Legendary Lunch Box

It's rare to see Doctor Jian in the cafeteria. Even though the food in the cafeteria is following the highest standard of healthy food, it means less taste. Less sugar, less salt, less MSG. Where is the fun if no MSG is added in the food? Thus not many senior doctors will appear here.

So when the residents and the nurses saw this dazzling Doctor Jian walking to the cafeteria holding a lunch box, they were really happy to find something new to gossip about on their lunch time. Hospital's life is so boring, gossiping is the way for them to keep their sanity.

It's actually.. Not a lunch box? Just an ordinary food container? Why did Doctor Jian buy something from outside to eat here in the cafeteria? 

But Doctor Jian's face looks so happy and carefully opens it. Is it some legendary super expensive ginseng soup inside that? But legendary ginseng soup won't be placed inside a food container like that. The soup will spill out!

Wait.. Doctor Jian opens that food container. Person who sits next to Doctor Jian, please tell us what is inside? Is it really ginseng soup? Or rare monkey head mushrooms? Or bird's nest?

It's… Fried rice? What kind of rare fried rice needs to be carefully carried and opened like that?? Maybe that rare mushroom cooked together with the rice? But won't the nutritional value go away? Rare mushrooms should be stewed or steamed!

Zhuo Ying had surgery later, so he can't eat outside the hospital. So he decided to eat at the cafeteria. He's bored to death with the cafeteria menu. But he needs to eat. The knee replacement surgery needs a lot of energy, it took more than two hours of surgery time.

When he walked inside, he saw Jian Kang Lu eat alone in the middle of the cafeteria. As usual, many hidden eyes tried to peek at this lucky bastard. As an orthopaedic, Zhuo Ying himself is not bad. It's like a silent agreement between doctors. The pretty one will apply to dermatology and the handsome one to orthopaedic.

Internists are usually very old fashioned, ordinary and humble. Just like a bookworm typical kind. But this lucky bastard ignored his invitation to apply for orthopaedic residency and chose internal medicine instead. 

Don't know what makes this lucky bastard fall in love with internal medicine. It was so boring, and not cool at all. Just look at all medical movies, all of them involving a surgeon. Grey's anatomy, Doctor Strange, even those local television dramas, all of them will put surgery as their theme. Not a single movie will make an internist as their main lead.

As a common thing happens in residency, the internal medicine residence's aura will dim, turning even the most handsome one will turn into an ordinary man. Just look around you, and show me a handsome internist. It's rare. 

If this lucky bastard is a case journal, definitely it will win the international journal award. Because this lucky bastard's aura is not dimmed, even with age he still looks dazzling. Zhou Ying looked at himself, and sighed. His body is still maintained well, but his posture will never beat this lucky bastard.

Luckily this lucky bastard seems not to realise it, and didn't really like to flaunt around with the cute young intern or fresh delicate female residence. If he does, Zhou Ying will lose his fans club member.

Zhou Ying chooses his food and brings his tray to sit beside Jian Kang Lu.

"Brother, it's so rare to see you having your lunch here."

Jian Kang Lu raised his head when he heard that familiar voice. Zhou Ying comes from F university, but they start their residency here at the same period. He's quite close with him. He's a good surgeon.

"Mmm.. Do you have surgery later? You'll only show up here if you have a schedule right after lunch time."

Zhou Ying looks at the menu in the food container that Jian Kang Lu eats with a very content face.

'Fried rice? Why does this man eat fried rice in the food container?'

"Yes, I have TKR (Total Knee Replacement) later on. I thought you're eating something fancy. That's why I sit here, I want to steal something from your lunch box. Is that fried rice really good? Where did you buy it?"

Zhou Ying honestly thought that fried rice looked like ordinary fried rice. Even the fried rice here in the cafeteria looks more tempting compared to that fried rice. But why does this lucky bastard eat it like the most delicious fried rice in the world?

After asking that, Zhou Ying was a little bit stunned to see Jian Kang Lu' expression. This is the first time he saw a smug expression in this lucky bastard's face. This man always smiles politely, sometimes joking with a teasing face, but never arrogant or presumptuous. Ever.

At that time Chen Rong also sat beside Jian Kang Lu. He previously asked Jian Kang Lu to have lunch together in the cafe beside the hospital, but his best friend says that he brings his own lunch and wants to eat at the cafeteria. That's why he eats here too. Chen Rong doesn't really like to eat alone.

He also saw this smug face of his best friend. Chen Rong swore even though he saw Jian Kang Lu's smug face before, but this one definitely the most haughty expression he ever saw.

"What is this, you bought fried rice from outside to eat it here?" Chen Rong is also clueless to see this ordinary fried rice. He regrets coming here late. He shot a question look at Zhou Ying, but Zhou Ying's face was also blank.

Jian Kang Lu said with an immodest tone, "Someone cook this fried rice for me."

Zhou Ying and Chen Rong have different interpretations. So they comment on two different lines at the same time.

"Did a pretty cute intern cook it for you?"

"Did your patient cook it for you?"

Jian Kang Lu's expression is now even more snotty. "No, just someone."

Now both of them are thinking about the same thing. This guy must be trapped in his own spring season.

"Woah, so our lucky bastard is finally ready to tie a knot?" Zhou Ying said this with an audible voice. All the ears around them perked up high.

"It's not like that. It's just a friend of mine." Now Jian Kang Lu's tone sounds a bit modest. But Zhou Ying and Chen Rong didn't believe it.

"What kind of friend wants to cook for you? Is he a chef? Can I try it? Seems like you really like this fried rice." Chen Rong's chopstick already moved to try this mysterious fried rice, but Jian Kang Lu hurriedly defended and protected his food container, preventing Chen Rong from tasting it.

Now it is Chen Rong's turn to be surprised. His best friend is not a stingy person. He always shares good things he had. How tasty is this fried rice to change his best friend into a cheap person like this. He just wants to taste it a little bit!

"No, you can't! This is mine. You have your own lunch, it's not hygienic to put your chopstick into mine."

Jian Kang Lu really doesn't want to share this precious fried rice his kitten cooks for him. His kitten already finished cooking before 6.30 this morning. It means his kitten awake at 5.30 or maybe before that. How could he share his kitten's hard effort with someone else?

Chen Rong speechless and gave up. He doesn't know how divine this fried rice's taste is to turn his best friend into a petty man like this. "Okay okay, i won't. But i'm really curious, is she a chef?"

Jian Kang Lu just answers with ambiguous words while enjoying every grain of his precious fried rice.

"No, just someone who was willing to cook for me."

They still threw a bunch of questions during lunch, but Zhou Ying and Chen Rong didn't manage to pry anything further from this clamped shell.

Zhou Ying was still curious, so he asked "How about having lunch together again tomorrow? Let's go to the Japanese restaurant in the next building."

Jian Kang Lu shook his head, "I can't promise you. If he cooks lunch for me again tomorrow, then i will decline."

Zhou Ying and Chen Rong are determined to see what kind of food this mysterious person will cook tomorrow. Jian Kang Lu stated that this person is a he, a man. So maybe their assumption about Jian Kang Lu's spring is wrong.

Both of them are also now curious about the taste. They seriously start to wonder maybe this person is a famous chef? Because Jian Kang Lu's expression when he enjoys this fried rice truly makes someone want to eat it also.

The next day, both Zhou Ying and Chen Rong message Jian Kang Lu and receive the same answer. Jian Kang Lu will eat at the cafeteria again. Both of them hurriedly finished their morning routine and flew to the cafeteria. They wonder what kind of dishes this mysterious person cooked today.

When they arrived, the first thing they saw was the food container from before had already changed into a decent lunch box. A stainless steel insulated lunch box. Accompanied with a stainless steel tumbler.

They saw Jian Kang Lu with the same smug face as yesterday, eating his lunch like eating the most delicious food in the world. Even Chen Rong never saw this kind of expression from Jian Kang Lu no matter where they eat before. No matter how expensive.

Chen Rong looked at the food inside, it was…

Steamed white rice. Stir fried vegetables. Omelette. And.. What is that? Tofu? Is it supposed to be a stir-fry tofu? But why does it look so…. Messy. They can't even recognise the tofu's shape.

Both of them are now just speechless. No matter how wild their imagination, these foods are impossible to buy from outside. No restaurant will approve this kind of stir fry tofu to sell on their menu. And these foods really look ordinary, a home made food, made by someone who definitely doesn't have talent to be a chef.

Chen Rong and Zhou Ying are even more confused, who is this man cooked for their friend? At least the menu's variety improved from fried rice into several dishes. Inside the tumbler is hot honey ginger tea, also made by this mysterious person. That's what Jian Kang Lu answers when they ask what is inside the tumbler.

So three of them didn't talk about this lunch menu again, and just discussed their patient and hospital life.

That's how Doctor Jian became famous to pop up everyday in the cafeteria, happily eating his lunch box that filled with ordinary looking food with poor variety. And this mysterious chef already rumoured as a divine chef that cooked rare Chinese delicacies into ordinary home made food.