Brush Up Your Proficiency

At 6:00 AM, Wang Hao's biological clock woke him up. After getting out of bed, he didn't even bother to brush his teeth or wash his face, rushing downstairs to hop on his modified second-hand electric scooter to head to the farmers market for ingredients.

Wang Hao had already planned everything yesterday. He would prepare enough for 100 servings today. Although it would be a bit tiring, the temptation of double the earnings made it all worthwhile.

After buying the ingredients and grabbing a quick breakfast on the way back, he returned home to tidy up. With the goods prepared, he headed towards his stall, aiming to catch the midday lunch rush.

It wasn't long after setting up the stall that the first wave of customers arrived. There were three people, including a young man who was a regular. He often came by because Wang Hao's fried noodles were filling and came in generous portions.

"Congratulations, Intermediate Cooking Proficiency +1, Current Proficiency: Intermediate Cooking 35/1000"

As the three servings of fried noodles were being made, the young man took a bite and couldn't help but say, "Wow! Boss, these noodles taste great today! Delicious!"

Wang Hao replied, "If you like it, eat more. Do you want garlic?"

As he spoke, Wang Hao grabbed two cloves of garlic and placed them on the young man's table before continuing to work, as two more people had arrived wanting fried noodles.

Usually, Wang Hao could sell about 20 servings during lunchtime, and on good days, he could sell up to 25 servings. But today was a little different.

Perhaps it was the aroma of the fried noodles made with the Intermediate Cooking skill that was more appealing, or maybe it was the color. Wang Hao sold 50 servings at noon, more than double his usual amount.

Time passed in this intermittent state of business until the evening rush hour arrived. However, Wang Hao was frustrated to find that the ingredients he had prepared in the morning were already used up just as the 7:00 PM rush began.

Looking at the crowds of people coming and going, Wang Hao could only sigh helplessly. He packed up and went home, comforting himself that he had at least finished work early.

Arriving home and checking the money in his hand, Wang Hao's earlier frustration dissipated.

A thousand yuan in revenue, with a profit of about six hundred yuan after deducting costs. This was something Wang Hao wouldn't have dared to imagine before. Leaving work early and earning more money—this kind of life was too extravagant! Wang Hao couldn't help but exclaim.

Having managed to close up early, Wang Hao decided to make himself a delicious meal to reward himself, and also to test the performance of the Intermediate Cooking skill on other dishes.

No sooner said than done, Wang Hao went downstairs and bought a carp, intending to make braised carp.

After buying all the ingredients, Wang Hao started working in the kitchen. After improving his cooking skills to the intermediate level, the feeling of being in control while cooking made him feel very comfortable.

At that moment, the door to the room was suddenly opened, and a beautiful figure appeared at the door. "Brother, I'm back!"

Hearing the voice from the doorway, Wang Hao came out of the kitchen with a spoon in his hand and said in surprise, "Xiaolan, why are you back at this time?"

The person who came was Wang Hao's younger sister, Wang Lan, who was still a junior in college this year. Her school wasn't exactly far from Wang Hao's place, but it wasn't exactly close either.

"School let out early for the holidays. I was originally planning to come tomorrow, but I thought I'd come back quickly to help you, so I came back as soon as possible. Brother, what are you making?" Wang Lan said as she looked towards the kitchen.

Wang Hao said with a smile, "You really have good timing. It's rare to close up early today, so I'm preparing to make a fish to try."

"Brother, can you do it? Fish isn't easy to make," Wang Lan said, craning her neck to look into the pot. "It smells pretty good though!"

Wang Lan knew her brother's cooking skills. It could only be said that they were a little better than ordinary home cooking, but not by much. So, smelling the aroma emanating from the fish in front of her, Wang Lan couldn't help but feel surprised.

"Don't underestimate your brother. Your brother's skills are improving too. Eat more later. You look so thin now. Haven't you been eating properly at school again?" Wang Hao said, feeling sorry for his thin sister.

"No way, I've clearly gained weight," Wang Lan retorted stubbornly.

Saying that, she ignored Wang Hao and went straight back to her room to tidy up.

Watching his sister return to her room, Wang Hao couldn't help but shake his head slightly. Two thousand yuan in living expenses was really only enough to make ends meet for college students these days.

Knowing his sister, she would definitely save as much as she could and eat as little as possible. She might even save some money each month. Wang Hao couldn't say anything to his little money-grubbing sister, so he turned back to deal with the fish in the pot.

Before long, a braised carp with perfect color, aroma, and taste was ready, and the rice was also cooked.

"Congratulations, Intermediate Cooking Proficiency +3, Current Proficiency: Intermediate Cooking 135/1000"

He hadn't expected that a braised carp would actually give Wang Hao a full 3 points of proficiency. It seemed that the amount of proficiency gained from the cooking skill varied depending on the difficulty of what was being made. This was a new discovery.

Wang Hao called out, "Xiaolan, come out and eat!" As he spoke, he placed the food on the dining table.

"Okay, it smells so good, I'll try it!" Wang Lan said, picking up her chopsticks to eat.

"Go wash your hands, you're always so impetuous," Wang Hao said with a smile and a scolding.

"Hmph," Wang Lan pouted and snorted before going to wash her hands.

Wang Hao smiled as he watched his lively sister, feeling that he himself had become much younger. He couldn't help but sigh, youth was so good! Everything was so vibrant.

"Oh my god, Brother, this fish is so delicious! It feels even better than what you get in fancy restaurants. You're too amazing!" Wang Lan praised as she ate.

"Eat slowly, no one's going to snatch it from you. Be careful of the bones," Wang Hao said with a smile. "I'll make an egg drop soup, you eat first."

With Cooking Proficiency +1, egg drop soup appeared on the table. The brightly colored soup made people's mouths water, greatly increasing Wang Lan's appetite as she ate happily.

"Brother, your skills are really something now. From now on, I won't be polite!" Wang Lan exclaimed as she drank the egg drop soup.