The Reviled God of Cooking Tries to Slack Off - Chapter 21

Jiang Tingzhou still got up at 5:30 the next morning. His routine was deeply ingrained and didn’t change at all.

He went to the morning market to buy breakfast as usual.

The baked jujube paste cakes and bean paste cakes he bought that day were very sweet, perfectly paired with a cup of warm peanut paste. After drinking it, his whole body felt warm and strong, like he could plow an entire acre of land.

The weather was good that day, just right for work.

After finishing half an hour of Baduanjin exercises as planned, Jiang Tingzhou read a farming manual for a while. Then he carefully watched some videos on the Internet, taking detailed notes.

Later, he went out and bought a shovel, a hoe, and other miscellaneous farm tools. He prepared to turn the soil in the yard. Although he planned to take a nap afterward, he couldn’t fall asleep. After lying down for ten minutes, he got up quickly.

He hadn’t been in the habit of taking naps before. Now, he planned to cultivate this healthy habit slowly, but there was no rush.

He’d done all the prep work. He knew that even though the construction workers previously helped clear the yard, the land hadn’t been cultivated in too long—it all needed to be turned and fertilized. The soil had to be aerated and nourished before it was suitable for planting. Plus, he had to remove the roots of any weeds—these were all necessary steps.

Planting only tomatoes was definitely not enough. Jiang Tingzhou planned to grow some fast-growing green vegetables first, which could be harvested in ten days. He even bought the seeds.

However, it was his first time using those farm tools, and it didn’t go smoothly. After struggling for more than two hours, he managed to turn over only a small area. He finally figured out a little trick on how to use force properly. After turning the soil, he planted the cream cabbage seeds he bought, then prepared to water them.

He was very focused on his work. Just as he was about to finish, he heard a voice at the door. It wasn’t unusual for someone to pass by the alley, but he recognized the tone—it was Jiang You calling through the door: “Brother? Are you here?”

As soon as Jiang Tingzhou saw them, he knew someone from the Jiang family had come to see him.

It wasn’t just Jiang You—there were five people in total. A whole group squeezed in, their presence impossible to ignore like a plague of bad luck.

Father Jiang didn’t come—probably couldn’t bring himself to—but his personal secretary did. So did a company vice president surnamed Chen, who was a distant relative of the Jiangs and technically Jiang Tingzhou’s maternal uncle. They were accompanied by two men who looked like bodyguards. Jiang You stood at the front.

The yard door was an iron gate, locked so the visitors couldn’t enter, but they could see inside through the railings.

Jiang You obviously knew Jiang Tingzhou once lived there, but when he saw the man in the yard, he didn’t recognize him.

Li Xu had gone out and told everyone that Jiang Tingzhou resigned and left, describing him as depressed and helpless, pitiful and regrettable. So all the old customers believed he wasn’t coming back.

The old store had reopened, but the taste wasn’t as good as before, and business was greatly affected. Li Xu, the sly old fox, also invested in another high-end restaurant with great fanfare and placed the Jiang family’s heirloom pastel bowl in the banquet hall. This successfully attracted customers and earned enough attention from old diners.

But now, in the eyes of everyone present, the supposedly sick and depressed Jiang Tingzhou was standing in the yard wearing short sleeves, pants rolled up, a straw hat, and a pair of slippers. His feet were still muddy, and when he swung his hoe, it looked like he could crack someone’s skull with it.

It wasn’t until he lifted his head that Jiang You finally recognized him.

He stood stunned for a long moment before calling out, “Brother.”

They were definitely looking for him. Jiang Tingzhou wasn’t surprised and replied simply, “Get lost.”

Jiang You wasn’t angry. He spoke with deep affection across the railing: “Brother, I came specially to find you. Don’t cause trouble at home. Dad just has a temper, but he still cares about you. I’ve been looking for you since you left. Mom is in poor health, and the company is in crisis. Can you bear to let the family suffer like this? It’s been a few days and everyone has calmed down. Come back with me. The position of vice president is still reserved for you. I won’t fight with you.”

The others standing beside him chimed in, each trying to sound more convincing than the last.

“Vice President Jiang, the Old Gongyan—no, the whole company—was shocked after you left. Now the company can’t do without you.”

“You are President Jiang’s biological son and the future heir of the Jiang family. You can’t just leave like this.”

“Tingzhou, why are you still unhappy about what happened before? Come back and tell us. Yang Jinhao and his group have been dismissed. The Gongyan line is handed over to you. No one will disrespect you.”

Jiang Tingzhou didn’t buy any of it. He just found it all laughable.

He stuck the hoe upright into the ground and turned to look at them. “So you knew all along that I wasn’t being respected in the company?”

The five people at the gate fell silent.

Jiang Tingzhou spoke what was on his mind, sneering: “I was rarely home before too, and none of you seemed to care. But now the entire Jiang Corporation can’t function without me? What, are the hundreds of employees all eating for free?”

Jiang You’s face froze. Before he could respond, Vice President Chen lost his patience. Anxious, he shouted, “Jiang Tingzhou, what kind of attitude is this? At the board meeting, you proposed the ‘A Bite of China’ plan. Now President Qin is putting pressure on us, and you just up and leave. What are we supposed to do? You even sold off the Jiang family heirloom and dared to act all righteous here—how shameless can you be?!”

Jiang You cut him off: “Uncle Chen, that’s enough. Don’t talk to my brother like that. Brother, I know you resent me, but as long as you’re willing to come back, I can do anything. Please help the family this time. Do you want to see our parents get sicker before you stop?”

Jiang Tingzhou ignored them, but the noise lasted long enough that neighbors began to watch.

Though the place was remote and outsiders rarely came, many people lived nearby. If Jiang Tingzhou planned to live there long-term, neighbors would see each other often. This kind of scene was bound to spark gossip, which could affect him in the future.

“We’re not leaving unless you come back with us today,” the group insisted. The iron gate rattled as they shook it. “Jiang Tingzhou, open the door!”

Jiang Tingzhou watched coldly but didn’t stop working. At that moment, he had spread the seeds and watered them. When finished, he dragged his hoe to the gate and faced them directly: “What’s the point of putting on this performance in front of me? I bet none of you actually want me back—especially you, Jiang You. But since your team’s skills weren’t good enough and the Lu family wasn’t impressed, now you come crawling back to me, right?”

He had left the Jiang Corporation on a Monday. Li Xu was known as a bigmouth in the industry—Jiang Tingzhou knew the news would spread.

Once Li Xu found out, the whole circle would know, especially the old Jiang family customers. They would see clearly that Jiang Tingzhou had severed ties. The Jiang family could no longer use his name to continue business. Without his name, they couldn’t operate as before. This move spared him a lot of future trouble.

The Jiangs had connections in Yongqing—if they really wanted to, they could’ve found him within a day. But they waited until Friday to show up, which showed their weighing of pros and cons.

The “A Bite of China” opportunity was too good, and Jiang You was determined to seize it. Jiang Tingzhou’s withdrawal was like setting off firecrackers. But those past few days, they must have realized they couldn’t meet the show’s standards—so now they were there, trying to force him back.

“What do you mean our skills weren’t good enough? You’re just hiding your secrets! There must be some recipe or technique you didn’t tell us—how else could we not replicate your taste?!”

The man at the door shouted, “I tell you, Jiang Tingzhou, you’re from the Jiang family, and the secret recipes belong to the Jiang family. If you deliberately hide them, I have the right not to take you back, and I even have the right to sue you in court!”

Jiang Tingzhou watched them with a faint smile and spat out two words: “Trash.”

“Who are you calling—”

“If there’s no secret recipe and I’ve never hidden anything,” Jiang Tingzhou cut in, “then what does that make you? I taught you again and again, and you still couldn’t learn. Now you come begging me. What else could you be but trash?”

The other party grew irritated. The two bodyguards revealed their purpose—they started to pry at the lock of the gate. The iron door was old, and they were determined to break it. It probably wouldn’t take long.

“We’re bringing him back today no matter what!” Vice President Chen shouted. “Taking a family member home is our right!”

Jiang Tingzhou still held a hoe in his hand, ready to take out his cell phone and call the police.

The surveillance camera in front of the house was installed by the previous owner. He thought that if he fought back before the police arrived, it would count as a brave counterattack against the criminals breaking in to rob them.

The Jiang family would definitely do the same, so he was prepared. He planned to fight them off once, then make a bigger fuss. Even if he injured the other party, it would be considered legitimate self-defense.

Jiang Tingzhou was not afraid of anything.

He knew the Jiang family cared deeply about their reputation. If he made a big scene and ended up at the police station, it would drag Jiang You down with him. The other party would surely back off and not dare to provoke him again, and life would naturally be peaceful. After this fuss, it would be settled once and for all, which was not a loss.

Jiang You tried to stop him, but he seemed weak and couldn’t hold him back. He said anxiously, “Brother, don’t be impulsive. Do it for the family and the Lu family. Even if you hate your own family, the Lu family will always treat you well. Lu…”

His words only added fuel to the fire.

The Jiang family started prying at the door faster, but Jiang You suddenly stopped mid-sentence, casting a sidelong glance. His voice changed as he shouted, “Lu… Mr. Lu!”

Two bodyguards were quickly restrained and pressed to the ground before they could break the lock.

The rest of the Jiang family turned toward Jiang You’s voice and broke into a cold sweat.

“When did the Lu family tell you to act like this?”

From where Jiang Tingzhou stood, he could only see the area in front of the iron gate. The rest was blocked by the wall, so he only heard the voices and saw the changes in the Jiang family’s expressions—especially Jiang You’s pale face.

Even without seeing the person, he knew who it was.

“Brother Baiyu, that’s not what I meant. I… I was just trying to stop him. Uncle Chen and I had a quarrel, and I got impatient,” Jiang You panicked, softening his voice. “Jiang Tingzhou, I mean brother, misunderstood us, so…”

But Lu Baiyu didn’t respond or acknowledge his explanation. His voice was icy: “Get lost.”

Jiang You trembled all over and didn’t dare say another word.

The situation changed so suddenly that Jiang Tingzhou paused, his finger hovering over the emergency call button. In the end, he didn’t press it—but that didn’t mean he was letting them off.

“My gate’s broken,” he said. “You break it, you pay.”

Lu Baiyu added, “Compensate him.”

Who had time to scan a code to transfer money? Vice President Chen, trembling, looked at Lu Baiyu, took off the Rolex on his wrist, and hung it on the door.

“That’s barely enough,” Lu Baiyu said. “Get lost.”

The five people who came to cause trouble with Jiang Tingzhou were driven off in disgrace.

The iron gate’s lock was completely broken—it swung open with a push. So the person behind the wall, Lu Baiyu, easily walked in and stood in front of Jiang Tingzhou.

It had been a long time since Jiang Tingzhou last saw this person.

He felt a little strange looking at him now. His first reaction was that he had no white hair, unlike Lu Baiyu in his previous life, who was not yet forty but already had more than half his hair white.

There was no denying that this person was still as handsome as ever. He must have just returned to China. Despite the nonstop schedule, he didn’t look tired at all. When he pushed the door open and stepped inside, the sunlight shone on him, making him so radiant it was impossible to ignore his presence.

“Tingzhou,” Lu Baiyu looked him over, “You’ve lost a lot of weight.”

Hearing this, Jiang Tingzhou was struck once again by the reality of being reborn.

Before he was reborn, they had such an ugly fight. Even when they unexpectedly met years later at a dinner party, they couldn’t even say “long time no see” and ended up clashing in the middle of the night.

Jiang Tingzhou was fine, but his personal secretary was hospitalized. Lu Baiyu had a visible blood mark on his forehead that couldn’t be covered up. Everyone in Yongqing believed the two of them were mortal enemies.

When they were in love, no one knew. But when they clashed, everyone did—proof enough that their relationship was a destined mess.

Now that he had lived again, and there was still a day when Lu Baiyu would stand in front of him and talk like this.

The tone Lu Baiyu used with Jiang Tingzhou was always different from others—much gentler, like before, like an extremely reliable big brother.

The secretaries around them tactfully led people away, leaving the two alone.

Lu Baiyu stepped inside and took another step forward. Jiang Tingzhou dropped the tools in his hand and quickly walked over.

Lu Baiyu thought he was coming for a hug, so he waited, not moving.

It had always been like this before.

Jiang Tingzhou was shy around others but a little clingy when alone. He would jump into Lu Baiyu’s arms and whisper sweet things in his ear, blushing as he spoke.

Although the Jiang Tingzhou in front of him looked different from before—wearing a straw hat, with some dirt on his face, like a dirty little cat, looking like an educated youth from the countryside—after so long apart, lovers reunited should hug.

But Jiang Tingzhou’s actions weren’t what Lu Baiyu expected. Instead, he quickly bypassed him and squatted beside the tomato seedlings growing near the door. He inspected them carefully and breathed a sigh of relief when he saw none had been stepped on.

He hadn’t thought carefully about the location yesterday. Conscious of the area near the gate, where the Jiang family’s bodyguards just broke the lock and rushed in, there were messy footprints at the door. It would be terrible if the seedlings were trampled.

The Jiang family had been driven off, and no compensation had been paid yet.

Jiang Tingzhou scraped some soil gently and poured water on the seedlings. He figured he would have to move those precious tomatoes elsewhere soon.

Then he turned to the faucet nearby to wash his hands. Only after that did he finally look at Lu Baiyu and ask, “Young Master Lu, what are you doing here?”

Lu Baiyu, who hadn’t been hugged, froze for a moment. It was the first time he heard Jiang Tingzhou speak to him in that tone. He asked, “Tingzhou, do you still have to talk to me like that?”

Jiang Tingzhou looked confused. “I already told you we broke up. I even asked Secretary Song to pass the message along. The breakup notice was sent to you too—you couldn’t possibly not know. I think I made it very clear. Is there something Young Master Lu doesn’t understand?”