From selling box lunches to becoming a famous Chinese chef

Feng Zhengming left the hotel and returned to his grandfather's house.

At my grandfather's house, my wife Luo Qing and her daughter were also there, and my second aunt Feng Suying and third aunt Lin Yun were also at home with Feng Shengnan.

When I entered the room, I saw Feng Shengnan holding her sister and playing on the sofa.

Feng Nuanyu now also knows her aunt Feng Shengnan and likes playing with her very much.

But when she saw her father coming in, Feng Nuanyou immediately raised her little hand to her father: "Hehehe, Dad, Dad."

Feng Shengnan saw her little niece raising her hand to her returning brother, and she reached out and grabbed her hand.

This action made Feng Nuanyu very dissatisfied. The little girl pouted and looked angry at her aunt.

When Feng Shengnan saw it, she immediately smiled and turned around and called out "mom", "aunt" and "sister-in-law".

"Look, Youyou will be angry."

Luo Qing smiled: "If you hold her little hand and don't let her go to her dad to hug her, she will get angry."

Feng Shengnan: "It turns out that she likes dad too."

Luo Qing: "Yes, she likes your brother very much. Every time your brother comes back, she always acts like a spoiled child to him."

Lin Yun smiled and said, "Daughters seem to like their fathers more. Our Shengnan also likes her father. She is always very happy every time her father comes home."

Feng Shengnan pouted when her mother said that: "No way, I'm not like Youyou."

Lin Yun: "Yes, you were even more capable than her when you were a kid. You just loved to pester dad."

Feng Shengnan's true identity was exposed by her mother, which made her blush with embarrassment.

Feng Nuanyu took the opportunity to pull her hand away from her aunt, took small steps on the sofa, and walked towards her father.

Feng Zhengming walked forward and picked up his daughter.

Feng Nuanyou was very happy when her father picked her up, and her little head immediately buried in her father's arms.

When Feng Shengnan saw her niece's look, she reached out and gently patted her niece's butt.

"You are such a spoiled brat. You won't play with your aunt when dad comes back."

Feng Nuanyou also twisted her little butt, obviously not wanting her aunt to spank her butt.

Feng Shengnan smiled and patted him twice more: "Hey, I'll just pat your little butt."

Feng Nuanyu was unhappy and turned to her aunt with a fierce look.

The appearance of the two girls, one big and one small, made everyone laugh.

Feng Suying: "I never expected that Youyou from Zhengming's family is so fierce."

Luo Qing: "Yes, this girl is also very fierce. If other children provoke her, she will be fierce to them."

Feng Zhengming hugged his daughter's flailing little hands and said, "Auntie is playing with Youyou, Youyou can't be so mean to her."

Instead, Feng Shengnan raised her hands, curled her fingers into claws, and looked fiercely at her little niece.

When Feng Nuanyou saw her aunt's appearance, she was not afraid at all. Instead, she thought that her aunt was playing with her, so she imitated her aunt and made faces at her.

When Lin Yun saw the looks of the aunt and niece, she couldn't help but look at her second sister with a smile.

"I think these two little girls look very much like you, my second sister."

Feng Suying was surprised: "Why does it look like me?"

Lin Yun covered her mouth and laughed as she whispered, "You are just like you when you were young, never giving up."

Before Feng Suying could respond, her old father came out from the inner room.

"Your niece and your grandniece are just as fierce as you were when you were a child."

After hearing what her old father said, Feng Suying looked at the two girls and immediately understood what was going on.

"No, Dad, how could you say that about your own daughter? You're talking about your own granddaughter, and you're even talking about your great-granddaughter."

Feng Zonghe walked over with a smile: "I'm not wrong. Besides, there's nothing wrong with girls being a little fierce. At least they won't suffer any loss. I still hope Shengnan and Youyou are like you."

Lin Yun also agreed: "Yes, if the second sister and the others have personalities like you, they won't suffer any loss."

Feng Suying didn’t know what to say.
Lin Yun then went on to talk about her daughter.

"I heard from Shengnan's teacher that Shengnan is very good in class and the boys don't dare to mess with her. I really think this is a good thing. Little girls won't be bullied this way."

Feng Zhengming: "Who dares to bully Sister Shengnan? Aunt, tell me, I'll take people to the school to deal with them."

Feng Shengnan laughed: "Hahaha, my brother is the best. I knew my brother would protect me."

Third Aunt didn't know whether to laugh or cry: "Zhengming, don't go along with her. Who in school dares to mess with her? She has good grades and is so fierce. Those boys don't dare to mess with her at all."

Feng Shengnan: "That's because they're afraid that my brother will bring people to look for them."

Feng Suying thought for a moment and said, "That's true. Your brother has many stores in Quancheng now. If he calls the people in the kitchen, he can surround your school in a minute."

Everyone couldn't help laughing when they heard it.

Feng Nuanyu was in her father's arms. Seeing everyone laughing, the little girl naturally laughed along.

Grandpa Situ also came out from the other room.

"Zhengming, have you arranged to recruit a disciple?"

Feng Zhengming replied: "It has been arranged. We have to wait for some people from other places to come to watch the ceremony. The ceremony will be held in Huiquan Tower. I will bring Xia Hui and others to prepare the banquet at that time."

Second Aunt was a little surprised: "There are people from other places coming to watch the ceremony?"

Feng Zhengming: "Yes, they are all senior chefs, and there are also some friends from other places. They called us after hearing the news and said they would come to watch the ceremony."

Third Aunt: "It seems that you are really capable, Zhengming. You have alarmed so many people in the kitchen industry just by accepting a disciple."

Grandpa: "He is the national champion in cooking. He has already participated in state banquets at such a young age. He is considered the most famous chef in the country. So many chefs will definitely come to congratulate him for accepting an apprentice."

Grandpa Situ: "In fact, those people came here to see how strong Zhengming's disciples are."

Feng Zhengming: "Grandpa Situ is right. They came here to see who I accepted as my apprentice."

Grandpa: "The ones who have the most pressure are your apprentices. After all, you are such a famous master. If they make even the slightest flaw, they will definitely be ridiculed by their peers."

Second Aunt asked: "How many disciples are you going to accept this time?"

Feng Zhengming: "Xia Hui is the only official disciple. There are five others who I am planning to take in as apprentices first. I will wait and see how they perform before officially accepting them as my disciples."

Second Aunt: "Xia Hui? That girl is really good. She has been with you for so many years."

Suddenly, the second aunt looked at Luo Qing and said, "Xiao Luo, don't be jealous. They should be a master and apprentice relationship."

These words stunned both Feng Zhengming and Luo Qing.

Grandpa spoke first: "What nonsense are you talking about, aunt?"

Then Luo Qing smiled: "Aunt, I know that Xia Hui and Zheng Ming have nothing to do with each other. Xia Hui and Sun Hai are a couple. They both took Sun Hai home to meet their parents."

Feng Suying hurriedly said, "Oh, it's Auntie's fault. I misunderstood. Sun Hai? Is it the silly chef?"

Feng Zhengming: "Sun Hai is just relatively honest, not stupid, and has good skills. He is the apprentice of my third senior brother."

Auntie San was a little surprised: "It seems that Sun Hai and Xia Hui came to your store together? Why didn't Sun Hai wait to worship you as his master?"

Feng Zhengming: "He was first spotted by my third senior brother, so he became his disciple. In fact, it's the same thing. He learned more from my third senior brother than from me."

Grandpa Situ said: "Maybe Sun Hai still feels a little regretful." Feng Zhengming: "That's not the case. Sun Hai respects my third brother very much."

Grandpa: "There is nothing to regret. Being Zhengming's apprentice does make you famous, but it also puts you under more pressure. If the apprentice of the top scholar doesn't have good skills, many people will laugh at you behind your back."

Feng Zhengming: "Grandpa is right. I might also be laughed at by then."

Grandpa Situ: "So you can't just accept them as disciples and leave them alone. You still have to teach them more."

Feng Zhengming: "I know Grandpa Situ, so I only accepted Xia Hui as my apprentice this time. I will still test the other five apprentices and let them learn more from me."

The family still has more confidence in Xia Hui's character.

Luo Qing: "Xiao Hui is really good. She has been with you for so many years, and there is no problem with her skills and character."

Second Aunt: "That's right. It's not easy for a girl like Xia Hui to endure the hardship of being a chef."

Third Aunt: "When I saw Xia Hui's arms in the summer, I felt that they were really strong."

Grandpa: "If you want to flip the wok in the kitchen, you need strong arms."

Grandpa Situ: "That girl has also suffered a lot."

Feng Zhengming concluded: "Only those who endure hardships can become successful. Since she has chosen to be a chef, she must endure some hardships herself."

Feng Shengnan asked: "Brother, Sister Xia Hui will be your apprentice in the future, so will you take care of her more?"

Feng Zhengming smiled: "Yes, I need to take better care of her. She will follow me in the future and will have to do more work."

Feng Shengnan was surprised: "Ah? This is considered taking care of me?"

Feng Zhengming: "How can it not be considered taking care of her? We just said that only those who endure hardships can become successful. Only by working harder can her cooking skills improve."

Feng Shengnan muttered: "I feel like you're not recruiting disciples, you're just looking for labor for yourself."

Lin Yun stopped her daughter: "What are you talking about?"

Feng Shengnan also realized that she had said the wrong thing.

But Feng Zhengming smiled and said, "It doesn't matter. In fact, what Shengnan said is not wrong. In the past, when masters accepted apprentices, the apprentices basically started out as laborers around the masters."

Then Feng Zhengming talked about Xia Hui's experience of following him over the years.

"Xia Hui has been with me for all these years, and she can be considered a hard worker. She started with me in our family's old shop. At that time, there were only her and Sun Hai in the kitchen. Later, she followed me to run a food stall at the train station. It has indeed been very hard work."

As Feng Zhengming told his story, his family members also recalled for the first time his own successful experience.

Grandpa couldn't help but recall the scene when Feng Zhengming was selling lunch boxes in front of the train station.

At that time, probably no one would have thought that Feng Zhengming could become the champion of the national cooking competition.

No one would have thought that he would later gain such great fame as he has today.

When it comes to cooking skills, the old masters may still be able to compete with Feng Zhengming for the time being.

But when it comes to fame among domestic chefs, Feng Zhengming is definitely the most famous.

In particular, Feng Zhengming has appeared on various TV programs and has good relationships with leading figures of local cuisines.

There were also state banquets he participated in, which received unanimous praise from Chinese and foreign guests.

All of this makes him absolutely the most famous person in the country.

With the blessing of fame, Feng Zhengming's status and identity are naturally completely different.

Coupled with his amazing cooking skills, especially those amazing solid basic skills.

Feng Zhengming has long been the undisputed number one scholar.

But behind all this glory, no one knows how much suffering Feng Zhengming endured.

As the old saying goes: If you want to be respected in front of others, you must suffer behind their backs.

This also means that Xia Hui and others who become Feng Zhengming's apprentices must also endure hardships and hone their skills before they are qualified to advertise themselves as Feng Zhengming's apprentices.

After listening to her brother's narration, Feng Shengnan couldn't help but admire him very much.

"Brother, you guys really work so hard."

Feng Zhengming smiled and said, "If it's not hard work, how can you master your skills? So why didn't Xia Hui's family want her to be a chef in the beginning? Because being a chef is too hard."

Feng Shengnan: "But Sister Xia Hui is very capable. She persisted on her own."

Third Aunt couldn't help but laugh: "You call me sister, isn't this confusing the generations?"

Feng Shengnan: "What should I call you then? I still prefer to call you sister."

Feng Zhengming: "You can call me sister, we can discuss our own affairs."

Feng Suying took the opportunity to teach her niece.

"Shengnan, you must remember that at any time, if you want to achieve something, you must be able to endure hardships. Whether it is studying or learning a craft, it is a process of enduring hardships. You must be able to endure hardships and learn skills to rely on yourself. Only then will you be qualified to stand in front of others and make yourself distinguished."

After listening to her aunt's words, Feng Shengnan thought about it and nodded seriously.

"I understand, aunt. I will study hard and I will not let my grades fall behind others."

Lin Yun saw her daughter showing her strength.

"Don't work too hard, you still need to rest when you need to."

Feng Suying: "Yes, a good rest will help you study better."

At this time, Feng Zhengming handed his daughter to his wife.

"Okay, make our Shengnan a delicious meal at noon so that he can have a good rest."

Feng Shengnan immediately yelled, "Brother, I want to eat shrimps. I want to eat shrimps and cabbage."

Feng Zhengming: "Okay, I'll make one for you."

Then Feng Shengnan asked again: "I also want to eat the sweet and sour spare ribs made by my brother."

Feng Zhengming also agreed: "Okay, let's make some sweet and sour spare ribs."

"And hairtail fish in ketchup."

"Sure, I'll do it for you too."

Lin Yun couldn't help but said, "You really know how to eat. You're not polite to your brother at all. You eat all these exquisite things. It's because your brother is a top chef and can cook for you, right?"

Feng Shengnan smiled and said, "Isn't this the last time I've come back? Usually no one cooks for me."

Lin Yun: "What you said is just like I don't usually give you food."

Feng Shengnan went over and hugged her mother's arm: "No, mom's cooking skills are also very good, just a little worse than my brother's."

The whole family was amused when they saw Feng Shengnan's appearance.

Feng Zhengming: "Okay, I'll make stew for everyone tonight. Just like Shengnan said, I finally come back once, so I must make something delicious for everyone."

Lin Yun said to her daughter: "When you take the college entrance exam in the future, you might as well go to Shanghai, so that you can eat at your brother's house every day."

Feng Shengnan immediately thought it was a good idea: "Okay, I will definitely work hard to get into a university in Shanghai."

The whole family is very supportive and hopes that Feng Shengnan can be admitted to a good university in the future. (End of this chapter)