From selling box lunches to becoming a famous Chinese chef

After the successful opening of the new store in Zhengcheng, Feng Zhengming took his daughter back to Hangzhou.

Aunt did not go to Hangzhou with Feng Zhengming and the others, but instead went back to Quancheng with Uncle first.

As a result, the three children, including Yang Peng's son Yang Jundong, cried when they parted ways.

Fortunately, Feng Nuanyou made a promise with her brother and uncle that when she and her parents returned to Jinan for the Chinese New Year, they would all play together in Jinan.

This stopped the three children from crying and they made a pact like little adults.

Feng Zhengming returned to Hangzhou with his daughter.

The wife, Luo Qing, and her second aunt are dealing with some issues at the shop.

The reason is that a minor conflict occurred among some service personnel recruited in Hangzhou.

None of the service staff hired at the Hangzhou store are local residents of Hangzhou.

It's probably because the locals in Hangzhou felt that Feng Zhengming's shop was run by people from out of town, so they looked down on it. Also, the locals are relatively wealthy, and not many people are willing to work as waiters.

Therefore, most of the service personnel recruited are from other places who came to Hangzhou.

And the trouble lies with these outsiders.

It's natural for people from other places to band together in Hangzhou.

However, when Feng Zhengming is hiring for his new store, he certainly can't hire all the people from the same place.

If that's the case, Feng Zhengming might as well recruit service personnel directly from all over Shandong and bring them over.

When recruiting, we will still select candidates based on their individual abilities.

As a result, the store's service staff came from different places.

Then they had some conflicts with each other.

Fortunately, almost all the staff in the kitchen were from Shandong.

So when these out-of-town service staff started making a fuss, everyone in the kitchen immediately came out to help.

In particular, Du Chenyu and Liu Fanping led the apprentices from Qilu to protect Luo Qing and Feng Suying.

Gao Qiang and his wife also stood up to stop the people.

But some people always like to take advantage of others' kindness.

Because Luo Qing had tried her best to save face for everyone and hadn't blamed these people for minor issues.

This has led to these people becoming quite emboldened and fearless.

Today, people from different places brought this up directly to Luo Qing.

"Either they all leave and all the waiters are from our hometown, or we leave. It's definitely not going to work with them."

“That’s right, we also require that all the employees be from our hometown, and we can’t use people from other places.”

“We also require that you employ all our fellow villagers in your store. We all come from the same place, so we can definitely help you run the store well. It’s just that they are always causing trouble.”

"You're the ones causing trouble."

"It's all because of your meddling that things have turned out like this."

Several groups of people accused each other, each claiming that the other was deliberately causing trouble.

Luo Qing looked at her second aunt, who looked genuinely tired.

She hadn't expected that her previous lack of demandingness towards these people would instead embolden them.

They came to apply for a job, but now it seems like they've become the bosses.

As the parties argued, Gao Qiang couldn't help but speak up: "Are you mistaken? You are the store's service staff. If you keep causing trouble, the boss can simply fire you all."

Gao Qiang's words surprised the group of people at first, but then they actually joined forces to retort.

"Fine, fire us all, then where are you going to find replacements?"

"Exactly, if it weren't for us, you would have opened immediately. Where would you have found people then?"

"Anyway, we won't work properly if you don't agree to our conditions."

Just as the group of people finished talking at once...

A voice suddenly rang out from the doorway.

"Not going to work properly? Then all of you can leave. I, Feng Zhengming, have never heard of a restaurant that can't find enough waiters. Alright, starting today, you are all fired. Get out of here now."

Hearing this sound shocked everyone in the store.

Then everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw Feng Zhengming carrying his daughter into the room.

Luo Qing was truly relieved to see her husband and daughter return.

As her body went limp, her second aunt quickly supported her from behind.

Feng Zhengming glanced at his wife, then exchanged a look with his second aunt, confirming from her eyes that his wife was alright.

He then firmly stated, "Alright, you can leave now."

Upon seeing Feng Zhengming appear, all the previously troublesome waiters instinctively became fearful.

When they heard Feng Zhengming tell them all to leave, everyone was stunned.

The store was about to open, but the boss actually fired them all?
They dare to cause such a scene today because they are certain that the boss needs to open for business and won't fire them all.

So the people from different places all wanted to make a scene.

Can't we drive away people from other places? Should we ask the boss to give us a raise? Or could we ask the boss to let a few more of our fellow villagers come into the store?

The bottom line for all of them in this commotion is to get a few more fellow villagers in.

When Feng Zhengming returned, he fired everyone, effectively ending their careers.

At this point, the ringleaders stepped forward and tried to back down.

"Boss, we, we can actually discuss this."

"Yes, yes, we didn't mean to cause trouble. It's just that no one was willing to give in, so we stood our ground."

"Yes, we were just angry, and what we said just now was all said in anger."

Feng Zhengming said with a serious expression, "I'm not just saying this out of anger. I said you've all been fired, and I really don't believe that I can't find suitable replacements for my shop without you."

It seemed that there was no way to turn the situation around.

Some of the people who were dragged into the commotion were unhappy.

"No, what's wrong with you? You told us that we would benefit from joining your rebellion."

"Yeah, we made trouble for them, and in the end you made us lose our jobs along with you."

"I didn't want to cause trouble, but they insisted on dragging me into it."

"Yes, yes, boss, boss's wife, I really didn't mean to cause trouble."

Feng Zhengming: "You didn't want to cause trouble? But you've already joined in. Since you've caused trouble, it means you won't listen to management. My shop won't allow people who don't obey management to stay. All of you, leave now."

Then Feng Zhengming looked at Gao Qiang's wife: "Sister-in-law, give each of them half a month's salary and let them all leave."

With things already said this way, all the waiters in the store completely panicked.

But even when faced with pleas from some people, Feng Zhengming remained unmoved.

Seeing that they still wanted to cause trouble, Feng Zhengming angrily rebuked them.

"Shut up, all of you. Giving you half a month's salary is already the greatest mercy I can show. If you continue to cause trouble, I'll call the police. Let me tell you, I was invited by Hangzhou to open this shop. If you make it impossible for me to open, Hangzhou will naturally help me resolve the problem." After hearing what Feng Zhengming said, the dismissed waiters dared not continue to cause trouble.

After receiving half a month's wages from Gao Qiang's wife, they all left the store.

Luo Qing and her second aunt came to her husband's side.

When Feng Nuanyou saw her mother, she reached out her little hand and gently touched her mother's face.

"Mom, are you very tired? You should rest well. Dad and I are back. We will protect you."

Upon hearing her daughter's words, Luo Qing immediately smiled.

"Okay, with Youyou protecting me, Mom isn't afraid."

My aunt said helplessly, "I never expected that these migrant workers would form cliques among themselves. It's really annoying them."

Feng Zhengming: "It's normal for them to form cliques. They are all from out of town in Hangzhou, so it's natural for them to stick together with their fellow townsmen. Just like in the kitchen, aren't most of the people here from Shandong?"

These words surprised everyone in the kitchen, and then they looked at each other.

Du Chenyu quickly stepped forward: "Uncle-Master, we didn't exclude anyone else."

Liu Fanping chimed in, "Yes, yes, we're all partners in the kitchen, there's no exclusion."

Whether they were apprentices from Shandong or from Hangzhou, everyone in the kitchen said they got along very well.

Feng Zhengming: "You don't need to be nervous. I know you won't cause trouble. After all, you need some skills to work in the kitchen. It's not like we can just hire anyone from our hometown."

Hearing Feng Zhengming say this, everyone nodded in agreement.

Luo Qing asked, "You've fired all the waiters, what are we going to do when our store opens?"

Feng Zhengming: "Of course we'll hire new people. There are still a lot of people working in Hangzhou, so hiring isn't difficult. Besides, if all else fails, I'll just bring in a group of waiters from various restaurants in Shandong."

Second Aunt laughed: "Our Feng Zhuangyuan still has the best ideas."

Luo Qing thought for a moment: "We can transfer a batch of temporary supplies from Shanghai to handle the opening."

Feng Zhengming: "Okay, then I'll contact Xia Hui and A Zhe."

Luo Qing: "Why don't you contact them now?"

Feng Zhengming: "Yes, we asked them to transfer some personnel in advance, since Shanghai is relatively close to Hangzhou."

Second Aunt spoke up again: "Zhengming's idea is very good. In fact, we can first transfer a few people from several stores in Shanghai to help the stores here open smoothly, and then recruit new people from here. It would also be good for the people from Shanghai to train them."

Feng Zhengming thought that his aunt's idea was indeed a very good one.

"Second Aunt, you're right. I overlooked this issue before. I'll contact them in Shanghai right now."

Without any hesitation, Feng Zhengming immediately called Shanghai.

Xia Hui and Jiang Chengzhe received the call and immediately began arranging for people to come over.

Meanwhile, Feng Zhengming's Hangzhou store is also conducting another round of recruitment.

Some of those who were fired tried to reapply for the job.

However, this time when they came to apply for the job, they clearly felt that the requirements were much stricter.

This left the dismissed person completely baffled.

Why did Feng Zhengming raise his standards when the restaurant was clearly short of staff?
A few days later, the waiters dispatched from Shanghai arrived in Hangzhou.

This allowed those who had been fired from the Hangzhou store to truly witness Feng Zhengming's capabilities.

In such a short time, Feng Zhengming managed to get enough waiters in the store.

Furthermore, Feng Zhengming was able to open his business smoothly and on schedule at the agreed time with Hangzhou.

Of course, before opening, Feng Zhengming first visited some local chefs, as well as the city and province officials who had invited him.

The provincial and municipal governments have also learned about the problems Feng Zhengming had previously encountered.

Both the provincial and municipal governments have indicated that they can help coordinate or help Feng Zhengming recruit a group of waiters.

Feng Zhengming said, "I have temporarily transferred some waiters from several stores in Shanghai to ensure the smooth opening of the store in Hangzhou. I will continue to recruit waiters afterward."

The province and city officials were quite impressed with Feng Zhengming's ability and efficiency in solving the problem.

After resolving the waiter issue, Feng Zhengming seriously began designing some dishes in preparation for the opening of his restaurant in Hangzhou.

In terms of menu design, Feng Zhengming retained the four traditional dishes of Feng Family Rice Shop.

There are also some braised and stir-fried dishes that are common in Shandong cuisine.

Then they added a lot of seafood dishes.

For example, cooking small seafood dishes in Ningcheng and Taicheng, which are located by the sea.

There are also some home-style seafood dishes that have the characteristics of both regions.

Unlike the mutton soup used in Zhengcheng, Feng Zhengming designed seafood porridge for the restaurant in Hangzhou.

In addition, some dishes have been added, such as Eight Treasure Tofu, Dried Bamboo Shoot and Old Duck Soup, Dongpo Pork, Crispy Fried Tofu Rolls, and Braised Bamboo Shoots.

In addition to seafood porridge, Feng Zhengming also prepared Song Sao fish soup.

In terms of some of the menu design, even Gao Qiang, a local, had to admit that he might not know Hangzhou as well as Feng Zhengming.

Of course, Feng Zhengming did not consider West Lake Fish in Vinegar Sauce and Longjing Shrimp, which are the most representative dishes of Hangzhou.

This is mainly due to the difficulty of cooking the two dishes.

In Feng Zhengming's view, these two dishes are also not suitable for fast food restaurants.

After designing the menu, Feng Zhengming and Gao Qiang led the kitchen staff to prepare a special meal for his wife, his second aunt, and everyone in the restaurant.

With Feng Zhengming in charge, the kitchen staff experienced this for the first time.

Why is Feng Zhuangyuan the national culinary champion?

Feng Zhengming can cook most dishes with ease.

He even broke down the steps of many dishes and assigned tasks to everyone in the kitchen.

This got everyone in the kitchen involved.

With everyone working together, cooking in the kitchen became quite relaxed and enjoyable.

While leading everyone in the activity, Feng Zhengming also explained the techniques to Gao Qiang, Du Chenyu, and Liu Fanping.

Instruct them on how to direct and coordinate the kitchen staff.

How many steps can be broken down into to make a dish?

Then how can we arrange for people to do each step at the same time?
At this moment, Gao Qiang, Du Chenyu, and Liu Fanping truly experienced the unique learning process of being by Feng Zhengming's side.

Feng Zhengming didn't emphasize the plating of the dishes he made; he served them one by one to the people waiting outside.

Seeing the dishes served made those who had been waiting feel that the wait was worthwhile.

Before the opening of the new store in Hangzhou, Feng Zhengming led everyone to set an example.

After the meal, Gao Qiang, Du Chenyu, and Liu Fanping gathered around Feng Zhengming to ask him for advice.

Feng Zhengming didn't hold back either, explaining all the techniques in detail to the three of them.

He also earnestly advised the three: "Remember that the kitchen is a whole. You need to understand how busy everyone is. When assigning tasks, don't always put all the pressure on one person."

It's okay to make mistakes. Don't be afraid of making mistakes, as long as you know how to correct them. But don't keep making the same mistakes. (End of Chapter)