Shocking! The entire court was drooling with envy because of me.

"Now, the judges will score the tofu strips cooked by the contestants. The highest and lowest scores will be discarded, and the average score will be the final score."

"It is worth mentioning that if a player wins both the first and second rounds, it means that he can advance directly and his opponent will be eliminated."

Today's competition consists of three rounds: knife skills, cooking time, and seasoning.

In a pair of players, if one of them wins the first two rounds, it doesn't matter whether they win the last round or not.

This is also why Li Zhesheng was determined to win against Shen Qing in the next round of the competition.

As the heir to a family of imperial chefs, he cannot lose, much less be eliminated.

That would be too embarrassing.

The same selection method as the first round was used: the contestants' names were affixed to the bottom of the plates, and the servants shredded tofu one by one, shredded in tofu, in random order.

Among the various shredded tofu, two plates stood out.

Both plates of tofu strips were as thin as hair, perfectly uniform, and each strand was separate.

The difference is that one plate is arranged very neatly, with the beginning and end aligned and each piece of meat perfectly straight.

The other plate, however, showed no signs of being deliberately arranged; the shredded tofu was laid out in a relaxed and natural manner.

Putting aside the cooking skills, the uniformity of the tofu strips alone made it easy for everyone to tell that the two plates of tofu strips belonged to Li Zhesheng and Shen Qing.

The two plates of shredded tofu were placed one after the other.

Jin Ye was the first to judge, and he had great confidence in Li Zhesheng's ability to handle the situation.

Li Zhesheng's cookware alone is far superior to ordinary cookware, not to mention that he also used the whirlpool method to cook tofu.

He picked up a strip of tofu and put it in his mouth.

The moment you bite down, you feel a chewy sensation that's somewhere between crisp and smooth, followed by an incredibly tender and smooth texture.

It's a feeling of being firm at first and then tender.

The tofu has no beany smell at all; on the contrary, it is incredibly sweet.

"Great! This tofu strip is cooked just right! I'll give it to you..."

When it was time to give scores, Mr. Jin suddenly hesitated.

If we were to give it a perfect score, what if this round went to Shen Qing?

Wouldn't that be the same as the last round?

No, he needs to lower his score and try that plate again.

I give it a nine out of ten!

The shredded tofu was brought to Old Sun.

Old Sun didn't rush to eat the shredded tofu, but instead observed it carefully.

After a while, as if he had seen something, his expression relaxed a little.

Then I picked up a strip of tofu and put it in my mouth.

"Smooth and tender, excellent, deserves full marks, I give it a perfect ten!!"

Old Master Sun gave it a perfect score, which shocked everyone.

This time, Mr. Jin and Mr. Sun gave different scores.

Next up was Grandpa He. He didn't care about anything else; he took a bite and gave it a perfect score of ten.

Of the remaining four judges, Chairman Wu and Chef Zhu, who both had close relationships with Master Jin, gave him nine points, while Mr. Qingci and Mr. Fang gave him ten points.

This plate of shredded tofu received a final score of 9.6.

Next up was another plate of equally eye-catching shredded tofu.

This plate of shredded tofu is milky white overall, and its surface looks extremely delicate, like silk or freshly fallen snow.

Although not deliberately arranged, it gives people a natural and relaxed feeling.

It must be said, it is extremely beautiful.

Jin Ye picked up a shredded tofu and put it in his mouth.

When you bite down, it's incredibly tender and smooth; with a gentle press of your tongue, the tofu strands unfurl in your mouth, soft, tender, and smooth.

Swallowing it down, your mouth is filled with the pure aroma of soybeans and a refreshing, clean scent.

Jin Ye's eyes lit up.

The tofu strips we just ate were delicious, but their texture was initially firm and then smooth.

The shredded tofu in this dish is very smooth and evenly tender.

If we were to compare them, this plate of shredded tofu would be superior.

"I give it a perfect 10!!" shouted Jin Ye.

This plate of shredded tofu must have been cooked by Li Zhesheng.

Only Li Zhesheng's set of professional kitchen utensils can achieve such even and smooth texture.

Luckily, he was smart enough to lower the score for the shredded tofu earlier.

Looking at the shredded tofu in front of him, Old Sun also picked up a piece with his chopsticks and put it in his mouth.

A moment of shock flashed in his eyes.

Having served as the head chef of the imperial kitchen for many years, this was the first time he had ever encountered such tender and smooth shredded tofu!

But this just so happens...

"Nine points," Old Sun gave the score.

He observed very carefully. The plate of tofu strips from earlier—each strip had a fine, rough edge—that belonged to Li Zhesheng. He had carefully observed him during the first round of the knife skills competition.

This plate is Shen Qing's; it's smooth and photogenic, without any rough edges.

Next up was Grandpa He. After tasting it, he was so shocked he stood up: "My God, these tofu strips are so tender and smooth! I've never tasted such tender and smooth tofu strips in my entire life!!"

"Ten points! Ten points!"

"No, I feel this tofu strip dish deserves a perfect score of 100!!"

Grandpa He was overjoyed. He didn't care about status or position; all he cared about was whether the food tasted good.

The remaining judges, Chairman Wu and Chef Zhu, still followed Jin Ye's lead and gave him a score of ten.

Mr. Qingci and Mr. Fang also gave it a score of ten.

After removing the lowest score of nine, the final score for this plate of shredded tofu is ten, a perfect score.

"OMG, it's a perfect score! Who do you think made this perfect plate of shredded tofu??"

"I bet it belongs to Lee Cheol-sung. Just look at Lee Cheol-sung's kitchen utensils; every single one is extraordinary, and he even used a special timer. It must belong to Lee Cheol-sung."

"I also guessed Lee Cheol-sung!"

"It could also be Lady Shen's..."

"..."

The crowd below started discussing it.

Old Sun shook his head and took out the golden chopsticks token from his pocket.

It seems we'll have to rely on the Golden Chopsticks Token to protect Li Zhesheng this time.

"Old Sun, why did you take out the Golden Chopsticks Token?" Jin Ye couldn't help but ask when he saw it.

Old Sun's tone wasn't very friendly: "Shen Qing got full marks, and Li Zhesheng got 9.6 points. I have no choice but to take out the Golden Chopstick Token."

"How is that possible? That perfect score was clearly Lee Cheol-sung's..."

"Li Zhesheng's tofu strips have rough edges; I just examined them carefully."

"Raw edges?" Jin slapped his forehead. How could he have forgotten something so important?

Wouldn't that mean Shen Qing would win again?

Jin Ye's face darkened instantly. The die was cast, and there was no way to change the outcome.

Change the outcome?

Wait, there's another way.

Jin waved and then whispered a few words in the host's ear.

Then he turned to Old Sun and whispered:

"You don't need to rush to take out these golden chopsticks; look at mine first."

That obvious smugness reappeared on his face.

The scene was crowded and noisy, and no one noticed Jin Ye's little actions. Everyone was eagerly speculating and discussing the perfect plate of shredded tofu.

"The judges' scoring is complete. Now, I will announce the final scores of Huohou's contestants in this round!!" The host's voice rang out.