The Cheat Emperor of the Culinary World

That day, Yang Zhifang invited Fu Yu to cook at home, and Elder Yang couldn’t stop praising the meal.

After the Xu family drove Fu Yu away, they heard Luo Rang mention Fu Yu’s superb cooking skills and the specifics of the cooking process, but the family didn’t think much of it at the time.

However, later on, Xu Xu couldn’t help but feel uneasy.

His brother-in-law was good friends with the owner of Qianlima Restaurant. If this matter had been successful, it would have been fine, as coming to the rescue is a good thing.

But now the matter wasn’t resolved, and if word got to the owner of Qianlima, it might cause trouble for his brother-in-law.

Thinking about what he needed through Elder Yang’s connections, Xu Xu deliberated and decided to invite Fu Yu out for a meal.

Whether he was genuinely sorry or just putting on a show of gratitude, he had to make an appearance.

The three of them got a private room and ordered the restaurant’s special roast lamb chops.

Xu Xu and Yao Shi were both businessmen, accustomed to socializing over drinks, so the routine was easy for them.

However, Fu Yu only sipped one drink since he had to work in the afternoon and didn’t dare drink more.

Yao Shi and Xu Xu, on the other hand, drank heartily. Both of them could hold their liquor well and, after the meal, showed no signs of having just had a drinking session, except for the strong smell of alcohol on them.

As they left, Xu Xu said a few elegant words of thanks, but this time he didn’t offer money. Instead, he took the initiative to exchange contact information with Fu Yu, expressing his desire to be friends.

Xu Xu’s words were heartfelt, appearing warm and sincere.

However, Fu Yu remained calm.

He looked at the top of Xu Xu’s head: [Favorability: 10]

For a moment, his feelings were mixed.

When they first met, Xu Xu’s favorability towards him was 0. After one meal, it had risen a bit.

Fu Yu glanced at the favorability score, then looked at Xu Xu’s enthusiastic smile, and put on an equally sincere expression as he shook hands to say goodbye.

After all, it’s pretty good to connect with someone he might continue to have dealings with in the future.

As for the relationship, it’ll just have to develop slowly.

In the afternoon, when Fu Yu returned to Qianlima, he first changed into his work clothes and went straight to the kitchen.

Fu Yu’s time was quite tight now; he needed to stay in the kitchen every day to take orders, unlike before, when he could occasionally help Zhao Meng by running errands like buying cigarettes or taking inventory and moving ingredients.

Now, he spent more time standing in front of the stove, cooking.

When he got to the kitchen, Sun Qingning had already started cooking.

Fu Yu checked the order slip and saw that the dishes Sun Qingning was cooking weren’t difficult; he had made them before, so he didn’t bother to take over and just stood beside him watching.

Sun Qingning was actually quite talented in cooking. He was smart, quick, and worked efficiently and meticulously.

It must be said that Sun Qingning had improved really quickly lately.

Of course, the main reason was that Fu Yu had given him plenty of opportunities to stand in front of the stove.

After all, cooking isn’t like other skills; to improve, you have to practice a lot—there’s no shortcut.

Seeing Fu Yu had returned, Sun Qingning quickly greeted him with a smile and wanted to give up his spot.

But Fu Yu waved his hand, ”You’re doing great, keep going!”

Sun Qingning was delighted, nodded with a smile, and continued cooking.

[Ding! Gained favorability from NPC Chef Sun Qingning: +5]

Fu Yu checked it; Sun Qingning’s favorability had already reached 45.

It seems the recent efforts hadn’t been in vain.

Whether Sun Qingning could successfully become permanent was crucial for activating the partner system.

Fu Yu considered this matter rather seriously.

Although he didn’t know when the next opportunity for becoming permanent would come, making the most of this time to guide Sun Qingning and help him progress more couldn’t hurt.

With Sun Qingning cooking, Fu Yu watched over and occasionally gave a tip.

Once a dish was finished, the server came to deliver another order slip.

Zhao Meng took a look, tore off a strip, and handed it to Fu Yu.

”This dish is challenging; you take it!”

Fu Yu took a look—it was Kousansi.

This was a dish that truly tested knife skills.

And Zhao Meng handing this dish to Fu Yu wasn’t because he was trying to avoid it out of laziness.

Actually, upon seeing how dedicated Fu Yu was in mentoring Sun Qingning, who in just a short time could already handle the stove,

If it continued like this, it wouldn’t be long before Sun Qingning could also become independent at the stove, serving as a great help to him.

Recalling what Yao Shi had said before, Zhao Meng thought that if he could truly cultivate Sun Qingning, it would be great.

However, everything depended on fate; he’d given the opportunity, now it was up to Sun Qingning to seize it.

Fu Yu instructed Sun Qingning to prepare the ingredients and cautioned, ”Use the ones that haven’t been cut, just wash them and bring them directly.”

Sun Qingning was surprised, ”Aren’t the ingredients already prepared?”

Though Kousansi wasn’t a specialty, the ingredients were common to several other dishes, so when a customer ordered it, they would just use the pre-prepared ones.

Fu Yu explained, ”The method for cutting this dish actually has its tricks. When we’re cooking in a moment, you watch from the side. I’ve come up with a new cooking method; the effect is excellent.”

Hearing this, Sun Qingning hurriedly went to prepare with great excitement.

As he busily worked, he was filled with admiration and awe: it’s not that he’s dull, it’s just that Chef Fu is so extraordinary!

There are indeed gaps between people, but when the gap is too wide, comparisons are pointless.

When facing Fu Yu now, all he felt was genuine respect and admiration, with a sincere desire to learn well from him, nothing more.

It wasn’t that he had high ideological consciousness, but the facts were plain to see.

He hadn’t even grasped the basics, and here Fu Yu was inventing new culinary techniques!

Sun Qingning quickly prepared all the ingredients, then stood by the kitchen counter, adopting a humble and earnest attitude to learn.

Fu Yu stood by the kitchen counter, teaching Sun Qingning as he worked, ”For making Kousansi, the most important thing is to carefully select the ingredients.”

Fu Yu sorted through the winter bamboo shoots Sun Qingning brought back, leaving only a small portion and sending him to fetch more.

”When selecting winter bamboo shoots, pay attention to choosing those with deep yellow husks; the surface should be smooth, intact, and tight to the shoot. Pick ones with yellow tips, and for appearance, select shoots that are flat at the head and curved at the body. For making Kousansi, choose larger ones. The knots near the shoot tip should be dense, the flesh should be white, and the buds should be bright red.”

Fu Yu’s detailed instructions left Sun Qingning stunned.

They’d always used whatever winter bamboo shoots the procurement brought, without considering which were best, since the ones delivered were typically good.

But after hearing Fu Yu’s explanation, he saw the difference. Previously, when grabbing ingredients, it was like he was doing it with his eyes closed.