Chen Ji Restaurant was not open.
Old Jiang confirmed it several times, how could it not be open? Little Chen never closed, rain or shine.
How could it not be open?
Jiang Yue said, "Grandpa, why don't we go to another place? We can come back when he opens next time."
"No, I'll wait a bit longer." Old Jiang waved his hand stubbornly. "How could he not be here?"
In the past.
Even if Little Chen didn't come, his son would always come to check the storefront or post a note explaining the situation.
But now there was nothing, perhaps he was just late.
Jiang Yue could only wait with him helplessly.
Someone from the noodle shop nearby saw them and called out.
"Don't wait anymore, they are holding a funeral. The shop won't be open for a few days."
"A funeral?! Whose funeral?" Old Jiang straightened up.
"It's the owner, Chen Dahai. He passed away suddenly this morning."
The neighboring owner said, "You must have booked a table, right? They probably don't have time to notify you now. Come back next time."
Old Jiang suddenly felt dizzy and took two steps back before steadying himself.
"How could this person just pass away like that?"
Jiang Yue quickly went to support him. "Grandpa, be careful."
She carefully watched her grandfather's expression, unsure of what to do.
Grandpa had been so looking forward to it. She shouldn't have said those things.
"It's alright, I'm fine. Let's go."
Old Jiang recovered himself, stood up, and walked back. "How could this person just pass away? He's ten years younger than me."
"Now I can never have Old Chen's soup again."
"Sigh."
After returning home, Old Jiang lost all interest in celebrating. He ate a casual meal and went to bed.
"He's ten years younger than me. How could this person be gone?"
Listening to her grandfather's mumbling, Jiang Yue also felt a little down.
Mother Jiang beckoned her out. "Let your grandpa be alone for a while."
"As people get older, they become more emotional about these things."
Jiang Yue nodded. Her phone in her pocket vibrated.
"You are following 'Live Stream: Daily Healing in the Underworld', it has started, come and watch~"
Seeing this, Jiang Yue's eyes lit up. "That's right, the streamer is Bai Wuchang!"
"He might have a solution!"
Entering the live stream room, Jiang Yue started typing:
"Streamer, can you check for me..."
Before she finished typing, she paused.
In the live stream footage, the streamer was leading a soul towards the Yellow Springs Road.
The person was wearing white clothes, with their hair tucked into a chef's hat. A waist apron bore a large character 'Chen'.
"It's over," Jiang Yue murmured.
She had originally hoped that the streamer could find a way to make Mr. Chen's soul leave a little later.
But now that the person was already on the Yellow Springs Road, it was clear they couldn't come back.
However, she didn't immediately leave. She continued to watch.
She had started following the streamer after the Cai Xing incident.
Naturally, she knew that not all souls went to reincarnation after death.
Since he was the chef her grandfather had talked about for so long, she wanted to see his fate.
Whether he would be reincarnated or judged.
On the Yellow Springs Road, Jiang Lin was stopped.
Coincidentally, he knew this person.
He was a chef at a restaurant in the Ghost Market, said to have been open for over a hundred years.
Jiang Lin had also eaten there. His soup was indeed exquisite.
The Flying Fish Soup, with all bones removed, leaving only the flesh and head.
Simmered until milky white, it was rich and delicious, making one want to swallow their own tongue.
It made him recall, for the first time in a long time, what it felt like to be alive.
"Sir, could you wait a moment?" Chen Sanwei asked, cupping his hands.
"I anticipated that a descendant of my Chen family would descend today, so I am waiting here."
Jiang Lin nodded. Chen Sanwei's culinary skills were renowned in the Ghost Market.
Giving him some face was not impossible.
"Mind the time."
After speaking, he did not leave.
The camera in the live stream automatically focused on the two of them.
"Thank you, sir."
Chen Sanwei cupped his hands, then turned to Chen Dahai and asked, "Which generation of the Chen family are you?"
Chen Dahai looked at the person in front of him, finding him more and more familiar.
With trembling hands, he said in disbelief, "You, you, you are the Ancestor?!"
Legend had it that the Chen family's ancestor was the pinnacle of Chen family's culinary art, and his soup was the most authentic taste.
The flavor was praised by people within a hundred-mile radius.
For a taste of his soup, diners would travel from all directions.
Just for that authentic taste!
Thus, from the ancestor's generation, the Chen Ji Restaurant was established.
It was said that during its most glorious period, the Chen Ji Restaurant had cooked for important figures.
The ancestor's portrait had always been hung at home.
When he was learning to cook, every time he failed, his father would scold him using the ancestor's deeds.
And now.
The ancestor stood before him. How could he not be excited?
"Ancestor Chen Sanwei stroked his beard. So many years have passed in the outside world."
"What is your name?"
"Your descendant, Chen Dahai."
"What is the current state of the Chen Ji Restaurant?"
Chen Sanwei had come today precisely to know this.
After so many years, what had the Chen Ji Restaurant become?
Had it expanded nationwide?
Had the Chen family's culinary heritage been passed down?
Did people still remember the authentic Chen family soup?
Chen Dahai hesitated to speak, then stopped.
Recalling his small restaurant, he felt immense shame.
Let alone making the Chen family soup flourish, he hadn't even managed to properly pass down the basic culinary skills.
The ancestor had entrusted such a large legacy to them.
In the end, all that remained was a restaurant of less than eighty square meters.
Now, very few people remembered the Chen family soup, much like Old Jiang.
"Sigh..."
Chen Sanwei sighed deeply.
Seeing Chen Dahai's demeanor, he could guess what had happened.
However, it wasn't entirely unexpected for the Chen family to decline.
After all, in the river of time, anything could happen.
It was just a pity.
It was indeed not easy to excel in the culinary profession.
Chen Dahai truly had no face to look at his ancestor now. "From my father's generation to mine, my talent is limited, and I only learned a few aspects."
"The one who has taken over the Chen Ji Restaurant now is my son, who recently graduated."
"His skills have only just touched the surface. With my passing..."
Chen Dahai could no longer hold his head up.
He hadn't expected to pass away so suddenly. Fortunately, his son had grown up.
But it was a pity...
The Chen Ji Restaurant would likely be broken in its lineage with him.
He had failed the Chen family ancestors!
Chen Sanwei stood with his hands behind his back, silent.
After a long while, as if making a decision.
"The Chen Ji Restaurant may decline, but this culinary art passed down for hundreds of years must not be broken."
He looked at Jiang Lin and cupped his hands to request:
"Sir, may I see the descendants of the Chen family?"