Food Intelligence King

Chapter 65 Wonderful, Terry Bogard

Boss Cui felt that he had ultimately misplaced his trust.

He genuinely believed that Chen Zhou knew about antiques.

But on second thought:
"That makes sense, doesn't it? The cook came to buy a knife, and I thought you had already seen the She inkstone from the beginning."

Chen Zhou scratched his head. "I really don't understand. I didn't even hear what you meant by She inkstone."

Boss Cui laughed too, "Then he can't fool you."

Chen Zhou then seriously started haggling with the stall owner: "Boss, I only want to buy a kitchen knife, not your inkstone. Can you give me a discount? Three thousand is too expensive."

The stall owner didn't want to perform anymore either.
"Never mind, you can buy it for eighty, I'll take it for fifty."

Chen Zhou nodded, "Eighty it is."

In the antique market, this kitchen knife probably wasn't worth much; none of the three people—the customer in front, the stall owner, and even Boss Cui—had their eyes on it.

But in the chef's eyes, this cleaver was very valuable.

Chen Zhou also bought the whetstone from the stall owner.

The stall owner took a few flyers distributed on the Ancient Culture Street, wrapped the kitchen knife and whetstone in a simple package, and handed them over.

The transaction was completed smoothly with no arguments or insults exchanged.

After buying the kitchen knife, the two walked back, and Boss Cui started chatting with Chen Zhou again:
"Everyone thinks they are smart and others are fools. They are so eager to get what they want that they can't see what's right in front of them."

Chen Zhou nodded, his realization being:
"It's better to be honest and straightforward in business, with more sincerity and less trickery."

The two people's statements were not entirely consistent.

They were practically each telling their own story.

Chen Zhou then invited, "Come over and try my steamed buns when you have time."

Mr. Cui was genuinely curious, "Where did you open your shop?"

"Not far from the ground floor shops of Sunshine City residential complex, there is a small storefront called Community Canteen."

"Okay, I'll go there when I have time." Boss Cui seemed to know the place, then asked, "What's your name, brother?"

Chen Zhou joked with him:

"Chenzhou, Chen in the east of the ear, a thousand sails passing by the sunken ship."

"Cui Hong," Boss Cui replied politely. But he couldn't find anything funny about Chen Zhou's joke.

Chen Zhou grabbed a kitchen knife and a whetstone and went to find his wife and children.

Ms. Lin looked at the signs for a urology clinic and a new house for sale in her husband's hand and asked with some curiosity, "What are you holding?"

"I bought a kitchen knife."

Ms. Lin said "Oh" and didn't pay much attention to it.

However, after handing Chen Zhou a piece of fried cake, Chen Taotao became very interested in what her father was holding: "Dad, I want to see."

Chen Zhou unpacked the package and finally had a chance to show it off:
"Girl, look at this knife. It has a remarkable history; legend has it that..."

The three of them returned home, and Chen Zhou began sharpening his knife.
After much effort, we finally got to see the whole picture.

This kitchen knife doesn't have any complicated design or patterns; it's just engraved with small Chinese and English characters on both sides, so it seems to be an export product.

The right-hand side says "wonderful".

The reverse side says "terrible".

The gist is that the quality of a dish depends entirely on the chef's decision.

Chen Zhou washed the kitchen knife clean and tried it on a piece of white radish.

It's great for peeling and cutting.

I gripped the knife, but it felt like I wasn't holding it at all, as if it were an extension of my arm. As the old saying goes, it's like using your arm as a finger.

For Chen Zhou, it's just a matter of two words: "easy to do".

Just like you need a keyboard and mouse to play games, or a pair of sneakers to play sports, for a chef, a good knife is something to be happy about.

Chen Taotao watched her elderly father work and laugh throughout the entire process.

So I just laughed along with them.

The little girl is five years old this year, and the couple is cultivating her simple self-care abilities—dressing herself, changing her shoes, washing herself, and doing some housework within her capabilities.

Chen Taotao said, "Dad, I want to learn how to use this." Knives are indeed dangerous, but one day, she will also pick up a knife and cook for herself, perhaps for her husband and children.

Under parental supervision and with attention to safety, you can gradually try to get used to it.

Of course, she shouldn't take that kitchen knife.

Just use a small fruit knife to cut a sausage.

Chen Zhou instructed:
"When holding a knife, the tip should not be pointing at a person, and the blade should be kept away from your other hand."

Chen Taotao tried it cautiously, holding the knife in both hands, but she couldn't cut her hand.

In a few quick movements, he cut the sausage into several pieces.

"It's very simple!"

"She's quite talented," Chen Zhou said to the little girl.

"Okay, then today Dad will teach you how to carve lotus root from white radish."

His knife skills have also improved to a near-professional level, and Master Chen speaks with confidence.

The breakfast stall reopened the next day.

The shop resumed its daily operations, and customers enjoyed a satisfying meal before leaving positive reviews for the owner.

Around noon, the staff from the takeout business expansion department mentioned in the intelligence report arrived at the small shop one after another.

The two people in red and yellow arrived almost one after the other.
While competitors may be rivals, individuals within the same company often share more in common.

The young man in the yellow shirt asked his colleague who had just come out of the store, "Hey, how did you talk to the boss?"

The woman in red replied, "This shop is doing good business, and the owner doesn't seem interested in doing takeout, so I doubt you'll be able to negotiate a deal with them."

"Okay." The young man in yellow nodded, already knowing what to expect.

He casually asked, "Didn't you try any? I heard this shop has good steamed buns."

"I'm in a hurry to get to the next place."

The guy in the yellow shirt thought to himself: You guys haven't been here long enough, and you don't have much work experience.

Shops that don't offer delivery services do so because they're too busy with their own business and don't need the extra delivery orders.

A business is usually successful because the food tastes good.

He has to try it.

Inside the shop, the junior sister saw the young man in yellow enter and moved closer to Chen Zhou:
"Boss, another one, please."

You don't understand. If they hadn't come today, the intelligence would have been outdated.

Chen Zhou was about to speak to the other party to save both of them from wasting time.

The young man in the yellow shirt shrugged. "I'll try the steamed buns."

Chen Zhou smiled and said, "No problem, just wait a moment, your buns will be served in the next batch."

The young man in the yellow shirt found a seat in the store and sat down.

The steamed buns are freshly steamed, with both dough and filling. You can tell from outside the kitchen that they are handmade by the owner.

The shop isn't big, but it's clean and tidy, and the staff are quite diligent, keeping things organized efficiently.

After the young man in the yellow shirt sat down, he was already satisfied with the shop even though he hadn't eaten any steamed buns yet.

His eyes casually scanned the area.

Turning my head, I saw the tableware that customers had packed up to take away.

He's familiar with this stuff.

However, the tableware used in this shop is of a fairly high standard; the spoons and chopsticks are of good quality, which is typical of larger restaurants. Of course, the shop doesn't offer custom packaging.

The cost will definitely go up a bit, but customers will definitely find it more comfortable to use.

No wonder business is so good.

A short while later, the waitress brought him steamed buns and porridge.

The little girl looked very happy.

Even working here seems to make me happy.

(End of this chapter)