you very much for your recommendation, Teacher Chu. Six teachers came for noodles this afternoon."
Chu Yiwei smiled faintly. "I know, it was Teacher Zhang and the others. They told me after they went back at noon. They were all very grateful for my recommendation. Actually, when I first told them about it, they didn’t believe me. Now, I finally see that they’re convinced."
Li You chuckled. "It’s normal that they didn’t believe it at first."
Chu Yiwei nodded. "That’s true. By the way, Boss, what kind of dish is this Boiled Cabbage in Supreme Broth? Why is it so expensive?"
Li You said, "It’s made by simmering ingredients like old hens and old ducks to create a supreme broth that’s as clear as boiled water, then cooking the heart of a napa cabbage in it. It’s a classic, famous dish in Sichuan cuisine. The price is indeed a bit steep. That’s mainly because the supreme broth is difficult to make. And the price for this dish has never been low."
Chu Yiwei nodded. "I see. I’m not familiar with the dish. But it sounds very good. It’s just too expensive; I can’t bring myself to order it. I’ll just have the beef noodles, a large bowl."
"I’ll have beef noodles too, large bowl," said Lin Xin.
Li You nodded. "No problem."
Chu Yiwei then said, "Oh, right, Boss, you have a lot more fruit trees in your orchard. Did you already buy the trees back from Luo Yang’s dad?"
Li You said, "I did. And I got some from other places. Now there are about ten different kinds in total."
"That many? Well then, Boss, we’re going to go check out your orchard. Just call us when the noodles are ready," said Chu Yiwei.
Li You nodded. "Alright. Feel free to pick some loquats to eat."
"Okay. Thanks, Boss!"
The two of them headed toward the orchard.
Li You, on the other hand, went into the kitchen and started cooking the noodles.
After they were cooked, he called out from the shop’s entrance, "Teachers, your noodles are ready."
"Okay, coming."
Soon, Chu Yiwei and Lin Xin walked back.
"Boss, it’s going to be so nice when all these fruit trees start bearing fruit," they both said.
Li You smiled. "They should all bear fruit by next year."
"I’m sure they will."
Then, the two of them walked into the shop and started eating their noodles.
It was time to enjoy a delicious meal once again.
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