CH 2.2

TL note :

here’s the new chapter! There’s a soft face slap in this chapter. Enjoy and have a great weekend everyone! 

Chef Ji Liang, who had just been here for two days, was kneading his noodles with a gloomy expression. He had just finished cooking breakfast for his employer’s family, and lunch was still being prepared, and he probably had to pack up and leave immediately.

Before every chef was selected, everyone had the same thought, ‘What if I’m the special one? What if I could stay in Huo residence and continue to work here to be a glamorous chef.’

So no matter how ruthlessly the previous chefs were fired, there were still people who kept coming.

People with the same occupation often belittled and thought that if others couldn’t stay for a job for a long time it was because their skill had not reached the standard to let them stay.

When Ji Liang came here, he was full of confidence. He heard that Shen Yuntang was difficult to deal with. She asked for Chinese food when she was having Western food. And preferred it best to have a banquet full of Chinese food accompanied with a bottle of 1982’s Lafite and Mexican burrito, which stumped a lot of people.

But Ji Liang was different from them. He was not a professional chef, who only had devoted themself to a certain cuisine since they were a child. His knives were honed in small stalls. He would do whatever the customers liked to eat.

Not proficient but good enough at so many things.

In one meal time, he could cook from Wellington steak to Kaiseki cuisine, and then throw Indian Naan bread to add to the fun.

Ji Liang believed that he was the person Miss Shen needed, he thought so at first.

But now, he seemed to be no different from those of his predecessors. He was cooking a meal that no one knew whether it would be served or not, and at the same time he was worried about the notice of dismissal.

“I’ve had enough of this.”

The assistant chef said. He had his superior changed many times and felt indignant.

“I have never seen such a difficult employer. She is picky about food and drink. In short, no one can satisfy her.”

“I think she will be dumped by her husband sooner or later. A difficult woman like her couldn’t stay long.”

“If she was my wife, she would have been beaten to the point where she wouldn’t dare to do it again.”

Ji Liang didn’t speak, he kept kneading the dough in his hands vigorously, pretending not to hear.

It was never a good thing to speak ill of your employer, and he never engaged in it.

He was there to apply for a job, and the mood of the employer would determine his future life path.

Besides, he also didn’t respect that kind of man, and only gave him a strange and disgusted look. The sous chef was irritated by the look he gave him.

It was normal for people to have the courage to talk behind people’s backs but afraid to say it face to face. Although the sous chef was irritated, he didn’t dare to swear at a tall and burly man, but he had a lot of ways to make people feel sour.

“Ji Liang, Chef Ji, if I remember correctly, you were the executive chef at Yunding Restaurant, right? Alas, what a pity, it took you more than ten years to climb to such a high position, but to fall down here because of your carelessness. Your experience in Huo residence will become a stain on your professional career. It also won’t be easy to go back. I really feel sorry for you.”

“What a young and promising individual. You are not thirty years old yet, and you are supposedly able to climb very high.”

He was trying to offend him with a seemingly innocent remark, explicitly and implicitly.

Ji Liang didn’t listen to any word from him, but his mind was already in turmoil.

Being a chef in such a wealthy family meant that the work was easy and decent, and the guests were all discerning and fastidious gourmets. It should have been an ideal job.

…

He didn’t know whom to complain about this, after all, they all had heard about Huo residence’s situation, and seeking wealth despite the risk was their own choice.

He only felt a bit not reconciled.

Ji Liang kneaded the dough more vigorously.

The sous chef didn’t intend to stop yet, he was chattering while touching the fish and doing the work at hand.

“It’s a pity that we will say goodbye after two days of getting along. Originally, if Mr. Huo didn’t have this kind of wife, we could have gotten along for a few more days.”

Ji Liang just wanted to say that if Mrs. Shen didn’t change chefs every day, these people might not even be able to enter Huo’s residence now, but before he could speak, a voice interrupted the assistant chef one step ahead of him.

“Chef Ji, Miss Shen has some questions she wants to ask you.”

The butler called from behind.

The sous chef didn’t know when the butler came in, he was startled, he felt his body heat up, and pretended to be indifferent.

But when he heard that Ji Liang might be fired, he peeked over gloatingly.

Ji Liang nodded, turned on the faucet, and scrubbed his hands vigorously in a muffled voice.

Shen Yuntang sat in front of the round table in the master bedroom. There were exquisite dishes on the table, combining Chinese and Western styles, every dish was available.

It wasn’t the first time he saw this Madam, but he was never as nervous as he was now. A word from this person would determine his future career path.

Ji Liang watched her slowly eating the dishes he had carefully prepared on the table, his scalp tightened.

After all, this master was a person who would be dissatisfied if she saw the meat flower was not cut uniformly with great knife mastery.

He stared at Shen Yuntang’s hand closely, sweat dripping from his temples.

Nobody knew how long it took, until this psychological war ended, Shen Yuntang said: “What other dishes can you make?”

The young woman with astonishing fairness, with her face looked extremely small with her soft and fluffy long hair, looked harmless.

Ji Liang froze for a moment, said, “Anything you need, I’ll make it.”

“What if there is something you can’t do?”

“I’m a fast learner!”

The atmosphere quieted down, and Ji Liang shivered belatedly.

Could this be… he will stay?

After a while, Shen Yuntang finally put down the tableware, nodded and said: “You barely pass, change the cuisine according to my mood in the future, can you do it?”

Ji Liang paused, he was hit by a strong wave of disbelief. His eyes became brighter and brighter, and he blurted out :

“I can do it! Every Chinese cuisine, even French, Italian, Japanese, Korean and Southeast Asian, I can do it! I can also make authentic masala…”

Seeing Shen Yuntang’s disgusted gaze, he rationally stopped on the last one.

“You’re it then, I like people who are able to do anything.” Shen Yuntang retracted her gaze, “I want to eat crepes later, with codfish in tomato sauce. The rest depends on your cooking skill.”

Ji Liang still couldn’t believe it, he would stay just like this?

Shen Yuntang raised her eyes: “Any comments?”

“…”

“No, no, no! Not at all! Thank you Miss Shen, I’ll get ready now!!!”

Ji Liang woke up from the huge surprise, almost bursting into tears, turned up his apron to wipe his eyes, and was about to dash back to the kitchen immediately.

The refined young woman nodded, and asked him suddenly: “By the way, it seems there are a lot of opinions of me in the kitchen?”

“For example, among your colleagues, is there anyone who is dissatisfied with me?”

The butler who came in behind Ji Liang suddenly paused.

Immediately afterwards, Shen Yuntang smiled and said: “I have a bad temper and I can’t bear to be wronged, so I want to do one thing, fire everyone who talks bad about me, no problem, right?”