Divorced Dad's Gourmet Shop

Chapter 266: Chapter 266: The City Next Door is Flooded and People Can’t Eat? New Mission.

"I see..." Jiang Liu nodded.

He felt a surge of happiness.

’Being recognized by my customers means my little shop is a great success.’

Just then, Xia Changzhi’s expression grew much heavier.

Reading his expression, Jiang Liu asked, "Uncle Xia, is something wrong?"

"Sigh..."

Xia Changzhi put down his phone and sighed wistfully.

His tone was somber as he said:

"You obviously don’t follow the news. A region in Jiang Province was hit by torrential rain recently. The entire city is flooded. The refugees are starting to return now, right? I saw a video a friend sent me—the folks there are eating instant noodles every single day, just drinking the broth. It’s really tough."

Jiang Liu was taken aback for a moment.

"Yeah, that’s definitely tough. The supply chain is broken, so vegetables and meat have probably all rotted in the water. It’s no surprise they can’t get enough to eat."

Xia Changzhi said, "If this place flooded, I wouldn’t be scared, because we have you, Boss Jiang, haha! You’d just keep making delicious food for us."

Jiang Liu gave a wry smile.

’A beast of burden?’

Meanwhile.

「In Kun City, Jiang Province.」

Numerous merchants from other provinces flocked in, gleefully hauling instant noodles and other convenience foods to cash in on the disaster.

At one such stall—a tricycle cart run by an old couple—a line of over a hundred people had formed, every customer looking wretched and miserable.

Their pants were caked with mud.

The old man held his head high, asking impatiently:

"What do you want to buy? Hurry up! Stop wasting time, there are over a hundred people waiting behind you!"

A filthy middle-aged man, with his wife and child in tow, said numbly, "Three packs of instant noodles."

"Want meat with that?"

The old man’s voice softened.

The middle-aged man’s wife asked, "How much to add meat?"

They had spent tens of thousands while fleeing the disaster. Their savings were modest to begin with, and now they had nearly hit rock bottom.

The old man smiled and held up one finger. "One hundred yuan for a portion of meat. Same price for young and old, no cheating."

"One hundred?! And you have the nerve to say ’no cheating’?! Why don’t you just rob us instead!"

The middle-aged man’s wife’s eyes blazed with righteous fury, her face contorting in anger.

Her fists clenched.

’This is outrageous!’

"Take it or leave it. If you don’t want to buy, then please go somewhere else, alright? Don’t hold up my business."

The old man looked completely unconcerned.

’It’s just as expensive everywhere else, anyway. If they can’t afford it, they can just go wait for supplies at the relief station.’

’Transportation is paralyzed now; it’s hard enough just to get out of the city.’

"Honey, stop. Let’s just hang in there a few more days, maybe things will get better!" The middle-aged man forced a smile to comfort his wife, then turned and grit his teeth. "Boss, give me three orders of instant noodles with meat."

His son, standing beside him, had a look of anticipation in his eyes.

The customers further back in the line also looked furious.

Grumbling and resentment filled the queue.

"I knew I should have left with my cousin. Sigh, now I’m trapped in this unlucky mess. Can’t even get a full meal. If you want to eat your fill just once, it’ll cost you several hundred yuan!"

"Exactly! These bloodsucking parasites! When is Hua Country going to do something?!"

"I heard a lot of celebrities are using us to get famous, claiming they’ve donated hundreds of thousands. We haven’t seen a shadow of it. As for the instant noodles at the relief station, you can wait in line all day and still not get any. Who knows where it all went."

Despair was etched on everyone’s face.

Currently, the city was paralyzed.

Supplies could only be brought in truck by truck via the highway, but with severe flooding in the city, the process was incredibly slow. Add to that the city’s massive population, and the amount distributed to each family was extremely limited.

This situation with overpriced instant noodles was happening all over Kun City.

Incidents of robbery and theft were also occurring frequently.

It was a scene straight out of the apocalypse.

All the merchants making a profit were ecstatic.

A single pack of instant noodles could sell for a hundred yuan, and people would still buy it.

Making money was as easy as breathing!!

It was bliss.

However, they were also taking a risk. If it rained again and the river dikes gave way, they too would end up starving on a rooftop.

...

「Yangzhai Street.」

"Oof! I’m so full..." Xia Changzhi staggered as he stood up, almost falling over.

Jiang Liu’s food was just too delicious; he had accidentally eaten until he was stuffed.

Not knowing whether to laugh or cry, Jiang Liu went over to support him. "Uncle Xia, why don’t I walk you home?"

’It would be a ridiculous tragedy if he ate my sashimi only to fall down right after leaving.’

"No, no, I can get back on my own," Xia Changzhi said, quickly waving his hands.

’I already cut in line,’ he thought. ’If I also make Boss Jiang waste his break time taking me home, I’ll truly deserve to be cursed by ten thousand people...’

Clutching his full stomach, Xia Changzhi left in satisfaction.

Jiang Liu pulled the rolling shutter door halfway down.

It was too noisy outside.

"Daddy, can Tongtong have a hug?"

Seeing that they were alone, Jiang Tongtong opened her arms and looked at Jiang Liu expectantly.

She was super cute.

"Jiang Liu, after you give Tongtong one, can I have one too?"

Jun Qingmeng also opened her arms, her face full of anticipation.

Jiang Liu gave a helpless laugh.

"You two... come here, both of you."

"Yay!"

He took the initiative, pulling Jun Qingmeng into his arms and then holding Tongtong tightly as well.

The three of them hugged, taking in each other’s scent.

Jun Qingmeng felt very soft.

It was very comforting.

She rested her head on Jiang Liu’s chest and whispered, "Jiang Liu, did you know? Even here in the shop, if you ignore me for just a little while, I start to miss you."

"Do you hate me for being like this?"

After she spoke, Jun Qingmeng looked up into Jiang Liu’s eyes.

"Tongtong misses Daddy too."

Jiang Liu stroked their heads and said with fond exasperation, "Why would I hate you? If you miss me, just talk to me. I’m busy sometimes, so I might not notice everything."

’What a pair of clingy little things...’

"Let’s rest for a bit. After that, we can go out for a walk and see if there’s anything we need to buy."

"Okay! Let’s watch Conan, okay?"

"Sure, whatever you want."

"Hehe, you’re such a good Daddy! Quick, give this little cutie a kiss, she wants to reward you!"

The three of them sat in the kitchen and watched an episode of Conan.

Jiang Liu glanced at the system interface.

A flicker of astonishment crossed his face, but he quickly suppressed it.

What shocked Jiang Liu was that—

the Gourmet Album had undergone a new change.

On the sixth page, a line of black text had appeared.

[Unlock Condition Met: Obtain positive reviews from 100,000 people in Kun City with your food within ten days.]

’What does this mean? Does this mean I need to complete quests to unlock things from now on?’

Jiang Liu’s mind was full of questions.

’In other words, it’s only going to get harder from here on out. Not only will I need points, but I’ll also have to complete specific quests.’

’This is ridiculous...’

...?

Jiang Liu thought to himself.

’It seems like the Gourmet Album is trying to guide me toward a bigger stage.’

His little food stall was tucked away in a corner of the world, and to be honest, Jiang Liu was quite content with that.

But it seemed the Gourmet Album had other plans.

"Jiang Liu, why are you frowning? What’s wrong? Is business at the shop not going well?"

Jun Qingmeng reached out and stroked Jiang Liu’s hair.

Jiang Liu snapped out of his daze, smiled faintly, and shook his head. "It’s nothing. It’s just that Uncle Xia was telling me about the flood in Kun City, and how a lot of people can’t get food."

"I just remembered I have a relative there, too."

His third uncle—his dad’s younger brother—was over there.

’I wonder how he’s doing.’

Jun Qingmeng raised her delicate eyebrows and said, "If your relative is in trouble, I can have my friends help..."

Jiang Liu quickly waved his hand to cut her off.

"No, that won’t be necessary. If something did happen, it wouldn’t be a big deal. I can handle it."

’If Jun Qingmeng helps, I won’t be able to complete my quest.’

’And given the Gourmet Album’s damn frustrating pace, who knows when the next quest will even appear.’