Abnormal Gourmet Chronicle-Chapter 784 - 397: The Chef’s Heart

Although Qin Huai didn’t understand why Zheng Da was crying over the Four Happiness Rolls just like in his dream last night, he wasn’t surprised, only feeling a bit melancholic and forlorn.

He even felt a little bit happy for his dear Master Zheng.

Gong Liang originally wanted to eat some Four Happiness Rolls, but seeing Zheng Da like this, he exchanged a surprised glance with Huang Shengli. Understanding the meaning in Huang Shengli’s eyes, he quietly stepped forward and gently patted Qin Huai and Zheng Siyuan, indicating that everyone should leave for now, even if it meant just moving to the kitchen entrance.

At the very least, leave this area and all the Four Happiness Rolls on the plate for Zheng Da.

The others were tactful enough not to approach or inquire, even the most gossip-prone Dong Shi kept his eyes to himself and diligently cut vegetables at the chopping board.

The group walked to the kitchen door, ensuring they were far enough away so that the weeping Zheng Da couldn’t hear their conversation. Only then did Zheng Siyuan begin to ask with slight astonishment, "Uncle, what... what’s happening with my dad?"

Huang Shengli sighed.

"I also didn’t expect your dad’s reaction to be so intense. Xiao Tan and Xiao Gu, you probably don’t understand this, so you can directly ask Little Ninth later."

"Si Yuan, what did your dad tell you about the Four Happiness Rolls?"

Zheng Siyuan thought for a moment, "My dad said it was a snack his grandmaster made every New Year at the State owned Restaurant. He wasn’t very good at it, couldn’t sell it, the price wasn’t too simple, not too complicated, so he didn’t like making it."

"But he was used to eating Four Happiness Rolls every New Year since he was a kid, and he and my mom got accustomed to it, so they would make it at home each year during the New Year."

"I always thought that was just his excuse for not doing it well because I heard Uncle Gong say that when his grandmaster retired, my dad got scolded really badly by customers for making Four Happiness Rolls, leaving a psychological shadow, so he only made it in secret at home."

Huang Shengli nodded helplessly, "I used to think so too, but now it seems we underestimated him."

Qin Huai saw in Huang Shengli’s expression that there might be another version of this story, and with Huang Shengli’s current attitude, it was apparent that this version of the story could be shared right there.

"So, Master Huang, what is the real situation?" Qin Huai asked.

Gong Liang also shot a questioning look at Huang Shengli, his face filled with the words, ’Is there something I don’t know? Weren’t we all good buddies back then? Are you forming small cliques behind my back?’

"Back then, Zheng Da did indeed get secretly criticized by the neighbors for his Four Happiness Rolls, but it wasn’t as overwhelmingly negative as you might imagine. At most, people mumbled during idle chats, saying Zheng Da wasn’t up to master’s standards, then sighed about how the master abruptly fell ill and retired, thinking he could’ve continued for a few more years."

"The State owned Restaurant back then was different from now. It was actually more like the community cafeteria you run, Xiao Qin, where many of the customers were neighbors everyone had known for years. I was in meat cooking, and Zheng Da was in pastry. I only needed to cook in the kitchen, but Zheng Da had to sell the buns outside. Especially during his apprenticeship years, Zheng Da was the one selling all the buns, breads, and shaomai at the State owned Restaurant."

"In modern online terms, both Zheng Da and I grew up under the watchful eyes of our customers who were also our neighbors."

"Given this feeling and relationship, do you think that even if Zheng Da didn’t make the Four Happiness Rolls well during New Year, how harsh could the criticism have been?"

Hearing this, Gong Liang nodded in agreement, "Indeed, if you mean standing there shouting in his face, that certainly never happened. The amount of criticism Zheng Da got back in those years probably wasn’t even as much as I get in a month as a salesperson nowadays."

"However, that’s just how he is. If someone truly pointed their finger at his nose and criticized his snacks for being worthless, he might not have been that angry, just unconvinced. But if everyone looked at him with disappointment or just sighed and shook their heads without saying anything, he would genuinely be upset."

"I used to think that way too," Huang Shengli said, "But now it seems that’s not the case."

"Back then, master’s sudden illness was quite unexpected, and the chef’s career is essentially physical work. If your health isn’t good, you can’t be a chef. Even though master was physically handicapped with one leg, his health was generally good enough to continue working for a few more years."

"No one expected that a mere cold would affect master’s health to the point that he couldn’t handle the physical demand, thus leading to his illness and retirement. In fact, at that time, it wasn’t a big deal. Even in the first year when Zheng Da took over and the Four Happiness Rolls didn’t turn out well, he didn’t really ... really care much about it."

"After all, the reviews on every snack that year were not great, just that the Four Happiness Rolls had the worst review."

"It wasn’t until the second year, after the accident happened to master, that Zheng Da began to care deeply about the Four Happiness Rolls."

"An accident?" Qin Huai didn’t quite understand.

"At that time, master was cooking alone at home using a coal stove, and the stove toppled over. The coals covered his only good leg, and he passed out from the pain until Zheng Da and I got home from work and found him."

"He was supposed to be taken to the hospital on a cart, but then Gong Liang quickly borrowed a car from the factory, getting him to the hospital just in time to save his life, but his good leg was lost."

"Ever since then, master’s health and mental state have drastically declined. He began staying home by himself, not going out even though Zheng Da and I hired a carpenter to make a custom wheelchair for him."

"Later, Gong Liang managed to find a family on the first floor to swap homes with master, but even that didn’t improve his condition. We thought it was because master couldn’t accept reality and felt down, so we tried to cheer him up, spending that New Year with Gong Liang’s family."

Gong Liang showed a look of realization, indicating he remembered.

"I remember Zheng Da mentioned during that New Year’s dinner that he felt the stuffing for the Four Happiness Rolls wasn’t right, that it shouldn’t use diced fatty pork, didn’t he?" Gong Liang asked.

"Yes, Zheng Da said that, but by then it was late, and master wasn’t in good spirits so I reckon he didn’t hear him clearly."

"At the time, Zheng Da was just making excuses as to why his Four Happiness Rolls weren’t any good, he didn’t really care much about it then. It wasn’t until the next New Year’s when he was making Four Happiness Rolls again that he brought it up."

"But by then, master’s health was poor and his memory had greatly declined, even becoming a bit confused."

"I don’t remember what exactly master said then, but it was probably something about there surely being a better recipe but requiring Zheng Da to explore it himself."

"Did Zheng Da also say that he would definitely make Four Happiness Rolls better than Master Jing’s on New Year’s Eve?" Gong Liang asked again.

"Yes," Huang Shengli nodded once more, followed by a sigh, "In fact, Zheng Da said that back then just to cheer up master for the New Year, but unfortunately, master didn’t live until the next year’s New Year, passing away that autumn."

"We all knew that Zheng Da made Four Happiness Rolls every New Year secretly at home, but no one called him out, precisely because of this matter."

"However, I thought it was because the Four Happiness Rolls prompted painful memories for him, just like when the boss didn’t let him become a master, he was furious but refused to admit it, took a few days off, stayed home crying until his eyes were swollen, yet he stubbornly claimed it was because his mom had hit him."

"I didn’t expect he would always remember what he said to master that New Year." 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

"That one day, he would make Four Happiness Rolls tastier than master’s on New Year’s Eve."

As Huang Shengli spoke, his eyes reddened.

Qin Huai quietly glanced over at Zheng Da, who was no longer bawling but was quietly choking as he ate the Four Happiness Rolls.

At 20-something, when Zheng Da was still a pastry chef, he would weep for days after feeling his leaders were biased against the pastry position, resigning in anger, thus being criticized for over a decade by peers as someone who didn’t stick to his profession.

At 50-something, already a successful businessman, Zheng Da cried bitterly because he fulfilled a pledge delayed by thirty years.

"Si Yuan," said Huang Shengli, "Your dad is such a person. You shouldn’t hold a grudge just because you think he’s not doing his proper job and wasting his talent."

"Whether he’s a chef or not, he has a chef’s heart."

"Just a bit lazy."

Zheng Siyuan glanced at his father, showing little emotion, a very calm demeanor, but the calm said it all.

"I understand, Uncle."

"I won’t push him to make snacks daily anymore."