The Spirit of Gourmet

Chapter 552 Teamwork
"Zero rejections!"

After the first day of the food marathon ended, Du Ziyan, who had found Dai Lan and Qin Lang immediately, raised his head slightly and proudly announced his achievements.

"In one whole day, I not only fulfilled all the customers' requests, but also received two 'no' cards!"

“This is only the first day.” Dylan crossed her arms, a hint of competitiveness in her eyes. “I also got zero rejections and two ‘rejection cards’!”

At this point, the two of them looked at Qin Lang at the same time.

"I also received two 'rejection cards,' but I used one." Qin Lang shrugged helplessly. "Looks like I fell behind on the first day."

Ok?
Du Ziyan and Dai Lan were both taken aback, then showed expressions of interest.

What kind of request could Qin Lang not fulfill?

"Tell me, what topic stumped you?" Du Ziyan laughed, his face showing a hint of eagerness.

If he can fulfill the requirements that Qin Lang failed to fulfill.

Doesn't that prove he's stronger than Qin Lang?
“That’s right, tell me so I can try!” Dylan, who was standing to the side, clearly had the same idea and urged him on.

Seeing the two of them like this, Qin Lang did not refuse and roughly explained the female customer's request and situation.

After listening, Du Ziyan and Dai Lan's expressions also became serious.

No wonder Qin Lang failed, given the question was like this.

Making a delicious dish isn't difficult, but recreating the taste a diner remembers is too abstract. If one could taste that flavor once, it might be possible to replicate it, but that mother has passed away, and that flavor can never be reproduced...

The two who were initially eager to try also became deflated.

"What does it taste like?" Dylan asked curiously. "Could I try some?"

“I’d like to try it too!” Du Ziyan nodded in agreement.

"Then you guys come back to the hotel with me later, and I'll do it one more time." Qin Lang nodded.

Although he had made an appointment with the female diner to try again tomorrow, he still didn't have many clues. Perhaps with the help of Du Ziyan and Dai Lan's ideas, there was a better chance of recreating the taste that the female diner remembered.

Cao Dongdong and Zhao Qian soon finished cooking and came to find Qin Lang.

However, compared to Qin Lang and the other two, their expressions were not so good.

"Qin Lang, I'm doomed!" Cao Dongdong burst into tears as soon as he saw Qin Lang. "I've already used the signs, but I've turned down more than forty customers in one day."

"Forget about making it to the end, I'll probably be eliminated tomorrow!"

"That's terrible?!" Qin Lang exclaimed in shock, then his expression turned strange as he realized something. "They're asking for desserts made with meat?"

"How did you know?!" Cao Dongdong was immediately surprised.

"Because someone else made the same request to me." Qin Lang shook his head, both amused and exasperated.

"So you refused?"

Cao Dongdong couldn't help but ask, "I really have no other choice. I refused a few at first, but more and more diners are making this request, so I have no choice but to bite the bullet and do it."

“I did fulfill that request…” Qin Lang’s expression grew increasingly strange, “But now I’m very curious, how did you manage to do it despite the difficulty?”

"Let's just do it that way." Cao Dongdong scratched his head. "Didn't the egg yolk pastry use salted egg yolks? I figured the meat is salty too, so it should be about the same..."

His tone gradually became guilty, "I chopped the meat, chopped it into minced meat, added some salt, pretended it was salted egg yolk, and then..."

"Then you persuaded more than forty diners to leave." Qin Lang shook his head.

Sure enough, Cao Dongdong's performance would be bizarrely bad whenever it came to things that had little to do with desserts.

"I'll teach you how to make fresh meat mooncakes when we get home tonight. I hope you can learn it."

To be honest, Qin Lang was a little unsure.

Cao Dongdong should be able to learn how to make mooncakes, but fresh meat... that's hard to say.

He then turned his gaze to Zhao Qian, who was standing to the side.

“I’m not as bad off as him,” Zhao Qian said, shrugging. “But I still turned down nearly twenty customers.”

At this point, she became somewhat troubled.

"Is it already this intense on the first day?"

"It's alright, the other contestants aren't in much better shape either," Qin Lang comforted them, then said, "Let's go back to the hotel first."

"Du Ziyan, Dai Lan, and I still need to work on the tofu and fish soup."

"What is that?" Zhao Qian and Cao Dongdong asked curiously.

After learning the whole story, the two became interested and even temporarily forgot about their own situation.

The group of five returned to the hotel, and soon a large pot of steaming crucian carp and tofu soup was served on the table.

"You've all had a long day, have some." After gesturing to everyone, Qin Lang served himself a bowl and took a small sip.

The rich fish soup, with a hint of ginger, leaves you feeling warm and comfortable after swallowing it.

Although he hadn't made this dish in a while, his performance remained consistently good.

However, the thought that the crucian carp and tofu soup had failed to satisfy the female diner's request made Qin Lang's mood sink again.

After a moment, Du Ziyan slowly put down the bowl in his hand.

“The soup is delicious.”

"Your attention to detail in handling the fishy smell is truly impressive. If I were making fish soup, it would be very difficult to completely eliminate the fishy smell."

After praising him, he changed the subject, "But I think that's also where you failed."

"Hmm?" Qin Lang cast a questioning look at him.

“That female customer’s mother isn’t a Spirit Chef,” Du Ziyan shrugged. “Do you think she could remove the fishy smell to this extent?”

One sentence left Qin Lang stunned.

So... removing the fishy smell too thoroughly is the reason for the failure?

“That’s not all,” Dai Lan added from the side. “You used crucian carp, which is a fairly common river fish.”

"But this is Guanling City, a crucial hub for the import of seafood into the entire Mingjing State and even the entire Dongyun region."

"What kind of fish do you think the locals would use to cook?"

"Sea fish!" Qin Lang's pupils contracted slightly.

He had completely forgotten such an important question.

River fish and seafood taste different, so it would be strange if this fish soup tasted right.

“Actually, there’s a problem with the tofu too,” Dai Lan added. “Since you came to Guanling City, have you been to any of the farmers’ markets that ordinary residents of Guanling City usually go to?”

Qin Lang shook his head.

“I have a habit of visiting the local market whenever I go to a new place,” Dylan shared her experience without reservation. “I think it’s the place that best reflects the characteristics of the local cuisine.”

"Which ingredients differ from those in other regions, which ingredients sell more, and which ingredients sell less? These comparisons reveal a wealth of information."

At this point, Dai Lan paused.

"The locals in Guanling City usually eat a different kind of tofu."

(End of this chapter)