Era: You're asked to cook a home-style dish, but you cook Wellington.

In an instant, the entire audience erupted in applause and cheers that seemed to tear the roof off and soar into the sky.

"See? I told you my sister would definitely win!"

"Orthodoxy is invincible, okay?"

The audience was thrilled.

On the high platform, Nangong Lian pouted, his face full of displeasure.

"We lost again!"

He stomped his foot, put his hands on his hips, puffed out his cheeks, and looked rather speechless.

Nangong Hong, standing to the side, smiled and glanced at her younger brother with a hint of mockery in her eyes.

"How about that? Are you convinced? This is the 301st match."

Nangong Hong's voice was soft, but it always accurately hit her younger brother's weak points.

As expected, Nangong Lian immediately bristled upon hearing this, his ears turning bright red.

He glared at his sister, both embarrassed and angry.

"I refuse to accept this!"

He stubbornly argued back, even though the outcome was already decided, he still insisted on saving face and refused to accept it.

"It's just eight-treasure duck, right? Next time, I'll cook something else and I'll definitely crush you!"

Seeing her brother's fur standing on end, Nangong Hong stopped joking and reached out to stroke his head, as if comforting a puppy.

"Okay, okay, next time I'll try a different dish. I'm looking forward to you crushing me."

His action made Nangong Lian even more frustrated, so he simply turned his head to the side and remained silent.

Gu Jingzhou and Xu Qinyun looked at each other and laughed.

"Hey kid, do you really think your sister doesn't need to practice just because she's so talented?"

"Look at the space between her thumb and forefinger. Although her hands have been well-maintained, you can still tell that your sister has practiced just as much as you have."

"Losing to your sister is not shameful."

Gu Jingzhou's words were gentle and profound, like an elder patiently instructing his own child.

How could Nangong Lian not know this?

He often looked at his sister's hands.

He noticed at some point that his sister's hands were fair and delicate, but upon closer inspection, he could see a thin layer of calluses on the base of her thumb and the marks on her fingertips from years of holding knives.

He understood that his sister was not only talented, but also far more hardworking than him.

Three hundred matches had made him see through this long ago. His unhappiness was simply because he wanted to win but failed, so that his sister could comfort him.

"Ugh."

Nangong Lian sighed deeply and looked at his sister.

"I'm definitely going to beat you next time!"

He looked directly into his sister's eyes, intending to say something harsh, but the tone of his voice made it sound like he was being affectionate.

Nangong Hong looked into his eyes, which were not as calm as usual, but gentle and moist, with a hint of trust.

Although she and her brother are twins, their family's educational philosophy separated them from a young age, and they only reunited after they achieved some success.

She knew she had a younger brother, but they rarely saw each other, and this was a major reason why the two of them chose to leave the family.

She looked at her younger brother's blue hair and thought of her own red hair.

This was just a two-day sty before the competition; I really couldn't resist my younger brother's persistent pleas.

There's nothing I can do; this kid has always been mischievous since he was little. When he can't see me, he ties the letter to the puppy and makes the puppy come over.

Looking into her younger brother's wet eyes, Nangong Hong felt a pang of tenderness, even though she knew he was faking it.

"Okay, I'll wait."

She shed her usual aloofness and sharpness, revealing her gentle nature.

…………

Nighttime, in that small courtyard on the outskirts of Yicheng.

Qin Wanshan looked at Zou Li in front of him with indifferent eyes, his body surrounded by an unyielding aura of hostility.

His fingertips tapped lightly on the table, each tap sending chills down Zou Li's spine.

These past few days have been making him quite upset. He's spent a lot of money bribing the judges, but Zou Li's negative news is still plentiful.

Zou Li stood there, his body slightly hunched, cold sweat pouring down his forehead.

He didn't dare to breathe, his hands tightly gripping the hem of his clothes, filled with fear.

He understood that Qin Wanshan was paying him to support him and even giving him the recipe in order to win the championship and thus control the catering market in Yicheng.

But now, instead of stabilizing the situation, things have gone wrong frequently, thoroughly angering this major investor.

"President Qin, I don't know what happened either. I just followed the recipe you gave me step by step, and then it turned out like this."

He was trembling slightly and kept swallowing.

"You don't know either?"

Qin Wanshan glanced at him sideways and sneered.

"I think you didn't put your heart into it at all. Even Gao Yang was amazed by this recipe, and what did you do?"

"You almost got eliminated, and you call that not knowing?"

Qin Wanshan's anger intensified, and he slammed the teacup beside him onto the ground.

The teacup made a crisp sound on the ground, and Zou Li was so frightened that he immediately knelt down.

He understood perfectly well that Qin Wanshan could nurture him, but he could also completely ruin him, leaving him with no chance of ever recovering.

"President Qin, please believe in me, I can definitely do it."

Zou Li stammered, his lips trembling.

At that moment, he had no other thoughts but to survive.

But it was clear that if he didn't do a good job, he wouldn't even have a chance to survive.

Qin Wanshan looked at Zou Li kneeling on the ground, his eyes icy cold.

He spent so much money just to get a knife, but now it seems that Zou Li's knife is not sharp at all, and is even useless.

"Can?"

"Do you think you have the culinary skills to win this competition?"

Qin Wanshan chuckled.

"Putting Gao Yang aside, do you think your cooking skills are better than the Nangong siblings, or better than Shata's?"

"What do you have to offer to compete for this championship?"

Every word he said was like a sharp knife, piercing straight into Zou Li's heart.

Zou Li collapsed to the ground, his face as white as paper.

His clothes were soaked through, his lips were trembling, but he couldn't utter a single word.

He understood that with his own strength, he couldn't defeat anyone alone, and even his advancement to the preliminary rounds was due to Qin Wanshan's support.

Seeing his appearance, Qin Wanshan's disgust deepened. He knew that it was too late to replace him now, and besides, he couldn't let all the money he had saved go to waste.

He sat back down in his chair, his fingers tapping incessantly on the table. After a moment of contemplation, he slowly spoke.

"Okay, I'll give you one more chance."

Zou Li felt as if he had been granted a pardon, and he suddenly looked up, his eyes full of hope.

"President Qin, please give me your orders, and I will do whatever you say."

A smile secretly crept onto Qin Wanshan's lips.

"Your opponent today is an old foreign man. He's not in good health. If you secretly sabotage the competition, make his stove explode, then he won't be able to compete, right?"

"If you do the same thing, you'll reach the finals in just a few rounds, and you'll definitely be able to defeat your opponent."

Zou Li's pupils suddenly contracted as he looked at Qin Wanshan as if he were looking at a demon.

"This, this."

Zou Li was speechless for a moment.

He wanted fame and money, but he didn't want to kill anyone!

"What, you don't want to go?"

Qin Wanshan's tone was laced with a strong threat.

Zou Li looked at his expression, considered his own situation, and hardened his heart.

"Okay, Mr. Qin, I'll go!"