Lin Xu took the appointnt letter Xie Baomin handed him and looked it over.
This appointnt letter was sowhat similar to a typical honorary certificate, but it was of higher quality. The velvet cover was embossed with the golden words "Letter of Appointnt," and below that, in a handwritten script, were the small, gilded characters for "Fishing Platform State Guesthouse."
He opened the letter.
Inside, it read, "We hereby appoint Mr. Lin Xu as the culinary consultant for Building 2 of the Fishing Platform State Guesthouse..." and similar, rather straightforward content. After all, it was honorary and didn’t list any detailed rights or obligations.
But having this letter of appointnt ant he had a certain status. Whether inside or outside their circle, it was impressive enough.
Just as Lin Xu closed the letter after reading it, the system’s notification sounded in his mind:
"The host has beco a culinary consultant at the Fishing Platform, triggering the side mission [Gaining Fa at the State Guesthouse]: Please gain a certain degree of renown at the Fishing Platform State Guesthouse within two weeks. Upon completion, you will be awarded one lucky draw for a Perfect Level braised dish recipe."
Gain a certain degree of renown at the Fishing Platform State Guesthouse?
Lin Xu frowned, not particularly pleased with such cryptic missions. The mission content wasn’t clear, and there were no hints.
Just "gaining fa"... theoretically, if I run around bare-chested inside, would that achieve the purpose of gaining fa and completing this mission?
However, if I really did that, I guess the system wouldn’t award a single penny.
The Riddler should get out of Gotham... no, wait, the Riddle System should get off Earth!
While Lin Xu was examining the letter of appointnt, Shen Guofu and Xie Baomin had already introduced themselves to each other.
Learning that Xie Baomin was the head chef of Building 2 at the Fishing Platform, Shen Guofu said with so regret, "I’ve eaten at the Building 2 restaurant a few tis, but unfortunately, I never had the chance to et Chef Xie. Next ti I go, I’ll be sure to ntion your na."
"No problem at all, Mr. Shen! We’ll line up to welco you then!"
As they were exchanging pleasantries, Shen Guofu saw Lin Xu close the letter and imdiately reached out his hand. "Xu, let see your letter of appointnt."
After Lin Xu handed it over, Shen Guofu first inspected the cover, then the content inside. Then, he took out his phone and, KACHA! KACHA! KACHA! snapped several photos of both the cover and the content.
He then posted them on his Monts: "My daughter Yueyue’s boyfriend was officially appointed as a culinary consultant by the Fishing Platform today! Wonder if we’ll get discounts when we eat there in the future? [image][image][image]"
His WeChat friends were almost all real-life acquaintances. No sooner had he posted it than likes and comnts poured in.
"Your daughter has a boyfriend now?"
"When did this happen? Weren’t you trying to set her up on blind dates just the other day?"
"Whose son is he? Do you know his family background?"
"My nephew just returned from abroad specifically to et Yueyue; he’s in quarantine right now. Old Shen, pick a ti to arrange for them to et. It wasn’t easy for the boy to make the trip back..."
"To be appointed by the Fishing Platform, his skills must be incredible, right?"
"Old Shen, can we get a taste of your son-in-law’s cooking?"
"..."
Ever since his daughter had graduated from university, people had been continuously approaching Shen Guofu with marriage proposals, involving all sorts of unsuitable nephews and incredibly distant relatives, which annoyed him imnsely.
He posted this update precisely to tell everyone: My daughter has a boyfriend now, so everyone can stop pestering us.
「Soon.」
The news spread through Shen Guofu’s circles, and several of his WeChat groups were abuzz with discussion. Everyone wanted to know just what kind of young man could win Old Shen’s approval and, at the sa ti, be accepted by his daughter.
"I really want to see what the Shen Family’s chosen one looks like."
"I don’t care about his looks; I just want to know how good his cooking is!"
"Being appointed as a consultant by the Fishing Platform? His skills must be sothing most people don’t get to taste, right?"
「Just then.」
Tan Yajun, who had always been lurking in the group, was suddenly active.
"What? Little Lin was appointed as a consultant for the Fishing Platform? That young man’s skills truly deserve such recognition!"
His words imdiately piqued the curiosity of the group mbers.
"Old Tan, you know Shen Guofu’s son-in-law?"
Know him? More than just know him; he almost beca a key player under my command... Tan Yajun sat in his office, holding his phone and typing rapidly, TAP-TAP-TAP, as he sent a ssage, "Of course, it’s true. Shen Guofu’s son-in-law is a collaborator with our audit firm. All our lunch orders co from his place now, and I’m totally addicted."
"Wow!" the group chat exclaid.
Even Old Tan, who’s always so picky, is saying that. Just how good must it be?
Everyone eagerly chid in:
"Old Tan, give us the address! No matter the cost, I have to try it."
"Yeah, let’s go try it too! And we can see Shen Guofu’s son-in-law while we’re at it."
"Quick, quick, quick! I haven’t had dinner yet. It’s the perfect ti to go try it out. As the young people say, let’s go ’explore the shop’!"
Tan Yajun did not reply imdiately. Instead, he first @ntioned Shen Guofu in the group chat: "Can Little Lin’s shop location be publicly shared?"
Shen Guofu replied, "Certainly. More custors are always welco."
Seeing that Shen Guofu agreed, Tan Yajun then posted the location of Lin Ji’s Food.
Then he asked, "Old Shen, it seems you’re quite satisfied with Little Lin?"
Shen Guofu sent a laughing emoji and replied, "After observing him for so many days, the more I see him, the more I like him. I never expected Yueyue to find such an excellent son-in-law. My wife and I are both very satisfied."
As soon as he sent this ssage, the system’s notification tone sounded in Lin Xu’s mind:
"The host has gained the approval of Shen Jiayue’s parents, completed the hidden task [In-laws’ Approval], and won a Perfect Level Chinese dessert lucky draw. Do you want to draw now?"
Huh? What a stroke of luck! Too bad I can’t hug Dundun and do the lucky draw now. I’ll have to wait, at least until my future parents-in-law leave. Otherwise, hugging a cat while I’m supposed to be working would just make look like I’m slacking off.
「anwhile.」
Han Shuzhen pulled her daughter back to their seats and asked quietly, "Have you already t Lin Xu’s mother?"
Shen Jiayue picked up her chopsticks, unceremoniously speared a piece of Pork Ribs in Black Bean Sauce with crispy cartilage, and said while crunching, "Yes, I have. Lin Xu’s mom really likes . On my first day at the audit firm, she even specifically hired a delivery person to bring Pork Grease Buns. It made all my colleagues at the firm drool."
What? Not only had her daughter t her future mother-in-law, but she’d also eaten buns she made? No wonder she’s already taking his family’s side. She was bribed in advance! But Pork Grease Buns...
"Are they tasty? They sound like they might be a bit greasy."
"They’re super tasty, Mom! I’ll bring so for you to try from the shop when they make them next. The shop often makes all sorts of amazing breakfast items, really substantial stuff, but they’re not for sale to outside custors."
Really? Hearing her daughter say this, Han Shuzhen felt a little tempted to try them. But she couldn’t focus on that now. She needed to gather as much information as possible about Lin Xu’s mother—her personality and preferences—to prevent her own daughter from unwittingly offending her.
She continued to ask, "What do you think of Lin Xu’s mom?"
"She’s super nice! She dotes on . And Lin Xu’s mom is an amazing cook. Before I left their place once, she packed over twenty kinds of dumplings for , all boxed up and frozen in their fridge, ready to cook whenever I want."
Listening to her daughter’s excited words, Han Shuzhen said with a hint of apology, "I’m sorry, my dear. I’m not a great cook, and I was always too busy with work in the past. I never managed to cook you any decent als. Things like ’Mom’s Special Dumplings’ or ’Mom’s Handmade Noodles’—I don’t know how to make any of them. I feel like I’ve wronged you!"
In the past, Han Shuzhen and Shen Guofu had both been consud by their careers, one busy with professional work and the other with earning money. Shen Jiayue was mostly raised by her grandmother. Thinking about her own absence during her daughter’s childhood made Han Shuzhen feel a pang of guilt. She always felt she had let her daughter down.
Shen Jiayue waved her hand magnanimously. "It’s okay, it’s okay, I’ve already forgiven you both... You have no idea how happy I was as a child without you two hovering over . I could go days without doing howork, and it was totally fine..."
Han Shuzhen: ????? You little rascal! Are you deliberately trying to make your mom and dad punish you?
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