While selling steamed buns, Aunt Fat took the opportunity to teach Fat Boy a lot of things. She really treated him like a younger brother or nephew, and Fat Boy was very grateful, remembering everything she did.

While chatting with Aunt Pang, I learned that all I needed to do today was cook lunch.

Those with families will definitely be home for dinner tonight, and the leftovers from lunch for those living in single dormitories will be enough for them.

Sure enough, after noon, Sha Zhu and the others all made excuses to leave. As they left, they asked, "Who wants to stay and clean today?"

At this moment, Ma Hua and the others actually remained silent...

Seeing this, the fat man volunteered, "Master, let me do it."

Sha Zhu didn't say anything, but gave Ma Hua a deep look before picking up his net and leaving.

Just as she was slacking off, Liu Lan, who had been missing for most of the day, entered the kitchen chatting and laughing with a man in a Zhongshan suit.

The man had a square face, a high nose, and deep wrinkles between his eyebrows that could trap a fly...

The fat man ignored them, glanced up at them, and continued reading.

But Liu Lan wasn't going to let him off the hook: "Where are they? It's working hours, where have they all gone! I'm talking to you, are you blind? This is Deputy Factory Director Li."

Liu Lan perfectly embodies how palace maids and eunuchs in the past climbed the social ladder and bullied the weak, relying on their masters' power.

She was very kind to Sha Zhu and the other two veteran chefs.

But they were incredibly arrogant towards these young people.

Liu Lan had always looked down on the fat man. Ma Hua and the others all knew how to curry favor with her and flatter her, but this fat man never tried to please her or take her seriously. How could she not resent him?

Today, since Sha Zhu and the others were away, and with Deputy Factory Director Li backing her up, Liu Lan was determined to vent her anger. She immediately embarrassed Fatty, wanting to see him grovel.

But to everyone's surprise, the fat man pointed at Liu Lan and said, "Deputy Factory Director Li, did you see that? The veteran workers are insulting and bullying the apprentices right under your nose."

Liu Lan was furious: "You..."

Deputy Factory Director Li glanced at the fat man with interest, then smiled and tried to smooth things over: "Liu Lan, you must apologize. You should speak politely to your colleagues."

After saying a few perfunctory words, he pulled Liu Lan aside and whispered, "Where's Sha Zhu?"

"I don't know either, it's probably just jolted."

"What should I do? I'm so hungry my stomach is practically sticking to my back."

Liu Lan glanced at the fat man, and a plan immediately came to her mind.

She was determined to sow discord in the fat man's eyes today: "This is Sha Zhu's apprentice. Let him cook for you."

Deputy Factory Director Li was really hungry today. He had a fight with his wife this morning and left home without eating breakfast.

Afterwards, he went directly to a brother unit for a meeting, drank a lot of tea, and then got angrier and angrier, so he called Liu Lan out and vented his anger on her again.

It's raining a bit too much; now even walking feels like floating...

That's why I came to the kitchen and asked Sha Zhu to cook a couple of dishes to help me recover.

But right now, Sha Zhu was out of control, and Deputy Factory Director Li was so hungry he could barely walk. So he said to the fat man, "Young comrade, I just came back from a meeting and I'm really hungry. Do you have anything you can make for me so I can have something to eat."

The fat man put down his book in surprise, and when he looked up, he saw Liu Lan with a provocative look on her face. He thought to himself, "You're an undercover agent, aren't you?"

Ever since he transmigrated and became Sha Zhu's apprentice, Fatty has never had any illusions about this cheap master.

Sha Zhu is indeed very skilled; he's a successor of both Sichuan cuisine and Tan family cuisine. But he believes in the saying, "Teach your apprentice, and you'll starve!"

Their style has been like this since He Daqing – cold-hearted and ungrateful. Sha Zhu has also learned his father's ways perfectly. In the original story, even Ma Hua didn't learn his true skills.

Fatty didn't want to keep foolishly working for him like a slave, only to end up like in the original story, desperate and having to slink back to Sha Zhu for help.

Although that was a problem stemming from his past—ingratitude and greed—the fundamental issue was that he hadn't learned any real skills from Sha Zhu.

Fatty hadn't forgotten the "gift" that Sha Zhu had given him; a gentleman doesn't leave a grudge unavenged.

In the original story, Sha Zhu's culinary skills gave him the opportunity to meet a high-ranking official, bringing him into the sights of powerful figures. Later, he even used this connection to get Bang Geng a job as a driver in a ministry.

When dealing with these people, the fat man's advantage lies in his familiarity with the plot.

There are many ways to take revenge, but what could be more satisfying than robbing them of their opportunities?

Deputy Factory Director Li was already part of Fatty's plan. Even if he hadn't come today, Fatty would have found a way to provoke him.

Unexpectedly, Liu Lan gave him such a big gift.

The fat man planned to use the freshly harvested parsnip to make a special dish for Deputy Factory Director Li: a dish called Farmer's Lunch.

Seeing him calmly heating the oil in the wok, his movements as practiced as if he had been through countless trials, showing the demeanor of a seasoned master craftsman, Deputy Factory Director Li couldn't help but nod in approval.

Sha Zhu's specialty is Sichuan cuisine, and the factory leaders often eat his cooking. Fatty figured that Deputy Factory Director Li should also like spicy food.

I grabbed a handful of dried chilies, washed them, and put them in the pot to fry.

In the TV series, why did the fat man who assured Yu Li that everything would be fine suddenly fail as soon as Sha Zhu left? He said it was because of the seasoning, but that was only one aspect.

Another aspect is the control of heat and the amount of ingredients. These are the real secrets, but Sha Zhu never teaches them to his apprentices.

Take fried dried chili peppers as an example; the key is deep-frying. How deep should they be fried? The dried chili peppers should have a shiny skin, and when you eat them, they should still be crispy.

And what are the tricks and tips for handling various ingredients? If Sha Zhu doesn't tell you, even if Fatty stands in front of the pot and watches him cook a hundred times, he still won't learn!

The fat man was quick; in just two or three minutes, a "farmer's lunch" was ready to be served.

When Deputy Factory Director Li saw the layer of dried chilies on the plate, each one fried until shiny and crispy, he quickly picked up two steamed buns from the steamer.

Without any regard for etiquette, they wolfed down their food on the kitchen counter. At the same time, they were quite surprised.

He's a very picky eater! He's often fed special meals, with lots of meat and fish, so there aren't many dishes that would even catch his eye.

But he couldn't find a single fault with today's dish.

Although it is just a vegetarian dish, it contains an ingredient I have never seen before.

Deputy Factory Director Li asked the fat man what this was called. The fat man replied, "This is a kind of wild vegetable from the mountains in my hometown, called Fangfengcao (防风草). It only grows in the cleanest places. We pick it every spring, dry it, and stir-fry it. It's the best dish to eat this way."