Chapter 304: Chapter 193: Finally Stepped into the Beauty and Hairdressing Circle! This Round of Rewards is Interesting! [Seeking Monthly Ticket]_3
He had just finished drizzling sauce over the shredded radish and arranged it on the plate when he sauntered over to Huo Yifan’s stove, just as Huo Yifan was dropping the shrimp into the wok.
The fat in the wok released a rich lard aroma. This not only enhanced the shrimp’s fragrance but, crucially, lard wouldn’t color the food, ensuring the shrimp remained as white as possible.
The flame on the stove was turned to its highest setting. When the oil reached about seventy percent heat, he poured in the shrimp. He quickly stirred them to separate, then stir-fried them on high heat for one minute before pouring them into a colander to drain the oil. Finally, he transferred them to a clean white porcelain plate.
As he plated the dish, Lin Xu quietly used a Cooking Learning Card.
"One Superior Cooking Learning Card consumed, granting the host a Superior-level dish—White Robed Shrimp."
He finally got it. Lin Xu breathed a long sigh of relief.
Although the dish was famous, the seasoning was actually very simple: just a bit of salt in the scallion and ginger water used for marinating the shrimp, and a bit of salt in the egg white paste. That was enough.
The prepared White Robed Shrimp had a crisp texture and a fresh, clean taste. Upon entering the mouth, one could also feel the smooth tenderness of the egg white paste, all complementing its flawless, snow-white color.
After Huo Yifan plated his dish, Guo Xinghai also finished cooking his stir-fried grouper fillets.
Then, Zhuang Yizhou’s Chicken Bean Curd and the other contestants’ dishes also began to be taken out of the woks and plated.
The judges, who had been tantalized for a long time, immediately came down to start tasting and scoring.
Chen Meijuan, in the audience, was a bit nervous. "Can Little Xu’s dish win first place?" she wondered.
At first, she thought it wouldn’t be a problem, but now she realized that all the contestants’ dishes were so perfect, and they were all meat dishes. Competing against meat dishes with a mere radish made her feel somewhat anxious.
"Don’t worry, Meijuan. Little Xu is so talented; he’ll definitely manage," Han Shuzhen comforted, though her own hands were clenched tightly, fearing the judges might give low scores.
After ending his chat with Xie Baomin, Shen Guofu focused his attention on the stage. "In terms of sheer presentation, Little Xu’s dish is the most beautiful," he thought. "Who could imagine it was made from radish? I reckon it’ll take first place, no question."
The seven dishes were neatly laid out on a table covered with a white cloth, each one beautiful.
Once the cameraman and Wu Kexin finished taking close-up shots, the judges, each holding a small plate and chopsticks, crowded around.
"Oh my, this Chicken Bean Curd is so tender."
"I never expected that imperial bird’s nest could be incorporated into Almond Tofu."
"This Milk Soup Meatballs dish is really redefining my understanding of meatballs."
"The Winter Melon Box is also extremely exquisite. Inside is a mix of chicken mince and diced shrimp. The taste is truly fresh and delightful."
Compared to the last round, which was full of eggplant dishes, this round of the competition felt like a clash of titans. Each dish had nearly reached perfection.
Liu Zhengyu tasted the White Robed Shrimp, nodded, and said, "These shrimp are done brilliantly. The flesh is sweet and crisp, with absolutely no hint of fishiness. Magnificent."
After finishing the White Robed Shrimp, he turned his attention to the Steamed Rice Flour Silver Strips on the table. "Years ago, I read in an ancient culinary text about a method of steaming radish shredded as fine as hair. I thought it was an exaggeration and asked many industry professionals, all of whom said it was impossible. Who knew I would actually see such a method today... Lin Xu, what is this dish called?"
"Steamed Rice Flour Silver Strips!"
"Right, right, that’s what the ancient text called it too... Good heavens, you’ve actually recreated a lost dish!"
He picked up a mouthful with his chopsticks. The first taste was garlic sauce. With a gentle chew, he could feel the soft, starchy layer coating the radish shreds, followed by the resilient texture of the radish itself.
After savoring it, Liu Zhengyu reflected on the dish again. He found its texture, taste, and appearance all flawless.
"It’s truly a lost dish; the flavor is impeccable. However, for a simple radish dish to demand such high knife skills, it’s no wonder it was lost."
Modern cooking values efficiency. Which chef would want to expend so much effort on a single radish? It was only because resources were scarce in the old days, coupled with the shortage of ingredients in winter, that chefs painstakingly worked on ingredients that could be stored for a long time.
After tasting all the dishes, the judges began to score.
This round of the competition, with no restrictions on ingredients and double the cooking time, allowed everyone to bring out their absolute best.
This directly resulted in very close scores.
Lin Xu received 9.9 points, tying for first place with Huo Yifan.
Zhuang Yizhou’s Chicken Bean Curd, with its clear soup and beautiful flavor, earned 9.8 points, placing second.
Guo Xinghai’s stir-fried grouper fillets received 9.75 points, narrowly taking third place by a margin of 0.05.
As for the other contestants, their scores were 9.7, 9.67, and 9.65 respectively—all very close.
After the scores were announced, the system’s notification sound once again echoed in Lin Xu’s mind:
"Host has secured first place in this round of competition, completing the fifth round of the serial task [Overcome the Challenges], and has obtained one Constitution Enhancement Card."
(Constitution Enhancement Card: A card that can enhance physical fitness, with an effect roughly equivalent to one month of scientific fitness training. Repeated use within one year yields no additional cumulative benefit.)
DAMN!
There are even cards like this?
The classic Chu Yunfei meme immediately popped into Lin Xu’s mind: "You always manage to come up with something new.jpg"
Too bad its effects aren’t cumulative.
Otherwise, if I used a hundred or eighty of them on myself, wouldn’t I transform into a Super Saiyan on the spot?
After muttering to himself, the head judge, Liu Zhengyu, announced, "Congratulations to Lin Xu, Huo Yifan, Zhuang Yizhou, and Guo Xinghai for advancing to the final four championship. It is now noon, and the restaurant next door has prepared lunch. Will all guests please proceed next door for your meal. The competition will resume at two o’clock this afternoon."
The original plan had been to run the competition without interruption. However, with viewership ratings climbing and many in the audience clearly hungry, Zhen Wensheng decided to add a lunch break. This also provided an opportunity to keep television viewers engaged, hopefully boosting ratings even further.
After the announcement, everyone got up and headed to the restaurant for lunch.
Just as Lin Xu was about to look for Shen Baobao in the audience, the rather handsome Zhuang Yizhou suddenly approached him and asked, "Master Lin, shall we have lunch together?"
Have lunch together? Lin Xu wondered. Does he have something to ask me?
Lin Xu responded with a smile, "My parents and my in-laws are all in the audience. I need to have lunch with them. Is there something you need, Master Zhuang?"
Zhuang Yizhou looked slightly awkward, but he quickly took a deep breath and asked Lin Xu, "I want to switch jobs and work at your restaurant. Is that okay?"
WHAT?! Lin Xu was stunned. He hadn’t anticipated that a head chef from Yanjing Hotel would want to join his restaurant; he felt like he must have misheard.
He checked the system page for the list of potential hires. Zhuang Yizhou’s name was indeed there and highlighted.
But why would he want to leave Yanjing Hotel, where he has a good position, to switch to my restaurant? Lin Xu wondered. Out of curiosity, he asked, "Could you tell me why?"
Zhuang Yizhou didn’t hide his reasons. "I’m seeing someone, and her family is from Beijing. Her parents insist that I buy an apartment in Beijing outright before they’ll agree to our marriage. After a lot of persuasion, they lowered their standard, requiring me to have an annual salary of five hundred thousand. I make less than twenty thousand a month at Yanjing Hotel, so to reach that figure, I have to consider switching jobs."
Five hundred thousand? Lin Xu thought. An annual salary of five hundred thousand means a monthly salary of just over forty thousand. That’s a bit high. That kind of salary would be enough to hire an executive chef from a five-star hotel.
Perhaps sensing Lin Xu’s hesitation, Zhuang Yizhou added, "Personally, I don’t demand that much. Thirty thousand a month would be fine for me. I also do live streaming sometimes and was hoping to leverage some of your popularity for extra income... But you can rest assured, I absolutely won’t let it interfere with my regular work."
Lin Xu didn’t agree, nor did he refuse outright. "I can’t make this decision alone. Let me discuss it with our general manager, how about that?"
"Alright, alright! May I add your WeChat?"
After they added each other on WeChat, Zhuang Yizhou went to the restaurant to eat. He had barely left when Shen Baobao rushed over.
"Xu Bao, I missed you!"
Lin Xu embraced her. Then, together with both sets of parents, and led by his senior brother Xie Baomin, they went to a private room in the nearby restaurant.
Indeed, a private room had been specially arranged for them, given the size of Lin Xu’s family.
Once everyone was seated, Lin Xu took his phone out to the hallway to call Dou Wenjing.