The Cheat Emperor of the Culinary World

Chapter 42: Chapter 41: Scholarly Family

Fu Yu was just about to check Qin Yue’s task prompt.

Standing next to him, Liu Yici said with a smile, ”Chef Fu, we’ll trouble you for today’s family dinner.”

[Ding! NPC Rich Lady Liu Yici’s task: Complete a delicious family dinner. Task rewards: RMB 100, Liu Yici’s favorability +5, task experience +10]

Fu Yu quickly chose to accept, gloating inwardly.

Cooking a meal and getting two tasks in a row, such good fortune is indeed rare.

Fu Yu nodded with a smile, ”Don’t worry, I will certainly do my best to make this family dinner great.”

Qin Yue saw that Fu Yu was taking this banquet very seriously, which was very satisfying to her.

So, even though she had some doubts about Fu Yu’s capability, she still smiled and said, ”Chef Fu, we’ll be counting on you for tonight. The ingredients are ready, and if anything is missing, I’ll have someone go and buy it immediately.”

Qin Yue led the way to the kitchen.

Fu Yu followed behind, checking the ”?” over her head.

[NPC Rich Lady Qin Yue is worried about hosting her in-laws tonight, full of concern. Communicating earnestly might trigger a side quest.]

Fu Yu nodded, ”Okay, but could you tell me what requirements you have for the ingredients and flavors for this dinner?”

Cooking is unlike other things; to cater to someone’s taste, you need to know their preferences.

Qin Yue’s smile dimmed, and she said with some anxiety, ”We have no food restrictions on our side, but as for my in-laws, things are a bit special...”

As she spoke, they turned into the kitchen.

Fu Yu stopped in his tracks.

Wow!

Amazing!

This kitchen almost matches the size of the back kitchen of their restaurant!

There was a line of cooking tools on the counter, from frying pans to clay pots, spatulas to skimmers...

Fu Yu glanced over and noticed several items he’d never seen before, not knowing what high-tech culinary products they were.

One must admit, rich people really know how to enjoy life.

Qin Yue pointed to the tools on the counter and said, ”The chef at my home usually doesn’t use many tools, so I worried you might not have enough when you came, so these were all temporarily purchased, but they’ve all been cleaned.”

Only then did Fu Yu realize that all these kitchen tools were brand new, just rinsed.

Qin Yue asked, ”Chef Fu, see if anything’s still missing, and I’ll go buy it right away.”

Fu Yu shook his head, ”Nothing is missing; everything is sufficient.”

Qin Yue visibly breathed a sigh of relief and led them further inside.

”I also bought the ingredients in advance...”

There was a double-door refrigerator standing against the wall, but Qin Yue didn’t reach to open it. Instead, she went directly to the right side of the fridge and pushed hard.

The wall surface that seemed seamless slid open inward.

It was a hidden door.

Qin Yue stepped inside, and as her body moved in, the dark space inside suddenly lit up.

Fu Yu followed behind and peeked in, stunned.

Wow!!

It was actually a walk-in cooler.

And it was a suite-style.

The outer area was for fresh storage, and inside was the freezer.

The shelves in the fresh storage were filled with various fruits and vegetables, while the freezer had a wide range of meats neatly categorized and arranged.

Qin Yue led Fu Yu around for a look and then went outside to the side of the kitchen counters where there was a row of water buckets.

Each bucket contained different types of seafood, the variety of which made Fu Yu secretly click his tongue in amazement.

Forget preparing a family dinner; one could use this to host a banquet.

Qin Yue asked, ”Is there anything else needed?”

Fu Yu shook his head, ”It’s more than enough.”

Qin Yue visibly relaxed.

Fu Yu asked, ”You mentioned your in-laws have certain peculiarities? Could you explain the situation?”

Qin Yue’s face fell into a worried look, ”My in-law’s status is a bit unusual. Her surname is Guan, and her ancestors are from the Gua Clan, a true scholarly family. Her grandfather was a professor at Qinghua, her father is a director at the National Research Institute, and her mother is a well-known writer. Are you familiar with the books ’Where Does the Wind Come From’ and ’A Lifetime of Happiness’?”

Fu Yu was taken aback.

He hadn’t read those two books, but he had watched every episode of the dramas adapted from them.

”So your in-law’s mother is the author of those two books?”

Qin Yue nodded, ”Yes, their family truly has a rich cultural heritage. My in-law is now the vice chairman of the National Literary Association, and her husband is a national first-class calligrapher. The calligraphy collections in the market are all from his pen.”

This isn’t just a deep cultural background; this family almost covers every field in the culture sector.

After speaking, Qin Yue, with a tone of pride, also spoke with concern, ”I haven’t met my in-laws yet. All my knowledge of their family is from others. They are said to be very traditional and have a great fondness for history and culture.”

Nostalgic, huh!?

Fu Yu pondered that a family who loves ancient culture might not be very interested in Michelin-style dishes.

Qin Yue genuinely valued her in-laws and sincerely wanted to host this family dinner well, hoping for a successful first meeting.

”As for their tastes, I only know they’re not fond of spicy food; I really don’t know much else.”

Can’t eat spicy food.

Fu Yu nodded, at least now knowing a restriction, which is better than being completely in the dark.

Qin Yue earnestly said, ”Chef Fu, I will need you to take extra care for tonight’s dinner.”

At that moment, a frantic sound of footsteps came from outside.

”Mom!”

A young man who resembled Qin Yue quite a bit came in quickly, holding the arm of a pretty and elegant young lady.

Qin Yue turned in surprise, ”Oh? You’re already here?”

Saying this, she looked at the young lady, ”Tian Tian, are your parents here too?”

Guan Tiantian smiled, ”No, my father has something to attend to last minute, and my mother is with him, so they may arrive a bit later.”

Qin Yue breathed a sigh of relief, then thought of something and hurriedly asked, ”Tian Tian, this is the chef I hired to cook at home. Can you please tell him if your parents have any food restrictions?”

Guan Tiantian smiled gracefully, ”My parents? They really have no food restrictions.”

Fu Yu’s mind raced, and he tentatively asked, ”Miss Guan, could you tell me if your parents have any preferred dishes?”

Guan Tiantian thought for a moment and said, ”They usually eat simple home-cooked meals, as for favorites...”

Fu Yu seized the opportunity and quickly read the ”...” that appeared over her head.

The next second, a sketch popped up.

The patterns on it rapidly changed.

Steamed fish, dumplings, stir-fried three shreds...

Indeed quite typical home-style dishes.

Fu Yu then asked, ”And for a banquet? Have your parents ever praised a particular banquet’s flavors?”

Guan Tiantian paused, and the patterns on the sketch suddenly turned into a mosaic.

”Banquet?”

The mosaic on the sketch gradually became clearer.

Then, a table laid out with a full banquet appeared in the image.

What is this?

Fu Yu was dumbfounded.

Several large bowls were filled with a variety of dishes, along with matching round plates, placed in a coordinated manner, front and back.

This banquet spread was quite unusual?

Guan Tiantian thought of something, but verbally said, ”Oh, my parents aren’t too particular about food and drink; you can arrange it as you see fit.”

That was purely polite talk.

After all, today was the first meeting between the parents of the two families, and Guan Tiantian didn’t want to leave a bad impression on her future mother-in-law.

Just like Qin Yue valued this family alliance through marriage and wanted to host the in-laws properly.

Guan Tiantian also valued tonight’s family dinner, fearing any slight mistake might affect her relationship and even her future marriage.