Chapter Forty: The Bittersweet Troubles of Exquisite Flavors

Lu Cheng was rather displeased. He had taught Da Guang all his skills, so how could the dishes Da Guang made now taste better than his own? Suddenly, he recalled that day when Da Guang had challenged him to a contest—it all made sense now; the boy must have had this in mind for some time.

“You’d better go back and ask around. Since you joined the restaurant, business had always been good, but in the past few days, all the customers have gone over there,” Feng Weizhi said, a trace of helplessness in his tone. He himself didn’t have the cooking skills, and though the restaurant was still running decently, with fewer customers than before, profits were naturally not as high.

“I’ll ask around tonight and find out what tricks that kid is playing,” Lu Cheng said, visibly disgruntled. If things continued this way, wouldn’t it cut off his livelihood?

On Li Feng’s side, business was booming. Dongzi was a diligent and sincere person, learning attentively; whether it was grilling skewers or making lamb soup, he had nearly mastered both. That evening, as they were cleaning up, Dongzi grinned at Chen Huajiang and said, “Brother, my shop is opening tomorrow. Can you come by for a while?”

Of course, when a franchisee opens a new shop, it’s only right for the owner to pay a visit.

“No problem. Do you have enough staff? If not, I can send a few apprentices over from our side,” Chen Huajiang replied, fully supportive.

“It should be enough. We’ll see how things go tomorrow,” Dongzi said. Although it was his own shop, his partner was helping him out as well, so at the very least, handling the cashier wouldn’t be an issue.

“All right. Just let me know if you need anything,” Chen Huajiang assured him.

“Thanks, brother.”

Chen Huajiang sent Dongzi home early, knowing he would need to prepare for the opening the next day. The snack bar bore a simple name: Chen Huajiang Snack Bar. The barbecue franchise Dongzi opened was called Huajiang Barbecue.

That night, when Da Guang returned home, he found his father, Lu Cheng, still awake.

“Da Guang, come here. I have something to ask you,” Lu Cheng said, his face clouded, his tone unfriendly.

“What’s wrong? Did you have a rough day at the restaurant?” Da Guang asked, sensing his father’s sour mood and not daring to say anything too harsh.

“I heard your restaurant’s business has been getting better. They even say your braised pork tastes better than mine. Is that true?”

“You wanted to compete with me, didn’t you? Let’s have a contest tonight. I want to see how you, you little rascal, actually make it,” Lu Cheng said, truly intent on this showdown.

He should be pleased that his son cooked better than he did, but now that he was working at Flavor Fresh, if his dishes didn’t match up, the boss would surely be dissatisfied. Besides, when he first joined Flavor Fresh, he had boasted endlessly about his skills. Now, if there was a problem and Feng Weizhi decided to fire him, he would be helpless.

“We can’t have the contest at home. We don’t have the seasonings I use,” Da Guang replied offhandedly.

Lu Cheng immediately sensed something was off. Did this kid really use other seasonings? But he was certain he knew all the seasonings used for braised pork.

“There are only a few seasonings needed for braised pork, and we have them all at home,” Lu Cheng pressed, trying to draw Da Guang out.

He knew his son too well.

“The seasonings we brought back aren’t available anywhere else; only our restaurant has them,” Da Guang replied helplessly, deciding to tell the truth.

Lu Cheng suddenly remembered that Da Guang and Chen Huajiang had gone away for about a week. Could it be that they went out to source seasonings?

If that was the case, then there was nothing he could do.

“Where did you get your seasonings? Why do you have them and we don’t?”

“Fine, I’ll tell you. Last time, we went to Yunnan and bought a lot of special seasonings. These herbs aren’t available at Flavor Fresh—or anywhere in Nanming City for that matter. Dad, there’s no point in competing. Even if you try, you’ll lose.”

He didn’t mind telling his father, since they wouldn’t be able to get those seasonings anyway.

As Lu Cheng had guessed, they’d gone all the way to Yunnan just for some braised pork seasoning. Those two certainly went to great lengths.

At least now he had an excuse. He could tell Feng Weizhi that it wasn’t a problem with his skills, but rather that the right seasonings weren’t available. Without them, what could he do?

“So you’re saying that with these new seasonings, your braised pork tastes better than mine?”

“Of course. You use three or four kinds of spices, but we use seven or eight. How could they possibly taste the same?”

Da Guang’s tone was full of pride.

“I’m done talking. I’m going to bed,” Da Guang said, turning and heading to his room.

The next day at work, Lu Cheng went straight to Feng Weizhi.

“I got to the bottom of it last night. The problem isn’t me, nor is it that my son’s skills have suddenly improved,” Lu Cheng said, standing tall and speaking firmly.

“Then what’s the issue?” Feng Weizhi wondered. At first, he had thought Lu Cheng’s skills were declining, or perhaps he’d been slacking off, which is why his son had surpassed him.

“They sourced a batch of special herbs from Yunnan. Because the variety of herbs increased, the flavor improved. If you can get hold of these herbs, I guarantee our dishes will taste even better than theirs,” Lu Cheng explained.

Feng Weizhi was momentarily stunned. Yunnan was so far away, and yet Chen Huajiang, with just a little snack bar, had gone all that way to get herbs. That kid was certainly more diligent than he was.

“Then can’t you get your son to sneak us some? He’s the chef at the snack bar; it shouldn’t be too difficult, right?” Feng Weizhi suggested, thinking it a simple solution.

“That’s not going to work, boss. My son is stubborn, and besides, that’s his buddy’s place—he’d never do something like that. If you want, you could go to Yunnan and get some herbs yourself. That would solve everything,” Lu Cheng replied deliberately. Even if Da Guang could get hold of them, Lu Cheng wouldn’t let him. He wanted to see what Feng Weizhi was capable of, especially after being blamed for the issue.

Feng Weizhi sighed. It wasn’t that he didn’t have the time to go to Yunnan; he simply didn’t want to. He thought it was unnecessary, but now that things had become tricky, he had to find a solution.

“All right, I get it. Go back to work. I’ll see if there’s anyone selling them in Nanming City,” Feng Weizhi said, convinced that a city as large as Nanming must have them.

That very day, he went to the wholesale spice market, but after searching the entire market, there were only the usual few types of herbs—none of the special ones he was looking for.