When Director Wang walked into the cafeteria, he saw Ma Hua still diligently cleaning. He was extremely satisfied; this young man was quite reliable, it was just a pity he ran into a idiot like Sha Zhu.
"Little Horse, I'm here. How are your preparations going?"
Ma Hua then noticed Director Wang and immediately said to him with great confidence, "Director, just you wait and see."
As she spoke, Ma Hua scooped the peeled potatoes out of the basin of water and placed them on the cutting board. Holding the knife in her right hand and pressing down on the potatoes with her left, she made a rhythmic chopping sound from the cutting board. Soon, rows of evenly sized potato shreds were laid out on the cutting board, which she then soaked in a basin full of water.
Director Wang strode to the basin, stirred the potato shreds with his hand, and found each shred to be distinct and uniform in thickness. "Ma Hua, this young man's knife skills are impressive!" "I didn't realize that. Sha Zhu doesn't have that kind of knife skill."
Then I looked at Ma Hua, who was still busy. Ma Hua had already chopped the necessary ingredients, such as chili and garlic, and put them in a small bowl for later use. The shredded potatoes were also placed aside to drain.
Seeing that everything was ready, Ma Hua asked Director Wang, "Director, now that everything is ready, shall I start cooking?"
"Alright, let's begin," Director Wang said, looking at Ma Hua with anticipation. Ma Hua's actions earlier had given him a glimmer of hope; he truly hoped this young man could live up to his words.
Ma Hua quickly placed the wok on the stove. Once the wok was hot, she poured in a spoonful of oil. When the oil started to smoke slightly, she added the prepared Sichuan peppercorns and fried them over low heat until fragrant. After the aroma of the peppercorns had infused the oil, she picked them out one by one with chopsticks.
Then, the wok was placed back on the stove, and only when the oil started to smoke did the prepared garlic slices and chili pieces be added. Instantly, the aroma of chili peppers filled the entire cafeteria.
He casually tossed the drained potato shreds into the pan, gripping the handle with his left hand and the spatula with his right. With a slight push from his left, the potato shreds danced in the air. After a few stirs, the potatoes softened, and Ma Hua added salt and sugar to the pan, stirring briefly.
Then, he evenly poured a small spoonful of vinegar along the edge of the wok, and instantly the aroma of vinegar wafted out. After stir-frying for a few seconds, Ma Hua scooped the dish out of the wok.
Then, Ma Hua skillfully prepared another dish and placed both dishes in front of Director Wang, saying, "Director, please try these. These are my hot and sour shredded potatoes and vinegar-braised cabbage."
Director Wang took the chopsticks from Ma Hua, swallowed hard, and his mouth watered. It smelled so good. "Hmm, this dish looks and smells delicious, but I wonder how it tastes."
Then Director Wang picked up a little shredded potato and tasted it. "Mmm. Sour and spicy, refreshing. Not bad, not bad." He then tasted a bite of the stir-fried cabbage with vinegar next to him.
He then looked at Ma Hua with some dissatisfaction. "Ma Hua, you're not being honest."
Ma Hua was immediately surprised. Could it be that his cooking wasn't good enough? Impossible! Seeing Ma Hua's worried expression, Director Wang first laughed a few times and then said, "Why didn't you tell me you had this culinary skill sooner? Your dishes are much better than Sha Zhu's!"
Ma Hua feigned surprise and said, "No, no, it's all thanks to your excellent guidance, Director Wang."
"You rascal! This dish is delicious, but it's a pity it's missing one thing—a bowl of rice." Director Wang said with some regret as he put the dish down. These two dishes are sour, spicy, and refreshing; you'd definitely need two big bowls of rice with them.
Then Director Wang looked at Ma Hua with a serious expression: "Can you cook other dishes?"
Ma Hua nodded subconsciously. Director Wang thought for a few minutes before slowly saying, "Don't let me down, kid. Work hard. Alright, it's getting late. Pack these things up before you leave work." Director Wang pointed meaningfully to two dishes on the table, then left.
Ma Hua was a little surprised. What did the director mean by this? Was the food good or bad? Ma Hua shrugged and thought to himself, whatever. If it didn't work out, he would just go somewhere else.
Then, glancing at the dish that Director Wang had just eaten a couple of bites of, he took a bite himself with his chopsticks: "Hmm, no problem at all, sour and spicy, the shredded potatoes are just right."
Ma Hua quickly tidied up the kitchen, took out her lunchbox, and packed the two dishes she had just prepared into it. "Hmm, don't waste food," she thought. "If Director Wang isn't eating, he can take it home. Wasting food is a huge crime!"
Following the original owner's memories, Ma Hua walked towards home. He curiously surveyed his surroundings: the low, flat house, the mottled walls bearing the marks of those memories...
There were pedestrians coming and going on the street. Although they were simply dressed, everyone held their heads high, their eyes bright and full of hope. Although the people of this era were somewhat lacking in material things and looked a little thin and pale, their positive spirit inspired the MCA. The people have faith, and the nation has spirit.
It was half an hour later when Ma Hua got home. He secretly vowed to himself that he must find some money to buy a bicycle; he really disliked walking. It was just too slow.
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