The Years I Revived a Century-Old Restaurant [Gourmet]

There are two things Qin Shiyu regrets most in her life.

First: She is the eleventh-generation heir to a century-old culinary family in Gusu, yet somehow manages to turn even tomato and egg stir-fry into charcoal.

Second: At the family dinner on the Beginning of Spring when she was twenty-four, she just had to touch that thing!!!

During the Beginning of Spring, Qin Shiyu was wiping the Kitchen God portrait in the old Qin family home when she accidentally activated the snarky, chuuni "Chinese Cuisine Revival: Kitchen God Adventures System 1.0." Forced to relearn the Qin family's ancestral culinary arts under the successive tutelage of her late, sharp-tongued great-grandfather, her gentle and kind great-grand-aunt, and her hot-tempered third grandfather, who had been separated from the family by war, she began her journey anew.

She studies cooking with both hands full, and occasionally has to pop back to the Republic of China era to take care of a "little" family quest. Along the way, one heartwarming and healing, laugh-out-loud story after another unfolds.

One dish unlocked for each solar term:

Beginning of Spring: She cuts the radish strips for a five-spice platter unevenly and gets publicly roasted by the System, which even reveals a photo of her wailing after cutting her finger at age eight.

Summer Solstice: Her control over the heat for lotus-leaf-wrapped steamed pork is a constant disaster, so her grandfather silently brings out a treasured old clay pot to save the day.

Major Snow: Her seasoning and plating for the eight-treasure gourd duck are terrible. After repeated attempts, she finally gets her returning third grandfather to nod and admit, "Not bad. A little better than my apprentice."

When she finally takes the stage at an international culinary competition with the Qin family's platter inspired by the twenty-four solar terms, the judges clamor to ask her secret.

Looking at her grandfather eating qingtuan below the stage, her great-aunt sneaking sips of winter wine, and her cousin livestreaming with his phone raised, she smiles.

"Maybe it's because the Qin family kitchen has never been afraid of failure."

(Key highlights: A warm ensemble cast + seasonal delicacies + the twenty-four solar terms and intangible cultural heritage + a moderate System golden finger)

I'll update according to the rankings when there's a ranking list; otherwise, it depends (tentatively 3-5 chapters a week, building up my collection...)

Warning: I'm an obsessive reviser and may go back to edit and review the story from time to time. Please bear with me.

Theme: Family ties and heritage, promoting traditional culture.