Bai Ye was stunned. What did he even do to activate this?
But after taking a closer look, Bai Ye was filled with excitement.
He usually spent his free time reading free web novels and had long been familiar with the concept of "systems" and "cheat abilities." He had even fantasized about having one for himself.
And now, it seemed like luck had just arrived.
Since it was called the Super Catering System, it naturally had something to do with cooking, which Bai Ye thought was quite fitting. After all, cooking was the only skill he had, and he liked it.
The system had several modules, though most were grayed out. After activating it, Bai Ye saw a new "Lottery" feature pop up, allowing him to open one section.
Without hesitation, Bai Ye clicked to draw.
The pointer finally stopped at the "Ingredient Handling" module.
Bai Ye read the description carefully. It seemed to be an auxiliary skill. The "One-click Cleaning" feature was the only one currently available, with future features like "One-click Slicing" and "One-click Shredding" still locked.
To upgrade these features, Bai Ye would need skill points, and unlocking other modules required points as well.
He licked his lips. This skill didn't seem all that useful. Slicing and shredding were basic kitchen skills. Unless he was cooking for a large crowd, he didn't really need them.
As Bai Ye pondered how to earn skill points, he kept scrolling through the system.
[Ding. The system has detected that it is now capable of undertaking tasks. Would you like to activate a random task? Completing the task will reward you with a large amount of money and randomly drop special items.]
Money?
A large amount?
The words immediately clouded Bai Ye's mind. He was so poor that he could practically tattoo "poor" on his forehead. "Yes, yes, yes!" he eagerly responded.
This system had completely found his weakness! It was freezing cold outside, and Bai Ye wasn't planning to do anything too complicated. Moreover, once he accepted the task, a countdown timer appeared above his head. In the time it took him to gather his things, five minutes had already passed.
Looking at the ingredients in his van, Bai Ye suddenly realized that the one-click cleaning function was pretty convenient. After all, there was nowhere on the road to wash vegetables.
He selected the "Clean" option in the system, and immediately, several options appeared—pictures of the ingredients in his van.
Bai Ye chose a tomato and two small bok choy.
In an instant, the tomato and bok choy were cleaned, and the system alerted him that they were now in the box.
Bai Ye skeptically opened the transparent food box. Inside were the tomato and two bright green bok choy—washed clean, and even had water droplets on them.
He turned on the stove, added a bit of oil, and the knife danced in his hand as he quickly chopped the tomato into small pieces, no bigger than his fingertips.
In the pan, the sizzling sound made the tomato quickly cook down into a soft paste. He added soy sauce, chicken essence, and a few other seasonings, and the aroma filled the air.
Bai Ye glanced at the hourglass above his head. He still had plenty of time and waited for the water to boil.
Bai Ye was frying up food by the side of the road, which was quite a spectacle. The drivers around him, initially curious about what he was doing, were shocked when they saw him actually pull out a stove and start cooking.
A few people, not content with just watching from their cars, even got out and gathered around to watch. Some mischievous souls pulled out their phones and started streaming the whole scene.
Bai Ye tried to focus on his cooking. He would be lying if he said he wasn't nervous. He was used to cooking in a kitchen, but this was the first time people were filming him while he worked.
At this moment, Bai Ye couldn't help but think: Are these people not cold?
The water quickly boiled. Bai Ye pulled out two flatbreads from the van and tossed them into the pot.
These were the cheap, unpackaged flatbreads he had bought from his rented place. They were very affordable—over eighty pieces for just thirty yuan. Each piece cost less than fifty cents, which was perfect for someone like Bai Ye, who didn't have much money.
The noodles broke apart as they boiled, and Bai Ye cracked an egg into the pot. When the egg whites solidified, he added the bok choy.
They say instant noodles aren't nutritious, but with a tomato-based broth, an egg, and some bok choy, didn't that make for a pretty nutritious meal?
As the dish finished, Bai Ye added a few drops of sesame oil, just enough to give it a fragrant aroma when it was ready to be served.
[Ding. Random Task (1): Please make yourself a lunch within 15 minutes. Difficulty: ★]
Bai Ye: ???
System, are you alright?
If he were in a restaurant right now, this task would make perfect sense, but he was stuck on the road! What was he supposed to cook with?
Though his van had all kinds of equipment—he even had power outlets from when he used to deliver boxed lunches—this felt a bit excessive.
"Hey, what happens if I can't complete the task? Can I swap it for another one?"
The system immediately rejected his request: [Sorry, no. Failure to complete the task will result in a random penalty. Try your best!]
"What kind of random penalties?"
[For example, we might clear all your money. Including the money in your bank account...]
Bai Ye's expression changed instantly. To protect the few hundred yuan he had in savings, he quickly said, "It's just making a meal, no big deal!"
Making a meal wasn't a big deal. Bai Ye steeled himself, opened the car door wider, and rummaged around. He found the gas canister and dragged it to a nearby open space.
He moved two boxes over, stacking them to the right height, and placed the gas stove on top.
This little gas stove was a backup for the restaurant, used when the main stove didn't have enough heat.
In a few minutes, Bai Ye had hooked up the gas and stove. He tested the flame, and it burned brightly.
It was a good thing the snow had stopped today. If it had been yesterday, trying to cook outside would've been impossible.
With the freezing cold, Bai Ye wasn't planning to make anything too complicated. Plus, since the countdown had started, only five minutes had passed while he was gathering his things.
It was just a small preference of his.
His family was poor, and even sesame oil had to be used sparingly. Every time Bai Ye added a few drops, it reminded him of home.
Although there were pots, pans, and utensils in the car, those were meant for the kitchen. Bai Ye was thankful to the old man for packing that bag of take-out boxes for him.
Inside, there were not only the multi-compartment lunchboxes, but also many of the round containers that were commonly used for restaurant take-outs.
He picked a suitable one and poured the cooked noodles into it.
Beep beep!
A crisp bee-like sound rang out, and the hourglass countdown stopped.
Bai Ye glanced up, still having about a minute and a half left.
[Ding. Congratulations, host, Task (1) completed! Reward 1: 5 experience points. Reward 2: 99 yuan. Please check.]
Just as Bai Ye was about to ask the system where to check his rewards, his phone beeped in sync, and a bank message popped up.
[X Country Agricultural Bank]xx Ltd. completed a transfer of 99.00 X coin to your account ending in 3376 on January 8th at 11:03. Balance: 1072.73 yuan.
Oh! His bank balance had broken four digits?
How exciting!
To think that with the salary the small boss had given him, it would take him half a day of work to earn that much money. And now, just from cooking noodles, he had it?
At this rate, is that small go