Chapter 107: Senior Brother Han

About half a month after returning, Yi Bai met with a couple at Chen Xin’s café.

Chen Xin was not there that day; she was busy organizing research materials and study notes at the library. She only heard the gossip from Song Yi after she returned.

"That couple seems to be entrepreneurs from one of the lower-level counties. Judging by their attire, they must be quite wealthy. Do you think that girl will offer her hand in marriage to repay the favor?"

Chen Xin smiled and replied that since they had all rescued her together, who exactly was the girl supposed to marry?

"Certainly not me," Song Yi pouted, turning his attention back to his newly acquired set of Western cutlery. "I have no interest in girls like that. They have perfectly good things to do, yet they spend all day on outdoor camping. Looking at her, it’s clear she doesn't actually have a passion for it; she’s just chasing trends. She doesn't even have the most basic wilderness survival skills. She was lucky this time, but if there's a next time, I don't think even the gods could save her."

Chen Xin remained noncommittal. She had been suffering from severe sleep deprivation lately. Between taking care of Zhang Zhang at night, writing her column, and studying for her notes, she wished the day had forty-eight hours. She rarely came to the shop; if Song Yi hadn't called her to come and taste-test his new creations, she might have forgotten she even had a business to run.

"I originally planned to go up the mountain to help Old Man Zhang pick and stir-fry tea, but I don't think I have the time now. Song Yi, why don't you go for me when you have a day off? I ordered quite a bit of spring tea from him; could you bring it back? Also, the tea supplies for the shop need to be picked up soon, too."

Song Yi’s fragile heart had been wounded by that television program last time. When the station wanted him back and he found out it was the same host, he adamantly refused. He vented to Chen Xin, saying that if it weren't for the sake of Cheng Jie and Director Lu, he would have definitely hijacked the program and taken it over himself.

"The executives at that station are truly foolish. They aren't satisfied with one failure and want to keep stepping on landmines. I suspect they’ll lose everything they have sooner or later. By the way, I asked my brother to look into it yesterday; rumor has it that Fruit TV is planning a new variety show, seemingly modeled after something from Taiwan. Do you want to come up with a few ideas? I can help you get in touch with them and sell them."

Chen Xin was stunned. If she really wanted to sell ideas, she would certainly have an advantage. With her knowledge of the explosion of variety shows in the future, she could easily come up with concepts that were unprecedented and novel. However, the problem was that she didn't really want that kind of money, and the entertainment industry was far too murky. Her only wish was to be a low-profile influencer; she had no desire to chase dreams of overnight fame.

"Forget it. I’m just a translator who cooks. If I have the energy to think about those things, I’d rather finish my studies."

Setting aside Song Yi's suggestion, Chen Xin glanced at the small alarm clock and poked him: "Isn't your pudding ready yet?"

Song Yi ran over to check: "Five more minutes, it's on a timer."

"This caramel egg pudding recipe was given to me by a friend. I'm not sure if it’s any good." Since it was his first time making dessert, Song Yi was a bit uncertain.

Chen Xin had made it before, but she personally didn't care for this particular dessert, so she had never made it herself. Now that Song Yi was showing off, she noticed his method differed from hers—mainly in the egg-to-milk ratio. Furthermore, his version was a chilled caramel egg pudding, while she had always specialized in baked pudding.

Aside from the caramel egg pudding, Song Yi also discussed and prepared crispy fried milk and coconut milk squares with her.

The difficulty with crispy fried milk lies in the proportions of the ingredients. The ratio of milk to cornstarch must be just right so that it doesn't end up too hard or too thin to set.

Half a catty of milk and thirty grams of cornstarch, mixed with an appropriate amount of sugar and stirred over low heat, created the base. After pouring it into a greased baking dish and chilling it in the refrigerator until it set into a milk cake, it was cut into strips, coated in low-gluten flour, dipped in egg wash, and finally rolled in breadcrumbs before being deep-fried until golden. It was crispy on the outside, tender on the inside, and delicious, though the fat content was a bit high.

Many people know how to make coconut milk squares, but their version incorporated heavy cream and coconut milk, giving it a richer coconut aroma and a softer, smoother texture. Plus, the shredded coconut they used was the best available on the market, lacking that heavy artificial scent.

Having made three types of desserts in one afternoon, the two of them were almost sick of tasting them. When the final version was ready, they had the shop assistants offer small bite-sized samples to customers. The portions were so small that the customers would swallow them before they could even fully savor the flavor, which only piqued their appetites. Many tried to order full portions, only to be told the items weren't officially on the menu yet. A chorus of groans rose up throughout the shop.

"Speaking of which, the Qingming Festival is coming up soon. Why don't we make some Qingtuan to sell this year?"

The local style of Qingtuan was different from the one from Song Yi's hometown.

Local Qingtuan involved kneading mugwort into a dough made of mixed grains, filled with preserved mustard greens and diced bacon, or black sesame paste. In Song Yi’s hometown, they boiled the mugwort, filtered out the residue, and used the water to knead the dough, resulting in a green skin with a variety of fillings, similar to Tangyuan.

"Alright, how about we go out for a spring outing this weekend and pick some mugwort while we're at it?" After participating in one group activity, Song Yi had fallen in love with them. On weekends, he would carry a small bag and a camera, wandering the outskirts, claiming he was looking for culinary inspiration. Heaven knows what kind of inspiration rural scenery could give a Western-style chef.

Going out was fine, but Chen Xin couldn't join them to pick mugwort. She had to bring her books and notebooks everywhere she went; the final exams were approaching, and she had only finished two-thirds of her thirty-odd books. The remaining ones were even more difficult. Having been away from such specialized literature for a long time, she had to look up definitions as she read, which was mentally exhausting.

Before dinner, Chen Xin went to pick up Zhang Zhang. Song Yi mentioned he had specially made a seafood gratin for him, using fresh shrimp and imported green peas. Usually, Chen Xin didn't let Zhang Zhang eat such heavy food, allowing it only once a week and rotating the dishes.

When she returned to the shop with Zhang Zhang, she saw a familiar face sitting at the single table in front of the glass kitchen. After a few seconds, she realized that the stylish-looking man was her mentor’s teaching assistant—her senior fellow student.

"Senior Han, what are you doing here?" Chen Xin sent Zhang Zhang to wash up for dinner, then poured a glass of warm lemon water for the assistant who was waiting for his meal.

"Coming to eat, of course. I heard your shop's food is excellent, so I made a special trip. Not welcome?"

"How could that be? I’m honored. Have you ordered yet?" Chen Xin smiled, her eyes drifting to the receipt on his table. "I’ll make this Mexican quinoa bowl myself."