Free Web NovelChapter 503: Chapter 363 Annabelle
Chen Ze was a bit nervous. In fact, although Chen Ze had discovered a new function for the Sun Mushroom through experimentation, this discovery was made during the process of making pizza. Chen Ze wasn’t certain if the Sun Mushroom could still exert its function of increasing spiciness when used in cooking.
"But I still have to try. In the end, I’ll know the taste after quickly rinsing it in the broth," Chen Ze shook his head, sliced the Sun Mushroom, placed a piece into the spicy hot pot broth, and then quietly watched.
However, there were no changes, and without knowing better, Chen Ze might have thought he hadn’t added anything at all since the System didn’t give any prompts either.
Chen Ze frowned, then brought the spicy hot pot to a boil, picked up a slice of Wagyu beef, and tossed it in. After swishing it back and forth and waiting for it to cook through, Chen Ze took the slice of beef out.
It was fragrant, emitting the aroma of spicy hot pot, but apart from that there were no other strange flavors or changes in color. It looked just like a normal piece of beef.
Chen Ze hesitated for a while. In fact, he had wanted Betty to come and taste the dish, but considering Betty had just tasted the uniquely flavored Void Ginseng Dragon Worm Soup the last time, Chen Ze felt that it would be too inhumane to ask Betty to taste test again now. So, he decided to try the dish himself.
As soon as Chen Ze put the slice of beef into his mouth, the first sensation was the spiciness, but it wasn’t the enhanced spiciness he was expecting. It felt no different from a regular spicy hot pot, which was a bit disappointing to Chen Ze. Could it be that the Sun Mushroom could only be prepared by the pizza method? If so, its value wasn’t as great as he thought.
But soon, Chen Ze felt a warmth that made his stomach very comfortable. He blinked his eyes. Had the Sun Mushroom turned into a stomach-warming ingredient when added to the hot pot?
"Maybe I should make a spicy, stomach-nourishing hot pot base." Chen Ze thought that if he launched his own, it would certainly be a hit, and a fiery one at that. However, with such great risks involved, Chen Ze still didn’t plan on doing it, although promoting it in the restaurant was feasible.
Although the experiment had failed, Chen Ze felt pretty good about it. At least now he could make his own hot pot base, and the flavor was not bad—in fact, it was good enough to serve to customers.
"Hmm~ so now I just have to wait for other customers. It’s just that I don’t know what kind of customers will come in," Chen Ze yawned, feeling the urge to nap at noon, a common affliction of the corporate drone.
Chen Ze still remembered how as a child in elementary school and kindergarten, he never wanted to take naps at noon and preferred to play. However, as he grew up, he never wanted to get out of bed.
"I might as well take a nap," Chen Ze rested his chin in his hands, since there were no customers and perhaps he could use some good rest now. freёwebnovel.com
Annabelle was a devout follower of the Goddess of Wealth; to be precise, her entire family were devotees of the Goddess of Wealth, as for the majority of merchants, the Goddess of Wealth was the optimal deity to worship.
"So cold..." Annabelle clutched her clothes tightly. She no longer had a home or the money to visit the temple of the Goddess of Wealth.
The cold wind howled, but for Annabelle, she was past caring. Her family had gone bankrupt. Her parents had spent all their wealth on her medical treatments, yet despite everything, the dreaded disease inside her refused to be dispelled.
Annabelle had run away. Without her, her parents wouldn’t have to struggle so much; they could save money instead of eating dark bread every day and saving every penny to take her to the temple of the Goddess of Wealth for treatment.
"It’s a curse. The more the power of life is infused, the more it stimulates the development of this curse. You can only ask others for help," Annabelle remembered how helpless that old bearded priest looked.
"Annabelle, your name is Annabelle too, isn’t it?" Annabelle hugged the doll in her arms, a birthday gift when she turned eight, and her most treasured possession.
The doll couldn’t speak, it just quietly watched Annabelle with a smile painted on its face.
"So cold..." Annabelle curled up on the snowy ground as the blizzard howled incessantly. She felt she was going to the Goddess of Wealth’s Kingdom of God, surely such a devout believer like herself wouldn’t be rejected by the great Goddess, would she?
"However... I have no money left..." Annabelle smiled bitterly, hugging her doll named after herself, Annabelle.
"Huh?" Just as Annabelle was about to close her eyes, she saw a wooden door appear right before her, extremely close, within reach.
With all the courage she could muster, Annabelle pushed the door open, and the whistling snowstorm instantly poured into the wooden door ahead, followed by Annabelle who also rolled herself in with great effort.
The bone-chilling cold was gone, replaced by a warm floor and a deep blue barrier. This barrier stood behind her, blocking the violent blizzard.
Annabelle struggled to raise her head. It was a very high-class place with wooden tables and chairs, strange alchemical tools, everything looked so expensive, but...
"So warm..." Annabelle happily stretched out her limbs, letting her stiff limbs fully feel the warmth of this place.
Annabelle took a moment to recover, then struggled to her feet, turned off the wooden door behind her, and wobbled off a question, "Is anyone there?"
Betty shook her head, as she had been about to fall asleep in the chair, but in a half-dream state, she seemed to hear someone talking.
"Must be my imagination." Betty yawned, stretched languidly, and then saw a little girl with somewhat dirty clothes, standing at the entrance of the restaurant. freēwēbnovel.com
"Why didn’t the wind chime ring?" Betty wondered briefly, but she quickly gave up pondering. She must have not heard it in her sleep.
"Welcome to the Dream Restaurant, dear guest~ Do you desire something to eat?" Betty smiled as she walked over, her tail swishing.
Annabelle instinctively took two steps back, this woman in front of her looked a lot like a succubus.
"A restaurant?" Of course, Annabelle knew this establishment; after all, her family used to dine at restaurants often.
"Yes, do you want to eat something?" Betty looked at the pitiful child before her and naturally categorized her as a homeless child.
After all, she was barefoot, with thin and dirty clothes, which made her feel especially reminiscent of Andrew and Elena who used to visit frequently, only that this little girl seemed a bit cleaner.
Thinking of Andrew and Elena set Betty in a slightly bad mood, it had been such a long time since she had seen them.
"I... I’d like to eat... Thornleaf Mud Bubble Bread..." Annabelle’s voice was very soft.
