From selling box lunches to becoming a famous Chinese chef

The day before the official competition, Feng Zhengming met with the professional judges and the judges of the non-professional group.

After Feng Zhengming and his team arrived at the scene, they saw that the judges of the non-professional group were all CEOs from the sponsors.

When everyone saw Feng Zhengming, they took the initiative to come forward and shake hands with him and say hello.

"Oh, our top scholar is here."

"Finally I've seen the real person."

"Our top pick is even younger than he looks on TV."

"You are young and promising, worthy of being the top scholar in the country."

"Hahaha, it's the national champion of our Shandong cuisine."

Most of the sponsors this time are companies from Qilu Province.

Of course, there are also several companies from the South that participate in the sponsorship.

Among them is Uncle San’s partner, Boss Wang.

There is also the CEO of a well-known seasoning brand from Hong Kong.

The two of them were even more cordial when they saw Feng Zhengming.

Especially the boss of the seasoning company in Gangcheng, he came here in person this time, not to be a judge.

When he saw Feng Zhengming, he immediately shook Feng Zhengming's hand and took out his business card to introduce himself.

I saw the other person's business card and listened to him/her introduce himself/herself in somewhat broken Mandarin.

Feng Zhengming roughly guessed the purpose of this boss named Luo Jinliang's visit.

"Boss Luo, I made a special trip here this time. I was negligent. I should have greeted you in person."

Luo Jinliang said quickly: "You're welcome, Mr. Champion. You're a very busy person. As the head of the judging panel for this competition, you must have a lot of things to do. I'm honored to meet you tonight."

Feng Zhengming smiled: "Boss Luo is too polite. Although I am the national champion in cooking, I am actually still a cook."

Luo Jinliang said seriously: "No, no, you are not an ordinary chef. You are the representative of Chinese chefs. As long as you say something, chefs across the country will definitely obey it."

"Hahaha, Boss Luo, you are exaggerating the more you talk. How could I have that kind of ability?" Feng Zhengming quickly waved his hand to deny it.

Then, without waiting for Boss Luo to speak again, Feng Zhengming pointed out his other purpose.

"Boss Luo, I know that you probably hope to bring your company's condiments into our Qilu market. We welcome this, of course. But you should know that we have very high requirements for condiments."

Luo Jinliang smiled and nodded: "Don't worry, Mr. Zhuangyuan, our company's products are absolutely quality guaranteed. It is an old brand in our Hong Kong city."

"I know. When you gave me your business card, I knew your company is an old brand in Hong Kong." Feng Zhengming was still very polite.

“But what I mean is not the brand, but the quality of the product itself.”

Feng Zhengming then put away his smile and started chatting with Luo Jinliang more seriously.

"Boss Luo, the condiment market is definitely not your main market for daily household use. After all, every household does not use a lot of condiments on a daily basis. It is still mostly used in various restaurants and hotels.

I can probably guess that since you came here in person and wanted to see me, you probably wanted me to speak for you."

When Luo Jinliang heard this, he realized that Feng Zhengming already knew why he was there.

Luo Jinliang simply stopped hiding it and spoke frankly from then on.

"Mr. Feng, you are right. I came here specially to ask you to endorse our company's condiments. Our company is planning to shoot a TV commercial to be broadcast on major TV stations in the mainland.

We hope you can become our spokesperson so that our brand can better penetrate the mainland market."

How could Feng Zhengming not guess the other party's intention?
The bosses all came to Quancheng in person from Gangcheng.

Feng Zhengming also knew that the other party’s brand would soon be advertising on television stations across the country.

It can be said that Feng Zhengming cooperated with the other party and endorsed the other party's products.

It won’t be long before Feng Zhengming’s national fame will be further enhanced as the other party’s advertising spreads.

It is precisely because of this that Feng Zhengming is more concerned about the quality of the other party's products.

He didn't want the other party's products to enter other places from Hong Kong City and then have some quality problems, which would damage his reputation.

After all, Feng Zhengming is going to implement his own set of standards throughout the province.

If his reputation is damaged, it will affect his plans.

Feng Zhengming also directly expressed his concerns to the other party.

Luo Jinliang obviously didn't expect that Feng Zhengming would be so cautious.

In this era, many mainland celebrities tend to be casual about the advertising they endorse.

Many people don’t even know what the specific product is?
As long as the other party gives them advertising fees that satisfy them.

Then they can appear on camera and advertise for each other according to the script.

Luo Jinliang originally thought that Feng Zhengming was now the national champion and was full of energy. He heard that he was the one who made the entire plan for the Qilu Provincial Youth Chef Competition.

Moreover, all the judges and judging criteria on site were set by Feng Zhengming.

In this competition, even the provincial leaders listened to his opinions.

Luo Jinliang naturally thought that Feng Zhengming, who was so young and full of vigor, would agree to advertise his brand of condiments without hesitation as long as he was paid enough.

"Hahaha, Zhuangyuan, you can rest assured. Our company's brand reputation is there. We can definitely guarantee the quality. Moreover, this time we ask Zhuangyuan to help with advertising. Our company is willing to pay for..."

Before the other party could make an offer, Feng Zhengming reached out and held the other party's hand.

"Boss Luo, this is not about money. If you can guarantee the quality, every household in every place will buy your condiments, which are almost exactly the same as those you sell in Hong Kong.

Even if you give me a small advertising fee, I will be willing to help you do this advertising. "

After hearing what Feng Zhengming said, Luo Jinliang finally realized that it might not be so easy to get Feng Zhengming, the national number one scholar, to do advertising.

After a brief thought, Luo Jinliang was quite decisive.

"The champion is worthy of being the champion. After the competition, we can send the samples to you for you to try. After the New Year, if you have time, you can come to our factory to take a look."

Feng Zhengming smiled and lowered his voice: "Boss Luo, I think that with the current transportation conditions, it is too far to ship goods from the port city every time. I think that if you are willing, you can open a branch factory in our Qilu.

In this way, we can sell your products better in various parts of the north, and I can also endorse your products with more confidence.

And if you, Boss Luo, come to open a branch factory, I can help you connect with the province, and I can also invest in it."

Luo Jinliang was shocked. He had never expected that Feng Zhengming's plan was even bigger than he imagined.

Feng Zhengming didn't want any advertising fees; he wanted to directly open a branch factory and invest in it.

This shocked Luo Jinliang deeply.

He suddenly realized that he had underestimated Feng Zhengming.

Or rather, he just thought Feng Zhengming was a chef, which was a mistake.

Feng Zhengming is not only a chef, not only a national champion, he is also the owner of many branches.

As a boss himself, Luo Jinliang could understand Feng Zhengming's meaning very well.

Instead of advertising for other people’s brands, it is better to invest in other people’s brands and open a branch factory together with them.

Then he can be an advertising spokesperson, which means he can endorse his own products. On the one hand, Feng Zhengming can get dividends.

The most important thing is that by opening a branch factory under Feng Zhengming's supervision, he can better control the quality.

While Luo Jinliang was still in shock, the other people called the two of them over to sit down and chat.

Feng Zhengming also pulled Luo Jinliang over and sat down.

Before sitting down, Feng Zhengming reminded him in a low voice: "Boss Luo, please consider my suggestion carefully. I really look forward to working with you, Boss Luo."

Then, Feng Zhengming said nothing more and sat down with Luo Jinliang.

After Luo Jinliang sat down, he naturally began to think in his mind.

If he invested in setting up a branch factory in Qilu and let Feng Zhengming become a shareholder, and had Feng Zhengming, the national top scholar, help promote the business in the north, would this deal be worth it?

After sitting down, Feng Zhengming didn't pay attention to Luo Jinliang's thoughts.

He began to discuss with everyone some of the judging criteria for tomorrow's competition.

“Dear non-professional judges, you don’t have to judge like us professional judges. We will judge each dish in a more detailed manner based on the cooking techniques, knife skills, cooking skills, spoon skills, plating rules, and seasoning details.

You non-professional judges don’t need to consider these, you just need to score based on your subjective feelings.”

Seeing that everyone was still confused, Feng Zhengming simply explained it more directly.

"You smell the food and think it's delicious. How many points would you give it?

Do you think this dish is beautiful and in line with your aesthetics? How many points would you like to give?

Then you taste it. Do you like the taste? If you like it, how many points would you give it? "

After Feng Zhengming's explanation, the non-professional judges present naturally understood.

Although this scoring method is subjective, it is also very intuitive for non-professional judges.

If they think it is good, it is good; if they think it is bad, it is bad.

Feng Zhengming felt that there was no need to think too much about this aspect.

After all, non-professional judges are representatives of ordinary diners.

If they cannot give scores based on the most intuitive feelings, ordinary diners may not be able to get a good experience when eating dishes prepared by young chefs in the future.

Next, some non-professional judges asked Feng Zhengming questions.

I have to say that the questions asked by these non-professional judges are quite interesting.

For example, a reporter representative asked: "Feng Zhuangyuan, I wonder if we judge based on our own feelings when judging, will it be unfair to some chefs? What if some of them make cold dishes and some make hot dishes, won't the taste be different?"

After hearing this question, other non-professional judges also asked the same question.

"Yes, some people may like a dish, while others may not. Wouldn't the ratings be different?"

Feng Zhengming smiled and nodded: "It should be different, right? Everyone's taste is different, so everyone will definitely have different feelings when eating a dish.

It’s like if you ask me to cook a dish now, I certainly can’t say that everyone here will find it delicious.

If I really want you to find it delicious, I may need to season it individually based on your taste preferences.

So don’t feel any pressure, as long as you think it tastes good, you can give it full marks, and if you think it doesn’t taste good, there is no problem giving it zero marks.”

After hearing what Feng Zhengming said, the non-professional judges present suddenly felt relieved.

However, the professional judges present couldn't help but laugh and cry when they heard Feng Zhengming give such a standard.

Because this is not what Feng Zhengming said when he met with the professional judges.

It was clearly a meeting of professional judges, and Feng Zhengming particularly emphasized that the judging must be done seriously.

When scoring, one must be very meticulous and consider the technique of a dish, whether the traditional inheritance of a dish is standard, and even whether the innovation of a dish is reasonable.
These are not things that can be determined simply by saying “good or bad”.

In terms of scoring, these will test the judges' own abilities.

If the judges themselves cannot master the techniques, there is no point in scoring based on the techniques.

Therefore, this time, Feng Zhengming chose all the old masters, as well as Master Hou and chefs from Beijing who came to observe as judges.

Beijing chef Feng Zhengming has tested them and found that they are all true masters with skilled techniques.

It was also during the meeting and discussion with Feng Zhengming.

The chefs in Beijing suddenly understood.

Feng Zhengming had agreed to fight with them before.

In fact, it was not them who were testing Feng Zhengming, but others who were testing their level.

Feng Zhengming had a thorough understanding of the level of the chefs in Beijing, which is why he allowed them to be judges for the Qilu Youth Chef Competition.

They were assigned to professional groups and given extremely high tasks.

Compare this with Feng Zhengming’s current requirements for non-professional judges.

The chefs in Beijing looked at each other quietly.

Everyone had a bitter smile on their face.

After all the fuss, they were all tricked by Feng Zhengming.

The old chefs also saw that Feng Zhengming was plotting against the chefs in Beijing.

They all had smiles on their faces.

The old masters quite like Feng Zhengming's calculations.

After all, over the years, chefs in Beijing always put on better airs and seem to always be able to outdo chefs from other places.

But now it’s different, Feng Zhengming is the top scholar in the country.

He can easily suppress the chefs in Beijing.

If we want to suppress Feng Zhengming now, we may have to rely on the few masters who are still alive in the capital.

This is obviously impossible.

So now, the chefs in Beijing can only obey Feng Zhengming's arrangements.

The meeting ended soon.

Feng Zhengming specially invited the judges to have dinner at Huiquanlou in the evening.

"Dear judges, I am inviting you to dinner tonight, but I am not trying to bribe you. Tonight is mainly to let you know the standards. So, the dishes at Huiquan House tonight, from selecting ingredients to cooking, will be done by me and my senior brothers.

I think I have a pretty thorough understanding of Shandong cuisine and should be able to cook it to a sufficient standard.

I am sorry for showing off my skills in front of an expert. Dear uncles, senior masters, all the chefs in Beijing, and all the bosses, please give me your guidance. "

After hearing what Feng Zhengming said, everyone present couldn't help but laugh and said that he was too modest.

Afterwards, everyone went to Huiquanlou with Feng Zhengming.

Huiquanlou had also made preparations in advance, with three banquet tables specially set up upstairs for the judges. (End of this chapter)