Back at the little courtyard rented by his second uncle, Wang Fan started counting his day's earnings.
A box filled to the brim with cash of various colors—red, green, blue, purple.
Thanks to the many old people in the park who still prefer to pay in cash rather than using QR codes, the diners have developed a habit of carrying cash.
He made 200 servings of rice noodles and ate one himself, which should have brought in an income of 1990 yuan. However, because the person who cleaned up the broth paid him, his income still totaled 2000 yuan.
"The cost of one serving of rice noodles is about 2 yuan. Including everything else, it doesn't exceed 4 yuan, so I netted at least 1200 yuan today."
"Oh, wow, this golden opportunity is really something! I used to work hard for a whole month just to earn about 5000 yuan, and I made a week's worth today in just one day."
While Wang Fan was joyfully counting his money over and over again, the system notification sounded once more.
"Ding, you've triggered a hidden task by selling 200 servings of rice noodles in one day."
"Task released: Sell 200 or more servings of rice noodles every day for five days."
"Task reward: Basic Kitchenware Set (White) (Granted, will be reclaimed if the task fails.)"
Looking at the iron pot, spatula, and knife that suddenly appeared in front of him, Wang Fan couldn't help but think of his former boss.
Look at the system—what a grand setup!
When they want you to do something, they slap the reward right in your face. If you complete it, you take it. If not, they take it back.
If my boss had this kind of nerve, would I spend an hour in the bathroom pretending to work?
Once you get a benefit, wouldn't you put in the effort to complete it?
What's the use of painting pie charts every day for me?
"Basic Iron Pot (White), never sticks, cleans as good as new with a rinse of water, and the dishes cooked with this pot slightly replenish iron."
"Basic Knife (White), sharp enough to cut hair, never cuts hands."
"Basic Iron Spatula (White), using this spatula for stir-frying slightly reduces the damage of the spatula to vegetables."
...
...
Wang Fan paid some money at the hospital, although it was just a drop in the bucket, but with the current earning speed, he was confident he could gather enough for the surgery.
Watching his second uncle, still unconscious in bed, Wang Fan felt a pang of sadness in his heart.
This must be the only relative he has in two lifetimes.
With his emotions gathered, Wang Fan skedaddled out of the hospital and headed straight to the market.
This time, he not only bought ingredients for the usual pork rice noodles but also grabbed some half-priced prawns.
These prawns don't taste much different but are much cheaper, very suitable for his kind of small business.
Looking at the newly purchased ingredients, Wang Fan smacked his lips: "Ah, the system doesn't work, so I have to rely on myself to have a full belly and warm clothes."
His system can only hang up after 8 PM, and only for a maximum of 8 hours a day—no more than a second extra.
Fortunately, he had mastered the perfect skill of making rice noodles, so he didn't have to worry about the taste deteriorating.
Soaking early rice in water, seasoning the meat filling, Wang Fan began focusing on dealing with the prawns.
In his past life, he loved eating prawns but rarely ate them out because the ones made by restaurants were not only expensive but also not clean.
The dark prawn veins looked like he was eating Oreo-like things, later he found out that they really were like the shrimp's "Oreo"...
Wang Fan placed the rinsed prawns on the chopping board, took out the white quality knife he had just received, and swiftly sliced along the prawns' backs, creating a cut as thin as a hair on their shells.
He didn't rush to peel off the shells, but the shiny knife in his hand kept sliding, and soon, every prawn the size of a palm had a neat slit running along its back.
This system's products truly live up to their reputation for quality.
Holding the white quality knife from the system, Wang Fan felt like it was part of his arm, going exactly where he wanted without effort.
These prawns, about 18 in a pound, cost 23 yuan per pound, and Wang Fan bought 3 pounds for a discounted price of 20 yuan per pound from the boss.
In no time, the over 50 prawns were all slit open and laid out evenly on the chopping board by Wang Fan.
Picking up one prawn, he pinched its neck and pulled out the head to toss into a bowl nearby, then gently tugged at the shell to unveil the tender, milky-white shrimp, slightly pink, in his hand.
Wang Fan's speed was incredibly fast, seemingly in the blink of an eye all the prawns were peeled into shrimp meat.
The prawn veins and shells were thrown into the trash can, but the shrimp heads were not discarded.
He planned to use the shrimp heads to make a shrimp porridge.
Although he didn't have a system recipe, shrimp porridge was his specialty—it could be sold together the next day, turning waste into treasure.
In a gleaming iron pot, he poured some oil; as the oil heated, dumping the shrimp heads unleashed an instant rush of seafood aroma.
A few slices of ginger added, the smell of the shrimp heads became more intense and appetizing.
Before long, the blue color of the shrimp heads turned red, and the oil at the bottom of the pot took on an enticing shade of red, too.
Seeing it was about ready, Wang Fan poured a pot full of hot water into it.
The water hitting the red oil diluted the color, making it look akin to orange peel.
After boiling for two minutes, he scooped out all the shrimp heads and poured in the already soaked rice.
"Gulp, gulp, gulp..."
The water over the soaked rice quickly softened it, fusing the once distinct rice and water into unity.
As thick bubbles popped on the surface of the swollen rice porridge, waves of delicious aromas filled the air.
Even Wang Fan, the chef, couldn't help swallowing hard, as his stomach rumbled with hunger.
He had only eaten one serving of rice noodles in the morning, spent lunch busy at the hospital, and afterwards was occupied buying ingredients and making rice noodles, leaving no time for lunch yet.
Glancing at the freshly peeled shrimp, Wang Fan reached for it.
But eventually, he couldn't bear to take much, picking just the smallest one to toss into the pot.
Pushing the shrimp deeper into the pot with one hand he muttered: "Once second uncle's off the hospital bed and the medical fees are covered, I'm going to treat myself to shrimp porridge more shrimp than rice!"
The shrimp porridge smelled more and more delicious, and it thickened considerably. Wang Fan tossed in some cut lettuce and green onions, added a pinch of salt, and turned off the gas.
After stirring lightly to mix the salt, lettuce, and green onions evenly, a large pot of perfectly textured shrimp porridge was done.
The freshly cooked shrimp porridge emitted steaming hot white vapor, as the air was ensconced in its rich aroma.
The color of the shrimp porridge was a soft golden hue, adorned with green lettuce and scallions, enhancing its visual appeal.
Impatiently, Wang Fan already had a bowl in hand.
Scooping some with a spoon, the plump grains of rice shimmered brightly, like little pearls.
He obviously didn't skip over the single piece of shrimp meat.
The shrimp was tender and juicy, a tempting pinkish hue; he couldn't help but take a bite immediately.
Delivering the shrimp porridge with the shrimp into his mouth and chewing lightly, the tender shrimp melded seamlessly with the soft rice, filling his mouth with a symphony of seafood flavors.
"Oh my gosh, have I ever made such delicious shrimp porridge before?"
The extraordinary taste of the shrimp porridge amazed Wang Fan.
He mused, the system is truly audacious, merely elevated his chef level to Level 2, yet it elevated his shrimp porridge to a whole new echelon.
With a big ocean bowl of shrimp porridge down, Wang Fan felt warmly comforted all over. If he could just lay down and sleep now, how blissful would that be?
But he still had to set up his stall, leaving him no choice but to forego the tempting thought.
When his uncle used to sell breakfast, they had soy milk, leaving plenty of takeout boxes at home, which Wang Fan now made use of.
By this time, the porridge in the pot wasn't as hot and was quickly packed into cups, sealed with a sealing machine.
He placed them into his large white foam box, ready to start making rice noodles.
Wang Fan wasn't sure if it was the system's influence or his innate love for cooking but even without the help of the system's hang-up function, he cooked with great pleasure without feeling at all irked.
After making the last rice noodle, he stretched largely, and upon checking the time, was slightly shocked to find it was already 4 PM.
"Oh wow! It's already 4 PM, let's hurry, or there won't be any space for the stall."