AGN -Chapter 410 Strong Onlookers

With experienced worker Tan Weian present, the prep work suddenly became much faster. The core of fresh meat-filled tangyuan was the filling, while the mixed-fruit filling was a bit more complicated. Even so, in just over forty minutes, the tangyuan were ready to come out of the pot.

For a pastry made completely from scratch, this kind of timing—especially for even a “simplified” version of Four-Happiness Tangyuan—was already very fast.

While Chef Zhou was still giving guidance in other areas, Qin Huai and Tan Weian decided to taste first.

“Hey, Qin Huai, why didn’t we think of this before? Four-Happiness Tangyuan can actually be made in two flavors—one sweet, one savory. They actually go really well together. I think it tastes great.” Tan Weian ate with obvious enjoyment, completely unlike how he had been on the high-speed train not long ago, when he had eaten Zheng Da’s breakfast until he felt like throwing up.

It could only be said that not a single pound of Tan Weian’s weight was wasted.

Qin Huai glanced at him and found him quite interesting. This guy clearly behaved differently depending on where he was—outside, he restrained himself a little; but once he was home, he completely let loose.

A few days ago, Tan Weian would never have said something like this. He would just quietly eat from his bowl while openly slacking off.

“Is it possible that two flavors alone don’t really count as Four-Happiness Tangyuan?” Qin Huai said, biting heavily into a meat-filled tangyuan. After chewing carefully and finding nothing wrong, he finally relaxed a little.

Normal performance was fine. After all, Qin Huai had just arrived—if his first pastry failed, it would be embarrassing for Yunzhong Cafeteria’s reputation.

As for whether a community cafeteria like Yunzhong Cafeteria even had a reputation…

Qin Huai didn’t care. As its boss, when he was out in the world, he would absolutely defend its name to the death—while also making sure not to spread it further, so its already “too good to handle” business wouldn’t get even better.

“What are you planning to make next?” Tan Weian asked.

“San Ding Bao,” Qin Huai said firmly.

Originally, he had planned to showcase his best and most stable A-grade Four-Happiness Tangyuan. But since he had underestimated things and made a simplified version, the second dish had to be more careful—something that would never fail, but still show his skill.

San Ding Bao was perfect.

While chewing his tangyuan, Qin Huai began mentally reviewing the preparations needed for San Ding Bao, repeatedly checking to make sure he wouldn’t repeat the same embarrassment as before. He became so absorbed that he didn’t notice someone had approached him.

“So this is the Four-Happiness Tangyuan that Xiao Tan praised so much after coming back?”

A chubby, bald middle-aged man appeared beside Qin Huai, smiling warmly. He looked a bit like a cheerful cartoon Buddha—very friendly and approachable.

Though he seemed to be addressing Tan Weian, his words were actually directed at Qin Huai.

Qin Huai froze slightly.

Only then did he realize something: during the train ride, Su Qian and Tan Weian had told him a lot of gossip about Zhiwei Residence, referring to almost all master chefs and most direct disciples with A, B, C, D aliases—but they had only talked about gossip, not appearances at all.

So although Qin Huai thought he knew a lot, in reality he didn’t know anything. He couldn’t even recognize what the master chefs looked like.

Even Chef Zhou, the “big boss,” had only been recognized when Qin Huai was eating egg tarts at the entrance of Zhiwei Residence.

Qin Huai shot Tan Weian a look asking, Who is this master chef? Hurry up and introduce him.

Before Tan Weian could speak, the bald chef introduced himself first.

“My surname is Hua. Hua Zhongxing. Just call me Chef Hua.”

Qin Huai immediately understood.

Oh—this was the Hua chef who had once clashed with Chef Liu over his children’s matchmaking issues.

“Hello, Chef Hua. I’ve long heard of your reputation. I’ve heard your pastries are excellent. I’m Qin Huai. Today is my first day at Zhiwei Residence for exchange, and I’m not familiar with everyone yet, so I didn’t recognize you just now. My apologies.” Qin Huai quickly put down his bowl and shook hands with him.

Chef Hua smiled. “What did Xiao Tan tell you about me? That I fought with Old Liu because of my son’s issues? That Old Liu even recommended a hair-loss treatment doctor in the break room and told me to take my son early so he wouldn’t go bald before 30?”

Qin Huai: “……”

So that was the kind of content you people discuss in the break room at Zhiwei Residence?

No wonder it’s so big.

Apparently, real “drama” only needs a simple break room.

“No, he didn’t say that,” Qin Huai replied.

“That means he said something else,” Chef Hua said, glancing at Tan Weian.

Tan Weian quickly looked down at his shoes, pretending to be very interested in them.

Qin Huai also looked down—and noticed Tan Weian’s shoelaces were untied. Tan himself, however, had not noticed at all despite staring at them for a long time.

“I’m not from the Jiangnan region,” Chef Hua continued. “I’m from the north. My specialty is noodles—especially hand-pulled noodles.”

“Have you tried Dragon Beard Noodles? The standard is 14 folds, 16,384 strands. My record is 19 folds. I can barely do 20 folds, but there are too many broken strands, so it doesn’t count as successful.”

“I heard from Xiao Tan that you’re good at chicken soup noodles, though not hand-pulled but hand-rolled. If we have time, we can exchange techniques. I’m also very skilled in hand-rolled noodles—oil splash noodles, knife-cut noodles, braised noodles. I wouldn’t say I’m number one in Zhiwei Residence, but I’m definitely among the best.”

Hearing this, Qin Huai suddenly felt Chef Hua radiating light.

Pulling noodles increases difficulty exponentially with each fold. Reaching 19 folds is already top-tier. The fact that 20 folds was only “barely possible” but unstable meant his 19-fold level must be extremely solid.

At that level, a bowl of noodles could easily sell for hundreds or even thousands, and customers would still praise the chef for being “too honest.”

Noodles at that level were no longer just food—they were pure craftsmanship, like artistic pastry displays.

Until now, Qin Huai had only heard people say Zhiwei Residence was the undisputed number-one white-bone culinary establishment, gathering top masters from all over the country. But he had never truly felt it.

To him, Zhiwei Residence had just been “Chef Zhou is amazing, plus a bunch of unknown experts.”

Now, Chef Hua’s introduction finally gave him a real sense of it.

Zhiwei Residence was like a top university, filled with top scorers from every generation. Some stayed behind as professors; others went out to shine elsewhere. Every year, it recruited the best talents from all over, who were then filtered, ranked, and refined into champions.

With that analogy, Qin Huai finally understood why the apprentices there were so competitive, while the direct disciples were relatively calmer—and why the master chefs seemed so relaxed.

They had already gone through all the competition.

At this moment, Chef Hua was no longer just “Chef Hua” in Qin Huai’s eyes.

He was a master of noodle pulling.

The brilliance of the noodle master made Qin Huai slightly dazzled.

His entire inner reaction was practically written on his face, which only made Chef Hua smile more.

“Can I try your Four-Happiness Tangyuan?” he asked.

“Of course!” Qin Huai quickly served him a bowl.

He had made quite a few earlier, and there were still some left in the pot.

He handed Chef Hua two tangyuan and explained that it was a simplified version, then watched expectantly as he ate.

But before Chef Hua could even finish chewing and comment, another thin chef squeezed in.

This one introduced himself immediately.

“Old Hua, that’s not very nice. You sneaked off from guiding your apprentice just to come eat. Hello, Xiao Qin. My surname is Zhang—Zhang Dongliang. I don’t know if Xiao Tan mentioned me. I usually handle the morning and lunch pastry shifts and get off work early. I’ll be done in about two hours.”

“I heard from Xiao Tan that you really like shrimp dumplings. If you want them, just come to me anytime. I’m best at Cantonese dim sum. Speaking of which, we’re actually from the same hometown—I’m also from Guangdong. I heard you’re from Quxian; Xiao Tan mentioned it. I know that place.”

Hearing this, Qin Huai immediately recognized him.

His eyes lit up.

“Chef Zhang, I’ve heard about you from Tan Weian. He also told me your shrimp dumplings are especially good. I wonder if I’ll have a chance to try them tomorrow.”

“Why wait until tomorrow? I’ll make another batch for you later—one hour and you’ll be able to taste it.”

“Thank you, Chef Zhang. Please have some tangyuan too.” Qin Huai quickly went to serve him a bowl.

Before he had even finished scooping, another chef squeezed in.

“Xiao Qin, right? My surname is Chen, Chen Xin. I don’t know if Xiao Tan mentioned me, but I—”

Another one cut in.

“Xiao Qin, right? My surname is Liang, Liang An. I usually make various kinds of flaky pastries. I heard from Xiao Tan that you—”

“Hey, why are you all here? Xiao Qin, right? My surname is Liu, Liu Haiqiao. Hey, Hua, don’t squeeze forward—you’ve already got some, what are you still pushing for? I heard from Xiao Tan that you’re interested in imperial pastries. What a coincidence, I specialize in them too. If we get the chance, we should exchange ideas… Hua, stop squeezing forward!”

“Xiao Qin, I—”

“I—”

Within just a few minutes, the area around Qin Huai’s workstation was completely surrounded by the master chefs of Zhiwei Residence.

Yes—completely packed, not even water could get through.

Not only could no one else squeeze in, even Tan Weian couldn’t squeeze out.

The first pot of Four-Happiness Tangyuan Qin Huai made was already not enough to share. The second batch—originally planned to be cooked after Chef Zhou finished his work—was clearly no longer going to wait.

The master chefs each took a bowl, grabbed a few tangyuan, and stood around the workstation eating and chatting. Even after finishing, none of them left. They simply stood there discussing.

“Xiao Qin’s filling technique is pretty good. The meat filling is chopped like that, clearly not perfectly processed, yet the flavor is still so fresh. Xiao Tan didn’t exaggerate.”

“Don’t you think the mixed-fruit filling is even more impressive? The taste itself is average, but with so many ingredients mixed together, he managed to unify everything. That foundation and taste sensitivity are no joke. Among us, probably only Old Zhou, Old Hua, Old Liu, and Xiao Liu can do that.”

“Xiao Dong probably can too.”

“No wonder Old Zhou has been thinking about this all morning, so restless he even went to bake a batch of egg tarts and waited at the entrance. This isn’t just waiting for an exchange partner—he’s basically waiting for his future prized disciple.”

“Shh, keep it down. Where’s Xiao Qin?”

“He squeezed out to get more glutinous rice flour. You think I’m stupid? I only started talking after I saw him leave. I’m telling you, Old Zhou is absolutely considering taking him as a disciple. You didn’t see his expression when he brought Xiao Qin in earlier—he’s never been that kind to anyone in twenty years.”

“Really?”

“Why don’t you try another bite of the tangyuan before asking that?”

“I only got one earlier. I didn’t even get the meat filling, just the mixed-fruit one. What’s Xiao Qin making next?”

“I asked Xiao Tan just now—it seems to be San Ding Bao.”

“Good choice. San Ding Bao shows basic skills even more clearly.”

“……”

When Qin Huai finally squeezed back in from outside, he realized there were even more chefs around the workstation than before.

If his feeling was correct, it seemed like every master chef who was on shift and available had gathered there.

For a moment, he had the strange feeling that he was the only student left in an exam hall, while the entire building’s invigilators, having nothing better to do, had all gathered behind him just to watch him write his paper.

He felt like they were just here to watch the excitement—but he couldn’t figure out what exactly they were excited about. Watching a newcomer?

But in theory, Zhiwei Residence shouldn’t lack newcomers coming for exchanges.

Qin Huai didn’t understand. So he just quietly started making San Ding Bao.

Compared to the simplified Four-Happiness Tangyuan, San Ding Bao took much longer. Kneading dough, preparing ingredients, boiling fillings, seasoning—all of it required time.

Because space around the workstation was now extremely limited, the previously unnamed apprentice had already been squeezed out. Only Tan Weian remained to assist Qin Huai.

Halfway through, even Tan Weian was pushed aside.

The reason was simple: the master chefs thought his skill level would slow Qin Huai down, so Chef Hua and Chef Liu personally stepped in to help cut and prepare ingredients.

And so, two chefs who were practically sworn opposites due to their children’s conflict—rarely seen in the same space—ended up standing on opposite sides of Qin Huai, chopping vegetables side by side, creating an atmosphere of sharp tension, hidden rivalry, and silent sparks flying everywhere.

By the end of prep, even Tan Weian was forced out.

Too weak—this was now a gathering place for master chefs. A direct disciple like him no longer qualified to squeeze in.

Tan Weian: “……”

Qin Huai finished wrapping the San Ding Bao under immense pressure, watched an unnamed apprentice carry them to the steaming area, and then used going to the restroom as an excuse to drag Tan Weian away from the scene.

During all this, Chef Zhou still hadn’t returned—he was reportedly assessing Su Qian’s progress and condition.

In the hallway, Qin Huai stopped Tan Weian and looked at him.

“Speak.”

“Huh? Speak about what?”

“How exactly did you promote me to all these master chefs when I wasn’t at Zhiwei Residence?”

“Why does everyone know me, know my background, know where I’m from, and every first sentence is ‘Xiao Tan said’?”

Tan Weian: “……”

He was screwed.

When he came back from exchanging at Huang Ji Restaurant last time, he had enthusiastically spread gossip everywhere—but he never imagined there would be a day when Qin Huai would actually come to Zhiwei Residence.

Qin Huai smiled faintly at him.

Tan Weian immediately said, “Brother—Brother Qin—Chef Qin—Xiao Tan I can still kneel now, right?”

“It’s not that I didn’t say it properly… I just said too much and honestly forgot what I even said anymore.”