Courtyard House: My Wife is Xu Huizhen

Hearing this, Wang Song, who was eating nearby, reached over with his chopsticks, picked up some food, and after eating it, exclaimed in surprise, "It's delicious!"

Sitting opposite him was Miao Qishan, who was skilled in Huaiyang cuisine. He also turned to the side and picked up a piece with his chopsticks. After eating it, he praised, "Zhu Zi, this dish is pretty good. You're almost ready to graduate."

“Really? I’ll try some too,” said Hu Daijun, Miao Qishan’s apprentice.

After taking a bite, they praised it highly.

Even Zhang Zusheng couldn't sit still anymore. He got up, took a bite, and looked He Yuzhu over again.

Is this kid lying about his age? He doesn't look like a 16-year-old at all; he definitely looks like he's in his 20s.

Is this because he deliberately concealed his age and had practiced his skills for many years before coming to the kitchen of Taifenglou?

Otherwise, how can we explain this old master's skill in controlling the heat? Although he had already acknowledged Hong Henian as his master, in the past two months, Hong Henian had only had him do the kitchen work and hadn't actually cooked any dishes himself.

This skill, while not top-notch, is still something that most chefs couldn't achieve even after three to five years of practice.

This is not the kind of dish a 16-year-old could cook.

Fortunately, He Yuzhu studied Sichuan cuisine, but he was skilled in Beijing cuisine. No matter how good his skills were, he couldn't threaten the chefs under his command.

“Not bad, you’re good enough to be the second cook.” Zhang Zusheng said, patting Ye Xiangqun on the shoulder, and then said, “You have to work hard, or your junior brother will kick you out.”

Ye Xiangqun smiled and said, "It's Zhu Zi's skill to have mastered the craft. It's normal that he's better than me. As long as I study hard, I'll catch up one day."

Zhang Zusheng didn't say much. Others came over to taste it, some praised it, some shook their heads and remained silent, and some made sarcastic remarks. There were all sorts of opinions.

In the blink of an eye, the whole plate of food was gone, so Hong Henian had to ask He Yuzhu to cook another one.

Xu Huizhen, who was working in the distance, looked up and saw some praise for He Yuzhu. She suddenly felt annoyed. He Yuzhu had taken her job and shone in the limelight, while she had to wash vegetables, various meats, and offal. She had had enough.

After the brief period of excitement, the chefs got busy after the meal.

As He Yuzhu prepared plate after plate of cold dishes, new notifications kept popping up in the corner of his eye.

Although I can control it with my mind and turn off the reminder, it's still pleasing to the eye, and that's the greatest reward for my work.

In the afternoon, the kitchen quieted down, and Hong Henian suddenly called out to He Yuzhu, "Come with me."

"What is it, Master?" He Yuzhu got up and followed behind.

"Just follow me."

Hong Henian didn't say much, and I led He Yuzhu to the manager's office at the front.

He knocked on the door, brought He Yuzhu in, and said to Manager Hu, "Manager, my apprentice's skills are no worse than Erzao's. Why don't we try making some dishes together?"

"He's only been here for two months, why is he trying out any dishes?" Manager Hu asked.

Kitchen staff typically only hire two types of people.

The first type is a regular helper. Even without a chef's background, you can start by doing odd jobs and cleaning, and then practice your knife skills to gradually become a chef.

The second option is a chef with culinary skills. After the shopkeeper personally tastes the dishes, he discusses the salary with the chef, and the two parties negotiate whether the chef is willing to stay and work as a chef.

He Yuzhu then realized that his master had brought him here to help him get chef treatment, since he was currently just a helper, working half a day and only earning 5 yuan a month.

I was deeply moved, after all, I was an apprentice and had only been there for less than two months, not long enough for a promotion.

Manager Hu was surprised: "Didn't He Yuzhu just start working here?"

"He just started working, but his skills are excellent."

Hong Henian then emphasized, "It's even better than several second-tier kitchens."

"Really?" Manager Hu asked, somewhat incredulously.

“Of course it’s true. Everyone said the dishes I cooked for lunch today were delicious,” Hong Henian said.

Manager Hu hesitated. Hong Henian wouldn't lie about something like this, since cooking is not something that can be verified directly.

Manager Hu was in no hurry to take He Yuzhu to taste the dishes, because this matter was not important.

The key issue is that Taifenglou's kitchen is already at full capacity, with 10 people—5 main cooks and 5 secondary cooks—already meeting the daily needs.

Even if the tasting confirms that He Yuzhu is capable of serving as the second chef, I still can't promote him.

Isn't this increasing costs?

Having an extra chef is currently unnecessary for the kitchen.

With a pained expression, he said, "Master Hong, He Yuzhu came in as a helper. Even though he used to be a chef, we don't need a chef right now, so there's no place for him."

"Is it really impossible to arrange?"

"Aren't you making things difficult for me? Ten chefs are enough to run the restaurant, and the owner won't be willing to have one more."

"In that case, don't blame me. I'm going to recommend him to another restaurant as a chef."

After saying that, Hong Henian got up to leave.

Manager Hu suddenly realized that He Yuzhu couldn't leave.

"No, Master Hong, please listen to me first. Don't rush. We can discuss this further."

If He Yuzhu were an ordinary chef, it wouldn't matter if he were let go.

Previously, some chefs didn't want to be second-in-command and wanted better career development, so they resigned from Taifenglou and went to some slightly less prestigious restaurants, where they were happy to be head chefs.

Many of these chefs have already left.

But He Yuzhu is different.

He Yuzhu is currently in charge of cold dishes and has received unanimous praise from everyone.

We're selling more cold dishes every day than ever before, all thanks to He Yuzhu, who has a special knack for seasoning.

If He Yuzhu is let go, then the previously popular cold dishes will be gone.

He glanced at He Yuzhu, then said with a wry smile, "Old Hong, you're putting me in a difficult position."

"Look at what you're saying. My apprentice's skills are so good now, what future could he have as an apprentice here with you?"

Hong Henian laughed and said, "Then I might as well send him to another restaurant to be a head chef."

"Is his cooking really that good?"

"Can I still lie to you?"

Manager Hu was in a dilemma: "But if I promote him, I won't be able to explain it to the boss."

"Isn't that your brother-in-law? What can't you explain?"

"Public matters are public, and private matters are private; I can't explain this to myself."

"Then I'll contact other restaurants and eateries tomorrow. The eight major restaurants and eight major restaurants won't work, but I can still work as a chef in a regular restaurant."

Shandong cuisine has been the main cuisine in Beijing since the Ming Dynasty. By the Qing Dynasty, there were a total of 8 top-class restaurants, and coincidentally, each of them had the character "堂" (tang) in its name.

These are the eight grand halls of Beijing.

Below the Eight Great Halls are the Eight Great Buildings, which are of a slightly lower standard than the Eight Great Halls. Tai Fung Building is one of the Eight Great Buildings.

Both of these cuisines primarily feature Shandong cuisine. For example, three of the five chefs at Taifenglou are Shandong cuisine chefs, followed by one Sichuan cuisine chef and one Huaiyang cuisine chef.

Further down are the Eight Great Residences, which no longer serve Shandong cuisine but instead offer their own private dishes and signature dishes.

Below the Eight Great Residences are the Eight Great Springs, which mainly serve Huaiyang cuisine.

This was mainly because after the founding of the Republic of China, most of the revolutionaries were from the Jiangsu and Zhejiang areas. When they entered Beijing, they also brought their hometown dishes with them.

Hong Henian said that He Yuzhu could be a head chef in other restaurants now, which is an affirmation of He Yuzhu's skills.

Manager Hu understood that if He Yuzhu didn't have this skill, Hong Henian wouldn't have had the confidence to come to him. However, the current difficulty was that he didn't have a place to accommodate He Yuzhu.

This is really a headache. So, I asked, "What do you suggest we do?"

Hong Henian had already made plans. He knew for sure that becoming a chef was impossible. After all, he couldn't just push someone out for no reason. Besides, He Yuzhu was learning Sichuan cuisine. The one who should be pushed out was his apprentice, Ye Xiangqun.

Of course, that's impossible.

He said, "Old Hu, isn't this simple? If Zhang Yong can be a knife-making master, then why can't He Yuzhu be a cold dish master?"

"this..."

Old Hu suddenly realized, "Yes, in addition to these ten stir-fry chefs, there is also a pastry chef and a knife-making chef in the kitchen."

Because Taifenglou does not value cold dishes, it has never had a dedicated cold dish chef.

What was He Yuzhu's greatest contribution to Taifenglou? It wasn't his excellent stir-frying skills, but rather the delicious taste of his cold dishes, which received unanimous praise from customers.

Others might not know, but how could Manager Hu, who deals with customers every day, not know?

People often praise him, saying that the cold dishes he's been serving lately are much tastier than before, and they've been selling particularly well lately, with some people even coming specifically to take them away.

"That's not a bad idea."

Manager Hu also figured it out. He Yuzhu had been in charge of the cold dishes for a while, and his family's traditional skills had been put to good use. After a period of testing, it had been confirmed that the skills could attract customers. So Hong Henian couldn't stand it anymore, since he was still paying him an apprentice's salary.

This is to force me to give him a raise.

Manager Hu quickly made up his mind and said, "I'll discuss it with the boss later and promote He Yuzhu to be the cold dish chef."

"That's more like it. I'll head back now."

"Walk slowly without sending."

On the way back, He Yuzhu said, "Thank you, Master."