Silly Zhu's Moving: The Old Neighbor's Nightmare

Chapter 2 Helper at Fengzeyuan Kitchen

Fengzeyuan is located on the north side of Zhushikou West Street outside Qianmen.

Founded in 1930 by renowned chefs Luan Xuetang and Chen Huanzhang, the restaurant is a testament to the restaurant's reputation.

It is a long-established restaurant specializing in Shandong cuisine.

Sha Zhu hurried along, not having time to notice the scenery along the street.

They finally arrived just as most of the apprentices were being assigned jobs.

He immediately breathed a sigh of relief. He didn't have to wait for work assignments.

I have been learning to cook from Master Wang Yijun for a little over two years.

From doing odd jobs, washing vegetables, purchasing, and serving when I first arrived, to all sorts of other tasks.

Now all I need to do is make tea for my master and chop his food.

In my spare time, I observe the master craftsman's skills.

Her knife skills are top-notch. After all, she learned cooking from He Daqing since she was a child.

To help Sha Zhu grow stronger, they made him practice flipping a large iron pot filled with sand from a young age.

Sha Zhu often went to practice wrestling under the overpass.

Before his master arrived, Sha Zhu quickly went to brew the tea for him.

I went to my work station and, since I had nothing to do, I started to study my own thoughts.

No one was paying attention, and a potato in the bowl next to me disappeared.

Appearing in the space, with a thought, the potato split into seven or eight small pieces and burrowed into the black soil.

Controlling the flow of time in the surrounding area, seven or eight small sprouts emerged from the soil.

"That's too fast," thought Shazhu.

Then he looked towards the kitchen, his thoughts extending to about ten meters away, where he seemed to encounter a barrier.

It could no longer extend outwards.

It seems that the fusion of two souls has strengthened their willpower.

Outside of space, one's thoughts can only be controlled within ten meters.

Looking at the vegetables in the basins on the kitchen floor, and then realizing that he had no money in his pocket.

They no longer hesitated. They put two or three of each type of vegetable into the space.

Looking at the two large Chinese cabbages in the space, can they grow back after being buried in the soil?

I took one to test it, and sure enough, it stopped growing. I even tried to see it grow into the soil, but it rotted there.

It seems we still need seeds. Looking at the small pile of vegetables in the space, I wonder which ones, like potatoes, can be used directly as seeds.

So he selected an area within the space, stopped time, and used it to preserve the vegetables, which were no longer needed for the time being.

There was nothing in the space; we had to figure out how to build shelves, warehouses, and trees ourselves. It was a long and arduous task.

As time passed, all the chefs and assistants in the kitchen arrived. Sha Zhu greeted his master and then...

He went to his post as usual, picked up a kitchen knife, and got busy.

The only difference from usual is that it's done through the combination of one's own will.

He wields the kitchen knife with divine assistance; his knife skills seem to far surpass those of all master chefs.

Then, by focusing your mind on the vegetables, they are neatly and evenly arranged on the cutting board according to your desired size, even before they are cut.

Looking around and seeing that no one was paying attention to him, he quickly wiped away imaginary sweat from his forehead.

Pick up the plate next to you and arrange the food on it.

I dared not use my mental powers; it was too mentally taxing. I simply got back to my usual busy routine.

After a period of busyness, during my free time, I would observe my master cooking through my own thoughts.

With a thought, the master's movements seemed to slow down like an action movie.

Everything appeared in my mind: taking the pan off the heat, heating the oil, cooking until done, when to add the seasonings, the weight of each seasoning, and how much was used—all these details appeared clearly in my mind.

Even when using secret ingredients, the master observes the type, quantity, and weight of the ingredients meticulously through mental focus.

As the master chefs demonstrated their skills, one exquisite dish after another was served.

Braised sea cucumber with scallions, sweet and sour carp, braised prawns, sweet and sour pork tenderloin, stir-fried pork kidneys, braised sea cucumber, Boshan tofu boxes, poached razor clams, Confucius-style hot pot, steamed grouper, stir-fried double crispy seafood, braised duck with bean curd skin, braised beef, boiled sliced ​​pork, braised eggplant, steamed scallops with garlic and vermicelli, etc.

Even with Sha Zhu's mental support, he was momentarily dizzy and unable to keep up with the situation.

Quickly pull your mind back; you can't get fat in one bite, you have to take it slow.

Remembering other people's techniques and secret recipes is not the right way; you should also learn to use the ingredients yourself, practice, research, and improve until you develop your own unique style.

When I was mentally observing the stir-frying process just now, several chefs didn't quite get the heat and the timing of adding seasonings right, so their results might not be accurate.

Extending my thoughts to another area separated by a wall, a Sichuan cuisine master is energetically shouting orders at the stove.

Although Fengzeyuan mainly serves Shandong cuisine, it also offers some other cuisines, just not as Shandong cuisine as its main focus.

Sha Zhu then began to observe slowly.

Mapo tofu, sliced ​​beef and tripe in chili sauce, twice-cooked pork, boiled cabbage in clear broth, shredded pork with garlic sauce, Kung Pao chicken, spicy chicken, ants climbing a tree (a Sichuan dish), steamed catfish, and Dongpo pork knuckle.

As each dish was served, the combinations of various vegetables and the proportions of spices appeared in my mind without reservation.

Sha Zhu also felt incredibly satisfied. He wished he could gather all the ingredients himself and show off his skills at the big stove.

Unfortunately, the space was empty, with only a few vegetables that had been brought in.

There's not even a stove. Thinking about it won't help. A penny can stump even a hero.

Let's be down-to-earth, work diligently, and observe the cooking techniques.

Master Wang Yijun noticed that Sha Zhu was in a daze, which was different from usual; he was no longer secretly watching his techniques.

He then asked, "Zhu Zi, what are you daydreaming about? Why aren't you watching how I cook?"

"Master, I'm wondering when I can be assigned to the main kitchen and try to surpass you."

Sha Zhu replied with a grin. He thought to himself, "Defeating you would be a piece of cake; I could easily cook a few rounds on the stove."

"Oh, really? I had you try it a while ago, and you couldn't even control the heat. Now you're talking big."

If you don't work harder, I'll beat you up and expel you from the sect.

"Let your father teach you a lesson," Master Shazhu said calmly.

Sha Zhu was sweating buckets. How could he compare? He was a completely different person now.

Just don't show it too much, and immediately correct your attitude: "Master, I will learn well."

Seeing that Sha Zhu had changed his attitude, Wang Yijun stopped scolding him.

The day passed quickly amidst the busy work. After having his evening meal in the kitchen, Sha Zhu returned to the staff dormitory, to his small single room.

It's already past 10 p.m., and there's nowhere to go. The People's Republic of China has only been established for less than two years. Last October, the Chinese People's Volunteer Army went to Korea. Now, on the streets outside, enemy agents, traitors, and speculators occasionally pop up and cause trouble.

Go out on the street by yourself, don't get arrested so late.

With nothing to do, I went to the bathroom outside, washed my hands and feet, then returned to my room, lay on the bed, and checked the space.

The potato sprouts did not undergo any magical transformation; time was accelerated.

It flows at the same rate as time outside.

Looking at the empty space, it is quite large, with two or three thousand acres of black soil and a large lake. As long as you grow some seeds, poultry, and seedlings, you can definitely become a large farm owner.

If I had the chance to go to the seaside, divide a large lake in two, and start some seafood farming, I would love to think about it.

But now that I can't go anywhere and the next break will be five or six days, I stopped thinking about it, closed my eyes, and went to sleep.