Chapter 38

"What did you say?!" Ouyang Xiaoyi was very unhappy as she yelled and stared at Zhao Ruge while pouting her lips .

"How could the Bejewelled Nectar Wine compare to the smelly boss' entire restaurant? Is this Zhao Ruge an idiot? Does he really understand the smelly boss' restaurant? Even though the Bejewelled Nectar Wine was expensive, a jar was only five hundred gold coins . That's not even comparable to a plate of ordinary Egg-Fried Rice!" Ouyang Xiaoyi thought .

"Ouyang Xiaoyi, did I say something wrong? How much could a store located in a godforsaken alleyway be worth anyway?" Zhao Ruge said with a sneer as he ignored the loli's furious gaze .

"Hmph! Your words just exposed the fact that you've never tasted the smelly boss' dishes!" Ouyang Xiaoyi snorted and disdainfully turned her head . "If you had really tasted them, then you wouldn't have said that . You can try asking anyone who has tasted Owner Bu's dishes and see if their answer is as ignorant as yours . "

"Ignorance isn't scary . What's scary is that you're acting conceited when you don't know anything!"

Zhao Ruge's handsome face turned sour and was so exasperated that he almost vomited blood . How did he not realize before that this Ouyang Xiaoyi had such a venomous tongue! A loli with a venomous tongue would not be able to get married!

When Xiao Yanyu and the rest saw the disgraced Zhao Ruge, they could not help but burst out laughing . This made Zhao Ruge's face turn ever more sour and he felt as if the entire world was laughing at him .

And like he thought, Xiao Yanyu and the rest were laughing at his ignorance .

"Young masters, this is the Bejewelled Nectar Wine bestowed by His Majesty . Please give it a taste . " Several slim and beautiful court ladies with voices as soft as foam were carrying sapphire jars as they slowly approached each table and carefully poured out the wine .

"The Bejewelled Nectar Wine is so in demand that even the imperial city is only supplied with two thousand jars each year at most . This time, His Majesty took out five hundred jars to celebrate General Xiao's victory . You people should properly taste such a fine wine that you would never be able to taste in that pathetic little store!" Zhao Ruge lifted up the wine cup and sneered .

Xiao Xiaolong and the three barbarians of Ouyang were already captivated by the appearance of the wine .

"Hmph! Who told you that the smelly boss doesn't have any wine? He's brewing it right now!" Now wanting to admit defeat, Ouyang Xiaoyi said .

Zhao Ruge's eyes lit up . "Oh, then let's have a wager . How about we bet whether the wine in that store can compare with the Bejewelled Nectar Wine?"

"Wager? Are you trying to bet with our little sister?!" Before Ouyang Xiaoyi could accept the bet, the three barbarians of Ouyang were infuriated .

The Ouyang family had always been paying close attention to the ideological education of their descendants and were especially strict with Ouyang Xiaoyi . Normally, they would be urging her to practice martial arts and embroidery to develop her into a virtuous, beautiful, intelligent, athletic young woman .

"The first thing this Zhao Ruge mentioned was a wager; is he trying to misguide our little sister?"

"I'll accept your wager," the three barbarians of Ouyang were able to prevent Ouyang Xiaoyi from accepting the bet, but the quiet Xiao Yanyu suddenly opened her delicate, red lips and softly said .

Everyone was shocked that the goddess, Xiao Yanyu, would accept the wager with Zhao Ruge .

"Excellent! And if the goddess loses, you will be accompanying me for moon-viewing aboard a boat for a night . How about it?" Zhao Ruge was elated . He just realised that even the reserved and cool-headed Xiao Yanyu could be impulsive at times .

Xiao Yanyu faintly smiled . Her beautiful face was as pretty as a picture and captivated anyone who was looking at her .

"Fine, but if you lose, you'll give me a fifth grade Spirit Gathering Pill," Xiao Yanyu indifferently said . Her voice that was as beautiful as the song of birds sounded like thunder as it resounded in Zhao Ruge's ears .

"This… A fifth grade Spirit Gathering Pill is a little . . . " Zhao Ruge was slightly hesitating . Honestly speaking, wagering a Spirit Gathering Pill was not something he could afford to do .

"You bastard, you were so full of it when you were trying to wager with my sister . Now that the goddess is wagering with you, you're acting like a dog? Are you looking down on my sister or something?" Ouyang Zhen shouted while pointing at Zhao Ruge .

"He's afraid of losing," Ouyang Xiaoyi said with a sneer as she crossed her arms across her chest .

Lose? Would he really lose? Would the calculating Zhao Ruge, who devised a strategy to kill a fifth grade Battle-King—when he was only a third grade Battle-Maniac—really be afraid of losing… No, would he really lose?

"I accept! There's no way that kind of store would have any decent wine at all," Zhao Ruge said with a snort .

. . .

As the celebration feast was ongoing in the Great Hall, Bu Fang was merrily sharpening his knife in the kitchen .

He took out an ingredient prepared by the system from the freezer .

The part of the boar used in the Sweet 'n' Sour Ribs was the meat near the spine . The spine would first be chopped into pieces and starch would be applied to it . Then, each piece would be deep fried in a wok filled with oil . Finally, a special sweet and sour sauce would be poured onto it to complete the dish .

The prime rib placed on the chopping board was not the same as the one used in the Golden Shumai, the Flame Boar . The fat and tender ribs were filled with spirit energy and the marbling was clear like a piece of drawing . It was obviously not an ordinary piece of pork .

"This pork comes from a fifth grade spirit beast that roams in Mount Tiandang, the Flying Cloud Boar . It was named for the white patches on its black fur that resembled clouds and its fast movement speed . The Flying Cloud Boar has strong and muscular thighs that taste terrible . However, the meat around the area of its spine is not only fresh and tender, but is filled with spirit energy as well . The quality of the meat is excellent . "

"The meat of a fifth grade spirit beast… This is very precious . " Bu Fang's eyes lit up as he picked up a kitchen knife and tried to chop up the prime ribs . Surprisingly, the ribs remained intact and the rebound force even caused Bu Fang's arm to go numb .

"As expected, the meat of a fifth grade spirit beast is truly extraordinary . . . " Bu Fang said with a sigh, then he continued to persevere in chopping and tenderizing the meat . . .

After separating the prime ribs into individual ribs, he placed them into starch paste that he had just prepared . The source of the starch paste was remarkable as well . It was made from a spirit potato found in the central wastelands of the Light Wind Empire .

After all of the pieces of meat were coated in starch, Bu Fang began to prepare a wok filled with oil . He used a high quality oil to fill up half of the wok and waited for the temperature to rise .

Holding his palm above the surface of the oil, he could feel the heat coming from it . When the heat was just hot enough to scald his hand, Bu Fang placed all of the starch-coated ribs into the wok .

Pssst!

As the pieces of meat were quickly turning within the oil, the starch on the exterior started to rapidly turn light yellow . . .

Bu Fang was using a long chopstick to constantly turn each piece of meat . He was skillfully ensuring that every single piece was being perfectly cooked to ensure they all had the same taste .

As the starch on the exterior of every piece started to turn into a darker shade of yellow, Bu Fang scooped all of them up and placed them into a big pottery bowl . There was still oil seeping out from the starch on the surface .

Bu Fang was experienced with making the sweet and sour sauce . The system had already prepared the needed ingredients and the amount used was left up to him .

Very quickly, the tangerine sweet and sour sauce was prepared and the pieces of meat inside the big pottery bowl had also slightly cooled down . Even though there was still steam coming from them, oil had stopped seeping from the starch . He poured the sweet and sour sauce into the big pottery bowl, then stirred it for a while and was ready to place it on a plate .

From pouring the sweet and sour sauce to lightly mixing the pieces of meat, the entire process should not exceed thirty seconds . This really tested Bu Fang's skills, as he needed to be fast to ensure that each piece was evenly coated with the sauce .

Placing the pieces of meat onto the oval blue and white porcelain plate, a delicious, aromatic, tantalizing plate of Sweet 'n' Sour Ribs was completed .

A sweet and sour fragrance was drifting in the air and was continuously rushing into his nasal cavities, making him unable to help but swallow his saliva .

Grabbing a pair of bamboo chopsticks, Bu Fang carried the plate of Sweet 'n' Sour Ribs to the dining area . As he walked, the fragrance would constantly drift to his face, causing him to salivate and increasing his eagerness to taste the dish .

The fragrance of the Sweet 'n' Sour Ribs was very rich and was a mixture of sweet, sour and meat .

The big black dog lying at the entrance was sleeping, but its eyes suddenly opened . They were so bright that it was like a light bulb was turned on in the darkness . Within an instant, the dog disappeared into the store .

And so, as Bu Fang was about to send a piece of Sweet 'n' Sour Ribs into his mouth, he realized that a pair of bright doggy eyes was staring at… the piece of meat clasped between his chopsticks .