Chapter 414: Celebrities Gather
The staff's words were vague yet certain. Although the contestants were still confused, they hurriedly followed the staff as soon as they saw them walking out, without bothering to ask any more questions.
Zhao Xiaojing also made a backup plan for herself in such doubts. She decided to go to the stage to watch the host's demonstration first to see whether the so-called real shots of the dishes can really show the quality of the ingredients as if she saw it with her own eyes. If it is true, then she will order the ingredients needed for stir-fried pork liver; if not, then she will order a plate of stir-fried beef and a plate of shredded potatoes, and then make a choice after seeing the ingredients.
The contestants followed the leading staff member through a long corridor and upstairs. At the signal of the handover staff, they quietly went backstage to the studio. They thought they would have to wait a while before going on stage, but after just a few seconds, they heard the host call out, inviting the first group of contestants to the stage.
Then the lights and cameras moved over, and the whole team began to move. One by one, the contestants walked into the studio, which was dark all around and lit in the middle, and stood in front of the stage at the host's signal.
Zhao Xiaojing lowered her head slightly, glanced at the camera out of the corner of her eyes, and subconsciously stood in the middle of the last row. After making sure that her presence was low, she looked up and observed silently.
When he looked up, he saw Dang Yongge. He and the other five judges were sitting opposite the operating table. Although he looked much older than when I saw his show as a child, he still had a smiling face and was tilting his head to say something to the staff next to him.
The staff nodded and left immediately. Dang Yongge sat up straight and poured some hot water for the white-haired old man sitting next to him, who looked very old.
Zhao Xiaojing's eyes immediately scanned the old man's face. Although he had white hair and wrinkles on his face, he looked very energetic. When Dang Yongge added water, he immediately moved his cup and nodded in thanks, and his eyes looking at this side were particularly peaceful.
At this moment, the staff member who had just been there hurried back with a pillow. Dang Yongge nodded and took it. Then he helped the old man up, placed the pillow behind his back, and adjusted it again and again.
Zhao Xiaojing immediately glanced at the nameplate on the table. Sure enough, the old man was Nan Rongquan, the person mentioned the most by the contestants.
"Now, our first group of pioneers have entered the arena. You can see that they are all fully prepared for the battle. They are all tough guys who have emerged from the national culinary world, and they all have unique culinary skills.
Now, let me lead the way for all of you skilled pioneers. I'll briefly introduce our national culinary master judges and how to use our ordering system." All the contestants took the stage, and the host stood at the front and spoke.
Zhao Xiaojing then looked at the host who had been standing next to her. It turned out to be He Xi, a well-known host of Baitao TV. It was rumored that other TV stations had tried to poach him with huge sums of money but failed. He was also the host that Wan Yuyue had been pestering Zhao Xiaojing for his autograph.
I originally thought that since this was the first competition in Tuancheng, Bai Tao would definitely be the host to go through the motions, but I didn’t expect that He Xi would be brought in directly. Does he attach so much importance to this program?
Zhao Xiaojing blinked. Although it was not the first time she had seen a celebrity up close, she was really surprised by the level of attention. She became inexplicably nervous again.
"The first one is our teacher Nan Rongquan, a top-notch Shandong cuisine chef who has obtained many authoritative certifications. He is a national technical expert, recognized as the best Shandong cuisine chef in the industry, a national inheritor of the intangible cultural heritage of cooking, and the current executive chef of Yipintang!" He Xi pointed to Nan Rongquan, who was sitting in the first place on the judges' panel. He smiled and waved slowly, and the contestants applauded.
"The second is our teacher Dang Yongge, a renowned host, food critic, writer, founder of the magazine 'Taste of Morning and Evening', and the National Ambassador for the Promotion of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Culinary Culture!"
Dang Yongge also waved with a smile, and there was another round of applause.
"Third place goes to our Ms. Huang Jinge, who has won numerous awards for the most commercially valuable food influencer, is a nationally recognized figure in food culture communication, a creator of in-depth food content, and the annual Female Newsmaker with tens of millions of fans both at home and abroad!"
It turned out to be Huang Jinge! Zhao Xiaojing hadn't seen many of her videos, but she'd always heard of her fame and achievements. After He Xi's introduction, she realized she was the only woman in the third seat, the youngest judge! It seemed like there were a lot of big names this time; I'd unknowingly met another celebrity.
"Number four is our Mr. Le Zhengsong, a master of Hunan cuisine. He's also the head chef of the famous Hunan Banquet Xiaoju chain restaurant, number one on the Hunan Province must-eat list!"
Zhao Xiaojing had also seen this restaurant in Wan Yuyue's travel guide, but Wan Yuyue's advice to her was to go if it was close to the main store, and not to go if it was not close, and there was no need to go to chain branches. She said that although this restaurant ranked first, the quality had been declining due to the large number of tourists, and now they started using pre-prepared dishes.
"The fifth one is our teacher Yu Jiarong, the head chef of Jukelou, and a master of Hunan and Sichuan cuisine!"
"Number six is our teacher Di Tianhe, the owner and chef of Yijianglou, a master of Zhejiang and Anhui cuisines!"
After the six judges finished their introductions, the thirty contestants began to silently massage their numb palms. He Xi said a few polite words, and then a nearby staff member brought over a tablet. "Now, I'll show you how to use the ordering system. Contestants, please pay attention and look at the large screen to the right."
On the right, a real-time projection of the tablet in He Xi's hand immediately appeared on the big screen. As soon as the tablet was turned on, a selection interface similar to that of a takeaway app when entering a store appeared.
"Each of our thirty contestants has a tablet on their table. When you open it, you'll see the interface we see now. Scrolling down, you'll see various vegetables, meats, and other ingredients. On the left are the major categories, which you can click on to search."
He Xi slid his finger down, explaining and demonstrating at the same time.
There was a series of menus on the interface that were overwhelming. He Xi swiped several times but was still in the seasonal vegetable category. However, there were more than a dozen major categories on the left that He Xi mentioned.
There are seasonal vegetables, algae, beans, mushrooms, grains, eggs, dried goods, potatoes, etc. There are already a lot of classification items before even seeing the meat. He Xi clicked on a few of them as a demonstration, and there was another series of scrolling that he couldn't see the end of.
So... so many? Couldn't she have lost her way choosing the right ingredients? Wouldn't she be unable to find anything after scrolling for ages? Zhao Xiaojing silently gasped.
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