Abnormal Gourmet Chronicle
Chapter 110 - 92 Money Really Can Do Whatever You Want

Chapter 110: Chapter 92 Money Really Can Do Whatever You Want

Perhaps because Luo Jun had difficulty walking but insisted on not using a wheelchair, his visit stretched for more than an hour. It wasn’t until nearly 12:30 that Luo Jun completed his tour of the orphanage and finalized a donation.

Qin Huai wasn’t sure about the exact amount donated, but from the enthusiastic way Director Qu brewed tea, it seemed to be substantial.

Lunch was a communal affair, with everyone eating together.

The orphanage’s meal distribution was similar to that of elementary schools. Large containers held the food, and each child would line up with their bowl to receive their portion. They had no option to be picky; they ate what was available, and today the main course was buns made by Qin Huai.

The person who bought the ingredients clearly hadn’t made buns before, as they bought a lot of pork, but it was too fatty.

Normally, the filling should be made with pork that is seventy percent lean and thirty percent fat. Sixty percent lean would work too, but anything over thirty percent fat would make pure meat buns seem greasy.

The meat purchased today was pork belly with close to fifty percent fat.

Luckily, the purchaser also bought a lot of cabbage. Qin Huai decided to make cabbage and pork-filled buns, and the remaining green beans from the stir-fry were used to make minced meat and bean buns.

With limited time at noon, not all the buns were finished. Fearing the orphanage kids might go hungry without enough staple food, Qin Huai prioritized making a batch and steaming them as soon as possible.

This resulted in a very uneven appearance of the steamed buns.

After all, the buns were made by Chen Huihong, by Qin Huai, by Qu Jing, and by other staff members of the orphanage.

Apart from the ones made by Qin Huai, which looked standard and recognizable as buns, the rest displayed a great deal of creative freedom.

While making the buns, Qin Huai fully believed Director Qu’s statement that the orphanage staff were not adept at making pastries. Indeed, they couldn’t, and it was evident they were only skilled at making dumplings, as some staff initially wrapped the buns like dumplings out of habit.

Luo Jun looked at the buns Qu Jing handed him with some disdain.

A plate of three buns: one made by Qin Huai and two of unknown origin. One bun and two meat-filled pastries.

As the benefactor, Luo Jun received special treatment during the meal. His table not only had a small table just for him, but the dishes were served on small plates.

"Mr. Luo, if you’re not used to it, there are still some snacks that Master Qin brought this morning. Should I bring you some snacks?" Qu Jing noticed Luo Jun’s reluctance.

"I’m not hungry," Luo Jun said lightly, "It’s not my usual lunch time yet."

Qu Jing realized it too; indeed, Luo Jun typically had lunch at around three or four in the afternoon. It was understandably a bit early for him.

Luo Jun pointed to something that resembled a dough-made tangyuan: "Who made this bun? It’s worse than mine."

Upon hearing this, the three of them were shocked and spoke in unison, "You can make buns?"

"Of course, I can even make dumplings," Luo Jun said with a sip of tea. "Though, your orphanage’s meals are quite meager, with four dishes and not a bit of meat visible."

"Today is considered pretty good for meals," Qu Jing replied. "On Sundays, when volunteers come to help, there’s often an improvement, with several dishes. On ordinary days, it’s usually just two dishes, cabbage and potato shreds, along with a bowl of egg flower soup. But that’s from when I was in high school; it should have improved over the years. I don’t come often, so I’m not really sure."

Qin Huai, holding a bowl, continued to eat while watching a staff member feeding children who clearly had intellectual disabilities. He asked, "Are there also many children with disabilities at your orphanage?"

Qu Jing noticed the word "also": "Master Qin, did the orphanage you grew up in also..."

Qin Huai nodded, "Healthy kids are generally easily adopted. When I was little, there were still normal, healthy children in the orphanage like me, but in recent years, it’s mostly those with developmental issues or congenital severe diseases."

"My adoption came relatively late. When I was young, Director Qin always thought I had ADHD. At that time, the concept wasn’t well understood, so it was just said I was sick. The rumor spread until it turned out I was considered stupid. So, although I was at the orphanage from a young age, no one adopted me until I was seven or eight." Qin Huai felt sharing his childhood story was the first step in making friends and closing the gap.

This method was very effective because Chen Huihong became interested.

"And then?" Chen Huihong asked.

Qin Huai thought to himself, Sister Hong, why are you curious about this? Shouldn’t this be Qu Jing’s question?

"Afterwards, I was adopted by my parents. Their breakfast shop was right opposite the orphanage, so I sort of grew up under their watch and they knew me well."

Chen Huihong nodded and asked Qu Jing, "Hey, Xiao Qu, since you had such good grades, weren’t there couples eager to adopt you too?"

Qin Huai: ...

Sister Hong, if you don’t know how to chat, it’s better not to.

Clearly, Qu Jing was completely unfazed by Chen Huihong’s question. She calmly replied, "Director Mommy did try to help me find an adoptive family, but I was too quiet, and being a girl, it was hard to find the right match."

"Later, as I got older, I didn’t want to be adopted anymore and just stayed at the orphanage."

"I always felt that adoption requires a certain fate, just like Master Qin with his parents, or you and Huihui. Perhaps I wasn’t destined for it."

Not far away, Director Qu had begun breaking the buns apart and mixing them with the dishes before feeding them to the children.

"Director Qu is quite patient," Qin Huai remarked.

Qu Jing smiled and nodded, "Director Qu is a really good person. My first pair of gloves were knitted by her with wool. I remember they were purple, and she was worried that the color would be too embarrassing, that I’d be made fun of at school, so she added a cloth bow on them, which actually made them look even worse."

"Dr. Qu, it must have been tough being severely allergic to UV rays since a young age," Qin Huai said. "Having to avoid the sun while going to and from school."

Qu Jing was startled, paused, then nodded, "Yeah, but my UV allergy wasn’t as severe when I was young. It only started in middle school... Director Mommy knitted many mittens for me, so it didn’t affect my life much."

"Now, Director Mommy’s knitting skills have improved a lot. Master Qin, do you need any? If you do, I can ask her to pick a few nice pieces for you. She now knits sweaters, scarves, and mittens every day, and sometimes she even sells them online."

Qin Huai waved his hands repeatedly, "I wouldn’t need them."

"I don’t like things made of wool," Luo Jun said.

Chen Huihong seemed somewhat interested, "Can it be custom ordered? I’d like to order two pieces for Huihui."

"Of course, Director Mommy would be happy to take your order."

The two began discussing business.

Qin Huai could only try hard to steer the conversation back, glancing at Luo Jun, who had already started playing on his phone and seemed to have completely forgotten that today’s theme was to make friends with Qu Jing. Qin Huai asked, "Mr. Luo, may I ask how much you donated today?"

"I didn’t donate a specific amount," Luo Jun said without looking up.

"Facilities, then?" Chen Huihong inquired.

"No," Luo Jun was already playing a shooting game, "I covered all the medical and educational expenses for the children at the orphanage."

Everyone was shocked: !

Qu Jing was so surprised her eyes widened, and with her not showing many facial features, that made it particularly noticeable: "But there are children at the orphanage with congenital heart disease, severe cerebral palsy, moderate cerebral palsy, mild cerebral palsy, hearing impairments, visual impairments, and two cases of polio."

"Your director already introduced those to me earlier," Luo Jun continued to proficiently play his game. "She wanted me to pick one or two to sponsor, but since picking was troublesome, I decided to sponsor them all."

Qin Huai took a deep breath, feeling it was urgent to introduce Director Qin’s WeChat to Luo Jun.

"But my money won’t be spent in vain. I’ll come regularly to check if it’s being used appropriately. Xiao Qu and Xiao Qin, you two will accompany me for inspections. I’ll check the accounts, and you two can do your volunteer work." Luo Jun assigned tasks to Qin Huai and Qu Jing very clearly.

In his mind, Qin Huai silently gave Luo Jun a thumbs-up. This is what it means to silently accomplish significant deeds.

When you have money, you can truly do whatever you want.