Hu Yongfa: "Okay, Master, I’m off to work. Our return customer rate is astonishingly high right now. Anyone who’s tried our buns comes back for more!"

Jiang Liu didn’t reply.

His shop had also opened for business.

The lunch rush was as booming as ever.

Many scalpers appeared at the entrance, buying buns to resell at high prices.

Jiang Liu paid them no mind.

Once a customer bought his buns, it was none of his business if they wanted to sell them to someone else.

1:03 PM.

Everything was sold out. That afternoon, Jiang Liu had also given away seventy cobs of waxy corn.

A little something to thank his regular customers.

He finished cleaning up and scrubbing the pots.

Jiang Liu sat at the counter and opened his phone.

His dear wife at home had sent him a message.

Jun Qingmeng: "Hubby, hubby, I miss you! Waaah, I feel so wronged, I miss you."

"Hubby, you know what? They made buns at the kindergarten for lunch today, and they were disgusting!!! The skin on the buns was so thick, like *this* thick. I couldn’t even bite through it."

"I miss you, and I miss your buns. Your two little pitiful ones are being tortured to death by the kindergarten’s buns."

"You know, Tongtong is so adorable. She didn’t want to eat the buns just now, so she pretended to faint. It was so cute, just as cute as you, hubby~"

"Gotta go work now. Your little wifey is about to turn into a busy little bee. BUZZ BUZZ BUZZ."

"Love you forever (heart)"

Jiang Liu replied: "I’ll make something delicious for you two when you get back. I’ve been working on a new dish."

"I miss you two, too. Go on and get busy."

Jiang Liu stir-fried some sour and spicy shredded potatoes for himself and ate it with a steamed bun, making do for a meal.

After his meal, he sat at the counter to rest.

The sun was scorching today, but there was a light breeze. The sky was a brilliant, cloudless blue—spotless and vast.

Unfortunately, the forest of high-rises was a bit of an eyesore.

Jiang Liu found himself lost in thought.

A smile played on his lips.

He recalled the carefree days of his childhood, lying on haystacks. Back then, his mind was consumed with thoughts of how to escape his parents’ "hunts" or how to trick his mom into giving him pocket money for soda.

A while later, Jiang Liu went out to buy groceries.

He saw a lot of people moving house along the way, which he found a bit strange.

’Is moving house the new trend today?’

At the Vegetable Boss’s stall, Jiang Liu bought some cumin and chili powder.

The usually calm Vegetable Boss got excited. "Boss Jiang, what are you buying these for? Are you making a new dish?"

Jiang Liu smiled and replied, "You could call it a special for today—cumin beef."

"Cumin beef?"

The Vegetable Boss’s tongue was practically dancing. He absolutely loved cumin beef.

’Skewered on a wooden stick, it’s so satisfying to eat.’

"That’s a great dish! I’m sure everyone will love it."

"How much is it?"

The Vegetable Boss didn’t want to take Jiang Liu’s money. "These few bags of spices aren’t worth much. Just take them."

Jiang Liu was amused by his greedy expression. "Alright then. You can come by tonight when I open. No need to queue up, I’ll give you ten skewers on the house."

"Oh, I couldn’t possibly..."

The Vegetable Boss swallowed hard.

He really wanted to eat it.

But his few bags of spices were worth next to nothing. If Boss Jiang put the word out, customers would deliver him a whole truckload of spices, let alone a few bags.

"A serving of cumin beef doesn’t cost much. Just come by tonight."

"Haha, in that case, it would be rude to refuse! Just the thought of getting a free meal from Boss Jiang is something to brag about."

The Vegetable Boss was delighted.

’Boss Jiang is really giving me face. I’ll have to give him a better discount in the future.’

Jiang Liu returned to his shop.

On the way, he bought an air fryer.

You could grill the cumin beef, or you could use an air fryer.

If you use an air fryer, you line it with parchment paper, place the marinated beef cubes on top, spray them with oil, and they come out crispy on the outside and tender on the inside.

Then you sprinkle some sesame seeds on top, and the aroma is so incredible your tongue could melt.

One bite, and the rich juices from the beef would explode in your mouth.

At 5:40 PM, Jiang Tongtong came back to the shop, pulling Jun Qingmeng by the hand as they pushed the door open.

The moment she was inside, Tongtong couldn’t wait to shout, "Daddy! Your wittle pitiful one is baaack!"

"Hubby, I missed you so much today!"

Jun Qingmeng’s face was flushed, and a sheen of sweat beaded on her forehead.

The two of them had secretly hurried back. Jiang Liu had told her not to run, but they both wanted to see him as soon as possible, so they had walked a bit fast.

Jiang Liu stroked Tongtong’s head. "Are you hungry? Have a glass of juice first. Once I’m done here, we’ll have something delicious."

"Daddy, what delicious thing? Can you tell me and Mommy?"

"Cumin beef cubes!"

"Wow! Daddy, you’re the best! This little cutie worships you!"

"Hubby, the big cutie worships you, too."

Jiang Liu chuckled. "You two flatterers. Sucking up the moment you get back. Do you think I wouldn’t feed you if you didn’t?"

"Hee hee, Tongtong doesn’t know what ’sucking up’ is, but I know Daddy is the best, number one best in the world! Mommy is number two, and Tongtong is number three."

"Alright, alright. You’ve got the ’best in the world’ rankings all sorted out."

"Hee hee! Daddy, you’re the greatest."

Jiang Liu got to work.

Jun Qingmeng followed him around curiously. "Hubby, can I learn?"

"What, are you planning to take over the cooking for me from now on?"

"Can’t I? I see how tired you are every day. I want to help share the burden."

Jun Qingmeng bravely met Jiang Liu’s gaze.

She was willing to express her true feelings in front of Jiang Liu.

"Sure. If you want to learn, I’ll teach you."

"Tongtong wants to learn, too!"

Jiang Liu began to explain the key steps of making cumin beef to them.

"First, you have to marinate the beef. See? For about a pound of beef, you can crack in an egg, pour in some beer, and add some cornstarch and flour. This protects the beef and makes it crispy on the outside and tender on the inside..."

Tongtong’s attention had already drifted elsewhere. "Daddy, the beef you’re cutting looks so pretty. Hmm, Tongtong can do that too."

"You want to give it a try?"

"Oopsie, Tongtong was just kidding! Daddy, you didn’t take me seriously, did you? GIGGLE GIGGLE."

Jiang Liu gave her a light flick on the forehead. "All you do all day is show off. How high can you count now?"

At the mention of that, Tongtong’s eyes lit up. "I can count to twelve! Daddy, aren’t I amazing?"

’Praise me!’

’Hurry up!’

’This little cutie can’t wait.’

"Yes, very amazing. The most amazing in the world!"

"Wrong!" Tongtong said with a laugh. "Daddy is the most amazing in the world! Mommy is second..."

"I know, I know."

Jiang Liu waved his hand dismissively.

He’d heard it so many times his ears were growing calluses.

Jun Qingmeng stood to the side, smiling without a word.

’She had an adorable husband and an adorable daughter.’

Then, Jiang Liu began to swiftly dice the meat.

The tender red yak meat, marbled with white fat and sinew, was cut into thumb-sized pieces.

Jiang Tongtong watched in shock, her mouth hanging open.

’Daddy really is the most amazing!’

’If only she could be as amazing as Daddy someday.’

Jiang Liu placed the prepared beef into the air fryer. One hundred eighty degrees for twenty minutes.

After a few minutes, a CRACKLING and POPPING sound came from inside.

Tongtong pricked up her ears to listen. "Daddy, the beef pieces are fighting in there."

"No, that’s the sound of the moisture inside the beef bursting when it meets the high heat and oil."

"Oh, Tongtong gets it now!"

’Her daddy knew everything!’

Soon, twenty minutes had passed, and the fragrant cumin beef was ready.

...