From selling box lunches to becoming a famous Chinese chef

A group of media reporters chased the chef who voluntarily gave up out of the competition venue.

However, the chef who voluntarily gave up the opportunity seemed to be deliberately waiting for reporters to surround him after he walked out of the venue.

Shortly after he walked out of the venue, he found a place where others could see him as soon as they came out.

Pretending to look very lonely, he stood next to the trash can and lit a cigarette.

Seeing this scene, a reporter immediately cooperated and took a photo.

Then a group of reporters quickly surrounded them.

"Hello, may I ask why you want to give up? Is it because of too much pressure that you have to give up?"

"Do you have any objection to the last champion's change to the competition rules?"

"Please tell me, what are your feelings about this competition?"

The reporters asked a bunch of questions that could be said to be in coordination with the chef who gave up the game.

It can be said that most of the questions from these reporters are directly about whether the rules of this competition are reasonable?

He even pointed out that Feng Zhengming suggested changing the rules shortly before the competition. Even though he was the top scorer in the previous session, was it reasonable for him to do so?
The abstention chef, after obviously deliberately attracting reporters to interview him, achieved his goal.

He threw away the cigarette in his hand, lowered his head and suddenly started sobbing to himself.

Then he slowly hugged the box containing the kitchen knives in his hand.

He raised his head with a look of grievance and indignation.

When facing the reporters, he first reminisced about his kitchen knife.

“I’m sorry, you may not know that this knife was passed down to me by my master. My master hopes that I can use this knife to bring the specialties of our hometown to a bigger stage so that more people can see and understand our hometown dishes.

I admit that I have not received any professional cooking training, and my basic skills cannot compare with those kitchen helpers who have been cutting and preparing food all year round.

But I really love cooking, and I learned cooking from my master for many years.

I just want to bring the specialties of my hometown, a small place, to more people.”

At this point, the abstaining chef burst into tears in front of the reporters and the camera.

“I, I really didn’t expect that Feng Zhengming, as the top scorer of the previous session, would be so hostile to chefs like us who come from small places.

Just because we haven't learned cooking skills from famous chefs like him, does that mean we are not worthy of showing ourselves on a stage like a national competition?
I was really dissatisfied with his behavior of changing the rules at will, but I knew that I was humble and my words did not count.

So I implore all my journalist friends to expose the fact that Feng Zhengming is targeting and suppressing our local cuisine chefs. I hope you can speak up for us.”

It has to be said that the chef who abstained is already quite old, and his tearful accusation really made the reporters feel sympathetic towards him.

Some people even took out tissues to wipe the other person's tears.

Then some media at the scene said that they would definitely help him speak out and promote more local dishes across the country.

Feng Zhengming had no idea what was happening outside.

However, he saw a group of reporters chasing the chef who gave up the game.

He could almost immediately imagine that the media would make a big report on the chef who gave up.

If the other party had planned this in advance, they would have made good use of media reports.

Feng Zhengming was quite disdainful of this.

He was too lazy to argue too much.

The more you argue with some people, the more likely you are to fall into their trap.

They actually want you to argue with him.

As long as you go down and argue with them.

Then they will start a set of unreasonable tactics.

Anyway, they just want to pull you back and bring you into the public opinion field with them.

This way they will continue to gain more attention.

Using your fame to elevate their own status.

So Feng Zhengming was too lazy to pay attention to it.

After the audition competition was over, Feng Zhengming simply verified the results on site, then he and his wife and daughter left directly.

I never faced any interviews from media reporters again.

But nowadays, many times if you don’t respond, the other party may not let you go.

As the media reported on the chef who abstained, public opinion quickly fermented.

Through the hype of certain media, Feng Zhengming was quickly portrayed as a villain who relied on his fame to bully the younger generation.

Then, a large number of media reporters immediately went to the hotel where Feng Zhengming was staying to interview him.

But in the end, all these reporters came to nothing, because Feng Zhengming had checked out long ago and moved out of the hotel with his wife and daughter.

Afterwards, Feng Zhengming accepted some interviews from the provincial television station and the central radio station.

In the interview, he was quite direct in criticizing some people who wanted to use the national competition to gain fame. They clearly couldn't even do the basic job of cutting vegetables, but still wanted to pretend to be chefs.

Feng Zhengming directly stated in a TV interview that if national competitions are like this, it would be better not to hold it.

After being interviewed by the Central Radio and Television Station, Qilu Provincial Radio and Television Station, and Zhejiang Provincial Radio and Television Station which hosted the individual competition.

Feng Zhengming fell silent again and almost never showed up again.

Those media tried every means to interview him, but were always turned away. Feng Zhengming simply refused to meet with other so-called media reporters, let alone interview him.

But Feng Zhengming avoided other media more and more.

Those media who cannot see Feng Zhengming will naturally become more unscrupulous in launching various attacks on him.

At the same time, the chef who abstained from voting began to frequently appear in various media to denounce Feng Zhengming.

But no matter what the media and the chefs who abstained from voting do.

Feng Zhengming never came out to confront them, not even a word.

The China Media Group and provincial TV stations all refused to interview the chefs who abstained from voting.

The team behind the Absent Chef slowly began to get anxious.

As the year 2000 approached, most people still got their information more from television and newspapers.

Both the central station and local satellite TV stations are still the most watched by most ordinary people.

Now the abstaining chef and his team are unable to get interviews from CCTV and local satellite TV stations.

However, the media they contacted were unable to interview Feng Zhengming.

After comparing the two sides, naturally more people still believe in Feng Zhengming.

Especially the media, who went to Feng Zhengming's branches in Shanghai and Shandong to interview the customers in those stores.

The original intention was to dig out some negative information about Feng Zhengming from the customers.

As a result, customers gave almost unanimous positive reviews.

And after some customers learned about these private media, they spoke up for the chef who abstained.

He even questioned these media outlets directly, face to face.

"If a chef can't cut vegetables, can he still be considered a chef? Do you know how to cook? I think you guys are just a bunch of gluttons who can't even eat and only know how to follow those garbage reports."

The people sent by private media to interview originally wanted to argue a few words.

As a result, he was almost beaten by an old man who was eating in Feng Zhengming's restaurant.

Of course, the chef who gave up and his team behind him have not given up yet.

They are still working hard on various things.

The chef who abstained from voting even tried to win over a group of chefs who, like him, had wanted to rely on connections to enter the competition, and they wanted to form a protest alliance with him to protest against Feng Zhengming continuing to be a judge.

What they didn't expect was that when they found the organizer of the Hangzhou event.

They were told that Feng Zhengming had resigned from the judging panel and were even scolded by the organizers.

Said they were a bunch of bastards who were stirring up trouble.

They botched the race at Hangtown.

In fact, this incident also made the leaders of Hangzhou and the province very angry.

They organized this competition and specially invited Feng Zhengming to Hangzhou to serve as a judge.

The purpose is to use Feng Zhengming's fame to attract more people to Hangzhou, and combined with the beautiful West Lake scenery in Hangzhou, let Feng Zhengming open a branch in Hangzhou, so as to better develop and drive Hangzhou tourism.

The result was caused by the chef who abstained and the trouble caused by those bad media.

Feng Zhengming voluntarily resigned from the position of judge.

Although the province, the city of Hangzhou, and the event organizers tried their best to retain him.

People from the Catering Association and the Chefs Association also took the initiative to step forward to retain them.

But Feng Zhengming refused the offer and left Hangzhou with his wife and daughter.

It can be said that the chef abdicated and the team behind him planned all this.

And the bad media they found.

He concentrated almost all his efforts on firing, hoping to make a name for himself by firing at Feng Zhengming.

But the result seemed as if Feng Zhengming had predicted every step of theirs in advance.

Then Feng Zhengming simply refused to meet them and did not give them the chance to deliver the punch.

In the end, all the punches thrown by this gang with all their might hit the air.

The group protested to no avail, so they came back and started discussing.

"Then what do we do next?"

"How about we go to Feng Zhengming's branches and make trouble?"

"Are you crazy? Going to his branch to cause trouble? Are you afraid that no one will catch you?"

"Let me make it clear first. I'm not going to make trouble with you. Although I'm not happy with Feng Zhengming's change of the rules, I'm also a serious chef and I still have some dignity to maintain."

"Yes, I am also a chef, and I want to continue to be a chef. I am not going to make trouble with you."

"I'm leaving. I'm the head chef of a big restaurant. How can I do such a rubbish with you? You have no shame. I still want more."

Almost in an instant, all the people that the abstaining chef had recruited left.

These people were originally pulled here by the Abandoned Chef because they thought he had indeed made some name for himself, and they wanted to join him in making some noise to see if they could increase their own fame.

As a result, the chef who gave up the game has been making a fuss for so long, but the competition is still going on as usual.

Feng Zhengming did not show up to give him any explanation.

Even those bad media he approached couldn't interview Feng Zhengming at all.

This situation was noticed by other chefs who originally wanted to follow the chef who gave up and gain some fame.

After working with him for a long time, it seems like it was all in vain.

So naturally, I had no interest in continuing to make trouble with him.

The most leisurely person in this storm can be said to be Feng Zhengming.

As soon as public opinion began to ferment, several unscrupulous media outlets began to report on him.

He immediately resigned from his position as judge to the event organizer in Hangzhou.

Then he ignored anyone's attempts to keep him, and flew away from Hangzhou with his wife Luo Qing and their daughter.

They did not go back to Shanghai, but went directly back to Quancheng.

Later, bad media hyped up public opinion and wanted to find Feng Zhengming.

They went to the hotel to look for it, and then to Shanghai to look for it.

But in fact, Feng Zhengming and his wife have always been at their home in Quancheng.

Every day Feng Zhengming leisurely stays at home with his wife and plays with their daughter.

From time to time, I visit several stores in Quancheng.

He even went to various branches of dry rice shops every day to teach the newly hired young chefs and apprentices in the kitchen.

Or you can simply go to Huiquanlou and cook a few dishes yourself for the restaurant’s regular customers.

In Quancheng, Feng Zhengming's reputation is incomparable to anywhere else.

The Quancheng, and even the entire Qilu area, worship Feng Zhengming to the utmost.

After all, Feng Zhengming became the national champion by cooking Shandong cuisine.

So he is the pride of everyone in Qilu.

How could Qi Lu allow others to slander Feng Zhengming?
Therefore, the bad media realized that Feng Zhengming might return to Quancheng. After they rushed to Quancheng, they tried to find out Feng Zhengming's address or go to Feng Zhengming's store to block him.

Almost all of them were stopped by local people from Quancheng.

In the end, bad media were like rats crossing the street in Quancheng.

The people of Quancheng distributed their information to each other.

As a result, as soon as they go out, they will be recognized by people on the streets of Quancheng.

Then wherever he went, he was unanimously boycotted by the people of Quancheng.

If it weren’t for the slogan “Hospitality Qi and Lu”.

Maybe they are not even allowed to stay in a hotel in Quancheng.

Under this high intensity situation, it was resisted by the entire city.

Some media outlets finally couldn't hold on any longer and surrendered to the people on the street, saying they wanted to understand Feng Zhengming and why everyone was defending him like this?
Then the old people, children and people from all walks of life on the streets of Quancheng all praised Feng Zhengming.

There are also old customers of Feng Zhengming's dry rice shop who told the story of Feng Zhengming's difficult and successful journey.

Once the first bad media outlet defected, the direction of public opinion immediately changed.

At the same time, some media in Hong Kong were also reporting on the incident.

First, the whole incident was reviewed, and then the Hong Kong media interviewed some Hong Kong chefs who had a good relationship with Feng Zhengming.

We also specifically found Mr. Cai and Mr. Wei Ling who worked with Feng Zhengming to make a restaurant recommendation guide in Shanghai.

I gave them a comprehensive understanding of Feng Zhengming's situation.

Whether it is the famous chefs in Hong Kong, or Mr. Cai and Mr. Wei Ling, they all praise Feng Zhengming.

In particular, Mr. Cai and Mr. Wei Ling revealed the story behind the restaurant recommendation guide they created in Shanghai.

Both Mr. Cai and Mr. Wei Ling expressed their views very frankly.

"We wanted to recommend some high-end restaurants, but he felt that high-end restaurants should not be recommended."

“Yes, he told us that although our country has developed economically, this development was built by the hard work of many people who left their hometowns.

So he thinks that when we recommend restaurants in the guide, we should recommend them to the builders.”

"Yes, so the restaurants in the Shanghai City Recommended Guide are all small shops on the streets of Shanghai City."

"Those small shops don't have chefs in charge, and many of them are small shops where locals usually go to eat."

"There are also some stores opened by people from other places in Shanghai."

"In short, Feng Zhengming is worthy of the title of No. 1 Scholar. He is really supporting many small shops that make delicious food with heart."

When various positive reports came out and the New Year's bell rang in 2000.

The public opinion storm that Feng Zhengming encountered at the end of the century finally subsided completely. (End of this chapter)