From selling box lunches to becoming a famous Chinese chef

After escorting Feng Zhengming and his family back to their hotel, Wang Hanwen and Chu Huijuan returned hand in hand.

On the way, Chu Huijuan was a little excited.

"I never expected that just one phone call from you would actually bring Feng Zhuangyuan over."

Wang Hanwen: "I can't say it's just a phone call. I can only say that the head chef has always had the idea of ​​opening a branch in Chengdu. The head chef hopes that chefs from other cuisines can also have better development."

Chu Huijuan: "Feng Zhuangyuan is a really good person, very easy-going, and he is really good to his daughter."

Wang Hanwen: "You probably don't know this, but when Sister Qing went out, the head chef took his daughter to the kitchen of the old house restaurant."

Chu Huijuan: "Huh? You're just taking the child to the kitchen?"

Wang Hanwen nodded: "Yes, Youyou was still young at the time, and she couldn't say some things very clearly."

The head chef brought his daughter into the kitchen, placed her on a relatively high stool, and while cooking and directing us, he also took care of his daughter.

Chu Huijuan asked incredulously, "Can he really be that powerful?"

Wang Hanwen: "The most charming thing about the head chef is not just his skills, but his respect for food and his respect for chefs from different cuisines."

Chu Huijuan: "You can tell that he really enjoyed all the dishes tonight, and you can tell he wasn't faking it."

Wang Hanwen: "Yes, when the chef eats delicious food, he really enjoys it and will eat it in big bites without caring about his image at all."

"Haha, seeing Feng Zhuangyuan eat those dishes today, I found that watching him eat them really made me feel good."

Hearing Chu Huijuan's words, Wang Hanwen also laughed: "Yes, watching the head chef eat makes you feel that food is very delicious, so you can clearly tell whether your dishes are good or not just by watching the head chef eat them."

At this point in the conversation, Chu Huijuan asked, "Why didn't you become Feng Zhuangyuan's apprentice?"

Wang Hanwen paused for a moment, then stared at Chu Huijuan for a while.

Then he replied, "I have a master, so I can't possibly go and take someone else as my master."

Chu Huijuan: "But I've heard that many chefs have multiple masters. You could also become Feng Zhuangyuan's apprentice. I think he would agree if you did."

Wang Hanwen was somewhat tempted by what Chu Huijuan said; he had indeed been thinking about it recently.

Perhaps if he becomes Feng Zhengming's apprentice, he will receive more favors?

After having this idea, Wang Hanwen quickly dismissed it.

"Forget it, I can't be too greedy. I call him head chef, which means I acknowledge that he is the head chef who is leading me. So, I am essentially a chef under him, and I don't need to become his apprentice."

That would make people think I'm deliberately trying to gain some titles, which would be a bit too underhanded.

Chu Huijuan couldn't help but touch Wang Hanwen's brow with her finger.

"You're such a fool. If you had asked to become Feng Zhuangyuan's apprentice, he certainly wouldn't have refused. But what do you care about saving face? Is saving face more important than learning real skills?"

Wang Hanwen: "I also learned real skills from my master."

Chu Huijuan: "But your master lost to Scholar Feng."

Wang Hanwen had no way to refute these words.

When Wang Hanwen went to Feng Zhengming's place, he asked his master if he was convinced by Feng Zhengming.

However, his master said that he was very impressed with Feng Zhengming.

When Wang Hanwen first arrived, he was somewhat resentful of Feng Zhengming.

It wasn't until later that I truly witnessed Feng Zhengming's craftsmanship.

Moreover, after witnessing Feng Zhengming's character and conduct, Wang Hanwen was quickly convinced of his abilities.

"Only after learning from the head chef can you understand why my master and the others always lost to him."

Chu Huijuan immediately became curious: "Why?"

Wang Hanwen: "Think about it, if your opponent is better than you in every aspect, and also has more advanced creativity than you, do you think you can beat him?"

Without even thinking, Chu Huijuan blurted out, "Then how can we compete? There's no way we can win."

Wang Hanwen nodded: "To my master and the others, the head chef is a top-notch chef like this."

Chu Huijuan's expression turned serious: "So, Scholar Feng is really amazing."

Wang Hanwen: "Think about it, the head chef was the all-around champion in the cooking competition. Whether it was knife skills or spoon skills, he had surpassed all the chefs and truly achieved a crushing victory."

Chu Huijuan: "No wonder your master and the others were convinced."

Wang Hanwen sneered: "Now that things have come to this, my fellow disciples are not convinced."

Chu Huijuan couldn't help but laugh: "They still haven't learned their lesson, they think they can hold their own against Scholar Feng."

Wang Hanwen: "They can't even compare to the master chef, so why should they compare to the head chef?"

Chu Huijuan: "That's true, they're not qualified to compare with Scholar Feng."

The two walked hand in hand, chatting as they went, their conversation almost entirely revolving around Feng Zhengming.

Chu Huijuan asked one last question: "So, are you going to accompany Scholar Feng to visit your master tomorrow?"

Wang Hanwen: Yes, we're going. The head chef also said he'd be going.

Chu Huijuan: "Hey, I'm really curious, what kind of expression would your master have when he saw Scholar Feng come to visit him?"

Wang Hanwen answered with certainty: "My master will definitely greet me specially, and he will be very humble."

Chu Huijuan believed this.

After all, Feng Zhengming's skills and reputation speak for themselves.

After dropping Chu Huijuan off at home, Wang Hanwen, having nothing else to do, strolled over to his new shop and took a look.

To his surprise, he ran into Feng Zhengming in front of his new store.

"Haha, I knew you'd come over alone tonight."

Wang Hanwen was indeed startled when Feng Zhengming suddenly appeared.

"Chef, what brings you here?"

Feng Zhengming: "I couldn't sleep in the hotel. The children were all put to sleep, so I wanted to go out for a walk by myself, so I came to your store to take a look."

Wang Hanwen: "Chef, you actually remember the place?"

Feng Zhengming: "Just remember the address, and you can get there by taxi, right?"

Wang Hanwen smiled, then opened the shop door and invited Feng Zhengming inside.

Upon entering the store, Feng Zhengming carefully examined the various decorations.

The store's overall decoration and interior layout are completely different from stores in other regions.

Many of the items inside have Sichuan cuisine characteristics, and even the paint on the walls is painted with Sichuan opera masks.

Feng Zhengming: "Not bad, not bad. These things are quite unique. Stepping into your restaurant, I immediately realized that this is Chengdu, the home of Sichuan cuisine."

Wang Hanwen: "Chef, what you're saying is true. With you around, you can enter any Sichuan cuisine territory." Feng Zhengming: "Haha, that's different, it's different. My dishes need to be modified to suit the local tastes when they come here."

Wang Hanwen agreed with this point.

"People here prefer strong flavors, and most dishes are spicy."

Feng Zhengming: "Spicy and savory is a characteristic of Sichuan cuisine, but Sichuan cuisine also has other flavor profiles, such as the unique fish-fragrant, Kung Pao, lychee flavor, and sweet and sour flavor, each with its own unique features."

At this point in the conversation, Feng Zhengming looked intently at Wang Hanwen.

"The dishes you make in the restaurant later on should bring out the unique flavor advantages of Sichuan cuisine."

Wang Hanwen nodded; "I know, Master. Most of the dishes on my menu are Sichuan cuisine."

Feng Zhengming: That's right. Food has no fixed taste; what suits one's palate is precious.

Then Feng Zhengming asked about the staff in the store.

"How's your manpower situation? Have you recruited everyone?"

Wang Hanwen: "I have to thank Juanzi for helping me. She is usually very easygoing, but she is very meticulous when it comes to doing things. She helped me find all the service staff in my store."

She also helped me contact some people in the kitchen, which ensured that I could continue operating normally.

Feng Zhengming: "It seems you really have a serious falling out with your fellow disciples?"

Hearing this, Wang Hanwen looked embarrassed.

"Chef, I... I originally thought that if I came back to open a shop, at least some people would be willing to follow me."

Feng Zhengming: "Don't think like that. Your fellow apprentices probably just don't want to be subordinate to you. I think it's better for you to train a group of apprentices yourself than to have your fellow apprentices help you."

Wang Hanwen immediately responded: "Yes, I think so too, head chef. It's more reassuring to train our own team."

Feng Zhengming: "Chengdu is a bit far away, so I may not be able to transfer people over for you. You'll have to train your own team, which will also be a good experience for you."

You will definitely become a real chef in the future, so you must have experience in managing the kitchen.

Consider this branch as the starting point for your kitchen management skills; you can practice here thoroughly.

Wang Hanwen: "Chef, won't this ruin your reputation?"

Feng Zhengming: "Hahaha, what's there to be afraid of? Anyway, I'm not personally in charge of cooking at this branch of yours. In the end, your master's reputation will probably be the first thing to be ruined."

Feng Zhengming's words left Wang Hanwen with a wry smile.

“My master chef often talks about you. He said that he really underestimated you during the national cooking competition. But he never expected that you and Chef Jiang would completely crush all of them.”

Feng Zhengming: "Hahaha, where did I crush them all? Your master was also very strong back then. Until the very last dish, I didn't have the absolute strength to beat them."

Wang Hanwen: "I really envy you, head chef, and my master. Back then, it really was all about skill."

Feng Zhengming understood what Wang Hanwen meant and asked him to recall some of the changes that occurred in the fourth session.

Then consider the numerous competitions that have emerged recently.

Indeed, the value of a chef's skills is decreasing. Many chefs may not be that good, but because they have a famous master, they can use the master's name to swindle and deceive.

Some of them are even members of the same sect, hoping to promote them.

Some chefs even had connections with the competition's sponsors, so the competition became a way for them to get ahead.

Therefore, Feng Zhengming receives many competition invitations every year, asking him to be a judge, but he almost always refuses them.

Given his temperament, he would never tolerate any fraudulent or deceptive behavior.

It will also not allow chefs with flawed skills to gain any glory by using the name of the competition.

Feng Zhengming prefers to spend more time in his own shop.

Or perhaps they'll develop new dishes in the kitchen of an old-style restaurant.

Ultimately, this is because Feng Zhengming has more confidence than most chefs.

Many of the other chefs may not own their own restaurants, or even if they do, they may only own small restaurants.

For some chefs, they might actually need to become judges to earn some extra money.

But that money held no appeal for Feng Zhengming.

After all, if he wanted to organize a competition, he could invest a huge amount of money to organize a national competition himself.

The combined profits from all his branches have long since made him completely financially independent.

He has paid off the loans on both the old villa in Shanghai and the small villa he lives in.

Because he was not short of money, Feng Zhengming was able to be even more assertive.

He can turn down all kinds of commercial competition invitations.

He can be willful and focus solely on doing his own thing.

He could even support such a large number of top-notch chefs with exceptional skills.

Thinking about all this, Feng Zhengming couldn't help but sigh.

"Hanwen, sometimes I feel that I haven't done enough. I don't have enough ability to make the entire domestic culinary industry more fair and completely break down the so-called barriers between different cuisines and schools."

We chefs from all over the country can communicate more freely.

It's no longer limited to me cooking Shandong cuisine and you cooking Sichuan cuisine.

Instead, it can be integrated across the country, eliminating the distinctions between Shandong cuisine, Sichuan cuisine, Cantonese cuisine, and Huaiyang cuisine.

After hearing what Feng Zhengming said, Wang Hanwen could roughly understand the thoughts of Feng Zhengming, now one of the top chefs in the country.

It's not about making myself more famous, but about breaking down the barriers between regional cuisines in China.

No matter what kind of cuisine you're making?
No matter what technique you use.
No matter what ingredients you use?
If you can cook delicious food, then you should be a good chef and deserve the respect you are given.

Instead of creating a dish that immediately becomes the subject of debate: Is this Shandong cuisine? Sichuan cuisine? Cantonese cuisine? Huaiyang cuisine?
It's not because of the chef's birth that different regions compete for them.

That's the kind of situation Wang Hanwen hopes to see one day.

Unfortunately, Feng Zhengming is now unable to do that.

He couldn't break the prejudice in everyone's hearts.

Just like some customers at the old-style restaurant complained that Feng Zhengming's dishes didn't belong to Shandong cuisine.

Some people even go so far as to analyze Feng Zhengming's dishes.

It's not about analyzing it from the aspects of color, aroma, and taste.

Instead, we analyze the ingredients, cooking techniques, and seasonings to determine which regional cuisine it belongs to.
Feng Zhengming sighed: "I can't change their perception. There will always be people who want to analyze which cuisine my dishes belong to."

Wang Hanwen hesitated for a moment, but could only comfort him: "Chef, you have already been very successful. I believe that more people will recognize your talent in the future."

Feng Zhengming smiled: "I hope time can change everything." (End of Chapter)