Chapter 492 - 326: Our Great Xia Boxed Meals Are More Like It

Seeing she had learned to jump the gun with her answers, Lin Chen nodded and gave her a thumbs-up before unlatching the insulated container.

The moment he lifted the lid, an incredibly rich, savory aroma of meat wafted out.

The eyes of the workers at the front of the line lit up instantly, and they couldn't stop sniffing the air.

"It smells amazing!"

"I think I smell braised pork. It's making my mouth water."

"That's a real chef for you. The food he makes smells incredible!"

"Fifteen bucks usually just gets you a sandwich and a Coke, which feels like you haven't eaten at all. You just can't beat a Great Xia-style lunch box!"

As soon as they caught a whiff of the aroma, the workers burst into chatter, with longing written all over their faces.

The people at the back didn't even get a chance to smell it; the guys in front had inhaled it all. They could only stand on tiptoe and crane their necks, trying to see what dishes were on the menu today.

"You can start dishing out the rice. Just fill up the paper boxes. For the buns, just put them in a box without a lid and let them choose. I'll translate for you."

Erica nodded and immediately lifted the lid of the wooden bucket to start scooping rice.

Since there was a huge amount of rice and the steamed buns were also quite large, they had brought not only the wooden bucket but also another insulated container. Otherwise, there would have been no way to fit all the buns.

Lin Chen beckoned to Wang Jun, who paused for a second in surprise before realizing what he wanted and handing over the megaphone.

"Good afternoon, everyone! I'm Lin Chen. What I've made for you today is pretty simple—it's a 'big pot' stew, or a hodgepodge, if you will. It's got braised pork, pork knuckle, tendon, pig's tail, fried beef meatballs, and all sorts of vegetables and glass noodles."

"Since this is my first time cooking for you all, I wasn't sure about everyone's spice tolerance or appetite, so I didn't add any chili peppers. However, I did bring some homemade chili oil on the side. Anyone who wants some can add it themselves."

"After everyone has gotten their food, if there's anything left over, anyone who's still hungry can come back for seconds. We'll do our best to make sure everyone gets enough to eat, how does that sound?"

"YEAH!!"

The mention of braised pork, pork knuckle, tendon, and pig's tail sent a wave of excitement through the workers. Their enthusiasm soared as they responded with a roar of applause.

Seeing how happy the workers were, Lin Chen felt a genuine joy himself.

Making these men—some in their thirties and forties, others even in their fifties—eat sandwiches every day was definitely tough on them.

Forget them, even his own dad couldn't get used to that stuff. He much preferred simple, home-cooked stir-fries.

He started with a scoop of glass noodles and vegetables at the bottom, then ladled a few pieces of each kind of meat on top. The plastic bowl was quickly filled to overflowing, so full the lid wouldn't fit.

"No lid, no lid! It's too full!"

The first worker in line was smiling from ear to ear, waving his hands. He wiped his large, rough hands on his clothes a couple of times before carefully taking the scalding-hot container with both hands. His expression remained unchanged as he picked up a box of rice, and he didn't forget to give Erica a sheepish grin, as if he couldn't feel the heat at all.

Erica stared, dumbfounded, as the man walked off as if nothing was wrong. He cradled the overflowing container of scalding food in his left hand and the box of freshly scooped rice in his right, then ambled over to a nearby tree and sat down.

When she saw Lin Chen dish out a new portion, she touched the container, skeptical. An intense, searing heat made her snatch her hand back as if she'd been shocked. She immediately pinched her earlobe, her eyes wide with disbelief.

"Damn it, can none of you feel how hot this is?"

"I'm a chef, so I have to touch hot things all the time. I'm used to it. As for them, they probably have thick calluses from all the manual labor, like a natural layer of insulation. Even I couldn't hold it in my hands for that long."

As he dished out portion after portion of the stew, the heat gradually built up in the palm of his hand. He could no longer cradle the container from below as he had at first. He had to resort to gripping it by the edges with his thumb and fingers just to hold on.

This insulated container was even more effective than he'd imagined. The broth inside was still boiling hot, and even the glass noodles had been steamed so soft they practically disintegrated at a touch.

The line slowly shrank. Watching the workers wolf down their food, Lin Chen felt a warmth spread through his chest, a profound sense of satisfaction.

[Made a delicious lunch for the workers on Vancouver Island. Happiness +3]

?

His expression flickered. He hadn't expected the long-dormant system to suddenly pipe up at a time like this.

Still, he wasn't particularly surprised. It was, after all, consistent with how the happiness points usually appeared.

But he quickly noticed a problem he had overlooked.

The workers who'd already gotten their food were sitting nearby in small groups. Some leaned against tree trunks as they ate, others sat on piles of dirt, and some just sat on the grass.

They held their rice or buns in their hands, but the scalding-hot stew had to be placed on the ground. They had to bend over for every bite, a position that looked extremely uncomfortable.

"General Manager Wang, we should get some stools over here. It's too hard on the men, eating like this."

"It's fine, it's fine. The guys are used to it. In our line of work, you just find a spot, sit, and eat. We're usually done in ten minutes, max. That leaves some time to lie down for a bit."

Wang Jun waved his hand dismissively. "It's not that I don't want to. We used to have stools, but they got stolen. The men figured buying new ones would be a waste of money if they just got stolen again, so we never replaced them."

"I appreciate the thought on behalf of the crew, Boss Lin. But if you think it's uncomfortable for them, maybe you could look into getting some insulated bowls? The kind they can hold in their hands."

"Okay, I'll see what I can do."

He had barely finished speaking when the worker waiting in front of him suddenly spoke up.

"Boss, how about this? Just put the rice in the bottom of the container, and then pour the stew on top. We can eat it like a rice bowl. That way, it won't be too hot to hold."

"Huh? Great idea!"

And what do you know, it worked. Not only was the container no longer too hot to hold, but the rice could also soak up all the flavors from the broth, ensuring not a single drop of that goodness went to waste.

There wasn't a similar solution for those eating steamed buns, of course. They just had to alternate bites of stew and bun, dipping the bun into the leftover broth at the end. It was still convenient enough.

This particular worker seemed quite sociable. His eyes were brighter than the others, with a certain cleverness to them as they darted around.

He had noticed that Erica didn't understand Chinese, so while Lin Chen was busy translating, he'd already taken matters into his own hands. He grabbed a container, tipped his rice out of its paper box and into the stew container, then set the empty box back down.

"This box can be used for a steamed bun," he said. "Can't be wasteful, right?"

"Boss, you've got some serious skills. This dish has it all—color, aroma, and flavor. And the meat is so tender. You can tell you put a lot of work into this."

"As the old saying goes, the way to a woman's heart is through her stomach. With skills like yours, you've even captured the heart of a foreign beauty! You're bringing glory to the motherland! You totally deserve to be famous~"

"Old Xu! You and your big mouth. Grab your food and get going!"

The nearby Wang Jun shot him a glare. The man just chuckled, grabbed his food, and walked away grinning.

"What did he just say?"

Erica sensed that something was off. Otherwise, that foreman wouldn't have yelled at him in such a scolding tone.

"Er... it was nothing. That guy's just really friendly and talkative. Praising my cooking, that sort of thing."

"No, it can't be that simple. Why would he get yelled at for complimenting you? You're definitely hiding something important from me. Did it have something to do with me?"

She frowned, replaying the scene in her mind. It seemed that worker really had glanced at her a few times while he was speaking.

The more she thought about it, the more certain she was. An expression of dawning realization spread across her face.

"Oh, I've got it! He said something about us, didn't he? And then the foreman told him not to be a busybody?"

"Holy shit. No way, you figured that out?"

'There's no way she could have understood him with just the few days of Chinese she's had. She must have guessed.'

'To figure out the gist of it just from observation... This girl's powers of deduction are terrifying.' ℯℯ𝑙.

"Hmph. Who do you think you're looking down on?"

Erica lifted her chin, her face triumphant. She grabbed a stack of plastic containers and started helping dish out the food, her eyes glancing in the direction the worker had gone.

'That worker was interesting. He's different from the others. Daring to gossip right in front of the boss... It's a shame I couldn't understand what he said. This thin-skinned, petty guy will definitely never tell me. Drat.'

She wasn't foolish enough to say this out loud, of course. She just grumbled internally for a moment, not wanting to put Lin Chen on his guard.

'I just have to speed up my Chinese studies, so this guy can't have any more 'encrypted conversations' in front of me in the future.'

As the line dwindled, Erica saw that the insulated container was still about half-full. The knot of anxiety in her stomach finally loosened.

She had been worried they'd run out before she got a chance to eat, but it looked like her fears were unfounded.

Not only would she get to eat, but there would be plenty of leftovers.

Judging by the amount left, a full container could probably feed forty people.

Lin Chen was also surprised to see so much left. He had filled every single portion to the brim.

After accounting for himself, Erica, the driver, Wang Jun, and the three remaining workers, there would probably still be about a third of the stew left in the container.

"General Manager Wang, let the men know. Anyone who's not full can come back for more. There's plenty left."

"Will do."

Wang Jun nodded and raised the megaphone, preparing to make the announcement.

Suddenly, the piercing blare of a car horn sounded from behind them.

"HONK—"

"HONK—"

The group turned around in confusion. Even many of the workers who had already finished eating looked over curiously.

An SUV was parked by the side of the road. A man in his thirties sat in the driver's seat, wearing a sharp suit and sunglasses.

"Who's this?"

"No idea."

Erica and Lin Chen exchanged a bewildered glance.

As the person running the show, Lin Chen had no choice but to put down his ladle and walk over. "Hello, can I help you?"

The driver didn't say a word, simply gesturing toward the back seat.

As he watched in confusion, the rear door opened. A long, slender leg emerged first, followed by a beautiful face with exquisite makeup.

The woman smiled faintly and extended a hand, her voice clear and melodious with a hint of gentleness.

"Hello. Are you Mr. Lin?"