Chapter 34 – We Have No Choice But to Depend on Him
Translated by Prosperousfood.com
Rehosted by Gumihou at kitchennovel.com
The sound of the dying clucks of the chickens rang out from the kitchen. Some of the chefs stopped what they were doing and looked stunned when they turned around and saw the bloody scene.
Ye Chui expertly drained the blood and plucked out the chicken feathers, and cleared the guts. In a very short while, the chicken which had been alive a moment ago was now ready to be cooked.
Although this is quite bloody, the other chefs in the restaurant were not repulsed by this scent. Looking at the way Ye Chui quickly and expertly handle the chickens made them feel that they were learning something new.
When Fang Tao had parked the car and returned back to the restaurant, all 3 chickens were ready for cooking. At this time, Ye Chui need not say a word – Tian Xiaoduo immediately shouted, “What are you looking at? Go back to your tasks! Do you want to peep?”
The kitchen becomes a hive of activity again.
Tian Xiaoduo also has to cook some dishes for Elder Han to try. He did not choose to make his speciality, “Clear mushroom puree”. Rather, he chooses to make the dish “La Zi Ji”.
Fang Tao has changed into his chef robes, and also busied himself. At this time, his eyes were focused Ye Chui side. It is more accurate to say that he was focus on the hidden camera that he had placed on the kitchen hood above the stove – yesterday he had secretly place a hidden camera.
He wanted to record how Ye Chui had cooked.
Although he does not like Ye Chui and look down on Ye Chui, he had to admit that Ye Chui was able to sell a dish of La Zi Ji for $120,000. This means that the recipes in Ye Chui’s hands are worth a lot of money. This is a good chance to steal the recipe. Unlike his shifu, he had no qualms about stealing the recipes, and was very keen to do so.
“Ye Chui is nothing special. He just knows some ancient recipes. If I know these recipes as well, after practising, the food I make will taste better than Ye Chui’s! Fang Tao thinks.
– Half an hour later-
In the 2nd floor of the VIP room in Wan Lai Fu restaurant, Yang Yong’s hand towel was totally soaked. But he was perspiring heavily. This could not be help – standing beside Elder Han is very stressful. This elderly man just sat in the middle of the room and did not say a single word as he closed his eyes. But from the movement of his mouth, he looked displeased.
Elder Han’s granddaughter, Han Yuyan, stood behind him and massaged his shoulders.
Yang Yong had actually planned to engage in small talk with Elder Han and to build positive relationships. But after the incident at the door, he finds it hard to speak out. He continuously used the towel to wipe the perspiration from his head.
At this time, a soft knock rang out on the door of the VIP room. Yang Yong immediately rushed out and opened the door. A few waiters were carrying the food that the restaurant’s chefs had prepared and they were waiting outside of the room.
The chefs of Wan Lai Fu restaurant had finally finished preparing their best dishes.
Yang Yong immediately made way for the waiters to serve the dish. The waiters placed the dishes on the table in front of Elder Han.
Then Yang Yong smiled as he asked, “Elder Han, these dishes are the specialities of our restaurant. Please do give it a try.”
Elder Han slowly opened his eyes, and glanced over the dishes on the table. All these dishes are the creations of the finest chefs in Wan Lai Fu restaurant. The poor chefs have been preparing these dishes since 6 am in the morning. By all counts, these foods are the most popular dishes among his VIP guests as well as food critics.
Looking at the wide and varied dishes of all colours and shape, Yang Yong felt a bit proud. He felt that he need not engage the services of Ye Chui. The chefs in his restaurants are already enough to entertain Elder Han. Look at these dishes – they were filled with colour, smell, and taste good. They are the apex of food and art..
“What are these rubbish?”
The waiters have not even left when Elder Han stamped his palm on the table and shouted, “Wan Lai Fu Restaurant is a five-starred restaurant. How could it serve these rubbish to its guests? Where is the chicken feast that you have promised me? Take them all away! Quickly get them out of my sight! I come here to eat chicken. One look at these vegetables and I want to puke!”
This rant is like that of a little child.. but a very powerful and scary little child.
Yang Yong’s smile on his face stiffens, as he asked, “Elder Han, all these are our restaurant’s specialities, why not give it a try.”
“Do I need you to teach me what to eat?” Elder Han glared at Yang Yong.
Han Yuyan coughed, then she smiled at Yang Yong, “Manager Yang, today my grandfather is here to enjoy the chicken feast that you have promised. Otherwise, your 5-star restaurant would not be able to attract the attention of a world famous food critic. Therefore, please take away these food.”
“All right” Yang Yong immediately wiped the fresh beads of perspiration on his head, and instructed the waiters to take the dishes away. He had indeed promised to treat Elder Han to a chicken feast to get this top-level food critic to come over. But never in his wildest dreams did he expect that this old man is so stubborn. He is only here to eat the chicken dishes and refused to touch even one morsel of other dishes.
Right now, he can only depend on Ye Chui.
The waiters picked up the dishes and were about to leave, when Elder Han suddenly called out, “Wait a moment.”
The waiters froze on the spot.
Elder Han picked up a pair of chopsticks, and pointed at one dish, “Let me try this dish.”
This dish is the La Zi Ji that Tian Xiaoduo had made.
Yang Yong was very pleased with this and immediately instructed the waiter to place the dish in front of Elder Han. After spending $120,000 to purchase this recipe from Ye Chui, in the span of one week, this dish becomes Wan Lai Fu restaurant’s signature dish. It is very popular with guests. The La Ji Zi in front of him was cooked by Tian Xiaoduo. In Yang Yong’s eyes, this dish is much better than that of Ye Chui’s.
Under the watchful eyes of Yang Yong, Elder Han picked up one piece of chicken and chewed it. There were no expressions on Elder Han’s face. He closed his eyes and seemed to be tasting it carefully as he evaluated the dish.
Then he picked up another piece of chicken and ate it. This time, he eats much faster. He still did not say a single word.
Yang Yong felt as if his heart will leap out of his body. He was very anxious and wiped his forehead to clear the sweat again.
“This dish is quite interesting.” Elder Han finally spoke. Before Yang Yong could smile, Elder Han shook his head, “A pity that the control of fire is too weak, the chicken was a bit too dry and the chef’s cooking skills are not up to standard. What dish is this?”
“La Zi Ji.” Yang Yong replied, “We spent $120,000 to purchase this recipe.”
“$120,000? Not bad! This dish is definitely worth this price!” Elder Han nodded his head.
Yang Yong immediately continued, “The next dishes are also chicken that is prepared using ancient recipes like this La Zi Ji.”
Elder Han’s eyes lit up at Yang Yong’s words, “Then what are you waiting for? Quick, ask them to bring the dishes over. Oh, yes, also ask the chef to come over.”
“Yes, yes, I will go and get him.” Yang Yong nodded his head and exited the room. Elder Han had tried the La Zi Ji. The recipe and dish are good, but the cooking standard is not that good. As a result, Elder Han lost all his appetite for this dish. For a foodie like him, he demands the best, and only the best. As for the rest, he has no appetite for these dishes.
Within the kitchen, all the chefs anxiously waited near the kitchen entrance. They had spent a lot of effort and time to create these dishes. Right now, they are anxiously waiting for Elder Han’s evaluation. They thought that they need to wait for some time, but very quickly, a waiter entered the kitchen.
“What is the situation upstairs?” Fang Tao immediately asked. This time he had cooked his speciality, “3 threads of freshness”, and was hoping to get Elder Han’s approval. Fang Tao may be a chef, but his heart was not in cooking. Rather, he was more focused on getting rich, and wanted to curry favour with Elder Han.
“Not good.” That waiter shook his head, “Elder Han did not even try any of the dishes and immediately asked us to remove them. Only chef Tian’s La Zi Ji manage to get his attention. Even then, he only took 2 bites. Then he said this dish is not up to standards, and he did not even eat anything any more. “
“What? How..” all the chefs were stunned.
For this feast, they have prepared everything for one week. But their finest food could not even attract Elder Han to try them. Even head chef Tian Xiaoduo only managed to attract him to eat 2 mouthfuls. This old man’s mouth is super picky!
At this time, Yang Yong fat and short body appeared at the kitchen door, “Are Ye Chui’s dishes ready? We can only depend on him now!”
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Translated by Prosperous Food dot Com
Rehosted by Gumihou from kitchennovel dot com.
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