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"Where's the boss?"
The young man in the couple was dressed flamboyantly, with hair in a riot of colors, full of Shibuya Style.
He looked around with his hands in his pockets, his eyes not very friendly, seeming to carry a hint of disdain.
The girlfriend tugged at the young man's sleeve and glared at him. The young man clicked his tongue, took his hands out of his pockets, and slightly toned down his brash demeanor.
"… Excuse me, are you here to dine?" Mu Xiaoyue hesitantly stood up and said in English.
Unexpectedly, seeing her appearance, the young woman covered her mouth in surprise, "You, you're Sister Yueyue?"
"Yes."
Mu Xiaoyue also realized, responding instinctively upon hearing Chinese, and immediately her expression turned peculiar.
"Great! Let's take a picture first!" The young woman immediately abandoned her boyfriend and squeezed next to Mu Xiaoyue, pulled out her smartphone, adjusted the angle, snapped several photos in quick succession, then nodded in satisfaction and stepped back.
"You didn't come all the way here just because you read my food article, did you?" Mu Xiaoyue asked curiously.
In her food blog, Mu Xiaoyue had specifically included the address of Xia's Chinese Restaurant in detail, making it easy for anyone who read carefully to find the place.
The young woman nodded and asked, "Sister Yueyue, is the Chinese cuisine here really that authentic and delicious?"
"You'll know once you taste it. I can't describe it in words, I'm at a loss." Mu Xiaoyue spread her hands.
"Really?"
The woman's eyes lit up as she turned and pulled her Shibuya Style boyfriend to a clean spot to sit down.
Mu Xiaoyue glanced over.
This young woman looked quite young, likely a student abroad, while her boyfriend was clearly Japanese. They conversed in Japanese, with the woman seemingly pleading to dine at the Chinese Restaurant, while her boyfriend frowned, seemingly reluctant.
"Xiao Ya, watch the store for me. I'm going to find that punk." Mu Xiaoyue left the task of looking after the store to her friend and headed to the backyard of Xia's Restaurant.
"Yu?"
Climbing the narrow staircase to the second floor, Mu Xiaoyue looked around the clean and tidy living space, nodded quietly, and found the bedroom. One bedroom was empty, while the other was tightly closed, indicating someone was inside. She stood outside the door and called out a few times, seeing a shadow gradually grow larger behind the sliding door.
"Sister Yue?"
Opening the door, Xia Yu appeared surprised.
He looked like he'd stayed up too late, with dark circles under his eyes, causing Mu Xiaoyue to furrow her brow in confusion.
It had only been over three hours since the afternoon when the lively teenager's complexion suddenly worsened. Mu Xiaoyue felt a sense of suspicion and glanced past Xia Yu into his bedroom, not seeing anything out of place.
Her gaze rested briefly on the trash can in the bedroom, not seeing it piled with white tissues, which made Mu Xiaoyue awkwardly retract her gaze, her cheeks slightly flushed.
"How did a nap turn into night?"
Without further ado, Mu Xiaoyue grabbed Xia Yu's arm, dragging him downstairs while explaining, "There's a customer in the store, and she's a fan of mine. She purposely came over after reading my food blog last night, so you better entertain her well, or it'll damage both our reputations!"
Xia Yu's sleep-fogged mind gradually cleared with each step downstairs.
He suddenly remembered why Mu Xiaoyue was in the shop.
About three days ago, on a rainy day in Tokyo, he had asked An Ya and Mu Xiaoyue to help watch the shop while he practiced in the kitchen…
Wait a minute!
Thinking about it, Xia Yu realized the timeline was all mixed up, and the problem lay with the God of Cooking Space!
"System, how long exactly did I stay in the God of Cooking Space?"
"You entered the God of Cooking Space at 2:33 p.m. Tokyo Time, and it is now 5:48 p.m. on the same day, totaling 3 hours and 15 minutes," the system answered diligently.
"What?!"
Xia Yu was dumbfounded.
Only 3 hours had passed in the real world, but the problem was, he felt like he'd been in the God of Cooking Space for at least 3 days, continuously practicing cooking to the point of mental exhaustion.
Swallowing hard, Xia Yu realized he greatly misunderstood the concept of exchange time!
10 Fame Points could exchange for one hour of training time in the God of Cooking Space.
Note, this time meant the real world time!
"Could it be that one hour in the real world equals one day in the God of Cooking Space?" Xia Yu suddenly found this thought quite terrifying.
Dragged by Mu Xiaoyue to the storefront.
"Are you here to dine?"
Xia Yu temporarily put aside unnecessary distractions and examined the young couple in front of him.
"…"
Seeing that the one who asked was a young boy with a tender face, the woman first looked at Mu Xiaoyue, then slightly opened her mouth, "You, you're the owner of this shop?"
"Not only am I the owner, but I'm also the head chef." Xia Yu smiled slightly.
The woman spoke in Japanese, so he naturally replied in Japanese.
"Huh?" The Shibuya Style young man beside them had an expressive face, going from surprise to doubt, then with a hint of humility, asked, "Are you a student of Far Moon?"
"No," Xia Yu shook his head.
The Shibuya Style young man's face changed abruptly, a tinge of unmistakable disdain in his eyes, speaking with a carefree tone, "I see, you're not a Far Moon student, so why do you dare to run a restaurant at this age? Who gave you the courage to do so?"
"You should know, you can't just serve any haphazard dishes to satisfy the appetite of guests," he questioned.
His girlfriend glared at him, but this time the Shibuya Style young man glared back unrelentingly.
"You're saying this Chinese food is made by this kid? You might as well eat Japanese cuisine at a restaurant opened by a Far Moon graduate. Coming all this way in bad weather, taking the train here, who knew the head chef was so unreliable, what a disappointment."
Seeing this, his girlfriend could only stand up and bow apologetically.
"I'm sorry, he has some misunderstandings about Chinese cuisine, so…"
Xia Yu waved his hand to indicate he didn't mind.
He also realized that the Shibuya Style young man seemed to genuinely look down on Chinese cuisine, almost like he had 'I've been disappointed by Chinese food' written all over his smug face.
Since that was the case, Xia Yu felt it necessary to enlighten this misguided soul on what constitutes authentic Chinese cuisine!
He had been practicing tirelessly for three days straight in the God of Cooking Space, ready to show off his skills.
Without saying much, Xia Yu turned back to the kitchen and hung the preset menu board on the wall.
An Ya and Mu Xiaoyue came over, crowding around him with a fragrant scent.
"The Sichuan dishes are Fish-Flavored Shredded Pork, Mapo Tofu, and Sour and Spicy Potato Strips."
"The Cantonese dishes are Satay Beef, Pineapple Gulu Meat, and Nam Yu Vegetarian Pot."
Ah.
Mu Xiaoyue expressed a disappointed look, "Why are there only six dishes today?"
"Today, choose three dishes, and I'll waive the bill for you, isn't that enough?" Xia Yu said with amusement, suddenly stopping before returning to the kitchen to ask, "By the way, were there any ingredients delivered this afternoon?"
"Yes, some are in the fridge, and others that couldn't fit are outside. By the way, where did you order the ingredients from, the delivery people were really professional…" Mu Xiaoyue wiped the corner of her mouth.
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