Courtyard House: The Chef's Intelligence System

After Sha Zhu and his wife went to the hospital for a checkup and found nothing wrong, they regained their spirits and stopped grumbling all the time.

In a good mood, he even taught his junior apprentice a few more secret techniques, which made You Fulai extremely happy.

For You Fulai, it didn't matter whether his martial uncle taught him anything or not; it would be best if he could be more tactful with his words.

That guy has a really sharp tongue; sometimes You Fulai gets so angry he wants to hit him.

But when he thought of his martial uncle's strength, he became dejected.

Sha Zhu would also hit people when he taught him; it was simply a family tradition and a teacher's teaching.

When Sha Zhu was an apprentice, his father, He Daqing, often beat him.

When he grew up, his master Li Tielong and his senior apprentice Li Jiuzhou both beat him for making bad dishes.

Now that he's teaching his nephew, so what if he hit him? Nobody can find fault with that.

The cook had a fiery temper to begin with, and he was already being very lenient by using his hands when teaching his apprentices. He didn't even use a knife, so this was nothing.

Just as Sha Zhu was enthusiastically teaching his nephew how to use a knife, someone came through the kitchen window.

He Daqing greeted the veteran chefs with a smile:

"Old Yang, Old Zhang, you're busy."

The two old cooks greeted the newcomers warmly through the window:

"Oh, it's Master He! That gust of wind blew you here. What a rare guest!"

He Daqing responded:

"Hey, I'm looking for my son. We can't go into the kitchen right now, so I'll go through the back door. I'll come out and chat in a bit."

"Okay, you go ahead and get busy, we'll chat again later."

At this moment, Li Jiuzhou and Sha Zhu also noticed He Daqing, and they were wondering what he was doing there.

He Daqing pointed to the back door of the kitchen, indicating that they should talk there.

The kitchen is a restricted area, and outsiders are not allowed to enter at all now. Li Jiuzhou is keeping a very tight rein on it.

The two brothers took You Fulai to the back door.

After the group met, Li Jiuzhou first introduced his apprentices to He Daqing:

"Uncle-Master, this is my new apprentice named You Fulai."

"Apprentice, greet the servants."

You Fulai quickly stepped forward and bowed slightly to greet He Daqing.

"Uncle, I am You Fulai, my master's newly accepted apprentice."

He Damao nodded and smiled: "Good, young man, not bad, you look very energetic. I'll have your master take you to Fengzeyuan to meet your grandmaster another day."

"I'm sure your advisor will be very satisfied."

"Learn your craft well from your master from now on, and don't waste this precious opportunity."

You Fulai nodded repeatedly in agreement:

"Thank you for your guidance, Uncle. I will definitely learn the craft well from my master and uncles."

Sha Zhu then took out cigarettes and offered them to the group, before asking He Daqing:

"Father, what brings you here today? Did you come specifically to see your son?"

Upon hearing this, He Daqing's face lit up with joy, and he took a puff of his cigarette and chuckled:

"It's good news, so I came to tell you."

"Oh, what's the good news?" Li Jiuzhou and Shazhu asked in unison.

"Hehe, your Aunt Bai is pregnant again," He Daqing said with a hint of pride.

Upon hearing this, Li Jiuzhou immediately gave He Daqing a thumbs up:

"Wow, Uncle-Master, you're really vigorous for your age!"

He Daqing smiled and waved his hands repeatedly:

"Hahaha, it's just so-so, just so-so."

Sha Zhu's face also showed joy, but mixed with a hint of embarrassment. He wanted to congratulate his father, but the words just wouldn't come out.

He Daqing naturally noticed that something was wrong with his son. Just as he was about to ask, Li Jiuzhou pulled him aside and explained what had happened in the hospital these past few days and the process of Sha Zhu and his wife going to the hospital for a checkup.

He Daqing breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this; it was good that nothing serious had happened. He then went to comfort Sha Zhu, patting him on the shoulder and saying:

"Zhu Zi, what's the rush? Your mother and I had you more than a year after we got married."

"It's also Dad's fault for always rushing you. Now that the hospital check-up shows nothing wrong, just relax."

"Just ignore what those old women in the courtyard say. If they really go too far, tell your father, and I'll give them a good slap when I get home."

After hearing his father's words, Shazhu smiled:

"Dad, you always have such a strong voice. Don't worry, I know. Just take good care of your own family."

"You're about to raise five children, it must be a lot of pressure. How about we stop giving you the living expenses for rainy days?"

"I earn a lot of money each month, more than enough to feed the rainwater, not to mention there's an old lady at home, so we don't have to worry about food or clothing."

Sha Zhu said this to ease his father's burden. Raising four children is indeed not easy, and now his wife is pregnant with another one.

It's equivalent to He Daqing earning money to support 7 people, which is enough to make an ordinary person's scalp tingle.

Sha Zhu wasn't the kind of person who was heartless; now he could understand how hard He Daqing had worked.

As soon as Sha Zhu said this, He Daqing's face immediately fell, and his tone became much heavier:

"That won't do. Yushui is also my daughter. I've already let her down enough by not being by her side. If I cut off her living expenses too, what kind of father am I?"

"Dad knows you're a good earner and a filial son, and wants to help me out."

"Dad isn't old, he can still work, and he earns quite a bit each month, which is more than enough to support several children."

"When I can't work anymore, I'll ask you for it. Don't be reluctant to give it to me then."

Sha Zhu laughed: "Alright, as long as you have a plan, that's fine. I won't say anything about my son; just call on him when needed."

Upon hearing this, He Daqing grinned and stretched out his right hand:

"Then lend me some money, Dad!"

Sha Zhu was stunned for several seconds, while Li Jiuzhou was suppressing a laugh.

You Fulai has just been sent away; it's best for children not to listen to what adults are saying.

After recovering, Shazhu said irritably:

"I have to say, Dad, you're really something, you really know how to find opportunities to take advantage of people."

He Daqing shrugged it off, saying, "What are you complaining about? When I borrowed money from you before, did you say you paid it back or not?"

Sha Zhu was a little angry after hearing this:

"I did return it, but I didn't ask you to return it. You insisted on giving it to me, saying that even fathers and sons should keep clear accounts."

"Besides, Dad, your salary isn't low either. Why borrow money? Is Aunt Bai using the money to subsidize her family? If so, I need to have a serious talk with her."

He Daqing waved his hand: "Zhuzi, that's not true. We still have money at home, we can still come up with more than a thousand yuan."

"Well, we'll have more kids in the future, and my next-door neighbor is moving out, so I'm thinking of getting him a place here."

"Two rooms for 800 yuan, that's a reasonable price."

"I'm asking you for some money first because I'm afraid that if I spend what I have, I won't have any money left if there's an emergency at home."

Li Jiuzhou then interjected, "Uncle-Master, how's the house?"

"That's really good! 800 yuan is a great deal. You won't lose out or be cheated."

"If we can get the land, our children can live here when they grow up."

"Jiuzhou, as you know, I have never lived in a cramped room."

"It's really troublesome for the whole family to turn over when they're all crammed together. Otherwise, I wouldn't have bought the main house in No. 95 Courtyard back then, because it's spacious."