1984: Starting from a bankrupt Sichuan restaurant

Chapter 208 He still has to thank us (6.2k combined)

Zhou Yan sat on the recliner by the door and read the report from beginning to end.

Shen Shaohua's writing skills are indeed quite good. He starts by introducing Qian Siyuan's visit to the Jiaozhou Textile Factory, revealing his identity as an overseas Chinese and chairman of a multinational corporation. Then, he uses a dish of shredded pork with garlic sauce to evoke the taste of his mother's cooking. He then describes how Zhou Yan patiently inquires and guides him, using subtle clues to identify the Linjiang eel, and invites his master Xiao Lei to make a dish of Linjiang eel... He tells the story step by step, and each point is spot on.

A journey to find one's roots turned into a journey to discover flavors.

Even more coincidentally, Qian Siyuan found his relatives; his maternal uncle was none other than Kong Huaifeng, a master of the Kong school, who was Zhou Yan's grandmaster.

This leads to the introduction of the Kong School of Craftsmanship into the article, which recounts how Master Kong Huaifeng was deeply moved when he witnessed the sudden death of Luo Han's father, which led to the extinction of the Luo family's traditional craftsmanship. As a result, he abandoned his family's tradition, started teaching classes, and carried forward the Kong School of Craftsmanship.

At Qian Siyuan's family reunion banquet, Zhou Yan recreated the signature dish of Luohan's father, Snowflake Chicken Soup, which amazed the audience and brought Luohan to tears. It was like an echo across time, bringing this story of inheritance to a perfect end and giving rise to endless imagination for the future.

The accompanying photo was a large group picture, with Confucius disciples and family members standing on opposite sides, which was quite interesting.

Finally, the address of Zhou Erwa's restaurant was specifically marked.

"Why do I feel like I'm the protagonist of this article?" Zhou Yan stroked his chin, unable to suppress a laugh.

In a sense, this can be considered a fairly perfect soft advertisement.

Fish-flavored shredded pork, braised dishes, and snowflake chicken soup—Zhou Yanke made several of these dishes in this article, and gave them very high praise.

pretty good.

Perhaps he can even achieve his goal of breaking into new circles with this article.

Zhou Yan looked up at his signboard, Zhou Erwa Restaurant, which had a very rustic feel and was a common naming style in Sichuan.

Zhou Yan was called Zhou Erwa because he actually had an older brother who died young, a year and a half older than him, who died at the age of five.

The name is perfectly fine to use in town, and its advantage lies in its familiarity.

However, when it comes to newspaper and magazine publications, it appears somewhat too plain and unadorned.

If I open a shop in the city in the future, I'll definitely have to come up with a new name.

Otherwise, people might introduce him later as: "Next up is Zhou Yan, the manager of the famous Zhou Erwa Restaurant!"
It was a bit awkward.

Choose a grand and catchy name for the store, and strive to build a century-old business, so that my journey in this industry will not have been in vain.

……

The main hall of Feiyan Restaurant.

Huang He sat behind the counter, intently reading today's Jiaozhou Daily, his brows slightly furrowed.

Huang Ying sat opposite him, smiling, and said, "Old man, isn't Zhou Yan amazing? He's been in magazines and newspapers. The last time our Feiyan Restaurant was in the newspapers was a few years ago when we reopened, right?"

"Brother Yan is really amazing, he's got real clout," Huang Bing exclaimed.

During lunch today, they heard Director Lin talk about Zhou Yan's report, and on their way back, they bought two copies of today's Jiaozhou Daily.

Not only was Zhou Yan featured in the Jiaozhou Daily, but the Kong School was also reported on in depth.

Kongpai's base in Jiaozhou was Leming Hotel, which and Feiyan Restaurant had similar positioning and had been mortal enemies for a century.

So they brought the newspaper back to the old man so he could see it too.

Huang He put down the newspaper, sighed, and said, "Snowflake Chicken Noodles and Jarred Pork were the signature dishes of Leming Restaurant thirty years ago. Since Lao Luo passed away, the Lao Luo family has lost the tradition."

Le Ming put these two dishes on the menu, but has not been able to find a chef who can cook them well. Originally, the Luo and Kong styles were the twin stars of Le Ming Restaurant, which were definitely superior to our Fei Yan Restaurant.

Later, the Kong school became dominant, and Master Kong and Master Kong the Second became famous and became renowned chefs in Jiaozhou, still surpassing our Feiyan Restaurant.

Now that Master Kong has passed away and Second Master Kong has retired, the most outstanding disciples of the Kong school, Fang Yifei and Song Bo, have gone to the Sichuan Hotel in the capital and followed their leader abroad, respectively.

Xu Yunliang is a decent cook, skilled in many dishes, but his repertoire is relatively average, and his cooking isn't particularly impressive. Xiao Lei follows a similar path to Xu Yunliang, but he's less talented. He also knows a lot of dishes, but he's not particularly skilled in any of them, and he doesn't have a signature dish that draws customers from far and wide.

Now that the spring breeze of reform is blowing across the land, it should be the perfect time for our Feiyan Restaurant to make its mark. But unexpectedly, a brilliant talent like Zhou Yan has appeared out of nowhere! Is it truly impossible for our Feiyan Restaurant to ever rise to prominence?

"We've run this restaurant for decades and we've never seen another genius like him," Zhao Shulan sighed softly.

Huang Ying laughed upon hearing this and shook her head, saying, "Old man, I think you're overthinking it. It's impossible for Zhou Yan to work at Leming Restaurant. His skills are not something that other members of the Kong school can easily learn."

“I’ve noticed he’s been attending Kong-style events quite frequently lately. His mentor is Kong Huaifeng. With his current fame and culinary skills, Leming Restaurant will definitely try to poach him.” Huang He frowned. “Let Kong Qingfeng handle it, and let Xiao Lei put in a good word for him. If he can’t refuse, he might just go to Leming as the head chef. If Leming Restaurant can reintroduce the Snowflake Chicken Soup, I wonder how many old customers will want to go back to eat it.”

Huang Ying smiled and said, "Old man, do you think such a big favor is worth more than a monthly income of five or six thousand yuan?"

Everyone suddenly became quiet.

Huang He and Zhao Shulan looked somewhat shocked.

"How much?" Huang Bing's gaze suddenly cleared as he looked at Huang Ying and asked.

"You eat three meals a day without missing a single one, you're really just wasting your time?" Huang Ying rolled her eyes at him and counted on her fingers, "Zhou Yan's restaurant is always packed with customers, morning, noon and night. In the morning, he sells noodles for six cents a bowl and can sell about a hundred bowls. Now that meat prices have dropped, but noodle prices haven't, he can make at least thirty cents here."

The beef stew stall sells over a hundred bowls every day, all run by Aunt Zhao herself; she makes at least thirty bowls here.

The braised meat business is booming. We take 20 to 30 jin a day, and he sells nearly 100 jin himself. Uncle Zhou handles all the cutting, preparation, and weighing himself, making at least 100 yuan a day in profit.

Braised vegetables are cheap, but the cost of vegetables is also low. We sell 100 jin a day, and there are 30 or 40 jin here.

Not to mention the customers who come for lunch and dinner. With twenty tables, we have to turn them over every meal, so let's say we make a profit of eighty yuan.

The gross profit for the day is at least 260 or 270. After deducting rent, labor, and various losses, even 200 is a conservative estimate. Business is quite stable six days a week, so there's no such thing as a slow season.

Leming Restaurant is a state-owned restaurant; the head chef's monthly income wouldn't exceed three hundred yuan. Let alone Jiaozhou, even in Chengdu, there probably aren't any restaurants that can afford to hire him.

The three of them were stunned.

After listening, Huang He nodded repeatedly, looking at Huang Ying with great satisfaction, "Yingying, you are the most reliable. You ate, lost weight, and even settled Zhou Yan's accounts clearly."

"My calculations are about right," Huang Bing added, trying to make amends.

"Stop talking nonsense, you're just a freeloader." Huang He rolled his eyes at him.

Huang Bing: ...

Zhao Shulan exclaimed with admiration, "A net profit of over six thousand a month, that's more than what our restaurant earns during the off-season! This young man is amazing!"

"That's alright. If I can't have her, Leming Hotel can't have her either. That makes me feel much more balanced," Huang He said with a smile.

"Earning six thousand a month, more than seventy thousand a year, Brother Yan is amazing!" Huang Bing counted on his fingers, his face full of admiration.

"That's what I was thinking when I had you." Huang He looked at him with disappointment and said, "When are you going to be in a magazine or a newspaper? Let our Huang family have a moment of glory too."

"Old man, did Grandpa say the same thing to you back then?" Huang Bing asked, his face full of curiosity.

Huang He remained silent, only lowering his head and turning the feather duster.

"Old man, forget it, forget it," Huang Ying said, picking up the feather duster that was leaning against her feet and handing it to him.

"Huang Ying! You traitor!" Huang Bing gritted his teeth, turned and ran, slipping into the kitchen. His voice drifted back, "I'm going to practice my knife skills, I'm not playing with you guys anymore..."

"That son of a bitch!" Huang He laughed in anger and put the feather duster on the counter.

“He’s the son, so you’re the tortoise?” Zhao Shulan rolled her eyes at him and said with a sullen laugh, “You two are just like each other. You weren’t much different from him when you were young.”

He's been doing quite well lately, going straight to the kitchen when he gets home every day. His hands are covered in knife scars. Sun Zhou said that although he's not particularly talented, he's been quite diligent lately. With two or three years of training, he should have no problem mastering knife skills. Your Huang family has run a restaurant for so many years; maybe you really will produce a chef.”

"With his talent, he'd be lucky to even be a cook, let alone a butcher." Huang He laughed and nodded. "But ever since he started eating at Zhou Yan's place, he hasn't been staying up all night every day anymore. His panda eyes are gone, and he looks much better now."

"After cycling back and forth to Suji three times a day, what energy do I have left to fool around? All I want to do is lie in bed and sleep," Huang Ying laughed.

Huang He looked her up and down and said with a smile, "Yingying has lost a lot of weight. Since we have nothing to do this afternoon, let your mother take you to the department store. You two can buy some clothes that fit well. The ones you're wearing are too big and don't fit."

“I think that’s a good idea. My bag just got a hole chewed by a mouse, and I’d like to get a new one. Yingying, will you come with me?” Zhao Shulan took her wallet from the cabinet and took Huang Ying’s hand.

"Mom, I'll go with you to buy a bag, but I don't want to buy clothes." Huang Ying followed her out the door.

"What?"

"I'm losing weight every day. The clothes I buy this month might not fit next month. I'll buy new clothes closer to Chinese New Year and make my relatives and friends look good..."

"Okay." ...

Leming Hotel, office.

Hotel manager Liu Ye put down the newspaper in his hand and looked at Kong Guodong sitting opposite him, saying, "Guodong, this article is so well written! It captures the charm of your Kong school and also describes how Grandpa Kong taught classes at our Leming Hotel back then, passing on the craft. It moved me deeply."

At that time, I had only recently been transferred to Leming Restaurant to work in personnel. The old manager, along with Uncle Kong and Uncle Kong the Second, discussed opening a training course. They did a lot of persuasion, but in the end, Uncle Kong made the final decision to open the course. It was even featured on the second page of the Jiaozhou Daily, causing quite a stir in the Jiaozhou culinary community.

"That's right. Back then, many young chefs came to sign up, which was quite a grand event in the Jiaozhou culinary world. I didn't expect Manager Liu to still remember it." Kong Guodong nodded with a smile, also feeling somewhat emotional.

"This young chef named Zhou Yan is Xiao Lei's apprentice? Master Xiao Lei has resigned from the canteen of Jiaozhou Textile Factory, right?" Liu Ye looked at him and continued, "These are all outstanding talents from your Kong School. Do you think we could invite them to our Leming Restaurant to take charge of cooking?"

"Hmm?" Kong Guodong was a little surprised. "Manager Liu wants them to work at Leming?"

Liu Ye smiled and nodded, saying, "I saw in the news report that they are all self-employed now. I know it's not easy to be self-employed, and their talents shouldn't be buried in rural towns."

Coming to Leming Hotel means receiving leaders, foreign guests, and other distinguished people. If you do well, you'll have a much greater chance of being transferred to Chengdu or even the capital in the future.

Look at Fang Yifei and Song Bo, they both came from our Leming. One went to the capital, and the other even went abroad with the leader. Yunliang is also doing quite well at Rongcheng Restaurant now.

"Big hotels always offer more opportunities. Rest assured, it's a tradition at Leming Hotel that we fully support our chefs in any opportunity to advance; we won't hold them back."

"In this regard, Leming is definitely top-notch, and Xiao Lei himself knows it too." Kong Guodong nodded with a smile. "We are grateful for Manager Liu's kindness, but I can't make the decision for them about coming to work. I'll go to Suji later to ask them what they think and see if they're willing to come. Xiao Lei has already made a name for himself as a rural chef with Yunliang's apprentice, and Zhou Yan has opened a restaurant in Suji town, which is said to be doing quite well."

"Alright, then I'll trouble you to make the trip yourself." Liu Ye nodded, looking at Kong Guodong and said, "Guodong, tell me the truth, was the snowflake chicken soup that Zhou Yan made the day before yesterday authentic?"

Without hesitation, Kong Guodong said, "I've never had the Snowflake Chicken Soup made by Lao Luo's father, but Zhou Yan's Snowflake Chicken Soup has a delicate and smooth texture that melts in your mouth, full of chicken aroma, but you can't taste any chicken texture at all. Lao Luo cried after tasting it and said he wanted to learn how to make this dish from Zhou Yan. Lao Luo is off today, he should be going to Suji."

Liu Ye tapped his fingertips lightly on the table and said, "Zhou Yan, you must strive for it. With his talent, his future achievements are limitless. He might become another famous chef from our Leming Hotel."

Snowflake Chicken Noodle Soup used to be a signature dish of our Leming Hotel, and it was highly praised by our leaders. If they could come, we could add another signature dish to our menu.

Regarding salary and benefits, we'll discuss that in detail after his interview, but if his cooking is truly excellent, I'll pay him the maximum possible salary.

“Okay, then I’ll go to Suji tomorrow.” Kong Guodong nodded.

Liu Ye looked at him earnestly and said, "Guodong, I will be transferred back to my hometown in a year at most. You must take this matter seriously. If Zhou Yan comes to Leming Hotel, it will take several years for him to achieve success. That will be the time when you need help the most. This is paving the way for yourself."

"Manager Liu, I understand." Kong Guodong sat up straight immediately.

As Kong Guodong went downstairs, he bumped into Luo Han, who was riding his bicycle towards the dormitory building. He quickly called out, "Old Luo!"

Luo slammed on the brakes and turned to look at Kong Guodong: "Guodong, what's up?"

"You're back from Suji?"

Old Luo nodded: "Yes, I just came back from Zhou Yan's shop. I went to learn the craft from his master."

"How's your learning going? Have you figured out the Snowflake Chicken Noodles yet?" Kong Guodong asked with a smile.

Old Luo grinned: "Zhou Yan is really skilled. I spent half a day learning from him and actually figured it out. But my skills are still far from good enough. I need to learn and practice more. I didn't understand it for over twenty years, but he explained it to me clearly in just one morning."

"You're so fierce?" Kong Guodong was greatly surprised.

"It's not that I'm being mean, it's just that Zhou Yan is highly skilled. His on-the-spot guidance was spot-on and incredibly insightful," Lao Luo remarked.

Kong Guodong then asked, "Old Luo, what do you think of Zhou Yan's snowflake chicken soup compared to what your old man used to make?"

After thinking for a moment, Lao Luo said, "To be honest, the finished products are almost identical. But in terms of details, Zhou Yan is even better. He has a very strict and meticulous control over the cooking process."

My father isn't as skilled as him in this respect, which is why some customers complain about the texture of my snowflake chicken soup. But with Zhou Yan's craftsmanship, the quality of the finished dish should be very consistent.

"So it seems our Kong school has indeed produced a genius," Kong Guodong said with a hearty laugh.

"Exactly, I've never seen a young man like this before." Old Luo nodded in agreement.

After exchanging a few pleasantries, the two went about their respective business.

……

The Qiu family's old residence.

"Grandma, look, Zhou Yan is in today's Jiaozhou Daily!" Duan Yuyan walked into the study with the newspaper in her hand, her pretty face full of surprise. "It says that he helped an overseas Chinese find his relatives, Qian Siyuan? That name sounds a bit familiar."

"Let me see." Old Mrs. Qiu put down her calligraphy brush, took the newspaper and started reading. After a while, a smile appeared on her face. "This boy is kind-hearted and eager to help others. If it weren't for his help, this overseas Chinese would probably never have been able to find out where his mother's hometown is in his entire life."

"He really is a good person." Duan Yuyan nodded in affirmation, then asked curiously, "Grandma, what is snowflake chicken soup? Is it delicious?"

"Snowflake chicken soup..." Old Mrs. Qiu looked thoughtful. "The last time I ate it was more than 30 years ago. There used to be a chef at Leming Restaurant named Lao Luo. His snowflake chicken soup and braised pork were very good. I often went to eat it with your grandfather."

At that time, Kong Huaifeng was also at Leming Restaurant, and his reputation was even higher than that of Feiyan Restaurant. When I married your grandfather, I even specially invited Lao Luo, Kong Huaifeng, and Kong Qingfeng to cook two dishes.”

"Then why not just hold it at the Leming Hotel?" Duan Yuyan asked, puzzled.

Grandma Qiu smiled and said, "Huang Silang is quick-witted. He spent a lot of money to renovate Feiyan Restaurant, which is much more presentable than the bungalow of Leming Hotel. Moreover, Feiyan Restaurant is actually not bad. It's just that the head chef is not as famous as Leming Hotel. It is still very unique."

Duan Yuyan nodded thoughtfully.

Grandma Qiu continued, "Later, Lao Luo suddenly died from drunkenness, and his son failed to master the craft, so the tradition was broken. Leming Restaurant removed its signature dishes, such as Snowflake Chicken Soup and Jarred Pork, from the menu."

I have a deep impression of the Snowflake Chicken Soup. You can't actually see the chicken inside; it's piled up in the bowl, truly resembling a snowflake. A sprinkle of diced ham on top creates a striking contrast of red and white. The texture is incredibly tender, and it's quite delicious.

Leming Restaurant hadn't been able to put this dish back on the menu for decades, but Zhou Yan actually figured it out by looking at the recipe. His talent is truly remarkable.

Duan Yuyan swallowed hard and said with a smile, "Just talking about it makes me want to eat. We're going back to Hong Kong next Friday, so how about we invite Zhou Yan over for a family dinner this weekend? Don't you have some things you want to tell him?"

Grandma Qiu shook her head: "Others invite people over for meals, but you're the opposite, you invite people to come to your door to cook for you."

"What's the big deal? This will soon be his home. We definitely won't be able to attend his housewarming party, so let's just consider it an early invitation." Duan Yuyan smiled slyly. "He might even have to thank us."

Grandma Qiu smiled upon hearing this, and after thinking for a moment, she said, "Okay, then you should tell him in advance, so that he doesn't have any other plans for the weekend. I do have some things to tell him."

“Okay, then I’ll go to Suji tomorrow.” Duan Yuyan looked at the old lady and asked, “Grandma, should I invite Uncle Wang along too? We’ll have a good meal, who knows when we’ll see each other again.”

Grandma Qiu nodded slightly: "That's fine too, he hasn't eaten in this house yet."

……

Aunt Zhao bought a stack of the day's Jiaozhou Daily and returned to the hotel. The first thing she did was to ask Comrade Zhou to cut out the special report and paste it next to the Sichuan cooking magazine hanging on the wall.

"Do you want it?" Aunt Zhao asked Zhou Yan, who was standing next to her.

“Yes, very eye-catching.” Zhou Yan nodded with a smile, which was similar to the practice in later generations of hanging a bunch of photos of shop owners with celebrities on a wall.

That's good; it adds depth and generates more discussion about the restaurant.

Restaurants featured in Sichuan Cuisine magazine and Jiaozhou Daily sound very authoritative.

Although Aunt Zhao is not very literate, she learns things quite quickly and has already put marketing techniques into practice.

"Brother, look, I'm eating a cannonball here!" Zhou Momo pointed to the small figure standing in front of Qian Siyuan, her face full of surprise. "You drew the chicken so well! You even drew the cannonball. The cannonball is fragrant and crispy, so delicious!"

Everyone laughed upon hearing this.

When the group photo was taken that day, Qian Siyuan was sitting in the middle of the front row. He saw Zhou Momo eating cannonballs and watching the fun, so he called her over to take the group photo together.

The little guy had five cannon barrels stuck on his fingers and thought he looked really cool!
It's clear that Qian Siyuan really likes children.

"Brother, let's trade our rice for cannonballs too! They're fragrant, crispy, and sweet—so delicious!" Zhou Momo leaned over, looking up at Zhou Yan with longing eyes.

“Next time the cannonmen come, I’ll give you a small bag of rice so you can go and fire it yourself,” Zhou Yan said with a smile.

"Mmm." The little guy nodded, smiling happily.

Today is December 1st. After closing for the evening, Zhou Yan called out to Zhao Hong, who was taking off her apron and preparing to leave.

He packed up the remaining cold chicken salad and pork ribs and handed them to her, along with a stack of ten-yuan bills: "Sister-in-law, today is the first of the month, so I'm settling your wages from last month. I've prepared this cold chicken salad for you, and here's a portion of pork ribs. Take it home for the two kids so you don't have to cook."

"It's already the first day? Time flies! I just go home and fall asleep the moment my head hits the pillow, I've lost track of time." Zhao Hong paused for a moment, then a smile quickly spread across her face. She reached out and took the lunchbox and money, rubbed her fingers together, and shook her head, saying, "Wait a minute! Why is there so much?"

　There will be an extra chapter today! I'm setting a flag now!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)