I Have a Countryside Gourmet Restaurant

Chapter 250: Chapter 244: Getting More and More Outrageous

Never mind that Chen Wen had no connection with them. Even if he did, it would have been nearly impossible to convince them to get involved.

The status of a Special Chef was incredibly prestigious. How could one possibly agree to participate in such a cooking competition?

Of course, the status of an Advanced Chef was quite prestigious in its own right, but it was on a completely different level compared to a Special Chef.

In the entire country, there were roughly 1,000 Advanced Chefs. In contrast, there were only ten Special Chefs.

The numbers alone revealed the immense gap in their status.

Furthermore, there were about 100,000 Intermediate Chefs in the entire country.

As for Junior Chefs, their numbers were around one million.

For any culinary enthusiast, just passing the exam to become a Junior Chef was no easy feat.

And while there were only four ranks separating a Junior Chef from a Special Chef, the gap between each rank was a major dividing line.

Moreover, the chasm grew wider the higher one climbed.

Ascending from a Junior Chef all the way to a Special Chef was next to impossible.

Therefore, the status of a Special Chef was incredibly prestigious.

That was why it was practically impossible for Chen Wen to convince a Special Chef to intervene, even though he himself was already an Advanced Chef.

And so, Yu Hong wasn’t the least bit worried about Chen Wen finding a helper.

For the past two days, he had been waiting in a very pleasant mood for Chen Wen to return.

He wasn’t in any hurry.

Now, Chen Wen had returned, and he had indeed found a helper. But Yu Hong wasn’t nervous in the slightest.

He was merely curious. ’Who is this helper Chen Wen found? Is it someone I know?’

Chen Wen smiled again. ”You definitely don’t know him. He’s still a complete unknown in the culinary world. Plus, he’s very young, only about twenty-five.”

Yu Hong stared at Chen Wen with a suspicious look on his face, unable to tell if Chen Wen was joking or hinting at something else.

After a long moment, he spoke. ”Master Chen, what is the meaning of this? A twenty-five-year-old chef is a Junior Chef at best, right? He might not even be a Junior Chef. And you want him to compete against me in making mapo tofu?”

Chen Wen replied, ”Indeed, he isn’t even a Junior Chef yet. But that’s only because he has no interest in taking the exams. Master Yu, you know the saying, ’crouching tiger, hidden dragon.’ There are probably far more hidden masters among the people than we can possibly imagine.”

Yu Hong said, ”Master Chen, of course I know there are crouching tigers and hidden dragons everywhere. And I know there are many obscure masters out there. But, Master Chen, do you really think any of those ’hidden masters’ can compare to you or me?”

Chen Wen replied, ”Generally speaking, of course not. But there are always exceptions. Like Boss Li You, for example. He’s that young chef of about twenty-five I mentioned. He runs a small eatery of his own. Master Yu, I am certain his skill surpasses yours. And it certainly surpasses mine.”

”Oh?” Yu Hong said. ”Could it be that Master Chen has found some reclusive genius this time? Fine then, let him come and compete against me. As chefs, we must ultimately prove our skills at the stove. Anything else is just empty talk.”

Chen Wen said, ”He won’t come here. If you want to compete, Master Yu, you’ll have to go to his place. Of course, I’ll go with you. However, I believe that once you arrive, you’ll most likely choose to forfeit the match.”

”Oh? And why is that?” Yu Hong asked.

Chen Wen answered, ”Because once you taste his mapo tofu, Master Yu, you will choose to forfeit the match and voluntarily admit defeat.”

Yu Hong’s eyes widened as he stared at Chen Wen in utter disbelief.

’I really don’t understand why he’s saying this.’

’Forget a twenty-five-year-old kid. Even if I were up against a Special Chef, I wouldn’t just admit defeat outright!’

’There’s a definite gap between me and a Special Chef, and I probably couldn’t win.’

’But it’s not like I wouldn’t stand a fighting chance.’

’It’s a competition, after all. Anything can happen before the results are in.’

’And no Special Chef facing me would dare to let their guard down and assume an easy victory.’

’And now Chen Wen is saying some twenty-five-year-old kid could make me voluntarily admit defeat?’

’That’s completely absurd!’

’Could this twenty-five-year-old’s cooking skills possibly be even greater than a Special Chef’s?’

’It’s pure fantasy.’

Yu Hong truly couldn’t understand why Chen Wen, an Advanced Chef with superb culinary skills, would say something so outlandish.

He just couldn’t wrap his head around it.

Seeing the look on Yu Hong’s face, Chen Wen could pretty much guess what he was thinking.

Chen Wen completely understood. If their roles were reversed, he would be thinking the exact same thing.

But sometimes, things that seemed like wild fantasies were, in fact, the truth.

Hard to believe, but true nonetheless.

So, Chen Wen gave a faint smile and continued, ”It does sound like a wild tale, but it happens to be the truth. You’ll know I’m not exaggerating once you have a meal at Boss Li You’s restaurant, Master Yu. The only question is, will you go?”

Yu Hong stared at Chen Wen, trying to read something in his expression.

But he couldn’t see a thing.

’Fine,’ he thought. ’I’ll go and meet this young boss named Li You. Let’s see what miraculous ability he possesses to make Chen Wen spout such nonsense.’

Yu Hong was actually getting a little curious.

So, Yu Hong nodded and said, ”I’ll go. Why wouldn’t I? I want to see for myself just what it is about this Boss Li You that has Master Chen talking like this. Shall we set off now?”

Chen Wen shook his head. ”Not now, it’s a bit too late. Boss Li You’s restaurant isn’t in the provincial capital. It’s outside a small town in Changxi County. It’s about a five-hour drive from here. So, let’s set off first thing tomorrow morning. What do you think, Master Yu?”

Suspicion flickered in Yu Hong’s eyes once more. ”It’s normal for Boss Li You’s restaurant to be in a county. But outside a small town within that county? What kind of place is that?”

Chen Wen replied, ”It’s about five kilometers from the town’s main street. You could say it’s out in the wilds.”

Yu Hong, once again shocked and doubtful, asked, ”You’re saying Boss Li You’s restaurant is out in the wilds?”

Chen Wen nodded.

Yu Hong continued, ”Master Chen, I feel like the more you talk, the more ridiculous this all sounds.”

Chen Wen laughed heartily. ”It is rather ridiculous. But being out in the wilds has its own unique and immense advantages. When you get there tomorrow, Master Yu, you’ll see that it’s a restaurant with the potential to become a legend.”

”Become a legend?” Yu Hong stared at Chen Wen, once again in disbelief.

He felt he couldn’t continue this conversation with Chen Wen for another second.

’It’s getting more and more absurd!’

’It’s just one unbelievable claim after another.’

Chen Wen laughed, knowing his words had once again stunned Yu Hong.

They were indeed shocking words.

But every last word was true!

’I’d better stop for today,’ Chen Wen thought. ’If I keep going, he’s going to think I’ve gone mad and am just spouting nonsense.’

’I’ll just take him to Boss Li You’s restaurant tomorrow and let him experience it all for himself.’

So, Chen Wen said, ”Alright, Master Yu. Let’s leave it at that for today. We’ll set off for Boss Li You’s restaurant at seven tomorrow morning. Sound good?”

Yu Hong nodded. ”Fine. We’ll leave at seven tomorrow morning.”

”Great!”

...

「Jiulong Gorge.」

Li You, Ye Shengge, and Ling Xiaoru worked together to carry the prickly pear bush back to the restaurant.

They carried it into the wild fruit orchard.

”Tired from carrying that?” Li You asked Ye Shengge and Ling Xiaoru.

”I’m fine,” they both replied.

Li You nodded and said, ”I’ll treat you to dinner tonight.”

”Really? Thank you, Boss!” Both of them were overjoyed.

Next, it was time to plant the prickly pear bush.

Li You surveyed the wild fruit orchard and chose a spot to plant the prickly pear bush.

It was a spot near the edge.

Then, he started digging a hole with a hoe.

Once the hole was ready, the three of them worked together to plant the prickly pear bush.

Afterward, Li You went to the entrance of the restaurant to fetch a bucket of water and watered the new plant.

And just like that, it was done.

’Next, I’ll find some time to come back alone,’ he thought, ’and secretly sprinkle some fruit tree fertilizer from the Storage Pavilion on it.’

’That way, this prickly pear bush is sure to grow extremely well.’

In truth, it wasn’t a good idea to fertilize a newly transplanted fruit tree right away.

It was easy to burn the roots.

However, the fruit tree fertilizer in the Storage Pavilion was a gift from the system. There was no risk of root burn.

This fertilizer was the source of Li You’s confidence in planting wild fruit trees that weren’t native to the area.

Looking at the newly planted prickly pear bush, both Ye Shengge and Ling Xiaoru were very happy.

It was the joy that comes from a job well done.

This was also the second type of wild fruit in the orchard, after the wild ground melons.

The wild fruit orchard was finally starting to live up to its name.

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