Chapter 29

Chapter 29

Chapter 29

The crew’s boxed meals can still be this delicious...

The next day, the people who came to pick up Chen Ran were not only Ms. Wang but also Wang Zhaoshan.

Early in the morning, seeing Chen Ran already packed and ready, Wang Zhaoshan looked a bit disappointed.

“I thought I could get another free meal...”

Before he finished speaking, Chen Ran had already pulled out several flatbreads.

“One each, eat on the way.”

These were made by her the night before, a product of her part-time work, and her seasoning skill was still active.

“Ran Ran, you seem in a good mood?”

Chen Ran was indeed feeling very good.

This morning, as usual, she poked around the system panel and discovered that the system counted her part-time job at the police station as two work sessions.

Very considerate!

By this calculation, maybe she would regain her sense of taste sooner than she expected.

“Do you like the guests on this ‘Peach Blossom Land’ episode? Should I find a place on the way to buy two albums for you to get signed?”

The upcoming guest lineup for ‘Peach Blossom Land’ was quite luxurious: besides the regular trio, there were two popular young male stars and a top female singer.

“No,” Chen Ran answered honestly, “I saw the notes Ji You sent, but I don’t know any of them.”

The ‘Peach Blossom Land’ program would shoot three episodes in Yanglianshan. Ji You had already sent Chen Ran all the materials obtained from the production team, thoughtfully including information about each guest.

“Don’t know any? Ran Ran, don’t you listen to music? What music? What dramas?”

“Not really much, and I don’t watch many dramas either. Mostly after starting university, I watch with my roommates.”

Back when she was learning to cook with her cousins at the Chen family, they all lived together and trained every day. Only during meals could they briefly watch the news; at other times, no distractions allowed.

Wang Zhaoshan laughed a little mockingly when hearing about Chen Ran’s experience learning to cook at the Chen family.

“Your old master is really strange. He has some cooking skills himself and taught a family of famous chefs, running the household strictly — but has no respect for food?”

He had also heard that Chen Boduan’s new restaurant would implement an assembly-line management system, with dishes prepared uniformly at headquarters and delivered to branches just for reheating and serving.

Such a chef, growing up in an environment that supposedly emphasized culinary skill, was really ironic.

Ms. Wang sat in the passenger seat and said bluntly, “Because he sees the family’s chefs as tools to grab wealth and fight for power.”

“Why did his business become so big? Isn’t it because whenever he turned on the TV, the contestants on any cooking competition were from the Chen family? Then he made industry standards and supervised himself...”

Wang Zhaoshan implied meaning: “What a pity. That was supposed to be his sharpest knife, but he threw it away himself.”

The air in the car was tense for a moment. Ms. Wang looked out at the swiftly passing green hills and casually asked Chen Ran:

“Ran Ran, are you really going to keep working part-time like this? Have you thought about opening your own private kitchen? Or working somewhere else?”

Though the Chen family was powerful, they didn’t have such far-reaching control.

If Chen Ran wanted to open her own restaurant, Ms. Wang was willing to support her.“Don’t rush. I want to slowly do some part-time jobs everywhere and see how it goes first.”

Chen Ran couldn’t just say she had a system, right?

The system mission required her to work part-time 100 times. The best solution was to do various odd jobs here and there. If she worked at a restaurant for a while then left, the boss would hardly agree.

Fortunately, the old Chen family’s kitchen god had once done the same thing and gave Chen Ran a perfect explanation.

“I was thinking, back then our Chen family ancestor also did odd jobs everywhere, maybe for some special reason... so I want to look around too!”

This reason was quite perfect. Wang Zhaoshan also started to think maybe there really was some deep meaning behind it.

“I’ve also heard the legend of the Chen family ancestor. Supposedly, he traveled all over the world, saw all kinds of diners, tasted local delicacies everywhere, and that’s how he developed his superb cooking skills.”

Wang Zhaoshan was a professional gourmet himself and even knew some anecdotes about the Chen kitchen god that Chen Ran hadn’t heard. They chatted all the way until evening, when the group finally arrived at Yanglianshan.

Liu Zhengtai was already waiting at the foot of the mountain!

“The kitchen and everything are all set up, there’s staff dorms nearby, all the supplies are complete. But if you want to buy anything else, you can’t—did you prepare everything in advance?”

Chen Ran didn’t have much to bring. She said goodbye to Ms. Wang and Wang Zhaoshan, then took the cable car up the mountain with Liu Zhengtai.

This time, the workplace was a small restaurant at a scenic spot. Judging by its appearance, it had hardly ever been used before.

“Why is there a restaurant halfway up a scenic mountain?”

Chen Ran had spent her past leisure time learning to cook and had hardly ever gone out to play. Her total leisure time was less than the time she was about to spend on this mission.

“There is. Every morning the cable car delivers ingredients and stuff. The staff have to eat too. But the ingredient selection is limited, since transportation costs are high.”

“We already arranged with the crew over there; there will be stagehands coming to order the number of boxed meals from you. The restaurant has an auntie who can help you with some assistance.”

Thanks to her experience at the kindergarten, Chen Ran was now quite adept at making large quantities of food. With a helper, cooking for thirty or forty people was easy.

“Does this restaurant operate normally for outside customers? What if someone wants to buy food?”

This was an important question! If the restaurant was open to outsiders, then along with the crew’s orders, she could rack up even more system work counts!

“Generally… no. But if there are, you can just sell one or two meals casually. The restaurant has a menu, just sell according to it! Auntie will handle the money.”

Although the scenery at Yanglianshan was beautiful, it was poorly promoted, so there weren’t many tourists.

Also, serious hikers wouldn’t dare eat at a restaurant halfway up the mountain—it’s obvious it would be very expensive!

Even the crew dared to order boxed meals only because Yanglianshan needed the publicity, so they proposed to provide help in return.

“This counts as two jobs, right? System?”

Chen Ran looked at the system, which silently popped up a [Counted], and happily got off the cable car.

“I’ll help you carry the luggage!”

Liu Zhengtai was still thinking about the guobaorou and lion’s head meatballs he had eaten before. He wanted to freeload another meal before leaving. Unexpectedly, when he tried to lift the big box on the ground, he couldn’t pick it up.

“It’s heavy. I’ll carry it myself.”

Chen Ran easily picked up the box and walked toward the new workplace.

The small restaurant gave off a mixed feeling of new and old, obviously rarely visited. Fortunately, the staff dorm nearby looked quite clean.She had just arrived when the crew’s stage manager came over.

“Chen Ran, right?”

The stage manager scanned Chen Ran and thought this girl looked ridiculously young. But since the crew had already signed a contract with Yanglianshan, and all food was supplied here, there was nothing a part-timer like her could say.

“A total of forty boxed meals, served morning, noon, and night according to our schedule, plus a midnight snack. Is that okay?”

“Peach Blossom Spring” was a lifestyle show. They needed to film the guests’ daily life from morning till night and then edit it. So, the midnight snack was an important part for the crew.

Especially filming at a scenic spot like this, at midnight if they really wanted to give the crew a snack, forget about takeout — even bread and sausage would be impossible to buy!

The stage manager double-checked with Chen Ran: “Four meals, can you guarantee the supply? The midnight snack can be delivered in advance.”

“Only forty portions, right?”

When working at the kindergarten, Chen Ran also made large meals but Yuan Guozhong was in charge of portion control. Now in this small restaurant at the scenic spot, the auntie only helped her, and the details were up to Chen Ran herself.

She was serious: “Our scenic spot isn’t like other places. Preparing ingredients is complicated. Forty portions means forty portions. If it’s not enough, we can’t just whip up more on the spot.”

The stage manager snorted inwardly.

Work meals—just a bite is fine. Who expects to eat well at a scenic spot like this? Who would be greedy for your boxed meal?

“Just forty portions, no need to prepare more. These are for the staff. There aren’t that many people.”

The filming of “Peach Blossom Spring” was relatively authentic. The visiting stars truly only ate the food cooked by Teacher Lü Yi, and even the ingredients had to be acquired through specific means.

In some scenes, the stars had to pick vegetables themselves. But this time, since the outdoor shoot was at Yanglianshan, ingredients had to be obtained through the game instead.

Early the next morning, Chen Ran got up to receive the ingredients and prepare lunch boxes. The crew arrived on the mountain after nine, so the first day’s breakfast was skipped.

Up above, preparations for filming were in full swing, but the stars and guests hadn’t arrived yet.

The whole crew’s atmosphere could be described as nothing but complaints.

“How much did they pay exactly? They had to put the shooting location at this tiny, broken place halfway up a mountain... It’s like a survival game! They even have to build a studio on site...”

“I wonder if we’ll get any real meals here. We’re shooting multiple episodes in a row. If I have to eat bread and sausage, I’ll die!”

“The scenic spot said they’d provide boxed meals,” the stage manager said as she hurried back and forth, trying to boost morale, “Alright, get to work. I’ve checked the small restaurant over there. At least it’s pretty clean.”

“Hurry up! When we finish, I’ll treat you to grilled sausages!”

“Hey, Wang Ge used to treat us to fried chicken. Why is it grilled sausages this time?”

Wang Ge glared, “This is a scenic spot. You think I’d believe they’d dare sell you one grilled sausage for just ten yuan? When we get out of here, I’ll order ten servings of fried chicken for you. If you can’t finish it, I’ll force-feed it to you!”

The group laughed and moaned as they worked till noon, cursing their bosses a hundred times in their hearts before finally getting the boxed meals.

“I wonder when the filming will start. At least we can watch Teacher Lü Yi cook.”

“What’s the point of watching? Only those stars get to eat it. We don’t get a single bite.”

Several crew members asked the only assistant director present who had eaten Lü Yi’s cooking: “Director Zheng, you’ve eaten Teacher Lü Yi’s food, how is it? Is it good?”

Director Zheng’s expression was somewhat subtle.

But this was the entertainment circle’s way of boosting some and putting down others. Having eaten Lü Yi’s food was also part of his self-promotion.“It’s really tasty, she’s quite good at cooking, amazing.”

Wan Jiaxin, interning with the crew, picked up her boxed meal, opened the lid, and asked the sister who was mentoring her, “Sister, have you tried it yet?”

The veteran employee smiled slightly, not as easy to fool as an intern: “You’ll know soon enough.”

But first, it was time to eat and fill their stomachs.

The veteran had worked at the TV station for nearly her whole life, having been on about eighty to a hundred different shoots.

The boxed meals on set were the worst tasting. Previously, even a makeup artist had exposed the behind-the-scenes, saying that the staff responsible for ordering meals got kickbacks enough to buy a car from a single production.

Whether Qi Yu could buy a car or not, she didn’t know—she had never gotten such a lucrative job—but she did know the meals were always hard to stomach.

However, this time the boxed meal was at least somewhat decent!

The rice looked glossy and plump; the two vegetables and one meat dish were well-arranged; and the meat dish even had large slices of meat in it.

Usually, for the so-called two vegetables and one meat, the vegetables were often cabbage and sliced potatoes, while the meat was some mysterious fried sausage or chicken frame.

It barely qualified as a meat dish, and whether it even had any meat inside was questionable.

But this time, the two vegetables were chive omelet and minced meat eggplant, and the meat dish was twice-cooked pork.

“This boxed meal is good! Regardless of taste, I finally see some meat!”

Normally, minced meat eggplant and chive omelet would count as meat dishes!

Qi Yu sighed in admiration and looked back at the other staff to see their reactions.

Unexpectedly, no one looked up.

They had been building the scene all morning; the entire crew was exhausted. Who had time to chat when receiving a meal like this?

For those who had just finished hard physical labor all morning, a heavy, oily boxed meal was much more practical than seafood or anything fancy.

The chives in the omelet were finely chopped, and you could tell by the bite that they were carefully cut by hand, not shredded by a food processor.

The tender chives were evenly mixed in the fragrant oily eggs, pan-fried on high heat to a slightly crispy texture. One bite was oily and satisfying, just what was needed to replenish energy after the long morning.

This oily flavor was balanced by the fresh taste of chives, making it flavorful without greasiness, fully opening the appetite from inside out.

“The timing on this chive omelet is perfect!”

Wan Jiaxin took a big bite of rice and told Qi Yu, “Sister, try this minced meat eggplant! This is the real deal!”

The minced meat eggplant was savory and slightly salty, which was just right for the staff who had sweated a lot doing hard work that morning.

Putting the oily minced meat eggplant over the rice, mixing it well, then eating a big mouthful—there was nothing better than that!

At this moment, Wang Ge finally came over, followed by his little assistant carrying two bags of sausages.

He wiped the sweat off his face and saw everyone squatting on the ground, so he couldn’t help teasing a bit.

“Not all of you heatstroked, right?”

This crew’s pay was low and the work tiring, and now shooting at such a place made everyone full of resentment.

“Alright, alright, come on, have some drinks. These drinks are…” Wang Ge glanced and saw the drinks were provided by fans of Ye Cunxin, one of the rising young stars joining the crew this time. “Here, everyone take one bottle. They’re all cold.”He first picked a bottle of cola for himself, plopped down, took a grilled sausage, ready to take a bite.

“There’s also these grilled sausages, one per person, super expensive...”

Wang Ge had some influence among the crew; he was also one of the veteran staff and occasionally handed out small perks to save face.

Normally, everyone would have smiled and come over to greet him, but today, everyone was squatting and quietly eating their boxed meals.

Finally, someone approached. Wang Ge put on a smile and opened the bag in his hand: “Come on, pick one, but I see many aren’t cooked enough, choose one that’s well grilled.”

The newcomer laughed, “Wang Ge, grilled sausages won’t fill you up, boxed meals are tastier. Just asking, don’t we usually have leftovers from the ordered meals? I’ve been climbing up and down all morning; can I get another box?”

Did someone even get a second boxed meal today?

Actually, there were leftovers. Although the stage manager ordered food for forty people, the entire crew only had about thirty.

After all, it was free from the scenic spot—free is free, might as well take it.

“There are... right over there...”

Before Wang Ge finished, the crew member who had been smiling just moments ago rushed over and grabbed a boxed meal first! He didn’t even pick up a sausage, just sat down and started showing off his second box.

Was it really that delicious?

Wang Ge, an old hand, knew these guys in the crew too well. Fans’ support gifts were not rare—sometimes fans sent random brand drinks or plain snacks, which mostly nobody touched.

If people scrambled like this for a boxed meal, it had to taste great.

He immediately picked up his own box, pulled off the rubber band securing it, and lifted the lid.

Fragrant!

Some people preferred to eat the vegetables first and save the meat for last. But Wang Ge’s habit was to eat the best part first, securing it.

He picked up a piece of twice-cooked pork.

After eating boxed meals for so many years, the first thing Wang Ge cared about was freshness.

No way around it—he had gotten food poisoning from those greedy stage managers’ boxed meals more than once or twice.

But this meat—this was fresh!

The elasticity and color of the fat clearly showed the meat was not spoiled and had just been cooked today before being put in the box.

Picking up a piece with chopsticks, the meat bounced on the chopsticks like a live fish—definitely not like the dead, dull twice-cooked pork from some small restaurant outside.

One bite, the aroma of Doubanjiang, the flavor of fermented black beans, plus the taste of green garlic and chili—all combined into a salty, fresh, mildly spicy flavor…

Wang Ge was a little stunned. Was this really just a random boxed meal ordered for the crew?

He called out to the stage manager: “Manager Li, is this batch of boxed meals from fan support? Which hotel did that big sister’s fan order from?”

Manager Li was eating heartily!

She knew her own order best—there were even ten extra boxes! She insisted on grabbing one of the extra boxes.

“No... no...”

With her mouth full of rice, she simply replied no, then immediately shoveled another mouthful in.Minced eggplant mixed with rice is the best comfort food!

She finally understood why that unassuming little cook had asked her to confirm the order of forty servings.

This meal was provided by the scenic area—why should she save money for them?

Manager Li was about to put down her box and get another portion but was reluctant to waste the bits of minced meat stuck to the box. She carefully picked the few meat bits into her mouth with chopsticks before rushing to get another boxed meal.

But... she was too late.

Her face changed as she watched the last boxed meal being snatched by the intern; her expression froze.

Wan Jiaxin felt a little embarrassed but, thinking that the other party was a top supervisor in the crew, she turned her face away and tried hard not to look at that boxed meal.

“Sister Li, if you’re hungry... then...”

At this moment, Manager Li thought the intern was really cute!

However, snatching a boxed meal from an intern was really embarrassing.

After all, she had worked hard to get the stage manager position, and the “Peach Blossom Spring” crew was a highly sought-after TV production. Having credentials here meant future jobs or side earnings would be easier.

“No need... you eat, you eat.”

Manager Li painfully withdrew her gaze from the boxed meal.

Wan Jiaxin, able to intern in this crew, naturally wasn’t some clueless college student.

She immediately smiled, “Indeed, Sister Li keeps such a good figure, you probably can’t finish a whole box. Let’s share one!”

Squatting down, Wan Jiaxin opened the box and started evenly dividing the food into two portions.

Every chopstick she moved out made her heart bleed. While dividing the food, she silently persuaded herself:

“...Social niceties are necessary... Today I share half a box with Sister Li, maybe tomorrow she’ll help me out a lot...”

She kept the food on the lid for herself and gave the rest inside the box to Sister Li.

If you do a favor, do it completely. She also took responsibility, saying, “Thank you, Sister Li. Two girls sharing one box is perfect, no waste at all!”

Manager Li felt relieved and took the box. She saw there were even extra slices of twice-cooked pork, picked up a bite, and put it in her mouth.

Fragrant!

The fat was sliced thin and well-flavored, with no greasiness. At the same time, the lean meat was tender, chewing with a slight roasted aroma of Doubanjiang.

Delicious! This girl really understood things!

She immediately decided to give her a chance.

“Tonight’s late-night snack, you come with me to get it.”

She had misjudged—it turned out the scenic area had such good chefs! Could it be that the scenic area hired top chefs to host their crew generously?

While they were talking, the star guests were also coming up the mountain. Lü Yi walked in front, and Bai Jing was not far behind, greeting crew members as they walked.

Everyone was used to the celebrities’ attitudes. Usually, only Teacher Bai Jing greeted every crew member.

“Eating work meals? How’s the food today?”Usually, everyone would be polite, saying, "This boxed meal can't compare to the dishes Teacher Lü makes. Later, Teacher Bai, you’re the lucky one to have such good food."

But today, their voices were sparse and low. After a whole morning of physical labor, eating such a delicious boxed meal, the satisfaction rising from their stomachs even lessened their desire to flatter.

Lü Yi, used to being the center of attention, glanced at the staff and decided that later he would make twice-cooked pork!

Eating a boxed meal without even looking up—truly never seen anything good.