Meng Zhao squatted down and picked up the little girl. She had been playing somewhere and her face was flushed from the heat, which softened Meng Zhao's heart. Although she had been out setting up a stall with them all day and didn't look as fair-skinned, she was getting healthier and healthier. It seemed that her nutritional meals hadn't been in vain.
"Oh dear, Qingyu, come down quickly, don't tire your sister-in-law out." These two children often let Meng Zhao carry them after they became familiar with her. Now that they are getting heavier, Gu Shi is afraid that Meng Zhao will get tired.
Upon hearing her mother's words, Shen Qingyu hugged Meng Zhao even tighter, as if she didn't want to get down.
Meng Zhao smiled, her eyes crinkling with laughter, and said, "It's alright, Mother. Qingyu is so light, she can't possibly tire me out."
As she spoke, she spun Shen Qingyu around a few times, making the little girl giggle in her arms.
Shen Qingze stood by anxiously, wanting his sister-in-law to hug him too, but he was too embarrassed to say so.
Meng Zhao seemed to understand what he was thinking, "I can not only carry Qingyu, I can carry two at once, Qingze, come here."
Shen Qingze immediately ran over with a smile and hugged Meng Zhao tightly around the neck.
Seeing that they were holding each other tightly, Meng Zhao stood up and spun around. The two children excitedly shouted, "You're holding me! You're holding me! You're so tall, sister-in-law!"
"Haha, this is so much fun."
As the three of them laughed and joked, Madam Gu reached out to protect them, lest they fall.
After the two children had finished playing, Meng Zhao put them down with a smile. Although she was stronger now, each of the two children weighed thirty or forty pounds, and it was not easy to carry them for a long time.
When the two children saw that Meng Zhao was tired, they asked her to sit down and massaged her shoulders and legs. They also poured her tea and fed her snacks. Meng Zhao smiled and asked them to take care of her.
On the appointed day, Meng Zhao helped Gu Shi prepare the meal and then set off to the Zhao residence to prepare the food. She asked Aunt Feng'e to help her set up a stall, and she only had to go to the county town to set up the stall at noon. She earned thirty coins a day, and Aunt Feng'e was very happy with her work.
When Meng Zhao arrived at the Zhao residence, the kitchen staff welcomed him with attitudes that were completely different from when he first arrived.
It seems that no matter where you go, having ability will earn you respect.
Meng Zhao didn't say much and got to work. Tomorrow, they only needed to cook for five tables, which wasn't a large quantity, so most of the dishes would be made fresh tomorrow to be fresher. Today, they just needed to fry the things that needed to be fried and prepare the necessary side dishes.
First, the rice flour needed for making steamed pork is fried. The Zhao family has a millstone, so it doesn't take much effort.
Next, the lion's head meatballs are fried, but this time they can't be called lion's head meatballs. Instead, they are called Four Happiness Meatballs. The names of dishes at banquets should naturally have auspicious meanings.
We also need to prepare some small accessories and carving molds for tomorrow's plating in advance.
Unlike other chefs, Meng Zhao always did everything openly and honestly.
At first, when they were cooking, Chef Zhou asked her if they needed to leave, and Meng Zhao replied that they didn't.
When Meng Zhao was a child, she learned a few skills from the master chef in the orphanage, but she learned many things online as she grew up. She is also a food blogger and often shares cooking tutorials online. She does not intend to pass on her skills only to her family disciples, because if everyone thought that way, many skills would be lost and could not be continued, which would be a great pity.
Meng Zhao had no intention of taking on apprentices, nor would she deliberately teach them. She would simply do what she was supposed to do. They watched from the sidelines, and although they couldn't learn the essence of her cooking techniques, they could at least see how she cooked.
Even so, it was a great shock to the cooks inside the house.
Here, many skills are unique and passed down only to men. They learn a few secret techniques from their masters after years of cutting the dough, and then pass them on to their descendants.
Seeing Meng Zhao's generosity, he admired her even more.
With the help of the chefs, Meng Zhao's preparations went quite smoothly. While preparing the dishes, Meng Zhao also learned that the Zhao family had stored ice, which made Meng Zhao very happy. So she added a dessert on the spot, which was just right for cooling off in the summer.
On the day of the birthday banquet, Meng Zhao got up early and went to the Zhao family. These days, they hadn't had a break except when it was windy or rainy. Today was a good day to let Gu Shi and the two children rest.
Today, we entered through the back gate as usual. Everyone in the mansion was in a hurry and seemed quite busy.
When Meng Zhao arrived in the kitchen, she immediately got busy. Although there were many people cooperating, they had never heard of many of the dishes Meng Zhao prepared, so Meng Zhao had to arrange everything. She was so busy that she barely had time to breathe.
As noon approached, the food was almost ready, and Meng Zhao began explaining the name and meaning of each dish to the maids serving it, so they wouldn't be at a loss for words if the guests asked.
After everything was almost finished, Meng Zhao was finally able to rest when Butler Chen rushed over and said, "Miss Meng, our young master invites you in."
Meng Zhao asked in surprise, "You're asking me to do something? I'm just a cook."
Butler Chen also looked puzzled. "I'm not quite sure either, but since the young master has invited you, Miss Meng, you should go."
Meng Zhao took off her apron and sleeves, tidied herself up a bit, and left the kitchen with Butler Chen.
During this time, Steward Chen instructed the maid beside him, "Master and the guests are in the main courtyard, while the young master and his classmates are in the side courtyard. Zhuxin, take Miss Meng to the side courtyard. I still need to go to the main courtyard to entertain the guests."
After seeing Steward Chen off, Meng Zhao followed the maid who looked to be about the same age as her to the side courtyard.
Before even entering the courtyard, a loud voice could be heard: "Today's cook is someone I specially invited from outside. I've heard her skills are quite excellent. You classmates are in for a treat!"
Meng Zhao lowered his head and followed Zhu Xin into the side courtyard. When they arrived at the main table, Zhu Xin bowed to the man sitting in the center and said, "Young Master, today's banquet has been prepared, and Miss Meng has also brought her along."
Meng Zhao kept his head down and followed Zhu Xin, not daring to look around. These wealthy people had many taboos, and he hadn't received the final payment yet, so he couldn't anger the boss.
Young Master Zhao, who was in the main seat, said to Meng Zhao, who was following behind, "So you are today's cook? I thought you were an old lady with superb cooking skills, but I didn't expect you to be so young. Raise your head."
Meng Zhao was speechless. It was just cooking a meal, why did he have to look at people like that? But the person who paid was the boss, so he had no choice but to comply. He could only look up, but then he saw an unexpected person at the banquet.
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