Chapter 67

Chapter 67: The Highest Realm of Knife Skills Is the Balance of Hardness and Softness...

The little apprentice’s eager anticipation did not last more than a few days.

On the first day, she truly believed that Manager Xu would bring the master back.

As long as the master was brought back, she could learn the master’s specialty dish—chicken tofu flower!

Full of hope, she even prepared all the ingredients for the chicken tofu flower! When the master returned, she would definitely show loyalty and never disappoint him.

But after preparing chicken tofu flower for three consecutive days, not only did the master not return, Manager Xu’s whereabouts could not be found either.

The regular customers inside the restaurant kept increasing, and more frequently people came to the kitchen to inquire.

“Where’s your master? Why are all the menus outside flipped down?”

Pan Shiyou’s restaurant was decorated in a somewhat retro style, without a menu. A row of dish signs hung on the wall by red strings—those that could be made were turned face up, those temporarily unavailable were flipped down.

Now most of the signs on the wall were flipped down. Regulars knew right away that old Pan hadn’t come back yet.

“The master went off secretly to eat something delicious...”

When Pan Shiyou left, the little apprentice still energetically kept it a secret for him. But as time passed, her resentment grew bigger.

Especially Manager Xu, who said he would bring the master back to teach her how to make chicken tofu flower, but now he never returned!

“Your master went off to eat something tasty? Why doesn’t he just cook it himself! He’s just being lazy, right?”

Pan Shiyou’s small restaurant was quite famous in the local food scene and had a loyal group of food lovers.

The little apprentice revealed the master’s whereabouts with resentment; some thought Pan Shiyou was slacking off, and some actually believed it.

But whether people believed it or not, these three duck dishes were now extremely hard to get!

It was hard to imagine that at the entrance of this abandoned amusement park, small stalls had now been set up.

The haunted house had 24 slots per day; a crowd waiting at the entrance got bored and had to buy two bottles of cola to drink, and some even came over to sell Jianbing guozi (Chinese crepes with fillings)...

The Jianbing guozi seller was a young girl. Her stall was clean and tidy, and the sauces, sausages, and pickles all looked like well-known supermarket brands—typical of a university student startup: hygienic but not tasty.

She had set up in the city for a few days, but business was poor. The girl didn’t realize her core problem and thought it was because of too much competition. Hearing that many people were gathering at the amusement park entrance, she came riding a tricycle.

However, this time she really came to the wrong place!

Indeed, no one came to buy her Jianbing; everyone was waiting on an empty stomach for a haunted house slot—how could they use Jianbing to fill their stomachs?

After waiting all morning without selling a single Jianbing, the young stall owner felt a bit down. Even with no orders, she started making Jianbing herself. Partly to see if she could make people hungry, partly to make herself lunch.

At first, when she was making Jianbing, a crowd inexplicably gathered around.

No one bought Jianbing, but many gave her tips on how to make it.

“You’re doing it wrong, hold your hand higher... yes, that’s right.”

“The batter’s too thick. Your movements are already slow, and with such thick batter, the Jianbing burns before you finish spreading it! Add some water... that’s better.”

“This sauce recipe is from the internet, right? That won’t do. I’ll give you a recipe. Write it down.”

The young girl was stunned for a moment. Bai Qing beside her laughed wryly: “Why are you frozen? This person is from the Tianjin Gourmet Association. They’ve eaten more Jianbing guozi than you’ve ever made! Are you not going to seize this opportunity?”"Okay, okay."

"This batter recipe is also a bit off. I have a batter recipe too."

She grabbed her phone and quickly jotted it down in her notes, then double-checked it with the other person to make sure she had written it correctly.

The young girl didn’t do well in business because she still had a bit of a student’s air and a thin skin, not knowing how to serve customers well. But at this moment, this very student-like demeanor actually helped her.

If it had been someone who didn’t like to be guided, they would have missed this opportunity.

After all, the biggest crowd at the entrance of the amusement park wasn’t the regular customers, but all sorts of food critics!

Dishes like the three-duck set didn’t have much fame among ordinary foodies, even less than a simple clear-braised lion’s head.

After all, the spread of a dish requires a foundation. And how do you spread something like the three-duck set? What’s the foundation for it?

Over time, many legendary recipes like this either got lost or only lived on in the oral traditions of professionals.

Like the three-duck set, for example.

"Oh, I didn’t expect anyone would recognize me. Are you Mr. Bai?"

After dictating a sauce and batter recipe to the young girl, the food consultant turned to Bai Qing and greeted him, "I’ve heard a lot about you! You’re here to try the three-duck set, right?"

Hearing this, Bai Qing felt a little proud.

Half of it was because the other person recognized him, and the other half was because he didn’t just want to try the three-duck set—he had eaten it several times already!

However, saying that did make it sound a little arrogant.

"Who wouldn’t want to try? The last time we tried the three-duck set together, wasn’t it at that exchange meeting?"

The food consultant sighed, "Talent comes from every generation. Now, even in this unremarkable little haunted house, there’s a chef who can make the three-duck set!"

He still thought Bai Qing might not know the details, so he tried to drop a hint: "I’ve heard that this haunted house is run by Mr. Xu’s granddaughter. This Chef Lin Wei is probably his last disciple!"

There were so many food critics nearby. If the old, dilapidated sign of the amusement park fell, it could probably hit three people at once. A lady who had been listening smiled and leaned in to gossip.

"I heard that the Tian Kai building was finally investigated. I wonder if this Chef Lin Wei will inherit Mr. Xu’s legacy."

It wasn’t just inheriting!

Bai Qing reminisced about the three-duck set he had eaten.

Chen Ran’s cooking skills now didn’t have even the slightest sense of restlessness. Given more time, once she gained enough experience, it was unimaginable how amazing her dishes could be.

Taking advantage of the present, he would eat as much as he could. In the future, her dishes might be even rarer than those from the current state banquet masters.

Hearing others gossiping and constantly mentioning "Lin Wei," Bai Qing felt even more pleased. He had known Chen Ran’s identity early on!

"Mr. Bai, back again? How’s it going today? Did you manage to get a spot?"

As soon as this topic came up, the once friendly group suddenly had a gap form.

The reservations for the haunted house were now so hard to get that they were practically priceless!

Xu Ruyi had switched to a mini-program, and without fail, reservations for the next day opened at 2 PM every day. Everyone raced against time to secure a spot.

Those who didn’t get a reservation had no choice but to wait at the entrance of the haunted house, hoping someone would be willing to transfer their reservation.At first, it was easy to get a reservation, just adding a few hundred dollars would do. But as the fame of the three-duck set grew, it became increasingly difficult.

Even scalpers started appearing!

Fortunately, there were always people willing to maintain order.

A naive, genuine tourist just got off the car and was immediately surrounded by a group of people!

"Is the haunted house reservation for sale? How about I add 500 bucks?"

"I’ll add a thousand!"

"Wait, are you new here? Don’t you know the rules? Which organization are you with? Didn’t the boss say that scalping is strictly prohibited? If you raise the price maliciously, we’ll report you!"

The only people who knew that Lin Wei was actually Chen Ran’s alias were the old foodie group members, who quietly stepped in to maintain order.

Before this, when competing for other delicacies, the old foodie group had already established a rule: never disturb ordinary foodies’ right to enjoy their food!

Seeing that the genuine haunted house player was a bit flustered, He Xin squeezed through the crowd and introduced: "Let me introduce you. The food at this haunted house is especially famous right now, but the spots are limited every day, so many people are waiting here, preparing to buy spots at a high price."

"But for the sake of order and the chef's reputation, if the price is raised too high, someone will definitely report it. You won’t benefit from it. And this three-duck set is really a rare delicacy, I suggest you consider trying it yourself."

The person who had raised the price to a thousand was the food consultant from Tianmen. Seeing the genuine tourist silently preparing to try it themselves, he felt a bit displeased.

"Why bother? We’re not forcing anyone to buy or sell…"

He Xin became serious. Since the old foodie group had kept Chen Ran’s alias a secret, they had to maintain the reputation of her alias!

Chen Ran's workplace was already unusual and easy to misunderstand. If any outrageous scalping price emerged, no one would remember the food consultant who raised the price. All blame would fall on Chen Ran!

"If I’m not mistaken, you’re Mr. Li from Tianmen, right? The ‘Famous Chefs’ directory hasn't been updated in the past ten years, and now there’s such a promising talent. We must protect her… You spent a thousand bucks just to eat some duck and leave, and what will people say? That this Chef Lin, in her twenties, is just a marketing expert, selling a dish for ten thousand?"

He Xin’s voice was calm but firm. This was the principle the old foodie group had always followed.

This group of people truly loved food.

Li Ru sighed.

He asked a different question: "Have you eaten the three-duck set?"

He Xin’s expression darkened a little.

This Mr. Li, who usually sounded very knowledgeable, seemed a little resistant now?

"Yes, I’ve had it once, but I was just lucky to arrive early, not buying at a high price."

Seeing that He Xin misunderstood him, Li Ru quickly waved his hand: "The high price purchase earlier was my mistake, I was just lamenting. If you’re all protecting this chef, she must be really great at cooking."

It’s not just about being delicious; it’s about feeling the effort the chef puts into their craft, which is why so many people are willing to protect her, right?

Bai Qing asked around but didn’t find anyone willing to transfer their reservation. He strolled over, guiding the lucky little stall owner to perfect her pancake, before speaking.

"It’s not just good… it’s truly a gift from heaven."

Many of the food critics who came this way had studied culinary arts. Bai Qing and Wang Zhaoshan were examples.

However, some people, after studying, realized this path wasn’t for them and veered off to become food critics instead.

"In the past, I listened to Teacher Wang Xia’s food reviews. She always said that cooking is about understanding people, but I always thought that was just a literary refinement. It wasn’t until I tasted this three-duck set that I truly understood that phrase."Li Ru listened, feeling a bit dreamy, saliva starting to gather as he deeply regretted not spending more time online and missing out on this step.

"Sigh, it seems like the only chance I’ll get to try it is when Master Xu lets this precious disciple open her own restaurant in the future..."

However, not everyone was lying flat like this!

Master Xu was working hard for every single reservation spot for the three-duck set!

She was someone who could get a chef across most of China, so a mere haunted house wouldn’t stop her from getting in.

However, Xu Ruyi was indeed the hardest boss she had faced in all these years. Always relying on money to clear the way, Xu never imagined there would come a day she’d have to rely on someone of the same surname to get things done.

"Little sister, we may share the same surname, let me tell you about my plan."

Over the past few days, Xu Ruyi had become increasingly relaxed.

Thanks to Chen Ran’s dishes, her haunted house’s popularity was growing. While many people were attracted by the three-duck set, lion’s head, and Wen Si tofu, after the numbers grew, more people began to pay attention to the haunted house's interesting storylines.

Before opening the haunted house, Xu Ruyi's crowdfunding progress was only 14%, but now, half a month later, it had reached 115%!

The costs of the haunted house hadn’t been recovered yet, but it would be, sooner or later!

"No matter what the plan, as long as it involves Lin Wei, it’s not going to work."

Yang Jingzhou went crazy that day, and she had seen everything through the surveillance cameras.

She didn’t know why Yang Jingzhou suddenly went mad, but when giving his statement later, a chubby Director Gao told her a lot of things.

Chen Ran had borrowed a camera, arranged a psychological profile for Yang Jingzhou, and even contacted Director Gao, hoping he would use his connections to push for the reopening of the case.

She solemnly repeated, "Lin Wei's most important task right now is to focus on learning cooking, and releasing these dishes is only to observe the reactions of the diners and adjust."

Master Xu felt a bit aggrieved.

She was used to using money to clear the path, but this time, everything was against money!

However, she understood that because of people like Lin Wei, who weren’t swayed by money, she could enjoy top-notch dishes like the chickpea flower three-duck set.

She had met chefs who were driven solely by money. The Chen family’s Chen Yunchong, for instance, came from a culinary family and made a fortune selling pre-made dishes. Two companies had even gone public.

When she was younger and didn’t know better, she had attended one of Chen Yunchong’s banquets. The banquet, held on international waters, was incredibly expensive, using ingredients not allowed in the country, with jade plates and gold foil, extravagantly excessive.

But it didn’t provide the top-level taste experience of something like the three-duck set.

From that moment, she understood: only chefs like Pan Shiyou and Lin Wei, who didn’t treat money as their first priority, could create the best dishes.

She softened her voice: "Little sister, but traffic fades quickly, we still need to seize the moment..."

Before coming here, Master Xu had also researched the Xu family’s case. She hadn’t mentioned it initially, fearing it would upset the other party.

But now, she couldn’t avoid the topic anymore.

"Look, this three-duck set is becoming quite popular, but there aren’t many people lining up outside. It’s because the dish’s fame is still too low."

"Yangzhou’s Tiankai Tower has fallen, Senior Xu Zhuoxing probably won’t return, and now that we’ve finally got Chef Lin Wei, are we really going to let this dish continue as a legend that no one knows about?"

She stretched her hand to point outside: "I had my assistant do a survey. The people waiting outside are mostly food critics. Many regular diners have no idea how rare this three-duck dish actually is."

"Just like many of our traditional lost foods, they can only be passed down if there’s a market for them... I’m not saying we should do things like the Chen family, but we can’t let pre-made dishes completely take over the market."Xu Ruyi hesitated for a moment.

"Besides, if you do it like this, with so many people wanting to try the three-duck set, there are bound to be scalpers, right? What great material for news..."

Master Xu stretched her hand backward, and her broad-shouldered, slim-waisted male assistant immediately handed over a stack of documents. She showed them to Xu Ruyi.

"Look, these are some false reports we've handled."

The first headline Xu Ruyi saw was: "Malicious hype of culinary gimmicks, haunted house entry tickets need 10,000 yuan!"

She stood up in anger!

Master Xu sighed in relief and patted Xu Ruyi's shoulder, "Don't worry, don't worry. It’s all taken care of now."

Seeing the grateful look on Xu Ruyi's face, Master Xu seized the opportunity: "By the way, I haven’t introduced myself. We share the same surname, Xu. I’m Xu Zhanying, probably older than you, so I’ll take the liberty of calling you 'little sister.'"

"Little sister, I have a suggestion. Since your haunted house has puzzle-solving elements, and I saw in your crowdfunding description that the game demo is about to go online, why not combine them?"

The male assistant, who had been standing in the back acting as background, couldn't help but feel impressed by his boss's passion for food.

This negotiation, with both talking and acting so skillfully, was the most energetic he had seen from his boss recently.

And it wasn’t in vain.

Just when even the pancake stall at the haunted house's entrance had finished learning and returned, the haunted house finally announced new rules.

"To celebrate the official release of the 'Mirror' demo, the haunted house will open its adventure version."

"Players who can complete the 'Mirror' demo in 15 minutes will have the opportunity to join the treasure hunt adventure in the haunted house."

"Note: Adventure rewards have edible properties. Please be aware, players."

It was once again time to grab a reservation. Everyone, without exception, opened their phones and launched the app, only to see this announcement.

The new rules, compared to the previous day's limit of 24 people, were much fairer. At the same time, it was a more effective promotion for Xu Ruyi’s game.

For most of the haunted house's audience, horror games were already a hobby, so they were just fine with replaying the demo a few more times to get familiar with it!

However, for certain foodies who had specifically come for the food, this new requirement was a bit...

He Xian was the first in the group to finish the demo. She loved gaming in her spare time and had already completed games like "Resident Evil" and the "Adventure Island" series.

However, for most of the group members in the foodie group, horror games were a bit foreign.

"Little He, do you have some time? Can you teach me how to play?"

"He sis, help me, I need a strategy! A video guide, please!"

"Help! The controller I bought isn't working, can you check it for me?"

"Why isn’t this a mobile game..."

It wasn’t just them—other diners felt the same way.

Wang Zhaoshan, who had high hopes for the new rules, played "Good Luck Coming" in the background while diligently practicing the game skills. Finally, a day later, he succeeded in completing the demo in 15 minutes.

However, Qiu Xian looked at her superior with a puzzled expression: "Uncle Wang, do you really get to listen to 'Good Luck Coming' while playing? Want to try the original sound?"

Wang Zhaoshan sighed, turned up the game volume, and switched off "Good Luck Coming."After only 20 seconds of playing, he suddenly jumped up and shook off his headphones: "Why is this game so scary!"

Qiu Xian fished the headphones back and turned them off, then continued watching Wang Zhaoshan struggle with the horror game with a schadenfreude smile.

Usually, he never looked this defeated!

However, while the visitors were racing against time at home practicing game skills, Chen Ran was not idle either.

Although the haunted house hadn’t opened, she finally learned the last basic skill of Huaiyang cuisine.

Di Zi Gong!

Di Zi Gong, simply put, is making various ingredients into a "paste-like" texture. For example, shrimp paste can be seen as a simple di zi.

The reason it was taught last was that a good di zi dish requires both knife skills and clear broth skills.

Without good knife skills, you can’t make a tender and smooth di zi; if the clear broth step isn’t done well, the di zi’s flavor won’t reach its best.

“Next, this is the last dish I’ll teach you.”

Hearing this from Master Xu, Chen Ran felt a faint sadness.

Although they were nominally senior and junior siblings, in reality, Master Xu had taught her more than what she had learned over the years at the Chen family.

“Focus!”

Master Xu saw Chen Ran’s sadness, but being a person with a difficult temper—that’s why he had such a nickname—he couldn’t say comforting words, so he just told her to focus.

His entire skill set would be passed on to Chen Ran after today.

The Xu family had an ancestral instruction: without the support of Chef Chen back then, the Xu family’s culinary tradition wouldn’t have been passed down until now. This favor must be repaid sooner or later.

He had once looked down on this ancestral instruction until he met Chen Ran.

Such talent and quality—without that ancestral instruction—he would still teach her wholeheartedly.

The truth, goodness, and beauty of Chinese cuisine require such successors to be passed down from generation to generation.

Given his temper, after saying “Focus,” he might have continued scolding.

But now, seeing Chen Ran standing straight there, Master Xu unusually softened for a moment.

Chen Ran had no sense of taste; even if she forced herself to eat enough every day, after working odd jobs these days, she had still lost a lot of weight. Standing there, she looked especially frail.

She was a young girl younger than his granddaughter.

Master Xu made a decision in his heart, but before that, he had to teach Chen Ran di zi gong first.

He waved his hand, and Du Zhaohu, who had been waiting nearby, laid the prepared pig skin on the chopping board.

“After all these days, you probably understand that the most exquisite part of Huaiyang cuisine is design. To create a thunderclap in silence, it must be clever and elegant, making something skillful out of the most ordinary things.”

“Today I’ll start teaching you this chicken paste.”

Master Xu picked up a piece of chicken breast beside him. It was from a newly slaughtered young rooster by Du Zhaohu, taking the most tender breast meat.

“This chicken paste, although made with chicken breast, must have the feel of congee. To make it free of fibers and residue, neither dry nor tough, you must pay attention from the very first step of making the chicken paste.”

“Come, do your best to chop this chicken breast into a paste. But to prevent any mixed flavors, you must chop it entirely on this piece of pig skin, and the pig skin must not break.”"Once you can chop this chicken breast into a paste and keep the pig skin intact, your knife skills will be sufficient."