VFGRC Chapter 43

TL: Moonlit

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Although Yu Bai’s grilled cold noodles were made with a unique flavor of the teppanyaki sauce, Qian Kangkang couldn’t be completely sure if the slightly spicy taste of the sauce in “Qiaozi Snacks Store’s” grilled cold noodles was intentionally imitating Yu Bai’s teppanyaki sauce.

Because Chinese cuisine is vast and diverse, it’s common for those in the food industry to come up with similar inspirations.

Moreover, this subtle similarity in taste could easily be overlooked by ordinary people, except for someone like Qian Kangkang, who has a chef background and can discern the differences.

It must be his overthinking.

After taking a few bites of “Qiaozi Snacks Store’s” grilled cold noodles, Qian Kangkang set them aside.

In the live broadcast room, Qian Kangkang’s longtime fans could tell that he was not particularly interested in “Qiaozi Snacks Store’s” grilled cold noodles.

[It seems that Kangkang is not very interested in “Qiaozi Snacks Store’s” grilled cold noodles… I guess the taste of “Qiaozi Snacks Store’s” grilled cold noodles is just average.]

[Let’s think from a different perspective. A few days ago, Kangkang criticized “Qiaozi Snacks Store” as being bad on the live broadcast, and every time he took a bite, his expression turned unpleasant. But today, when he tried “Qiaozi Snacks Store’s” grilled cold noodles, there was no change on his face, and he didn’t criticize the taste… Doesn’t that mean “Qiaozi Snacks Store’s” grilled cold noodles are better than the other snacks in the store?]

[In that case, my friend who lined up at “Qiaozi Snacks Store” today was right. The taste of “Qiaozi Snacks Store’s” grilled cold noodles should be decent.]

Qian Kangkang continued, and he picked up a piece of “Qiaozi Snacks Store’s” teppanyaki tofu.

“Qiaozi Snacks Store’s” teppanyaki tofu was fried to a golden brown on both sides, topped with a thick brown sauce, and sprinkled with chopped green onions and cilantro.

When Qian Kangkang inserted the fork into the tofu, he could feel the crispy outer shell of the tofu and the soft inner part enveloped by the crispy layer. His eyebrows slightly raised in approval.

“Yo, it’s cooked perfectly,” he thought.

He brought a piece of tofu coated in the savory sauce to his lips and took a light bite.

Qian Kangkang narrowed his eyes in surprise. He detected a similar flavor to Yu Bai’s secret teppanyaki sauce in “Qiaozi Snacks Store’s” grilled cold noodles, now present in this teppanyaki tofu.

The tofu from “Qiaozi Snacks Store” was thinly sliced, with a rough and crispy surface that allowed the sauce to cling to it perfectly. When he tasted it, the outer layer was crispy and aromatic, and the savory sauce masked the mild taste of the tofu inside.

“This is only seven yuan?” Qian Kangkang learned the price of “Qiaozi Snacks Store’s” teppanyaki tofu from the live chat and showed amazement. “To be honest, ‘Qiaozi Snacks Store’ offers quite a value with this teppanyaki tofu. The tofu is thinly sliced, so you can’t really taste any strong beany flavor. What I can taste more is the sauce’s flavor, and the crispiness of the outer layer… The fresh green onions and cilantro add a refreshing touch…”

Although “Qiaozi Snacks Store” didn’t leave a good impression on Qian Kangkang before, he was straightforward and fair when evaluating the food. In just a few days, “Qiaozi Snacks Store” not only improved the speed of their customer service but also introduced tasty and affordable snacks, which significantly impressed Qian Kangkang.

If “Qiaozi Snacks Store” can continue to operate humbly, it is likely to become one of the top snack chains in China in the future.

—

While Qian Kangkang’s assistant went to get the teppanyaki he ordered, he noticed several people heading toward Yu Bai’s teppanyaki food stall. Some of them seemed familiar to him, possibly fellow employees from other internet media companies.

One person greeted Qian Kangkang’s assistant, saying, “Hey, Zhang, are you here to sign a contract with that kid?”

Qian Kangkang’s assistant, Zhang, was puzzled, “What contract?”

“Don’t play dumb with me, Zhang. Did you successfully sign the contract? If you did, just tell me, so I won’t waste my time.”

“I really have no idea what contract you’re talking about…”

“You don’t know? Don’t lie to me! After you and Kangkang brought attention to that kid in the live broadcast a few days ago, every internet media company is eyeing him now!”

“What? A kid?”

With that, Qian Kangkang’s assistant remembered something.

“Qiaozi Snacks Store” had a huge downturn in business, and Qian Kangkang was one of the crucial catalysts.

If it wasn’t for Qian Kangkang criticizing “Qiaozi Snacks Store” for being bad during the live broadcast, which further fueled the trend initiated by “Light Snack Memo,” the boss of “Qiaozi Snacks Store,” Qiao Chao, wouldn’t be so overwhelmed these days.

However, in that live broadcast, apart from criticizing “Qiaozi Snacks Store” for being bad throughout the latter half, Qian Kangkang had also praised a chicken strip snack stall at Sanjiaokao for having a “good taste” during the first half.

Of course, the fried chicken strips from the first stall were indeed tempting, but what caught the attention of many netizens was not the fried chicken strips from that stall, but…

A cute child appeared in Qian Kangkang’s live broadcast, holding the fried chicken strips and eating without stopping!

It was precisely because of the appearance of this adorable child that it captured the attention of many netizens, causing the online viewership of Qian Kangkang’s live stream to reach an all-time high. As a result, his scathing criticism of “Qiaozi Snacks Store” for being bad during the second half of the broadcast was widely shared by netizens.

Nowadays, there are various types of food exploration and eating broadcasts. However, most of the bloggers who engage in such content are young people.

Among the commonplace handsome and beautiful foodies, experienced gourmets, and chefs in the food circle, the sudden appearance of a white, chubby, and adorable child doing “eating broadcasts” was like a refreshing and charming touch of green in a sea of flowers, attracting special attention.

In the footage, the soft and chubby child, which resembled a glutinous rice dumpling, held the paper bag of chicken strips and looked adorably puffed up. It was enough to melt the hearts of people from the age of eight to eighty!

What was most commendable was that this child was well-mannered and polite!

When netizens saw this child named “Xing Xing,” with its milk-flavored and sweet voice, proactively asking the host if they wanted to share the chicken strips, the viewers behind the screen erupted in enthusiastic cheers.

[“Pleeeease, say yes—say yes—don’t reject this adorable child’s invitation! Don’t let him down!!!”]

Qian Kangkang’s live broadcast not only brought “Qiaozi Snacks Store” into the spotlight, but also turned “Xing Xing” into a little internet sensation.

Anyone who slightly followed the food or parenting circles, or simply loved children, couldn’t help but be charmed by “Xing Xing’s” sweet voice and pretty face.

As a result, some internet media companies spotted an opportunity.

“Kangkang, Kangkang, I brought you the teppanyaki you wanted. Are you going to eat it now…?”

In front of Qian Kangkang, the box of “Qiaozi Snacks Store’s” teppanyaki tofu was already empty.

His assistant was taken aback.

The box of teppanyaki tofu from “Qiaozi Snacks Store” had □□¹dunno what the Author meant, but that is what really was written, two squares. pieces in it.

The assistant thought, ‘Qian Kangkang already had quite a bit of teppanyaki before, and now he finished a whole box of tofu… Can he still eat the remaining teppanyaki?’

Qian Kangkang’s assistant said, “There are more and more people coming and going in Sanjiaokou, and it’s not convenient to squat here and eat. Why don’t we take the food back and eat?”

When hungry, one’s eyes are often bigger than their stomach.

Hungry Qian Kangkang ordered a variety of snacks at Yu Bai’s food stall. However, now he found it a bit hard to eat them all.

“Alright,” Qian Kangkang said, as if he remembered something and narrowed his eyes.

“Wait. Take out that teppanyaki tofu and let me taste it.”

—

At first, Yu Bai’s business was going smoothly today.

While Yu Bai sells teppanyaki, Xing Xing ran to Yu Dong’s candied hawthorn stall.

While eating the candied hawthorn, Xing Xing lifted his little head and counted the crows flying in the sky with Yu Dong.

Gradually, maybe because of the success of Yu Bai’s business, several customers also came to buy candied hawthorns from Yu Dong.

Xing Xing stopped bothering Yu Dong and, after finishing the candied hawthorn, leisurely walked to the back of Yu Bai’s food cart.

Xing Xing sat on a small stool at the back.

With his elbows on his knees and paws on his chin, Xing Xing stared at Yu Bai with a serious expression, his round eyes never blinking.

Yu Bai turned his head to look at Xing Xing, who was still lost in thought.

Yu Bai didn’t know what was going on in Xing Xing’s little head.

Yu Bai asked, “Xing Xing, are you thirsty? Do you want some water?”

Xing Xing snapped out of his thoughts, “No need, no need! I’m not thirsty! Dad, go ahead with your work!”

Yu Bai took out a small milk bottle.

He filled it with hot water before leaving home, and now, after leaving it for a while, the hot water had become comfortably warm.

Yu Bai handed the small milk bottle to Xing Xing, “If you get thirsty, remember to drink water yourself. After this rush, we’ll go back home.”

“Okay!”

Holding the small milk bottle with both hands, Xing Xing occasionally puffed up his cheeks to take a sip of warm water while still gazing at Yu Bai.

After selling more than half of the food ingredients at his food stall, Yu Bai was about to greet the next customer when the next “customer” extended a business card to him.

Looking up, Yu Bai saw the “customer.”

Yu Bai was puzzled, “What’s this for…”

“Hello, I’m a talent scout from ‘Cangxing’ Entertainment Company.” The tall and thin talent scout, with his glasses shining, continuously examined Yu Bai’s eyes. He had an overly enthusiastic smile on his face, but it gave Yu Bai goosebumps.

Yu Bai disliked the gaze of talent scouts.

Because their gaze made him feel like he was being treated as a commodity.

Yu Bai put away the usual gentle smile on his face and frowned, “So?”

 

Author’s Note:

Top: I’ll make a dazzling appearance in the next chapter ┭┮﹏┭┮

PS: If I don’t fall asleep, I should be able to post the next chapter soon.

If I fall asleep… then the next chapter might be posted tomorrow…

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  dunno what the Author meant, but that is what really was written, two squares.