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Learning to cook sometimes depended on practice and repetition—doing a dish once, a hundred times, a thousand times, and ten thousand times each had different effects. Jiang Feng felt that making Crab Stuffed Oranges was becoming like solving problems in high school, where he knew the types of problems, the methods to solve them, and the general thought process like the back of his hand. What varied were the problems themselves, while the patterns remained the same.

The Crab Stuffed Oranges was like the second question of the last big problem in an ordinary-level math college entrance exam paper; it wasn’t as daunting as the third question, nor as simple as the first one that seemed like a giveaway. As long as the student was good enough, put in a bit more effort, practiced enough, and had solid fundamental skills, coupled with inspiration and luck, solving it was just a matter of course.

Jiang Feng was now that diligent student with solid fundamental skills and plenty of practiced problems, just waiting for the right moment when he could produce an A Level Crab Stuffed Oranges.

When teaching others to cook, Jiang Feng copied the ways of Sir, teaching Ji Xia and Zhou Shi just as Sir had taught him. Though it was teaching, it wasn’t much different from his own practice; he just slowed down the pace and organized his language to explain whenever he felt it was necessary.

Zhou Shi was quick to catch on, having risen in the field by learning through observation—even without Jiang Feng’s explanations, just by watching more and then reflecting on it, he could manage to grasp most of it.

As for Ji Xia, she was the kind of poor student who couldn’t even figure out the first sub-question of the last major math problem in a college entrance exam, as her fundamentals were at the elementary school level, and suddenly she was expected to tackle college entrance exam problems. She couldn’t even understand the problem, let alone solve it, and was completely lost throughout the process.

“You don’t have to remove all the flesh after peeling the orange; this amount is sufficient. Add the crab meat and crab roe in proportion—the crab roe should not exceed the crab meat, just enough to bring out the essence.”

“These fillings need to be lightly stir-fried in a wok over a low heat, not for too long, just a few minutes to help the flavors meld and eliminate any fishy taste from the crab.”

“For the final step, I used braising instead of steaming. I’m not sure if this method is correct, so if you think it’s inappropriate, feel free to steam it, which should take about five minutes. You’ll need to rely on your own judgment for the specifics.”

Once the Crab Stuffed Oranges were set to braise, all that was required was to gradually reduce the heat until it was turned off, and then came the waiting.

Since a big crab could make three Crab Stuffed Oranges, Jiang Feng made three all at once—perfect for one each.

Ji Xia was already happily eating another orange she had butchered, and Jiang Feng thought that since they had to wait anyway, he might as well chat with Zhou Shi to strengthen their rapport, in case he decided to resign and later become a detractor who, like Tong Deyan, would seize every opportunity to diss their former employer Eight-treasure House.

Eight-treasure House had it coming!

“Zhou Shi, what’s the deal with the new French restaurant you just mentioned? Where is it opening?” asked Jiang Feng.

“You don’t know?” Zhou Shi said, surprised, thinking that the young boss was indeed an outsider and was shockingly out of the loop.

“It’s opening the day after tomorrow in that newly upcoming mall not far from our shop,” Zhou Shi said.

Reminded by Zhou Shi, Jiang Feng had some recollection, though it was of the mall.

“To open an upscale French restaurant in Beiping City, that’s quite ambitious,” Jiang Feng remarked.

Zhou Shi nodded in agreement, “Definitely ambitious. Over the years, Beiping has seen many high-end restaurants featuring foreign cuisines open, and all have failed—some within half a year, others within one. Not one has survived, all unable to acclimate. Never mind foreign cuisines; even those from the south have only a few private dining restaurants that have secured a foothold. The high-end restaurant market in Beiping is extremely competitive and costly, and continuous loss-making operations cannot be sustained for long.”

Zhou Shi had been working as a chef in Beiping for many years and knew a mix of rumors and gossip—leave aside whether they were true or false, he most definitely had tasted more melons than Jiang Feng had.

Seeing Zhou Shi starting to spill the beans like he was a guru of gossip, Jiang Feng’s interest in hearing the juicy stories perked up. He quickly found a couple of stools for him to sit on and share the melons of Beiping City from over the years that Jiang Feng had missed out on.

As for Ji Xia, she continued to enjoy her oranges contentedly by herself at the stove.

If anything is abundant among chefs, it’s gossip, especially in big restaurants. Although they are busy while working, there is always downtime, and nobody can work around the clock like clockwork without a break.

In the hot and noisy backdrop of the kitchen, when feeling irritable, there’s nothing more refreshing than nibbling on some gossip that doesn’t involve oneself.

Zhou Shi usually had a low profile, adept at eavesdropping and secretly observing and learning in the corners. Over the past decade or so, the number of gossips he had indulged in was enough to contend with the famous “King of Melons” in the culinary world, Pei Shenghua.

However, the melons devoured by Pei Shenghua usually came with solid evidence, even testimonies from the people directly involved. In contrast, most of what Zhou Shi feasted on were distorted and exaggerated tales, greatly watered-down second-hand rumors.

But whether it’s true gossip or fabricated stories, as long as the patrons enjoy them, they are good melons.

Jiang Feng was exactly such a patron of gossip.

“In recent years, Beiping City has seen a surge in expensive private dining restaurants, mostly opened by famous chefs on their own. The most renowned are the late Xia Mushi, Old Sir Xia’s Fen Garden from a few months ago, and the Nameless Restaurant by Tong Deyan, Chef Tong. As for Fen Garden, there’s no need for me to elaborate, I’m sure you, the young boss, know more than I do as Zhang Guanghang is a disciple of Old Sir Xia.”

“Fen Garden is considered the priciest and one of the earliest private dining eateries in Beiping. It’s just unknown whether Sir Xia left behind any descendants and to whom Fen Garden was bequeathed. It seems that Zhang Guanghang didn’t inherit it. Indeed, we are no longer in feudal times when a teacher would pass all his possessions to his pupil. It’s likely that some distant relative has picked up a bargain…”

Jiang Feng: …

So the first melon he got to taste was an injected watermelon, Zhou Shi’s stories seemed a bit unreliable.

“What about the high-end restaurants in Beiping that serve foreign cuisines? How did they fare?” Jiang Feng asked.

“It’s always the same story—overpriced menus. In truth, the establishments that have come to Beiping are all famous restaurants, well-known enough to be listed in the Michelin Guide. But those restaurants just open a branch here with a few assistants, missing the main chefs with Michelin stars, yet they try to charge Michelin-star prices. Of course, they fail due to the mismatch and ultimately return home,” spoke the great prophet Zhou Shi, “I expect this new restaurant to follow the same old pattern and not last long.”

“Is the appeal because of the head chefs of Michelin-starred restaurants or because of the chefs listed in prestigious cooking rankings?” Jiang Feng asked.

“Definitely the prestigious cooking rankings,” Zhou Shi said. “The Michelin system doesn’t even rate Chinese cuisine, and their criteria extend beyond just taste. The list is reassessed every few years with a jury consisting of people from hundreds of countries and regions, with the top twenty being decided after jury voting and then the final say by Mr. Xu Cheng himself. The rankings have been fair over the years. From any perspective, the prestigious cooking rankings have an edge.”

Zhou Shi expressed some regret at this point: “It’s just a shame that chefs in the top ten of the rankings rarely cook personally anymore. Sir Xia ranked ninth in the last evaluation, and we all thought he would continue advancing, maybe even into the top five. The chefs ranked third, fourth, and seventh last time have passed away, and unexpectedly, Sir Xia also left us too soon. It’s really disappointing.”

Jiang Feng: ?????

Wait a minute, is this prestigious cooking ranking about who is the better chef or who lives longer?

“As a matter of fact, the number one in the rankings is still…” Zhou Shi intended to continue, but Jiang Feng interrupted him.

“Let’s talk about that later, the Crab Stuffed Oranges should be ready now.”

Jiang Feng stood up and walked towards the steamer.

“Xiaxia, move aside, you’ve eaten quite a few oranges already; aren’t you afraid of getting a stomachache? The cost of the extra oranges you ate will come out of your future wages. First, go get me three spoons,” said capitalist Jiang Feng, never one to pass up a chance to deduct from wages.

“Oh, Master, should I get the ones with the long handles or short handles?” Ji Xia obediently went to fetch the spoons.

With high debts comes less worry; Ji Xia’s grandmother had planned a promising future for her, aiming for a stable job with a monthly salary of two thousand, including meals and accommodation, and it would be even better if it came with benefits. According to the wages Ji Xia’s grandmother had hoped for, which she had not yet received and didn’t know when would come, they were probably already docked by half a year’s worth.

“Ji Xia particularly loves the Crab Stuffed Oranges, and I bet at her young age, most girls would…” Jiang Feng spoke with Zhou Shi, then paused, stunned, as he lifted the lid to see the display on the Crab Stuffed Oranges.

[Crab Stuffed Oranges, A Level]

They’re done?

In the time it took to nibble on a few injected melons, the A-level Crab Stuffed Oranges were ready.