Chapter 63: Spicy Chicken p1
Perhaps Mi Hongdou’s surprised expression was too obvious. The thin chef awkwardly touched his nose. “Why do you look so surprised? Aren’t you hired by Boss Jiang?”
Boss Jiang… well… Jiang Lingling was indeed a boss now. No matter how surprised she was, Mi Hongdou couldn’t deny this established fact. She nodded. “I am.”
“Heh, I knew it. With your knife skills, compared to mine…” The thin chef suddenly paused, not wanting to diminish himself, then continued, “…they’re not that much worse.”
Really? Mi Hongdou wanted to snatch the two carrot bunnies from Ji Junxin and show the thin chef exactly how much worse they were. Hmph, with those carrot bunnies, he thought he could impress her idol? In his dreams.
Perhaps the thin chef had a special skill called “talking to himself.” This skill was now activated. Even though Mi Hongdou was focused on making soup and didn’t respond, he continued, “Speaking of which, I don’t know how much money that was, the amount that made our old boss’s hands go soft. Well, whatever the amount, it has nothing to do with us working stiffs. Old boss, new boss, we still have to work. And with this restaurant next to Shudian Film City, business is always good. Those celebrities, crew members, tourists, they all have to eat. I’m not bragging, but our restaurant, open from 10:30 AM to 2 AM, business is booming. Even last night, close to 2 AM, someone came to order food. And they were so extravagant, they ordered… what was it again…” He patted his forehead, couldn’t remember the dish, and skipped it. “Anyway, it doesn’t matter. They ordered a dish that wasn’t on the menu. Who would want to cook for them so late at night, just minutes before closing time? We don’t need the money, right? But guess what? They didn’t say much, just threw out a wad of cash, just to order that one dish. This area, so many rich fools.”
Indeed, many rich fools… Mi Hongdou nodded in agreement. But something still felt off…
The thin chef, pleased that he had captured Mi Hongdou’s attention, became even more enthusiastic. “So, business is really good around here, especially for our restaurant. Look how beautiful it is, a three-story building, traditional style, it will definitely become even more popular. I think our old boss lacked vision, selling the goose that lays golden eggs. He couldn’t see the long-term potential. Our new boss, she recognizes the restaurant’s potential, she’s smart.”
Whether your new boss is smart or not, I don’t know. But… judging by the taste of those chef’s recommendations last time… without changing the chefs, this restaurant could hardly be called a goose that lays golden eggs, at most, a rooster that can feed itself. As for why a rooster? Obviously, because it’s hard to make a profit, it can’t lay eggs, just breaking even would be good. Mi Hongdou didn’t respond, seeing that the silver carp and tofu soup was almost done. She turned off the heat, covered the pot, and planned to reheat it and add some white pepper before serving.
But after a few minutes of silence from the thin chef, Mi Hongdou, who had been listening to his chatter, felt a little uneasy. Was he done gossiping? She glanced at him and saw his thin face furrowed in a frown, looking rather unsettling.
“Are you feeling unwell?” Mi Hongdou thought that if Ji Junxin saw him like this, she would be startled.
“No…” His frown deepened. “It’s just… that customer last night who spent over two thousand yuan on a dish, I can’t remember what it was. As a chef, I have this occupational hazard, it bothers me when I can’t remember a dish’s name.”
Mi Hongdou turned back, turned off the heat, and covered the pot, unable to help him.
“Oh, I remember! She ordered something strange, she wanted a chicken roll! That thing, similar to Peking duck… you know, with bean sauce, chicken, cucumber, wrapped in a tortilla…” The thin chef gestured excitedly, unable to remember the name.
“Old Beijing chicken roll?” Mi Hongdou tentatively offered the familiar name.
The thin chef’s eyes lit up, and he slapped his knee. “Yes! That’s it! She wanted to eat that, why come to our restaurant instead of KFC? Isn’t she stupid? We all thought she was stupid and didn’t want to make it for her. But she threw out over two thousand yuan, so we made it for her. It was extra income, it was almost closing time, we couldn’t have everyone stay just to make a single roll and then split the money. So we played rock-paper-scissors, and my apprentice lost. He stayed to make it, one thousand for him, and we were going to use the rest to treat everyone to a meal. Who knew that this morning, the restaurant was sold. On the first day under new management, the new boss cleared out the restaurant, only keeping the two best chefs, and even we have to assist someone else. We don’t even know if we’ll keep our jobs, who’s in the mood for a meal? Right?” He looked at Mi Hongdou, who seemed to be deep in thought, and finally asked the question he had been leading up to, “Hey, I’m not afraid to tell you, you’re sent by the new boss, you must know her well, right? Is she a he or a she? Old or young? Easy to work with?”
“Didn’t your old boss tell you?” Hearing about the two-thousand-yuan Old Beijing chicken roll, Mi Hongdou could guess who ordered it… It seemed that the nearest KFC not being open 24/7 was to blame.
The thin chef shook his head. “It was the new boss’s agent who contacted him, he probably hasn’t even met the new boss.”
“Oh. What time did you finish work yesterday?” Mi Hongdou thought he must have left early, otherwise, he would have recognized Jiang Lingling in the kitchen.
“Ten o’clock. I’m a head chef, you know, one of the two best chefs in this restaurant!” The thin chef said with inexplicable pride. “I just have to come in around ten in the morning, finish the dinner service, and then I can leave. And that two-thousand-yuan chicken roll story, I’m not lying. The staff on duty live-streamed it in the WeChat group. Even though I wasn’t there, I know everything!”
The chicken had been simmering for a while. After skimming off the foam, she transferred it to the pressure cooker, same with the beef. Mi Hongdou checked the chicken soup, the beef and potatoes, and the braised chicken with chestnuts, poking them with chopsticks to confirm they were almost done. Next, she would make the simple chicken and sweet corn soup, then deep-fry the chicken and fish a second time, season them, and it would be done. The remaining egg fried rice… Mi Hongdou touched the plate of rice. It should be cool enough by the time the corn soup was done. Although it wasn’t day-old rice… she had cooked it a little firmer, so the texture should still be good.
As Mi Hongdou checked the progress of the dishes, she thought that there seemed to be a lot of soup, but then again, with the weather getting colder, more soup was good. Lost in her thoughts, she forgot about the thin chef, who was still waiting for an answer.
“Hey…” Seeing Mi Hongdou busy checking and tasting, not answering his question, the thin chef became anxious. Why wasn’t she talking? Had he told all those stories for nothing? …
Mi Hongdou looked around, satisfied with the progress of the dishes, and was about to wash the corn to start the soup when she saw the thin chef standing by the sink, looking at her with a conflicted expression. Right, she remembered their earlier conversation.
“Your new boss is the girl who brought us to the kitchen earlier, the one who stood at the door.” Mi Hongdou pointed at the kitchen entrance, then thought for a moment and continued, “If I’m not mistaken… the girl who ordered the chicken roll last night was probably… also her. The one you called a rich fool.” If she threw out a wad of cash so casually… it couldn’t have been the assistant, it must have been Jiang Lingling herself.
(⊙o⊙) … The thin chef’s mouth formed an “o” shape. He should have guessed. The same sudden appearance, the same throwing of money… so that was his new boss’s style? Why did he find it a little… cute…
The thin chef finally processed the fact that the young girl who stood at the kitchen door earlier, the lower half of her face covered in white tissues, was his rich, new boss. And the “rich fool” comment… wasn’t his… he thought, his expression turning serious.
“Then… then…” The thin chef circled Mi Hongdou anxiously.
“You’re blocking me…” Mi Hongdou skillfully steadied the pot, which he had almost knocked over. “Then what?”
“I’m saying, I mean, the person who relayed the message from the new boss, the one about a very, very skilled chef who makes very, very delicious food coming today, was that you?” The thin chef, after beating around the bush, finally returned to his original question.
Mi Hongdou pointed at the clock on the wall, which was almost showing one o’clock, then at the simmering pots. “I’m… not that skilled, and my cooking isn’t that delicious. But at this hour, since I’m the only one cooking here, I guess… it’s me.” Being praised by Jiang Lingling didn’t give her any sense of accomplishment… Mi Hongdou secretly glanced at Ji Junxin. Oh, she wasn’t playing with the carrot bunny anymore, she was on her phone. Mi Hongdou suddenly felt a little sad.
Even without asking again, the thin chef also felt that Mi Hongdou was the person the new boss had cleared the kitchen for. “But, it’s like this. Old Zhang and I…” he pointed at himself and the chubby chef still sulking in the corner, “we’ve been with the old boss since the beginning, we’re practically veterans here. We’re in charge of the kitchen. It’s been five or six years, we have a good relationship, we don’t have a clear hierarchy, we’re the bosses here. But this morning, that person who relayed the message from the new boss told everyone except for us to take a break. At first, we thought she was going to fire us. But she wasn’t. He asked us to prepare some ingredients and then stay to assist a very skilled chef. Old Zhang and I were a little unhappy. Preparing ingredients, washing and chopping, that’s the work of the new hires and apprentices. We’ve been head chefs for years, asking us to do this was a bit insulting. But we thought, new boss, showing her authority, we’ll just endure it this once. But then he said something that made us uneasy. He said the new boss thought our kitchen management was too chaotic. What did that even mean? It meant we weren’t competent. It meant Old Zhang and I weren’t competent. From what he said, it seemed like the new boss wanted to create a new position, something like a chef de cuisine or an executive chef, I don’t know the specifics. We all started from small restaurants, we don’t understand these fancy titles. But Old Zhang and I thought, hey, first asking us to assist someone, then creating a position above us, isn’t that just finding someone to control us?” He smiled awkwardly. “So, you really aren’t the new head chef sent by the new boss?”
“Really not…” Mi Hongdou shook her head sincerely. Seeing the thin chef’s smiling yet still doubtful expression, she almost wanted to offer him her heart as proof. Who would want to be a chef and cook for everyone? She only wanted to cook for one person!
Hearing this, the thin chef wanted to believe her… but… well, he could only smile awkwardly. Whether it was her or not, someone new was coming to be their boss, and he and Old Zhang would have no place in the kitchen, their pride completely shattered. They had planned to give the newcomer a hard time, and if she really was there to boss them around, they would quit. The world was vast, a chef wouldn’t starve. But then he saw his adorable idol, and for the sake of an autograph, he had gone off to kill chickens without thinking. Sigh… thinking about the chicken killing, the thin chef sighed again. He had a girlfriend, a waitress in this restaurant, and she had somehow found out about his and Old Zhang’s plan to resign. While he was killing the chickens, she came and dragged him away to talk. What was there to talk about? Just the usual about life being hard, why quit so easily…
Actually, his threat to quit was just an impulsive outburst. Thinking about it carefully, the familiar was better than the unknown. And he had a girlfriend, he wanted to get married. When you had more responsibilities, the courage born from impulse quickly faded. Although he was hesitant, the thought of someone constantly bossing him around was annoying. So, after talking to his girlfriend, the thin chef felt even more depressed.
He was trying to find out if Mi Hongdou was really the one who was going to be their new boss. But after chatting for so long, he realized that he had revealed everything, yet he still couldn’t figure out whether Mi Hongdou was telling the truth.
His limited intelligence was tiring.
“She’s an actress, just like me. We’re working together on a drama. Although she doesn’t have any released works yet, she’ll be famous soon.” Ji Junxin, who had come over at some point, said, holding the carrot bunny Mi Hongdou made. Then she emphasized, “Very, very famous! So she won’t be a chef here, don’t worry.”
Mi Hongdou’s heart bloomed with flowers and kittens, their paws scratching… was there anything more exciting and embarrassing than being affirmed by her idol? No! Wait… Mi Hongdou rubbed her thumb and index finger together. Well, the most exciting and embarrassing thing… was being licked by her idol, and even having her finger… Mi Hongdou stopped herself, why was she thinking about this again?
To the thin chef, Mi Hongdou was just a girl who could carve carrots quite well. He naturally didn’t completely believe her. But Ji Junxin was different. Her words were highly credible. The thin chef, who had been conflicted, immediately believed her after hearing what she said.
“Sigh… if it’s not you, then who knows who it will be.” The thin chef was relieved at first, then his face fell again, and he mumbled, “Perhaps… it would be better if it were you…”
Should she say thank you? Mi Hongdou felt like she would be driven crazy by the thin chef’s rambling. If he wanted to know, she could ask Jiang Lingling for him, really!
Just as Mi Hongdou thought of Jiang Lingling, Ji Junxin tugged at her sleeve and showed her a message on her phone.
[I have a cold today and can’t sit with everyone. Can you put my portions in separate bowls? (If you just take from the communal plates, I’ll be embarrassed to take too much, you understand, Ji Junxin?) Please tell Mi Hongdou too~ (And can I have a large portion of spicy chicken, like a chicken and a half?) ] Sender: Jiang Lingling.
Haha, the little foodie was being called out, she suddenly wanted to laugh. Mi Hongdou suppressed her laughter and looked at Ji Junxin, who turned her head away and said, “I don’t understand!” with an indignant air.
Three hundred pounds of obliviousness, how could she not understand!
“Okay, just reply ‘I know’,” Mi Hongdou said, stifling her laughter and trying to maintain a normal tone.
“Hmph, I’m not replying to her.” Ji Junxin put her phone away, a little annoyed.
Oh, angry because of that “you understand” comment? The little foodie’s heart was truly fragile.
Just as Mi Hongdou was thinking about how to appease her, Ji Junxin pouted and continued, “Hmph, I heard what you were saying earlier. She paid two thousand yuan for a chicken roll, but she only paid fifty for your egg fried rice! Your egg fried rice is a hundred, no, a thousand times better than the chicken roll here! Hmph, she didn’t even pay you a hundred, she has no taste, don’t cook for her.”
Mi Hongdou was stunned. She had thought the little foodie was annoyed at being exposed, but she was actually defending her? Although her reasoning was a bit… strange… it still warmed her heart.
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