Chapter 53: Girls’ Gathering
No matter how rich the contents of the Xiang Family’s lunch boxes are, the staple food definitely isn’t enough for four people to share, so before the fifth period ended, Xiang Chuan prepared to use the terminal to issue a command to Little Star 2, which was on standby in the club activity room, to have it deliver some buns to her dormitory. Ouyang Yating saw her open the command page and immediately stopped Xiang Chuan: “Later during lunch time, our class’s classmates will definitely rush to the club activity room first to claim food, so let’s just have this AI stay on standby in the club activity room.”
Xiang Chuan thought about it and agreed. Her own class’s classmates were all the type whose appetite overpowered reason, daring to openly steal food at the opening ceremony. By then, they would surely fight over it fiercely, and there was no guarantee they wouldn’t share the news with students from other classes. So she issued a command to Little Star 2 to be ready at any time to receive students coming to claim buns and steamed buns, and limited the quantity each person could claim to one.
It wasn’t that she was stingy; mainly, yesterday her father had taken half of the yeast culture at home to the company for research and large-scale production. Now there was only one portion left at home. Although it solved the problem of the yeast culture overflowing at home, she had to start cultivating it from scratch here in the club activity room. That’s why she was eager this morning to have Ouyang Yating and Liang Gong confirm the essential items list, so they could get the sealed large glass jars and flour sooner and prepare the yeast for club activities earlier.
As soon as the bell rang, the classmates in the class predictably rushed straight out of the physics room. That momentum startled the teacher who was directing the AI to pack up the physics devices, who hurriedly tried to maintain order with pleas and persuasion, leaving the students from other classes who were leisurely preparing to leave their classrooms dumbfounded.
Why are they in such a hurry to get out?
Is there new food on the menu at the canteen today?
Even the students from Class Eight, who usually presented a cool and aloof image, rushed into the crowd this time, and Ainuo was no exception.
There was no helping it; the chicken buns really suited his taste. If he went late, they would definitely be snatched up. Although the vegetable buns and steamed buns tasted good too, but… boys in puberty love meat.
“No need to rush like this!” Xiang Chuan, sweating from the classmates crowding the door and blocking her way out of the classroom, quickly opened the terminal light screen, turned on the amplification function, and shouted: “Today’s buns and steamed buns are limited to one per person! There’s definitely enough quantity!”
Only after these words did the crowding at the door ease slightly. But once everyone filed out one by one, they either hopped onto foldable anti-gravity mobility devices that looked like small bicycles or just took off running, startling the students from other classes who had just left their classrooms on the first floor of the teaching building nearby. But upon closer look, those students from other classes also quietly quickened their pace, blending into Class Eight’s group and running along—clearly friends of Class Eight students who knew the “inside story.”
As for how everyone crowded in line to claim buns in the club activity room afterward, that had nothing to do with the four who leisurely walked back to the student luxury apartment. Anyway, with surveillance and Little Star 2 maintaining order, no matter how literally “starved” they were, there were only so many people, so it wouldn’t lead to any stampede accidents.
When Xiang Chuan returned to the dormitory and directed Little Star 1 to divide the chicken meatballs from the food box into five portions, while she poured fruit milk to entertain her three guests, the first batch of students who had grabbed buns were already joyfully lining up obediently at the canteen. There was no helping it; one flour-based food really couldn’t fill up the pubescent boys and girls who had been in class all morning.
But when they held a spoon in their right hand and a bun in their left, starting to enjoy lunch alternating bites of bun and liquid food, after the first bite, everyone fell silent, then quietly pushed the liquid food aside and ate their buns in silence.
No comparison, no harm.
In Xiang Chuan’s dormitory, a whole plate of buns, six flatbreads, four cups of fruit milk, five portions minus one of yam chicken meatball soup, plus little desserts like yam cakes and other gourmet food were laid out on the coffee table—Xiang Chuan had already had Little Star 1 help pack Liang Gong’s portion into a sealed small meal box and send it down, of course, not forgetting to add pepper powder.
Ouyang Yating and Nancy had never seen such a spread; they stared dumbfounded at the things on the table, speechless for a long time. As someone experienced, Chou Manman took charge familiarly of opening the door to a new world for her two little friends, while Xiang Chuan, who was fetching pepper powder from the kitchen, was naturally happy to take it easy.
“This is chicken?”
Nancy stared at the meatball soup, the meaty aroma making her swallow subconsciously.
“This is yam?”
Ouyang Yating picked up a piece of yam cake with chopsticks and examined it. The somewhat soft outer skin emitted a milky fragrance, stunning her: Yam could have this texture?
“Put the yam cake down first; desserts are for after the meal.” Xiang Chuan said, “Try the taste first now. It’s seasoned with some salt, but no pepper yet. Compare it after tasting, then with the pepper added.”
The two nodded, scooped up a spoonful of soup with spoons. The fresh and fragrant soup delivered a taste impact far superior to the meat buns. Nancy couldn’t help taking another spoonful. Ouyang Yating cut open a meatball with knife and fork; the tender and elastic meatball had a chewy texture different from the meat bun. She felt there was no more delicious food than this. Could it change even more with pepper?
“Okay, then I’ll add the pepper.”
Xiang Chuan shook the small bottle of pepper powder over everyone’s yam chicken meatball soup, letting a fingernail-sized amount of pepper powder fall into the soup. Nancy curiously leaned in to sniff, and Xiang Chuan quickly moved the soup bowl away.
“Achoo!”
Seeing Xiang Chuan’s action, Nancy instinctively turned her face aside and let out a big sneeze.
“Who sniffs pepper powder directly? Quick, wipe it off.” Xiang Chuan hurriedly had Little Star 1 get tissues for Nancy, then turned to the other two: “Stir the soup with a spoon before eating; once the pepper powder is mixed in, you can drink it.”
The three did as she said. Ouyang Yating scooped up a spoonful of soup; even before it reached her mouth, the aroma her nose caught had changed. The originally fresh and fragrant soup now had an added pungent spicy scent. After tasting, the original sweet fragrance now had a slight spiciness, but upon closer savoring, it was even more flavorful. She looked incredulously at the soup bowl: just a fingernail-sized amount of pepper powder could make such a big change? Skeptically, she cut another piece of chicken meatball; now with the added pepper flavor, it was even more appetite-inducing.
Nearby, Nancy and Chou Manman had already finished a whole chicken meatball.
So delicious! Is this the charm of pepper!
“If it’s good, eat more; pepper goes best with the soup.”
Xiang Chuan chuckled, thinking that after unveiling this thing on the first day at home, the pepper had been directly moved to the seasoning area of the ingredient warehouse. Even the battle-hardened Xiang Weiguo had been conquered, let alone the little girls in front of her?
Please recommend, favorite, and monthly tickets (^_^`)
