Chapter 91: Master, Please Don’t Hit Me Series

“Ahhh, Mama Lu, I love you!”

“Mama Lu, you’re way too good to us! I’ve never been to an amusement park in my whole life.”

“I heard there are carousels and kiddie rides at the amusement park. It sounds super fun.”

“Mama Lu, if there’s stuff for sale at the park, can I buy something?”

“Yes!” Lu Qingqiang replied with a cheerful smile.

“Wow, that’s awesome! Long live Mama Lu!” Su Tao jumped three feet into the air.

“Mama Lu, I want to buy a box of modeling clay. Is that okay?” Pang Jiajia asked.

“Sure!”

“Thank you, Mama Lu.” Pang Jiajia’s little face lit up with joy and anticipation.

“……”

Back when she had everyone working the fields, Lu Qingqiang had already told them this:

As long as everyone’s basic needs—food, clothing, shelter, and transportation—were met, she would also give them some pocket money when appropriate.

And how would they earn that pocket money? Naturally, through their own hard work.

Now, thanks to everyone’s enthusiasm and diligence, Lu Qingqiang had allocated a bit of spending money to each child.

One hundred and fifty yuan per person.

However, since they usually lived and ate at the orphanage and rarely went out, the money was temporarily being kept by Lu Qingqiang.

Once the orphanage was fully completed, there would be an unmanned mini-mart, an amusement park, a training ground, and more.

At that point, she would distribute the pocket money accordingly.

As for tomorrow, since they were all going out to have fun, of course she had to give them some spending money.

That way, they could buy whatever little trinkets or snacks they wanted.

And it wasn’t just the kids who heard the news about going to the amusement park tomorrow.

The staff at the orphanage also got the message in their group chat.

“Uncle, Uncle! The director said in the group chat that we don’t have to cook tomorrow. We’ll all go to the amusement park together by bus.”

“After we’re done playing, we’ll eat out.”

“Hehe, Uncle, I can finally ride the drop tower and the pirate ship tomorrow!” Liu Xiang grinned from ear to ear.

“Amusement park? What would a grown man like me go there for? No way, I’m not going.”

“If I’ve got time, I’d rather spend it perfecting my boiled cabbage.” Master Zhao waved his hand, clearly uninterested.

But then he thought about how Xiangzi was still young, at that age where kids loved noise and excitement, and he couldn’t help but say:

“Xiangzi, tomorrow when you go out with everyone, make sure you have a good time.”

When it came to flavor and quality, Liu Xiang’s cooking couldn’t quite match Master Zhao’s.

But in terms of food carving and making desserts and pastries, Liu Xiang was far superior.

He could carve flowers out of tofu.

A simple block of tofu, once sculpted by his hands and placed in water, would bloom into a delicate tofu flower.

A plain bag of flour, after Liu Xiang’s playful craftsmanship, could turn into all kinds of cute animals and flowers that kids adored.

His piggy buns, bananas, puppies, rabbits, carrots—each one was incredibly lifelike.

The kids absolutely loved them.

Just yesterday, Liu Xiang even steamed a “dragon fruit” using flour and other ingredients.

At first glance, it looked almost identical to a real dragon fruit.

The most amazing part? When you peeled it open, there was even fruit flesh inside.

It was enough to make your eyes pop.

You could say Liu Xiang had a real gift and skill when it came to the visual presentation of food.

And yet, he had only been learning for three years.

Even Master Zhao had to admit he couldn’t compare.

He was starting to feel like if he didn’t work harder, he’d soon be overtaken by this rising star and left behind in the dust.

So, as for amusement parks and such, he, a middle-aged man, would rather not join the crowd.

He needed to focus on perfecting his national banquet dishes.

“Uncle, everyone in the orphanage is going tomorrow. If you don’t go, you’ll stick out like a sore thumb!”

“That’s so antisocial!”

“I don’t care. Tomorrow, you’re coming with us. No excuses.”

Hearing Liu Xiang say that, Master Zhao twitched his mouth and spoke up.

“What did you say? Me? A sore thumb?”

“How am I old?”

“I could take you on with one hand and still beat three of you!” Master Zhao placed one hand on his hip and raised a giant ladle with the other, glaring fiercely at Liu Xiang.

This brat was getting more and more out of line.

Calling him a sore thumb was one thing, but calling him old?

He could climb five flights of stairs without even breaking a sweat, okay?

Wait a second, what exactly does ‘sore thumb’ mean?

It didn’t sound like a compliment.

“You little rascal, explain to me what ‘sore thumb’ means, huh?”

With that, Master Zhao, still holding the ladle, charged toward Liu Xiang.

Liu Xiang bolted, shouting as he ran, “Uncle, I was wrong! Don’t get mad, anger is the devil!”

“~~~” Yuan Yuan, who was walking around the orphanage filming video clips, happened to capture the whole scene.

Inspiration struck her like lightning.

That’s it! She could make a video series out of this.

The Untold Tales of Master Zhao and His Apprentice Liu Xiang: Master, Please Don’t Hit Me Series!

With the right voiceovers and special effects in post-production, it would be hilarious.

Hehehe, who would’ve thought that the calm, dignified, and master-chef-like Master Zhao would act like this in private?

Oh my, the way he puffed up his mustache in anger was just too cute.

As Liu Xiang ran, he suddenly spotted Yuan Yuan not far ahead.

He immediately stopped, straightened his clothes, and flashed her a friendly, clean smile.

“Teacher Yuan, what brings you here?”

“Are you looking for my uncle?”

Yuan Yuan smiled back at this little brother of hers and replied:

“Hello, Little Master Liu. I’m just wandering around, filming some video material.”

“You know, the director put me in charge of the orphanage’s official account.”

“There are tons of fans in the comments asking me to post more daily life content from the orphanage.”

“I think, in addition to filming the kids’ daily lives, we could also show more behind-the-scenes things.”

“Like how you and Master Zhao interact, or the food you two have made together. That kind of content is great too.”

“Mhm, Teacher Yuan, you’re absolutely right.” Liu Xiang nodded.

Yuan Yuan-jie really lived up to being a teacher. She knew so much.

“You little brat, don’t you—Hey, Teacher Yuan, you’re here?”

Master Zhao, still chasing with his ladle raised, suddenly spotted Yuan Yuan standing near Liu Xiang.

He immediately stopped, hid the ladle behind his back, and gave her a kindly, elder-like smile.

“Master Zhao, don’t mind me. I’m just strolling around.”

“Xiao Yuan, I was just playing around with Xiangzi, haha, don’t take it seriously.” Master Zhao chuckled as he explained.

It was all that rascal Liu Xiang’s fault for ruining his image.

“No worries at all.”

“By the way, Master Zhao, tomorrow you and Little Master Liu don’t need to cook. The director said we’re going to the amusement park for a team-building day.”

“While we’re out, we’ll try a good restaurant.”

“As for the food tasting, we’ll be counting on you and Little Master Liu.”

“And while you’re at it, observe what the kids like to eat.”

“In the future, we might be able to incorporate some of it too.”

— Translator’s Notes —

– unmanned mini-mart: A self-service convenience store without any staff, a concept increasingly common in China with automated payment systems.