Chapter 118 Their respective answers

Soon, the day passed.

Xu Qing put down the chopsticks in his hand and looked at the plate in front of him with a frown.

He experimented with many different recipes throughout the day, trying various chicken dishes in turn, but he couldn't find one with an overwhelming flavor.

It is not appropriate to say that it was not found.

But no matter how delicious the dishes he cooked were, he always felt something was not right.

It always seems like something is missing.

However, no matter how he tried to make up for it, what was missing could not be made up.

Even though he tried his best to demonstrate everything he had learned in his life, he still felt unsatisfied with the dishes he cooked.

Xu Qing sighed lightly. It seemed that it would be difficult for him to find the answer by himself.

Xu Qing walked out of the house and saw Master Luo Tian, ​​as usual, with his eyes slightly closed, lying leisurely in a chair basking in the sun.

Seeing that Xu Qing had been bored all day and finally came out of the room, Master Luo Tian asked, "How is it going? Have you made any progress?"

Xu Qing frowned, shook his head and said, "No. I can't think of it."

Master Luo Tian smiled and said, "It's rare to see you worrying. What kind of dish do you want to make?"

“Overwhelmingly delicious dishes.”

Xu Qing said.

Master Luo Tian thought for a moment and said, "Overwhelmingly delicious. Your strength is enough to overwhelm many candidates. They are just candidates for the title of top chef, but your strength is enough to surpass that of top chefs. It is not difficult to make an overwhelmingly delicious dish."

Xu Qing nodded and said, "I think so too. But for some reason, the taste of the dishes I cook always makes me feel wrong."

Master Luo Tian rocked his chair leisurely and said, "That means the problem is not in ability, but somewhere else."

"Somewhere else?"

"Do you still remember the test questions?"

"Of course I remember. The theme is chicken, and the subtitle is 'The mountain is not high', which comes from "Praise of the Humble House"."

Master Luo Tian said: "It is said that the author of this article, Liu Yuxi, was demoted to a county official. When the county magistrate saw that he was demoted, he deliberately made things difficult for him. He first arranged a house with bad feng shui for him, but he didn't care at all. Later, he was forced to move, and the house area was reduced by half, but Liu Yuxi was still happy. Finally, the county magistrate made him move into a small room that could only accommodate a bed, and it was in this small room that Liu Yuxi wrote "Ode to the Humble House." "

Master Luo Tian continued, "During this process of constant relocation, did Liu Yuxi ever want to overwhelm the magistrate? Did he ever want to pursue wealth and glory? No, he was still happy and contented in adversity. Even though he lived in a shabby room, he still wrote 'What's so shabby about it?' You want to pursue an overwhelming taste, which is contrary to the title. That's why you instinctively feel that something is wrong."

After hearing Master Luo Tian's words, Xu Qing's mind suddenly became clear.

The vague feeling of something being wrong that had been lingering in my heart finally became clear at this moment.

Yes, he only remembered the humble room and remembered that it should be simple and plain, but he forgot the most fundamental mood of the author.

That is an open-minded state of mind that remains calm and peaceful, and is contented and happy even in adversity.

Xu Qing tirelessly pursues surpassing others, pursuing victory, and pursuing an overwhelming taste, but this is fundamentally contrary to what Liu Yuxi wants to express.

No wonder he can’t cook dishes with overwhelming flavor.

I'm afraid that even if he forced himself to do it, he would be judged as losing because it went against the purpose.

The pursuit of victory leads to the loss of victory.

Then let's do it the other way around.

Don't pursue anything deliberately, but make yourself feel relaxed and comfortable no matter what environment you are in. Xu Qing clasped his fists and bowed to Master Luo Tian, ​​saying, "Thank you, Master. I understand!"

"Go."

Xu Qing turned around and went back into the kitchen.

He completely forgot about winning or losing in this test and devoted himself to cooking.

At Feihuang Tower, Jiang Cheng brought the prepared dishes to the head chef Shen Liang.

The dish in front of me is extremely simple, with nothing else but chicken, a whole chicken and a light soup, as if the chicken had been plucked and washed and placed directly on the plate.

Shen Liang used chopsticks to fork the chicken and picked it up gently.

The chicken is tender, with distinct texture, and the white meat is like crystal jade, which makes people unable to take their eyes off it.

Shen Liang put the dish into his mouth, chewed it carefully, and finally sighed softly.

Jiang Cheng's heart sank. Is it still not possible?

This was already the fifth dish he had made. The first five dishes all had various shortcomings and were all rejected by Chef Liang Liang. This dish was the one he came up with after deep thinking.

If even this dish doesn't work, then he really has no other choice.

When Jiang Cheng was confused, he suddenly heard Shen Liang whisper: "Ah Cheng, you have surpassed me."

Jiang Cheng raised his head suddenly, surprised and happy, "Master!"

Shen Liang continued, "Of course, what I mean is that you have surpassed me when I was taking the exam for the top chef. If you want to catch up with me now, you still have a lot to learn. Just use this dish to conquer the examiner's taste buds!"

"Yes, master!"

At Taoranju, Li Weiran was cooking by himself while the head chef Liang Jing was pouring wine into his mouth in big gulps. The smell of alcohol on his body could be smelled from a long distance away.

Taoranju hadn't had a single guest these days, and Liang Jing had nothing to do every day except drinking to drown his sorrows. Every day when he woke up, he would ask for a drink, get drunk, and then go to sleep. He would repeat the same thing the next day.

After Li Weiran finished cooking the dish, he brought it to the drunk Liang Jing and said, "I know you don't care about anything now, whether it's Taoran Ju or yourself. But I want to tell you that I won't give up! This dish is my determination! Just wait and see, I will definitely save Taoran Ju!"

After saying that, Li Weiran packed his luggage and set off for the top chef assessment venue.

Behind him, Liang Jing slowly opened his eyes and looked at the dishes in front of him.

This dish fully demonstrates the characteristics of Taoran Ju, it is exquisite and gorgeous, like an extremely perfect work of art.

Liang Jing took a look at it and without even tasting it, he waved his hand and swept the dish to the ground, muttering to himself: "How can this dish win?"

After saying that, he fell back on the table and continued to sleep.

An old man came over quietly and cleaned up the empty wine bottles and the scattered dishes on the ground.

After cleaning up, he glanced at the sleeping Liang Jing, then looked at Li Weiran who was walking away, hesitated for a moment, and finally hurriedly chased after him.

In Wenhua Garden, Chen Yu showed his best work to his master and asked, "Master, how is it?"

"It tastes very good. Especially since you chose plum, orchid, bamboo, and chrysanthemum to cook it. These four ingredients represent the noble character of a gentleman, which complements the topic perfectly. Very good, you will definitely be among the qualified candidates for this preliminary examination."

Chen Yu couldn't help but smile when he heard this.

After the joy, he said solemnly: "Master, I will definitely pass not only the first test, but also the second test! I must make the name of Wenhua Garden resound throughout Guangzhou!"

(End of this chapter)