Ji Rongxia assured him repeatedly, “But they’re really delicious. They’re called crystal shrimp dumplings. I’ll definitely bring some for you to try tomorrow!”

Gu Tangjin: “Hmm, then we’ll eat them tomorrow. Why are they called Crystal Shrimp Dumplings?”

“Because the dumplings are transparent, and you can see the filling inside…” Ji Rongxia suddenly found himself chatting away.

The Cooking God System sighed in admiration; the host’s partner really knew how to handle things. The host’s emotions had finally settled down.

Gu Tangjin lay back down beside Ji Rongxia, listening to him rave about how beautiful and delicious the crystal shrimp dumplings were, his eyes brimming with laughter.

Ji Rongxia had thought he’d be too angry to sleep, but with Gu Tangjin by his side, he actually fell asleep very quickly.

Gu Tangjin gazed at Xia-ger’s sleeping face and gently smoothed his slightly disheveled strands of hair. Xia-ger had worked up a sweat from his anger, and the strands had stuck to his cheek.

“It really doesn’t hurt much anymore,” Gu Tangjin said in a very low voice.

The next day, Ji Rongxia woke up early.

Ji Rongxia lay on the bed, propping his chin in his hand, eagerly waiting for Gu Tangjin to wake up.

The first thing Gu Tangjin saw when he opened his eyes was Ji Rongxia staring at him.

“What’s wrong?” Gu Tangjin asked, puzzled.

Ji Rongxia: “I forgot to tell you last night—you don’t have to pretend in front of me. We can walk normally in secret.”

Gu Tangjin was taken aback. He felt a sense of relief: “Alright, but I’ll need Xia-ger and the young master to remind me. Otherwise, what if I forget to pretend in front of others?”

Ji Rongxia patted his slender chest. “Don’t worry, leave it to me.”

The two of them dawdled for a while before finally getting up.

Since they got up a bit late today, Ji Rongxia didn’t make the crumbly pancakes; he was a bit sick of them after baking so many yesterday.

Today, Ji Rongxia only made pan-fried buns.

He was already very skilled at making pan-fried buns, so he quickly finished setting up the breakfast stall. As soon as his parents woke up, Ji Rongxia couldn’t wait to tell them he was going to the general store to buy some things. He grabbed Gu Tangjin, took the prepared fruit sugar and silver coins, and set off.

“Xia-ger really is full of energy. ” Yao Tianlan laughed as she watched their backs.

“He’s still thrilled about the silver he just earned. I noticed his eyes are red—I’m afraid he didn’t sleep well last night from excitement,” Gu Chuncai said with a smile. “As for buying the land, we’ll have to put some effort into it. I’ll go ask Old Tao and the others for information.”

The “Old Tao” Gu Chuncai mentioned was a constable in Qingchi County. Like Gu Chuncai, he had originally fled the famine to Qingchi County; Old Tao’s parents and brothers had all died on the road, and he was the only one to survive.

After arriving in Qingchi County, Old Tao married into a family surnamed Shi, becoming the husband of Shi Fulang. The Shi family ran a mill, and their daily work involved the physical labor of grinding flour and beans for others. They had only one ger and didn’t want to marry him off, so when they met the young and strong Old Tao, the two sides hit it off immediately.

Old Tao worked as a laborer at the mill for several years. Later, thanks to his in-laws and his own robust physique, he became a constable. In this dynasty, constables were required to register as commoners, but since Old Tao had married into the family, only he had to register—it didn’t affect his Fulang or their son. It was quite a stroke of luck.

With Old Tao serving as a constable, those ruffians dared not cause trouble for the mill anymore. Although Shi Fulang had only one ger, the Shi family was now living quite comfortably. Word was that recently, his ger was also looking to take a son-in-law into the family.

“Then bring some food and drink, or just invite the man over directly,” said Yao Tianlan.

Gu Chuncai: “Alright.”

As they chatted, the two of them casually helped Gu Tangjin and Ji Rongxia put away the wok and bamboo lid used for making breakfast that morning.

Meanwhile, Ji Rongxia led Gu Tangjin to the Diao family’s general store.

The store had just opened.

Seeing Ji Rongxia and Gu Tangjin rushing over, Shopkeeper Diao greeted them with a smile: “Xia-ger, Scholar Gu, what brings you here? Come on in.”

“We’ve lost all our needles at home, and the ones we’ve managed to find aren’t very good. We came to see what sewing supplies you have here,” Gu Tangjin said, sticking to the story they’d agreed upon.

“The sewing supplies are over here,” Shopkeeper Diao said, pointing to the display. “We’ve also just received a shipment of cotton fabric—it’s light and soft, perfect for making clothes.”

As he spoke, Shopkeeper Diao reached out to show Gu Tangjin and Ji Rongxia the sewing supplies and cotton fabric.

Gu Tangjin quickly said, “Uncle Diao, we can look around on our own.”

“Alright then, take your time.” Shopkeeper Diao wasn’t overly enthusiastic; after all, they were neighbors. If he fussed over them too much, it would seem like he was forcing them to buy his goods, which wouldn’t be appropriate.

Ji Rongxia, meanwhile, asked his system in his mind, “How about it? Any discoveries?”

Without Ji Rongxia needing to remind it, the Cooking God System was already scanning frantically.

【Ding! Energy source detected! Energy source detected!】

“Host, it’s real! I’ve scanned another energy stone!!!” The Cooking God System’s electronic voice was brimming with excitement.

“Really?” Ji Rongxia hadn’t expected there actually to be one.

He gently tugged at Gu Tangjin’s sleeve. Gu Tangjin looked at him; no words were needed—from the sparkle in Ji Rongxia’s eyes, Gu Tangjin knew the answer.

The two of them silently picked out some sewing supplies.

Shopkeeper Diao: “That’ll be twelve wen.”

After paying the wen, Gu Tangjin pretended to be a bit hesitant and didn’t leave right away.

Shopkeeper Diao’s eyes darted about as he quickly asked, “Xiucai, is there anything else you’d like to buy?”

Gu Tangjin: “Um, the day before yesterday, Xia-ger and I bought some stones from Xiao Yun that Brother Diao had brought back. Both Xia-ger and I really liked them, so we were thinking of trading some sugar for a few more small stones to take home as ornaments.”

“Oh, you mean those. If you two still want some, I’ll have Xiao Yun bring those stones out for you to look at, and you can trade for the ones you like.” At the mention of this, Shopkeeper Diao perked up. In the past, when Xiao Yun and his son treasured those stones, Shopkeeper Diao would have hesitated—but didn’t they both stop cherishing them now?

So why should he hesitate? Sugar is worth more!

“Thank you, Shopkeeper Diao.” Ji Rongxia couldn’t suppress the smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. He hadn’t expected to actually get anything—he’d already prepared himself for a fruitless trip.

Diao Qiuyun was a bit surprised when she was called out; Xia-ger really did like these little stones.

She brought out the six pouches she kept in her room and emptied the little stones onto the counter.

Diao Qiuyun had carefully washed all these little stones; they were spotless.

“Host, the one on your left—the one with a slight reddish tint—is the one.” The voice of the Cooking God System rang out.

Ji Rongxia moved his hand away from a dull, grayish stone and picked up the slightly reddish one with some uncertainty.

Ji Rongxia asked in his mind, “System, why does this stone look so different from the one last time? That one was grayish.”

The one he held now looked somewhat like the gemstones described in storybooks, yet not quite.

“Host, this stone’s outer layer has been stripped away. It shouldn’t come into prolonged contact with the human body. Don’t hold it with your bare hands,” the Cooking God System hurriedly said.

Don’t touch it?!

This stone seems even more powerful.

Ji Rongxia quickly found a handkerchief and placed the stone on it.

He then casually picked out a few more stones with unique shapes, wrapped them in the handkerchief, and, holding the edges, said, “That’ll do.”

Gu Tangjin took out two packets of crushed sugar and handed them to Diao Qiuyun.

“One packet is enough,” Diao Qiuyun waved her hand, taking only one.

Gu Tangjin placed the other packet on the counter.

Regardless of whether Diao Qiuyun knew the value of these stones, they couldn’t pretend to be completely unaware.

“Take it. You went out of your way for us—don’t be so polite with Xia-ger or me. Alright, we’re off.” With that, Gu Tangjin led Ji Rongxia away.

Diao Qiuyun tried to chase after them but was stopped by Shopkeeper Diao.

“Hey, money can’t buy what’s close to your heart. He’s happy with it—why are you in such a hurry? Take it. Go home and have your mother make you some sweet soup to drink.” Shopkeeper Diao happily pocketed the sugar.

Seeing this, Diao Qiuyun sighed helplessly.

They hadn’t gone far when Ji Rongxia secretly pulled out the slightly reddish stone.

“Let me take a look first,” Gu Tangjin suddenly said.

He picked up the stone. Ji Rongxia was anxious to warn him that the stone was dangerous, but since there were still people on the street, he couldn’t say anything aloud and could only signal him anxiously with his eyes.

The Cooking God System, which had been about to absorb the energy, immediately halted upon seeing this.

Gu Tangjin examined the stone from every angle, then quickly returned it to Ji Rongxia’s hand and said, “All right.”

Ji Rongxia clenched his fist.

The Cooking God System absorbed the stone, and Ji Rongxia felt his palm go empty.

【System charging… Estimated charging time: sixteen hours.】

He let out a sigh of relief, took out another clean handkerchief, and wiped Gu Tangjin’s hands first, then his own.

Gu Tangjin frowned slightly at the sight. It seemed this stone was dangerous—at least more so than the one from last time.

“Thank goodness Xiao Yun just packed these stones away and set them aside; she didn’t carry them on her person,” Gu Tangjin said.

Ji Rongxia nodded repeatedly. Exactly—if she carried them around all day, who knows what would happen.

“I haven’t asked you yet—why did you want to take a look?” Ji Rongxia asked curiously.

Gu Tangjin explained, “I was thinking of going back and sketching what this stone and the one from last time look like. That way, when Diao Daliang returns, and we ask him, we’ll have a way to phrase the question. We can’t just ask where all these stones came from. Brother Diao has traveled far and wide for so many years; he probably can’t even remember or explain it himself.”

“Right, that’s the way to go,” Ji Rongxia realized.

The two returned to the restaurant and washed their hands first. As for the two handkerchiefs, Ji Rongxia, though it pained him, secretly burned them.

After completing these tasks, both felt much more at ease.

Business at the restaurant was as busy as usual that day. In the evening, Gu Chuncai stepped out for a bit. When he returned, he announced that he would be inviting Constable Tao over for a drink the day after tomorrow.

That night, Ji Rongxia entered the system space and was surprised to find a new “restaurant” had appeared next to the existing one.

“Hello, Host,” the cloud-shaped Cooking God System drifted over.

Ji Rongxia: “Little Chef, you seem to be glowing even brighter.”

The System flickered and said, “Thank you for the compliment, Host. I now have about 45% energy. I just need to charge another 15% to open the mall. I can currently maintain the System Space for three hours every night. From now on, you can enter and exit whenever you think of it—no need to wait for the time to run out.”

“This little stone has a lot of energy,” Ji Rongxia said, overjoyed. This brought him a huge step closer to curing Tangjin!

After his initial excitement subsided, Ji Rongxia remembered to ask, “What’s going on here? Why are there two restaurants?”

“That’s the practice space. The kitchenware in your restaurant’s kitchen is too limited, so the dishes you can prepare are restricted. Previously, I lacked sufficient energy to maintain anything beyond the restaurant’s interior. Now that my energy is adequate, I can simulate more scenarios,” the Cooking God System explained.

“Limited? No way. The Kitchen House has everything—how is that limited?” Ji Rongxia asked, puzzled.

The Cooking God System floated beside Ji Rongxia and said, “Host, come take a look.”

Ji Rongxia followed the System and entered this place, which looked exactly like the Gu family’s restaurant on the surface.

The Cooking God System introduced each item one by one: “Here we have a primitive oven, an upgraded earthen stove, a simple refrigerator, a sliding egg beater, a hydraulic exhaust fan, a coal-fired grill, a manual ice cream maker… Considering the technological level of the small world you’re in, the kitchenware constructed by the Cooking God System can all be replicated in this world.”

As soon as the Cooking God System finished speaking, the system automatically issued a long-term mission.

【Ding, Long-Term Quest: Master the use of the kitchenware provided by the system.】

【Quest Reward: Blueprints for the relevant kitchenware.】

“Wow!” Ji Rongxia looked at these strange kitchen tools with curiosity. “That’s amazing.”

He recognized pots, pans, and bowls, but he wasn’t familiar with the specific items the Cooking God System had mentioned.

“Would the Host like a lesson on how to use these?” The Cooking God System finally regained some of its high-tech confidence.

“No, thanks. I haven’t finished the crystal shrimp dumplings yet, and there are still eighteen dishes waiting for me.” Although Ji Rongxia was quite tempted by these new kitchen tools, he immediately declined.

He was curious, but he had to complete the seasoning task first.

With that, he headed out.

Cooking God System: “……”

True to the host it had chosen—his goals were crystal clear!

The Cooking God System obediently followed the host back to the kitchen of another restaurant.

“Last time I only managed 83 percent; this time I’m determined to hit 95.” Ji Rongxia stood by the stove as various seasonings and ingredients reappeared.

Ji Rongxia began seasoning with great care, starting with selecting the right number of fresh shrimp.

Outside the System Space, Gu Tangjin leaned against the bed, flipping through an agricultural book.

He had a hunch that this time, Xia-ger wouldn’t be gone for long.

Under the light of the oil lamp, Gu Tangjin’s profile looked even softer.

When Ji Rongxia emerged, he was momentarily dazed; no matter how many times he looked at Tangjin, he was still so handsome.

“You’re back?” Gu Tangjin set down the book in his hand.

Ji Rongxia got up and gently tapped the nightstand by their bed; instantly, a plate of crystal-clear shrimp dumplings appeared on it.

He tilted his chin slightly, looking like a majestic tabby cat that had just successfully caught its prey.

“Yeah, I’m back. Here, try these crystal shrimp dumplings!”