The Reviled God of Cooking Tries to Slack Off - Chapter 124

Why are you eating so fast? Didn’t you just eat with me earlier? Now you’re acting like a starving ghost—at least leave me some! Brother Dong couldn’t help but complain silently.

Of course, he wouldn’t dare say it out loud during the livestream. He didn’t even dare show any expression, afraid the audience would pick up on it.

Seeing the barrage of comments drifting further away from the narrative he wanted to shape, he grew anxious. The pre-prepared lines were no longer working, so he had to come up with something on the fly.

“Uh, also… the service here is really slow!” After racking his brain, he finally blurted something out and started complaining: “I ordered four or five dishes, but only two have arrived so far. Then another came a while later. But if we had more people at this table, wouldn’t we have finished everything before the next dish arrived? That’d be frustrating, right?”

It was a flimsy excuse. With this many customers, the restaurant’s serving speed was actually pretty fast.

But just as he was awkwardly forcing the complaint, a waiter came out from the kitchen wearing a mic. As she emerged, she called out, “Fresh pork intestines are out of the pot! Customers who’d like some, please call me over!”

This dish wasn’t served like the others. Though it had been on the scanned menu, Brother Dong clearly hadn’t paid attention earlier.

Now he watched the waiter wheel out a large pot of bubbling stew on a cart. As soon as she opened the lid, a wave of hot, fragrant, spicy aroma filled the air.

Even sitting where he was, the smell hit him—so rich he had to try hard not to swallow his saliva.

“Fresh Braised Pork Intestines” is a well-known street food in the southwest. Large pots of intestines are stewed in iron buckets wrapped in red paper, sold off shoulder poles along the street. This was the same setup here.

The waiter pushed the cart past table after table. If a guest wanted to order, they simply waved her down, and she’d serve it fresh from the pot.

Not long after the cart came out, customers began stopping her after catching a whiff of the aroma.

The stew looked amazing.

The pot was packed with pork intestines and chili, glistening red oil, and a bold, spicy fragrance. The intestines were chewy, flavorful, and not mushy. The only side—soybeans—were soft and sticky, adding richness when eaten with the meat. Pair it with rice, and the taste was divine.

The waiter worked efficiently. She’d stop the cart, grab a plate, and with practiced movements, scoop two generous ladles of stew per portion—clang, clang. Then she’d leave the printed order on the table and move on without wasting time.

Brother Dong saw all of this—and so did everyone in his livestream, since the waiter was calling out the dish.

Pork intestines were a famous delicacy, and naturally the audience wanted a review.

Not just the audience—he wanted to try it too.

But he hadn’t realized how it was sold earlier, and by the time he figured it out, the waiter had already moved on, called by another table.

Left with no choice, he picked at the pork liver and kidney already on the table. He chewed sadly, frustrated he couldn’t enjoy it hot—these dishes really had to be eaten while fresh.

As he waited for the cart to return, another two dishes arrived: hot and sour chicken offal and bean sprout and egg fried rice.

The chicken offal was stir-fried to perfection, bursting with flavor. But the real surprise was the fried rice.

The vermicelli was decent, and the bean sprouts—though visually unimpressive—gave the rice a unique umami flavor that set it apart from standard egg fried rice.

The spicy chicken offal paired perfectly with rice. You scoop a big spoonful of the bean sprout rice into your bowl, take a bite—it’s fragrant. Then top it with a spoonful of offal, mix it up, and take a huge mouthful. The blend of flavors is incredible.

After that, take a bite of pork liver and kidney, then wash it down with sour plum soup.

Even though he was full, Brother Dong couldn’t help taking a few more bites—it was just too good.

Now, he completely understood why so many people had queued up during the chef competition.

Who came up with this dish? How could it be so aromatic, so flavorful, so irresistible?

He was eating with his eyes wide, totally immersed. But the livestream was still on, and he had to remind himself repeatedly to put down his spoon and chopsticks for the third time.

Forcing himself to stop, he continued lying to the viewers:

“Well, it’s just okay. Really just so-so. Typical takeout-level. You can get this taste anywhere. I’m just a little hungry today—otherwise, I wouldn’t have eaten more.”

But he might have convinced himself—he couldn’t fool the viewers. The comment section lit up:

【“Come on, go order some takeout and see if it tastes like that.”】

【“You burped just now, right? Tried to hold it back? Who burps after just a few bites unless they were already full?”】

【“You were stuffing your face, eyes glowing. Then suddenly, ‘meh, just average’? Lol, face-changing skills on point. Did they pay you for this review?”】

【“I’m here just for this. Watching people lie and then get exposed is my favorite drama.”】

To be fair, Brother Dong’s livestream numbers were higher than they’d been in months. No bots—just real people pouring in, curious to see the farce unfold.

Too bad the barrage couldn’t be suppressed.

Finally, the waiter with the pork intestines cart returned.

Brother Dong saw her and jumped at the chance to change the subject. Truthfully, he really wanted to eat it. He waved her over and shouted, “Pork intestines over here!”

But the waiter apologized, “Sorry, this pot’s sold out.”

Sold out? That massive pot, gone in just ten or twenty minutes? That had to be a joke.

“There were a lot of group tables over there,” she explained. “Some ordered two or three portions each. Sorry, the next batch will be out in ten minutes, but it’ll beSpicy Braised Beef Brisket. The Spicy Braised Pork Trotters will follow ten minutes after that. The next Braised Pork Intestines batch will be in about half an hour. I’ll bring it right away when it’s ready.”

Just as she finished speaking, a customer at a nearby table—already halfway through his portion—stood up and said, “I’ll take three more—no, four! To go!”

Looking at the empty pot, even the soybeans were scooped clean. That alone proved how popular the dish was.

Brother Dong sat back down, not daring to look at the comment section. He just kept telling himself: You’ve been paid handsomely. You have to keep going.

He clenched his teeth and muttered, “Don’t be fooled. It’s not as good as it looks. Probably just slow service, and people order more out of impatience. That’s all.”

But now, instead of refuting him, the comments were full of laughter:

【“HAHAHAHA.”】

【“Sure, marketing, it’s all definitely just marketing!”】

【“Actors! The whole restaurant is in on it! Can’t you tell?”】

【“Totally staged. I bet even the chefs in back are hired performers.”】

Brother Dong was scrambling to keep up, frantically making excuses in louder and louder tones—so loud that the table behind him heard.

A big guy turned and patted him on the shoulder: “Bro, what’s up? Don’t like the food here?”

Brother Dong’s eyes lit up—finally, someone who might share his views! 

He quickly replied, “Yeah, yeah! I think the food’s average. There’s a place called Jianghu Cuisine at the mall down the road. I really recommend it. Just opened, though it’s been under some fire lately…”

Before he could finish, the man laughed.

“If you don’t like it, then go eat at the mall. I’ll pay your bill—just leave this table for my buddy. He’s on his way, and we’ve got no room at ours. People outside have been lining up for two hours!” He called the waiter right away. “Waiter! This table’s for a friend. Bring more bowls, chopsticks, and a few more dishes!”

Brother Dong panicked: “No, wait, I didn’t mean I was really leaving…”

He was already plotting to pack everything up after the stream and enjoy it secretly in his hotel.

But the man was done entertaining him. “You don’t like the food but won’t leave? Hogging the seat, not eating, just complaining—what’s your deal?”

Meanwhile, Jiang Tingzhou had been watching everything.

The restaurant was well-equipped with surveillance. Given the spike in livestream popularity, the PR team had been closely monitoring. As soon as Brother Dong walked in, Wen Qi recognized him.

This guy only took two bites before nitpicking. Clearly not here for a fair review. Wen Qi even asked if they should kick him out.

Jiang Tingzhou shook his head. “With that kind of livestream traffic? Why waste the exposure? It’s not that easy to lie with a straight face.”

And sure enough, the truth came out once the food was served.

When the drama with the other table escalated, Jiang Tingzhou immediately had staff step in to de-escalate and prevent it from affecting other diners.

By now, no amount of paid commenters could save the situation.

And Brother Dong wasn’t alone—there were others, some with better acting and subtler tactics. But now that one had crashed and burned, curious viewers started flocking to others known for similar “sponsored slander.”

The internet is open. If the car overturns here, the others in the same store won’t last either.

Lying with one’s eyes open never ends well.