After the filming was over, Ye Tian continued to go to work and go home as usual. She also planned to visit her master Luo Zhongxi during her next break.
Before she could go, Chef Luo called her and said he and his wife would treat her to a meal. This time, they didn't meet at his own restaurant, but instead specially treated Ye Tian to a meal at the time-honored Tonglu Hot Pot restaurant.
Ye Tian didn't have any friends here, and indeed hadn't yet tried the Tonglu hotpot. After all, it felt a bit strange to be alone in front of a large hotpot, so a small one-person hotpot was fine.
Master's Wife, Shen Xin, was indeed, as Master had said, a very gentle person. She wore a light blue silk dress, had fair skin, and thick, shiny black hair. Although not a typical beauty, her smile revealed two dimples, giving her a particularly gentle and comfortable look, not at all like someone in their 40s. Ye Tian immediately fell in love with her.
Chef Luo's son is in the second grade of elementary school. He eats lunch at school at noon and did not come with us.
The chef's wife was incredibly welcoming, worried Ye Tian would be embarrassed to order. She ordered a large portion, clearly more than enough for three people. There was hand-cut lamb and beef, beef and mutton rolls, duck blood, tripe, yellow throat, enoki mushrooms, and a vegetable platter. She also specially ordered traditional yogurt and brown sugar buns for Ye Tian, both of the restaurant's signature dishes.
Unlike the spicy hotpot, the copper pot hotpot uses a different dipping sauce. The main dipping sauce is sesame paste, with chives and fermented tofu. The restaurant's sesame sauce bowl features a smiley face pattern made of fermented tofu, which is quite endearing.
During the meal, the master's wife kept using serving chopsticks to pick up food for Ye Tian, saying she was too thin and needed to eat more. She asked about Ye Tian's family situation and, upon hearing that both her parents were deceased, she nearly burst into tears, her eyes filled with heartache as she looked at Ye Tian.
Ye Tian had never thought that her master's wife was so sentimental. She had never enjoyed the love of her parents in her two lives, but she didn't seem to feel anything. But when her master's wife looked at her with tears in her eyes today, she suddenly felt that she was quite pitiful.
Master's wife held Ye Tian's hand and said, "You've suffered so much at such a young age. From now on, treat me and your master's home as your own! If you have anything that you're embarrassed to tell your master, tell Master's wife instead. After dinner, I'll take you shopping."
"Okay, okay, let's eat! The meat is almost overcooked!" Chef Luo couldn't stand it anymore and broke the sad atmosphere.
After eating for a while, Luo Zhongxi said, "Xiao Ye, I have something you can help me with. There's a TV show called "Chinese and Foreign Chefs' Championship" coming out soon. The producer contacted me through a friend and invited me to participate in an episode. But I'm still considering it. Do you think I should go?"
"What kind of competition is it? A competition with foreign chefs? Just one round, or multiple rounds?" Ye Tian had never watched this program, so she asked in detail.
Chef Luo said, "For now, we'll only compete once. Maybe we'll have another one if we win. My opponents are foreign chefs, mostly from Michelin-starred restaurants. Although our restaurant isn't Michelin-rated, I believe we're no worse than them."
"If we go, we need a team of four, and I can bring three assistants. I watched the previous competition, and we have to prepare a total of 21 people, including appetizers, main courses, soup and desserts. And we have to decide what dishes to make based on the dishes allocated on site, which requires a high level of on-the-spot performance." Chef Luo said.
Ye Tian thought for a moment and said, "Then we need at least a chef who is good at desserts."
“Yes, but it would be better if he could also take care of other tasks. Four people have to prepare dishes for 21 people, and the assistants must be quick and agile when handling ingredients because all the dishes have to be completed within the specified time, which seems to be only two hours in total.” Chef Luo added.
He looked at Ye Tian: "If I decide to participate in the competition, I want you to be my assistant."
Ye Tian thought that she was no longer necessary at Jingweilou, and going to the competition with her master was undoubtedly a good opportunity to train. She asked about the approximate time of the competition and expressed her desire to go.
"Maybe in half a month. Since you think it's a good idea, I will reply to my friend today and agree to participate in the show. I want to assemble the team a week in advance and concentrate on training our tacit understanding together. Can you ask for leave from Jingweilou?" Master Luo asked her in an inquiring tone.
"It should be possible. There are enough chefs over there. But it may not be convenient to live there. Does our restaurant have dormitories? Can I stay there temporarily?" Ye Tian did not treat the master as an outsider and raised any difficulties immediately.
The master's wife beside him listened for a long time and finally had the chance to speak: "Why live in a dormitory? There is an empty guest room at home. You can take your master's car to go to the store together every day."
"That's right, listen to your master's wife and live at home. You can help your junior brother with his English." Chef Luo also said.
When Ye Tian heard about tutoring English, she was afraid that she would mislead the students and immediately said, "No, no, I don't want to cause trouble for my family. I'll just live in the dormitory."
"It's not a problem. Just listen to me and live at home. I'll bring your junior brother to pick you up on the weekend and help you move your things." The master's wife made the final decision, not allowing Ye Tian to refute.
Ye Tian couldn't refuse, so she nodded in agreement, thinking that she would have to go back and study English intensively. She hadn't read any English books since the summer vacation, and she was still worried about the CET-4 exam next semester.
While eating hotpot, although everyone chatted a lot, they also ate a lot.
The hand-cut beef was fresh and firm, the lamb rolls were incredibly tender, and the lamb throat was crispy. Served with a head of pickled garlic and a variety of greens, it was a welcome relief from the meatiness. The brown sugar braised pork belly was fragrant and sweet, with a slightly crispy exterior and the brown sugar oozing out from within. Two triangular slices were enough to fill me up completely, and a small cup of thick, honey-sweetened yogurt finished the meal off.
In the hot weather of August, Ye Tian enjoyed the meal very much.
The master's wife had indeed ordered too much, and there was still a lot left over. The master and his wife were not the kind of people who would waste food; they packed up all the leftovers. Ye Tian felt even more strongly that they were good people. She herself cherished food and respected people like them.
After the meal, Chef Luo left first with the packed things, while his wife insisted on taking Ye Tian shopping for clothes.
Chen Xin was middle-aged and her family was well off, so she wanted to buy good quality clothes. She saw that Ye Tian's clothes were simple and comfortable, and they seemed to be in line with the fashion trends of young girls, but the quality was very average, so she wanted to buy her some better clothes.
"Try this silk dress, this T-shirt, and these cropped pants!"
"Don't always wear sneakers. You're tall, so you don't need high heels. But flat leather sandals are cool and ladylike. Try these two pairs and I'll see which one looks better."
"I'll buy you another bag. A little girl loves beauty the most, but she can't carry a canvas bag every day."
…
"Master's wife, it's really not necessary. I still have clothes. These are really enough!"
"Master's Wife, please don't buy any more. I'll be mad if you buy any more!"
"Master's Wife..."
…
Ye Tian felt really bad about asking her master's wife to spend more money. Chen Xin had already bought nearly 10,000 yuan worth of things. Ye Tian felt that she owed her master and her master's wife too much.
When Chen Xin finally visited all the girls' stores in the mall, both of them were holding shopping bags of various sizes, and the master's wife was finally satisfied.
Ye Tian discovered that her master’s wife was a shopaholic!
After buying things for Ye Tian, she didn't go home, but Ye Tian accompanied her shopping. She tried on this and that, and finally bought several bags.
Then Chen Xin pulled Ye Tian to drink milk tea together. This was something Ye Tian could afford, so she quickly asked her mistress to sit down in the rest area and rest while she went to queue up to buy milk tea.
The two of them sat at a rest area in the milk tea shop, drinking Zhizhi Taotao and Succulent Grape drinks, like a pair of best friends. The master's wife also said that she hadn't had such a happy shopping trip in a long time. Friends her age all had elderly parents and young children at home, so it was difficult for them to get together. Today, it was a rare opportunity for her to have Ye Tian accompany her, and it was like having another daughter.
After the break, the master's wife took a taxi to send Ye Tian home first, and then she went home. Seeing that the neighborhood where Ye Tian lived was very poor, she specifically asked Ye Tian to pack up her things as soon as possible and move in as soon as possible.
Ye Tian knew that her master's wife was not being insincere, but when she returned to the dormitory and faced the shopping bags of all sizes, she still felt that the affection was very heavy.
She counted and found two short-sleeved shirts, two skirts, two dresses, two pairs of trousers, a pair of shorts, a pair of sandals and a bag. She had bought almost all her summer clothes, shoes and bags.
The clothes, shoes and bags cost over 10,000 yuan, with a light luxury brand shoulder bag costing over 3,000 yuan. The shoes were over 1,000 yuan, and the dresses were over 1,000 yuan each and 2,000 yuan each. It was the first time Ye Tian had worn such expensive clothes.
Chen Xin chose clothes that were all very ladylike. Ye Tian usually wore simple and elegant clothes. But in a silk dress and with her long hair loose, she was even more beautiful. She had the feeling of a campus goddess.
She also likes silk. In her previous life, she would custom-make silk satin clothes. When she was not in the kitchen, she would dress up carefully and look beautiful.
Ye Tian was grateful for her attentiveness and care. What girl doesn't love beauty? She also wanted to dress beautifully every day and do what she liked.
Because she felt like her master was a family, she wanted to quickly recall the traditional Chinese medicine formula for gastrointestinal conditioning. Although she couldn't afford anything for her master's wife at the moment, she could buy some toys for her junior apprentice. She asked Lu Xinyi, who told her that children these days love playing with Lego. Ye Tian pre-ordered a Lego set for over 1,000 yuan and planned to bring it with her to her master's house.
Later, she thought of her master's wife's love for embroidery products while shopping. Ye Tian knew that her embroidery skills were poor and could not compare with other ladies in her time.
However, she saw that the machine embroidery sold in modern stores was even worse. Clothes that required even a little bit of craftsmanship were extremely expensive. She felt that her embroidery skills were quite good. For example, simple floral embroidery could be used to make a few silk handkerchiefs.
She immediately placed an order for silk material, embroidery thread, and bamboo supports. Online shopping is so advanced these days that no matter how niche the item, you can basically find it.
…
The next day at work, Ye Tian first told Chef Yun about the situation and said that she would leave early to participate in the Chinese and Foreign Chef God Competition with Chef Luo Zhongxi.
Master Yun expressed his understanding and thought this was a great opportunity, telling Ye Tian to go ahead and feel free! He also said, "During the time you've been here, I haven't taken good care of you. Instead, I asked you to help with promotion and do so much. I know your abilities and believe you'll excel in this field. I hope to see you again in the future!"
Ye Tian was also touched by Master Yun's sincerity and thanked him for his care during this period. Master Yun also taught her 10 Beijing dishes, the secrets of which were not easily taught. Master Yun definitely treated her as one of his own. However, the Yan family did not really want her to be one of their own, and Master Yun had no power to influence her. Although he was also Master Yan's apprentice, he was only a chef with no shares.
She understood Master Yun's dilemma and the difficulties he faced. She knew he was a good person, but whether in his personal life or his cooking, he was always indecisive and always lacked that extra push. This was something she couldn't help resolve, but she simply hoped Master Yun would find his own path and be more decisive in the future.
In the next few days, Ye Tian still went to work at Jingweilou during the day, and studied English and embroidered handkerchiefs at home at night, and was very busy.
She embroidered five pieces in total, featuring magnolia, winter jasmine, peach blossom, lotus, and plum blossom. She had originally intended to embroider a peony, but the flowers were too large to handle, so she failed halfway through. She had to move to her embroiderer's house the next day, so she didn't have time to embroider another piece. Still, five pieces wasn't too few.
Ye Tian didn't have much luggage, most of which was newly bought by her master's wife, so she only had a suitcase and a handbag, plus some Lego toys for her junior brother.
As soon as she left, two waiters came in. They found that Ye Tian had cleaned up the room before leaving, and the room was very clean. They felt a little guilty at first, but it soon disappeared.
The master didn't have time to come pick her up, so Chen Xin drove over with her son. As soon as she saw her coming out of the unit, she immediately stepped forward to help her with her suitcase. Ye Tian's suitcase was a bit heavy, so she insisted on carrying it herself, leaving the handbag to the master's wife.
"Hello, sister! Is this Lego puzzle for me?"
"Yes, Junior Brother!"
"Wow! That's great. I've always wanted this set, but my mom didn't buy it for me because she was afraid it would affect my studies." A chubby boy about 140cm tall rushed forward and happily took the Lego.
"Sister, you are so beautiful! I can finally tell my classmates that I have a sister!"
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