Chapter 82: Ordinary Egg Fried Rice
Translator: Xiong Guoqi Editor: DesTheSloth
Fascinated by the unexpected blast of fragrance, the people who were chatting all stopped talking at once.
“Is this smell of Egg Fried Rice?” the man who had just expressed that Egg Fried Rice was nothing special asked, with his expression full of surprise.
“Absolutely. This scent is so unique. If you smell it carefully, it’s merely the fragrance of the egg and rice but makes me feel like drooling,” a girl told her thoughts.
“That’s right. Everything we ate just now was in vain. I just feel super hungry now.” The fat man couldn’t help holding his belly.
“That’s not right. Hey, Skinny, you ate up quite a few rabbit heads just now,” another man beside the fat guy said.
“Aren’t you hungry?” The fat guy directly got to the point.
“Very. Shall we go to the kitchen and have a look?” the man beside the fatty guy suggested warmly.
“Let’s go and take a look,” Sun Ming immediately said.
All 11 of them came to the door of the kitchen and crowded there, watching Yuan Zhou cooking inside.
The culinary skills of Yuan Zhou had already reached a grandmaster’s level. Tossing the wok and wielding the spatula all seemed so natural and deft, as if he became one with his surroundings. Accompanied by the strong scent of Egg Fried Rice, the several people at the door immensely watched Yuan Zhou cook.
They had never found it so attractive to watch someone cooking. It seemed that the saying “an earnest person was handsome, no matter what he did” was true.
Again, Yuan Zhou tossed the wok with one hand. The muscles of his arm bulged allowing one to admire his graceful chiseled lines. With the other hand, he wielded the spatula and scooped the rice into the plates beside the stove. Only then did everyone realize that there were already 6 plates of Egg Fried Rice neatly placed there.
The fire was still on. While tossing the wok, he scooped the Egg Fried Rice out, placing exactly the same amount in each plate. Inside the white plate, the Egg Fried Rice piled up like a golden hill, without any loose grains scattered outside.
The edges of the plate were clean, so were the places close to the wok. After the Egg Fried Rice was scooped out, the plates and the wok gave out a mesmerizing fragrance.
“How is the dish? Is it ready?” the girl lowered her voice subconsciously, not intending to disturb Yuan Zhou.
“If it still isn’t ready, my drool will overflow.” The fat man nearby swallowed his saliva while touching his belly.
“Sun Ming, you go and ask. You are the leading role today.” The man who spoke the loudest at the beginning now pushed Sun Ming towards Yuan Zhou.
“Ok, let me ask.” While inhaling the appealing scent, Sun Ming restrained his saliva from drooling out and answered only gulping it down.
“Yuan Zhou, we come to help to carry the dishes,” watching Yuan Zhou finish filling the last empty plate, Sun Ming said.
“Ok, all of them are here.” Yuan Zhou nodded his head and pointed at the plates that were placed neatly on the table.
The Egg Fried Rice in the plates was golden in color and still gave out slight heat. Coupled together with the fragrance, the people standing outside the kitchen didn’t hold back and went up to carry the plates one by one.
“Yuan Zhou, come out and celebrate.” Sun Ming nevertheless still had some conscience. While he was carrying his plate, he didn’t forget to call out to Yuan Zhou.
“One minute.” As per Yuan Zhou’s habit, he washed the wok and the chopping board. As for the other tools, it was not his home, thus it was better to not act so casually.
With his mind at ease, Yuan Zhou left the kitchenware messily placed according to his habits, then walked out of the kitchen, carrying a plate of Egg Fried Rice.
Not until Yuan Zhou sat down did Sun Ming say, “It’s my birthday today. My friend Yuan Zhou specially came to cook these dishes for me. Everybody, do give it a try.”
After Sun Ming finished talking, his friends couldn’t wait any more and immediately brought up their spoons. They didn’t even make any small talk.
Having already eaten the authentic Egg Fried Rice cooked by Yuan Zhou, Sun Ming had the best self-control among them. He turned the head and said to Yuan Zhou, “Thanks, buddy.”
“You are welcome.” Yuan Zhou nodded, indicating it was the time to have dinner.
“Wow, this is great!” the girl wearing glasses suddenly blurted out.
The Egg Fried Rice looked soft and loose, but when it went inside the mouth, it still maintained some of its toughness. Every rice grain was fully wrapped in the egg, hence there were no extra egg pieces, only leaving the fried rice in the plate.
The egg wrapping around the rice grains was especially soft and tender while the rice grains inside still had a slightly tough texture when eaten. As the two tastes blended together, a strong and delicious flavor was instantly brought out.
Since Yuan Zhou had tried his utmost to improve the taste of the ingredients, what the several people were eating now was basically the pinnacle of the taste that the rice and eggs could reach. Therefore, everyone that was eating the dish revealed a satisfied and contented expression on their faces.
“Sun Ming, this friend of yours really is a master chef. I have to admit that,” the man who didn’t believe in Yuan Zhou’s culinary skills at the very beginning now made a thumb-up gesture and said.
“However, the ingredients are still inferior. You should have used the olive oil, as there is still an offensive smell,” that man continued.
“I am to blame for that. I don’t know how to buy the necessary items and merely chose them based on their appearance. The same dish cooked by this friend in his restaurant is far better than the current one, at least by several grades,” Sun Ming answered him immediately.
“Oh. Where is your friend’s restaurant located? I will surely go there someday to have a taste,” that man asked Yuan Zhou while looking at him sincerely.
“In Taoxi Road,” Yuan Zhou swallowed the rice in his mouth before saying.
“Ah, it’s not far. I will go there another day,” with a delighted expression on his face, the man said while smiling.
“Boss, look, I’m so fat. I can’t eat my fill with so little rice. Could you cook a little more for me?” the fat guy said while patting his belly habitually.
“That’s right. Even a girl like me couldn’t eat my fill. Just cook some more for us,” the girl wearing glasses also smiled and said.
“Exactly. I decide to forsake my diet today. Please provide me with another serving,” a tall and slim girl said while blinking her big eyes.
At the table, everyone started requesting another serving. Just as Yuan Zhou was about to tell them his rules, he suddenly recalled that it was in his friend’s home rather than his restaurant. Therefore, he couldn’t help frowning, not knowing how to refuse them.
“Alright, my friends. My brother still has to prepare longevity noodles for me in a short while. His restaurant is in Taoxi Road and you guys can go there whenever you are free.” Immediately, Sun Ming added, with a big smile on his face.
“This advertisement is pretty good. I give it a score of 11 point. The extra one point is my love to you, my grandson (the surname of Sun Ming also means grandson).” A tall and slim man professed his admiration for Sun Ming.
“Such a nice name is spoiled by you brats.” Sun Ming had run out of his energy to explain his nickname, all he could do was grumble.
“Wait, grandson, do you mean the longevity noodles are only for you?” the girl wearing glasses reacted quickly and asked instantly.
“That’s right. It’s my birthday, so of course the longevity noodles are for me to eat.” Sun Ming showed a complacent manner.
“No, no, no. You don’t understand, Sun Ming. The established practice of the longevity noodles is that only if everyone helps you with eating it can you live a long life in the future,” the girl wearing glasses tried to persuade him with an earnest look. The expression on her face almost made Sun Ming believe her words.
“Hoho, I don’t believe that at all.” Sun Ming was quite frank and straightforward.
“Why don’t we cook a big wok of noodles? That way, each of us can taste a little,” someone proposed.
“I’m sorry, I only made one serving of noodles.” Yuan Zhou said. Instantly, the guests on the dining table looked at him in a rage.
However, Yuan Zhou threw the responsibility to Sun Ming immediately. He pointed to Sun Ming and then said lightly yet persuasively, “Every debt has its debtor.”
The several friends of Sun Ming took a deep breath before the girl wearing glasses opened her mouth, saying,
“Sun Ming, it is your birthday today. We can let go of you. But you’d better remember it well next time.”
All the other friends at the dining table revealed an “eating all by oneself would result in serious consequences” expression.