Unforgettable Delicacy

Because of this appetizing sour plum drink, Zhao Xiaomin reluctantly realized she was even hungrier. Fortunately, there was a portion of fried rice in front of her.

Actually, Zhao Xiaomin didn't have high expectations for the beef fried rice. After all, she felt she had never eaten delicious fried rice in her life. The best fried rice she had ever tasted was only deemed passable. She planned to take a sip of the sour plum drink, eat a spoonful of beef fried rice, and before her brain could react, use the taste of the sour plum drink to trick her taste buds, making the ordinary beef fried rice taste better.

However, the moment she put a spoonful of beef fried rice into her mouth, she couldn't help but wonder, "Huh?"

This was not the taste she had imagined!

The beef was delicious and tender, and the rice had a pleasant aroma.

She ate spoonful after spoonful, unable to resist setting the sour plum drink aside and focusing entirely on finishing the bowl of beef fried rice in front of her. The sour plum drink she had intended to keep drinking was left ignored.

Zhao Xiaomin ate without raising her head. By the time she snapped out of it, the fried rice in front of her was completely gone. She looked up and found Zhou Yuan beside her was in the same state.

Zhou Yuan leaned against the back of her chair, sighing comfortably. Holding the remaining sour plum drink, she took a sip while savoring the fresh, delicious taste of the beef stew from earlier.

"Is this the boss's secret recipe? I've never tasted beef so tender and delicious."

"Compared to the beef made by the boss, I feel like the beef I make at home is as tough as firewood. One bite could break a tooth. It's so hard to eat, and my teeth end up hurting all day."

While the two were reminiscing about the satisfying aftertaste, sudden footsteps came from outside the door, followed by a familiar voice.

"Sisters, look what delicious food I brought back for you!"

Fang Ya walked in carrying some bags, only to see the two leaning back in their chairs, looking completely immersed in their own worlds. No one answered when she called out. Stunned, her face filled with doubt: "What's wrong with you two? You weren't like this when I left. Did you do something bad behind my back?"

Zhao Xiaomin shook her head and said frankly, "Absolutely not! We just ate beef fried rice."

"Really?" Fang Ya asked suspiciously, then looked at her baked cheese beef rice with a pained expression. "So you've both eaten. I specially brought Mia's new product for you—baked cheese beef rice. I tried it and thought it was extremely delicious. Do you still have room for it?"

"We want to eat!" Although they were already ninety percent full, who could refuse a bite of hot food, especially when it was free?

The beef fried rice from the black market was already so delicious; surely the highly-rated baked cheese beef rice from Mia Western Restaurant would be even better.

Both picked up disposable spoons and prepared to eat.

Surprisingly, though the baked cheese beef rice tasted good, neither of them was as amazed as before. They didn't experience that mind-blowing shock from just one bite.

It wasn't because they were used to eating baked cheese beef rice. On the contrary, they ate beef fried rice far more often than baked cheese beef rice.

However, what amazed them was not the "newcomer," but the "old companion" they had grown accustomed to.

Zhao Xiaomin even thought: why did Mia's baked rice not taste as mind-blowing as people on the internet claimed? At least, it was worse than the beef fried rice they just had. The beef was relatively old and tough, and the rice with black pepper at the bottom was a bit heavy and greasy. After two spoonfuls, she felt thirsty and wanted to find water.

Compared to the beef fried rice, which had no stimulating seasonings and simply highlighted the pure deliciousness of the ingredients, Zhao Xiaomin felt the baked cheese beef rice fell short.

Seeing that their expressions were not as satisfied as she had imagined, Fang Ya asked suspiciously, "Do you think it doesn't taste good?"

Zhou Yuan shook her head and said honestly, "No, it tastes very good. It's just... it doesn't seem as good as the beef fried rice we just ate. The beef fried rice was richer, fresher, the rice was softer, and the flavor was cleaner."

Zhao Xiaomin added, "Yes, the beef fried rice doesn't have so many seasonings, so it doesn't make your mouth feel dry. Eating it feels very comfortable."