Chapter 159 - 157: Discovering the Efficacy of Medicinal Cuisine

Chapter 159: Chapter 157: Discovering the Efficacy of Medicinal Cuisine

Hu Xia and Zhao Shiyun stared at the Medicinal Cuisine that was still simmering. Its aroma had already filled the entire back kitchen, carried by the steam.

Many people were silently swallowing. The fragrance was simply too overpowering, making their mouths water uncontrollably.

Seeing everyone’s expressions, Huang Yi felt a bit helpless. Matsutake mushrooms were already rare and very expensive.

The three pots of Medicinal Cuisine currently simmering were definitely not enough for everyone. They could only let each person have a small taste.

"Xiaxia, can we buy matsutake? I want to drink this every day."

Hu Xia frowned and thought for a moment before saying uncertainly, "I don’t know. I’ll call home in a bit to see if I can buy any."

The usually quiet Chen Yuyuan spoke up, "As for the matsutake, I’ll figure something out."

Geng Changxin said in surprise, "Whoa, Yuyuan actually spoke up on his own today. I can also figure out a way to buy some."

Chefs all have their own channels for procuring special ingredients like these; it was just that they had rarely used them since coming to Lin Xian Village.

"Boss, my hometown is in Yun Province. I can help buy some too."

"Right, right, I think someone in my hometown sells them too. I’ll give it a try."

Everyone started talking at once, all saying they could find ways to buy matsutake.

As chefs, not being able to eat a delicacy because of a lack of ingredients was, frankly, a bit embarrassing.

"Holy shit! What are you guys eating? How could you not call me?"

Hu Zhiming had just finished his work and was planning to find something to eat at the Restaurant. But as he approached, he caught the enticing aroma and rushed inside.

"What are you doing here? There was already not enough, and now there’s one more person to share with."

Hu Zhiming looked at his sister. How could she say such cold words to her own little brother?

"Sis, I’m your own brother!"

Lin Feng said, "We just got here too. We didn’t expect the Medicinal Cuisine to taste this good either."

Hu Zhiming didn’t believe him. He saw three bowls on a table outside, a clear sign that someone had already eaten.

"Huang Yi, use up all the remaining matsutake. Make as much as you can so everyone can have a taste."

"Alright, Boss."

"Thank you, Boss!"

"You’re the best, Boss!"

...

The entire back kitchen filled with the chefs’ praises. They all knew the price of matsutake.

They hadn’t expected the boss to be so generous as to use all the matsutake to make soup for them.

Soon, Huang Yi brought over the matsutake, and everyone pitched in to prepare the ingredients and start making the soup.

After the first three pots of Medicinal Cuisine were ready, everyone got a mouthful. Only after drinking it did they understand why the aroma was so overpowering.

"Sis, you guys were secretly drinking such a delicious Medicinal Cuisine!"

"Even soup can’t shut your mouth!"

"There was too little. I finished it in one gulp."

Hu Zhiming showed her the bottom of his completely empty bowl. He had just gotten a taste when it was all gone. His gaze drifted unconsciously toward the back kitchen.

Beside them, Zhao Shiyun was taking small sips, her face flushed red as she basked in happiness.

"Hey, what did you guys make at the Restaurant? It smells amazing! I could smell it from outside," a tourist asked as they walked in.

This was a tourist who was a long-term resident in Lin Xian Village. There were quite a few such tourists in the village.

"Uncle Li, I’m sorry, but we’re currently testing a new dish. It’s not for sale at the moment," Wan Qianqian said politely.

Uncle Li was unwilling to give up. Now that he was inside, the aroma was even more enticing.

"Then can I have a taste? Just treat me as a taste tester for your new dish."

Wan Qianqian looked at Lin Feng. She had just arrived and heard about the Medicinal Cuisine. Right now, there wasn’t even enough for their own staff in the kitchen.

’I can’t let the boss be the bad guy.’ "Uncle Li, this is our first test run, so we can’t let anyone outside the staff try it."

"Alright then. When will you start selling it? Or if you need customers for a tasting, remember to let me know."

Uncle Li left reluctantly. A few more tourists followed, drawn in by the aroma.

Fortunately, the new batch of Medicinal Cuisine was ready soon. Everyone received a small half-bowl and drank it with blissful expressions.

Lin Feng felt that it was the double bonus from the Restaurant and the rewarded Medicinal Cuisine recipe that had caused such a fundamental change in the flavor of this Matsutake and Bamboo Pith Chicken Soup.

’It would be great if I could get a full recipe as a reward. A dish made from a proper recipe would probably be even more delicious.’

After Lin Feng and the others left, everyone started cleaning up the back kitchen, discussing the Medicinal Cuisine and thinking about where to buy more matsutake.

If they wanted to eat it in the future, they would have to buy the ingredients themselves. They couldn’t just have the boss treat them every day; a single serving of this Medicinal Cuisine was not cheap.

That night, the chefs of Lin Xian Village sprang into action, contacting family and friends to buy up matsutake from all over.

This situation quickly attracted the attention of other chefs, who began to inquire about what was happening.

They eventually learned that Boss Lin had produced a recipe for a Matsutake and Bamboo Pith Chicken Soup Medicinal Cuisine. The resulting dish was incredibly delicious—once you had a taste, you just wanted more.

All the matsutake in Lin Xian Village had been used up, so they had no choice but to figure out ways to buy the ingredient themselves.

Because of the frantic buying from the chefs of Lin Xian Village, the price of matsutake rose by five percent overnight.

The market even saw a situation where "a single matsutake was hard to find." Many distributors thought something major had happened and tightened their sales of matsutake, heading to the mushroom’s production regions the very next day to buy more.

But the matter didn’t end with the price hike. The next day, when the chefs woke up, they discovered that their bodies felt much lighter than usual.

Being a chef is physically demanding work, especially in Lin Xian Village, where the large number of daily customers meant the physical toll was even greater.

A little after nine, when the chefs arrived in the back kitchen, they talked amongst themselves and discovered they had all experienced the same thing.

"What’s going on? Even with a good night’s rest, you don’t get an effect this good!"

"It’s definitely not just about rest. Our daily routine is more or less the same, but the change in our bodies this morning is too obvious."

A young apprentice beside them said, "Masters, could it be the effect of last night’s Medicinal Cuisine?

My arms used to be sore every day, but when I woke up this morning, that feeling was completely gone."

"No way, right? It’s just Matsutake and Bamboo Pith Chicken Soup. It’s not like we haven’t had it before."

"This is different. Can what we ate before even compare to last night? Besides, anything the boss provides is bound to have something special about it.

Take the Medicinal Tea from the pharmacy, for example. We drink it every day, and I don’t need to spell out the benefits.

You can find recipes for this kind of Medicinal Cuisine all over the internet. Why would the boss specifically give us this one?"

While everyone was arguing back and forth, Huang Yi walked in, and the kitchen instantly fell silent.

"What were you all arguing about just now?"

"Master Huang, we noticed that after drinking the Medicinal Cuisine last night, our bodies felt incredibly recovered this morning. We were just discussing whether it was because of the cuisine’s effects."

Huang Yi asked in surprise, "This happened to everyone?"

"Yes, it happened to all of us. The effect was even better for the apprentices who do the cutting."

Huang Yi found it incredible. Just that morning, he had discussed this very thing with Geng Changxin and Chen Yuyuan.

He never expected it wasn’t just the three of them. Everyone who had drunk the Medicinal Cuisine yesterday experienced the same thing. This was no simple matter.

"After we’re done with work today, let’s cook some more Medicinal Cuisine and see."

"Master Huang, we’re out of matsutake."

"I know. The matsutake I ordered will be delivered today."

Someone said in a low voice, "Master Huang, we’ll pay for the ingredients ourselves. Matsutake isn’t cheap."

"Yeah, yeah, we can’t keep taking advantage of the boss."

Lin Feng already paid them very well. Based on the current number of daily customers, none of them were earning less than 20,000 a month.

And this wasn’t just for the back kitchen staff, but for all the Restaurant employees. With a few days left until the end of the month, it felt like the minimum salary could reach 30,000.

Needless to say, the back kitchen staff received a larger share of the profits, and their wages were much higher than the front-of-house servers.

"Alright, alright. I paid for the ingredients this time with my own money, not from the company account. Consider it a treat from me, the head chef."

Hearing that Huang Yi was treating, everyone just made a few polite remarks before accepting.

When they came to work this morning, the Restaurant’s servers were all talking about it, wondering if the Medicinal Cuisine was really that delicious.

Then, Fang Qingqing, their supervisor, was pushed forward to go to the back kitchen and ask if they could buy some with their own money.

Fang Qingqing, dressed in her work uniform, walked in from outside and happened to overhear the conversation in the back kitchen.

’What kind of Medicinal Cuisine could make a whole group of master chefs crave it so much, even getting Huang Yi to treat them?’

"Chef Huang, the servers would like to have some too. Is there any for us?"

"Ah!"

Huang Yi looked at Fang Qingqing, who had just entered, and was momentarily stunned.

"If it’s not possible, then never mind."

"No, no, that’s not it. I was just wondering if the matsutake I bought would be enough to make a batch of Medicinal Cuisine for everyone.

In that case, don’t leave right after your shift today. There might not be enough matsutake, so everyone will just have to drink a little less."

When Fang Qingqing heard that matsutake was one of the ingredients, she knew it was expensive and hard to buy.

She said, feeling a bit embarrassed, "How about we forget it then? We can wait until another time."

"It’s fine, it’s fine. Everyone should have a taste. It’ll also help with the experiment to see what’s really going on with this Medicinal Cuisine."

’I’ve already made the offer; I can’t take it back now. Besides, it would be bad if the servers found out I was treating everyone but them.’

Everyone knew that Chef Huang was treating them all to Medicinal Cuisine tonight, and their work morale improved considerably.

Meanwhile, Lin Feng noticed that Hu Xia and Zhao Shiyun seemed to be in a bad mood. When he asked, he learned that the matsutake they had ordered hadn’t arrived yet.

"Lin Feng, can you figure something out? After drinking that Medicinal Cuisine last night, my sleep was so much better. I woke up this morning full of energy."

Zhao Shiyun also stared at Lin Feng. She wanted to drink the Medicinal Cuisine too; it just tasted too good.

Lin Feng looked at the two of them, feeling a bit speechless. ’It’s just some Medicinal Cuisine.’

’Even if it tastes good, it’s not worth obsessing over it the next morning. Still, I really do need to figure out a way to get some more matsutake.’

’Drinking this Medicinal Cuisine regularly is good for your health. Even if I don’t drink it myself, I need to prepare some for my family.’

’It would definitely be a huge help for my younger sister, who’s about to take her college entrance exams.’

"Alright, I’ll figure something out. I’ll start by acquiring some matsutake."

Lin Feng had originally thought about growing it himself, but after doing some research last night, he discovered that cultivating matsutake was not that simple.

’Of course, if I were willing to use a one-time "Land Blessing," I could make not just matsutake but even ginseng grow rapidly.’

Leaving the house, he headed toward the Jade Vineyard. The easiest way to handle this matter was to ask the two agricultural professors for help.