The Cheat Emperor of the Culinary World
Chapter 432 - 426: That’s the Difference
The two of them exited the door one after the other.
In the hallway, Fu Yu turned his head to look at Chen Chen walking beside him, pondering how to start a conversation.
Chen Chen suddenly said, "The wrist support you gave me last time is really effective. I tried it at home, and the soreness has noticeably reduced."
Chefs often suffer from occupational ailments like tendonitis due to the long-term strain on the wrists from constantly flipping pans.
Fu Yu gave Chen Chen the wrist support because Zhao Meng had a flare-up of an old condition. Fu Yu mentioned it at home, and his mom quickly sent over two pairs of medical wrist supports for Fu Yu to give to Zhao Meng.
One pair was enough for Zhao Meng.
Fu Yu had one new pair left on hand.
Chen Chen was sent by his boss to Qianlima to teach barbecue, and among the few apprentices, he took extra care of Fu Yu.
On one hand, it was because of his relationship with Zhao Meng. Everyone at the music restaurant was familiar with Zhao Meng and knew he was favored by the boss.
Additionally, since Fu Yu was Zhao Meng’s apprentice, Chen Chen naturally valued him more than the others.
On the other hand, Fu Yu was a spirited young man, with a solid culinary foundation. He learned things very quickly, showing great talent.
Chen Chen truly admired Fu Yu, so he was exceptionally kind and patient with him during lessons.
Fu Yu was always someone who repaid kindness.
He understood Chen Chen’s goodwill, so on Chen Chen’s last day teaching at Qianlima, Fu Yu seized the opportunity to privately gift the medical wrist support as a token of gratitude.
The item wasn’t expensive, but it was very practical, signifying a token of appreciation.
Chen Chen mentioned it today because the medical wrist support was indeed very useful. While his wrist issue wasn’t severe, it could be quite bothersome when it flared up occasionally.
Unexpectedly, the medical wrist support from Fu Yu turned out to be quite effective; after wearing it for a few days, the symptoms noticeably decreased.
Later, when he checked it online, he found it was indeed a legitimate medical store product, costing a few hundred yuan, which wasn’t exactly cheap either.
Talking about the medical wrist support, the conversation between the two became much more relaxed.
Fu Yu naturally steered the topic to the last evaluation live stream.
Chen Chen laughed and said, "Xiaofu, you truly surpass the master! When I saw the barbecue takeout displayed in the live stream, I was particularly inspired. I feel your creativity and ideas in barbecue are above mine, so I thought of finding a chance to have you grill in person while I assist you and learn along the way."
[Ding! NPC Chef Chen Chen’s Task: Assist Chen Chen in breaking through to advanced barbecue skills. Task Completion Reward: +3 Skill Points]
Fu Yu accepted the task without hesitation.
Even without the three-skill point reward, Fu Yu would still be willing to help Chen Chen.
His entry into barbecue cooking was guided by Chen Chen; Fu Yu respected and admired this skilled and kind chef very much.
Fu Yu nodded and said, "Chef Chen, whatever you need me to do, just let me know."
Fu Yu’s attitude was as respectful and courteous as it was during the teaching sessions at Qianlima.
Chen Chen appreciated it greatly, forming an even better impression of Fu Yu.
Chen Chen was in charge of the barbecue area.
Fu Yu followed him over, where a few junior workers were busy preparing dinner.
Aside from roasted sticky rice cake, the main dishes included roasted flatbread, roasted dumplings, roasted bread slices, along with a variety of meat and vegetable dishes brought over from the cafeteria.
Chen Chen treated Fu Yu warmly, prompting the junior workers to watch for cues and be particularly courteous to Fu Yu.
After eating dinner with them, Fu Yu stayed in the barbecue area.
But...
Even after the meal was over, they hadn’t received a single order form.
Chen Chen was a bit stunned.
Although in recent days barbecue orders at the store had diminished, this type of situation had never occurred before.
Fu Yu was also a bit speechless.
No wonder Chen Chen hadn’t managed to break through to advanced levels after so many years in barbecue – with the current order volume, it’s no wonder.
No customer orders, no opportunity for practice, so where can the skill improvement come from?
The junior workers beside them were also glancing at each other, bewildered.
Strange, normally the store wouldn’t be overwhelmed with orders, but it would still have fifteen to twenty orders a night.
What’s happening today?
Besides receiving a few orders at noon, they hadn’t officially started any in the evening!
...
Back in the Four Seas Banquet kitchen.
After the routine morning meeting, the boss specifically had all the head chefs, including Luo Rang, stay back to discuss arrangements for the upcoming store celebration events.
Everyone aired their views, giving their ideas and suggestions.
Luo Rang also spoke, suggesting a discount event for the store’s barbecue section.
After watching the evaluation live stream repeatedly, he critically observed the Qianlima Restaurant’s takeout packaging, dish presentation, and the reviewers’ reactions and comments upon tasting the dishes.
While watching, he recalled in detail how Fu Yu cooked when he assisted him.
In his memory, Fu Yu’s culinary skills didn’t seem so impressive either?
While his past cooking operations were smooth, there was a slight sense of inexperience. Yet now, looking at the plating techniques and grilling operations, his culinary skills were quite remarkable.
How did his skills progress so rapidly in such a short time?
Luo Rang had been pondering this.
Until a few days ago, when the boss suddenly mentioned holding the store celebration.
He suddenly came to a realization!
Qianlima’s barbecue seafood was indeed a new feature recently introduced.
Yet, prior to its launch, it must have been prepared for a considerable amount of time.
Why were grilled saury and charcoal-grilled oysters the most popular in the barbecue takeout?
Surely because these two items were the cheapest, making them less of a loss for practice.
And why did Yao Shi appear so calm during this BBQ takeout evaluation?
Obviously because of the confidence in his own store’s barbecue quality.
After all, culinary skills are not something that can be easily achieved without effort.
To improve, one must put in a certain amount of hard work.
And for Fu Yu to have such excellent barbecue skills, it must be closely related to his private, diligent practice.
Aiming to surpass Fu Yu’s barbecue skills in a short time is a futile thought.
However, trying to capture a portion of Qianlima’s customer base in the barbecue takeout sector couldn’t rely on technical improvement alone but rather a price competition strategy.
Realizing this, Luo Rang felt a wave of regret.
Even looking at his colleagues and the boss before him, there was a sense of disappointment for not pushing themselves harder.
The profit margin in barbecue was substantial, wasn’t it?
Yet they seemed uninterested, only focusing on roasting lamb spine. Look at them; they’ve mastered grilling even seafood wonderfully!
This is indeed the gap!
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