The Game of Life

Chapter 607: Chapter 605: Steamed Bass

The lowly working student Jiang Feng ultimately still didn’t get three servings—he only got two.

Since Sun Maochai registered too late and couldn’t get the second serving, Jiang Feng could only reluctantly give up his third serving to Sun Maochai.

Jiang Feng didn’t understand why Sun Maochai, a grand master of Cantonese cuisine, couldn’t just make whatever he wanted to eat and instead had to fight for his third serving.

Even though Sun Maochai had two servings, he still couldn’t complete the side quest, clearly the Eight Treasures Chestnut Fragrant Pigeon couldn’t bring back the memories he was gradually forgetting.

When Jiang Feng returned to the dining table to start eating like a normal guest who had come to the banquet, the banquet was already halfway through. When he came out of the kitchen, he felt that the atmosphere in the lobby was different from before, and sitting down, he could directly sense the difference.

Happiness.

Everyone was very happy, with smiles on their faces, those were smiles of satisfaction, smiles of happiness. When Jiang Feng just passed by a table, he overheard the patrons there discussing the Eight Treasures Chestnut Fragrant Pigeon, obviously, this happiness was given to them by the pigeon dish.

Good food is one of the convenient ways for humans to directly obtain happiness.

“Qiqi, did something happen over here just now?” Jiang Feng asked eagerly as soon as he sat down, feeling that something big had happened in the lobby while he was thickening the sauce for the pigeon dish.

Wu Minqi picked up a chopstick full of steamed sea bass, placed the tender fish meat in her bowl, and said, “Some guests got a bit excited.”

“Excited?” Jiang Feng was puzzled. While he was in the kitchen, he was only responsible for thickening the sauce, unaware of the sensation the Eight Treasures Chestnut Fragrant Pigeon had caused.

“Actually, it was about snatching dishes. Some people could order a second serving of the remaining Eight Treasures Chestnut Fragrant Pigeons, right? A few people from the earlier tables started arguing over who should get the last few servings, but it stopped after others lightly intervened,” Wu Minqi explained, “Sun Jikai came looking for you earlier to have you thicken the sauce for the pigeon dish in the kitchen, didn’t he?”

Jiang Feng nodded, “Yeah, just a little favor; I helped since I could. Qiqi, how do you think today’s Eight Treasures Chestnut Fragrant Pigeon was?”

“Very good.” Wu Minqi never spared any words when praising her boyfriend. “The pigeon meat was fresh and fragrant, the vegetarian filling was well matched, the seasoning was moderate, and the timing for thickening the sauce was just right. Apart from the one made by Master Sun that day, this was the tastiest I’ve had.”

Jiang Feng was about to modestly downplay the compliment, when Sun Maochai, who was burying his head eating his second serving of Eight Treasures Chestnut Fragrant Pigeon, suddenly looked up at Jiang Feng.

His serving of the Eight Treasures Chestnut Fragrant Pigeon was served separately at the end, to prevent discontent among other patrons, Jiang Feng even specially changed containers before thickening the sauce to avoid being noticed by others.

“Did you take care of the thickening for all these?” asked Sun Maochai with a smile.

Just as Jiang Feng was about to answer, Sir preempted him, “Of course, that youngster from the Sun Family doesn’t have this expertise. If he did, Jubao Building’s Eight Treasures Chestnut Fragrant Pigeon would’ve sold like crazy long ago.”

“Was it taught by Sun?” Sun Maochai asked in surprise.

Sir was a little proud, “My grandson figured it out on his own.”

Jiang Feng: …

It feels really great to be flattered by Sir!

Even though Jiang Feng was internally thrilled, he knew when to be modest: “It’s something Sun Jikai and I figured out together. Actually, he can do it too, but he’s not quite proficient yet and needs more practice.”

Sun Maochai just laughed and didn’t speak anymore.

However, after Sir took a couple of bites of his food, he suddenly caught onto something off in Sun Maochai’s words and turned to ask, “Have you eaten this thing before?”

“No, it’s my first time today, that’s why I found the flavor good and wanted an extra serving,” Sun Maochai replied at ease.

“Then how did you know the key to this dish was in the thickening?” Sir wasn’t buying his story.

“Although I haven’t eaten it before, I’ve heard patrons mention it in past years. With Sun’s dish being so famous, how could I not know. Besides, couldn’t Jiang tell after tasting the dish that the key point is in the thickening?” Sun Maochai countered. “Given Sun’s character, he probably wouldn’t easily teach his thickening technique to others, not even to his disciples.”

Jiang Weiguo was choked up and couldn’t respond.

He could tell, but that was after going back and pondering it over carefully, not something he could have discerned from the first taste.

“Yes,” Sir nodded vaguely.

Jiang Feng was eavesdropping while continuously eating, his stomach was already a bit filled after having two servings of Eight Treasures Chestnut Fragrant Pigeon in the back kitchen. The dishes on the table were good, but they were far from the Eight Treasures Chestnut Fragrant Pigeon. The only dish that Wu Minqi had picked up several times with her chopsticks was the steamed bass, which was very delicious. Jiang Feng also liked this dish very much and he, together with Wu Minqi, had split the fish between them.

As for Sun Maochai and Sir, the two of them didn’t seem to have much interest in the food on the table, reaching for it only occasionally. Jiang Feng knew why Sir wasn’t interested; most of the dishes on the table didn’t suit his taste, so it was normal for him not to want to eat them. As for why Sun Maochai wasn’t eating, Jiang Feng guessed that maybe the master was too discerning and looked down upon the dishes.

“Qiqi, do you also feel that this steamed bass is different from what we usually eat?” After eating half of the fish, Jiang Feng began to reminisce about the taste of the steamed bass.

The bass was extremely fresh. Picking aside its skin with chopsticks revealed the delicate, snow-white flesh inside. Even without dipping it into the sauce, the inherent salty freshness of the fish could be tasted. The Fire Control for steaming was just right; the flesh was tender and smooth at the moment it was perfectly cooked. When Jiang Feng had it, the fish was already warm. If it had been served piping hot just out of the steamer, it would have been even more delicious and enticing.

“Yes, it seems like the bass was marinated with something special, probably lemon. When it was served, I picked a piece near its stomach, and it had a faint scent of lemon,” Wu Minqi started acting like a food critic, “There’s a subtle sweetness of rice wine in the sauce. The taste is indeed different from the steamed bass we’ve had before.”

“The steamed bass is Qiu Fu’s signature dish; these basses are carefully marinated beforehand with special ingredients stuffed inside their bellies. Even if I can tell what it is, I can’t say, as I wouldn’t want to ruin his livelihood. But indeed there’s lemon, not fresh lemon but dried lemon slices,” explained Sun Maochai with a smile.

“Who is Qiu Fu?” Sir asked.

“Sun’s senior disciple, now he should be the head chef of Jubao Building, and many of the young chefs in Jubao Building’s kitchen are his disciples,” replied Sun Maochai.

“I didn’t expect that you’ve been in Hong Kong City all these years and are so informed about Jubao Building; I didn’t even know,” said Sir.

“After all, Jiang is further away, while although I’m in Hong Kong City, it’s close to here. Besides, we’re all from the same Cantonese culinary tradition. It’s normal to have some communication and to hear some news,” Sun Maochai explained seamlessly.

Sir didn’t engage with him further, but his expression made it clear that he didn’t believe Sun Maochai’s cock-and-bull story.

After finishing the bass, Jiang Feng lost interest in the other dishes on the table and thought about beating around the bush to coax some words out of Sun Maochai, hoping to blind stumble onto something that would remind him of the past.

“Master Sun, have you known my grandfather for many years?” Jiang Feng pretended he knew nothing about Sir’s past.

“Of course,” said Sun Maochai, “I was just 6 years old when I first met your grandfather. It’s been over 40 years since I have known him.”

Jiang Feng did some quick calculations in his mind; over 40 years would mean that Sir was in his 40s when he first met Sun Maochai.

But if he remembered correctly, in Sir’s memories that he saw, Sir hadn’t known Mrs. Jiang and was not yet 30 when he came to Jubao Building.

The time difference was too great.

It was implausible that Sir had been in Jubao Building for ten years.

“Actually, now that I think about it, you, Jiang, might have been the most special among all the senior chefs back then. The others either stayed in Jubao Building to learn their craft or left after learning and didn’t come back. You were the only one who came every year but only stayed for about half a month each time,” said Sun Maochai. “I found it strange back then, and now I have the opportunity to ask, why is that, Jiang?”

Hearing Sun Maochai say this, Jiang Feng involuntarily glanced at Sir, trying to pry an answer from his mouth.

Sir wasn’t fond of talking about his past. He preferred to boast about the glorious achievements of Taifeng Building; after all, a brilliant past made for good bragging.

Sir coughed twice and seeing that he couldn’t avoid the question, he finally said, “I couldn’t take a long leave.”

Jiang Feng: ?

You can’t take long leave from a state-owned hotel, unless it’s business travel. A maximum half-month’s leave is approved each year; any more and they start deducting from the salary, which your grandmother wouldn’t like,” Sir told Jiang Feng, pretending he wasn’t answering Sun Maochai’s question.

Sun Maochai: …

“If I remember correctly, you reserved Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall for tomorrow,” Sir quickly changed the subject.

“Yes, I’ve reserved for tomorrow noon. I rarely visit, so I wanted to try Jubao Building’s signature dish,” nodded Sun Maochai.

“We have a reservation for tomorrow noon as well. Let’s go together,” Sir invited Sun Maochai.

“The honor is mine.”