The first thing I did was to find out

Chapter 407 Arrival at Zhiweiju

Starting with the gossip from Master Liu and Master Hua, Tan Weian started talking non-stop, recounting all the gossip he had to say.

Just like when he takes out a prescription from his treasure bag, he has the ingredients, but he doesn't usually have the opportunity to take them out. Once someone starts doing this, he will frantically search through his treasure bag without anyone else having to tell him.

All sorts of gossip are available.

The reason why Master A has always disliked Master B is because once at a dinner party, Master B, after drinking, criticized Master A's pastries. Afterwards, Master B blacked out from drinking too much and didn't remember anything about it, but Master A has always held a grudge. He felt that arguing with Master B about such a thing would make him seem petty, so he silently harbored resentment and has been unhappy with him ever since.

Afterwards, everyone commented that Master A was indeed petty. Of course, Master A was unaware of this incident because everyone was afraid that Master A would hold a grudge against them because of these comments.

There's also the reason why Master C dislikes Master B. It's because the two of them both had their eyes on the same apprentice and wanted to take him on as their apprentice. Master C felt that he was more capable and had a sure thing, but the apprentice ended up becoming Master B's apprentice.

Master C was very unhappy about this, feeling that Master B must have secretly used underhanded tricks to steal the apprentice he had his eye on. He went on a crazy attack on Master B, almost causing a major conflict. In the end, it was only through the mediation of Boss Su that the two sides managed to make peace.

As for why the apprentice eventually became Master B's apprentice at Zhiweiju, no one knows except Tan Weian. It's because during a meal with Tan Weian, the apprentice inadvertently revealed that he knew Master C's cooking was better and more suitable for him, but he personally preferred Master B's orchid cake. It was precisely because of his love for orchid cake that he resolutely decided to become Master B's apprentice.

There are also masters like Master D who are obsessive about cleanliness, so their biggest requirement for apprentices is that they must be clean. Master E is a looks-obsessed person, and he likes good-looking people for both male and female apprentices. However, Master E's wife is of average appearance, which makes everyone wonder if he is really just a looks-obsessed person.

As for trivial gossip such as A's disciple being scammed out of 20 yuan in an online romance, B's disciple discovering after two years of online dating that the other person is the same gender, and C's disciple cheating on his partner and being brought to his workplace by the woman, almost getting fired and expelled from the sect, there are countless examples.

Many people might find this strange: why say ABCD instead of just the surname? It's one thing if you can't come up with a given name, but you can't even come up with a surname?

The main point is that this is the version Qin Huai heard, and Tan Weian used ABCD to refer to them when he was telling the story.

In Tan Weian's words, he did know a lot. He knew many things that Su Qian knew, and he also knew things that Su Qian didn't know, which might be related to his position at Zhiweiju.

Tan Weian is a rather unique figure at Zhiweiju. He is not only the head chef's personal disciple and grandson, but also a shareholder. However, his grandfather passed away a few years ago, and several of his fellow apprentices left Zhiweiju to seek their fortunes elsewhere, leaving only him and Gu Li. This resulted in Tan Weian having a high status at Zhiweiju, but lacking real power and having no conflicts of interest with any faction.

He's a bit like the mascot junior uncle in cultivation novels; everyone's willing to give him some face. He seems to have a powerful backer, but in reality, he's not that influential, and he lacks real strength. No one wants to offend him, but no one is truly afraid of him either. Everyone thinks it's good to have someone like him in the sect, which is why this junior uncle has exceptionally good interpersonal relationships.

This is why Tan Weian's ability to gather gossip is far inferior to Dong Shi's, yet he knows a lot of genuine and explosive gossip.

Moreover, Tan Weian is very professional when it comes to gossiping. He can talk about the gossip that can be talked about, and he will only talk about the gossip that can be talked about but not really. He will keep quiet about the gossip that absolutely cannot be talked about.

Moreover, he always says that the gossip is genuine and absolutely genuine, without any fake, watered-down, or secondhand gossip.

Quality is guaranteed.

Tan Weian used ABCD to refer to the people at Zhiweiju because he felt that talking about melons was one thing, but it wouldn't affect Qin Huai's judgment of the people at Zhiweiju.

Qin Huai arrived at Zhiweiju as a newcomer with a completely new identity. Furthermore, Tan Weian knew very well that Qin Huai was a smart man who had his own set of judgments and logic regarding everyone. If Tan Weian had preconceived notions and told Qin Huai many things, Qin Huai might have developed inherent prejudices against many people.

Tan Weian explained that the melons were meant to help Qin Huai integrate into Zhiweiju more quickly and effectively, not to have the opposite effect. He used ABCD to represent these people, allowing Qin Huai to gradually figure out who they were through later interactions, which was more useful than him telling him directly.

The only problem was that Qin Huai found it a bit complicated. The ABCD sequence made Qin Huai dizzy, and he almost wanted to take out paper and pen to sort out the relationships between the characters and draw a tree diagram.

Qin Huai was still reminiscing about it even when he got off the bus.

Since Qin Huai came to Hangzhou with the Zhiweiju group, Boss Su didn't bother to arrange transportation and simply had Su Qian lead Qin Huai to his accommodation.

When taking a taxi, because the four of them had too many suitcases, they split into two groups: Tan Weian and Gu Li took one car, and Qin Huai and Su Qian took another. The destinations were all around the same.

Gu Li now lives with Tan Weian, and they live opposite Zhiweiju.

"Master Qin, I'll take you to your accommodation first and get you settled in. Please wait for me at home for a few minutes; I need to go back and put my luggage away. Tan Weian, Gu Li, and I definitely need to go back to work at Zhiweiju today. It's not even noon yet, so we can catch our afternoon shift if we go back."

"Since you're here for an exchange, you can choose to visit Zhiweiju or stroll around West Lake. I recommend that you come with me to Zhiweiju first, and I'll give you a brief introduction to the environment. Our kitchen at Zhiweiju is much larger than Huangji's, and since we are a pure white food restaurant, the layout of the kitchen is also different. Some areas have air conditioning, and some don't."

Qin Huai was shocked: "Some places even have air conditioning?"

Su Qian smiled and said, "Of course. Some pastries require very high temperatures during the production process, such as low or constant temperatures. Although our Zhiweiju kitchen is not like traditional restaurants where there are many stoves and the temperature is very high, both ovens and steamers will raise the temperature during use. In order to make the pastries better, some areas must be equipped with air conditioning."

"Including some large machines, such as dough kneaders and mixers, Zhiweiju has a lot of them. Although we are a traditional dim sum restaurant, we are not as traditional as you might imagine. Both my uncle and Chef Zhou believe that modern technology will bring innovation to dim sum making. Even master chefs who have worked and learned in the traditional mode for many years should change their mindset and try to accept some new things."

"Actually, it was my uncle who first came up with this idea. Master Zhou strongly disagreed with it. Master Zhou felt that Master Zheng was neglecting his proper job as a pastry chef and opening a factory to make low-end pastries, which was not doing his job properly, had no ambition, and was a waste of his talent."

"Although Master Zhou still dislikes Master Zheng to this day, sometimes I feel that Master Zhou actually cares about Master Zheng a lot, because Master Zhou buys every new product that Master Zheng's factory releases. Moreover, in recent years, as Master Zheng has innovated his pastry recipes and no longer focuses on those low-cost, simple pastries that are very suitable for mass production, he has started to try making some low-to-mid-range pastries or even mid-range pastries that even shoddy pastry shops cannot make. Master Zhou's opinion of him has changed a lot."

"Introducing those machines and studying how to use them to replace traditional craftsmanship without compromising quality and increasing output was also something that Master Zhou and Boss Su suggested on their own initiative."

This was the first time Su Qian had told Qin Huai about Master Zhou's situation in such detail, which even shocked Qin Huai.

To be honest, Qin Huai's previous impression of Master Zhou was that he was a highly skilled but relatively old-fashioned, traditional, and conservative pastry chef.

Whether it's Master Zhou's requirements for accepting apprentices, his fondness for eccentric people, or his targeting of Zheng Da, all of these highlight his personality traits.

A highly respected but rather strict, old-fashioned and rigid master craftsman who is cold on the outside but warm on the inside.

This aligns well with the public's image of a top-ranked pastry chef in a celebrity chef's list; it seems that this is how a leader of a relatively weak and declining industry should be.

Su Qian told Qin Huai that it wasn't like that at all; Master Zhou was not only not a conservative but also a reformer, and might even be a bit radical. Qin Huai felt that compared to Master Zhou, he was a conservative, perhaps a habit formed from his early years as a breakfast shop cook. The Qin family's breakfast shop didn't require any large machinery; it relied entirely on manpower, so Qin Huai himself was very bad at using machines.

Qin Huai panicked a little: "Su Qian... could you send me the list of machines from your Zhiweiju restaurant so I can... learn about them in advance?"

While I was at it, I searched online to find out what these things are, how to use them, and what they're used for.

Qin Huai knew that many machines required special training to use. For example, there were some machines in Xiao Ou's handmade lemon tea shop that Qin Huai simply didn't know how to use.

As for why Qin Huai was so certain that Ouyang wouldn't know how to use it, it's because when Ouyang first opened his shop, he himself didn't know how to use the machines he had.

Although Ouyang is the owner and top seller of Xiao Ou's handmade lemon tea shop, his main job has always been mixing milk tea; he doesn't even get to shake the milk tea.

Thinking of Ouyang and Xiao Ou's handmade lemon tea shop, Qin Huai couldn't help but smack his lips.

It's been a long time since I've seen my good brother, and it's also been a long time since I've had the milk tea and lemon tea that my good brother makes.

Qin Huai then casually asked, "Are there any shops selling handmade lemon tea near Zhiweiju?"

"Yes, there is a milk tea shop right outside your apartment complex, Master Qin." After saying that, Su Qian, as if he had been prepared, sent Qin Huai a list of the machines in the kitchen of Zhiweiju, which also included instructions and diagrams for using the machines.

Seeing Qin Huai looking at him with a questioning gaze, Su Qian thoughtfully explained, "Many chefs who come to Zhiweiju for exchanges have not learned about or used many machines beforehand, so this list was prepared in advance by Boss Su."

Qin Huai suddenly realized and buried his head in reading. Because the driver drove a little recklessly and liked to brake and turn suddenly, Qin Huai, who had never been carsick in many years, almost got carsick and vomited while looking at the list.

This directly led to Qin Huai's first action after getting off the bus being to go to the milk tea shop at the entrance of the community to buy a cup of his favorite hand-whipped lemon tea and take two big gulps, only to find that the hand-whipped lemon tea was not as good as the one made by Ouyang.

Ouyang is quite talented at making hand-whipped lemon tea; it would be even better if he didn't pursue inventions.

"Master Qin, the air outside is a bit better. Why don't you stand at the entrance of the community and rest for a while? I'll help you put your luggage inside first, and you can just wander around the area," Su Qian asked, noticing that Qin Huai wasn't feeling well.

Qin Huai nodded slightly. For someone who hadn't experienced motion sickness in many years, the sudden onset of it made him feel uncomfortable from head to toe.

Su Qian dragged Qin Huai's suitcase into the residential area, while Qin Huai, with a milk tea in his left hand and a phone in his right, wandered aimlessly around. Qin Huai originally wanted to find a nice outdoor place to sit, but as he wandered, he ended up at the entrance of Zhiweiju Restaurant.

The apartment arranged by Boss Su is really close to Zhiweiju, less than a 5-minute walk, or a 2-3 minute walk from the entrance of the community if you walk fast.

Zhiweiju is a two-story antique-style building, a very standard Suzhou-style building. It is very beautiful and exquisite. It would be a bit of an exaggeration to describe it as having carved beams and painted rafters, but you can indeed see traces of carving on the wooden windows and horizontal columns on the first and second floors.

Most importantly, this restaurant looks very antique and has a sense of history; you can tell at a glance that it's not a tourist-style model house. It has existed for many years and looked exactly like this when it was first built. However, with the changing times, this style of architecture has been replaced by reinforced concrete, and the surrounding environment has changed, but this restaurant is the only one that has remained.

The entrance to Zhiweiju was bustling with activity.

Directly below his signboard is the main entrance, which is wide open. From the outside, you can see many small tables for dining inside, as well as stalls selling snacks. To the right of the main entrance is a delivery window with three small windows, each with a staff member selling snacks.

There were some customers dining in the lobby. Qin Huai estimated that the occupancy rate was 7-8%, which is quite good considering the size of Zhiweiju and the density of these small tables.

As for the delivery window, there were about 20 customers queuing to buy snacks, and the purchase was quite fast. Qin Huai drank his handmade lemon tea and watched from outside for a while. He noticed that the window only sold simple snacks, such as various pastries and cakes, which were easy to pack and eat on the go.

Qin Huai was surprised to find that Zhiweiju even sold egg tarts, which were not expensive at four yuan each. They could be purchased for dine-in at the small window, but it depended on luck.

It has to be made by a skilled chef, and only freshly baked products can be sold.

Qin Huai ran into him.

He could smell the rich aroma of egg tarts even before he saw them. Although he was still feeling nauseous and vomiting due to motion sickness, the strong aroma of baked eggs, milk, sugar, and oil made him want to eat some.

Without hesitation, Qin Huai joined the queue and was lucky enough to buy one.

Qin Huai squatted under the shade of a tree near the entrance of Zhiweiju, munching on an egg tart. He had a little no appetite, but it smelled delicious and he wanted to eat more.

Qin Huai nibbled on the food in small bites.

As I continued munching, the shade of the trees in front of me seemed to grow even deeper.

Qin Huai looked up and realized it wasn't the shade of a tree, but a person standing in front of him.

A middle-aged man who looked to be in his forties or fifties, with a build that was hard to tell whether he was slightly overweight or muscular, wearing a striped shirt and gold-rimmed glasses, stood in front of Qin Huai, looking down at him.

Qin Huai was a little confused, thinking that he was squatting there eating egg tarts and affecting the city's appearance, so he quickly stood up.

"Hello, Master Qin, I've heard so much about you." The middle-aged man extended his hand. "I'm Zhou Guanghai."

Zhou Guanghai?
The name floated through Qin Huai's mind. He didn't have any recollection of it, but he felt like he should remember it. It took him two seconds to realize what it meant.

Master Zhou!
"Hello Master Zhou, I...I am Qin Huai." Qin Huai shook the egg tart crust in his hand shyly, wanting to shake hands but hesitant to extend his hand because his hands were a little oily.

"It's...it's a pleasure to meet you. I...I've long admired your name."

(End of this chapter)