Courtyard House: The Chef's Intelligence System

After finishing their New Year's Eve dinner, Li Jiuzhou's family prepared to set off firecrackers.

Shanhe was holding a bundle of firecrackers with ten thousand shots, while Jiaojiao's pockets were full of small fireworks and firecrackers.

Such a long firecracker attracted many adults and children, after all, there aren't many firecrackers that can fire 10,000 shots.

It just so happens that Li Jiuzhou sets off 10,000 firecrackers every year.

Of course, besides Li Jiuzhou, there was also Sha Zhu; the two of them bought it together.

After Li Jiuzhou finished putting it in his house, Sha Zhu immediately connected it.

The entire courtyard was filled with a joyous atmosphere, filled with a constant stream of New Year's greetings and the sounds of children playing.

Another year has passed, and now it is 1953.

As is customary, we went to pay New Year's visits during the first month of the lunar calendar. On the third day of the new year, Bai Lian, He Daqing's second wife, gave birth.

He Daqing was overjoyed to have a baby girl.

For He Daqing, men and women are the same; he already has children and doesn't care about these things anymore.

That day, the residents of the courtyard all sent eggs and tonics to Sha Zhu's family, asking him to pass them on to He Daqing.

Sha Zhu agreed and thanked them for their kind words.

The He family has a new daughter, and Sha Zhu is quite happy. This is her younger sister, her biological sister from the same father.

Bai Lian's family is in Baoding. Her mother is still alive, but it's impossible for her to come all the way to take care of her during her postpartum period.

So they invited her cousin-in-law over, since He Daqing still needed to earn money to support her family.

Sha Zhu has changed a lot in the past few years. He has matured a lot in his mind. He is not only good at arguing with people, but also loves to use his brain. He has also become much more tactful in his dealings with others.

His stepmother is in postpartum confinement and hasn't been sleeping in late lately; she goes to the market early every morning to buy groceries.

I make old hen soup, crucian carp soup, and other dishes, and I just deliver them to my stepmother on my way to work, without any delay.

He Daqing was a little stunned, but after he came to his senses, he smiled with relief and told his colleagues that his youngest son had grown up.

Only Li Jiuzhou remained unconcerned, thinking to himself, "Uncle-Master, you're probably overthinking it. Your youngest son has his own plans; you just can't see through them..."

Sha Zhu had already told his senior brother that after he and Qin Huairu got married this year, they might have a baby next year.

Who will help take care of the new mother during her postpartum period?

That would naturally be Bai Lian, the mother-in-law...

If I treat her well now, does she expect me to stand idly by later?

This is called retribution; it's not that retribution won't come, it's just that the time hasn't arrived yet!

Li Jiuzhou was speechless at Sha Zhu's idiotic thought process.

The main reason Jia Dongxu and his wife didn't return to their hometown was that Tong Jie was pregnant and it was inconvenient for her to go back.

However, on the second day of the Lunar New Year, Jia Dongxu's father-in-law's family of eight arrived in two horse-drawn carriages.

The scale of the event was enormous, and the people in the courtyard were quite surprised.

When the boy returned from his home, he was not empty-handed. He brought three old hens and other dried meat.

Jia Zhangshi beamed with joy, pulling Tong Jie's mother along as she thanked her profusely.

They've prepared all the best food they have at home.

At noon, three tables were set up for a feast, which was prepared by Yi Zhonghai's wife, Jia Zhangshi, and Tong Jie's mother. It was a very lively affair!

The courtyard is lively every day, with relatives coming to pay New Year's visits, which naturally involves a lot of eating and drinking.

In the entire courtyard, only Yi Zhonghai's family did not have any relatives come to pay New Year's visits, but Yi Zhonghai had quite a few friends, so it was quite lively.

It wasn't that no one invited Li Jiuzhou to banquets during the first month of the lunar year; the prices offered were all exorbitant, several times the original amount.

Upon hearing the master's offer, Sha Zhu poked his teeth, then hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but couldn't.

He wants to do it!

Chinese New Year?

A few years will pass, life is long, there are plenty of years to come!

But if you don't make this money, you'll really miss out.

But he didn't have the power to decide; he was just a kitchen helper, and it was up to his senior brother to decide whether or not to take on the job.

Seeing his senior brothers refuse, Sha Zhu's heart was bleeding; that was all money...

Fortunately, he had seen a lot of big scenes and knew many high-ranking officials and dignitaries after following his senior brother for so many years, so his inner struggle passed quickly.

On the fourth day of the Lunar New Year, Li Jiuzhou took on a job that had been booked before the New Year: to prepare a family banquet at Master Bai's house.

There were three tables of people, and the two brothers, along with their equipment, went there.

Aside from the exquisite dishes he prepared himself, Li Jiuzhou had Sha Zhu cook all the other dishes, with Li Jiuzhou providing guidance from the sidelines.

A cook can't just watch; he has to do it himself.

Sha Zhu felt incredibly lucky; high-end ingredients aren't something you can personally prepare anywhere.

When his senior asked him to take the lead, he didn't hesitate or get stage fright. He did his best, and his senior would point out any mistakes he made. The chef improved rapidly.

Li Jiuzhou's assessment of Sha Zhu's cooking skills was that he had reached the level of a master chef, but his mentality was not stable enough, and some high-standard dishes were not cooked properly.

Sha Zhu has been following Li Jiuzhou around cooking for so many years, and he has learned more than just Sichuan and Shandong cuisine.

He has a broad knowledge of all eight major cuisines, has basically mastered the Tan family cuisine, and has also learned a lot about imperial cuisine.

Li Jiuzhou not only made him watch and do it, but also made him take notes, memorize the ingredients, cooking time, and so on.

You must know it by heart, and you also have to mix and match randomly.

Recipes are static, but people are dynamic; sometimes a dish will be changed according to the host's taste.

The flavors of sour, sweet, bitter, spicy, and salty all need to be adjusted on the spot; you can't just make it taste exactly as the recipe says.

If the host thinks the dish is too salty, it's a waste no matter how much they eat it.

Li Jiuzhou often cooked for Bai Qiye's family, who all preferred salty and strong flavors.

At this point, you can boldly add seasonings; if you like strong flavors, just say "strong"!

Today, Li Jiuzhou was doing the side dish preparation work at Seventh Master's house, assisting Sha Zhu.

While everyone was busy, Master Bai walked in and joked:

"Oh, so it's Chef He here today! My apologies for not recognizing you!"

Seeing Seventh Master teasing him about being a fool, he remained unfazed, continuing to toss the wok while laughing in response:

"Seventh Master, if my senior brother says I'm good, then I'm good. Please give me your evaluation after we finish eating."

"If you're not satisfied today, then this meal is on me!"

Upon hearing this, Master Bai burst into laughter:

"Hahaha, good lad, you're not old, but you've got quite the nerve."

"Alright, today we'll see just how much of your senior brother's skill you've learned. If you do well, I'll reward you!"

"Thank you in advance, please take care!"

Seventh Master came over, said a few words, and then left. He wasn't worried at all that Sha Zhu would mess up the dishes.

With top chef Li Jiuzhou by my side, I'm not flustered at all.

In the past, when Li Jiuzhou cooked, he would let Sha Zhu help out, and Bai Qiye never noticed anything unusual about the food.

With someone backing him up, Sha Zhu is very confident in his cooking skills.

After a busy morning, the two brothers finally finished their work. While eating in the kitchen, they were called out by Master Bai to have a drink.

Master Bai praised Sha Zhu's cooking skills highly.

If they said there would be a reward, then they really did. In addition to the payment, they also gave Sha Zhu an extra red envelope.

Sha Zhu was overjoyed; this was an affirmation of his culinary skills, especially since the person was the renowned Master Bai Qi.

His evaluation is not something he gives lightly.