Riding the wind of rebirth

"Brother Ming, quickly toast Teacher Zhang! He still remembers you after all these years!" Zhou Zhi tried to smooth things over, pouring drinks for the two of them as he said, "If I had known you cared so much about this student, I would have brought him here to you years ago."

“I met Brother Ming when I first arrived at Shuda University. Fu Xia took me to a small noodle shop outside the campus, and that shop was owned by Brother Ming.” Zhou Zhi served wine to the two of them separately. “Later, as we became closer, Brother Ming’s place became my private little restaurant. I would often get together there with friends.” He then gestured to Ming Yi, “Brother Ming…”

Mingyi raised his glass: "Director, I have failed your expectations. I am really embarrassed to see you all. So I went abroad to try my luck for a few years and came back empty-handed. I opened a small noodle shop and didn't dare to bother you, my teacher and fellow students. I am extremely ashamed. Director, I toast you. I dare not accept that you still remember me all these years."

“That shouldn’t be the case…” Zhang Yuanfu clinked glasses with him and drank his wine: “With your comprehension and talent, you shouldn’t be a failure wherever you go!”

"Teacher Zhang, aren't you a bit too confident in Ming-ge?" Zhou Zhi asked curiously after hearing Zhang Yuanfu say "shouldn't" several times in a row: "I've never seen you promote someone so highly before."

Zhang Yuanfu sighed: "Zhouzi, I remember you once said that to be in the arts and sports field, you must first have talent, and then you are qualified to endure hardship. Otherwise, you will suffer for decades and still not be as good as someone who has talent and trains for a year or two."

"Yes, I think it was during one of our conversations about Guan Tingting's singing that I mentioned this."

"It's the same for us cooks. Some people can't make a good stock in their whole lives, while others can taste the ingredients, seasonings, and cooking methods just by taking a sip. To put it simply, they can replicate any dish in front of them almost perfectly. That's called talent."

Zhou Zhi looked at Ming Yi: "So, Ming-ge is that kind of person?"

"Pretty much. He performed similarly during his years at Pengzhuan. He was quick to learn, liked to use his brain, and was also very hardworking. He was a natural talent."

"That's wonderful," Zhou Zhi refilled everyone's glasses. "It's a joyous occasion to see teachers and students reunited. Let's raise a toast to Brother Ming and Teacher Zhang!"

Tian Rui said, "That's right, I always felt that Ming was extraordinary. It turns out he's a disciple of a great teacher. Congratulations to Teacher Zhang and Ming on their reunion!"

Zhang Yuanfu still had to give Zhou Zhi face, and with Fei Guan and Liu Yushu also present, everyone raised their glasses, so Zhang Yuanfu had no choice but to accept. After drinking the glass, Zhang Yuanfu said to Mingyi, "Xiao Ming, with your abilities, you shouldn't be running a small noodle shop. You've wasted these past few years."

"No, no." Zhou Zhi quickly waved his hand to help Ming Yi over: "Teacher Zhang, my grandmaster told me that as long as one is constantly improving in one's studies, or if it is not known to outsiders, it cannot be called neglecting one's studies."

"Four generations of my family have been working on the textual research of a book called 'Jiyun,' and now that it's passed down to me, it's still not finished. We can't say that four generations of us have wasted our time, can we?" Zhou Zhi laughed. "So, you can criticize Brother Ming for keeping a low profile these past few years, not making any money, and not starting a family. But as for wasting time, you know I'm a picky eater, but I still go to his place for meals every now and then, so it's hard to say that. Don't you think that makes sense, Teacher Zhang?"

After saying that, he winked at Tian Rui.

"Oh right!" Tian Rui said, "Teacher Zhang, I also run a restaurant, but the place is too small. If it weren't for Brother Ming's help, I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to keep the business going!"

Mingyi was dumbfounded. Was it really that exaggerated?!
"So that noodle shop isn't his own? He's working for you?" Zhang Yuanfu's thoughts went astray, and his anger was about to rise again.

"No, no," Tian Rui quickly waved his hand. "It's like this, I used to run a small braised food restaurant, and then I wanted to take advantage of the summer and holidays, so I opened a cold dish stall. But business wasn't too good, so when I was feeling down, I asked Zhouzi for help. Zhouzi found Ming Ge for me, and Ming Ge said the braising liquid wasn't right, so he helped us adjust the recipe, and business immediately picked up." "He's a money-making machine, I couldn't let him go, so I pulled Ming Ge in with me. He's contributing his expertise, and I'll contribute the rest. We split the profits 30/70. We can make a profit in the next two years..."

I was going to say "You've made quite a bit of money," but then I remembered that this was Rong Le Garden, so I quickly changed my words: "...We've had some business too."

“I see…” Zhang Yuanfu’s expression finally softened a bit: “Then how about… Xiaoming, why don’t you come and work for me?”

"This one……"

“Great!” Zhou Zhi said, “That’s a good idea! Teacher Zhang, you don’t know, their cold dish restaurant is located in Hongqi Village. Now that Sichuan University is expanding its campus, Hongqi Village and Taohua Village are going to be demolished, so Sister Rui’s restaurant and cold dish restaurant will not be able to open.”

"Fortunately, the school provided compensation and gave Sister Rui a shop in Yulin. Sister Rui wants to open a skewers shop, and she can't do without Brother Ming's guidance. In addition, I want to give Sister Rui a signboard, which will have to trouble Brother Fei and Brother Cheng. So we simply arranged to meet up, which is also an opportunity to get together."

"Aren't there two signs?" Zhang Cheng was a shrewd man. Zhou Zhi had mentioned before that the other plaque was for the descendants of the Lan family, and he was also quite familiar with the stories of old Chengdu. He knew about the relationship between Rongleyuan and the Lan family, so he casually mentioned it.

“Oh, the other one is owed to Lan Guiyun,” Zhou Zhi said. “Their wine is so good that I praised it when I was there, and the proprietress gave me fifty catties of it without asking for a single penny. I felt really embarrassed.”

"By the way, Teacher Zhang, I recommended Lan Guiyun's Xinghua Village to Sister Chi. I heard that the 'Food Detective' program team contacted him recently and is thinking of filming two episodes there."

“They’ve already contacted me about this,” Zhang Yuanfu said. “They said they wanted to film two episodes at Guiyun’s restaurant and also explore the story of the Lan family and the development and inheritance of Sichuan cuisine. You’re very thoughtful, Zhouzi. I should toast you this time.”

"It's also because Lan Guiyun's dishes are unique, each dish highlighting innovation while preserving tradition." Zhou Zhi raised his glass and toasted Zhang Yuanfu: "Plus, with such good story material about the Lan family, if I knew and didn't tell Sister Chi, I'm afraid I'd get beaten up. So it's really not about helping you guys, I'm just protecting myself."

Everyone laughed at this. Zhang Yuanfu said with a smile, "Guiyun is indeed very good. Look, she sent over Dechang salted duck and duck liver. Today's plum-scented salted duck and liver oil yam are made from those two. What do you think?"

"So it's duck liver! How come this duck liver is so fatty?!" The mystery in Mingyi's heart was finally solved.

"This is Dechang foie gras duck. Like the French foie gras, it undergoes a fattening process before slaughtering. The largest duck liver can weigh eight ounces."

“So what’s the point of going abroad to learn cooking? We haven’t even fully understood the ingredients in our own country yet!” Zhang Yuanfu said to Mingyi.

“Teacher, I was ignorant before.” Mingyi lowered his head. “I understand now, but before coming here, there’s something else I need to take care of.” (End of Chapter)