The Courtyard House: Xu Damao's Aunt is the Queen of Women

"Haha, Comrade Liu Lan, you flatter me. My skills are nothing special; I just learned a little from my elders."

Nan Yi waved his hand, put the lid on the pot, and said with a smile, "This method looks sophisticated, but in the end, it all boils down to the same thing: choosing the right ingredients and controlling the heat more precisely. Compared to those real chefs, my skills are still far from being up to par."

He turned to look at the crowd surrounding him, his tone sincere.

"What I taught you today are the most basic techniques. After you practice a few more times and master the control of the heat, your braised pork may not be any worse than mine."

"If you don't understand anything, feel free to ask me. Don't be shy, I'll teach you if I can."

Clap clap clap, the crowd gave Nan Yi a warm round of applause, expressing their heartfelt admiration for his character.

In this era, most craftsmen regarded their core skills as the foundation for their livelihood. Masters and apprentices would always hold back some of their skills when passing them on, let alone teach outsiders everything they knew.

Nan Yi's initiative to share his royal-level culinary secrets not only demonstrates his absolute confidence in his skills but also makes him stand out in the conservative kitchen community, instantly winning everyone's genuine respect.

Compared to Sha Zhu's reliance on bullying and hoarding to maintain his dominance in the kitchen, Nan Yi's approach of winning people over by sharing his skills is clearly much more sophisticated.

This open and selfless style allowed him to quickly gather a group of people who trusted him in the canteen, thus undermining the influence left by Sha Zhu and paving the way for him to gain a foothold in the steel mill canteen and replace Sha Zhu's position.

The MCA member, huddled in the corner, looked bewildered, his resolve beginning to waver.

Having been apprenticed to Sha Zhu for so many years, all Sha Zhu has taught him is how to use him like a donkey and teach him some cooking skills. He doesn't teach him anything else and treats him like a thief.

Is it really necessary to continue to show respect and follow this kind of master?

The fat man moved closer to Ma Hua and whispered, "Ma Hua, don't be silly. Quickly apologize to Master Nan and learn cooking skills from him properly from now on. If you miss this opportunity, you won't get another one."

"I...this...Master..."

Ma Hua, who is honest and simple-minded and lacks assertiveness, was bullied in the canteen. It was Sha Zhu who stood up for him. When Ma Hua wanted to learn a skill to make a living, it was Sha Zhu who took him on as an apprentice, giving him the confidence to stand on his own two feet.

To him, Sha Zhu was not only his master but also a reliable support who could shield him from the wind and rain. Even if Sha Zhu kept his secrets and didn't teach him the real skills, he was reluctant to leave this big tree.

After a moment of hesitation, Ma Hua's gaze hardened, and he turned his head away from the fat man.

"I won't learn; I only have Sha Zhu as my master!"

"..."

The fat man was speechless. To him, nothing was more real than solid skills and the aroma of meat. Whoever could teach him real skills, he would sincerely acknowledge as his master.

Fine, if you won't learn it, I will. You'll be envious of me later!

"Sister Lan, what are you doing?"

Just then, a voice came from the kitchen doorway. Everyone turned to look and saw Liu Hao.

"Hey, isn't this my little brother? Come on in."

Liu Lan warmly welcomed Liu Hao in and pointed to Nan Yi, introducing him: "Brother, this is Nan Yi, the new head chef of our third canteen. Chef Nan, let me tell you, Chef Nan is a descendant of the imperial chefs. His cooking skills are superb, much better than Sha Zhu's. Sha Zhu isn't even worthy to carry Chef Nan's shoes."

Nan Yi blushed at the praise and said modestly, "Oh, Comrade Liu Lan, you're exaggerating. Don't flatter me like that. My cooking skills are just so-so."

Liu Lan sighed inwardly. If she hadn't followed Li Huaide, she would have definitely tried her best to win over Nan Yi, who was both a man of good character and skilled craftsmanship.

"Look, brother, not only is Chef Nan a great cook, but his character is also impeccable. If it were that scoundrel Sha Zhu, he'd be wagging his tail up to the roof."

"Master Nan, this is Liu Hao, the accountant in our factory's finance department. He's a top student who graduated from the Finance and Trade Cadre School."

Liu Hao sized up An Jiahe... no, he meant Nan Yi.

But the childhood trauma of An Jiahe, with his ferocious and deranged expression, still subconsciously surfaced in his mind.

"I've heard about Chef Nan's culinary skills for a long time. You might not know this, but I was the one who recommended Chef Nan to Factory Director Li."

Upon hearing this, the kitchen fell completely silent.

Liu Hao recommended Nanyi to Li Huaide?

Nan Yi asked in surprise, "Accountant Liu, you know me?"

"I don't know you, but I've heard that you are the young master of Yaheju Restaurant and a disciple of the imperial chefs. A few days ago, He Yuzhu from the third canteen was punished for flipping the wok. The factory can't function without a head chef, so I recommended you, Chef Nan, to Director Li."

Upon hearing this, Nan Yi smiled broadly, feeling extremely grateful to the tall, handsome young man.

A few days ago, Qiu Zhongbei, the director of the second canteen of the steel rolling mill, went to the Fifth Machinery Factory and asked him if he would like to be transferred to the steel rolling mill.

He definitely wouldn't want to, because he and Ding Qiunan had only been dating for a short time. He was transferred to the steel rolling mill, and what if Ding Qiunan fell in love with someone else?

But Qiu Zhongbei insisted on transferring him to the steel rolling mill, so he had no choice but to voice his concerns.

Then, Ding Qiunan was also transferred to the medical department of the steel rolling mill.

It's good to be transferred to the steel rolling mill. It's so much better to be away from that scoundrel Cui Dake who's always sowing discord and causing trouble. It's so peaceful now.

But Li Huaide had a condition: he had to teach cooking.

He agreed without hesitation!

"Oh, I see. Well then, I must thank Accountant Liu properly. I'll treat you to dinner after get off work tomorrow."

"this……"

Seeing that Liu Hao was about to refuse, Nan Yi quickly said, "We can't refuse!"

"All right."

Liu Hao nodded in agreement and asked, "Can I bring my wife?"

"Of course, is Accountant Liu married?"

The fat man said, "Master Nan, Accountant Liu's girlfriend is Ye Juan from the publicity department of our steel rolling mill. She's also the most beautiful woman in our factory!"

Nan Yi was very curious. Could she be even prettier than He Xiaomeng, who came to the third canteen for lunch today?

When he saw He Xiaomeng at noon, he was truly amazed by her beauty.

"Haha, with Accountant Liu being so handsome, his wife must be stunningly beautiful too!"

Liu Hao took out a bottle of Daqianmen cigarettes and swiped it around, then said with a smile, "You flatter me, you flatter me. A pretty face is a dime a dozen, but a humble character is what truly matters. Who among us isn't a genuine person with a clear conscience and warmhearted manner? That's far more valuable than any physical appearance."

The group exchanged glances and all gave Liu Hao a thumbs up.

As expected of a highly educated and cultured person, he speaks so eloquently.

Liu Lan clicked her tongue: "Little brother, you have such a sweet tongue. No wonder Ye Juan likes you. By the way, weren't you two just dating? How did you become husband and wife?"

"We got our marriage certificate yesterday, so she's my wife now."

Liu Lan beamed and clapped her hands, saying, "Oh, congratulations! When are you having the banquet? You have to invite me!"

Nan Yi immediately said, "I'll prepare the feast for you!"

Liu Hao came to invite Nan Yi to host the banquet because he met Grandpa Niu, who was waiting for him at the door, on his way to work this morning and told him some bad news.

Last night, his third son went out to buy something, slipped, and broke his leg.

"How could I possibly do this? Wouldn't that be too much trouble for Master Nan?"

"No trouble at all, Accountant Liu, please don't be so polite!"