I opened a restaurant in the Pokémon world.

It's like someone from Shanghai going to Sichuan and not being able to adapt to the spicy flavors there. Every province in China has its own discerning palate, not to mention it's another world altogether.

"Sir, here is your braised chicken rice. Please enjoy." Heath scooped the braised chicken rice into a bowl and called out. The man immediately stood up and came over to eagerly take his braised chicken rice.

"Sir, you could try pouring the broth from the braised chicken into the rice and stirring it in; it will taste even better that way," Heath said with a smile, offering a suggestion.

The essence of Heath's braised chicken rice lies in the broth. The broth is incredibly delicious, but Heath's is quite thick, which makes it a bit salty. However, once this slightly salty broth seeps into the rice and mixes with the sweet rice, it transforms the whole dish.

The man looked at Heath with curiosity. He was an office worker at a nearby game company, and this was the first time he had ever seen a food truck like Heath's. However, the man was smart. He knew very well that compared to himself, who was trying new food for the first time, Heath, as the chef, would definitely recommend the best way to eat this dish.

So the man wisely chose to listen to the expert's advice, picked up his braised chicken rice, and quickly sat down at his table. A line had already formed around him; the Quartz Alliance members were always curious about novel foods.

The dense crowd made the man a little embarrassed. He put away his game console and then couldn't help but swallow. The braised chicken that Heath made tasted so good that just smelling it made the man feel hungry. The man scooped a spoonful of braised chicken broth and poured it over the rice that Heath had prepared.

The man looked at the rice with some curiosity. The rice was a long and slender type. He had never eaten this kind of rice before, but he could smell its unique aroma. Especially when the braised chicken broth was poured in, the hot rice and the hot braised chicken broth mixed together, and the rich aroma instantly wafted up, making the man eagerly stir the rice.

After stirring for a while, the man lost patience. The hunger in his stomach was unbearable. He first shoveled a mouthful of braised chicken rice into his mouth, and the rich aroma instantly ignited his taste buds.

Heath considered whether the man's taste buds had become dulled due to staying up late, so the braised chicken she made for him this time was a stronger flavor, also to take into account that the man's dulled taste buds might affect his enjoyment of the food.

Heath's idea clearly resonated perfectly with the man's pain from staying up all night, so at this moment, the rich aroma made the man's expression become lively, and even the fatigue from last night was somewhat relieved.

"This taste is absolutely amazing." The man swallowed hard, then picked up another piece of chicken. The broth from the braised chicken slowly dripped from the chicken. He couldn't wait to put it in his mouth. As he chewed, the chicken was broken down, and the aroma of the braised broth and the chicken mingled together. Combined with the incredibly delicious rice, the man felt his soul come alive.

The man's performance attracted even more onlookers. Humans are strange creatures; seeing others eat always tempts us and makes us crave food. This is why mukbang (eating broadcasts) were so popular in my previous life.

Looking at the customers who had started queuing up, Heath glanced at his small pot, where he was cooking another drink that he planned to launch. Heath intended to let the customer who looked like he had been staying up late try it for free. If it worked out, it should be able to be promoted on a large scale.

"Excuse me, may I ask what that gentleman was eating?" The customers who came in one after another asked curiously, and Heath explained with a smile, not feeling annoyed at all. After all, every time he explained, it meant that Heath's income would increase.

When it comes to making money, Heath wouldn't hesitate even if he talked himself hoarse; he was even willing to talk about it from morning till night.

After preparing braised chicken rice for the three guests, Heath opened the small pot and took a look. A fragrant aroma of milk tea wafted out. Heath nodded, indicating that it was almost ready.

The drink that Heath launched this time is Burmese milk tea, which is a very mild milk tea. If there is any problem, Heath thinks it is that the milk tea is a bit too sweet. However, this is not a problem. After all, milk tea is supposed to be a little sweet, which is to people's liking.

"Excuse me, what is this?" A girl looked at Heath curiously. She was holding a golden retriever, or rather, a puppy. The little golden retriever wagged its tail happily when it saw Heath.

Heath paused for a moment. The world of Pokémon naturally has animals, and of course, pets. Dogs and cats are indeed the most popular pets besides Pokémon. This world also has breeds such as Golden Retrievers, Akitas, and Chinese Rural Dogs.

However, looking at the little golden retriever wagging its tail happily in front of her, Heath couldn't help but gasp and widen her eyes, which finally stopped the sadness in her heart.

"This is milk tea, a kind of drink with a very unique flavor. Would you like to try it?" Heath smiled as she looked at the girl in front of her, or more accurately, at the golden retriever she was holding.

"Huh? What flavor is it?" The girl was even more curious, as she had never heard of milk tea before.

“It’s a little sweet.” Heath smiled and then pointed to the small blackboard next to her.

The girl glanced at it; it read, "[Milk Tea: 8 Alliance Coins per cup (hot or cold drink available)]"

Eight dollars isn't too expensive. Charizard Cola and Blastoise Cola are only three Union Coins a cup. Although this one is more expensive, the girl just smelled the aroma of milk tea, and that aroma made her decide to pay for another cup of milk tea.

"Then please give me a braised chicken rice and a cup of milk tea." The girl took out her money.

Chapter 141 Life Must Go On

Heath smiled and nodded, taking it. This made the girl blush slightly. Heath was very good-looking, and his maturity and composure from living two lives made him very charming.

"Excuse me, what's the name of your golden retriever?" Heath asked the girl curiously. Heath wouldn't have asked so much if the girl hadn't been holding a golden retriever, but when he saw the puppy, Heath admitted he couldn't help himself.

"Her? I named her Lolita! Isn't it a nice name? After all, she's just a little girl." The girl blushed as she looked at the handsome Heath.

Heath paused for a moment. Loli? This world does have these terms. Loli and shota have the same meanings as in her previous life, so it's quite common to name your pet "loli." Heath's gaze softened even more.

“I used to have a golden retriever too, she was also named Lolita, I had her for over ten years, and then she got sick and died.” Heath couldn’t help but reach out, wanting to touch the head of the dog with the same name in front of her, but her outstretched hand stopped in mid-air and then withdrew.

As a chef, providing clean and hygienic food to guests is Heath's duty and his bottom line of morality. In Heath's view, a chef who does not pay attention to hygiene is not qualified to stand in the kitchen. No matter how delicious the food he makes is, it can be given zero points just because it is unhygienic.

The girl opened her mouth, feeling a pang of heartache at the change in Heath's eyes just now—the joy and loss upon seeing the pet, followed by a sorrowful sadness, and then she lowered her hand again.

Heath took a deep breath and shook his head. It was such a long time ago, and thinking about it now still makes him feel sad.

Heath remembers that when he got home, he found his golden retriever, who had been with him for over ten years, lying motionless on the floor. This instantly made Heath feel depressed, and his eyes welled up with tears. Even though he was a working adult who had been working for a long time, he couldn't suppress the sadness in his heart.

Heath took a deep breath, rubbed his face, washed his hands, and then began to make the braised chicken for the girl. Because Heath made a lot of braised chicken, it was very quick to make now; he just needed to scoop the braised chicken into a bowl.

After preparing the braised chicken and rice, Heath poured the girl a cup of hot milk tea. Burmese milk tea has a unique characteristic: it has a very smooth taste, and guests cannot see the tea leaves. This type of milk tea is made with black tea and has a very good taste. However, to achieve that special sweetness, a little condensed milk needs to be added for the best flavor.

When Heath was in Evergreen City, she had considered launching milk tea, but the supermarkets there didn't have anything like condensed milk, which disappointed her. Fortunately, she found it after coming to the Quartz Federation, which allowed her to make more things.

Condensed milk is also made from milk, but it is thicker and somewhat like yogurt. It tastes much sweeter than milk. You might be able to accept the first bite if you eat it directly, but you won't be able to accept the overly sweet taste afterwards. Therefore, condensed milk is often eaten with other things, such as milk tea.

"Please enjoy your braised chicken rice and milk tea while they're hot." Heath smiled at the girl, who seemed to want to let Heath pet her golden retriever, but Heath refused with a smile.

Although he missed her dearly, Heath knew that a little girl is a little girl, and no matter how much the next dog resembles her, she will never be a little girl again.

Looking at the still-standing queue, Heath felt a bit overwhelmed. He apologized to the customers, then poured a cup of milk tea and placed it next to the first customer who had already finished his braised chicken.

"Sir, this is a complimentary gift for the first customer to dine in – a cup of milk tea. Please enjoy." Heath smiled at the surprised man and said.

Although the man felt a little strange, being able to get something for free was still a happy thing, so he accepted it. After taking a sip, he was even more surprised.

This milk tea tastes great and is very sweet, but upon closer tasting, you'll find that the sweetness actually masks the bitterness of the tea leaves at the bottom. Heath filtered it very carefully, so there were no tea leaves in this cup of milk tea.

"It tastes pretty good, and it's also refreshing." The man liked the drink after taking a sip; sugar was very important for someone like him who used his brain a lot.

Moreover, the tea leaves used in this milk tea were of very high quality, and the rich tea flavor instantly revitalized the man who was initially feeling drowsy.

A notification popped up in front of Heath's eyes, indicating a satisfied customer, but Heath didn't look at it because he was too busy. The aroma of braised chicken attracted many customers, and although not every customer liked the taste, Heath's business became exceptionally good, which made Heath both happy and distressed.

Heath glanced at the lounge, where Zoroark was still reading a novel. This made Heath grit his teeth. Once Zoroark evolved into Zoroark, Heath was determined to make that guy work as a waiter. Heath was already incredibly busy.

However, seeing the bills piled up made Heath feel much happier. Of course, the most important thing was that the progress of the mission was being accelerated rapidly. Heath even felt that he could complete the Chef's Eye mission today.

After the midday crowds dispersed, Heath collapsed on the ground, utterly exhausted. All the chicken he had bought at the market that day was gone, not a single piece left. It had all been used to make braised chicken, and even the other ingredients Heath had intended to use for the dish had been sold out.

However, compared to milk tea, braised chicken is more like a younger brother.

The popularity of milk tea caught Heath somewhat off guard. At first, Heath's stall was mostly filled with office workers coming to eat, but later the number of girls increased. They all came to drink milk tea, and of course, some also ordered braised chicken. Heath's empty wallet instantly bulged.

"Phew... I'm so tired..." Heath took a deep breath, then weakly got up and sat down in a chair. The ingredients were all sold out, and he needed to buy some black tea and replenish the condensed milk.

Heath also had time to check if there was any information he had missed.

You have completed the task "Chef's Eye (Beginner)" and have obtained "Chef's Eye (Beginner)".

Heath was overjoyed; he had finally obtained the Chef's Eye quest reward!

Chapter 142 The Effect of the Chef's Eye

Chef's Eyes was a task Heath had been looking forward to for a long time, so now that it was finally completed, his excitement was beyond words. He couldn't wait to reach into his pocket and pull out a bottle of eye drops.

"Hmm...isn't this that eye drop that makes things brighter?" Heath looked at his chef's eye with a strange expression. He originally thought that getting the chef's eye would allow him to see what he wanted to see, but he didn't expect it to be a bottle of eye drops.

It's perfectly reasonable. Heath felt that his cheat ability was always considering what was reasonable, so even a reward like the Chef's Eye had to be distributed via eye drops.

Heath looked curiously at the manufacturer, the cutting-edge laboratory of the Shiruff Corporation.

"I don't know where this 'reasonable' hobby came from. Why didn't you just give it to me directly?" Heath complained helplessly. He had to give himself the reward for this chef's eye. He didn't know when this cheat developed this habit of having reasonable hobbies.

Almost as soon as Heath said this, he felt as if he were being watched by something, an immense power, an indescribably powerful being staring at him, before quickly disappearing, almost making Heath think he was hallucinating.

He picked up the eye drops, opened his eyes, skillfully dripped them in, blinked, and after they were fully absorbed, Heath realized that the eye drop bottle in his hand was gone.

"It feels... like nothing's changed. I thought it would be the golden-eyed type." Heath blinked. The pedestrians on the street seemed normal, and nothing strange happened.

Just as Heath was lost in thought, a guest walked over.

"Hello, do you have milk tea?" It was a very cute girl wearing round glasses, with big, bright, sparkling eyes. She was very adorable, but Heath's gaze turned somewhat strange.

Favorite flavor: Extremely salty

Disliked taste: Very sweet things.

The two words "Chapter Eye" grew out of the girl's head, very conspicuous, leaving Heath momentarily stunned. Was this the effect of a novice chef's eye? It has to be said that although it was still somewhat ordinary, it saved Heath a lot of trouble.

"Ahem, okay." Seeing the girl's slightly annoyed look, Heath quickly realized that he was acting a bit like a pervert. After replying, he started preparing the milk tea the girl wanted to drink.

[Chef's Eye (Intermediate): You can obtain Intermediate Chef's Eye by entertaining 1,000 guests and getting them satisfied with your dishes, or by entertaining a mythical beast and getting it satisfied with your dishes.]

Chef's Eye (Intermediate): 0/1000, 0/1

Heath paused for a moment while pouring milk tea. It wasn't surprising that the Intermediate Chef's Eye quest popped up, but the method for completing the quest seemed to have changed. The number of ordinary customers had increased tenfold, from one hundred to one thousand, and a new quest had been added that required the divine beast to be satisfied with his dishes.

Heath was distracted for a moment, then focused on making milk tea for the girl. However, thinking about the girl's taste preferences, Heath's expression became a little strange. This girl actually liked super salty things and didn't like sweets. Sure enough, everyone is different.

Normally, milk tea should be sweet to taste good, but seeing the girl's request, Heath scooped a large spoonful of salt into it and started stirring. He quickly made the salt milk tea and handed it to the girl.

"Thank you," the girl said politely, then left with her milk tea. Heath confidently crossed his arms; with the Chef's Eye, the Intermediate Chef's Eye had become much easier.

However, Heath noticed that the girl drank the milk tea but did not show any obvious liking for it, and the Chef's Eye task progress did not increase, which puzzled Heath. Wasn't this girl supposed to like salty food? Why did she not react to the salty food?

After a pause, Heath slammed his fist on his head. He thought he must have been stupid. Milk tea is made with condensed milk, so it's bound to be sweet. Even with salt, the sweetness can't be completely removed.

"Tsk, I feel like I've gone crazy from cooking." Heath sighed. One person can only give one satisfactory answer, but the Quartz Federation is so big that Heath felt that getting a thousand people to be satisfied with him shouldn't be too difficult.

Heath shook his head. He hadn't bought many ingredients today, and there was hardly anything left after making the braised chicken. Although he could make fried rice with the leftovers, Heath didn't know if the guests here would like the taste of fried rice with eggs.

"Hmm? Is that the chef I met last time?" A familiar voice made Heath, who was clearing the dishes, look up and see Joyce, whom he had just met on the road, standing curiously in front of Heath's food cart.

“Miss Saya!” Heath was somewhat surprised. He remembered that Saya had gone to the Champion Road, so how did she suddenly end up in the Indigo League?

"It really is you, boss. Could I have a plate of fried rice with eggs, please?" Saya smiled happily, still looking as energetic as ever.

However, Heath glanced at the two word boxes that popped up above Saya's head and was stunned. He really didn't expect Saya to like that flavor.

"Okay, just a moment." Since the guest had specified what he wanted to eat, Heath certainly wouldn't mind making him a meal. However, how to prepare it was a matter for careful consideration.

Favorite flavor: Bitter

Disliked taste: Bitterness

The two identical word boxes, if it weren't for the clear distinction between like and dislike, Heath would have suspected that a divine hand had pointed out the problem. However, the two word boxes were clearly without any errors, so Saya's like and dislike were both bitterness, which was somewhat puzzling.

It's normal to dislike bitterness. Heath hated bitter melon when he was little. Every time he ate bitter melon, he felt like he was being tortured. Even as an adult, bitter melon is still a dish that Heath hesitates to pick up.

Furthermore, the aversion to bitterness may also be a self-protective mechanism of the human body. After eating something bitter, people feel that it is harmful to the body, and the brain will send a signal to vomit it out. This is similar to how people feel nauseous when they see parasites. This is something that has been passed down from the genetic chain since ancient times.

Chapter 143 Is Suffering a Good Thing or Not?

Humans are, after all, creatures that have evolved gradually. Some instincts are like subconscious imprints on people's genes. For example, when people see a baby, they will always subconsciously feel a sense of pity, which is normal, after all, it is to protect the continuation of the offspring.

It is said that this is also why cats are loved by people. After all, a cat's face looks somewhat like that of a human baby, which unconsciously triggers people's love for cats.