AGN -Chapter 395 It Can Be Four Happiness Rolls or It Can Be Stuffed Flower Rolls

“Chef Qin, that’s wrong. When rolling the initial coil, the arc should be larger, but you must not press into the dough—otherwise it will deform when you reverse-roll it.”

“Chef Zheng, you’re also wrong. When doing the initial roll, it should be flat in front and rolled from the back—you’re not flat enough in the front.”

“Senior brother, you’re right… but why do I still feel your initial roll looks a bit strange?”

The Four Happiness Roll research squad had already clearly formed a 1-to-3 dynamic. Gu Li, who wasn’t very skilled but had rich experience with cloud-pattern techniques—and even richer failure experience—had become a teacher dragging along two pure beginners and one semi-beginner.

The two pure beginners were Qin Huai and Zheng Siyuan.

As a “hexagonal warrior,” Zheng Siyuan didn’t master every type of pastry or technique. For example, things Zheng Da was very bad at—like Four Happiness Rolls, which were usually not made and only secretly prepared at home during the New Year—Zheng Siyuan simply didn’t know how to do.

As for Qin Huai, it went without saying. Anything not included in the “Complete Pastry Encyclopedia,” he basically couldn’t make.

Tan Weian, as the grandson of Master Tan, had at least learned some theoretical knowledge even though he hadn’t properly practiced the “Ruyi Roll” back then due to technical issues. His foundation was better than Qin Huai’s and Zheng Siyuan’s.

But only slightly.

Tan Weian was always almost correct—but not quite. There were always small details that felt off, yet because Chef Gu’s ability was limited, he couldn’t pinpoint exactly what was wrong.

After a full day of making Four Happiness Rolls, Tan Weian was the most confused person.

In half a day, the Four Happiness Roll research squad produced a large number of oddly shaped but actually quite tasty rolls. Naturally, these could not be sold. Otherwise, when the real version was finally perfected, it would be hard to explain to customers what had been sold before.

Since they couldn’t be sold, they could only be consumed internally.

When Qin Huai got off work and went home, he packed three large boxes of Four Happiness Rolls to bring to Shi Dahan.

Shi Dahan had already come to Huang Ji twice today—once at lunch and once at dinner—to eat on his own. Qin Huai had arranged for staff to send him some pastries as a “private treat,” so they didn’t meet directly.

Wang Gensheng, meanwhile, had not left his house since returning from his morning run. He had spent the entire day at home balancing accounts. Both lunch and dinner were packed by Shi Dahan after eating and brought back for him.

Since Shi Dahan was eating in the main hall at night, Qin Huai couldn’t serve him the ugly experimental Four Happiness Rolls there. Otherwise, customers might notice. So he had to bring them home after work for a private tasting.

When Qin Huai entered, Shi Dahan was chatting with Gong Liang in the living room. Wang Gensheng was still sitting at the dining table, glasses on, working on his computer. On the table was a fruit plate with washed grapes, sliced apples, pears, and dragon fruit—all ready to eat.

Seeing Gong Liang there, Qin Huai quickly greeted him with a smile.

“Mr. Gong, you’re here. On my way back I was just thinking of coming over to bring you some new pastries. The new ones don’t look very good in shape, but they taste quite good.”

“As for the lotus seed paste balls, I need to explain—I made some today, but the results weren’t ideal, so I didn’t bring them or invite you to try them. They might not be very good for a while. If you want them, you can go to Huang Ji or have your assistant pack some. No need to come specifically for them.”

“But don’t worry, the progress won’t be slow. Within a month, I’ll definitely make lotus seed paste balls that satisfy both you and your wife.”

After hearing this, Gong Liang felt like he hadn’t even eaten them yet, but he had already tasted their sweetness in his heart. He was so moved that tears almost welled up.

“You’re too modest, Chef Qin. With your skill, how could there be any unsatisfactory lotus seed balls? Even your ‘failed’ ones would be top-tier snacks elsewhere. But I do have something tomorrow—so I’ll have my assistant come to Huang Ji at noon to pack some.”

“I just stopped by because Mingzhu was juicing fruit at home and told me to bring some over. I didn’t expect Brother Shi to be here too, so I sat down and chatted for a while.”

Shi Dahan nodded cheerfully. “Xiao Qin, what’s in your hands?”

He didn’t care about pleasantries—only pastries.

Qin Huai placed the bags on the coffee table, opened them, and laid out three large containers. Inside were Four Happiness Rolls, all squeezed and deformed from the journey, looking even more irregular than before.

Before Qin Huai could speak, Gong Liang already recognized them.

“Four Happiness Rolls!”

A firm exclamation, not a question.

Qin Huai hadn’t expected that even after being stuffed into boxes and jostled all the way, Gong Liang could still recognize them. He asked, “Mr. Gong, how did you recognize them?”

“These… I almost don’t feel comfortable calling them Four Happiness Rolls,” Qin Huai added.

On the way back, he had already prepared an explanation—if Wang Gensheng asked, he would just say they were stuffed flower rolls.

“Of course I can recognize them,” Gong Liang said, staring at the rolls with nostalgia. “I really haven’t seen this pastry in many years. People always say they haven’t eaten something in a long time, but that’s usually just an expression—most things you can still find somewhere. Only this…”

“Ever since Zheng Da went into business, I never saw it again. I even had people ask around at Zhiwei Ju—no chef there knew how to make Four Happiness Rolls.”

“Later I sent people all over the country looking. In some old shops up north, there were similar ones also called Four Happiness Rolls, but the taste and appearance were far from what Chef Jing used to make.”

Hearing this, Wang Gensheng, who had been balancing accounts, took off his glasses, saved his spreadsheet, closed his laptop, and walked over to the table.

He stared at the rolls for a while, then frowned.

“This… is Four Happiness Rolls?”

“Why do I remember Chef Jing’s Four Happiness Rolls not looking like this?”

Only then did Qin Huai realize something—among the four people in the room, everyone except him had actually eaten Chef Jing’s version of Four Happiness Rolls.

He knew Wang Gensheng’s background, but still tended to overlook it—forgetting that Uncle Wang had also once eaten very good food back in the cotton textile factory days.

While Wang Gensheng and Gong Liang were reminiscing, Shi Dahan had already started eating.

Perhaps still in “support role” mode from the past few days, he instinctively acted as a perfect assistant while eating.

“What are Four Happiness Rolls? What were they like before?” he asked while chewing.

“Are they the ones made by that chef from the state-run restaurant?”

“Pretty good, actually.”

By the time he finished speaking, Shi Dahan had already eaten one roll and started on the second. Clearly, talking did not slow his eating at all.

“Mr. Gong, how did you recognize these as Four Happiness Rolls?” Qin Huai asked again.

Too many questions were flying around, so Gong Liang first addressed Shi Dahan:

“Brother Shi, I’ll explain later.”

Then he turned back to Qin Huai.

“Chef Qin, your Four Happiness Rolls don’t look much like Four Happiness Rolls… but they are very similar to the ones Zheng Da first made.”

“I remember when Chef Jing had to retire early due to health reasons, Zheng Da became the only official pastry chef in the canteen. All his pastries were heavily criticized—fermented steamed buns, vegetable buns, meat buns, shaomai, rice cakes… all far worse than Chef Jing’s.”

“Honestly, even I couldn’t stand it. His performance was very unstable.”

“But that was nothing compared to Four Happiness Rolls. Do you know when they were sold?”

Qin Huai nodded. “Yes, I know the story pretty well.”

“The pressure Zheng Da faced during New Year’s was the worst. Ordinary pastries getting criticized was one thing—but if Four Happiness Rolls failed, it would ruin the New Year entirely.”

“He practiced them secretly every day after work. A large part of his salary for half a year went into making Four Happiness Rolls.”

“Even though the rolls that year still weren’t great, the ones he made while practicing were even worse—basically looked exactly like this. I remember it clearly. The first time I saw them, I was stunned. I even asked him why he suddenly started making stuffed flower rolls.”

“And then?”

“Then Zheng Da said they were stuffed flower rolls. I ate them for a while before realizing… he was actually trying to make Four Happiness Rolls.”

Qin Huai: “……”

He suddenly understood why Zheng Da disliked making Four Happiness Rolls so much.

When every pastry is being criticized, and Four Happiness Rolls are criticized the most severely—it leaves a deep psychological shadow.

Poor Chef Zheng.

Qin Huai said solemnly, “Mr. Gong, how many would you like to take back for your wife?”

“If she asks what they are, just tell her—these are meat-stuffed flower rolls.”