A Stay-at-home Dad’s Restaurant In An Alternate World

Mag heard the egg rustle again when going upstairs. He looked over at it and smiled, wondering if it had been scared by Amy’s words.

He went to sleep and was woken up by the clock under his pillow at 5 am. He quickly turned it off; then, he changed into his clothes quietly. He washed up and went into the kitchen to stew the meat.

The meat had to be cooked for two hours, which was why he had to wake up so early. Besides, Mag’s skills in kneading dough might have improved, but it would still take him quite some time to knead two large chunks of dough thoroughly.

He had practiced a lot of times in the test field and made a la zhi roujiamo so perfect that even he, who had been very picky in his previous life, found it very satisfying. Mag was very serious.

The streaky pork was not quite ready after a night, but he would only let his regulars like Mobai try it in the morning, as well as Amy and himself.

He wouldn’t add it to his menu until everything was perfectly ready.

Keeping the taste of dishes unchanged was one of Michelin restaurants’ basic rules, and now it had become one of Mag’s rules.

He had to charge them, of course. He let them try the new dish first because it was one of the terms they had agreed upon when crowdfunding.

Mag’s face became serious when he put on his apron. He put the meat into the pot and strictly followed the best steps and time frame he had learned. After he added the spices and seasonings and turned down the burner, he started kneading dough.

Kneading dough was truly a grueling task. Luckily for Mag, in the test field, he had worked out a way to knead dough faster and easier. Still, it took him an hour to knead two chunks of dough thoroughly, during which time he had to rest two times.

Mag made the dough into bread, put it to the side, and didn’t rush to bake. He took a look at the time—it was already five past seven.

The meat still needed another 15 minutes before it was ready, and Amy was not up as she normally would, so Mag washed his hands, took off his apron, and went upstairs.

Mag walked into the bedroom. Amy’s eyes were closed, seemingly asleep.

Yet her slightly moving eyelashes and her barely suppressed smile said otherwise.

“Well, it seems there is a little fairy who is still sleeping. How to wake her up?” Mag said by the bedside, holding back a chuckle. He feigned being a little troubled.

Amy opened her eyes slightly, took a quick peek at Mag, and closed them fast. Then, she slowly turned her head to one side. “The little fairy said Father’s kiss will wake her up.”

Mag pretended to be enlightened suddenly. “I see. Then let’s wake her up.” He walked up to Amy, stooped down, and kissed her cheek.

Amy opened her eyes immediately. “The little fairy has woken up!” She threw her arms around Mag’s neck and stood up, giggling. Then she looked at him, delighted and full of anticipation. “Father, is the bread which is one hundred times better than pancakes ready?”

Mag nodded, smiling. “Almost, but it tastes best fresh out of the oven. It will be ready after you change into your clothes and wash up.” He felt really happy. Then, he took a look at Amy’s black dress, and said in his head, “System, I want to buy a purple dress. Make it cute. I’ll pay with cash.”

The system didn’t say a word this time, and hundreds of little dresses, whose prices ranged from one gold coin to 500 gold coins, appeared in Mag’s head.

“I’ll take the one that is priced at 10 gold coins.” Mag took a glance at the dress inlaid with many amethysts, which was sold at 500 gold coins, and didn’t quite appreciate its style, so he bought the one with a golden and red Chinese redbud embroidered on the front; and there was a layer of tulle over the purple dress.

Amy’s face lit up, and she nodded quickly. “Okay. Amy will get dressed then.”

After the system said the dress was ready, Mag walked to the wardrobe and then turned around with a smile. “I have a new dress for you. See if you like it,” he said.

“Really?” Amy’s little face was full of expectation.

Mag opened the wardrobe and took out the little dress inside. Then he walked back to the bedside and held the dress in front of himself. “Do you like it?”

Amy looked at the little dress, her eyes filled with pleasant surprise. “It’s so beautiful, and it’s purple. I love it!” She jumped on the bed delightedly. Then she stood on tips of her toes and kissed Mag on the cheek. “Father, Amy loves you.”

“I love you too. Come on, let’s try it on.” Mag was very happy as well. He helped Amy put on the new dress.

The top had some beautiful patterns, the Chinese redbud was a real eye-popper, and there was a layer of purple tulle over the pleated skirt.

Amy spun on the bed and lowered her head to look at the tulle dancing with her, full of surprise. She played with it for a while.

Mag looked at his Amy, who now looked like an angel in the little dress, and smiled. “Put on your shoes and go wash up. Father will make bread for you,” he said as he stroked Amy’s head.

Amy nodded meekly. “Okay.” She climbed down the little stairs, put on her white shoes, and went to wash up.

Mag took a peek at Amy, who was squeezing out toothpaste herself, and thought that she didn’t need his help washing up anymore. Then he went downstairs.

By then, the meat was just ready. Mag turned off the burner and started to put the bread in the preheated oven. He thought about it and put 16 bread loaves inside at intervals. The oven was full.

After a while, Amy finished washing up and went downstairs. She stuck her head in through the kitchen door and looked inside. She had smelled the strong, appetizing aroma of the stewed meat. She took a deep sniff and asked, “It smells so good. Father, what is it? Its smell is very different from the smell of rainbow fried rice.”

Mag turned around and smiled. “Take a seat and you’ll see in a little while,” he answered, keeping her in suspense.

Amy nodded. “I’ll go check the ugly duckling.” She walked to the counter and crouched down beside the egg. She leaned close and listened for a while. “Wake up now, ugly duckling. Come out today, or I’ll roast you right now.”

Suddenly, the once quiet egg rustled, seeming to be a little uneasy.

Amy nodded. “That’s the spirit! Go and smash it!”

The rustle became faster as if it were trying its best to avoid being roasted alive.

Mag shook his head as he smiled in the kitchen. My little girl is very cute, but I feel sorry for the little creature in the egg.

He sliced open a loaf of bai ji bread, took a chunk of meat from the pot, chopped it into small pieces, and stuffed them all into the bread. Then he added some gravy into it. An authentic la zhi roujiamo was now ready.

Mag walked out of the kitchen with a roujiamo in one hand and a plate in the other. “Amy, the bread which is one hundred times better than pancakes is ready. Come here and try this la zhi roujiamo.”