Universe Infinite Canteen

"This is truly like a midsummer night's dream," Chen Zhengyi savored the dream that felt like reality, then asked Ma Lu, "What is the effect of this dish?"

"It allows you to see the future... a certain possibility."

Ma Lu lied. The true effect of the dish was actually to let a person see something they had longed for their entire life but could never obtain.

"Is that so?" Chen Zhengyi's eyes flickered, but in the end, he didn't say anything, just used his saliva to wash the hairs on his face.

"I've already tasted spring, and summer, so next must be autumn, right?"

"That's correct." Ma Lu had already brought over the last dish.

— Autumn's Key.

It was still a white plate, but this time at the very center of the plate there was a large white soup spoon, cradling a thick reddish-brown soup in the middle.

The center of the thick soup was sprinkled with fried mushroom slices and chopped parsley.

Upon seeing this dish, Chen Zhengyi's pupils shrank sharply, and this time he didn't even taste it himself before he blurted out, "Can I, can I meet the chef here?"

After a pause, he added, "I'm willing to add 200 Star Currency to the original agreed price, just to meet that Cosmic Chef."

"Okay... uh, I'll go ask him, but most likely there shouldn't be any problem."

Ma Lu, hearing that there was an extra 200 Star Currency to be earned, very nearly agreed on the spot.

In the end, however, he decided to seek the opinion of the person involved first. He went to the kitchen to relay Chen Zhengyi's request to Old Wang, and as expected, Old Wang readily agreed.

Afterward, he returned to the dining area with Ma Lu. By this time, Chen Zhengyi was already drinking the mushroom soup.

On seeing Old Wang and Ma Lu approach, he put down his spoon, stood up, and extended his hand.

"You... you must be the Cosmic Chef who recently arrived in this dimension. I heard about you from Boss Yan and the city manager."

Old Wang shook hands with Chen Zhengyi, "Welcome to Universe Infinite Canteen. May I know if the dishes tonight were to your taste?"

"I am very satisfied. I will pay you the 500 Star Currency we agreed upon, and I'll add an additional 200. Besides that, I have a question I would like to ask you."

Chen Zhengyi paused for a moment, "As far as I know, the recipe for this mushroom soup has only been passed down in my hometown; how did you come into possession of this recipe?"

After asking, his red eyes stared intently at Old Wang.

However, the latter's response left Chen Zhengyi stunned.

"I don't know."

"Hmm?"

"As for the recipes I have, I don't know where they come from. They have been stored in my sector since the time I discovered them," Old Wang replied.

"Is that so?" A look of disappointment flickered in Chen Zhengyi's eyes, but he quickly regained his composure and cheerfully paid the 700 Star Currency.

Seeing the incoming transaction in the digital wallet, Ma Lu's smile grew increasingly brilliant.

Although this income seemed rather insignificant compared to the enormous debt he had accrued, it was, after all, a good start.

Considering that Chen Zhengyi was the first customer from a different dimension since the opening of Universe Infinite Canteen, Ma Lu even took out his phone and took a photo with him to commemorate the occasion.

Chen Zhengyi didn't refuse, and after the photo, he curiously said, "I'm very satisfied with tonight's meal, but if we're dividing by seasons, this series should have four dishes, right? Why didn't I see the final winter dish?"

Having already received the payment, Ma Lu didn't hide anything and readily admitted, "Yes, there indeed should have been a winter dish, but... I haven't collected all the ingredients."

"I see." Chen Zhengyi felt a bit regretful but didn't mind too much, as he had only requested two dishes from Universe Infinite Canteen in the first place, and having gotten three, he considered it a bonus.

Thus, he simply said, "Then I'll come back after you've collected all the ingredients."

After speaking, Chen Zhengyi stood up and said to Ma Lu, "Would you mind packing up the rest of the dishes for me? I want to take them to a friend."

"Friend? Why didn't you invite them to come eat with you?" Ma Lu asked as he went to grab the take-out boxes.

"She doesn't know my identity. She probably just thinks I'm some weird uncle with a head cover."

Chen Zhengyi didn't elaborate further. Once Ma Lu packed up the remaining food, Chen Zhengyi said his goodbyes and left.

It wasn't until Chen Zhengyi had gone far that Ma Lu remembered something, slapping his forehead, "Shoot, how did I forget to ask for his phone number? How am I supposed to sell him the fourth dish when it's ready? But Jigina should have his contact information, right?"n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

"I don't have it," said Jigina, who appeared from the kitchen at some point. In fact, he wasn't even scheduled to start working with Ma Lu until later, but after seeing the new place, Jigina was very excited.

He immediately called for 40 of his people to come and help in the kitchen, and it was these Valkyrie People who diced the red carrots in that bowl of fried rice, along with the pine nuts. Their strength might not be great, but they have a knack for dealing with these small nuts.

They even have an advantage when it comes to dicing small cubes or slicing thin slices.

Ma Lu asked Jigina, "What do you mean you don't have it? How did you meet Chen Zhengyi?"

Jigina said, "One of our people got lost in the sewer before and then encountered a crocodile. We thought it was a goner, but suddenly a rabbit person appeared before us.

"He killed that crocodile single-handedly, and at that time, he was carrying a bag of milk and vegetables, probably just having finished shopping at a nearby supermarket."

"My clansman thanked him, then asked for his name and address. He said the name wasn't important, but if we insisted on addressing him, we could call him Chen Zhengyi, and as for the address, he is wherever evil resides."

"He didn't want anything in return from us, so remembering Boss Ma's instructions, we told him about Universe Infinite Canteen. After pondering for a moment, he told my clansman that he was willing to spend 500 Star Currency for two mushroom-themed dishes."

"So, you don't know his name or contact details either," Ma Lu said, stroking his chin.

"Tsk, that's really like the actions of a superhero, coming and going without a trace. I've lived in City B for 4 years now and had no idea there was such a character here. Besides, I can understand stray dogs and cats in the sewers, but why a crocodile?"

Ma Lu couldn't figure it out and decided not to dwell on it. Ever since meeting Old Wang, the number of bizarre incidents he'd encountered had been on the rise anyway, so this was just one more.

However, entertaining Chen Zhengyi tonight had been a great start because according to Yan Wu's words, many of those extraordinary guests who could burst with Star Currency often couldn't appear in front of ordinary customers.

Ma Lu's initial plan was to have a private room to accommodate those special guests, but on one hand, a room like that would take up too much space and affect regular business.

On the other hand, even with a private room, those special guests would still be seen by ordinary people when entering and leaving the restaurant, which was somewhat inconvenient.

But, as with today's arrangement, separating the dining times of the two groups completely alleviated such concerns.

The restaurant could operate normally and do business during the day, and then host a night session for another group in the evening, with no interference. The only problem now was that both he and Old Wang would have a harder time.

As a silicon-based life form, Old Wang didn't mind it, but Ma Lu was really feeling the strain. It just so happened that he planned to upgrade his Traveler's Bracelet to extend his gathering time in Different Dimension.

So he was thinking of simply operating the restaurant for 5 days a week and hiring another waiter for the night session. However, this waiter would have to be selected from those guests from Different Dimensions.

Fortunately, the night session didn't have many customers at the moment, and Ma Lu could handle it himself, so he wasn't in an immediate rush.