Who gave this heretical practitioner permission to cook?

Chapter 266 The overwhelming momentum is established. You're saying... there's gypsum tofu in here??? (First update)
Xia Ming watched the last celebrity leave and quietly stretched his limbs in the kitchen.

In fact, by this round of the competition, his advancement was already a foregone conclusion.

Because his turnover has reached an astonishing "62961 yuan".

The current second-place Luo Hui has 30469 yuan, which is more than double that of Xia Ming.
It can be said that the last two rounds posed no challenge for Xia Ming. Just as Bai Heng said, he killed the game in the middle game.

Although Kang Xincheng's momentum was strong, he was also a little confused when faced with a turnover of 6.

Even if he sells each dish for an average of 800 yuan, he still needs to sell 52 servings to catch up with Xia Ming.

In other words, he must grab more than 15% of the remaining 26.6 consumption vouchers in one go to have a chance.

The key issue is that Xia Ming isn't taking a break. He has to ensure that about 20% of the people he meets will spend over 800 yuan with him, which is practically a pipe dream.

Bai Heng, who had been on a strong upward trajectory, has now slipped to 5th place.

Her advancement was already destined, and seeing that there was no hope of making it into the top three, she revised the menu for the second time.

This time, she not only raised the prices of all the dishes, but also cut some of the more complicated dishes.

This also means that she has completely given up competing for the previous rankings and, while maintaining her advancement, has shifted her focus to quality.

After the menu was revised, she leaned against a corner of the kitchen, her hands feeling as heavy as lead after eight consecutive hours of work.

"Making an effort now might seem a bit silly, but it's better to do it sooner rather than later."

At the beginning of this round, Bai Heng was actually quite worried that Xia Ming would pull something out of the ordinary and ruin the atmosphere.
That's why I'm thinking of working hard in advance to secure the qualification.

Looking back now, it's clear that Xia Ming played extremely honestly in that match.
It can't be said that he was honest; it's just that he was following an open scheme. After all, in Bai Heng's view, the report was an unexpected situation and shouldn't have been part of Xia Ming's calculations.

At that moment, she looked at the "62961 yuan" on the opposite screen and let out a long sigh.

Nothing can stop him now.

"Whether it's professional judges in the next round or the round after that, the outcome is already decided."

Just after she finished speaking, a strand of white hair slid down her side, and in the interval between changing the menu, Bai Heng slowly closed her eyes.

She's too tired and needs to sleep for a while.
It'll be over in a minute.
On the other side, Zheng Zeqian stretched and lay back down on his makeshift bed. Under these circumstances, Xia Ming's score was no longer of any reference value.

"Instead of wasting time looking at Xia Ming's grades, you might as well lie down and yawn a couple more times!"

"It's not like it's a life-or-death final. 48 people advance and 24 will be selected. I'm not as fast as Xia Ming, but I'm fast as most people. They don't pay me according to my ranking."

"What do you mean by being number one on two lists, or becoming famous overnight?"

"Are you kidding me? With Xia Ming around, it's a miracle we're not being schemed against."

"After the match, I'll go see Xia Ming and see if I can get a free meal."

"It's a pity Qian Youdao isn't here, so we can't take advantage of the wealthy. Wait, isn't Qiao Ruoning also a wealthy person?"

"Yawn~ Never mind, I'll just sleep for another five minutes~"

Compared to Zheng Zeqian's easygoing nature, Chen Xiaodong is under immense pressure at this time.

He was currently ranked 26th on the revenue list, in an extremely precarious situation.
"I still have one more chance to revise the recipe. Should I bet the next round will be judged by professionals?"

"If so, what kind of dish could I present to gain their approval?"

By this round, Chen Xiaodong was starting to lose his composure. He was unsure whether to trust Cantonese cuisine, Sichuan cuisine which he was seeing later, or continue with his fusion cuisine.

It seems that no matter which way he chooses, he can find stronger opponents all around him.

"Am I going to collapse here?"

Chen Xiaodong felt a sense of bewilderment, much like he had during the "One Meal to Fame" food street competition. He didn't know how to win.
"If Xia Ming were in this situation, what would he choose?"

The thought that suddenly popped into his mind made Chen Xiaodong tremble, and the next second, his eyes dimmed again.

"He certainly wouldn't let himself fall to that point!"

Thinking about the challenges he had faced time and time again, and his past experiences, several dishes suddenly came to mind for Chen Xiaodong.

"Is this feasible? Won't we run out of time?"

"Fine, it's a fight to the death anyway, let's go!"

With that, Chen Xiaodong stood up from his chair and walked into the food storage area.
He wanted to prepare two dishes he had never made before at the very last and most crucial moment of his advancement.
Two fusion dishes that are unique to him
Hu Xing let out a long sigh of relief in the kitchen, then slowly looked at the screen.

"That should be enough, right?"

"I think I'll advance without any problem, but there will probably still be a judge's evaluation."

"What if I don't do well on the test? Will my scores be revoked?"

"Oh no, am I going to fail to advance?!"

"I've already said that everyone else only knows how to make medicinal cuisine, why do I have to take the 'Level 5 Chinese' exam? Even if I pass, I won't become a chef!"

"Oh no! I've burned the medicine!"

In the midst of the chaos, Hu Xing finally managed to save her medicinal soup.

"Forget it, let's just take it one step at a time! Competitions are too much trouble, I just want to go back home and relax."

Just as Hu Xing was struggling with her own dilemma, the professional judging panel finally pushed open the door and walked in.

This time, there was no need for any introduction in the live stream; netizens understood just by looking at Sui Wubai in the front row.

[Finally, we're facing professional judges?]

[Absolutely! Sui Wubai is here; this round will be a true test of skill!]

This arrangement is definitely intentional; usually, shouldn't it be placed in the last round?

[It wasn't specified which round it would be; maybe the final round would be the contestants ordering food from each other?]

[I must say, this upstairs post is actually quite interesting.]

[In a proper competition, they probably wouldn't let each other compete, right? This isn't a variety show!] [Who knows? I just think after this round, the outcome should be pretty much decided.]

[After a close inspection, Bai Susu isn't there, good thing!]

[The commentary booth hasn't closed yet, so of course Bai Susu isn't there!]

Just as netizens were discussing it, the corresponding information appeared in the live stream.

[Chef's Hall Reception Competition]

Round: Round 5

[Diners: Two Hundred Professional Judges]

[Voucher Amount: 1200 yuan]

[Note: The professional judges possess a high level of expertise and will provide detailed evaluations of the dishes from various aspects. After the evaluation, each judge will give the dishes they taste a "pass" or "fail" grade.]

If 50% or more of the judges give a dish a "fail" rating, it means that in the eyes of the professional judges, the dish does not match its price. In this case, the dish's revenue will not be included in the revenue ranking.

This rule isn't only visible in the live stream; the contestants in the kitchen also receive the notification.

Upon seeing the last rule, many contestants' expressions changed drastically!

To put it simply: This means that if someone orders a dish, they must give it a "pass" grade for the chef to receive payment.

If there are two people, both must pass in order to receive the money.

At least two out of the three people need to give a "passing grade".

At least three out of four people need to pass!
It's worth noting that most of the competitors had just raised their prices in the first two rounds, and many of them, to varying degrees, exhibited the same problem as "Du Jian"—only raising prices without improving quality.

If you suddenly tell the contestants that they won't get paid if they don't produce quality work, it will scare many of them.

The key point is that some people are already very tired. Many of the ingredients in the dishes are prepared in advance. If they want to improve the quality, they only have two paths: "remake" and "innovate".

The former takes time and effort, while the latter relies heavily on talent.

It can be said that by adding this clause to the rules of the fifth round, the Chefs Association effectively eliminated the vast majority of opportunistic contestants.

It would be easy for the players below to overtake them.
As long as the dishes truly meet their quality standards and generate revenue, given the current marketing distribution, anyone who isn't in the bottom 5 has a chance.

Of course, when the number of votes for "pass" and "fail" is the same, it is judged as "fail".

Therefore, this is much more difficult than simply having the judges score it.
Just as the contestants were shocked by the strict rules, Sui Wubai had already sat down with Chef Wang.

He flipped through the thick menu and immediately spotted Xia Ming's page.

Without much hesitation, he placed an order for "Jade Tofu".

In Sui Wubai's opinion, Xia Ming would have no problem defeating this group of level 4 chefs.

Only after you actually learn "Through Silk Cutting" can you realize how terrifying Xia Ming is.

He came here as a judge with the intention of teaching his apprentices. After mastering the "through-silk cutting" technique, he found that Xia Ming's knife skills alone had surpassed those of the God of Cookery.

After all, there aren't many chefs who can recreate the "through-silk cut".

Of course, for those who become culinary masters, technique is no longer the key focus.
Just after Sui Wubai ordered "Jade Tofu", Chef Wang also very tactfully ordered a dish called "Blood Thrilling" and two glasses of lemon water.

"Master, Chef Xia's hidden menu items are really expensive!"

Sui Wubai glanced at Chef Wang and then smiled.

"Your Chef Xia doesn't know how the competition will go, so always having a backup plan is something a chef needs to remember!"

After listening to his master's words, chef Wang Meng nodded vigorously.

Sui Wubai appears kind and approachable in short videos, but in Chef Wang's eyes, he is definitely a strict teacher.

There's no way around it; after all, Sui Wubai can detect culinary flaws that are completely undetectable to ordinary people just by using his tongue.
While the two were chatting, less than 5 minutes later, the "Jade Tofu" that Sui Wubai had ordered was served!

This speed left the judges at the table somewhat bewildered, and even Sui Wubai himself was a little confused.

Even pre-made meals might not be this fast.
"Could it be a cold dish?"

Just as Sui Wubai was wondering, the chef Wang beside him had already lifted the lid.

Under the warm lights, the curious judges felt that as the heat dissipated, countless golden spectacle points appeared in mid-air, a spectacle comparable to the shattering of the Milky Way.

But when they looked again a second later, they found that the golden light had disappeared, and what remained in the middle was only the "white jade tofu" that had been piled up into a whole block.

Although it is described as a single piece, it is actually a cube made up of many small square pieces of tofu.

Although the tofu pieces are all white, upon closer inspection, it appears that there are several different types of tofu.

Chef Wang blinked to himself, a sigh escaping his lips.

"Holy crap, this tofu is so square it's like a building block! Is this really tofu? Or is it something that looks like tofu?!"

Just as he blinked, Sui Wubai, who was standing next to him, raised an eyebrow slightly.

"Wang Bo, take out your notebook. Here is the first test question!"

"Based solely on visual inspection and smell, we can make a preliminary judgment on how many types of tofu were used in this 'Jade Tofu' dish."

"!"

Chef Wang was completely taken aback.
No, the broth flavor completely masks the tofu; who could possibly smell what's inside?
Although he thought that way, he didn't say it!

After examining the "Jade Tofu" for a long time, he slowly spoke.

"Brine-cured tofu, silken tofu, gypsum tofu. And..."

The moment he mentioned gypsum tofu, Sui Wubai's expression suddenly turned serious.

"What? Gypsum tofu? You mean there's gypsum tofu in this?"

Hearing Sui Wubai's tone gradually become serious, Chef Wang's body trembled violently.
Finish the calf!
You guessed wrong.
(End of this chapter)