A week passed in the blink of an eye, and the joyful Thursday arrived once again.
It just so happened to be December 1st today.
After breakfast, Xia Zhi gave everyone their wages for the previous month.
At the same time, he handed out the Outer World Rings he had crafted earlier as part of the staff benefits.
Ying'er stared blankly at the ring in her hand.
This was an extremely rare and valuable spatial item.
Even many upper-class elites didn't have one.
And now she did?
Ying'er swallowed nervously and asked,
"Boss, is this just for us to borrow?"
"Nope, it's a gift for all of you.
With this, shopping and running errands should be much more convenient."
"But… this is way too valuable…"
"Well, that's just how employee benefits work here.
There may be even better items in the future."
"!"
In the end, Ying'er accepted the ring, cautiously putting it on her finger.
Around midday, Keqing and Xiangling returned from the construction site.
"Master! I'm back!"
"Mm, come help me in the kitchen."
"Okay, Master! Guoba! You're not allowed in!"
"Wuwu!"
Keqing sniffed the aroma wafting in the air and couldn't help but swallow quietly.
Even though Xiangling's cooking was far better than the site's regular chefs, eating fried rice every day was still tiring.
Thankfully, she had the Rice Companion Sauce gifted by Mr. Xia to spice things up.
In the kitchen, Xiangling helped Xia Zhi while watching him cook attentively.
"You've been at the site for a few days now. How's life there?"
"I think they work really hard."
"And your culinary cultivation?"
"Everyone says it tastes great, but I know myself—I haven't made any breakthroughs…"
"Is that so."
"Master, I just don't get it…"
"What don't you get?"
Xiangling's face turned troubled.
"I've followed every step exactly as you did—all the ingredients, all the techniques—but why doesn't my fried rice glow? Why doesn't it taste as good as yours? Am I missing some detail?"
"Perhaps..."
"Master, how did you make your dish glow the first time?"
"I don't quite remember. Your master is blind, after all."
"Ugh…"
Xiangling pouted, clearly disappointed.
Xia Zhi chuckled.
"Don't worry. I'll figure something out for you."
Right now, Xiangling's main problem was: "How to make a dish glow."
To be honest, even though Xia Zhi was already a Culinary Grandmaster, he still didn't fully understand why his dishes glowed.
He just had a strange sensation while cooking—something hard to put into words.
To solve this, the simplest way would be to give Xiangling a [Culinary Mastery] skill book.
But that would skip the entire teaching process and make things dull.
Xiangling's recent efforts had already proven that no amount of ordinary dish practice helped with this issue.
Then what if she practiced with glowing dishes instead?
Maybe she could start to grasp that mysterious "feeling"…
"Really, Master? What's the plan?"
"I'll tell you after lunch. It should help you."
"Okay!"
Xiangling instantly perked up again.
During lunch, Diona brought out her newly brewed fruit wine for everyone to taste.
It received unanimous praise.
After the meal, Xiangling rushed to do the dishes, then dashed up to Xia Zhi, eyes full of anticipation.
"Master! Master!"
"Don't rush."
"What's the plan?"
"Here. This."
Xia Zhi flipped his hand and took out the [Temporary Occupation Badge] from his inventory.
Xiangling tilted her head, curious about the little blank badge.
"What is this?"
"This is… well, think of it as a special Adepti Sigil."
"Adepti Sigil?"
"Yeah. It can temporarily boost your perception, making it easier to break through in cooking."
"So magical!?"
"Go get me a pen."
"Got it!"
Xiangling grabbed a pen.
Xia Zhi then wrote, in the script from his original world, on the badge:
[Prodigy Chef Like Liu Mao Xing]
Xiangling couldn't read the characters but found them square and mysterious.
"So this is how Adepti Sigils are drawn?"
"Sort of."
He picked up the inscribed badge.
"Here, pin this to your clothes."
"Okay!"
Xiangling obediently did so, and as soon as the badge was fastened—
Her expression froze.
"Master!"
"Yes?"
"I suddenly… feel something!"
"Oh?"
"Yes! I don't know why, I just feel like… if I really focus, I could definitely make a glowing dish!"
"Then go try in the kitchen."
"Mm!"
Xiangling ran off enthusiastically.
Xia Zhi smiled.
She really did resemble Liu Mao Xing.
Both came from families that ran traditional restaurants, both loved cooking, and both began culinary training at a very young age.
Though Xiangling was talented, she didn't quite have Liu Mao Xing's cheat-level potential.
But that's fine—he, as the Master, could just copy a cheat for her.
Now that Xiangling had temporarily acquired Liu Mao Xing's culinary genius, making a Golden Fried Rice should be a piece of cake.
Moments later, Xiangling came out holding a covered plate, her face full of excitement.
"Master! Master!"
"How did it turn out?"
"Look!"
She lifted the lid—
A radiant glow burst out from the dish.
"It really glows!"
Xia Zhi cleared his throat.
"Master can't see it."
Xiangling blushed.
"Oops, I forgot… Anyone want to try it?"
Everyone gathered with interest.
Zhu Zi took a spoonful and his eyes lit up.
"This is it! Tastes almost exactly like the boss's!"
Xiangling beamed.
"Right? I finally did it!"
Xia Zhi shook his head.
"No, not quite. You only succeeded by borrowing the sigil's effects.
You need to grasp that state while cooking—
Only when you can make glowing dishes without the sigil will it be a true success."
"I understand, Master!"
Xiangling nodded earnestly.
"Oh, and here—this space ring is for you."
"Huh?"
"It's a new benefit from the shop. Every employee gets one. You're not staff, but you're my disciple, so you get one too."
"Thank you, Master!"
That night, Xia Zhi glanced at his abundant points and opened the [Shop].
He directly bought the remaining six pieces of the chef equipment set.
[Magic Saint Bronze Ware]: Accelerates softening of common ingredients.
[Garuda Knife]: Specially designed to process fowl and beasts, purifying the ingredients during slicing.
[Wolf's Bane Pot]: For automated processing—just toss in ingredients and it instantly shreds or minces.
[Spirit Store]: Preserves ingredients; common food stored inside stays fresh forever.
[Jade Dragon Pot]: Enhances the final flavor of dishes.
When Xia Zhi placed all culinary tools together, the system voice rang in his mind:
"All pieces of the Chef Equipment Set have been collected. Activating set bonus."
"Set bonus [Longevity] activated."
[Longevity]: Food made with this set grants life-extending effects. For each tool involved, the effect increases by 10%.
He thought for a moment, took out a Sunsettia, and sliced it with the [Eternal Spirit Knife].
After eating a slice, he immediately felt a gentle vitality burst inside him and quickly merge into his body.
Comparing the feeling—
The energy from just this one slice matched that of a full cup of Rainbow Juice from the shop.
And this was with only one tool used.
If all eight were used, the vitality would be eight times stronger!
While not critical for Xia Zhi, to ordinary people, this boost was incredibly precious.
If Xiangling used these tools at Wanmin Restaurant, the average lifespan of Chihu Rock residents would probably double.
Clearly, [Longevity] was a powerful set effect.
Yet each tool was only silver-tier.
None had individual traits.
Xia Zhi pondered.
Set bonuses… might have a lot of hidden potential.
--
The next day, Ningguang visited the shop.
She told Xia Zhi that the new paper mill they had planned was already operational.
Xia Zhi was a little surprised.
"That fast?"
"We already had the facilities. We just upgraded the equipment and techniques."
"When will the new paper go on sale?"
"No rush. The new factory's output is over ten times greater.
I plan to stockpile first, then flood the market to drop prices hard and deny the competition any time to react."
"Mm. What about the lipstick factory?"
"Starting operations tomorrow."
"You move fast."
"In commerce, a single day's lead could mean twice the profit."
"True."
"I also completed the first draft of the Commercial Textbook."
"Thanks. Give it to Xia Ci for editing."
"Got it."
…
A week later.
Xiangling returned from the site, beaming.
"Master! I really succeeded this time!"
"Really? Give me the badge. Go make a dish."
"Mm!"
Soon, Xiangling brought out a plate of glowing Golden Fried Rice.
Xia Zhi tasted it and nodded.
"Not bad. You've made it."
Her cooking had now reached master level.
"Hehe~"
Xiangling laughed, then looked slightly embarrassed.
"But Master, I can only make glowing fried rice right now. I can't do it with other recipes yet."
"No worries. The principle is the same. Practice more with the other recipes and you'll get there too."
"Mm!"
"What's next? Back to the site or return to Wanmin Restaurant?"
Xiangling answered without hesitation.
"I want to go back to the site!"
"Oh?"
"The vibe there is amazing! Everyone's expectations are low—perfect for testing new recipes!"
"Innovation, huh…"
"Yes! Master, you don't know—when I wore that Adepti Sigil, I got tons of inspiration every day! But I was too busy with fried rice to try them. Now that I've succeeded, I want to slow down and experiment with new dishes while practicing."
He said, "That's a great idea."
The construction workers didn't care much about flavor—only fullness.
Perfect testers for Xiangling's experimental dishes.
A few days ago, Ningguang had sent over a batch of lipsticks—products from her new factory.
Xia Zhi grabbed two from the counter and handed them to Xiangling.
"Take these. It's December now and the site's cold.
Apply them often to keep your lips from chapping."
"Thanks, Master!"
Xiangling was happy but also a bit emotional.
"It's so hard out there. The weather's freezing.
Some workers' hands are cracked and bleeding.
It must hurt so much…
If only there was a cheap, effective ointment for them."
Her words sparked an idea in Xia Zhi's mind.
"Ointment…"
Wasn't that just like fragrant, moisturizing skin creams from his old world?
Formulas instantly surfaced in his mind.
He turned and called out,
"Ying'er. Qiqi. Come here."
"Okay!"
"Mm."
The two girls walked over.
Ying'er asked, "Boss, what's up?"
Xia Zhi answered seriously.
"I'm giving you both a special assignment."
"Assignment?"
"Ying'er, I've taught you a lot about fragrance balms. Qiqi, you've learned a lot about herbs. But theory without practice is useless. I want you two to work together and develop a new ointment."
"I understand. What kind of ointment?"
"One that can be applied to the skin to moisturize and prevent cracking.
It should smell nice, and ideally be white in color…"
Xia Zhi described the idea in detail.
Ying'er and Qiqi listened, then huddled together to discuss.
"I'll handle the fragrance balm part— You take care of the medicinal components. Sound good?"
"Okay."
---
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