Gourmet Kindergarten

"Gulp."

A loud swallowing sound broke the silence.

The culprit was none other than DouDou.

"DouDou, shut up, your drool is dripping onto the ground—" TangTang moved half a step to the side in disgust.

"I didn't leak! You're the one who leaked!"

DouDou snapped back to reality, quickly wiping her mouth as she tried to destroy the evidence, but then she sniffed loudly, "What's that smell? It smells so good! Even better than my mom's fried chicken legs!"

"Mmm, it smells so good..."

Tangtang's disdain vanished instantly. She nodded vigorously, then turned and tugged at Teacher Yu's sleeve, pleading in a soft, sweet voice, "Mommy—oh no, Teacher Yu, my tummy is singing. It says it's hungry~"

"Hahaha, my tummy is singing—"

Tiger stood with his hands on his hips and chuckled strangely.

Before his laughter had even faded, a deafening "gurgle" came from his own belly.

The smile froze on his face instantly.

"Tiger, why aren't you smiling?" Tangtang blinked her big eyes innocently. "Is your tummy crying?"

"..."

Tiger's face turned bright red, and he couldn't utter a single word for a long time, almost dying on the spot.

"I'm so hungry too..."

In the corner, Duoduo, who had been silent all along, suddenly had tears welling up in her eyes and her lips trembled.

Crybaby...

Xiao Yu, standing next to him, silently rolled his eyes in his mind.

He then pushed up his small glasses on the bridge of his nose, straightened his face, and instantly switched to "serious analysis mode":

"This flavor is a perfect balance of sweet and sour, with a hint of caramelized sweetness, and also that...that..."

Stuck.

Her brows furrowed instantly, her vocabulary was running low, and she couldn't squeeze out a single sophisticated word.

Finally, unwilling to give up, he waved his hand and forcibly closed the case:

"Anyway! It smells a hundred times better than the food the headmaster usually makes!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Xiaoyu suddenly covered his mouth and nervously looked around frantically.

Phew, thank goodness, the principal isn't here!

Otherwise, I'll be dragged to the corridor and have the "tightening spell" recited again!

"Yes! It tastes better than what the headmaster makes! Xiaoyu is right!" Tiger's loud, clueless voice rang out instantly, perfectly taking over Xiaoyu's responsibility.

"I didn't say it tasted good, I said it smelled good..." Xiaoyu was so anxious that he jumped up and down.

"Same here!"

Tiger slapped his thighs, his voice echoing across the playground, "I'm eating this today! I'd rather die than eat anything the headmaster makes!"

These words instantly ignited the entire audience.

"Yes! I won't eat what the headmaster makes!"

"I want to eat this!"

"..."

The other mythical beasts collectively defected, chattering and clamoring, their actions resembling a group uprising.

"..."

Teacher Yu's lips twitched.

No, kids, is it really appropriate for you to betray the principal like this in front of me?

and many more.

There are no restaurants or even food stalls around the kindergarten, so how could this incredible aroma...

Ok?

It seems... it's coming from the direction of the kitchen?

Could it be the headmistress?

Impossible! Absolutely impossible!

She'd seen the kindergarten principal's cooking before; frankly, her skills were so poor they couldn't even fool a child. She definitely couldn't make something that smelled this good.

Is that Aunt Zhao?

It's probably true.

Aunt Zhao always boasts that her "family recipes are just as good as those in a big restaurant." She has never had a chance to show off her skills, and she even said that she would find an opportunity to cook a whole table of fancy dishes for everyone.

Could it be that today, he finally took charge of cooking himself?

Just thinking—

"I can smell it! The aroma is coming from the kitchen! I can't wait any longer, I have to go check it out!"

Tiger could no longer contain himself. With a loud shout, he dashed off into the kitchen.

"Me too!"

"Take me with you—"

The other mythical beasts all followed suit in a flurry.

"Hey, where are you guys going? Wait! Slow down! Don't fall—"

Useless.

It's totally useless.

Teacher Yu sighed and resignedly followed.

……

Kitchen doorway.

Five little ones clung to the door frame, tiptoeing and straining forward, looking like a row of little groundhogs lured out of their burrow by the aroma.

The fragrance is even more deadly.

How concentrated?

DouDou's saliva was already "flowing down three thousand feet", leaving a crystal-clear thread in mid-air, and it looked like it was about to drip onto the instep.

Xiaoyu felt like his little brain had been spun out by the fragrance.

"Who wants to go in and take a look?"

Tiger lowered his voice, put his hands on his hips, and exuded the air of a leader.

Nobody moved.

It's not that I don't want to, it's that I don't dare.

The principal has established a strict rule: children are strictly prohibited from entering the kitchen.

Those who violate this rule will be punished by standing in the corridor, and their little red flowers will be confiscated on the spot!

You can exchange little red flowers for snacks and toys!

Who can bear this price?

Just as everyone was caught in a frantic internal struggle—

"let me!"

DouDou puffed out her little chest.

"DouDou, you..." XiaoYu had just opened his mouth.

His short legs had already created afterimages as he plunged headfirst into the penalty area.

Xiaoyu silently pushed up his plastic-framed glasses and shut up.

Alright, the brave go first. May there be no punishment in heaven.

three seconds.

Five seconds.

ten seconds.

There was no movement inside.

"Why is she so quiet? Did the headmaster catch DouDou red-handed?" Hu Zi scratched his head.

Just then, a loud, accusatory voice suddenly erupted in the control room—

"Zhuangzhuang! You ate behind our backs!"

It's DouDou's voice!

What's going on?

Zhuangzhuang is sneaking food?!

That's outrageous!

In an instant, all those ironclad rules and little red flowers were thrown to the winds.

In a flash, the remaining four little ones charged forward and surged into the control room.

Rushing to the door, I saw—

DouDou stood on the threshold, her little hand trembling as she pointed inside the door, her face full of sorrow.

Following his gaze, everyone peered inside.

In front of the control panel, Zhuangzhuang and Aunt Zhao stood side by side.

The two of them each held a small piece of golden, crispy pork belly coated in amber-colored sweet and sour sauce, chewing it with relish, their faces showing utter bewilderment at being caught red-handed, and they turned their heads in unison.

"DouDou, and all of you...why are you all here?"

Zhuangzhuang was met with five pairs of extremely mournful eyes from the doorway.

Why should I?!

We're all just kindergarten kids, so why does Zhuangzhuang get to eat such delicious food there?!

We could only smell it from the outside!

Is there any justice in this world?!

"Wow--!"

The crybaby, Duoduo, was the first to break down, crying so hard that snot bubbles came out of her nose.

Immediately afterwards, DouDou, TangTang, HuZi... their psychological defenses completely collapsed, and their cries echoed throughout the operating room.

Teacher Yu, who had just arrived breathless, was completely bewildered: "What happened? Who bullied you?"

"Wow... Zhuangzhuang, you traitor!"

"Grandma Zhao is mean! She and Zhuangzhuang secretly ate fried meat together! They wouldn't let us have any!"

"I want fried pork! I want fried pork! Wow—"

"..."

Suddenly, heart-wrenching wails echoed from the doorway of the control room.

The scene was incredibly tragic and heroic.

Anyone who didn't know better would think that Golden Sun Kindergarten had done something outrageous!