From selling box lunches to becoming a famous Chinese chef

When Feng Zhengming and Jiang Chengzhe returned to the assembly bus together, they found that the other chefs who had gone out to play had already returned, and everyone was only waiting for them to come back.

Seeing the two people come back and get on the car, the other chefs on the car were obviously getting a little impatient.

Feng Zhengming got in the car and apologized to the waiting chef.

"I'm so sorry, we walked a little far, so we came back late. I'm sorry to have kept you waiting."

Feng Zhengming apologized so respectfully that the other chefs who had been waiting for them for a long time couldn't say anything.

Then the two of them sat down at the back together.

After the car started, they took Feng Zhengming and the others back.

Sitting in the front row in front of Feng Zhengming, the Sichuan chef turned around and asked Feng Zhengming.

"Chef Feng, didn't I see you coming back with two big boxes? Why are you out so late again?"

Feng Zhengming smiled and replied, "The things in the box are for my family and friends. When I come to a big city like Shanghai, there are many stores on the pedestrian street that we don't have, so I bought a little more."

The Zhejiang cuisine chef sitting next to the Sichuan cuisine chef couldn't help laughing when he heard this.

"It seems that Chef Feng came to Shanghai specifically to purchase goods. Is your Quancheng so backward?"

There was obvious disdain in the other party's words towards Feng Zhengming buying so many things to take back.

This made the Sichuan chef and Jiang Chengzhe who was next to Feng Zhengming feel that what he said was a bit too much.

The Sichuan chefs in particular were a little embarrassed.

Because he also bought a lot of things and was planning to take them back and give them to others.

As a result, it seemed as if the Zhejiang cuisine chefs had never seen the world.

Jiang Chengzhe originally wanted to say a few words to help Feng Zhengming, but was stopped by Feng Zhengming's look.

Feng Zhengming said to the Zhejiang cuisine chef with a big smile on his face: "Quancheng is an inland city, and it is indeed not as prosperous as your cities in the south near the sea."

The Zhejiang cuisine chef said, "That's not right. Your province also has cities along the sea."

Feng Zhengming responded: "After all, Quancheng is not near the sea, so its development is a little worse."

At this time, the Su cuisine chef sitting on the other side suddenly interrupted.

"We have been to your island city before, and it is also quite prosperous. However, it seems that some people in the island city don't like to say that they are from Qilu."

When Feng Zhengming heard this and saw that the other party was a Su cuisine chef, he suddenly felt a little funny.

"I heard that people from your Su Province would never say they are from Su Province when they are outside. They would say they are from a specific city in Su Province, and some would even go down to the county level. The island city is relatively close to you, so could it be that they learned this from you?"

These words stunned everyone in the car.

Then Jiang Chengzhe was the first to burst out laughing.

Then the chef from Su Province also smiled awkwardly.

After Feng Zhengming's response, other chefs from all over the country on the bus stopped talking to him.

Feng Zhengming and Jiang Chengzhe smiled at each other, and both of them leaned back in their chairs to rest for a while.

Jiang Chengzhe passed by this afternoon, and especially in the evening, the two of them went to Huanghe Road to have dinner together.

His perception of Feng Zhengming changed dramatically.

Perhaps in the eyes of other chefs on the bus, especially those from the southeast coastal areas, Feng Zhengming, a young Shandong cuisine chef from Quancheng, seems like a country bumpkin who has come to the city.

But in Jiang Chengzhe's opinion, Feng Zhengming is more graceful than most chefs on the bus.

Different from other chefs Jiang Chengzhe has come into contact with.

When other chefs come into contact with chefs from Hong Kong City, they will more or less try to please them.

Moreover, other chefs often like to act in a pretentious manner when doing their work.

Feng Zhengming is quite free and easy, and always puts himself on an equal footing when communicating with chefs in Hong Kong.

Just like when he was shopping spreely on the pedestrian street in Shanghai, he didn't hesitate at all to avoid Jiang Chengzhe who was following him.

He even bought two large boxes of things and sent them back to the bus first.

He directly asked Jiang Chengzhe to help him carry the box.

Jiang Chengzhe felt that, except for Feng Zhengming, no other chef would ask him to help carry the boxes.

The key point is that others may only see two big boxes and have no idea what is inside the boxes?
Many people might think that Feng Zhengming bought some Shanghai specialties.

Just like most of the people who walked around the pedestrian street, and there were many chefs at the City God Temple on the other side of the pedestrian street.

When they went back, they all carried some Shanghai specialties in their hands.

There was nothing in Feng Zhengming's two large boxes that was a Shanghai specialty.

In Jiang Chengzhe's opinion, the things he bought were all relatively expensive.

Items like brand-name watches, brand-name sportswear, sports shoes, and some cigarettes and alcohol are also quite expensive.

Including the fact that he actually bought perfumes and brand-name bags, which Jiang Chengzhe considered to be luxury goods.

The other chefs on the bus would think that Feng Zhengming was a typical country bumpkin for going back with two large boxes of things.

Jiang Chengzhe was very clear that the value of the things in Feng Zhengming's two large boxes was more expensive than all the specialties bought by other chefs on the bus combined.

Also in the evening he and Feng Zhengming went to Huanghe Road to have dinner.

Facing the Yellow River Road where lights, wine, women and luxury cars gather.

Jiang Chengzhe would feel a little surprised.

But Feng Zhengming has always been very calm.

Feng Zhengming was quite calm when he went to the big restaurant on Huanghe Road to have dinner.

There is no sense of facial burden when ordering food.

Especially when it comes to evaluating the cooking skills of restaurant chefs, Feng Zhengming is quite direct.

In Jiang Chengzhe's opinion, Feng Zhengming is a straightforward person with a lot of knowledge.

This is different from some reckless behavior that comes from someone who has absolutely no understanding of the situation.

Does he know what he is doing?
Are you clear about what you want?
What do you hope to buy?
What do you want to see?
After spending an afternoon with Feng Zhengming, Jiang Chengzhe felt that this young chef, who was only a few years older than him, was increasingly charming.

Especially on the way back in the car, he responded to other people's sarcasm and insults with such a calm and smiling manner.

The result was that others seemed to be blocked by him and felt a little uncomfortable.

Feng Zhengming himself didn't take other people's words to heart at all.

Jiang Chengzhe suddenly couldn't help thinking: If I really made a bet with him, then after returning from abroad, going to work in his restaurant in Shanghai would seem to be a good choice.

Through what he learned this afternoon, Jiang Chengzhe felt that it would be a great thing to be able to cooperate with Feng Zhengming to open a top-notch restaurant in Shanghai.

Of course, Jiang Chengzhe still needs to see whether Feng Zhengming has the ability to make him cooperate with him in this competition?

The car took Feng Zhengming and other chefs back to the hotel.

When Feng Zhengming got off the car carrying two large boxes, the other chefs were surprised to see Jiang Chengzhe actually helping him carry them. The Zhejiang and Jiangsu chefs who had teased Feng Zhengming in the car gathered together and felt that something was wrong.

They didn't notice it in the car and thought it was a coincidence that Feng Zhengming and Jiang Chengzhe came back together.

Now seeing how Jiang Chengzhe took the initiative to help, everyone feels that these two people seem to be together.

"Why is that young chef from Gangcheng so close to Feng Zhengming?"

"Yes, Feng Zhengming should be considered his biggest opponent in this competition."

"Could it be because they are about the same age, so they can talk to each other more?"

"How is that possible? Chef Xiao Jiang is from Hong Kong City and has studied abroad. He just won a prize at the Asian Cooking Show. What is there for Feng Zhengming, a country bumpkin from Quancheng, to talk about with him?"

"Yes, Feng Zhengming is indeed good at Shandong cuisine, but he was only the top scorer in his provincial competition, and he was in the youth group. He is not on the same level as Chef Xiao Jiang, right?"

"That's not the case. On the way here, I heard from Master that he seems to be looking forward to the showdown between Feng Zhengming and Chef Xiao Jiang this time."

"Then let's wait and see."

Feng Zhengming and Jiang Chengzhe are so close that many participating chefs find it strange.

When they communicate with the chefs from Gangcheng, they all feel that the chefs from Gangcheng are a little bit arrogant.

When chefs from other places face chefs from Hong Kong, they also feel a little bit of flattery in their hearts.

As a result, Feng Zhengming and Jiang Chengzhe are now very close.

What surprised everyone was that Feng Zhengming and Jiang Chengzhe seemed to be talking to each other on an equal footing.

This also made many participating chefs feel a little jealous.

They would think, why can't they communicate with the chefs in Hong Kong on an equal footing?

Jiang Chengzhe helped Feng Zhengming carry the box upstairs and into his room.

Li Zhifeng and Lin Bosheng, who had returned earlier, saw the two people enter the door.

Especially when they saw Jiang Chengzhe, Li Zhifeng and Lin Bosheng were also polite to him.

"Look at you, Chef Jiang. You're still working so hard to help me. Thank you so much."

"Chef Jiang, sit down and have a rest. Have a glass of water."

Jiang Chengzhe felt a little uncomfortable when he saw Li Zhifeng and Lin Bosheng being so polite to him.

He could only say to Feng Zhengming: "Then I'll go back and rest first."

Feng Zhengming smiled and said, "Okay, thank you for your help."

Li Zhifeng and Lin Bosheng watched Feng Zhengming see Jiang Chengzhe out.

Both of them thought that Feng Zhengming would send Jiang Chengzhe to the elevator, but Feng Zhengming didn't even see him out the door. After saying goodbye to Jiang Chengzhe at the door, Feng Zhengming closed the door and turned back.

Li Zhifeng quickly said, "Xiao Feng, you are not doing this right. He is from Hong Kong City, you should see him off anyway."

Feng Zhengming looked at Li Zhifeng and asked in confusion: "Didn't I send you to the door?"

Lin Bosheng said: "We are from Qilu, we are the most polite. You should send them back to their room, thank them for helping you carry your things up, or at least send them to the elevator."

Feng Zhengming asked back: "Is it necessary? It's not like he doesn't know the way."

These words stunned Li Zhifeng and Lin Bosheng again.

Seeing that both of them were stunned, Feng Zhengming put the two boxes away.

He sat down and asked, "President Li, Senior Brother Lin, I think you are all afraid of the chefs in Gangcheng?"

These words brought Li Zhifeng and Lin Bosheng back to their senses.

The two men looked at each other.

Lin Bosheng said: "It's not that I'm afraid, but I always feel that we are a little behind the times compared to Hong Kong chefs. They often study abroad in top restaurants abroad, or have won awards in foreign competitions."

Feng Zhengming smiled and said, "We also have chefs who have won awards abroad, such as Master Su and Master Sun. They have also been abroad and won awards abroad. What's so strange about this?"

Li Zhifeng immediately explained: "The key is that many big bosses in Hong Kong are now investing in the mainland, and the value of chefs in Hong Kong has also risen."

Feng Zhengming nodded first, then told Jiang Chengzhe that he and he were going to Huanghe Road for dinner tonight.

“I feel that some chefs in Hong Kong are just so-so. In terms of technique, they may not be as good as me.

For example, at the restaurant we went to tonight on Huanghe Road, the dishes cooked by the Cantonese chef were really not that good, just had some fancy elements.

Then they use some exquisite plating and some seemingly expensive ingredients to deceive some wealthy bosses. "

Feng Zhengming once again took out the dish of black carp lung and sea cucumber and analyzed it in detail.

After listening to Feng Zhengming's detailed analysis, Li Zhifeng and Lin Bosheng were also somewhat surprised.

They originally thought that Feng Zhengming came back so late because he was playing in the big city of Shanghai with Jiang Chengzhe.

Unexpectedly, the two of them did not go to enjoy the world of feasting and revelry.

Instead, I went to the most famous Yellow River Road in Shanghai and tasted the dishes of the well-known restaurants in Shanghai.

Through Feng Zhengming's analysis, Li Zhifeng and Lin Bosheng suddenly felt that

It seems that some chefs in Hong Kong are just like that.

After Feng Zhengming finished his analysis, Lin Bosheng became a little curious.

"Zhengming, how did you know how to cook blackfish lung?"

Li Zhifeng helped explain: "You all think that he has never left Quancheng. In fact, before Yanxilou closed down, he traveled around with Master Yan and visited many places for exchanges."

Only then did Lin Bosheng suddenly realize that everyone, including himself, had underestimated Feng Zhengming from the very beginning.

Since he could think of combining scallion-fried sea cucumber and hydrangea scallops into a dish.

He also introduced some creative dishes at Huiquanlou.

In fact, one should be able to guess that he is not working in isolation, nor is he a bumpkin who has never left Quancheng.

Feng Zhengming smiled and said: "My master and I have seen a great chef making braised pig lungs, and his skills were really amazing.

Not only is the heat control very good, but the chef's skill in shaking the spoon is also quite impressive, with even force that hardly breaks the herring liver."

Speaking of the cooking skills of the chefs he had witnessed, Feng Zhengming then went on to talk about the restaurant on Huanghe Road.

"Compared to the cooking skills of the master chefs I've seen, the cooking skills of the chef on Yellow River Road are really average."

Then he added helplessly: "Unfortunately, those bosses on Huanghe Road are all suckers. They don't recognize the true craftsmanship of braised pig lung. They only know that putting a circle of sea cucumbers can show that they are rich and can afford it."

Finally, Feng Zhengming gave his evaluation: "Even if you have money, it can't change your rustic taste."

Lin Bosheng couldn't help but say, "But if I don't have money, I probably can't afford those high-end dishes."

Feng Zhengming responded seriously: "So, I think we should teach everyone aesthetics, let everyone understand what food is and what is the beauty of food?"

As he said this, he stood up, walked to the bed in the room, and looked out the window at the brightly lit riverside in the distance.

"I must open a restaurant in Shanghai and teach everyone how to eat delicious food." (End of this chapter)