Chapter 3: The Egg-Fried Rice That Shines
Translator: OnGoingWhy Editor: mole, Vermillion
Xiao Xiaolong's face was blushing but he was still speaking in a belligerent tone, Bu Fang glanced at him meaningfully and smirked.
Xiao Xiaolong blinked and his fair skin was bright red, but he still belligerently said, "Let me say this first, I am ordering not because I have accepted the price. It's because I intend to prove that your Egg-Fried Rice is not worth the price!"
"I get it, a bowl of Egg-Fried Rice, right? Wait for it," Bu Fang expressionlessly replied. He waved his hand and was heading towards the kitchen, "Oh, right. Our Dry-Mixed Noodles and Stir-Fried Vegetables are pretty good as well. Do you want to give them a try?"
"It is said that Egg-Fried Rice tastes better with Stir-Fried Vegetables." Bu Fang stopped in front of the entrance to the kitchen, looked back, and coolly and shamelessly advertised his other two dishes.
Xiao Xiaolong's mind went into a daze for a moment, then glanced at the prices of the dishes and suddenly felt an inexplicable pain in his chest.
"No need! Just give me the Egg-Fried Rice."
"Oh, okay then. That's just too bad." Bu Fang nodded and entered the kitchen.
Seeing Bu Fang's calm expression, Xiao Xiaolong was tempted to punch him in the face. He thought, "A hundred gold coins for a plate of Stir-Fried Vegetables, do you really take me for a sucker? To actually charge a hundred gold coins for something that is only worth 10 copper at most, this is probably the only store in the entire continent that would dare to do this."
While Bu Fang was preparing the Egg-Fried Rice, Xiao Xiaolong was bored stiff and his gaze naturally shifted towards the big black dog sitting at the entrance, or to be exact, the bowl that it was eating from.
In his mind, Xiao Xiaolong recalled the smell of the Egg-Fried Rice. It was like supple silk and like the touch of a lover. All of a sudden, his appetite surged and his stomach rumbled like thunder. Fortunately, there were no other customers in the store, otherwise, young master Xiao who was known in the imperial city for his stylishness and mannerism would be in an embarrassing situation.
The big black dog was still eating from its bowl when it suddenly paused, as if it had felt something, and lifted its head. When its eyes landed on Xiao Xiaolong and realized that the foolish human was still staring at its food bowl, it became furious!
The dog pulled the bowl closer to itself, stood up and sat down once again with its behind facing Xiao Xiaolong. It only continued to eat after it blocked his line of vision.
Xiao Xiaolong felt that his chest was once again pierced by an invisible arrow... He was looked down upon by the dog a second time!
"Hmph! Do you think I would desire dog food?! How dare a mere dog look down on a human! Hmph!" Xiao Xiaolong thought angrily.
Five minutes had passed and a fragrant smell wafted out from the kitchen once more. The mellow smell of the egg mixed with the faint aroma of the rice was intoxicating Xiao Xiaolong. Just by inhaling the smell, he was uncontrollably salivating.
"It definitely smells good, but it's still insane to charge a crystal for it!" Xiao Xiaolong thought as he swallowed his saliva.
Finally, Bu Fang stepped out of the kitchen with a bowl in hand. The rich fragrance from the dish diffused into the air and enveloped the entire restaurant in it.
"Here's your Egg-Fried Rice, please enjoy your meal."
Bu Fang expressionlessly said as he placed the Egg-Fried Rice in front of Xiao Xiaolong.
White smoke drifted up from the bowl and rolled into the air in front of Xiao Xiaolong before dispersing. The resulting aroma explosion made Xiao Xiaolong unconsciously suck in a deep breath.
Without paying attention to Bu Fang, Xiao Xiaolong stared at the Egg-Fried Rice. He thought, "To dare to charge a crystal for a bowl of Egg-Fried Rice... This definitely isn't an ordinary Egg-Fried Rice!"
On top of the white porcelain bowl were pearl-like rice grains. Every single grain was wrapped in a golden egg liquid. That egg liquid was not completely cooked, and was still in a viscous state. It was as if the rice grains were sprinkled with a layer of egg sauce. However, the viscosity of the egg sauce was perfect and was about eighty percent well-done. When mixed together with the rice grains, it was like draping on a golden gauze dress as it glinted with golden radiance.
"It... It is shining!" Xiao Xiaolong stared blankly at the bowl of Egg-Fried Rice in front of him.
He had never thought that it would be possible for an Egg-Fried Rice to look like a piece of artwork.
Xiao Xiaolong was of noble birth. As the third son of a great general, he had access to all kinds of gourmet meals. He had tasted Egg-Fried Rice made by his family's chef, and even the Egg-Fried Rice made by the imperial chef from the palace... However, compared to the bowl of shining Egg-Fried Rice in front of him, they lost in both appearance and fragrance.
In actual fact, the bowl of Egg-Fried Rice in front of him only contained egg and rice. There were no other ingredients, not even green onions. However, Xiao Xiaolong had an inexplicable feeling that it was definitely much more delicious than the one made by the imperial chef!
Xiao Xiaolong picked up the blue-and-white porcelain spoon placed on the table, licked his lips and cut into the Egg-Fried Rice. The moment the spoon scooped into the Egg-Fried Rice, a burst of fragrance rushed out and assaulted his sense of smell. As he carefully scooped up a spoonful of egg and rice, it left behind a string of egg liquid.
Without a care in the world, Xiao Xiaolong placed the spoonful of Egg-Fried Rice into his mouth.
The moment the spoon entered his mouth, an exquisite taste shocked his taste buds. The viscous egg suddenly solidified and mixed with the soft and pearl-like rice grains to create an explosion in his mouth!
"Oh my god! How is it possible for such a delicious Egg-Fried Rice to exist in this world?! I actually feel an urge to cry!"
Xiao Xiaolong was completely engrossed with the taste, it was like his entire being was swimming in a sea made from the taste of the Egg-Fried Rice.
Xiao Xiaolong scooped up spoon after spoon of Egg-Fried Rice, even though the heat from the rice was making him sneeze, he was unable to stop.
"Nom nom!"
Xiao Xiaolong's face was almost buried into the bowl as he ate, it was somewhat similar to how the big black dog was when eating the Egg-Fried Rice.
"Delicious!" Xiao Xiaolong completed both scooping and eating in a single motion. As he shouted, a few grains of golden rice flew out of his mouth. His eyes widened as he picked up the rice grains from the tabletop and stuffed them into his mouth.
Bu Fang sat down opposite of Xiao Xiaolong and calmly watched the scene unfold. Xiao Xiaolong's way of eating was within his expectations. When he first tried out the Egg-Fried Rice, his appearance was not any better than Xiao Xiaolong's.
Xiao Xiaolong used his tongue to lick the entire bowl clean, going a circle around the bowl's surface. Only after he swallowed the last grain of rice, he finally breathed out with a satisfied expression on his face.
"Is this really Egg-Fried Rice?! It's incredible! Even my family's... No, even the imperial chef wouldn't be able to make this!" Xiao Xiaolong muttered to himself. Bu Fang remained silent while he coldly sat there.
"Now, do you think it's worth a crystal?" Bu Fang asked.
However, Xiao Xiaolong only frowned and smacked his lips. He replied, "Indeed this Egg-Fried Rice is truly a delicacy, but do you even understand the worth of a crystal?
"A crystal can help a cultivator when cultivating, but can your Egg-Fried Rice do it? They have completely different values! However, I have to admit that your Egg-Fried Rice is absolutely delicious!"
Bu Fang raised his eyebrows in surprise. He did not think that Xiao Xiaolong would give a reason like that. Even though it sounded logical, he still thought, "Is this sissy trying to dine and dash?!"
Just when Bu Fang was about to reply, Xiao Xiaolong's fair-skinned face suddenly turned red. His entire body started to glow, it was like a powerful surge of energy was circulating in his body.
"Burp~~"
Xiao Xiaolong's face returned to normal after belching, but his expression when looking towards Bu Fang was both weird and passionate.
His voice was even trembling...
"Tell... Tell me, what ingredients... are inside of your Egg-Fried Rice?!"