Landlord in the Arctic

Chapter 328 - 261: Taking a Master (Part 2)

’In his opinion, these foreign diners just didn’t get the subtleties of real cuisine. They couldn’t appreciate the succulent meat of an authentic free-range chicken; in fact, they thought it tasted bad. They truly had no palate for gourmet food.’

With that thought, Old Zhang reached his chopsticks toward the other meat dishes, ready to see how they measured up.

’He had to admit, while the chicken was a letdown, the quality of the beef in the other dishes was excellent. It had a different texture from the beef he was used to—tender, yet with a slight chewiness that grew more flavorful the more he ate. Clearly, these ingredients had also been chosen with great care.’

As Jenny listened to Feng Shan translate Old Zhang’s commentary, she grew more and more curious about authentic Chinese cuisine. Copying Old Zhang, she picked up her chopsticks and sampled a few pieces from the different dishes as well.

The first bite was a revelation. Unlike Western food, which often relies on sauces for flavor, the complex taste of authentic Chinese cuisine was incredible.

Various spices were blended together masterfully, creating a wondrous explosion of flavor on her tongue. The more she ate, the more delicious it became, until she simply couldn’t stop.

"Khilla." Jenny was eating with gusto when she suddenly remembered something. She reached under the table and tugged on the hem of Feng Shan’s shirt.

Feng Shan turned his head. "What’s up?"

A shy blush crept onto Jenny’s cheeks. She stole a glance at Old Zhang and lowered her voice.

"Could I learn to cook Chinese food from Elder Zhang? I heard that Chinese masters only pass their skills down to their sons."

"Who told you that?" Feng Shan didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. But seeing the look of hopeful apprehension on Jenny’s face, he turned to Old Zhang and asked, "Elder Zhang, Jenny wants to learn how to cook from you. Would that be all right?"

Old Zhang’s gaze fell on Jenny. He considered for a moment, then put on a stern facade. "You want to learn from me? First, go to the kitchen and make a dish. I want to see your skill level. If you can’t even handle the basics, then I won’t teach you."

After Feng Shan translated his words for Jenny, her eyes instantly lit up with determination. Without another word, she immediately stood up and headed for the kitchen.

Just then,

the other three old men started grumbling and picking a fight with him.

One said Old Zhang was being cruel, that the poor girl had already been through a disaster, and yet he was being picky about teaching her to cook.

Another cursed Old Zhang, calling him a rotten bastard. He was a man with one foot in the grave, so why was he still putting on such airs? What was the big deal about teaching a girl to cook? Did he really have to give her a test? Just another one of his terrible habits.

The three elders went back and forth, berating Old Zhang until his old face flushed bright red. He was so mad he nearly squeezed the pumps on his bunny-ear hat until they burst.

’What the hell do you all know?’

’I’m doing this for her own good.’

’You can’t just learn cooking casually. If she doesn’t have any foundation, it’ll be a huge pain to teach her.’

’Getting an earful from these three old coots for no reason.’

Feng Shan stood to the side. As the younger one, it wasn’t his place to interject.

’Still, it was pretty fun to watch the drama unfold.’

Amidst the boisterous squabbling, Jenny brought her finished dish to the table.

This time, she hadn’t made a Chinese-Western fusion dish, but a classic Italian pasta with meat sauce.

She made the meat sauce with carrots, potatoes, celery, beef, and cilantro, then added black pepper, cheese, herbs, and other seasonings before mixing it with the pasta.

Jenny’s heart was in her throat as she watched Old Zhang lift the sauce-coated pasta to his mouth with his chopsticks.

SLURP!

Old Zhang ate the pasta and deliberately closed his eyes, his expression unreadable.

His act was making Jenny frantic. She stood frozen in place, her heart pounding like a trapped rabbit.

The three other old men couldn’t stand to watch any longer and started laying into him again.

"You old coot, just give her a straight answer. Why are you sitting there with your eyes closed, acting all profound? Look how worried you’re making the poor girl!"

"Exactly! He was like this when he was young, and he’s still the same now that he’s old. Don’t you ever get tired of it?"

"If you have something to say, spit it out! And if your eyes are busted, go to a hospital and get them fixed!"

Old Zhang listened to his old buddies’ tirade without getting angry. He slowly opened his eyes, completely ignoring the three men roasting him. His gaze went straight to Jenny, and he gave a slight nod, a look of approval on his face.

"All right. From now on, you are my final disciple. As for whether you complete your training, that will depend on how much heart you put into it."

Feng Shan translated for Jenny.

Jenny was stunned for a moment, then her face broke into a joyous and excited smile, the rims of her eyes turning a little red.

"Master, thank you! I will put my whole heart into learning. I absolutely will not disappoint you."

CLAP, CLAP, CLAP!!

Everyone there broke into applause, congratulating Jenny with smiles on their faces.

The chef from the Chinese restaurant, however, was looking on with an expression of pure envy and jealousy.

’He was practically green with envy.’

’He’d spent more than a decade painstakingly honing his craft without any famous master to guide him, and now Jenny had managed to become Elder Zhang’s disciple.’

’Her luck was just too good!’

Every industry has its own circles, and the culinary world is no exception.

In China’s culinary scene, Elder Zhang’s status was universally acknowledged as top-tier. It was no exaggeration to say he was the gold standard.

The apprentices he trained were all heavyweights in the industry, each with extraordinary accomplishments.

Some became private chefs for the wealthy, frequenting mansions and exclusive clubs and hobnobbing with the rich and famous. Others became head chefs at top-tier hotels, making a name for themselves with their superb skills.

If Jenny ever went to China and mentioned she was Elder Zhang’s final disciple, it would undoubtedly cause a huge stir in the culinary world there.

Of course, Feng Shan was unaware of these benefits, and Jenny knew even less about Elder Zhang’s status back in China.

Nevertheless, Feng Shan suggested that since she was formally becoming his apprentice, they should hold a proper, grand ceremony.

After all, Jenny was a resident of the Crown Territory.

Elder Zhang, however, wanted to keep things simple, arguing that he was retired, after all.

But the gift from the apprentice was non-negotiable.

A plot of residential land, for instance, would be a very sincere gift.

The other three old men immediately cursed Old Zhang for being a cunning old fox.

They had agreed to stick together through thick and thin, but the moment he got an apprentice, he threw his old brothers to the back of his mind.

Feng Shan didn’t mind. With a grand wave of his hand...

He didn’t have much, but he had land in spades. He could afford to give away three plots, let alone thirty.

The three old men were overjoyed and quickly declared that they could take on apprentices as well.

They couldn’t teach cooking, but they were experts in other fields.

Feng Shan was even happier.

He couldn’t rely on the three old men for manual labor, but they possessed decades of experience. Old Li, a former chief engineer at a construction company, could mentor David, and Old Zhao, from a logistics company, could mentor Yves.

As for Old Liu, he could act as his own personal advisor.

This was making the best use of everyone’s talents. The land would be well worth it; it was hardly a free gift.

After lunch that day...

Feng Shan brought David and Yves over to meet their new masters and get acquainted.

As for himself, he had just gotten a call from Jeff.

The livestock he had purchased was on its way, and Jeff needed him to find a place to receive the delivery.

Counting the days, it had only been about three, and the livestock was already on its way.

’That was some incredible efficiency. With service like this, he couldn’t understand why Alaska’s government was ranked last in the nation for administrative efficiency.’

Feng Shan rode his snowmobile to the Bear Tribe’s camp, found Nash, and led the tribesmen to a flat, spacious stretch of tundra grassland to await the helicopters’ arrival.

「Half an hour later.」

The roar of propellers suddenly shattered the silence of the dark and tranquil sky.

The sound grew from a distant hum to a deafening roar, echoing across the vast, open landscape as if trying to shake the very night awake.

Then, several bright lights appeared in the sky, piercing through the curtain of night like sharp swords of light shining straight down.

Feng Shan quickly gave the signal to light the bonfires they had prepared, then called Jeff to give him the landing coordinates.

Following his directions,

several helicopters arrived over the bonfires. In the lead was a CH-60 heavy transport helicopter, a large container slung beneath its unusual fuselage.

As the container was slowly lowered to the ground,

Nash and his men quickly opened the doors. WHOOSH! Cigar was the first to charge out. It must have been cooped up for too long, because it shot out like a grey bolt of lightning, vanishing into the vast darkness before the Bear Tribe members could even react.

Following it were several other Quarter Horses of various colors. They weren’t nearly as wild as Cigar; they simply trotted out, lowered their heads, and began to graze on the fresh moss.

...