Chapter 355

After the first plate of stir-fried yam was finished, Qin Huai immediately stir-fried the second plate.

Actually, for a demonstration, one plate would have been enough, but it was mainly because Qin Huai was used to it. He felt uncomfortable all over if he didn't finish stir-frying these ten yams; he had to finish them in one go.

Zheng Siyuan and the other two stood on the sidelines, watching intensely. All of them had their arms crossed over their chests, brows slightly furrowed, and eyes focused, their gazes moving along with Qin Huai's actions. The three of them standing there looked like they had been copy-pasted.

Soon, the second plate of stir-fried yam was also finished.

Just like the first plate, it was a very qualified plate of stir-fried yam. The knife skills were qualified, the heat control was qualified, and it could even be called decent. The sauce thickening was excellent. Combined, this plate of stir-fried yam could earn praise from customers even in an ordinary restaurant.

Do not underestimate this adjective; one must know that with Qin Huai's previous culinary skills, he would have been complained about by customers if he went to cook in an ordinary restaurant.

Every time Qin Huai and Qin Luo embezzled the meal budget and decided to cook at home, it was a huge gamble.

Zang Liang held the first plate of stir-fried yam, eating while watching Qin Huai cook. The more he watched, the more he felt that Qin Huai had already become a qualified canteen chef for the community.

In any case, Zang Liang felt that Qin Huai surpassing the two savory chefs at Yunzhong Canteen was just a matter of time. The two savory chefs in the canteen were truly very average. They were okay at home-style stir-fries, but as soon as they had to make big dishes, they exposed countless flaws, especially with the preserved vegetable braised pork.

Zang Liang still couldn't understand how the preserved vegetable braised pork could be made like that.

During the few days Qin Huai was away, Zang Liang had consciously taken over the work of preparing staff meals. At first, Zang Liang actually didn't want to be responsible for staff meals; chefs at large restaurants were basically like this—staff meals were considered extra work and a thankless task, usually handled by chefs with poorer skills on a rotating basis. Some master chefs wouldn't eat the staff meals and would cook two small dishes for themselves to eat.

Zang Liang never ate staff meals at his own workplace; he always ate the special meals prepared by his master.

But Zang Liang didn't expect that the staff meals at Yunzhong Canteen would be so hard to eat. After one or two meals, he felt it was okay, but after more, Zang Liang couldn't stand it anymore.

He was different from children from ordinary families like Qin Huai who grew up eating home-cooked meals. Zang Liang had apprenticed under Zang Mu from a very young age. Zang Liang's good palate was not only innate but also cultivated by Zang Mu feeding him one bowl of high-quality soup dish after another.

This teaching method was very common among old-school master-apprentice relationships. Whether it was Cao Guixiang, Zheng Da, or Huang Shengli, they all ate a great many high-quality, big dishes at the beginning of their training. Besides broadening the apprentice's horizons and setting goals, it was also to cultivate the apprentice's palate.

Zang Liang, who had eaten top-tier Huaiyang cuisine since he was a child, had never lived such a hard life. On the second day of Qin Huai's trip to Guangdong Province, without anyone suggesting that Zang Liang make the staff meals, Zang Liang took the initiative to shoulder the heavy responsibility of making them.

Of course, Zang Liang cooked the staff meals casually—stir-fried rice, two vegetable dishes, and a small stir-fried meat dish were what Zang Liang provided for everyone. He made his own meals more meticulously, eating special meals with Zheng Siyuan and Tan Weian.

Of course, the staff could also choose not to eat the staff meals Zang Liang made and eat the regular dishes instead.

Then, after tasting Zang Liang's cooking, all the staff at Yunzhong Canteen chose the stir-fried vegetables and small stir-fried meat. Don't ask; if you ask, it's because summer is coming soon and everyone needs to lose weight, so eating more vegetables is better for the body.

Even Ouyang joined the happy ranks of eating staff meals, sitting at the kitchen door every day with his tray to eat.

Even the two savory chefs at Yunzhong Canteen ate the staff meals Zang Liang made.

When Zang Liang first came to Yunzhong Canteen, he thought he was here to help out and do some work for Qin Huai. Every day, besides researching the sauce thickening for the crab roe paste with Qin Huai, he would help the back kitchen stir-fry a few simple dishes in his spare time.

As it turned out, plans couldn't keep up with changes. Zang Liang first discovered that he couldn't research the sauce thickening for the crab roe paste at all; he hadn't even found the "feeling" for the crab roe paste. Then he discovered that he had no spare time to help the back kitchen stir-fry simple dishes because he hadn't even found the "feeling" yet; he wished he could spend every day from the moment he opened his eyes searching for that "feeling."

In the end, although he had no spare time, he took over the staff meals at Yunzhong Canteen for the sake of his own food.

Sometimes when Zang Liang looked back at what he had done over the past few days, he felt that he was actually a master chef invited by Qin Huai from thousands of miles away specifically to be in charge of staff meals, used to motivate the work enthusiasm of the Yunzhong Canteen staff.

Don't ask; if you ask, it's because the benefits are good and the staff meals are Huaiyang cuisine.

The three of them just stood there by Qin Huai's side, watching him stir-fry one plate after another, and Zang Liang also ate one plate after another, eating until he was hiccuping.

Finally, when Qin Huai was stir-frying the last plate, Tan Weian asked very quietly, even a bit guiltily: "What level is Qin Huai's sauce thickening at now? Why do I feel like his sauce thickening has become normal, and it seems even better than mine..."

"Yes, your feeling is not wrong." Zang Liang affirmed Tan Weian's feeling, "Qin Huai's sauce thickening level is indeed higher than yours now."

"His sauce thickening is very normal now. Whether it's the grasp of timing, the ratio of starch water, or the mastery of the dish's heat, there are no problems. If you were asked to stir-fry a plate of yam now, you might not necessarily do it as well as Qin Huai."

Tan Weian:... Thanks, we don't want this kind of feeling.

Tan Weian said weakly: "I am... a pastry chef, after all; of course, my stir-fried yam is very average..."

Tan Weian had a few more words he didn't say, but when he uttered the word "average," he had already realized where the problem in his words lay.

He was a pastry chef, and Qin Huai was also a pastry chef. Qin Huai was even a pastry chef from an unconventional background, a pastry chef with a very poor foundation in savory cooking, a pastry chef who needed to cut a large amount of radishes every day to practice basic skills, a pastry chef who, when stir-frying, couldn't even wield the spatula properly and always felt something was strange.

It was precisely such a pastry chef who, when he could stir-fry a decent plate of yam, allowed those who knew him to intuitively feel how obvious, how terrifying, and how rapid his progress was.

Now, even if Qin Huai told Tan Weian, "Actually, I have a magical artifact; my day has 240 hours, and although I seemingly went back for advanced training for 6 days, I actually went back for 60 days," Tan Weian would believe it.

Tan Weian didn't understand, and couldn't understand. He directly snatched the chopsticks from Zang Liang's hand and picked up a slice of stir-fried yam to put in his mouth. The yam was stir-fried well; it had a crisp texture when eaten, and the sauce was coated very evenly and thinly, which was very suitable for the yam, which already had a viscous feeling.

Not to mention the seasoning; Qin Huai wouldn't mess up the seasoning even when he could barely stir-fry the dish.

It was worlds apart from the plate of yam Qin Huai stir-fried when he first tried to imitate Cao Guixiang's sauce thickening.

A thousand words, after finishing this slice of stir-fried yam, finally turned into one sentence.

"How did he do it?" Tan Weian sighed, "Is he a freak?"

Zheng Siyuan nodded silently: "Is this your first day knowing Qin Huai?"

Tan Weian:...

Sorry, he was being abrupt.

Compared to Tan Weian and Zheng Siyuan, Zang Liang seemed very excited. Even though he was already full, he insisted on eating the stir-fried yam, and the more he ate, the more he felt that Qin Huai's progress was truly astonishing.

This wasn't just a little bit of progress; it was a qualitative leap in progress at a certain stage.

He must have found the "feeling"; that "feeling" of Qin Huai's was the secret to this progress!

Master, your apprentice is about to find that "feeling" you talked about!

When you finish your exchange abroad and return to the country, your apprentice will also give you a surprise just like the one Qin Huai gave us today!

Qin Huai finished stir-frying all the yams.

How should he put it? Satisfying.

Having stir-fried yams day and night for several days, this practice method of cutting ten yams in a row and stir-frying several plates in a row had already been engraved into Qin Huai's DNA. Cutting one less wouldn't do; cutting one less meant he wouldn't have that "feeling."

Qin Huai felt that this good habit of stir-frying yams could be maintained. At the current stage, stir-frying yams was the most suitable way for him to brush up on his knife skills and heat control proficiency, while also being able to practice sauce thickening, laying a good foundation for the double crab buns.

Killing many birds with one stone.

"How was it?" Qin Huai turned his head and saw the amazement in the eyes of the three, feeling refreshed; the pain brought by the devilish training of the previous few days vanished in an instant.

Sure enough, if a person doesn't show off after achieving something, what is the point of that achievement?

"How did you do it?" Zang Liang asked the same question, but his eyes were different from before. Previously, Zang Liang's eyes were full of thirst for knowledge; now, Zang Liang's eyes were full of amazement, worship, and the determination that he must learn it.

"I know I've already asked this question, and you told me that to practice seasoning, one must practice knife skills and heat control to find the 'feeling.' But how exactly does one find this 'feeling'? How to practice it? At my current level, how should I practice knife skills and heat control? Should I stir-fry yams like you? Or practice other dishes?" Zang Liang threw out several questions in a row.

Tan Weian:?

Come on, buddy, you actually believe Qin Huai's nonsense? Do you think it's reasonable that to practice seasoning, one must first practice knife skills and heat control?

However, Qin Huai's progress was indeed a bit astonishing. They say that folk remedies cure serious illnesses; could it be that these kinds of weird tricks often win by surprise?

Tan Weian had been very troubled by his dough leavening level recently. He began to seriously consider whether he had taken the wrong direction; if he wanted to practice dough leavening, he couldn't just practice dough leavening—he needed to practice filling preparation and pastry folding more.

Hmm, when he had time, he would research it with Su Gan; Su Gan was relatively good at pastry folding.

Qin Huai fell into silence again.

His silence this time wasn't because he was slow-witted, but because he simply didn't know how to answer. Zang Liang's savory cooking level was much higher than his; he simply didn't know what Zang Liang should practice.

But Qin Huai could see that Zang Liang really wanted to know; Zang Liang was the one who wanted to find the "feeling" the most among the believers of the "feeling school."

He was also the one with the most potential.

Tan Weian couldn't find it, and Zheng Siyuan disdained to find it. Only Zang Liang truly wanted to follow in Qin Huai's footsteps and explore the true meaning of the "feeling."

Qin Huai didn't want to let down such a loyal believer.

For Zang Liang's sake, Qin Huai racked his brains, trying hard to organize his language, and said: "How about this, I'll tell you what the 'feeling' I found while cutting and stir-frying yams is."

"Okay, okay, okay." Zang Liang nodded frantically.

Qin Huai began to elaborate in detail on those two completely different but very effective and transcendent "feelings."

There wasn't a single lie; it was all the truth. To make his language seem less lacking, he even used idioms.

It was very detailed; Qin Huai even talked about his inner activities and how he thought about learning hard-pen calligraphy when he was a child while practicing.

Zang Liang listened with full attention, Zheng Siyuan listened with great interest, and Tan Weian listened as if he understood but didn't quite get it.

After talking for a full half-hour, Qin Huai finally finished explaining those two mysterious "feelings."

By the time he finished, Qin Huai's mouth was dry. If it weren't for Su Gan being very observant and handing over tea to moisten Qin Huai's throat, Qin Huai felt his throat would probably be hoarse by now.

Eh, wait, why did Su Gan just hand him tea?

Qin Huai looked closely and discovered that the apprentices from Zhi Wei Ju who came for the exchange were all slacking off, one by one. Saying they were slacking off wasn't accurate; they were all pretending to work hard, but in reality, they were secretly eavesdropping, putting on a busy appearance while doing nothing, and they must have heard a lot.

Even Gu Li was eavesdropping at the cooking station not far away.

Not to mention Li Hua and Pei Xing; they had almost crowded up to Tan Weian's side, listening openly.

Qin Huai:...?

Was he just speaking so vividly, eloquently, and engagingly?

Was his ability to express the truth so good now?

Seeing Qin Huai look toward them, everyone dispersed in embarrassment; even Su Gan just silently added a cup of tea and walked away with the pot.

Everyone knew Qin Huai's temper and personality very well. Since Qin Huai was willing to talk about this in public, and his voice was getting louder as he spoke, it meant he didn't mind everyone listening. However, even though Qin Huai didn't mind, he didn't actively invite everyone to listen together; of course, it was better to listen secretly to this kind of eavesdropping.

In reality, Qin Huai didn't mind at all. He looked directly at Zang Liang: "Do you roughly understand what kind of 'feeling' I'm talking about now?"

Zang Liang said thoughtfully: "I understand a little bit."

"This is like the epiphany of the protagonist in a martial arts novel; it requires a large amount of practice accumulated to a certain point, and then, through a stroke of luck, breaking through the bottleneck, opening up the Ren and Du meridians, and having an epiphany in one go."

"So when my master said I hadn't found the 'feeling,' it wasn't that my strength wasn't enough, but that my accumulation was already enough, yet I hadn't had an epiphany."

"I had been practicing seasoning diligently, falling into a dead end of seasoning; the more I practiced, the more anxious I became, the more anxious I was, the less I could touch the edge, and the less I could touch the edge, the less I had the 'feeling'."

"Just like how I had been thinking about what the 'feeling' of crab roe paste was for the past few days; my mind was always thinking about crab roe paste, so I couldn't find the 'feeling' of crab roe paste even more. These past few days, I started to put my mind on sauce thickening, and when I stopped thinking about what crab roe paste the double crab buns needed, I instead understood a bit of the 'feeling' that crab roe paste needs to find."

"I understand now; no wonder you told me that to practice seasoning, one must practice knife skills and heat control. When a person falls into a dead end, they can't think of a solution. Knife skills, heat control, and seasoning are all basic skills of savory cooking; the three complement each other, and all roads lead to Rome."

"Just because I can't get through on the road of seasoning doesn't mean I can't get through on the road of knife skills and heat control. If one road is blocked, I can take a detour from the other two roads. As long as I practice knife skills and heat control enough and well enough, my seasoning can have an epiphany and find the 'feeling' in one go!"

Qin Huai:... How do you understand? Why don't I understand?

Before Qin Huai could speak, Zang Liang continued: "I understand again."

"A person just shouldn't drill into a dead end. I kept thinking about how to improve seasoning, my mind was full of seasoning, and the more I thought, the less it worked. Actually, not only can I practice knife skills and heat control, but I can also practice sauce thickening. Sauce thickening is also a technique; changing things to practice, changing the mood, changing the mindset."

"With a different mindset, the state is different. If the state is right, naturally I can find the 'feeling' you talked about. I know what the 'feeling' you talked about is! Thank you, Qin Huai!"

"This 'feeling' is really hard to understand; your explanation is really so clear. Tan Weian even said you were slow-witted; your mouth is not slow-witted at all."

Tan Weian:???

Come on, buddy.

"Yes, that's the 'feeling'; I finally know what the 'feeling' is. Qin Huai, when do we start practicing sauce thickening?"

"Don't worry, you've done me such a big favor; I will definitely stay at Yunzhong Canteen until your double crab buns are successfully made! What dishes do you want to eat at noon? As long as it's something I can make, I can make it. In the future, just list the menu for me one day in advance for whatever you want to eat every day, and I'll come early every day to prepare for you."

"Wow, this 'feeling' is really great; so the 'feeling' you talked about is this kind of 'feeling.' Tonight, I'm going to call my master; I want to tell him this good news!"

Qin Huai:...

What did he say? How did Zang Liang understand it all at once?

Forget it, it's not important. Qin Huai knew that from today on, their "feeling school" had added another great general.

Qin Huai smiled and said: "Then."

"Shall we start practicing the sauce thickening for the crab roe paste now?"

"Okay!"

(End of chapter)