Translator: dapotaturs
Release Date: 09/04/2023
"The National Athletics Team Returns in Glory, Celebrating Victory with a Special Feast"
When the netizens saw the latest report from the sports news channel on the internet, they couldn't help but burst into laughter. After laughing, these netizens joyfully shared the latest report from the sports news channel once again.
【(Dog Head) Editors, you've pinned the latest report, are you trying to use this pinned post to wash away your shame?】
【Hahaha, this latest report shows some effort, but unfortunately, the previous report is already hanging on the pillar of shame and can't come down! (Loud laughter)】
【I'm laughing so hard my stomach hurts. Editors, your intention to wash away the shame is so obvious. However, a mere written report probably won't do much. Listen to me: you should schedule an interview with the National Athletics Team. Interview Coach Su Bai about the meal he's preparing for his athletes. With such an interview, you can cleanse your shame completely! Trust me, it will work!】
The netizens, who were stacking dog heads one after another in the comments under the sports news channel's official account, were also giving the channel some dubious ideas. It's unclear whether the sports news channel actually intended to wash away its shame, but not long after, they actually pushed out a new Weibo post.
The content of the post wasn't extensive; in summary, it said: "We have applied for an interview with the National Athletics Team. It's known that Coach Su Bai will prepare a feast for the athletes tomorrow evening. The Sports News Channel will conduct a live broadcast on-site and invite Mr. Pan Wenxi, Vice Chairman of the B City Chef Association, and renowned food critic Mr. Zhou Lingyu to provide comments."
...
...
Huh?
The moment the Sports News Channel's official account posted this, the netizens who were previously stacking dog heads one after another, along with sports enthusiasts, were briefly puzzled.
After a moment, the netizens finally grasped the information conveyed in this Weibo post.
【... Wait a minute. Are they saying that a sports media outlet, with plans to go to the National Athletics Team, will live broadcast the coach of the 400-meter project preparing a feast for the athletes? And they've even invited two food critics for commentary?】
【Emmmm... I never thought about it, but there's a feeling of binge-watching a TV series. So, has this plot officially entered the 'Former Athlete Coaches Who Can't Cook Aren't Good National Team Coaches' phase?】
The netizens who were originally stacking dog heads in the comments section of the Sports News Channel's official account were mostly just joining the fun. Who could have anticipated that the Sports News Channel would be so proactive and eager to respond to the public's call, preparing to live broadcast an event with the National Athletics Team?
Moreover, it was a live broadcast about food.
...
Even before the live broadcast had started, a sense of absurdity was already oozing through the computer screens.
Huang Yushan, as an ordinary entertainment industry gossip enthusiast, doesn't have a favorite idol but supports many different idols had recently noticed Su Bai's existence due to the high popularity of his topic. Lately, she had been mingling among sports enthusiasts. Since Su Bai's coaching abilities were truly outstanding and he was young and handsome, she happily added Su Bai to her list of bias.
Huang Yushan originally thought that Su Bai, being a coach for the national athletics team, even if he had excellent coaching abilities, she would only think of him during the Asian Games or Olympics.
Who would have known?
Her newly added bias had brought her a constant source of joy these days. He seemed to have a higher profile than the other idols from the entertainment industry she followed. She had initially believed that he was just a coach, but apart from his exceptional coaching skills, he also had outstanding culinary skills?
These days, she had witnessed the Sports News Channel being pushed into conducting a live broadcast about food...
Seeing this outcome, Huang Yushan burst into laughter, her stomach hurting. She immediately scheduled the start time of the Sports News Channel's food broadcast.
When the Sports News Channel released this Weibo post, they also included two hashtags: #FirstFoodBroadcastbySportsChannel# and #AthleticsCoachSuBai#.
In short, since the wealthy athletics fan "Da Sheng Runs Fast" had pushed Su Bai's topic into the trending searches and it was hanging there, this topic seemed to be like magic, stubbornly stuck on the trending search list without coming down.
Every time it seemed like the buzz around the topic was dying down, a new and amusing hashtag managed to bump it back up, and looking at the engagement and participation in these hashtags, they were undoubtedly attracting a substantial audience.
During these days of the topic's fluctuating popularity, the name Su Bai had already firmly etched itself into many people's memories.
To be honest, when the Athletic Center initially received the Sports News Channel's request for a live broadcast, they were utterly perplexed and didn't know how to respond.
After all, who could have imagined that someone would want to see the coach of a national team cooking for the athletes?
However, the Director of the Market and Events Department at the Athletic Center, Liao Jie, suggested that the national team accept this live broadcast event.
"The various forms of online live broadcasts are extremely popular now. Haven't we always been suggesting that we should 'step outside'? To expand the influence of track and field and attract more ordinary people's attention to our sport? I think this is a great opportunity!"
Liao Jie's words were exactly in line with the athletic center's ongoing efforts to promote track and field events.
Though track and field was one of the major categories in various sports disciplines, the lesser-known sub-events had fewer people aware of them, and the more well-known sub-events didn't perform remarkably within the country. It had been in a somewhat awkward position for quite some time.
Forget comparing it to basketball, soccer, or table tennis; even when compared to seemingly less popular events like diving and swimming, the track and field events struggled to compete.
Liao Jie's remarks easily persuaded Wang Zhengsheng, the head of the athletic center. After all, Liao Jie's points were valid. Even though the idea of having a national track and field coach livestream his cooking sounded absurd, the recent surge in interest around Su Bai had caught the attention of the athletic center.
Since the public seemed to enjoy it, why not give it a try?
After contacting Su Bai and confirming his willingness, the livestream plan was officially set.
The next day, news about the livestream had spread throughout the national team. Many of them already had plans to come and enjoy the spectacle, as the idea of seeing Su Bai cook live was too amusing to miss.
Online, with the combined efforts of the Sports Channel's news station and the athletic center, along with the intriguing nature of the event, news of the livestream reached not only sports fans and track and field enthusiasts, but even those casual social media users who happened to come across the posts on their timelines.
The Sports Channel's news station's social media editor, upon seeing the surging data, couldn't help but share the numbers with the team.
**Sports Journalism Team Chat**
*Did I meet today's KPI?*: 【Screenshot of microblog engagement data 】"Folks, I officially announce that I've completed my KPI for the year ahead!"
*Struggling with Articles*: [Confused] "Wait, little P, did you hit it big? It's only early September, and you're done with your annual KPI? Also, there haven't been any major events lately, have there? The Asian Games are over, right? Plus, the Asian Games didn't generate this much buzz, did they?"
*Did I meet today's KPI?*: "Hey, Man jiang, thanks so much! ^0^ It's all thanks to your articles and Coach Su Bai. That's how I managed to hit my KPI ahead of schedule!"
*Struggling with Articles*: "...? What?"
*Struggling with Articles*: "...So, it's about that thing with Su Bai's cooking? The engagement is this high?"
*Did I meet today's KPI?*: "^0^ Yes, Man jiang, didn't you know? We're going to livestream Coach Su preparing a meal, and it's blown up in popularity!"
*Struggling with Articles*: "...Alright, you guys better work hard. Hopefully, people will forget about my earlier article."
After posting this message, Man jiang felt like he had lost a bit more hair.
Around noon that day, the Sports Channel's news station team arrived at the national track and field team's training base with their equipment. Upon arrival, they discussed with Su Bai the areas where he would move around while cooking and set up their camera positions accordingly.
While adjusting camera positions, the athletes, who were going to enjoy the feast later in the evening, were excitedly gathered on the third floor of the dining hall, looking forward to witnessing Su Bai's debut livestream.
Pan Wenxi and Zhou Lingyu, who were invited to evaluate Su Bai's cooking, were chatting and laughing with Jin Manjiang and Tang Jiangtao.
When they were initially invited for this tasting, they were surprised. While they both had food and culinary accounts, they had received quite a few sponsored posts in recent years, causing the content on their forum, Delicious Aromas, to become less genuine. Therefore, their activity on the forum had decreased in the past couple of years, and they were unaware of Su Bai's recent activities.
After the news station that invited them provided their evaluations from Delicious Aromas, they accepted the invitation out of curiosity. However, even then, they didn't have overly high expectations.
The culinary profession, apart from innate qualities like keen senses and tastes, also required fundamental skills. Just consider knife work, spoon technique, and pan flipping; these basics would take even ordinary culinary students several years to master.
Su Bai, on the other hand, was young and still worked as a sports coach. Even if he had exceptional senses and seasoning skills, if he lacked proficiency in these basic skills, it would directly affect aspects such as the evenness of seasoning and the consistent heating of ingredients.
From the perspective of Pan Wenxi and Zhou Lingyu, the praises of Su Bai on the forum must have been exaggerated—although they couldn't fathom why the always critical Dous and his sons would speak so highly of Su Bai.
Pan Wenxi glanced around and saw that nobody was paying attention to them, so he lowered his voice and said, "Lao Jin, Lao Tang, let's share some insider info. How good is this Coach Su's culinary skill really? Lao Zhou and I might need to improvise later."
Tang Jiangtao, taken aback by Pan Wenxi's sudden question, burst into laughter, "Calm down, Lao Pan. You'll see for yourself in a bit!"
"Hey, Lao Tang, are you trying to keep me in suspense?" There was a hint of surprise in Pan Wenxi's eyes. "Are you guys really that confident in Coach Su's cooking? He's not even 23 yet, right? Even the most talented youngsters in our industry usually haven't finished their training by that age."
Jin Manjiang, a round and chubby figure, laughed like a jolly Buddha, "Oh, don't you know, Lao Pan? The dishes Coach Su prepares might seem ordinary, but when he makes them, they're surprisingly unique."
With the endorsements from Jin Manjiang and Tang Jiangtao, Pan Wenxi and Zhou Lingyu exchanged a glance, becoming even more curious about Su Bai's culinary skills.
Since they had agreed to celebrate the athletes with a grand meal that evening, Su Bai had already coordinated with Jin Manjiang and the staff the previous night to ensure that all ingredients for the dishes were freshly stocked. As a result, they needed to start the meal preparations early that day.
For Su Bai, this evening's meal, although touted as a grand feast, still needed to adhere to the nutritional and dietary requirements of athletes. In general, when selecting the dishes, the emphasis was on providing abundant protein while achieving a "two high and one low" balance—high protein, high calories, and low fat.
Additionally, in terms of flavors, they needed to avoid heavy use of oil and spices in cooking methods, aiming to minimize the burden on athletes' digestive systems.
Under these exclusions and considerations, the scope for food choices and cooking methods became much narrower.
Before the livestream started, Tang Jiangtao also introduced the culinary principles of the national team's kitchen to Pan Wenxi and Zhou Lingyu.
Although Pan Wenxi and Zhou Lingyu were aware of dietary restrictions for athletes, these specific guidelines were new to them. Both of them had a fondness for good food, and after hearing about these guidelines, they couldn't help but sigh at the challenges faced by the athletes.
As Pan Wenxi and the others chatted, on the other side, Yu Miaomiao, the host from the Sports Channel, signaled to Su Bai, officially initiating the livestream.
Online, the curious masses almost instantly flooded into the livestream room the moment the news station's official account announced the start of the livestream. For the host, Yu Miaomiao, it was also the first time she had seen such high levels of engagement and traffic in one of her news station's livestreams.
"Hello, everyone! Welcome to the livestream room of the Sports Channel's news station. I'm your host Miaomiao. Just as we announced earlier, today we are at the dining hall of the National Track and Field Team, bringing you the entire process of Coach Su Bai, the head coach of the 400-meter event, preparing a reward feast!"
With that, the camera shifted to the back kitchen area where Su Bai was located.
At this moment, Su Bai was busy checking various ingredients and instructing the assistant chef on necessary preparations. Upon hearing the host's cue, Su Bai turned his head and smiled in the direction of the camera.
"Hello, everyone. I'm Su Bai."
As Su Bai appeared, the live chat was filled with a flurry of "Ah" comments.
It wasn't that Su Bai was already this well-known; rather, in the combination of livestreaming and live chat, many people were easily stirred up, and they enjoyed expressing their emotions freely in the livestream.
Meanwhile, Qiu Wen, Zhang Zi Yi, and Cui Luo Heng were also present. Despite being on-site, Qiu Wen had a phone in his hand, cheerfully watching the livestream from the Sports Channel.
Zhang Zi Yi found Qiu Wen's behavior of watching the livestream on-site rather perplexing.
However, Qiu Wen justified himself, saying, "We can see the living Su Bai anytime. Isn't it a bit exciting to see him in an online livestream?"
Not only Qiu Wen, even Cui Luo Heng, who hadn't spoken much before, nodded earnestly.
Zhang Zi Yi: ?
That... actually makes sense.
However, once they started watching the livestream, the athletes found it quite intriguing. It was their first time witnessing Su Bai's entire cooking process. As they watched Su Bai prepare the ingredients, they speculated about the dishes for the evening.
"Ah, there's beef."
Qiu Wen noticed on camera that Su Bai was swiftly dicing chunks of beef ribs. This segment of the footage was a fixed shot directly focused on the cooking station. It accurately captured the direction of Su Bai's cutting board. In the small frame, Su Bai's fingers appeared slender and delicate, the flesh and bone harmoniously balanced, and the skin fair as jade.
Just from observing those hands, it gave the impression that they were meant to hold black and white chess pieces or perhaps a folding fan and a jade flute.
Truly...
Looking at those hands, it inexplicably brought to mind images of dashing gentlemen from various novels.
In the live chat, as the close-up shots turned towards Su Bai's cutting board, various peculiar comments started to pop up.
"Ah ah ah, Coach Xiao Su, I want to be the piece of meat in your hands!"
"Awsl, as an ultimate hand enthusiast, how did I end up seeing the jade-like hands of my dreams in a food livestream by an athletics coach?"
"Wuwuwu, Xiao Bai's hands feel like they're pressing against my heart. Ah, being held by these hands, even if he had a knife pointed at me, I would willingly accept it!"
The group of athletes watching the livestream were initially trying to guess what delicious food they would get to eat. However, they were taken aback by the strange comments flooding the live chat.
"...Are young girls these days so bold?" Zhang Zi Yi's expression became complex.
Guo Dun, who usually watched a lot of livestreams, had a better grasp of the situation. He smiled and said, "It's not necessarily just young girls."
Huh!
With that statement, Zhang Zi Yi's expression became even more intricate.
On the side, Cui Luo Heng, who had been quiet all along, grew serious upon hearing this. He had initially had no particular feelings about the livestream, but now he had a sense that after this livestream, there would probably be more and more people trying to win Su Bai's attention.
On the other side, Pan Wenxi and a few others were watching Su Bai's skilled knife work on the monitor.
As the saying goes, outsiders watch the spectacle, while experts observe the technique. Su Bai's skill in dicing meat appeared so proficient that it seemed 'not difficult' at all.
In reality, it was because he had a thorough understanding of the characteristics of the ingredients, allowing him to adjust his knife techniques accordingly. His knife strikes were appropriate in strength and precision, yielding clean and precise cuts.
In simpler terms, every knife strike produced a clean cut.
After watching for a while, Pan Wenxi raised an eyebrow. "His dicing skills look quite impressive."
Tang Jiangtao, on the other side, chuckled. "Old Pan, did you not read the Dous' comments on the forum? Su Bai is a skilled culinary artist, capable of producing vivid imagery with his dishes. Is dicing a few pieces of meat going to be a challenge for him?"
In the livestream room, many viewers had initially planned to drop in, take a glance, and then leave. After all, today's livestream was about Su Bai preparing a meal, and with a duration of two to three hours, wasn't it more appealing to indulge in other online activities?
However, they hadn't anticipated that although Su Bai was quietly cooking, not uttering a single word, his presence onscreen would captivate the audience due to the combination of livestreaming and live chat.
For some unknown reason, Su Bai's series of actions on the cooking station seemed to possess a unique sense of rhythm, allowing anyone watching to be completely engrossed.
Many viewers initially didn't react much, but before they realized it, they were already sitting in the livestream room, having watched for at least half an hour.
"A livestream that makes you forget to exit after entering?"
This was truly incredible!
As the livestream progressed, each dish was skillfully prepared by Su Bai's hands. While the viewers in the livestream room couldn't smell anything, aromas were already wafting out at the live scene.
The host Yu Miaomiao eagerly glanced toward the direction of the kitchen and addressed the viewers, "Several dishes from tonight's feast have already taken shape. The aroma is emanating from the live scene's kitchen. I finally understand the enticing aromas that were mentioned in the Delicious Aroma Forum reviews..."
From the moment the first dish was about to be completed, Qiu Wen and the others found it hard to sit still. They alternated between watching the livestream on their devices and glancing toward Su Bai's direction at the live scene. They wished Su Bai would announce that dinner was ready right then and there.
Unfortunately, it seemed like there was still quite some time left before dinner would officially start...
In the kitchen, as the fragrance subtly began to permeate the air, Pan Wenxi and Zhou Lingyu exchanged surprised glances. They were well-accustomed to the aroma of cooked food, but the scent that drifted over, both enticing and not overwhelming, triggered their appetites in a way they hadn't experienced before.
At least in terms of this skill in flavor composition, they had rarely seen such mastery from anyone.
Could it be that the praises from the forum posts were actually true?
The truth, both the real and the fabricated, became crystal clear to Pan Wenxi and Zhou Lingyu once Su Bai finished preparing the elaborate dinner.
Though the dinner he had prepared for the athletes tonight was greatly limited due to their dietary considerations, the moment the plates were set on the table, Pan and Zhou felt deeply that limitations on ingredients and cooking techniques were insignificant. Look at this, wasn't this a table full of delectable dishes that would make anyone's mouth water?
Tonight's menu included dishes such as squab and turtle soup, yellow fish and tofu soup, Sichuan-style spicy fish, steamed yellow fish, garlic shrimp, clear stewed beef, chicken and mushroom stew, steamed tofu with shrimp roe, lotus-scented braised beef ribs, stewed chicken with sea cucumber and bamboo shoots, blanched vegetables, stir-fried baby bok choy with dried shrimp, and a vegetarian trio...
Once all these dishes were served, the cameraman, who was lugging the camera around, captured close-up shots of each dish and felt regretful tears welling up within him. He hadn't anticipated that he would be subjected to the temptations and torture of delicious food during this livestream.
Oh, no!
Looking at the shots he had taken, the squab soup had a clear and translucent broth, while the yellow fish and tofu soup had a delicate milky color. The steamed yellow fish was drizzled with sauce, enhancing its already appetizing appearance.
Regardless of the dish, under the capture of the camera, each one seemed exceptionally tantalizing. What was more, as the on-site cameraman, he not only had the privilege of seeing these appetizing dishes up close but also could smell their fragrant aromas in person...!
This was just... too much!
The on-site cameraman felt overwhelmed, and the viewers in the livestream room felt the same.
"Why... I thought today's livestream was going to be happy and funny. But now I'm watching with drool dripping down my mouth..."
"Are these dishes really made by an athletics coach?"
"...Even though I've watched videos by Pang Pang, I've never connected Coach Su Bai with the one mentioned in those food posts. I was wrong... T__T Right now, I could probably devour a whole cow just looking at the screen..."
"Crying in the livestream room... The script for today's livestream shouldn't have been like this. Weren't we here to worship Coach Su Bai and mock the news station's editor? I've already ordered takeout and can barely satisfy my cravings by watching the livestream alongside it..."
The viewers in the live chat felt like they had unconsciously watched the entire process of Su Bai cooking. When the dishes were beautifully arranged on the table and the camera zoomed in for more close-ups, even though they couldn't smell the aromas through the screen, the colors, scents, and flavors combined to elicit an intense desire.
This was challenging.
Clearly, they were just watching a livestream program on a sports channel news platform, featuring an athletics coach as the subject. How did they end up drooling and craving for food?
At the scene, Pan Wenxi and Zhou Lingyu were already seated at the dining table. The athletes from the track and field team had also taken their seats, their eyes gleaming as they stared at the feast spread before them.
As the director confirmed that it was time to begin the meal, the athletes at the scene paid little attention to the livestream camera, each taking their portion of the meal and enjoying it happily.
Take a look at this, the chicken and mushroom stew—the chicken was the tenderest part, stewed to perfection, falling off the bone effortlessly. As you bit into the cartilage, it separated smoothly from the bone. With each chew, the rich and fragrant broth mingled in the mouth. Adding a bite of mushroom released a natural and distinct aroma.
After just one bite of the chicken and mushroom stew, the athletes felt like they could devour a bowl of rice.
There was no need to mention Su Bai's frequently made dishes like the steamed yellow fish and the yellow fish and tofu soup. In any case, they were as delicious as ever, leaving a lasting impression.
Shrimp and tofu with shrimp roe featured tender and silky tofu topped with a layer of flavorful shrimp roe. Su Bai's specially prepared savory sauce enhanced the dish, and a sprinkle of chopped scallions added color. Just looking at it was enough to make one's mouth water. Taking a spoonful, the combination of the tofu's smoothness and the shrimp's saltiness, along with Su Bai's sauce, brought out an even deeper layer of flavors.
With one spoonful, one couldn't help but exclaim in approval.
Initially, Pan Wenxi and Zhou Lingyu remembered their roles and provided commentary as they ate. However, as they continued eating, they became wholeheartedly immersed in the food, and in a trance, they forgot they were even part of a livestream.
The host Yu Miaomiao and the cameraman exchanged a tearful look from the side, each with a thousand tears—muah, today's live broadcast is really tough.
As the viewers in the live chat tearfully watched the contestants at the scene nearly finish their meals, a small dispute suddenly arose at the dining table. Both Qiu Wen and Cui Luoheng reached for the last piece of fragrant braised beef rib.
?
!
Their chopsticks clashed as they were about to reach the beef rib.
Qiu Wen narrowed his eyes, "Aheng, my chopsticks arrived a bit faster."
Cui Luoheng glanced at the beef rib, thought for a moment, and said, "Today's a celebration, and I have the 110-meter hurdles gold medal."
...
Pfft.
Critical hit.
Qiu Wen never expected that his once good buddy, Cui Luoheng, would be so ruthless. After being hit with Cui Luoheng's critical argument, Qiu Wen clutched his chest in apparent agony, watching as Cui Luoheng, with a satisfied expression, started gnawing on the beef rib.
"Darn it...!" Qiu Wen looked at the beef rib in Cui Luoheng's hand with frustration. "It's just a gold medal, right? Next time, I can do it too!"
?
In the live chat, the audience, who were initially immersed in the sadness of not being able to enjoy the food, couldn't help but burst into laughter at this point.
Wait a second, Qiu Wen, your vow to win a gold medal is because you want to compete with Cui Luoheng for the beef rib?
Amid the laughter of the audience, there was one particularly large donation that stood out with its message—【Little Qiu, Aheng, instead of fighting over the beef rib, why not consider fighting over the coach? 0v0 Once you've got the coach, do you really think you'll lack beef ribs in the future?】
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