Chapter 41: Chapter 35: I Want to Be a Chef

As the Huo Xiang Carp was brought to the table, Zhao Tieying finished up the braised eel.

Zhou Yan stir-fried a vegetable dish and plated some pickled radishes, and with that, dinner was complete.

They had originally planned to use the leftover toppings for dinner, but unexpectedly, they had sold out completely, with nothing left at all.

Zhao Tieying brought an enamel basin full of rice to the table and began serving everyone a bowl.

"This Huo Xiang Carp is fantastic! The color is beautiful, and it smells so fragrant. It looks even better than what you get at the state-run restaurants," Zhou Fei exclaimed in admiration, looking at the platter.

"It does look good," Zhou Miao agreed with a nod. He then added, "But this braised eel looks even more amazing. The color is so vibrant and the aroma is incredible. Truly skillful work."

"Enough talk. Eat up." Zhao Tieying placed a heaping bowl of rice in front of him, fighting back a grin.

"Alright," Zhou Miao replied with a laugh. He nudged some of the sauce aside and picked out a piece of meat from the carp’s belly for Zhou Momo. He said gently, "Chew it slowly, now. If you find any bones, just spit them out."

"Mhm!" Zhou Momo nodded, eagerly picking up her chopsticks to take a bite.

’So tender! So smooth! Delicious!’

She puckered her little lips and spat out a tiny bone, then immediately shoveled a mouthful of rice into her mouth, chewing with great relish.

Zhou Momo had been eating fish since she was three; she had a real talent for it.

Of course, Zhao Tieying never let her eat too much, always giving her a taste of the belly meat where the bones were fewer.

"Carp has a lot of little bones. Fanwa, you’re clumsy, so you should eat the eel your Fourth Auntie made," Zhao Hong said, giving Fanwa a piece of eel.

"I’m not *that* clumsy..." Fanwa mumbled, a little hurt. But the eel was delicious, and he dug in happily. He had choked on a fishbone once, so he was scared to eat fish anyway.

Zhao Tieying took a bite of the fish first. A thick sauce coated the meat. As it entered her mouth, a numbing, spicy, and savory flavor enveloped the tender fish, melting on her tongue. The aroma of the huo xiang was especially prominent.

The fish had been pan-fried beforehand, but not overcooked. The slightly seared skin was intensely fragrant, yet the meat inside hadn’t lost any of its smooth tenderness.

’And there’s that fiery kick from the pickled peppers!’

’Delicious!’

’This is so much better than any Huo Xiang Carp I’ve ever made. It feels like a completely different dish.’

’And it goes so perfectly with rice.’

Zhao Tieying shoveled down three mouthfuls of rice in a row, feeling utterly satisfied.

"This flavor is absolutely perfect. It’s much better than the dry-braised carp you made last time," Zhao Tieying said, looking at Zhou Yan.

Zhou Yan thought for a moment and immediately recalled the dry-braised carp his old self, Comrade Zhou, had made. ’That was terrible,’ he thought. ’The muddy, fishy taste wasn’t masked at all. The only reason it got eaten was because resources were scarce and no one dared to waste food.’

Hearing this, Zhou Miao also eagerly picked up a piece of fish and popped it into his mouth.

After one bite, he was stunned.

’This is just too delicious!’

’The fish is so smooth and tender, completely soaked in the sauce. The scent of huo xiang leads the charge, followed by a dance of sour, spicy, and savory notes on the tongue. It’s incredible.’

He quickly shoveled down two mouthfuls of rice.

He looked up at Zhou Yan and said, "You should take two fish to your grandma tomorrow. She loves fish, so she’ll definitely love this Huo Xiang Carp you made."

"Okay." Zhou Yan nodded. ’That’s a good idea.’

Zhou Yan tasted a bite of the Huo Xiang Carp himself, and his eyes lit up as well.

’This dish isn’t uncommon in Sichuan Cuisine restaurants, but I’ve never encountered one where the texture of the fish and the flavor of the sauce were controlled to this level of perfection.’

’Absolutely incredible!’

His catchphrase almost slipped out.

’It’s so good, and perfect with rice!’

These one-pound carp had fewer tiny bones, which made them much more satisfying to eat.

Zhou Fei and Zhao Hong also tried the Huo Xiang Carp and were both blown away, praising it endlessly.

You can’t talk too much while eating fish, or you might choke on a bone.

The fish head was sucked clean, and in the end, even the last drop of sauce was mixed with rice and eaten by Zhou Momo.

Zhou Miao’s plan to take the leftover sauce home for noodles was foiled, much to his disappointment.

"Catch more carp next time. It’s delicious," Zhao Tieying said, giving Comrade Zhou his new mission.

"Alright, I’ll catch even bigger ones next time." Comrade Zhou’s private savings had grown, so he stood a little straighter, full of confidence.

"Uncle, you’re amazing! This is the best fish I’ve ever eaten." Zhou Lihui looked at Zhou Yan with pure adoration. "I want to learn how to cook from you."

"Huh?"

The dining room suddenly fell silent.

Zhao Hong, who was clearing the table, froze and stared at Zhou Lihui in astonishment. "What did you say? Are you quitting school?"

"Yeah, you’re only in your last year of middle school," Zhou Fei added, his eyes fixed on him.

Zhou Lihui scratched his head and said in a low voice, "I’m useless at school anyway. I’m always third from the bottom on every exam. I don’t want to learn how to butcher cattle. I like cooking. I want to be a Chef like Uncle and cook for everyone."

Zhou Yan looked at the boy, not daring to respond.

’In this day and age, getting an education is definitely the best path forward.’

’But if Zhou Lihui is always third from the bottom, he really isn’t cut out for academics.’

’The restaurant’s business is getting better and better. Soon I’ll need to add braised dishes and stir-fries. There’s too much to do in the kitchen; I definitely can’t handle it all by myself.’

’Taking Huihui on as an apprentice is worth considering.’

’The kid takes after his dad—he’s steady, hardworking, and proactive.’

’Plus, he’s strong. He inherited the Zhou Family’s ox-like strength. He was born to be a butcher or a Chef.’

But this was too big a decision. It concerned a child’s entire future. He couldn’t just jump in with his opinion.

Zhao Hong and Zhou Fei exchanged a look and also fell silent.

They knew better than anyone what Zhou Lihui’s academic performance was like.

The boy wasn’t an idiot. He was an expert at catching fish and eels, climbing trees, and raiding birds’ nests—he just couldn’t study. He was always third from the bottom, and the two behind him were genuine blockheads.

He never caused trouble at school. In all these years, his teachers had never complained about him. In fact, he had even been commended several times for helping his classmates.

He definitely wasn’t getting into high school. Their previous plan was for him to learn a trade after graduating middle school by following his old man and learning to butcher cattle.

He had a good build, was strong, and was a quick learner. After a few years of training, he’d have a skill to make a living with.

"Fourth Uncle, what do you think about this?" Zhou Fei asked, turning to Zhou Miao to ask for the elder’s opinion.

Back when Zhou Yan refused to learn butchery and instead became a Chef Apprentice at the factory cafeteria, his other uncles hadn’t really understood.

Zhou Miao looked at Zhou Yan. "Zhou Yan, you’re the Chef. You tell us."

All eyes turned to Zhou Yan.

"Huihui, is this just a spur-of-the-moment idea, or have you really thought it through? Do you really want to learn to cook and become a Chef?" Zhou Yan asked, looking Zhou Lihui in the eye with a serious expression.

Zhou Lihui instinctively straightened up and said earnestly, "It’s true I only just decided I want to be a Chef today, but I’ve thought it through. I don’t want to butcher cattle; I want to be a Chef. A butcher’s life is the same every day. As a Chef, I could see customers enjoying the food I make. I think that would be very satisfying."

"Zhou Yan, do you think he has what it takes...?" Zhou Fei began, then trailed off.

Zhao Hong had told him that business at Zhou Yan Restaurant was booming, and that Zhou Yan earned more than he did as a butcher.

If Zhou Lihui could learn to cook from Zhou Yan, that was also a good trade, and one with a better future.

From ancient times to the present, no cook has ever starved to death.

But their son had brought this up so suddenly, and they were completely unprepared. They were afraid Zhou Yan would misunderstand, thinking they were jealous of his successful business and had put Huihui up to this.

"It’s alright. I had the same idea he does back then. I didn’t want to butcher cattle; I just wanted to be a Chef." Zhou Yan smiled and waved his hand dismissively. This was the attitude he had been waiting for.

He looked at Zhou Lihui and said, "How about this: starting next week, you come to the restaurant with your mom every morning and learn from me for two hours. You can head to school at seven-thirty. Try it out for a while and see if it’s what you imagine. If you can stick with it, you can officially start learning from me after you graduate middle school."

"Okay! Thank you, Uncle!" Zhou Lihui’s eyes lit up, and he broke into a huge grin.

"But I have one condition. I don’t care about your other subjects, but for the rest of this school year, you need to learn how to read all the common characters and master basic arithmetic—addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division." Zhou Yan’s smile vanished, and his expression turned serious.

"I don’t allow illiterates in my kitchen."

"If you can’t even read the names of the seasonings or do the math to buy groceries, you can forget about being my apprentice."