I've been possessed by a culinary genius, and I've turned Shaxian snacks into a rip-off!

"etc!"

Li Zhibai decided to give it a shot. He hadn't gotten his hands on the fragments of brilliance yet, and his battle robe worn under his chef's uniform hadn't been revealed. He couldn't just be eliminated so easily.

"Teacher Cao, if I remember correctly, according to the competition rules, at least two of the three judges must declare a contestant eliminated for the contestant to be eliminated. You can't just decide for yourself now, can you?"

"You still want them to taste it?" Teacher Cao thought to himself, this kid is determined to make everyone experience the suffering he endured back then, isn't he?

"Of course!" Li Zhibai nodded and continued, "I spent so much time making this dish, and you want to eliminate me without even eating it? Is that fair to me? Is that fair to the pig that sacrificed its life for the culinary cause?"

Teacher Cao: "..."

This kid is really glib; no matter what he says, my vote is definitely going to get me eliminated.

He felt that the kid deliberately made the Nine-Turned Intestines dish knowing who he was, just to attract attention and become famous.

Just like that kid back then.

Just then, the other two judges also came over.

One was a middle-aged man with a round, slightly chubby face, surnamed Cai, who was a host at Jiangcheng TV. The other was a middle-aged woman with an elegant demeanor, surnamed Meng, who was the editor-in-chief of a well-known food magazine.

"Old Cao, what's wrong?" Judge Cai asked, then looked at the plate of braised pork intestines on the stove and laughed, "Oh, braised pork intestines, there aren't many contestants who dare to make this dish in a competition these days."

Editor-in-Chief Meng nodded slightly and said, "The condition looks pretty good."

Li Zhibai immediately chimed in, "Both of you have excellent taste. My large intestine is prepared using the traditional Shandong cuisine method of Nine-Turned Intestines. Blanching, boiling, frying, braising, stewing... every step is strictly done according to traditional techniques, guaranteeing it will be delicious."

Upon hearing this, the two judges bent down slightly, fanned the air with their hands, and smelled the aroma. The smell was indeed quite authentic, with a rich soy sauce flavor and no fishy or other unpleasant odors.

Then they prepared to pick up a piece with their chopsticks and taste it before giving their formal review.

Just as the two were about to taste the large intestine, Teacher Cao's voice suddenly rang in their ears.

He said he preserved the original flavor of the large intestine.

As soon as they finished speaking, their hands froze in mid-air, abruptly stopping.

Judge Cai: "..."

Editor-in-Chief Meng: "..."

What?! It retains its original flavor?

These four words are so impactful when applied to the dish "Nine-Turned Intestines" that they're almost too much for them to handle; they just want to throw their chopsticks away right now.

Judge Cai swallowed hard and asked Li Zhibai, "Um... when you said you wanted to preserve the original flavor, was that intentional or accidental?"

Li Zhibai's answer was very frank: "I did it on purpose."

The audience burst into laughter at these words.

"It was intentional, hahaha... This guy is too bold, he actually admitted it."

"I declare that the bravest and fiercest player in this competition is number 33."

"Does this guy know he's too young to compete with the other chefs, so he's just trying to get attention?"

"..."

Ignoring everyone's laughter, Li Zhibai continued, "I believe that large intestine should retain some of its original flavor. If all the flavor is washed away, then this dish will completely lose its soul."

Then he changed the subject: "Three teachers, regardless of whether you have any opinions about the dish I made, I think if you judge me out without even eating it, people will say that you teachers only decide the fate of contestants based on your subjective impressions. What kind of fairness is that?"

"Therefore, I think the three teachers should try it first before making a decision."

The three judges looked at each other, deeply conflicted.

To eat or not to eat?

If you don't eat it, people will gossip about it.

Go ahead and eat it. If this kid really does keep the original flavor, then they might become the next generation of memes.

This is a password problem; it seems unsolvable!

Yu Shen and the others in the audience couldn't help but laugh.

"Hahaha, look at the faces of those three judges, they look like they've eaten shit. They want to eat but dare not, they want to eliminate but cannot, it's so tragic..."

"Li Heizi is too clever for his trade. You want to eliminate me? Fine, then you have to take a bite. If you don't eat, then what right do you have to eliminate me?"

"This open scheme is unsolvable."

"......"

"..."

After a moment of inner struggle, Judge Cai steeled herself, closed her eyes, and stuffed the large intestine into her mouth.

One second, two seconds, three seconds...

Judge Cai, who had been prepared to secretly spit out the large intestine, gradually relaxed his pained expression after chewing a few times.

"Um?"

"Uh-huh?"

"Mmm...!!!"

"It's delicious!" Judge Cai suddenly opened his eyes and said to the other two judges with a look of surprise, "Old Cao, Teacher Meng, you should try it. This large intestine really doesn't have any strange smell at all."

Teacher Cao looked at him suspiciously. "You're not trying to fool me, are you? This kid has admitted to keeping the original flavor."

"It really doesn't taste like that?"

"No, I'd be a dog if I lied to you!"

Upon hearing this, Editor-in-Chief Meng also carefully took a small bite of the large intestine.

Her next reaction was the same as Judge Cai's; her expression changed from initial resistance to surprise.

"There's really no strange smell... and the texture is crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, with a lot of layers of flavor. It's really delicious."

"Teacher Cao, you should try it too, it really makes a difference."

Teacher Cao shook his head in continued resistance. This dish had long given him a psychological trauma, and he would never eat it, even if you killed him.

"I……"

He had just opened his mouth to say "I don't want to eat" when, with lightning speed, a hand snatched a piece of large intestine from the plate and precisely stuffed it into his open mouth.

Teacher Cao's body tensed instantly, staring at Li Zhibai with eyes like a zombie, unsure whether to vomit or not.

Seeing that he was still standing there with his mouth open, Li Zhibai very considerately reached out and pinched his mouth shut again.

"Eat up, Teacher Cao."

Teacher Cao's face gradually turned red; she was holding it in. This kid was so impolite!

He was about to curse when his mouth started chewing uncontrollably after tasting the aroma of the large intestine, and he chewed faster and faster.

And you know what? It really doesn't smell at all!

It tasted much better than he had imagined.

It was a difficult experience! Finally, I got to eat proper braised pork intestines at the competition.

Just as Teacher Cao swallowed what was in her mouth, Li Zhibai deliberately asked, "Teacher, what do you think?"

"How...how exactly did you handle it?" Teacher Cao asked.

Li Zhibai explained his handling method in detail.

"This layer of fat is the essence of the flavor of large intestine. As long as it is not damaged, the cooked large intestine will be more fragrant, chewier, and have a stronger intestinal flavor than if it is completely cleaned."

"It's just that it's hard to get the balance right. If you wash it too lightly, it will have an odor; if you wash it too heavily, it will lose all its flavor. It all depends on your feel and skill."

After listening, Teacher Cao nodded slowly, and his opinion of the boy changed significantly.

Look! Look! This is what a good chef is all about!

Although some of the original flavor of the large intestine is preserved, it's not because we were lazy and didn't clean it properly. Rather, we used meticulous techniques to separate the odor from the essence, which is what it means to respect the ingredients.

If that contestant had been half as good as him back then, he wouldn't have been afraid to touch intestines for so many years.

The other two judges also gave their formal opinions.

"Contestant No. 33, according to the competition rules, you can advance if two of our three judges pass. Teacher Cai and I both believe that your Nine-Turned Intestines dish has fully reached the level to advance. The heat control is very good, and the handling of the ingredients also shows a very high level of professionalism. Therefore, we have no objection to your advancement."

"Old Cao, what do you say?"

Teacher Cao: "You two have both passed, so whether I get my vote or not is irrelevant."

The host immediately grabbed the microphone and loudly announced, "Congratulations to contestant number 33 for successfully advancing to the next round!"