Ordinary observers in fast time travel

Chapter 1257 Difficulties and Recipes

Ignoring He Chuan's anger, Shi Jia asked him gently about the usual dishes in the kitchen.

"The usual dishes?" He Chuan glanced at her. "Since Chef Li has become the head chef of the household, her cooking skills must be quite good. The master and madam must also want to eat something new. Chef Li can make the decision herself."

After saying that, he puffed out his big belly, turned around and was about to leave, saying, "I have a lot of things to do, so I won't keep you company any longer."

Shi Jia shrugged, his gaze sweeping over the other kitchen helpers. They were secretly watching them, but when Shi Jia looked at them, they all turned away and pretended to be busy.

Fine, I guess I've offended these chefs.

Undeterred by the lack of help, Shi Jia turned and went to the food storage area. She could even design her own recipes by combining ingredients.

However, she can only cook a limited number of dishes, so she still needs to get a cookbook when she has time.

But there's another very important problem: she's illiterate. Even if you give her a recipe, she won't be able to learn it.

Shi Jia sighed, then immediately thought of a solution. If she couldn't understand it herself, she should find someone who could.

Myolie Lu, a major customer, is a perfect candidate. After observing her for the past two days, she seems to be someone who has a keen eye for food.

With that in mind, Shi Jia asked the kitchen manager to reserve three fish, two chickens, and some fresh vegetables before leaving the kitchen to find Lu Xing'er.
What Shi Jia didn't know was that after she left, He Chuan and the other chefs surrounded the kitchen manager, asking, "Manager Luo, what did Chef Li say to you just now?"

Manager Luo casually replied, "It's nothing, I just said to leave her three fish and two chickens, I guess she'll be having fish and chicken for dinner."

He couldn't help but swallow as he recalled the delicious steamed fish from yesterday.

"Steamed fish? That's not easy to make." He Chuan raised an eyebrow. He remembered that the master and madam loved it, but because the fishy smell was hard to remove, he rarely made it. Because every time he made it, it might lower the master and madam's impression of him.

"Yes, but it seems that Chef Li has a secret recipe to remove the fishy smell," said Manager Luo. He had watched her cook the whole time yesterday. If he had the skills, he could have opened a restaurant to make a living.

He Chuan's mind stirred slightly, and he hesitated before asking, "Then what is she planning to do with the chicken?"

Manager Luo shook his head, frowning at him. "Why are you asking about these things?"

"Oh, I was also planning to use chicken, but I was afraid of clashes with Chef Li's dishes," He Chuan said with a shameless grin. He was very confident in his cooking skills, but he was still somewhat wary of Chef Li, who had suddenly become the head chef of the Wan family.

The master and mistress are both reasonable people. If the other person's cooking skills were not good, they would definitely not let that person become the head chef of the Wan family.

"I don't know either, but Chef Li's chicken soup is very delicious," Manager Luo still reminded him. In his opinion, He Chuan's cooking skills are quite different from Chef Li's, and if they were to compete, there would inevitably be a difference in quality.

Having worked together for many years, I'll still offer this reminder.

"Oh, is Chef Li going to make chicken soup?" He Chuan asked.

The latter shook his head, "Alright, go ahead and get busy. Although you no longer need to be in charge of the master and mistress's meals, you still need to take care of the meals for so many people in the mansion."

He Chuan had no choice but to give up. He swayed back into the kitchen, his large belly protruding, and several kitchen helpers immediately crowded around him. "Master He, how did it go? Did you find out anything?"

“She wants fresh fish and chicken.” He Chuan looked at one of the kitchen helpers, who was also his apprentice, and the latter immediately understood.

"Fish? Chicken? What are we going to do now?" the other kitchen helpers asked, puzzled.

"I don't know, but when you're preparing dinner, please be careful with the ingredients you use. Don't use them all up and delay Chef Li's work." He Chuan's tone was serious, but his face showed a determined expression.

Several kitchen helpers who knew his nature well exchanged glances and quickly understood what he meant. However, they all chimed in, "Yes, yes, don't worry, Chef He, we will be careful about the ingredients we use."

Shi Jia knew nothing of what was happening in the kitchen; she had already entered Lu Xing'er's main room with her permission.

"Hmm? You said you wanted a recipe?" Lu Xing'er was a little surprised, but she still immediately asked Hongliu to go to the small study to get the recipes she had been keeping for a long time.

“Yes, although I have some experience in cooking, I come from the countryside and usually cook simple, rustic dishes. But you, sir, madam, and young mistress are all of noble birth. You may find these rustic dishes novel at first, but they will inevitably become boring after a while. That’s why I’ve shamelessly come here to ask for a cookbook,” Shi Jia said, neither humble nor arrogant.

Lu Xing'er nodded, thinking that what the other person said made a lot of sense, but Lu Mama standing next to her couldn't help but scrutinize Shi Jia. These words were definitely not something an ordinary country woman could say. Could she have some other background?
"Young Madam, these are the two cookbooks you collected." Hongliu came out holding two books.

"Give it to Madam Li." Lu Xing'er didn't care much, and was even a little eager to try. "Madam Li, you should think it over carefully and make sure you can cook the dishes inside."

Shi Jia was somewhat embarrassed. She took the two cookbooks and said with shame, "Young Madam, to be honest, I can't read."

"Huh?" Lu Xing'er blinked, not quite understanding.

"So, could you have Miss Hongliu read the recipe to me? Or could Miss Hongliu teach me to read? I can pay you a fee," Shi Jia said quickly.

That's right, she had two goals: recipes and literacy. Recipes were secondary; the main goal was literacy!

Lu Xing'er agreed without much thought, "Okay, no need for tuition. Just make me an extra serving of pastries every afternoon from now on."

Of the two cookbooks she gave out, one was a recipe for making pastries. She had personally compiled and copied them, but unfortunately, the chefs in the kitchen were not very skilled and could never make the taste she wanted, so gradually, the cookbook was shelved.

Granny Lu sighed softly and said nothing. Well, no matter what Li's status is, with the prefect of this prefecture in charge, she can't cause any trouble.

"Thank you, young mistress." Shi Jia gratefully gave Lu Xing'er a deep bow. She had just learned this gesture.

“No need, just make more delicious food.” Lu Xing’er said, and then asked about the dishes for tonight. Shi Jia then told her the original plan, and added, “In a little while, I would like to have Miss Hongliu read the recipes to me first, so I can see what suitable dishes there are, and I can make one or two for tonight.”

Lu Xing'er's eyes lit up, and she quickly waved for Hong Liu to give Shi Jia Nian the recipe.

Shi Jia followed Hong Liu to an empty room and began to read. The book was laid out on the table. Shi Jia looked at the book and listened to Hong Liu read it. He quickly matched the shapes and pronunciations of the characters with the words.

She wasn't illiterate; her memories were simply sealed. Hongliu's recitation was like a key to unlock those memories, and she quickly learned the words, even their meanings.

But that's all I can say; I won't be able to read any more than those words.