The first thing I did was to find out

Chapter 575 Helping

The day after Qin Huai returned to Shanshi, Wang Jun arrived at the Yunzhong Canteen with his suitcase and began the long-delayed exchange.

The diners at Cloud Canteen were initially very excited about Wang Jun's arrival. As the saying goes, there's no harm without comparison. When Qin Huai was around, Zhao Cheng'an didn't seem so important. But when Qin Huai and Zhao Cheng'an both logged off, and Qin Congwen happened to be in high spirits and forcibly logged back on, it became clear that having a randomly dropped chef at Cloud Canteen was very important.

Qin Congwen's steamed buns were cheap, but they tasted terrible.

Perhaps because he hadn't worked as a breakfast chef for a while, or perhaps because his tastes had become more pungent with age, Qin Congwen's steamed buns were even saltier than the dumplings he had made at home the other day when he returned to the business. They were on par with the braised pork with preserved vegetables in the cafeteria, and he practically added a dollar's worth of salt to the 7-cent buns, making the new and old customers of the Yunzhong Cafeteria suffer immensely.

The food has inspired many overspending office workers who are struggling financially to gain new insights into life and resolve to work harder, posting on social media every day that they can no longer be content with the status quo.

If people have to buy 7-cent vegetable buns made by Chef Qin at the Cloud Cafeteria for breakfast just to save money, what's the point of living? Only through hard work and struggle can one create a better life.

Boss, I need to work overtime, the kind with overtime pay!
At first, the diners at Yunzhong Canteen thought that Wang Jun, Zhao Cheng'an, and Zheng Siyuan were all pastry chefs, and they were incredibly enthusiastic, wishing they could decorate the canteen with lanterns and decorations, make a lot of noise, and line the streets to welcome them.

After discovering that Wang Jun was actually a chef specializing in hot dishes, her initial enthusiasm waned considerably, but then quickly returned to normal.

At Huang's restaurant, Wang Jun was just an ordinary, even somewhat disappointing and untalented, apprentice of Huang Shengli. Unable to become a head chef, he could only do odd jobs in the kitchen, occasionally preparing one or two dishes independently. He was a good helper, a good apprentice, and a good senior brother, but definitely not a good chef.

But who is Wang Jun if he leaves Huangji?

Master Wang!
Chefs from high-end restaurants like Huang Ji, which are among the best in Suzhou and have a certain reputation nationwide, would be a complete knockout for community canteens like Yunzhong Canteen, even if they weren't kitchen chefs.

Yunzhong Canteen's pastry and dim sum dishes are top-notch, but its main dishes are just average community canteen fare. The dishes sold daily are mostly home-style cooking, with a few exceptions, such as the braised pork belly with preserved mustard greens, which is often criticized by Qinhuai for being too salty, but is still popular with some older customers or those who prefer stronger flavors.

For the guests at Yunzhong Canteen, everyday dishes are life, while Master Qin's pastries are something to look forward to.

If you have money, you can have a full breakfast of pastries from Qinhuai. If you don't have money, you can have ordinary steamed buns in the morning, ordinary fast food for lunch, and try some discounted pastries in the evening. As long as you can eat at the Cloud Canteen, you are happy. Just being near the Cloud Canteen makes your mouth water with the taste of Master Qin's signature pastries, even if your wallet is empty. That makes the day something to look forward to.

Wang Jun's arrival made this hope even greater.

Wang Jun is producing stir-fried dishes at prices far exceeding those of the community canteen's chefs.

Wang Jun doesn't care much about money.

Huang Shengli is a very generous master. His apprentices don't receive a salary during their apprenticeship period, but they always receive generous red envelopes during holidays. Once the apprenticeship period is over, Huang Shengli becomes very generous when it comes to paying wages. Not only is the base salary fully paid, but the chefs also receive top-tier commissions on the dishes served.

During the months Qin Huai spent at Huang Ji, he was shocked when he saw his final salary. Upon seeing it, Qin Huai even understood why Huang Ji, as a high-end restaurant in Suzhou, charged such high prices, and why Huang Anyao could almost bankrupt Huang Ji when Huang Shengli was on leave.

While the young owner's poor management is one aspect, he cannot be entirely blamed. As a high-end restaurant, Huang Ji's profit margin is not high. Huang Anyao could not get cheaper prices from suppliers, and he was not good at marketing to increase Huang Ji's turnover. He could neither reduce costs nor increase efficiency, while still having to maintain the previous expenses and pay the employees' share.

There's a reason why the young master couldn't keep track of the accounts.

With such a financial foundation, Wang Jun himself is not short of money.

He's still a not-so-happy bachelor, without the pressure of marriage or raising children, only the pressure of hair loss. Qin Huai pays Wang Jun the same base salary at Yunzhong Canteen as at Huang Ji, but his share as a chef is less than at Huang Ji.

Unfortunately, the prices at a community canteen can't be compared to those of high-end restaurants. Even the most skilled chef can only charge 16 yuan for one meat dish and two vegetable dishes at Yunzhong Canteen.

Wang Jun didn't care about the pay cut.

Every day at the Cloud Cafeteria, he practically swung his spatula until it was smoking, cooking all sorts of dishes. He dared to make all the dishes that he wouldn't have dared to try at Huang Ji before. If it weren't for the conditions, he would even like to make squirrel-shaped mandarin fish during lunchtime.

Wang Jun is so happy at the Cloud Cafeteria that he doesn't want to leave.

Before coming to Yunzhong Canteen, he didn't understand why Zheng Siyuan would travel to Shanshi every now and then, and stay for so long, even neglecting to run his own pastry shop. After coming to Yunzhong Canteen, Wang Jun completely empathized with Zheng Siyuan, wishing he could live in the kitchen every day.

The Cloud Cafeteria provides an incredible amount of emotional value.

This emotional value comes not only from diners, but also from colleagues.

Under the influence of the elderly residents of Yunzhong Community, almost every regular customer of Yunzhong Canteen is very good at praising the chefs, and can come up with all sorts of compliments on their own. The average person has more than 15 examples of flattery.

Moreover, the compliments from the customers at the Cloud Canteen aren't superficial. Led by Xu Tuqiang, the older folks believe that simply praising how delicious the food is quickly tiresome. No matter how flowery the language or how beautiful the writing, it's all in vain, because such praise is empty, insincere, and devoid of love and warmth.

So what kind of praise can make people feel love and warmth?

Of course, it was genuine concern and care.

A qualified diner at the Cloud Canteen can not only remember the names, ages, birthdays, flavors, hobbies, clothing styles and habits of their favorite chefs, but also regularly apply this information to their work.

Expensive gifts are not allowed. The elderly folks will strictly monitor every customer who tries to bribe the chefs to make their favorite desserts and dishes, and will take righteous action against such egregious behavior immediately. However, thoughtful little gifts are acceptable, such as fruit, honey, local specialties, and small trinkets that suit the recipient's taste.

The level of concern and care shown depends on the chef's skill level.

The diner's sense of taste is the measure.

Of all the chefs who have appeared at Cloud Cafeteria, Qin Huai is undoubtedly the highest-ranking. If any of Qin Huai's posts on WeChat Moments don't get over 80 likes within two minutes of being posted during normal hours, it's definitely because Qin Huai's internet connection was slow and the post didn't go through for over a minute.

Second only to Qin Huai is Zheng Siyuan. Theoretically, this position should belong to Zheng Da, but Zheng Da's appearance time was too short and very early, so many diners don't know who he is. As a semi-resident pastry chef at Yunzhong Canteen, Zheng Siyuan is very easy to fool, and he will work overtime as soon as he is persuaded. He almost replaced Qin Huai's position when Qin Huai was away on an exchange program.

Third is Su Qian. As Master Zhou's sure-fire future disciple, Su Qian is quite capable. He is also good at persuasion and easy to fool, which makes him popular with the older folks.

Fourth is Wang Jun. During this period, the Yunzhong Canteen was packed during evening hours. Many customers couldn't find a seat and simply ate standing up. The kitchen almost didn't have enough plates because of Wang Jun. It's no wonder that he came from behind and ranked fourth.

Fifth is Zhao Cheng'an. Logically, given his abilities, Zhao Cheng'an should rank above Su Qian. However, Zhao Cheng'an is notorious for slacking off, and having lived eight lifetimes, he's a seasoned veteran, completely impervious to persuasion. He'll offer warm greetings, but absolutely no overtime work, leaving many guests disappointed. At this point, some might ask, "Why are all the other staff members, except for Qin Huai, randomly assigned? What about the resident chefs of the Cloud Canteen? The permanent employees? Don't they have names?"

Yes, it's just ranked relatively low.

Pei Xing and Li Hua, as pastry chefs from Zhiweiju, are actually quite skilled; they would be highly sought after by any pastry shop.

Unfortunately, they came to the Cloud Cafeteria.

They come from Zhiweiju, which is a good background, but apart from Zheng Siyuan, who else who came to Yunzhong Canteen for exchange is not from Zhiweiju? The two of them were even eliminated. Many of those who came for exchange were direct disciples.

Pei Xing was actually gritting his teeth every day, but no one cared.

Li Hua watched Pei Xing silently grit his teeth every day, but no one paid any attention.

Sometimes Pei Xing felt like he wasn't there to be a chef at the Cloud Cafeteria, but rather to participate in a talent show on Dim Sum 101. After overcoming countless difficulties to squeeze into a debut position and accumulating a group of fans, there were always people who would suddenly appear and push him out. These people would come and go, and the fans would come and go as well.

As a veteran of this talent show and one of the first to sign a contract, Pei Xing naturally wanted to get exposure, debut, and have more fans, but his abilities didn't allow it.

All I can do every day is silently grit my teeth.

Just when Pei Xing thought he could finally get ahead after outlasting Zhao Cheng'an, a contestant from the neighboring Red Case talent show suddenly appeared.

What could Pei Xing say? He could only continue to grit his teeth in silence.

As for Chen An...

Chen An stated that he is the only breakfast chef at Yunzhong Canteen with a formal contract. He only makes cheap breakfasts every day, goes to work early, and leaves early. He will not participate in this dispute.
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Qin Huai, who has consistently ranked first and is firmly in control, watched Wang Jun working with great enthusiasm, constantly stirring the dishes at the stove, his spatula practically sparking. He felt that if Wang Jun continued to work this hard, it wouldn't be a problem for him to defeat Su Qian and squeeze into the top three in time.

After all, Su Qian won't be falling anytime soon, while Wang Jun will most likely be falling for a long time.

Yes, Qin Huai also paid attention to this ranking.

Qin Huai had been chatting with Zhao Cheng'an these past few days and discovered that Zhao Cheng'an had resorted to the tactic of shifting blame to others in order to slack off. He was constantly badmouthing Su Qian to Chef Zhou, saying that Su Qian still had great potential and that this was a crucial time; any slackening might jeopardize his future culinary career. This caused Chef Zhou to start focusing his attention on Su Qian, and he was constantly berating his future apprentice.

Zhao Cheng'an: Master, if you scold Su Qian, you can't scold me anymore.

"Brother Jun." During Wang Jun's break, Qin Huai leaned over and asked, "How have you been adjusting to the cafeteria at Yunzhong these past few days?"

Wang Jun has been in a good mood these past few days, and he's become more cheerful. He always has a smile on his face and says happily, "It's great! Xiao Jiu is so envious when she heard that I can cook so many dishes for you every day. She keeps clamoring at Huang Ji's to come to Yunzhong Canteen to exchange ideas."

"It's really tough on you, Jun-ge. You not only have to cook every day, but you also have to make meals for us staff. Actually, Jun-ge, you don't need to make meals for us. We usually just eat whatever's available," Qin Huai said.

Wang Jun's staff meals were specially prepared for Qin Huai, featuring a lavish spread of Huaiyang cuisine. The meals were basically Yangzhou fried rice as the base, with various other dishes he knew how to make rotating dishes.

"Of course, An Yao specifically told me before I came to cook you some good food and put in a good word for him. I'll ask you when you can get Accountant Wang to help with the accounting at Huang's. Since we saw Accountant Wang's accounting, no one is used to the current accounts." Wang Jun said his prepared words in an honest and simple manner.

Qin Huai: ...

Have Wang Jun been watching Shi Dadan eat in the kitchen every day these past few days, and by absorbing his honest and simple manner, has he started to adopt Shi Dadan's approachable and simple ways?

Qin Huai felt that Wang Jun's tone of voice just now was somewhat similar to Shi Dadan's.

"We'll see," Qin Huai could only laugh it off.

As long as Grandpa Wang wakes up, everything will be fine. If all else fails, Qin Huai can send Huang Anyao from Suzhou to beg Wang Gensheng by clinging to his leg.

Qin Huai believed that the young master could do it.

"I'm just worried that you'll adapt well, Jun-ge. I'm just afraid you won't be used to coming to Shanshi alone," Qin Huai said.

“We’re both chefs, what could be so hard to get used to?” Wang Jun said with a smile. “Besides, I’m here on a mission.”

"With a mission?"

“This is the task my master gave me,” Wang Jun said. “My master gave me these instructions from the moment it was decided that I would come to Yunzhong Restaurant for an exchange. With my skill level, I’m nothing special in Huang’s restaurant, and I’m nothing special in the entire hot food industry. I’m just average, and my potential is basically fixed. I’ll never be able to become a head chef in a big restaurant in my lifetime, so my goal for myself a long time ago was to be the head chef’s assistant.

"Even if I'm just an assistant, I might not be the chef's favorite."

"But that's assisting a chef who cooks dishes for hot food; it's completely different if you're assisting a chef who cooks dishes for cold food."

"Master sent me here specifically to assist you, Qin Huai," Wang Jun said with a smile. "I know you need help with many of your desserts, but you're not very good at controlling the heat, knife skills, or even making the broth."

"There are many dim sum dishes that can only be made at Huang Ji and Zhiweiju, but not at Yunzhong Canteen."

"Running around is too much trouble, so I came here."

"Actually, I should have started working as your assistant on my first day here, but I've never been a head chef before, and I couldn't resist coming here to cook for you these past few days and I've gotten addicted to it."

"If there's anything you need me to do in the future, just let me know. I can practice even if I don't know how."

(End of this chapter)