Chapter 228 The Three Brothers of the Dong Family
Yue Ning nodded: "Yes! You and Uncle Dong should have a connection. Her father, Chef Chen Dexiang, is the senior brother of your master, Chef Huang Binggang."
Chef Dong's heart was slightly moved: "This Shandong cuisine chef is a woman? Which daughter of my uncle's is she?"
"Sister Jinying is ranked fifth, right?" Yue Ning said.
Chef Dong suppressed his inner excitement, as this little sister had always been a concern to the three brothers.
Their father passed away, and the pillar of the family was gone. His mother was a woman, and the oldest of the three sons was eight years old, and the youngest was three years old.
How could the mother and her two children survive in such a chaotic time? The third child was still young and could not remember anything. His mother wanted to give him away, but when the time came, the four of them burst into tears.
My eldest brother begged his mother to send him away! At least he would remember things and come back to see them. I knelt down and begged my mother to send me away. In two years, my eldest brother would be able to learn from a master and take care of the family. Without me, they could save food.
Mom looked at each of them and couldn't bear to let them go. At this time, his father's boss, who was also a master, came to the house and said something to his mother. His mother looked at the three of them, thought about them for two days and two nights, and knelt at their father's grave again and again.
The four of them finally had food to eat, but soon rumors started spreading. They were scolded by other kids in the alley, who said their mom was shameless. They got so angry that they started a fight, and were dragged back home by their eldest brother.
He then realized that in order to support them, his mother promised to give birth to a son for Chen Dexiang. As long as she gave birth to a son, his mother would become Chen Dexiang's mistress, and Chen Dexiang was willing to support the three brothers.
The eldest brother said with tears in his eyes: "Mom can't bear to leave the three of us, so she can only sacrifice herself."
That feeling of being suffocated and helpless, they have to survive, they must survive!
Later, when my mother finally got pregnant, they didn't know whether to be happy or sad.
Chen Dexiang kept sending food to their mother. During those months, the three of them also ate a lot and grew up rapidly. Their mother was finally about to give birth. She had a difficult labor. They listened to her screams for a whole day and night, and the baby was finally born. When Chen Dexiang heard that it was a daughter, his face changed immediately, and he didn't care that his mother was bleeding heavily.
The eldest brother went to ask Chen Dexiang to save their mother, and Chen Dexiang finally found a doctor, but it was too late. Mom was only breathing her last breath, and she said she was sorry that Chen Dexiang could not give birth to a son, and begged him to treat their daughter well and also begged him to give the three brothers a meal.
Chen Dexiang verbally agreed, and when his mother died, he even paid for the funeral expenses reluctantly and took his sister away, without ever thinking about taking care of the three brothers.
Chen Dexiang's junior brother couldn't stand it, seeing that his elder brother was already a boy of almost ten years old, so the master decided to accept the elder brother as an apprentice and give the three brothers a meal.
The master did not have his own shop, he was just a Shandong cuisine chef. He had a few boys and girls at home. His family financial situation was far worse than Chen Dexiang's, and it was very difficult to support three brothers. Fortunately, they were soon freed.
It’s just that Chen Dexiang took his whole family to Taiwan, and their little sister was also taken to Taiwan.
The eldest brother has always been worried about his younger sister. Chen Dexiang is extremely patriarchal. I wonder how the younger sister is doing in Taiwan?
My sister is a chef? He couldn't help showing a surprised expression: "Really?"
"Yes! Sister Jinying is very good. She has inherited the true skills of Chef Chen."
It is simply unbelievable that Chen Dexiang actually devoted all his efforts to cultivating his daughter.
Since the birth of the younger sister, the brothers and sisters have never met each other. The eldest brother is always nagging about her, just to know if the younger sister is okay. The younger sister is now in Hong Kong City. I think she came to Hong Kong City with her lover, right? She also entered Baohua Building with her own ability, so the three brothers are relieved. Don't disturb the younger sister's current life. Let her know that there are three half-brothers. There is no point.
This was the best news he had heard today.
The next dish was braised pork with eel. Yue Ning asked the two chefs to taste it. "In order to serve the dishes quickly, the main dishes in the daily set menu are all cooked in a big pot. For lunch, we have the Fairy Soy Sauce Chicken, which is soy sauce chicken and braised pig's trotters. And for dinner? Braised pork with Taihu white eel. A big pot is cooked, and when it comes, just transfer it to the casserole to collect the sauce."
Chef Dong picked up a piece of eel and put it in the bowl. The eel was fried into tiger-skin patterns and coated with the sauce of braised pork. When he opened it, there was still snow-white fish meat inside. The eel meat had the aroma of Huadiao wine.
"Is this eel marinated with Huadiao wine?" asked Chef Dong.
"It is marinated with Shaoxing Huadiao wine for most of the day, first fried, then deep-fried and finally simmered over low heat. The pork belly used is Xiangxi black pork ribs, with a fat-to-lean ratio of 4:6. It is simmered with eels to produce the gelatinous substance, giving it such a rich taste." Yue Ning said.
Chef Lu had already eaten half of the eel and said, "70% eel flavor and 30% sauce. The timing of the sauce collection is so good that even if Old Qian came, he would praise it."
"The Old Qian that Old Lu mentioned is Chef Qian who specializes in Huaiyang cuisine," said Chef Dong.
Yue Ning quickly said: "I don't know what to say to receive such praise."
"Two chefs, this braised eel pork is not Xiaoyue's signature dish. How many people in Gangcheng want to make a reservation for the Sebu eel?" Song Ziqiang spared no effort to introduce the strengths of Ning Yan to the two chefs.
Chef Dong looked around and saw that the dishes were also served at the tables nearby. He said, "Old Lu! After having such a meal at Fuyunlou, I feel that we are not using our brains. Our people are supporting at Yuecheng Hotel. Have you ever thought about promoting set meals? Have you ever thought about making such a big pot dish? How much time can this save? Shandong cuisine and your Lu family cuisine are both known for stewing, which are most suitable for making big pot dishes."
Chef Lu laughed and said, "So! Today we are not here to give instructions, but to learn from you."
Yue Ning asked someone to bring the five-day set menu to the two chefs. "This set menu rotates every five days. The lunch and dinner are different. There are two types of flavors: Chinese and Western..."
Yue Ning explained to them while they ate.
The two understood Yue Ning's idea clearly, and Chef Lu said, "The Spring Fair is still more than half a month away! When Yude and his team finish their evening market, we can have a good chat with them and come up with the entire menu? Let the children relax a little."
"We'll take this menu." said Chef Dong.
"OK!"
A plate of dry fried beef noodles was served. Yue Ning looked at the waiter, who said, "It was fried by Chef Fan."
"Chef Lu, try the dry-fried beef noodles cooked by Sister Xiuqin." Yue Ning asked Chef Lu to try it first.
Lu Yongding picked up a piece of dry-fried beef noodles with chopsticks and stuffed it into his mouth. Of course, he didn't have the exquisite control of the heat as for the stir-fried mixed dishes, but it still looked pretty good.
Chef Dong said, "The stir-frying skills are almost as good as those of my apprentices. Xiuqin has been here not long ago! This girl is smart and can learn anything."
"That also requires the chef to be willing to teach. Chef He has put a lot of thought into her."
Lu Yongding felt upset. In terms of fame and ability, he was far superior to Chef He. But for Xiuqin, only the one who really treated her as an apprentice and taught her the skills sincerely was a master. He was not a competent master!
After dinner, Yue Ning asked the waiter to call Fan Xiuqin out to see off the two chefs.
Lu Yongding looked at his apprentice who had been with him since she was sixteen years old, and rubbed the girl's head with his hand: "Learn the craft from your master well. Your senior brother is here too, learn from him too, okay? Don't jump around every day..."
"Oh, Master, don't I have to go to your place tomorrow morning? If you want to talk to me, tell me tomorrow." Fan Xiuqin pushed the master into the car.
"Come to Yuecheng Hotel for breakfast tomorrow morning." Lu Yongding said in the car.
"I know, I know!" Fan Xiuqin waved to her master.
Song Ziqiang sent the two chefs back to Yuecheng Hotel.
The two went to the kitchen together. It was busy there. The Lu family's Cantonese cuisine and the Huang family's Shandong cuisine each had their own strengths and complemented each other's weaknesses. This time, both families sent people over together.
Lu Yongding looked at his son who was directing the team in the kitchen. This was the first time his son led a team to the Guangdong City Trade Fair, and he already looked very capable.
A year before the reform and opening up, more foreign leaders came to Beijing. He felt deeply that relying on his ancestral craftsmanship and communication with his old colleagues was no longer enough.
Especially after he visited Hong Kong in early 1979, he felt more and more that there was a huge gap between the mainland and the outside world, including in terms of cuisine. They have traditional skills, but too little experience.
The two boys of the next generation of the Lu family are very outstanding, and he wants his sons to go to Hong Kong City to try their luck and learn some new things.
The son’s first reaction was that he wanted to pass the Lu family to his nephew.
I had a long talk with my son at that time, and he really wanted to pass his position to his nephew. Not only because Peide was the eldest grandson of the Lu family, but also because the Lu family could live in peace and he could become a national chef because his eldest brother analyzed their situation after liberation. Their Lu family was not like other chefs who worked as chefs in restaurants and hotels.
The Lu family has been running their own restaurant for more than a hundred years, and their customers are all celebrities and dignitaries.
After the founding of New China, the people have been the masters of the country. Families like theirs must change their mindset and remember that they are serving the people.
Not long after, the Korean War broke out and China decided to resist the United States and aid Korea. My eldest brother resolutely signed up for the army and went to the Korean battlefield.
The eldest brother came back from the battlefield with one leg missing and seven scars of varying sizes on his body. He died within ten years of returning. It was because of the eldest brother's achievements that the Lu family was not affected at all during those years.
The eldest brother sacrificed his life for the safety of the Lu family, so it was only natural that his position was given to his nephew. Otherwise, their family would have no idea how much suffering they would have to endure.
He told his son everything he had, but his son and wife said he favored his nephew, saying that the Lu family had a family motto that whoever had the ability would inherit it. His wife went to his nephew and sister-in-law without his knowledge and told them that he had decided to send Yude to Hong Kong City in order to make way for Peide.
The next day, his nephew found him and said that he was willing to go to the port city.
Hearing this, he was so angry that he had a quarrel with his wife and son. The more they quarreled, the more his wife and son said, "Look! How can you be reluctant to let your nephew go out when such a good thing happened?"
He didn't want his nephew to go to Gangcheng because his eldest sister-in-law and her son didn't want to cause trouble for others. He was afraid that his nephew would not tell him if he encountered difficulties. Later, his nephew wrote to him and asked Xiuqin to go to Gangcheng as well. He was relieved. After all, if his nephew didn't have a good place to go, he wouldn't ask Xiuqin to go there.
However, when Xiao Yue talked about the hardships he had just experienced when he arrived in Yuecheng, Peide only reported good news and not bad news! Fortunately, his nephew was able to turn adversity into good fortune, and with the help of noble people, he has now become the chef of Baohualou, and Xiao Yue said that he would hand over the second Ningyan restaurant to him. He was finally relieved.
Lu Yongding walked to his son: "Yude."
"Dad, you're back? How's Fuyun Building?" Lu Yude asked with a smile, "I heard from the comrades at Yuecheng Hotel that they talked a lot about them, and the Baohua Building that they jointly invested with them."
"Your uncle Dong and I went to see it. Their approach is worth learning from. When you and Ah Sheng finish the evening market, don't go back to the guesthouse yet. Come to our room and we'll discuss how to make changes."
"change?"
"They have a good idea." Chef Dong said, and he went to tell his apprentice not to go back to the guesthouse.
The two brothers went upstairs together. Lu Yongding knew what Chef Dong was worried about, so he said, "Are you relieved to hear that your sister is doing well?"
"Yes! I have been worried about her for more than 30 years. I can finally tell my mother that my sister is doing well now."
At this time, the rooms were tight, so the two brothers shared a room. After entering the room, Chef Dong wanted to call Beijing. Lu Yongding laughed at him: "It's been decades. There's no rush to call tomorrow. If you call at this time, your brother will be asleep, right? Why do you want him to run to the phone booth?"
"It's okay." Chef Dong made a call.
Five or six minutes later, the eldest brother of the Dong family answered the phone, and Chef Dong said excitedly: "Brother, our sister is in Hong Kong City! She is a chef in a restaurant in Hong Kong City."
“Really?”
"real."
"How is your sister? She is not young anymore. Our nephews and nieces must be grown up now, right? How about your brother-in-law? What does he do?" The eldest brother of the Dong family asked a series of questions excitedly.
This really stumped Chef Dong. He said, "Didn't we agree on this? It's enough for me to know my sister's situation. If she doesn't want to recognize me, we shouldn't bother her. This is the first time I'm meeting her boss, and I'm afraid if I ask too much, people will get suspicious."
After hearing what he said, Lu Yongding came over and said, "Won't we ask that girl Xiuqin tomorrow and she will know everything? She's a gossip girl. She even knows how many kittens each cat in our yard has given birth to."
Chef Dong was happy: "Yes, big brother, I will ask Lao Lu's apprentice tomorrow. That girl is in the same unit as my sister. I will tell you after I ask her."
"Okay, I'll wait for your call." The eldest brother of the Dong family said, "I have to go tell the third brother."
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