The Game of Life

Jiang Feng spent most of his time in a small, airless room, and occasionally, he would open a window to let in some fresh air, luxuriating in the comfortable breeze on his face. Listening to the sincere flattery from an employee who was about to resign made his mood exceptionally pleasant.

As a consequence, Jiang Feng was full of energy for the next few hours. It was obvious he had stumbled upon something delightful.

On the way home from work, Jiang Feng even hummed a tune as he walked. Wu Minqi was walking alongside him, listening intently to the theme song of the wayward Little Chinese Chef.

“Fengfeng, did something good happen to you today? You’ve been particularly happy since this afternoon,” Wu Minqi had been waiting for Jiang Feng to share with her voluntarily, but seeing him happily keeping to himself without any intention of sharing, she asked directly.

“This afternoon?” Jiang Feng was a bit distracted and didn’t hear Wu Minqi’s earlier words. “Oh, this afternoon Zhou Shi said he’s going to resign at the beginning of next year.”

Wu Minqi: ???

When did Zhou Shi offend you?

“He’s resigning?” Wu Minqi tried to look regretful, but since she wasn’t familiar with him and hadn’t practiced acting in a while, her attempt at a regretful expression didn’t look regretful at all.

“If Zhou Shi resigns, that would leave us with only five furnace chefs in the kitchen, including Mr. Jiang. We’ll be seriously short-handed,” Wu Minqi said with genuine concern, which made her look very sincere.

Reminded by Wu Minqi, Jiang Feng also realized that the kitchen of Taifeng Building hadn’t conducted a second recruitment since the initial one, although the lobby had gone through several rounds of selection as if breeding gu worms.

The two elderly gentlemen had been consciously nurturing back kitchen staff whom they saw as having potential over the past few months, such as Sang Ming and Zhang Weiyu. Zhang Weiyu might have seemed like a chopping board chef, but in reality, he had been doing the work of an assistant chef early in the morning. To see how much work he put in a month, one only needed to glance at his end-of-month paycheck to get an idea. Jiang Feng thought that if Zhang Weiyu was a gamer too, “+1 yuan, +1 yuan, +1 yuan” would surely pop up above his head every time he worked.

Jiang Feng worked hard to improve his skills, while Zhang Weiyu worked hard just for the money.

Jiang Feng sincerely hoped Zhang Weiyu would strive to improve himself and become a furnace chef as soon as possible, so he could legitimately find opportunities to dock his salary.

-1 yuan, -1 yuan, -1 yuan…

“I’ll talk to Mom in a few days and ask her to discuss with my fourth and fifth uncles. Maybe next month or December we can recruit externally and see if we can find any solo chefs,” Jiang Feng said.

There’s nothing in this world that can’t be solved by talking to Mom. And if there is, then talk to Grandfather.

“By the way, Qiqi, do you want some crab-stuffed oranges?” Jiang Feng suddenly got excited.

“Hm?”

“It’s still early. I’ll go back and make crab-stuffed oranges for you!”

Wu Minqi did not understand what Jiang Feng meant by this. Although she had indeed gotten a bit tired of eating crab-stuffed oranges recently, having had them just yesterday afternoon. But seeing Jiang Feng so eager, as if he were about to surprise her, she nodded in agreement.

“Did Zhou Shi ever say something he shouldn’t have?” Wu Minqi asked tentatively.

“Something he shouldn’t have? No way. Qiqi, don’t look at Zhou Shi as a quiet and unsociable person, but he’s actually quite nice and honest. He doesn’t talk much, but when he does, it matters. His cooking skills are also decent, it’s just a shame he doesn’t focus on his work and wants to resign just like that,” Jiang Feng expressed his regret over Zhou Shi’s resignation.

Wu Minqi: ???

“Qiqi, why are you asking this?”

“Nothing. I just thought you didn’t like him very much,” Wu Minqi said.

“How could that be? I didn’t have much contact with him before. But after talking to him today, I found that we really hit it off. He’s honest, speaks pleasantly, and I even exchanged my crab-stuffed orange recipe for his cold jellyfish recipe. Qiqi, the crab-stuffed oranges I made this afternoon were especially delicious. You’ll see later…”

The 996 who passed by Jiang Feng: …

Crab-stuffed oranges?

Crab, oranges.

Why does it sound like a dish?

Is it delicious?

The 996, whose eyes were opened to a new world by Taifeng Building during the national holidays, pondered thoughtfully.

Returning home, Jiang Feng started to make the crab-stuffed oranges.

Ever since he began practicing this dish, there had never been a shortage of hairy crabs and oranges at home, turning the balcony pool into a veritable crab breeding center. Each day, outstanding hairy crabs would leave the balcony for the kitchen, and new recruits would enter the pool, maintaining a delicate balance.

Wu Minqi originally wanted to help, but this time Jiang Feng prepared to showcase his skills in front of his girlfriend, showing her how he could smoothly whip up an A-grade delicious crab-stuffed orange.

Jiang Feng invited Wu Minqi to sit on the sofa in the living room, thoughtfully turned on the TV for her, picked out a TV series, poured her some fresh orange juice, and prepared plum candies and watermelon seeds for her.

Wu Minqi was holding a glass of orange juice, watching TV, while Jiang Feng was making stuffed crab oranges in the kitchen, and Ji Xia was earnestly and meticulously dragging the mop across every nook and cranny of the living room.

Wu Minqi felt like she was a noblewoman, with Chef Jiang in the kitchen preparing her dessert after the meal, and Maid Ji in the living room doing some real cleaning.

Wu Minqi took a sip of the orange juice.

Yep, she felt even more like a noblewoman now.

“Xiaxia,” Minqi put down her orange juice and pushed the preserved plums towards Ji Xue, “You mopped the floor yesterday, you don’t have to do it again today. Come have some preserved plums and watch TV with me.”

Ji Xia grabbed two preserved plums and stuffed them into her mouth, her words muffled with plums, “Master wouldn’t let me pick crabs, so I had nothing to do. I forgot to mop under the sofa yesterday. You go ahead and watch TV, Wu; I’ll finish mopping in no time.”

Wu Minqi could only continue to watch TV like a noblewoman.

By the time Minqi could barely make out who was the male lead, the female lead and the third wheel, Jiang Feng’s stuffed crab oranges were ready.

[Stuffed Crab Oranges B-grade]

Jiang Feng: ???

Jiang Feng stood in the kitchen, reading over the detailed evaluation results several times, then recalled the A-grade stuffed crab oranges from the afternoon and felt there wasn’t much difference.

How did it end up and B-grade?

Jiang Feng thought about it, the only difference between the two batches of stuffed crab oranges being that he had chatted with Zhou Shi for a while and nibbled on some injected watermelons while cooking in the afternoon; all the other elements were the same, even the crabs and oranges were from the same store.

Could it be that A-grade stuffed crab oranges can only be made while chatting with Zhou Shi?

Jiang Feng was lost in thought.

On the other side, given her rich experience in eating stuffed crab oranges, Ji Xia, who had an unforgettable A-grade stuffed crab orange in the afternoon, guessed it was about time Jiang Feng’s stuffed crab oranges would be ready, so she took the initiative to slip into the kitchen.

“Master, I’ve finished mopping!” Ji Xue reported her accomplishment first, then got to the point, “Is the stuffed crab orange ready? Can I eat it now?”

Jiang Feng came back to his senses and said, “Of course, it’s ready. Eat it while it’s hot; have a few more.”

Jiang Feng handed the stuffed crab oranges to Ji Xia, watching her as she took the first bite.

“How is it?” Jiang Feng asked.

“Delicious!” Ji Xia was always the most supportive one, as long as there was meat involved.

“How does it compare to the one from the afternoon?”

“The one from the afternoon was tastier!”

“Where do you think the difference lies?” Jiang Feng asked the ultimate and most crucial question.

Now Jiang Feng had hit Ji Xia’s zone of ignorance. She was someone who not only couldn’t describe it with idioms but didn’t even know how to curse.

Ji Xue thought hard for a long time, her brows furrowed, her face a picture of distress—anyone unaware might think Jiang Feng had asked her to recite “The Departure to War” in full.

“The difference… lies in… lies in… the fact that it’s not as good as the one from the afternoon,” Ji Xia said.

Jiang Feng: …

Ji Xue’s idea was correct. This child really needed to “Improve Yourself” with some cultural lessons.

“It’s okay, I was just asking casually. Have more, Xiaxia. These three are all for you, you’ve worked hard mopping the floor, eat up and replenish your strength,” Jiang Feng said helplessly.

“Thank you, Master. Isn’t Wu going to eat any?” Ji Xia continued to eat the stuffed crab oranges.

“Your Sister Wu will eat the next batch. Don’t just sit there, eat and learn. Watch how I make them,” Jiang Feng said.

“Alright.” Ji Xia slowed down her consumption of the stuffed crab oranges.

As Jiang Feng went to the balcony to pick out some hairy crabs, passing by the living room, he noticed that Minqi’s glass of orange juice was empty. He helped her pour a glass first, explaining, “Qiqi, I had some fire control issues with that batch of stuffed crab oranges. I’ll make three more; you watch TV a little longer and wait.”

“Mhm,” responded Wu, the noblewoman, with a nod of her head.

Jiang Feng: ???

He felt there was something a bit odd about Qiqi’s behavior.