Siheyuan: I am different He Yuzhu

After the three of them sat down, Fang Erwa took out a lunch box from his bag and opened it to see three steamed buns made of 3g flour. Fang Erwa took out a steamed bun and gave one to Zhang Xiaoming and Li Xiaowei, saying, "Eat a steamed bun first to fill your stomach. Drinking on an empty stomach will make you drunk too quickly."

The three of them wolfed down the steamed buns and started drinking. After the first bite, their expressions lit up. Fang Erwa said proudly, "I didn't lie to you, this Erguotou is good, let's try this snack."

The three put down their wine glasses, picked up chopsticks and put a pickle into their mouths. After the pickle went into their mouths, the three of them ate it without saying a word. After swallowing the pickle, the three of them set their sights on the fermented bean curd. Each of them carefully took a little fermented bean curd with chopsticks and put it into their mouths. The three of them ate it without saying a word. Then, each of them took a piece of small tripe and put it into their mouths. Zhang Xiaoming said, "The pickles and fermented bean curd in this tavern are really a great snack to go with wine. Xiaowei, let's toast to Erwa and congratulate him on passing the eighth-level chef exam." After that, Zhang Xiaoming and Li Xiaowei raised their wine glasses.

Fang Erwa quickly picked up his glass and clinked it with the other two's glasses. After drinking the wine in the glass, Li Xiaowei said with envy: "Erwa, you are really amazing. I remember that you joined the Red Star Steel Rolling Mill last year. It's only been a year since you passed the exam to become a level 8 chef. You have also been in the factory for a year, and I am still an apprentice."

Fang Erwa boasted, "It's not me who is good, it's the person who taught me how to cook. When I first entered the factory, I didn't know how to cook at all. My mother cooked at home, and the most I could do was to help boil the pot. You don't know that the people who entered the factory with me, under the teaching of that person, learned to cook big pot dishes in less than half a month. Today, he participated in the chef assessment with us, and he passed the first-level chef exam directly. He was only 21 years old and got the first-level chef certificate. Do you know what a first-level chef is?"

After hearing what Fang Erwa said, Zhang Xiaoming looked puzzled and asked, "Erwa, I was just about to ask you, the best chef in our factory is only a Level 7 worker, how come you passed the exam and became a Level 8 chef at such a young age? How come the person who taught you is so good but he is only a Level chef?"

Fang Erwa took a bite of pickled vegetables and said slowly: "The level of our chefs is just the opposite of other types of workers. The lowest level corresponds to your level 8 chefs, and our level chefs correspond to your level workers."

After hearing Fang Erwa's words, the two who had no idea what a first-class chef was, gasped. Li Xiaowei said in disbelief, "Erwa, you are not bragging, you passed the first-class chef exam at the age of 21, you are not drunk and talking nonsense!"

Fang Erwa was immediately unhappy when he heard this: "I can get drunk after just two glasses of wine. As for you saying I am bragging, Li Xiaowei, let me ask you, I didn't say that I would let you pass the exam to become an 2th-level worker at the age of 21, and I gave you another ten years. Are you sure you can become an 8th-level worker at the age of 31?"

Li Xiaowei thought for a moment and shook his head, then replied, "Even at the age of 41, I am not sure I can become an eighth-level worker. But when you say that a 8-year-old can become a first-level chef, which is equivalent to an eighth-level worker, it sounds weird to me!"

Fang Erwa took a sip of wine and said, "What's so weird? The man I'm talking about has been a chef for generations. He has been learning to cook from the chef of Fengze Garden since he was a child. You think all his years of hard work were in vain, not to mention that he is very talented. Alas, I can only say that the difference between people is sometimes greater than that between people and dogs."

Zhang Xiaoming, who had been sitting on the sidelines without saying anything, asked after hearing Fang Erwa's sigh: "Erwa, the person you are talking about is so awesome, what is his name?"

"That man's name is He Yuzhu. He also lives in Nanluoguxiang like us. You may not have heard of his name, but you must have heard of his previous nicknames!"

"What's his nickname?"

"The Devil's Chef is his nickname."

"I've heard of the Ghost Hand Chef. He was a well-known chef in our city a few years ago. It's a pity that he no longer prepares banquets and is not as famous as before. If you had told me earlier that he was the Ghost Hand Chef, I wouldn't have felt surprised. It's a pity that I haven't eaten the food he cooked yet." Li Xiaowei took over the conversation.

"Speaking of why he doesn't host wedding banquets, I happen to know the reason." Fang Erwa said mysteriously.

"What's the reason?" Li Xiaowei asked curiously.

"At first, he didn't do wedding banquets to make money, but to donate money to the most lovely people. Later, the Korean Peninsula War ended and there was no need for donations, so he stopped doing wedding banquets. In fact, this is only the main reason. Another secondary reason is that the wedding banquets he made were so delicious that people lined up to invite him to prepare wedding banquets. In order to save business for other chefs who specialize in wedding banquets, he took the initiative to give up wedding banquets. You should know that at that time, the starting price for inviting him to prepare a wedding banquet was 10 yuan. As long as he made dozens or hundreds of yuan for a few times, people would not care and just give up."

After hearing this, Li Xiaowei and Zhang Xiaoming gave a thumbs up at the same time and said in unison: "What a man!

Cai Quanwu, who came to the lobby from the backyard of the tavern, happened to hear what the three people were talking about, and a faint smile appeared on the corner of his mouth.

Fang Erwa and his two friends drank some wine and talked about the mountains, and ordered two small pickles in between. Before they knew it, a pound of Erguotou was finished by the three of them. Zhang Xiaoming said to Fang Erwa, "Erwa, I enjoyed drinking this wine today. When I pass the 8th-level worker exam, I will arrange for us to drink again."

"Then I wish you to pass the exam soon. Well, we've finished drinking, and it's time to go home."

The three of them staggered out of the tavern and headed towards their home in Nanluoguxiang.

The next day, under the publicity of Zhang Xiaoming and Li Xiaowei, people in Nanluoguxiang gradually knew that a first-class chef had emerged in Nanluoguxiang. People who lacked entertainment activities were very keen on spreading gossip, so the news that He Yuzhu had passed the first-class chef exam soon spread to the No. 95 courtyard.

The women of the courtyard gathered at the information exchange center. Aunt Wang said mysteriously, "Do you know? He Yuzhu from our courtyard has passed the first-class chef exam."

A woman nearby asked in bewilderment, "I remember that He Yuzhu has become a cadre. Aren't job grades something that only workers need to take?"

Jia Zhang said directly and angrily: "He must have taken the first-level chef exam because he was afraid of making mistakes in the future and losing his cadre status, so he left himself a way out in advance. I didn't expect that he was so good at cooking that he passed the first-level chef exam. My son Xudong, who just worked in the steel rolling mill for a few years, passed the second-level fitter exam. So my son Xudong is still more capable."

The women nearby looked at Jia Zhang's smug look, but they didn't know how to refute her, so they could only let Jia Zhang show off.

Yang Suhua said in a skeptical tone: "Is there some misunderstanding here? I don't believe that He Yuzhu's cooking skills are so good that he only passed the exam for a first-level chef. We have all eaten the big pot dishes made by He Yuzhu. If He Yuzhu's level can only pass the exam for a first-level chef, then how delicious would the dishes made by a level 8 chef be?"

After Third Aunt Yang Suhua said this, the other women looked at Jia Zhang thoughtfully. Jia Zhang rolled her eyes and said disdainfully: "Third Aunt, let me ask you if the second one is bigger than the first one?"

Yang Suhua could only nod and say, "Yes, but..."

Jia Zhang interrupted Yang Suhua and said bluntly, "Since two is more than one, a second-level worker must be higher than a first-level worker. Even an illiterate old woman like me knows this simple truth. You are a relative of the third uncle. If you have nothing to do at night, ask the third uncle to teach you how to count. Don't just be busy giving birth to a baby."

The woman nearby burst into laughter after hearing this.

Yang Suhua refuted directly without any hesitation: "Two is better than one, but in ancient times, only the first-rank official was the highest official. Maybe the first-rank chef was the highest rank among chefs. With your son's second-rank fitter level, you still want to compare with He Yuzhu's first-rank chef. I think you are just a toad wanting to eat swan meat - wishful thinking. As for what my husband and I do at night, don't bother some people to worry about it. After all, she can't do anything she wants."

Jia Zhang's face turned red in anger at Yang Suhua's words. She was about to fight back, but she opened her mouth and swallowed the words back. She could only say proudly, "Hmph, I'm not as knowledgeable as you, a woman who doesn't know how to count." After saying that, Jia Zhang turned around and walked home.

Yang Suhua looked at Jia Zhang's back and said in her heart with disdain: "Jia Zhang, you think you can fight me." After Jia Zhang walked away, Yang Suhua said: "This Jia Zhang is really shameless. I don't know how she had the nerve to say that her son Jia Xudong is better than He Yuzhu. I guess among the younger generation in our courtyard, only the eldest son of the second aunt's family may be better than He Yuzhu in the future. The others can't catch up with He Yuzhu even if they ride eight horses."

When the second aunt heard what Yang Suhua said, she smiled brightly, but said, "My eldest son is no match for He Yuzhu. He Yuzhu is now the deputy director, and my son is still in secondary school. As for the future, it's too early to say now." Although the second aunt spoke modestly, the raised corners of her mouth still revealed her inner pride.

A woman whispered, "Eight horses can't catch up with me, how come I haven't heard of it? I seem to remember there's a saying that goes, "One word, four horses can't catch up with me."

Yang Suhua blushed after hearing this, and quickly followed the words of the second aunt and said, "Second aunt, you are being modest. Although Guangqi is still in school, he won't have to worry about finding a job after he is admitted to a technical secondary school. The state guarantees jobs for technical secondary school graduates. I just don't know where your eldest son will be assigned after graduation? By the way, how many eggs do you plan to buy from that egg seller next time?"

When the women heard Yang Suhua's question, they immediately started talking excitedly about how many eggs they planned to buy next time. In short, everyone had many reasons. Some said they were buying them for their families, some said their married sister-in-law was lacking nutrition during the confinement period, and so on.