Grand Tutor Hua stroked his beard, his brows furrowed.
"It's bad enough that there's a quail inside the pigeon's belly, but there's even a sparrow inside the quail's belly! Sigh..."
Hua Taishi's tone was disappointed, indicating that he also acknowledged that Zhang Fugui's idea was quite novel, and thus worried that Li Huan would lose to Zhang Fugui and lose the third round.
Zhang Fugui said, "Roast suckling pig, duck, rooster, pigeon, quail, and sparrow—six ingredients, each with a unique flavor!"
Prince Ning hurriedly asked, "Which six flavors?"
Zhang Fugui said, "The taste of roast suckling pig needs no further explanation!"
"This duck is braised duck! This rooster is Sichuan peppercorn chicken! This pigeon is honey-glazed pigeon! This quail is spiced quail! This sparrow is deep-fried sparrow!"
"Therefore, the roast suckling pig I cook is called—the Six Wonders of Heaven and Earth: Delicious Roast Suckling Pig!"
"Please, Your Highness, Grand Tutor, and all judges, savor my cooking!"
Holding a sharp knife, Zhang Fugui quickly sliced up the roast suckling pig, and then cut open the braised duck, Sichuan peppercorn chicken, honey-glazed pigeon, spiced quail, and fried sparrow.
Prince Ning, Grand Tutor Hua, and the judges all picked up their chopsticks and began to taste the food.
"The roast suckling pig is beautifully colored, with crispy skin and fragrant meat. It's fatty but not greasy at all—delicious, delicious!"
"The braised duck with soy sauce is incredibly fragrant and delicious!"
"This Sichuan peppercorn chicken is numbing, fragrant, and spicy, leaving you wanting more!"
"The taste of honey-glazed pigeon is absolutely superb!"
"The spiced quail is delicious and prepared to an extremely high standard!"
"The heat for deep-frying sparrows is just right, crispy on the outside and tender on the inside!"
...
Hearing the judges' comments, Madam Hua, Qiu Xiang, Chun Xiang, Xia Xiang, and Dong Xiang all showed worried expressions.
After tasting it, Grand Tutor Hua put down his chopsticks.
"In my opinion, Zhang Fugui's 'Six Wonders of Delicious Roast Suckling Pig' is just average in terms of creativity, but the taste is acceptable."
Prince Ning glared: "The idea is mediocre? Grand Tutor, don't lie!"
Grand Tutor Hua said, "From roast suckling pig to sparrow, it's simply a matter of going from big to small. Just now, even Li Huan easily guessed that the pigeon's belly contained a quail, and the quail's belly contained a sparrow!"
"If I were Zhang Fugui, I could hide duck eggs inside sparrows, chicken eggs inside duck eggs, pigeon eggs inside chicken eggs, and quail eggs inside pigeon eggs!"
Hahaha... A burst of laughter erupted from the audience.
Prince Ning was taken aback, then quickly said, "That's right, Zhang Fugui, why didn't you hide the duck eggs, chicken eggs, pigeon eggs, and quail eggs inside the sparrows' bellies?"
Zhang Fugui looked extremely embarrassed.
The portly advisor hurriedly reminded, "After tasting this 'Six Wonders of Roast Suckling Pig,' it's time to vote for Zhang Fugui! Your Highness, please go first!"
Prince Ning immediately raised his hand and gave Zhang Fugui his vote with unwavering determination, while his gaze swept over the eight judges.
Without any hesitation, all eight judges raised their hands to vote!
Prince Ning looked Grand Tutor Hua in the eye and said, "I hope you will be fair and impartial and cast the right vote!"
Grand Tutor Hua said, "I still stand by my previous opinion that this 'Six Wonders of Heaven and Earth Roast Suckling Pig' dish is not particularly innovative and is certainly no match for Li Huan's Ten Walnuts!"
The Prince of Ning said unhappily, "Grand Tutor is so stubborn, refusing to vote. What will become of your reputation if Li Huan loses?"
Grand Tutor Hua said, "Li Huan will not lose. His ten walnuts contain a secret, and they will definitely... definitely defeat Zhang Fugui's 'Six Wonders of Heaven and Earth: Delicious Roast Suckling Pig'..."
These words were spoken without any confidence.
The fat advisor announced: "In the third round of the competition, Zhang Fugui's 'Six Wonders of Heaven and Earth: Delicious Roast Suckling Pig' has received nine votes!"
"Congratulations, Mr. Zhang!" the assistant clasped his hands in congratulations. "Mr. Zhang has secured nine votes; victory is assured!"
Zhang Fugui smiled smugly as he looked at Li Huan.
"I'd like to see what's so special about your ten walnuts!"
Li Huan stepped forward and placed the plate on the table.
Grand Tutor Hua, Prince Ning, and the eight referees quickly reached out and each picked up a walnut.
"This...this really is a walnut! It's not made from dough!"
"The walnuts are heavy, and inside they really do contain some kind of food!"
"Strange, the surface of the walnut is intact, how could the food be hidden inside?"
"The walnuts were not only intact, but also still warm!"
"I refuse to believe that Li Huan didn't crack the walnuts open! Otherwise, how could he have hidden the ingredients inside?"
Prince Ning, Grand Tutor Hua, and the eight referees all worked hard to crack the walnuts.
However, no one could crack the walnut.
Grand Tutor Hua exclaimed in surprise, "Amazing! Absolutely amazing! This walnut has definitely never been opened!"
Prince Ning frowned deeply, staring intently at the walnut in his hand, utterly perplexed.
Chef Ma said, "Li Huan, I would appreciate your guidance on how to crack open a walnut."
"Smash it!"
Before Li Huan could answer, the fat advisor suddenly interrupted.
Li Huan scoffed, "And you call yourself a clerk! If you just smash the walnut, wouldn't the ingredients hidden inside be ruined too?"
The fat advisor retorted, "It's common knowledge that you have to crack the shell to eat walnuts. How can you eat them if you don't crack them?"
Li Huan said, "You can use your palm to separate the walnuts completely!"
The fat clerk was taken aback: "You...you mean, you can open a walnut with your palm and the shell remains intact, without breaking at all?"
Li Huan said, "That's right!"
"Hahaha..." Prince Ning laughed loudly, "Li Huan, Li Huan, your walnuts aren't very creative. Are you trying to get the referee's curiosity by going around in circles?"
Li Huan said, "It's not to pique curiosity, it's really because you can't just crack the walnuts carelessly, lest you ruin the food hidden inside!"
Prince Ning said, "Let me ask you this first: how did you hide the ingredients inside the walnuts without opening them beforehand?"
Li Huan said, "I have my own technique for hiding ingredients inside walnuts without opening them! I'll reveal this technique later!"
Grand Tutor Hua said, "Yes, we'll reveal the secret technique later. Right now, we should open the walnuts and see what ingredients are hidden inside!"
Prince Ning sneered: "Anyone with strong palm or finger strength can easily crush a walnut, but to separate the walnut shell completely without damage, I'm afraid no one in the world can do that!"
After saying that, Prince Ning looked at the deadly scholar and asked, "Can you do it?"
The deadly scholar hurriedly said, "I am willing to give it a try!"
After saying this, the Deadly Scholar walked towards Prince Ning, preparing to take the walnut.
Li Huan said, "Wait a minute!"
The deadly scholar suddenly stopped.
Li Huan reminded, "Remember, you must separate the walnut shells completely and without any damage. Otherwise, it will affect the appearance of this dish!"
"Deadly Scholar, if you crush the walnut shell and break the filling inside, affecting my vote count, how will you compensate me for my loss and bear the serious consequences?"
Upon hearing this, the Deadly Scholar hesitated...
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