Chapter 164 Spicy Stir-fried Razor Clams, Braised Pomfret

In this confused state, Wen's father became an apprentice to Master Da Jin.

Mrs. Wen thought it was a good thing. Master Jin was very straightforward. From now on, he would come to the restaurant every mealtime, partly to teach Mr. Wen, and partly to help with serving the dishes. Whether he was paid or not didn't matter, he didn't need the money anyway.

Wen's mother, who had been thinking of hiring another chef recently because the shop was doing well, said: "What's wrong with that? I heard from Xiao Fan that Chef Da Jin is also very skilled. He's willing to teach you, so you should learn from him."

Anyway, he couldn't teach his daughter. Not to mention that Wen Fan was busy with school, his daughter's fast pace meant that he could only help out most of the time, and he couldn't keep up if it was even slightly complicated.

Wen's father was still bewildered. He had just found another master?

Thinking back to the master I once studied under, those memories are hardly pleasant.

Wen's mother was even more speechless. When was that? Now Master Jin is taking it voluntarily, how can it be the same as back then?

“You should also study hard. What if our daughter goes to university in another province next year? This shop can’t keep going on her own forever.”

Speaking of this, Mr. Wen gritted his teeth and said, "Then I'll learn!"

In your forties, it's the perfect time to take risks!

He also plans to earn more money for his daughter!

And so, Master Jin started working at Wenji.

Wen's mother calculated the highest salary for Master Jin in the shop, which could also be considered a filial gift from her husband.

Chef Da Jin had only been here a few days when he introduced several new dishes to the restaurant.

One is spicy braised razor clams, and the other is braised pomfret.

The razor clams and pomfret were supplied by people that Master Da Jin found himself, and the prices were surprisingly not too expensive.

After cleaning the razor clams, blanch them in Shaoxing wine, then remove the meat, shells, and black veins. Stir-fry the clam meat with chili peppers. The method is simple, but the finished razor clams are perfect as an appetizer with drinks.

As soon as it hit the market, it became a must-order item at every table every night.

Some people with sensitive palates could tell after only a few bites that this wasn't Wenji's style.

"I think it tastes a bit like Jin Yu Lou."

Upon hearing this, my friend scoffed, "I think you're really dreaming."

Who doesn't know about the feud between Wenji and Jinyulou? It's ridiculous to talk about Jinyulou's culinary style now.

Spicy stir-fried razor clams are fragrant and delicious, while the braised pomfret is savory and tender.

In particular, the rice cakes inside were introduced by Master Da Jin to the Wen family, a supplier.

"The rice cakes here are all homemade, not the factory-made kind."

The rice cakes are soft and chewy, and when soaked in fish soup, they are often eaten faster than the fish meat after the dish is served.

Even Wen Fan couldn't say it was bad after eating it.

Chef Da Jin said with some pride, "When I was learning to cook, these two dishes were the best I ever made."

Two dishes quickly established Chef Da Jin's position at Wen Ji.

Du Min couldn't sit still any longer. Seeing that another master chef had arrived, she simply went to Wen's mother and told her that she wanted to learn cooking from Wen Fan.

Wen's mother frowned: "Xiao Fan is busy right now..."

Next month, after the college entrance examination, her daughter will be a senior in high school. Wen's mother is even considering whether to stop all her private cooking. Now that she's talking about taking on apprentices, where would Wen Fan find the time?

However, Wen's mother respected her daughter's opinion and told Wen Fan the news.

Wen Fan solemnly had Du Min assist him twice, and finally told his mother that he wanted to take her in.

Mother Wen: "...Didn't you say you didn't want any apprentices?"

With an ice cream cone in his mouth, Wen Fan mumbled, "Who said I wouldn't accept them? I just want to accept someone with good judgment!"

Du Min has poor basic skills, but she is incredibly smart.

Wen Fan thought about his own kitchen. After all, Master Jin and Xiao Ge had long been master and apprentice. Putting Du Min in would be a positive cycle.

"It's not a big deal. Let her practice the basics for a year first."

There are several chefs in the shop, so Wen Fan won't tire himself out.

They shoved Du Min into the kitchen, had Wen's father teach her knife skills first, and then it was up to her to see how much she could learn.

Even Wen's mother couldn't see through her daughter's arrangements, so she could only shake her head and indicate that she needed to hire another waiter.

"Now there are more chefs than waiters in the restaurant."

...

With a new chef and waiters, Wen Fan felt that Wen Ji was running more and more smoothly.

The hotter the weather, the more people crave cold food.

So, a few days later, Wen Fan completely changed the types of food at Yao Qingqin's snack stall.

Rolled cold noodles suddenly appeared.

Take a whole sheet of cold skin noodles, put shredded carrots, shredded cucumbers, bean sprouts, and gluten in the middle, mix it well and put it on top, then add a spoonful of crushed peanuts and crushed fried dough sticks.

Yao Qingqin can sell several hundred tickets every day.

Han Lulu didn't diet in February, and now in May, she's eating while feeling sad.

"Waaaah, how come your family comes up with new dishes so quickly!"

Often, before the previous person has had enough, the next one arrives.

The seasoning of the rolled cold noodles was just right; Han Lulu ate one and wanted a second.

After eating this for three days in a row, Han Lulu was gossiping with Wen Fan while eating rolled cold noodles.

"I heard that Fu Chuan is transferring schools. It's said that his father's affair caused a huge uproar, so he has to go abroad to study business ahead of schedule."

"And Fang Weiyue, I don't know if she'll be leaving together, she hasn't been to class lately."

Wen Fan dusted himself off: "Isn't the college entrance exam in two weeks? Should we reserve a classroom?"

Han Lulu lost her appetite completely at her sudden remark: "I should have taken it, ahhhhh I don't want to go to my senior year of high school!"

The thought of having to study hard for the next year made Han Lulu's mind explode.

Ironically, the things you least want to mention are the things that happen most often.

Chinese language class.

Teacher Wang put down his book: "It's time to get back to normal. There are still 372 days until the college entrance examination..."

Math class.

The teacher called on students and said, "Next week you will all be senior high school students. Remember, all these years of hard work are coming up in just over 300 days!"

English class.

"I won't say too much. Anyway, three hundred days isn't a long time. It'll be over in the blink of an eye."

Han Lulu: ……

Help!

As the final year of high school approaches, the word "future" becomes increasingly clear.

Some people, like Wen Fan, are determined to fight for their future in the college entrance examination, while others say they won't be coming this year.

Those studying art, those preparing for IELTS, and those planning to study foundation courses abroad.

A week before the college entrance examination, the whole school was immersed in the atmosphere of the upcoming exam.

While cleaning on Friday, Wen Fan saw Fu Chuan again.

The difference is that this time, Fu Chuan stood on her inevitable path much earlier.

Wen Fan looked down and realized she didn't have any "NPCs have to come to her for a closing remark" buff. So, after Jin Rui, there's Fu Chuan?

"Move aside."

Fu Chuan lowered his head and suddenly asked Wen Fan, "Wen Fan, do you still hold a grudge against me for always letting others laugh at you?"

Fu Chuan impatiently tried to explain, "I didn't understand you back then..."

Wen Fan felt a headache coming on: "Stop, stop, stop."

Fu Chuan looked at Wen Fan and blurted out, "Fang Weiyue isn't going abroad with me. She said... she's annoyed with me."

Wen Fan almost burst out laughing, but said without any mercy, "I'm annoyed with you too."

Fu Chuan: "...I know you must have heard about my father's situation. It's ridiculous. For so many years, I've always felt that they didn't care about me. His illegitimate child is only two years older than me, and my mother wanted me to go abroad to study as soon as possible so that I could come back and get a job at the company..."

Wen Fan: "What does this have to do with me?"

Fu Chuan was taken aback for a moment: "I thought you would think I deserved it after hearing this."

Wen Fan pouted: "So you think you have your reasons, right? Fu Chuan, you're so boring. Before, when Fang Weiyue ignored you, you couldn't tolerate her not paying attention to you, so you used me to provoke her. Now that I'm ignoring you, you think I'm not paying attention to you, and you keep trying to get attention."

Fu Chuan was rendered immobile by Wen Fan's words.

Wen Fan, however, intended to explain things clearly to him: "You are so lacking, yet you always expect to get things from others. What do Fang Weiyue and I owe you? As for love, I suggest you grow up before talking about love. Perhaps you feel sorry for yourself, but I think you are boring. Your bottomless lack will only drag others down. There is no benefit to liking you. Fang Weiyue says you are annoying, probably because you are always a burden to her."

Wen Fan turned around: "Don't look for me anymore, it's annoying."

No longer looking at Fu Chuan's reaction, Wen Fan's mind was filled with thoughts of the upcoming senior year of high school and how many days of vacation he would get this summer.

Oh well, never mind, I have orders for Children's Day coming up soon.

...

Fortunately, this year's June 1st falls on a Sunday.

Wen Fan prepared everything a day in advance, and Dean Bai even called to say that he didn't need to go so early.

"It's not like it's on the news. It's just a family dinner in the courtyard. There aren't many people, about ten or so kids. As long as it's around noon, it's fine."

Wen Fan readily agreed, and set off for the orphanage early the next day.

Now that we have more staff, we don't have to close down for the sake of our private kitchen dishes.

Wen Fan and his father, along with Du Min, make three people, which is enough.

Wen's father remained silent from the moment he entered the orphanage. After a while, he pointed to the big tree at the entrance and said, "Back then, your mother and I handed you over to Director Bai right there."

Looking back now, Wen's father also feels sad.

How could such a lovely girl be lost?

Wen Fan didn't care at all. He looked at the tree and turned to complain, "Dad, are you sure you're not mistaken? That tree doesn't look very old."

A tree that's over ten years old certainly wouldn't look like this; it's clearly only three to five years old.

Wen Fan's words made his father lose confidence, and even after Dean Bai entered the kitchen, he still kept asking if it was that tree.

Dean Bai smiled and said, "No, the previous one was a fast-growing poplar that would release fluff every spring. There was a child in the yard who was born with asthma, so we cut it down and replaced it with the current tree."

Dean Bai sighed, "I'm sorry to trouble you all today. There are many children in the orphanage, and they are either allergic to many foods or can't eat them. Please make the staple food a little softer."

Today is also considered the birthday of these children. Because some children were abandoned and don't even know what day their birthday is, Director Bai always celebrates for them on June 1st.

Wen Fan gave an OK sign and told Du Min to go and cut the meat and vegetables.

With nimble hands, Wen Fan wrapped the prepared aspic into the dumpling wrapper, creating a neat eighteen-pleat dumpling.

One pot of soup dumplings, one pot of bamboo shoot and minced pork buns.

The soup dumplings looked ordinary, with bamboo shoots and braised pork, but Wen Fan used molds to make many different shapes.

Piglets, flowers, and dinosaurs.

Du Min also tried to make them, though they weren't very neat, but as long as they had a shape, you could vaguely tell what kind of animal they were.

After wrapping the buns, Wen Fan lifted the pot lid, and steam rose from the broth that had been simmering for so long.

Wen Fan patted the flour off his hands.

"Let's begin."