Chapter 687 - 706: Meeting Up Today
Chapter 687: Chapter 706: Meeting Up Today
An A+ glow!
The glow of A+!
A Mecha Soldier who, at only twenty-two, could advance from B+ to A+!
At that moment, Teacher Mao was utterly convinced that Jiang Qiuqiu would one day become an S-level soldier, or perhaps even stronger—an SS Level soldier!
The test ended quickly. Jiang Qiuqiu cut off her spiritual power. Teacher Mao was a teacher in the purest sense of the word; his lifelong dream was to supply a steady stream of talent to the Federation.
To help every talented individual realize their full potential.
"Student Jiang, you always manage to do this—just when I think you’ve done an excellent job, you do even better."
"I’ll report your advancement to the academy. In the future... you’ll receive more opportunities." He patted Jiang Qiuqiu’s shoulder. "Keep it up!"
"I will. Thank you, Teacher Mao."
"Don’t thank me. I should be thanking you." Teacher Mao smiled. "Yueyue brings me surprise and joy."
Jiang Qiuqiu simply smiled and said nothing.
After leaving the infirmary, Jiang Qiuqiu asked Teacher Mao for leave. "Teacher Mao, I have some errands to run this afternoon."
"Alright, off you go."
After parting ways with Teacher Mao, Jiang Qiuqiu headed to the faculty apartments. It was almost one o’clock; time to start preparing the ingredients.
She put everything that needed stewing on to simmer.
She thinly sliced the lamb and cut the beef into chunks. She took out the potatoes she’d bought today for a braised beef brisket with potatoes.
There was also fish, one of which she would steam to bring out its ultimate freshness and flavor.
The pork ribs would be grilled barbecue-style.
The pork belly would be made into braised pork belly. She had also seen abalone among the new arrivals on Taotao Fresh, and feeling an itch to show off her skills, Jiang Qiuqiu bought some more pork to mince. She planned to use a double-bowl method to steam the minced pork for a Cantonese-style clear abalone soup.
It would be so savory it could make your eyebrows fall off.
’Taking stock of the menu, there are quite a few meat dishes,’ she thought. ’The rest should be vegetables.’ She would make two purely vegetarian dishes: one a simple stir-fried bok choy, the other smashed cucumbers.
She decided against common dishes like bamboo shoots or scrambled eggs with tomato. Counting again, she already had thirteen dishes on the menu. Following the tradition for hosting a dinner, the total number of dishes should be an auspicious one, like sixteen or eighteen. After a moment’s thought, Jiang Qiuqiu decided to make three desserts to round out the meal.
Many of the guests today were older, and both General Yuan and General Tie preferred savory flavors. ’So, fried beef pastries it is.’ Layers of flaky, crispy pastry would wrap around minced beef, deep-fried to a golden brown. When cut, crispy flakes would shower the plate.
’With the savory dessert settled, I’ll add two sweet ones. Fried milk is a must—I love it myself. Besides the fried milk, I’ll make some pumpkin cakes, too.’
It was a new season, and the pumpkins on Taotao Fresh were a lovely golden-yellow, sweet and inviting.
With the menu decided, she could start cooking in earnest.
The biggest difference in her cooking today was that from start to finish, Jiang Qiuqiu diligently applied her Healing Spiritual Power.
She recalled the method Mrs. Ai’er had taught her: to empathize, then to invest her feelings into the food, infusing each dish with abundant emotion and active spiritual power.
Because she was striving for perfection, her pace was a little slower than usual.
They had agreed to eat at five o’clock, but it was already nearly four-thirty, and Jiang Qiuqiu still had three or four dishes left to make.
’Luckily, only the desserts are left, and they should be quick to prepare.’
She quickly prepared the beef pastries and put them in the hot oil to fry. Amidst the SIZZLE, the DING-DONG of the doorbell sounded particularly sharp.
Jiang Qiuqiu turned off the heat, fished out the beef pastries, and ran to the door. When she opened it, familiar faces greeted her.
It was Mrs. Ai’er and her entourage of generals.
"You’re here!"
"Please, come in!"