Li Huan also stared intently at Zhang Fugui's "Seafood Feast".

It sounds like one dish, but it actually consists of twenty dishes.

Cold jellyfish salad, stir-fried shrimp, braised sea cucumber with scallions, stir-fried squid with chives, steamed crab, steamed scallops with vermicelli, braised abalone... and so on.

In modern society, these shrimp dishes are extremely common.

However, during the Ming Dynasty, the twenty seafood dishes prepared by Zhang Fugui were considered delicacies.

Only high-ranking officials and nobles could afford it; ordinary people had never seen it before.

Prince Ning picked up his chopsticks, grabbed a piece of "braised sea cucumber with scallions," and savored it with great relish.

Grand Tutor Hua picked up a steamed sea crab, broke it open, and took a bite of the crab meat.

"Hmm, it tastes very fresh, but unfortunately, it can't compare to Li Huan's 'Seafood Spicy Hot Pot'!"

While eating the braised abalone, Chef Ma said, "Zhang Fugui's skill in cooking abalone is extremely profound, but I still feel that something is missing..."

Zhang Fugui cupped his hands and asked, "What is lacking? Please enlighten me."

Chef Ma swallowed the abalone and said, "It should lack a fresh and spicy flavor."

Zhang Fugui raised his eyebrows: "As everyone knows, braised abalone should be flavorful and savory, how can it be spicy?"

Chef Ma said, "Maybe it's because I just ate Li Huan's 'Spicy Seafood Hot Pot,' and my palate has become more sensitive to strong flavors..."

"Yes, after eating Li Huan's 'Seafood Spicy Hot Pot,' I always felt that Zhang Fugui's 'Seafood Fortune Gathering' was too bland!"

"Zhang Fugui put his heart into it. In just half an hour, he cooked twenty seafood dishes, forming a 'Seafood Feast of Fortune'. But the skill of cooking lies not in the quantity, but in the pursuit of excellence!"

"I agree with Brother Yang's view that culinary skills should be refined and perfected, not blindly pursued in terms of quantity!"

"That's right, this 'Seafood Feast' is indeed very fresh and has a wide variety of ingredients, but unfortunately, the flavor is too bland!"

...

Listening to the judges' comments, Zhang Fugui broke out in a cold sweat.

He never expected that his carefully prepared "Seafood Feast" would be no match for a pot of seafood stew!

Grand Tutor Hua spat out the sea cucumber in his mouth and ordered, "Bring over Li Huan's 'Spicy Seafood Hot Pot,' I want to continue eating!"

Prince Ning hurriedly said, "Grand Tutor, you are far too biased towards Li Huan! If you continue to openly support Li Huan like this, don't blame me for losing my temper!"

Holy crap, he clearly favored Zhang Fugui, yet he turned the tables and attacked Grand Tutor Hua first.

Grand Tutor Hua laughed and said, "Your Highness, look at these dishes: braised sea cucumber with scallions, stir-fried squid, steamed crab, steamed scallops with vermicelli, and braised abalone. Aren't they all dishes we eat often? What's so special about them?"

When asked, Prince Ning answered truthfully, "These are all dishes we eat regularly, nothing special about them!"

Grand Tutor Hua said, "Your Highness is finally telling the truth! Since Zhang Fugui's 'Seafood Feast' is nothing special, why don't we continue with Li Huan's 'Spicy Seafood Hot Pot'?"

Just as Prince Ning was about to agree, he hurriedly covered his mouth.

He is staying rational and fighting against the effects of "honest sugar".

The fat advisor quickly said, "Your Highness, Grand Tutor, and all judges, please vote for Zhang Fugui's 'Seafood Feast'!"

Prince Ning raised his hand to vote.

Grand Tutor Hua shook his head: "I won't vote! Hua An, quickly bring over Li Huan's 'Seafood Spicy Hot Pot'!"

Tang Bohu laughed and said, "On the table is Zhang Fugui's 'Seafood Feast,' not 'Seafood Spicy Hot Pot.'"

Grand Tutor Hua said, "Bring another table and place it in front of me!"

The martial arts champion, upon receiving the order, quickly brought over a table.

Tang Bohu then picked up the "Seafood Spicy Hot Pot" and placed it in front of Grand Tutor Hua, urging him to continue eating.

Of the eight judges, six voted for Zhang Fugui.

The other three judges didn't vote, but instead gathered around Master Hua and ate "spicy seafood hot pot" with him.

The fat advisor announced: "In the second round, Zhang Fugui received seven votes... Li Huan received nine votes... Zhang Fugui is currently behind..."

The guy looked listless and disappointed.

"Wow! Li Huan won the second game! He's in the lead!"

"Li Huan is awesome! He's got the upper hand!"

Autumn Fragrance, Spring Fragrance, Summer Fragrance, and Winter Fragrance cheered with joy.

Madam Hua was so tempted by the aroma of the "spicy seafood hot pot" that she quickly winked at Grand Tutor Hua.

Grand Tutor Hua was enjoying his meal immensely and didn't notice Madam Hua's expression at all.

Li Huan said, "Hua An, take some seafood from the spicy hot pot and let Madam Hua have some too!"

"Yes!" Tang Bohu picked up his chopsticks, placed various kinds of seafood in a large bowl, and poured some rich, spicy broth over the seafood.

The aroma almost made Tang Bohu drool.

Li Huan reminded him, "Hua An, be careful not to drip your saliva into the bowl."

Tang Bohu swallowed hard and laughed, "This spicy hot pot smells so good! I can't help but want to take a bite!"

He held up a large bowl and handed it to Qiu Xiang.

Qiu Xiang walked up to Madam Hua and offered her the taste.

Madam Hua didn't use chopsticks; she reached out, picked up a shrimp, quickly peeled off the shell, and tasted the shrimp meat.

"It is indeed fresh, fragrant, spicy and numbing, comparable to 'spicy crayfish'!"

Mrs. Hua praised it highly and enjoyed the meal immensely!

Li Huan said, "Since Madam likes it, after the competition, I'll cook another 'Spicy Seafood Hot Pot' so Madam can really enjoy it!"

Madam Hua beamed, "One serving isn't enough! We should cook two so that Qiu Xiang and Chun Xiang can also have a taste!"

"Thank you, Madam!" Qiu Xiang, Chun Xiang, Xia Xiang, and Dong Xiang said in unison.

Prince Ning frowned and glared angrily at the three referees who had not voted for Zhang Fugui, his eyes filled with malice and ferocity.

The three referees were engrossed in eating the "spicy seafood hot pot," completely oblivious to Prince Ning's expression.

The fat advisor reminded everyone: "The questions for the third round will be decided by the eight referees!"

Prince Ning and Grand Tutor Hua are not allowed to participate.

Grand Tutor Hua hurriedly said, "How can eight judges reach a consensus on the exam questions?"

Three referees continued eating their seafood spicy hot pot with their heads down, while the other five referees wanted to laugh but held it in.

Smash! Prince Ning slammed his fist on the table, pointing at the three referees!

"You worthless bastards! If you eat again, I'll cut out your tongues and feed them to the dogs!"

The three referees were startled and immediately realized what was happening, quickly leaving the table and returning to their seats.

The portly advisor reminded them again: "The questions for the third round will be decided by the eight referees! Discuss them quickly and announce the results!"

The eight referees huddled together, whispering amongst themselves...

Li Huan knew that at this moment, the effect of "honest white sugar" had disappeared.

Of these eight judges, at least five were biased towards Zhang Fugui out of fear of Prince Ning.

Therefore, the questions they set were somewhat advantageous to Zhang Fugui...