Starting from 1950

"Master Li, what are you thinking!"

Su Yang was somewhat amused and exasperated. Giving special treatment was a taboo subject at this critical juncture, so he quickly explained:

"I'd like to invite you to make the 'fried noodles' for braised carp noodles!"

"Oh! So that's what it is!"

Li Dabenshi felt relieved. Seeing that the workshop workers had already set up the oil pan and the ingredients had been delivered, he rolled up his sleeves and said with a smile, "Let's begin!"

The surrounding workers still didn't understand why Su Yang had sent Li Dabenshi there.

But these days, opportunities to see a chef show off his skills are rare, and some female employees curiously gathered around.

Li Dabenshi grabbed about three or four ounces of flour into a bowl, cracked an egg into it, and then started kneading the dough while adding water.

Li Dabenshi wasn't afraid of his skills being stolen, so he openly rubbed the dough in front of everyone.

When the dough was kneaded until smooth, he stopped and smiled, "Next, it needs to rest for 30 minutes. This workshop is a bit cold, so let's start a fire quickly!"

Upon hearing this, the worker in charge of tending the fire quickly threw two more pieces of firewood into the brick stove.

Everyone just watched, the female workers huddled together whispering and discussing the kneading technique Li Dabenshi had just used.

After half an hour.

The oil in the wok was bubbling and the aroma was wafting through the air, making the workers secretly swallow their saliva.

Li Dabenshi had already opened the small satchel he always carried.

This bag contains several family heirloom knives, which he never lets anyone touch, and he always carries them with him to work, never taking them off.

Li Dabenshi took out a small rolling pin and a knife, ready to start making dragon beard noodles.

Su Yang suddenly said, "Master Li, could you make the noodles a bit thicker, like the noodles we usually eat?"

"Thicker? Then it's not braised carp noodles, it's Yifu noodles," Li Dabenshi said, puzzled.

Su Yang laughed and said, "What we're making isn't the dragon whisker noodles from the braised carp noodles."

He naturally knew what "Yifu Noodles" were; according to legend, they were invented by an official surnamed Yi during the Qing Dynasty.

Most scholars in later generations also regard "Yifu noodles" as the predecessor of instant noodles.

The father of that traitorous instant noodles has also publicly admitted that he got his inspiration from Yifu noodles when he invented instant noodles.

Even in the new century, when instant noodles became popular worldwide and an indispensable part of people's daily diet, people in some places still called instant noodles "Yi Mian".

Su Yang didn't care about these historical anecdotes. He only brought Li Dabenshi here as a pretext to guide everyone step by step to make the "instant noodles" that he had given him on the panel.

After all, Su Yang himself is only a 12-year-old child. He was almost tricked into revealing his secrets when facing Chief Lan before, so he has no choice but to be careful.

Catching rats, improving fried noodles, and going to war—that's already quite remarkable.

The original recipe for fried noodles was public knowledge, and his improvements were also based on medical books and the legendary physician Hu from Guang Sheng Tang.

It would be highly illogical for them to suddenly produce instant noodles without any warning.

"become!"

Li Dabenshi didn't ask any more questions. He rolled the dough into a sheet and then cut it into noodles with a knife.

Just before putting it in the pot, Su Yang added, "There's one last step, I'll do it!"

As he spoke, he picked up two chopsticks and arranged the cut noodles into a rectangle.

"It's ready!"

Li Dabenshi threw the pancake into the oil pan.

"Sizzle!"

The aroma of deep-frying wafted from the pan, making the workers swallow even more frequently.

Before long, under the eager gaze of everyone, Li Dabenshi scooped a golden-brown dough out of the oil.

Ruan Sumei's eyes lit up: "Su Yang, do you want the frontline soldiers to use this as dry rations, to replace fried noodles?"

Wang Cui frowned and said, "This stuff can't replace fried noodles, and the oil it uses... is too wasteful. We can't afford it."

Su Yang didn't rush to explain to them. Instead, he took out a lunchbox from his backpack and called out to the workers, "Could someone please bring me a lunchbox of water? Freshly boiled water!"

"I'll go!" a team leader said with a smile.

There is a tea room between Workshop 1 and Workshop 2, which the factory built to ensure that the workers could have hot water.

A moment later, a lunchbox of boiled water was brought back.

Amidst the puzzled looks of the crowd, Su Yang placed the pancake into the lunchbox and closed the lid.

"It really is similar to the way Yi Fu noodles are eaten!" Li Dabenshi raised his eyebrows and said.

Wang Cui still didn't understand. She thought to herself, "Wasn't it already fried? Why is it being simmered in boiling water again?"

Ruan Sumei couldn't help but chime in, "I remember now, I ate Yifu noodles at a restaurant in Beijing before... I remember they had shredded chicken and shrimp in them, it was quite delicious."

Su Yang knew that Aunt Mei had seen it all before in the Eight Great Hutongs, so he smiled and said to her, "We can't afford to add shredded chicken and shrimp. We have our own way of eating."

"Okay!" He estimated that three minutes had passed and opened the lunchbox.

"Huh? This tastes like this?"

"It smells delicious, I wonder how it tastes?"

"Of course! Does that mean it'll smell good if you deep-fry it?"

The table was surrounded by workers, and those on the outside could only smell the odor, making them anxious and restless.

Su Yang sprinkled a small pinch of salt into the lunchbox and gestured to Wang Cui, "Aunt Wang, would you like to try some?"

Wang Cui hesitated for a moment, and Li Dabenshi couldn't help but chime in, "Director Wang, these noodles are definitely cooked."

He knew how to make Yifu noodles; they were fried and then boiled again.

He had never seen this way of eating before, soaking it in boiling water, and wondered what it would taste like.

Amidst everyone's expectant gazes, Wang Cui picked up a few noodles with her chopsticks and put them in her mouth. Then, everyone noticed that her eyes lit up, and she quickly ate two more bites.

"Not bad! Su Yang, this noodle tastes pretty good." She gave a thumbs up.

Su Yang smiled and called to everyone, "Come on, everyone! Try it and give me your feedback so we can improve it gradually!"

Upon hearing this, the workers, who had been waiting impatiently, all pushed forward.

"I'll try it first!"

"Leave me a bite!"

The pancake wasn't very big to begin with, but more than a hundred people wanted to try it. In the end, most of them didn't get to taste it, including the chef Li Dabenshi and Su Yang.

Those who received noodles didn't get to taste them properly because the portion was too small.

Su Yang smiled, not angry at all, and said to Li Dabenshi, "Master Li, please make some more this time."

Li Dabenshi was also curious about what noodles made this way would taste like, and nodded upon hearing this.

This time, he mixed a whole basin of dough.

After proofing, rolling out the dough, and cutting the noodles, he directly followed Su Yang's previous method to arrange the dough into portions and put them into the oil pan.

"Sizzle—!"

As each pancake was placed into the pan, the rich aroma of wheat mixed with the caramelized scent of oil forcefully filled everyone's nostrils.

Not only were the workers in Workshop 1 swallowing their saliva incessantly, but even the people in Workshop 2 across the street smelled the aroma and started peering over the doorway.

Li Dabenshi stood by the pot, focused, gently turning the dough in the pot with long bamboo chopsticks to ensure that they were heated evenly, would not stick together, and would not burn.

A few minutes later, the first batch of seven or eight golden, puffed-up, and crispy flatbreads were scooped out of the oil and placed in a bamboo basket lined with a clean cloth to drain.

Its tempting color and rich aroma make you want to take a bite right away.