Chapter 100

Chapter 100

After learning about Chen Ran's latest workplace, there was a brief silence in the fan group.

This address was becoming more and more bizarre, wasn’t it?

"Chef Chen's working places are really beyond my imagination. A martial arts hall, a nunnery—these are places I’ve never even been to in my life."

"Going to a nunnery, doesn't that mean you can eat Dinghu Shangsu?"

"Why talk so much? Just give me the address! I’ll go there right now!"

Some fans teased Bai Qing: "Good thing the nunnery doesn’t let anyone in, or Bai Laoshi wouldn’t have shared the address so quickly. He would have had to eat his fill first!"

Ignoring the teasing in the group, Bai Qing sniffed the aroma of Dinghu Shangsu and continued, "And according to the news I gathered, not only is Chen Ran here, but someone is also teaching her how to cook!"

This news was even more exciting!

So, this time, catching Chen Ran also came with a bonus?

Fans who were still hesitating in the group began speculating about who Chen Ran’s teacher was, while excited fans had already bought tickets and were flying straight there!

Wang Zhaoshan was shouting at Qiu Xian to book the tickets, urging Zhu Nan to clear their schedule, and privately chatting with Bai Qing.

"Old man, are you planning to go find Chen Ran to write a few more reviews to tease me, only to realize the nunnery won’t even let you in? Hahaha!"

Bai Qing had said several things in the group before he finally had time to check his private message with Wang Zhaoshan.

He immediately retorted, "If they won’t let me in, do you think they’ll let you in?"

But unfortunately, Wang Zhaoshan had actually come up with a solution!

After all, compared to Bai Qing and the others who had no leads, Wang Zhaoshan could at least speak with Chang Nian.

Before even reaching the local Qingshi An, he had already contacted Chang Nian.

"Sister Chang, isn’t this a bit too unfair?"

Wang Zhaoshan knew that Chang Nian had promised to teach Chen Ran a dish, but he never expected this to happen so quickly!

He couldn’t help but feel a little dazed.

When he first asked Chang Nian to try Chen Ran’s dishes, it had only been three months.

In just three months, Chen Ran had gone from a somewhat inexperienced young chef to being featured on the "Famous Chefs" list, capable of inheriting Chang Nian's skills.

Chang Nian’s reply was very direct: "I’m teaching her at Qingshi An. Even if I call you, it won’t help. Are you going to stay in the nunnery?"

"......"

After much indirect probing, Wang Zhaoshan finally found out that not only was Chang Nian teaching Chen Ran, but also Wu Chaomei!

Wu Chaomei—currently the top Shandong cuisine chef alive.

Coincidentally, as a food critic, he had interviewed Wu Chaomei twice before.

"I know exactly how to infiltrate the enemy’s camp now!"

After landing, Wang Zhaoshan quickly posted in the group, and his words stirred up quite a reaction."Quick, tell me! I'll be there soon!"

"Huh? You’re already there as soon as the sky brightens?"

Wang Zhaoshan didn’t pay attention to the others, but instead pinged Ji You: "I contributed the method this time, so can you remove my pinned message? I’m an experienced member, but it looks awkward with this title always pinned on me…"

"Just say it!"

Some people closer to Qingshi An had already arrived locally. Along the way, they found out that Qingshi An was indeed quite a historic place.

And they didn’t even accept incense offerings! The nuns there would go down the mountain a few times a year to beg for food and seeds, never asking for money. Most of the time, they were self-sufficient.

Such a temple was off-limits to outsiders. It would be difficult to sneak in.

In today's society, it was rare to find a Buddhist temple untouched by commercial operations.

"Speak quickly! If you don’t say it, we’ll vote to kick you out!"

Wang Zhaoshan teased for a long time before he saw Ji You finally remove his title. Only then did he speak slowly.

"This time, Chen Ran is not working at Qingshi An. It's more like she’s learning from a master."

"The ones teaching her are Ms. Chang Nian from our 'Famous Chefs Record,' a vegetarian master who’s cooked for state banquets. And also Ms. Wu Chaomei, the top Shandong cuisine chef, who’s also cooked for state banquets."

Such an arrangement made every fan in the group perk up!

If they managed to successfully meet Chen Ran, they might not only taste her food but also get a chance to try the skills of two state banquet masters.

"I’ve interviewed Ms. Wu Chaomei before…"

"Just say it, stop teasing us!"

Wang Zhaoshan smiled with pride, finished introducing his interviews with Ms. Wu Chaomei, and took the opportunity to promote his Weibo account. Only then did he continue:

"Ms. Wu Chaomei has a big characteristic—she really loves eating meat! She also enjoys a little drink… almost nothing is complete without meat!"

This might not have been a big deal at other times, but at Qingshi An…

If she still wanted to eat meat, she would definitely have to leave Qingshi An!

Even though there were dishes like Dinghu Shangsu, which mimicked meat with vegetables, for a state banquet master like Wu Chaomei, eating it still wouldn’t be as satisfying as real meat.

"This taste… it’s still not real meat."

Wu Chaomei had two more meals of the Jin Guang Huo Fang, and she gave Chen Ran some feedback: "The monkey head mushroom works well as a meat substitute in terms of texture, but the flavor is still a bit off. It would be best to try using a few more types of mushrooms."

Chen Ran nodded as she helped the monk clear the table.

The young monk was quite happy and grabbed the bowl and chopsticks from Chen Ran’s hands: "Chen Laoshi, I’ll wash the dishes! You rest, the dishes today were really delicious!"

Chen Ran was pleased by the praise. She hummed a little tune and was about to head to the garden to water the plants when Wu Chaomei suddenly grabbed her.

"Yesterday’s oil-exploded crispy dish still needs more practice."

Chen Ran looked at Wu Chaomei in confusion.

Didn’t she say yesterday that the oil-exploded crispy was almost perfect, that the only improvements would come with time?

Now she was saying it still needed practice?And...

She looked around.

At Qingshi An, it was definitely not possible to practice cooking meat dishes. If she wanted to practice, she would have to go to the stove setup she used that day.

There was also an important problem: Qingshi An was located in a remote area. It was already past noon—where would she go to buy ingredients?

The ingredients she used for the oil-exploded crispy dish that day were delivered by Chang Nian in the morning.

"Should I go practice now?" Chen Ran scratched her head. "But there’s no place to buy duck gizzards and pig stomach, right?"

Wu Chaomei sighed, put down her hands, and pouted.

"I shouldn’t have trusted Chang Nian to come live here! Eating vegetarian food every day, my mouth is so bland it’s almost bitter!"

"And no alcohol either!"

Chen Ran tried to comfort Wu Chaomei in return: "Wu Granny, if I have time in a few days, I’ll go out and buy a chicken to make roast chicken for you! But you should drink less, alcohol isn’t good for your health if you drink too much."

Just as she was speaking, she noticed that Wu Chaomei’s gaze had started drifting outside the yard.

...Even Chen Ran couldn’t help but glance outside the yard.

Qingshi An was situated in the middle of a small mountain, usually very quiet.

But today, it could almost be described as bustling with noise!

Not only the sound—she and Wu Chaomei were sitting in the dining hall, and they could even see in the distance that someone seemed to be setting something up. In the distance, there was the pointed top of a huge tent.

"What’s going on outside? Let’s go see!"

The abbess of Qingshi An heard the noise and stepped out, instructing a young nun to go and check.

Living in this secluded nunnery for years, the young nun rarely saw such a lively scene. She quickly opened the door and ran out, returning after quite a while.

"Abbess! They’re setting up a tent outside, saying they’re going to hold a... market!"

The abbess’s expression was very strange.

There were no families within ten miles of here, and now they were setting up a market?

What were they selling? And to whom?

Don’t even think about selling to the nuns of Qingshi An—they didn’t accept offerings, and the nunnery was basically free of idle wealth.

She couldn’t help but glance at Chen Ran and Wu Chaomei.

Wu Chaomei still didn’t understand why, but Chen Ran felt a bit awkward.

After so many “chasing and escaping” games with the guests, Chen Ran could guess that this problem was most likely caused by her fans!

If that were the case, then the things sold at this market...

She couldn’t help but ask the young nun who had just run out to check: "Little nun, what are they selling at the market outside?"

Before answering, the young nun clasped her hands and bowed her head, murmuring a Buddhist chant, then raised her head with a bit of embarrassment as she answered.

"They brought a lot of vegetables to sell... and also meat..."“Amitabha!”

The abbess also murmured a Buddhist chant, then turned to Chen Ran and said, “If you wish to go, feel free. There’s no need to worry.”

In fact, as she said this, Wu Chaomei had already grabbed Chen Ran’s arm and was pulling her outside!

“Oh, what’s there to worry about? We’re not eating meat or drinking wine in this nunnery! Hurry up, let’s go! Let’s see what kind of meat they’re selling, if it’s fresh!”

Wu Chaomei stood upright, running faster than Chen Ran!

The two of them walked out of Qingshi An, turned a corner, and immediately saw the lively market set up in the open space.

Chen Ran shielded her eyes with her hand and squinted to look over, recognizing many familiar faces.

Wang Zhaoshan was cutting pork, and he even had time to show off his knife skills. After all, he had learned to be a chef for a while back in the day, and his knife work on the ribs was quite impressive.

Tang Yang was washing vegetables and peeling potatoes, while beside her stood Gao Lei, who had straightened her hair. To be honest, the straightened hair did make her look much younger.

Zhu Kuangkuang had come along as well, wearing the same training outfit as Tang Yang, and was standing nearby, practicing his stance.

There was also Ji You, Gao Shuxian, Bai Qing... Even Mi Chengzhi had come, standing next to Qingjiao Ge, helping to build a temporary stove, with several dining tables nearby.

When Chen Ran appeared, Wang’s wife, who had been sitting on a lounge chair with a laptop, put down her notebook and stood up. Wang Zhaoshan also set down his cleaver.

He announced, "The plan to lure Chen Ran has been a complete success!"

“Chef Chen, come on, try your oil-exploded crispy dish! I’ve run through several villages to get the pork stomach and duck gizzards—they’re freshly slaughtered!”