During the following week, Su Wenqi’s daily routine consisted of handling dailies and researching new dishes, and whenever he researched new dishes, Xianyun would always follow along to taste-test them. Feng Qian came over once on occasion, only to be chased away by his older brother, who told him to go organize guild activities, beautifully framing it as wanting to give him a good workout.
Feng Qian: Hehe, he knew his older brother harbored evil intentions, abandoning him to go live a two-person life with Spring Day. When he asked him before if he liked the guy, he refused to admit it, but now he trails behind him like a lovesick puppy every single day. Tch, forgetting his roots!
The chased-away Feng Qian went to vent to the married couple who ate eight meals a day, and it once again turned into a three-person crusade against Xianyun, until Xianyun brought over the new dishes developed by Su Wenqi, which finally made them stop.
Ever since Wen Shaochuan realized that his face held a strong attraction for Spring Day, he frequently followed right behind him to pull off close-up face attacks.
As for Su Wenqi, he went from blushing, heart-pounding, rapid breathing, and feeling completely flustered at the beginning, to getting used to it later on, and finally becoming desensitized, because the other person initiated face attacks far too many times!
The tacit understanding between the two of them also continuously increased amidst their interactions. Every day after finishing their dailies, they would return to the homestead to start researching recipes and deciding what dish to make for the day. The other person also upgraded from a mincing grunt to the chief mincing director, as Su Wenqi handed all the meat-chopping chores directly over to him.
Wen Shaochuan also memorized every single ingredient Su Wenqi needed when cooking, capable of handing items over to him without any need for eye contact, which further deepened Su Wenqi’s favorable impression of him.
This week, the snacks needed by the guild had already been prepared and handed over to Xianyun. Tomorrow was the sixteenth, and the game was going to hold the guild league, so he compressed his schedule and sent the items over by Tuesday already. To prevent there from being an insufficient supply of snacks to go around, he even made a few extra batches.
PVP activities in the game were divided into escorting mine carts, stronghold trading, arenas, battlefields, guild leagues, and faction territory defense battles.
The battlefields refreshed different maps every day, and Su Wenqi had participated once following the guild, but the tense and thrilling atmosphere made it a bit too difficult for him to adapt to, so he never participated again after that.
The guild league began on the sixteenth of every month and took place over three days. The game utilized the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches system, dividing guilds into twenty-two different brackets based on their combat power.
Each bracket contained eight guilds that drew lots in pairs to select their opposing guilds, and the battle duration was two hours. Once the winners and losers were decided in their respective matches, they advanced to the next day’s drawing, continuing until the final champion was decided.
Territory defense battles, on the other hand, were held on the last two days of the month. The first day took place on the Qingyun Sect faction map, while the second day was held on the Bishui Valley faction map.
The faction map was divided into a main battlefield and a secondary battlefield. The players who entered the main battlefield were basically elite players from various guilds, and fighting the faction bosses as well as destroying vehicles would count toward the score. The secondary battlefield was open to players who simply wanted to farm participation points, did not have their scores counted, and was better suited for casual players who had joined a faction.
Unbeknownst to him, Su Wenqi had already been in this world for over half a month. During these past twenty-some days, he had made new friends and found a job suited for himself, and he was already quite satisfied with his stable life.
After finishing today’s dailies, the group returned to the guild territory, and seeing them head toward the conference room, Su Wenqi consciously kept his distance.
Tomorrow was the guild league, and they needed to discuss tactics and distribute supplies.
Su Wenqi’s gear score was not yet high enough to participate in the guild league, and he genuinely wasn’t all that interested in such activities. Compared to joining the guild league, he cared much more about whether the vegetables planted in the guild’s back mountain had matured yet.
He turned around and walked toward the back mountain. A few days ago, when he was wandering aimlessly around the guild territory out of boredom, he discovered several vegetable plots in the back mountain. After asking Xianyun, he learned that these plots weren’t being used by anyone, and whenever he occasionally remembered, he would plant a few things there, though most of the time they just sat abandoned.
Looking at that dark, glossy soil, Su Wenqi felt heartbroken. They were truly wasting precious natural gifts, how could they leave such good soil abandoned!
Consequently, he took over the back mountain plots and planted the vegetables he frequently used. The time required for players to grow vegetables would be greatly reduced, so he would come to the guild territory every day to harvest crops.
Since he was using the guild’s public property, he had to give something back to the guild in return. Therefore, the blue-quality snacks he made while researching new dishes were all tossed into the guild warehouse, while the other qualities were handed over to Xianyun for distribution.
Seeing the bright red tomatoes hanging heavy all over the branches, Su Wenqi couldn’t be happier inside, as people from the land of China simply loved farming!
After gathering all the matured vegetables into his inventory, he planted new crops once again. Unlike other games, farming in Huaxia required weeding, watering, and fertilization.
The system wasn’t unhinged enough to make players guard the vegetable plots every day of their lives, and if such events were triggered during cultivation, the system would prompt players to complete the task within half an hour, otherwise the crop yield would decrease.
Returning to the homestead, Su Wenqi calculated the vegetables harvested today and began setting out to prepare today’s snacks.
He had accidentally discovered another use for the Imperial Chef title yesterday: he could choose to decrease item quality while keeping the flavor unchanged, which allowed him to increase the quantity of the items produced.
Equipping the title and turning this function on, he began making stir-fried tomatoes with eggs as an experiment. After three to five minutes, plates of stir-fried tomatoes with eggs were finished and dished out, and he took a plate to taste it. Mhm, the flavor remained unchanged.
After subsequently making a few more home-style dishes, he tossed them all into the guild warehouse.
Guild [Tingxue]: Rice falling from the heavens, oh wait, it’s Father Spring Day serving meals again!
Guild [Eat Eight Meals a Day]: Wowza, why is there so much today?
Guild [Charcoal of a Spring Day]: Aren’t you guys in the conference room discussing tomorrow’s guild league stuff? How do you still have time to check the guild warehouse!
Guild [Eat Eight Meals a Day]: Hehe, isn’t this just checking what’s in the guild warehouse? Perfect timing.
Guild [Xiyang Xie]: Wuwuwu, I finally managed to grab some! I missed out the past few days, eating a bite of Eight Meals’ food made me cry with envy…
Guild [Chun’ai Xiaomao]: Don’t all of you fight over it, one dish per person! There are three kinds today.
Guild [Charcoal of a Spring Day]: They are all made using vegetables grown in the guild’s vegetable plot. If you guys have time, help me keep an eye on them too, I will use whatever vegetables grow out to cook. Although the quality is blue, the flavor won’t change.
Guild [Let Me Into the Dungeon]: Wuwuwuwu, that is fantastic, I will pledge my life to following the great Spring Day. As long as you give a single command, we will crown you as the new guild master!
Guild [Xianyun]: ?
Guild [Feng Qian]: That’s right, let’s kick out this useless guild master and let Spring Day take the throne!
Guild [Xianyun]: ???
In the face of delicious food, everyone lost their fear of Xianyun’s cold expression. After all, having spent a long time together, everyone knew his personality and joked around with him.
His dignity as a guild master was completely gone, and he unhappily sent a message to Su Wenqi to complain through tears.
Private Chat [Xianyun]: They are going too far, they all want me to step down for you. Did a single good meal really make them turn on me?!
Private Chat [Charcoal of a Spring Day]: There is cloud-slice pastry and snow-pear soup in the homestead warehouse.
Private Chat [Xianyun]: Understood, Guild Master! I am transferring the position of guild master to you right now!
Private Chat [Charcoal of a Spring Day]: There is no need for that.
He accepted the snacks he gave Xianyun without turning them down, eating them with great relish, but he still noticed that the other person’s palate leaned toward sweet flavors, which was why he made plenty of desserts and kept them in his inventory. He hadn’t expected him to be surprisingly easy to coax.
Private Chat [Xianyun]: I put a set of cosmetics and a raised horse in the homestead warehouse, go take them out and use them.
Private Chat [Charcoal of a Spring Day]: Why did you buy these?
Private Chat [Xianyun]: Didn’t I notice you always wearing your sect cosmetics? These were bought extra before, so you can change into them. Besides, the horse is one I raised just today, the movement speed of that horse the system gave you is simply too low.
Private Chat [Charcoal of a Spring Day]: Fine, I’ll grant you a chance to order a dish, you can pick one from the recipe that I haven’t made yet and that you want to eat.
Private Chat [Xianyun]: There’s such a good thing?!
Private Chat [Charcoal of a Spring Day]: Mhm, this is a return gift.
He did not refuse the other person’s good intentions, but he also provided a return gift of his own.
Opening the warehouse, he equipped the cosmetics and the horse, then extended both hands and looked down at the clothes on his body.
This was a moon-white brocade robe, tied at the waist with a dark blue fairy-flower-patterned golden silk belt, and his half-loose hair was held up by a cyan jade hairpin, looking quite wealthy and magnificent.
He then summoned the horse he had just equipped: Lisha. Its entire body was snow-white, its mane exceptionally bright and glossy, and silver cloud patterns adorned its body. Its eyes were bright and its limbs were strong and powerful, making it look like a fine steed at a glance.
Patting the horse’s head, the animal obediently rubbed against his cheek in an extremely docile manner.
Having acquired a fine horse, he couldn’t wait to test it out, so he recalled Lisha and stepped out of the homestead.
Riding horses was not permitted inside Yuyun City, so he had only option: ride outside the city to test it.
As soon as he stepped out of the city gates, he summoned Lisha, leaped onto the horse’s back, raised his hand to flick the reins, and the horse let out a long neigh as it galloped toward the north like an arrow released from a bow.
He traveled northward along a dirt road flanked by tree shade, overtaking numerous mounted players along the way and drawing discussions from players, truly leaving everyone else in the dust.
Nearby [Can’t Beat Me, I’m Running First]: What was that streak of light that just flashed past? I didn’t even get a clear look.
Nearby [Koi]: It’s Lisha. The last time it appeared was three months ago when it was won at a bid by Xianyun, the guild master of Raising a Cup Facing the Wind.
Nearby [Can’t Beat Me, I’m Running First]: Hiss, wasn’t that person’s name hanging with their guild tag?
Nearby [Meichuan Kuzi]: Yes, and it seems to be a familiar name too~
Nearby [Can’t Beat Me, I’m Running First]: Spring Day! I remember now, I have a friend in their guild who came to brag to me a couple of days ago, saying that this player in their guild cooks super well! I didn’t believe it and told him to let me have a bite, but my friend wouldn’t even share!
Nearby [Yueling]: Really or fake? Is it that exaggerated?
Nearby [Koi]: Well, since he’s someone who triggered a grand encounter, it shouldn’t be wrong, right?
Nearby [Meichuan Kuzi]: Hearing you guys talk makes me curious too. I wonder when we’ll ever have a chance to taste food made by this big shot.
Nearby [Can’t Beat Me, I’m Running First]: I think it’s a bit doubtful. Word is that his probability of making gold-quality items is extremely high, and those high-quality goods only circulate among higher-ranking guild players, never leaking outside. What they collect from the warehouse is still just blue quality.
Nearby [Jiangxiang Ribs]: I wonder if the big shot has any plans to open a shop? If so, I will definitely become a loyal customer!
Nearby [Yueling]: Does anyone have a channel to ask around?
Nearby [Koi]: Forget about it, the big shot didn’t open his friend request settings, you can’t add him. Hey, Run-First comrade, ask your friend in the Raising a Cup Facing the Wind guild and have him sound out whether the big shot has any such intentions.
Nearby [Can’t Beat Me, I’m Running First]: OK, got it covered.
Unaware that he had sparked a discussion, Su Wenqi turned off onto another dirt road and rode back into Yuyun City, thoroughly enjoying this exhilarating ride.
“Ding! You have a carrier pigeon message, please go to the messenger to claim it as soon as possible!”
Recalling Lisha and entering the city, he went to the messenger to check the letter and found that it was sent by Li Lanxin from the craft training area.
The letter contained only a few words: Urgent matter, come quickly!