"Holy shit, you haven't graduated yet?" Panda gave Lin Xu a thumbs-up, then asked, "Do you need me to find you a sports car for Monday? Just let me know; I can find any luxury car for you."
Lin Xu was taken aback. "What do I need a sports car for?"
"To show off! Make all those who looked down on you, disappointed you, or underestimated you green with envy. Have the school bully call you brother! Get the school beauty to throw seductive glances at you! Make the school board director's son wait on you hand and foot as your lackey..."
Lin Xu: ???? What kind of idiotic plot is this?
"Isn't that what they write in those online novels? There are even plots like 'the war god returns, sees his daughter living in a kennel, and with a single command, a hundred thousand soldiers turn it into a luxury mansion,' and such."
Lin Xu was speechless for a moment, then said with a wry smile, "Bro, can't you read novels that are less melodramatic? I don't have a need to show off; right now, I just want to make money. If things end early that day, we'll open for business in the afternoon as usual... By the way, if I want to notify everyone to come and eat, where's the best place to post the notice?"
When Panda heard this, he immediately put down the bowl in his hand. He unlocked his phone, opened a short-video social platform, and showed Lin Xu the topic for Lin Ji's Food, saying, "Just post under this topic, and we'll be able to see it. This has become a gathering spot for our restaurant's fans—all the Lin Ji boys and Lin Ji girls."
Lin Xu glanced at it, planning to follow it with his own account once he got through this busy period. If things ended early on Monday, business would proceed as usual that evening. Then he would notify the customers to come and eat via this platform. Currently, missing a day of business meant losing ten thousand yuan. If it weren't for the graduation ceremony, he really wouldn't want to close the shop.
After talking about this with Panda, Lin Xu threw himself back into the hectic work. The number of customers in the shop was increasing, with the line stretching out the door. Everyone had heard that a new topping was being launched today, so they all wanted to try it.
Lin Xu was incredibly busy. The noodles he made didn't even need to be carried out. He just placed them at the partition between the kitchen and dining area, and the waiting customers would conscientiously take them. Those who found seats ate at their tables; those who couldn't find a seat ate quickly beside the cashier's counter. As long as the taste was good, customers had a high tolerance for other inconveniences.
"I really wish Boss Lin had time to make a tutorial, so we could try making it at home."
"Yeah, it's too much trouble coming to the shop to eat just once."
"Not just the Tomato Cubes Noodles, but the Tomato Egg Noodles should also have a tutorial. I used plenty of eggs when I tried making it at home, but it just doesn't taste right."
"Indeed, that umami flavor is just so clean and intense."
"..."
Around one o'clock, Lin Xu called out to the customers in line, "There are only five bowls of Tomato Cubes Noodles left! The rest will all be Tomato Egg Noodles, so please queue accordingly."
As soon as he finished speaking, the waiting customers let out a collective wail.
"No way? That's it?"
"AAAAAAH... I've been waiting for twenty minutes already!"
"Boss, can't you make more next time? It's only a little past one and it's already sold out. That's way too quick!"
Lin Xu was also helpless. He had prepared nearly two hundred servings of Tomato Cubes Noodles and a hundred servings of Tomato Egg Noodles today, thinking that would be enough. Who knew they would sell out even earlier than yesterday at noon? This was probably because there were more customers today than yesterday.
Yesterday at noon, after rolling out the dough, he had to cut the noodles according to each customer's order. He couldn't cut extra. Whenever a new customer came in, the leftover dough had to be re-rolled, otherwise, the noodles wouldn't have the right chewy texture. But today, it wasn't so troublesome. He just cut all the noodles at once and dumped them into the pot. After all, the stove was powerful enough, and the pot for boiling noodles was large, so cooking ten or so bowls at a time was no problem. The efficiency of this method was definitely different from rolling and cooking bowl by bowl.
Half an hour later, the tomato and egg topping had also sold out. Now, only half a ball of dough remained, enough to make probably seven or eight bowls of hand-rolled noodles.
"Boss, we've come all the way here! You have to make us something to eat."
"Exactly, we've been waiting for half a day!"
"Even just something small to tide us over."
"Right, we have to go to work soon; there's no time to go somewhere else."
"..."
The customers waiting in line were getting anxious. Just a moment ago, they were complaining that there were no Tomato Cubes Noodles left. Now, even the Tomato Egg Noodles were gone.
Lin Xu helplessly looked at the remaining half of the dough. There were still six customers waiting. If there were toppings, he could have noodles cooked for everyone in minutes. But now, even if he cooked them, how would people eat them? The only thing left in the shop was Chili Oil. Surely he couldn't let everyone just mix that with their noodles, right?
Wait a second... Chili Oil? Lin Xu looked at the half basin of Chili Oil on the workbench, then at the remaining dough and the unused greens. He suddenly had an idea. Why not... try making Oil-poured Noodles?
Oil-poured Noodles are a dish combining noodles with a topping made by pouring hot oil over chili flakes and aromatics. When the TV show *White Deer Plain* was popular, this dish became a hit throughout the country. Chen Meijuan, who liked to experiment with noodle dishes, made it at home for a while, allowing Lin Xu to also taste the robust and fiery flavors of Shaanxi noodles.
Thinking of this, he said to the few customers still in line, "Give me two minutes. We're out of toppings now, so I'll try to make you a new specialty. If it tastes good, I hope you'll come back often. If not, please be understanding, as this is an experiment."
When the customers heard that Lin Xu was going to make a new noodle dish, their slight dissatisfaction immediately vanished. Ha ha! To think there's such good luck even for those at the end of the line! The group excitedly rubbed their hands together. Someone even pulled out their smartphone and began filming Lin Xu.
A new type of noodle dish! Regardless of the flavor, the novelty itself is enough to attract attention. These past few days, the Lin Ji's Food topic has been all about Panda and his crew. Now, it's my turn to get some limelight!
Lin Xu took the rolling pin, rolled out the dough into a large sheet, folded it, and cut it into noodles about an inch wide. After cutting, he shook them out and dropped them into the boiling pot. Before too long, the noodles floated to the surface. Lin Xu added the greens, then lifted everything out into bowls. He sprinkled them with seasonings like salt, Chen Vinegar, and Light Soy Sauce. Then he sprinkled a small spoonful of chili flakes on top of the noodles and added a pinch of minced garlic.
At this point, the surrounding customers had realized what kind of noodle dish it was.
"Wow, it's really Oil-poured Noodles!"
"We really lucked out! I didn't expect such a treat waiting until the end."
"Exactly! I love Oil-poured Noodles the most. Every time I see the hot oil poured on, my heart feels fiery too."
"With Oil-poured Noodles, I'll definitely reach the number one spot on the topic's 'most liked' chart today!"
The customers discussed excitedly. Meanwhile, Lin Xu heated oil in a wok. Once it was hot, he scooped up a ladleful and fiercely poured it over the chili flakes on the noodles in the bowls.
As soon as he had poured it, the system's notification sounded in his mind:
"The host has bravely experimented, utilizing existing skills to create Oil-poured Noodles. This completes the hidden task 'Generalization,' and they have received the reward of an Excellent Level Universal Mixed Noodles Sauce Technique. Congratulations to the host.
"The host has made a new noodle dish for the first time without prior mastery, obtaining the Perfect Level branch Technique for Oil-poured Noodles: Oil-poured Hand-rolled Noodles. Congratulations to the host."