Chapter 527: Stepping Stone

Chapter 527: Chapter 527: Stepping Stone

Then, Jiang Liu stood up and served everyone at the table a bowl.

After finishing, Jun Qinghe and the others couldn’t stop exclaiming in amazement.

"This is delicious! Boss Jiang, you’re the man!" Kui Shen said, giving Jiang Liu a thumbs-up after taking a large, intoxicating gulp.

"Thank you."

"Xiao Jiang, what else can you make?" Jun Xinghe asked expectantly.

’This cheap son-in-law is the best.’

"This is pretty much all I know..." Jiang Liu said with a wave of his hand.

"Haha, this is more than enough!" Jun Xinghe was delighted.

’I’m more than satisfied!’

Jiang Liu smiled.

The entrance was still bustling with noise. Many customers had heard about the competition and had come over specifically to join the excitement. It didn’t matter if they couldn’t understand the finer points; they just wanted to see Boss Jiang work his magic.

Liu Dong and the others from the Jing City Circle shook their heads and sighed.

Hou Canjun’s brows were tightly knitted. His voice was low as he said, "This is going to be a disaster. Even someone with Old Yu’s skill had to admit defeat. Boss Jiang isn’t a Sichuan cuisine specialist, so how can he possibly compete?"

"Looks like he’s just going to be serving up a free win," a wealthy man said, gloating.

He had failed to get a taste of Jiang Liu’s food several times and was a little resentful about it.

"Sigh..." Liu Dong shook his head. "If Jiang Liu loses, it’ll just be building up Fu Yuan’s reputation."

"I don’t think his chances of winning are good. The odds are stacked against him."

Yu Guoguang mumbled sullenly. If Jiang Liu had agreed to be his apprentice back then, he could have taught him his signature skills, and then he might have stood a chance.

"If Jiang Liu gets to choose the Sichuan dish, I think he’d have a chance. But what if the other side chooses? What if Fu Yuan picks something obscure, or a dish Jiang Liu has never made before?"

"Exactly. There are hundreds of Sichuan dishes. Even I haven’t mastered all of them, let alone Jiang Liu," Yu Guoguang said with a sense of helplessness.

As they were talking, a black minivan slowly pushed its way through the crowd.

The onlookers were annoyed.

"What the hell, is something wrong with you? Can’t you see the street is packed?"

"Think you’re hot shit just because you drive an Alphard? Pfft."

"Is that the guy here to compete against Boss Jiang?"

"It... could be."

The customers fixed their gazes on the car’s windows, curious about who would dare to challenge Boss Jiang. ’They must have a screw loose.’

The vehicle came to a stop.

The first people to emerge were several reporters shouldering camera equipment.

Every one of them strutted about arrogantly.

"Make way, make way! Don’t block the path."

"Mr. Mo, we’ve arrived!"

The driver announced.

Morse, who had been smoking a cigar in the car, smiled and nodded.

He looked at Jiang Liu’s little restaurant and nearly burst out laughing.

’I thought he actually had some skills. Turns out he just runs this dump?’

’He could only get this popular in a small-time place like this. Anywhere else, he’d be a nobody.’

"Fu Yuan, remember the saying: even a lion uses its full strength to hunt a rabbit," Morse reminded him pointedly.

He wasn’t worried about Fu Yuan losing, he just didn’t want him to get careless and suffer an unexpected defeat.

"I know, Mr. Mo." Fu Yuan nodded faintly, a cold smirk playing on his lips. "Mr. Mo, he’s nothing more than a stepping stone. The moment he agreed to compete with me, he proved himself to be a complete idiot. If it were Yu Guoguang, I might have been a little interested. But this guy..."

"Hmph." Fu Yuan scoffed.

’A kid who doesn’t even have a handle on Sichuan cuisine. Even if he’s some hidden master who’s been training since he was in the womb, he’s still no match for me. Besides, I brought my own secret, proprietary seasonings.’

’From the chili and Sichuan peppercorns to the spices, oil, and salt—all my seasonings are top-grade, sourced through special channels. They’ll completely overpower the flavor of any ordinary ingredients!’

"Good. I trust you. I’ll be livestreaming this on your TikTok account, which will help you gain more followers."

After returning to the country, Fu Yuan had created a TikTok account where he primarily posted food-related content. He’d also paid to boost his traffic, and his follower count was now over 1.5 million.

"Mm, that’s fine. I hear Jiang Liu has quite a bit of influence. This is a perfect opportunity to poach his followers."

The two got out of the car.

"Excuse me, make way!" a bodyguard called out, using his arms to shove the customers aside.

"What’s with the attitude? So what if you have a bit of filthy money?" an older woman muttered, glaring at them.

"Boss Jiang is so much better. He’s always as considerate as possible with us customers and never loses his temper."

"Exactly!"

"So what if this kind of person can cook well? He’s still a piece of garbage. I wouldn’t eat his food anyway. I’m a customer of the Jiang brand for life!"

Fu Yuan heard the grumbling from the crowd, but his cold expression remained unchanged.

’At his level, he could afford to ignore such voices.’

’It was pointless. After all, they weren’t from the same world.’

’If he just put the word out, countless wealthy and powerful people would be lining up to invite him as a guest of honor.’

"Master Fu, I’m a huge fan of your Sichuan cuisine!" a red-faced man in the crowd shouted, his neck straining.

He had never eaten Jiang Liu’s food, but he had eaten Fu Yuan’s.

"Thank you." Fu Yuan turned and gave him a nod, his face still devoid of expression.

Jun Xinghe and the others had already polished off all the food on the table. The three older men, having had a bit to drink, were chatting away, pleasantly tipsy.

Jiang Liu glanced at the time and frowned. ’It’s already past 7:40...’

’He has no sense of punctuality at all.’

Just then, a group of reporters armed with an array of cameras, along with Fu Yuan and Morse, pushed through the crowd to the entrance and opened the glass door.

The moment he entered, Morse smiled and said, "Mr. Jun, it’s been a few days. I trust you’re well?"

He spoke in English.

Jun Xinghe was taken aback for a moment before replying in his own broken English, "Doing very well."

It made him seem a bit less imposing.

Fu Yuan glanced casually at Jiang Liu and sneered inwardly.

’Too young, too green.’

His interest immediately waned.

’So this was the opponent he was supposed to challenge. If this kid hadn’t been so hyped up within Hua Country’s elite circles, he wouldn’t have been interested in the slightest.’

Lin Qiu and Jiang Dahai didn’t understand.

They looked at Jun Xinghe, their faces full of confusion.

Jun Qingmeng explained, "Auntie, he asked Jun Xinghe how he’s been, and Jun Xinghe said he’s doing well."

Jun Xinghe: ...

"See? Your auntie’s English isn’t very good. It’s a good thing you’re here with me," Lin Qiu said happily, squeezing Jun Qingmeng’s hand.

Jun Qingmeng glanced at Jiang Liu, a little embarrassed.

Jiang Tongtong cupped her chin in adoration. "Mommy, why are you so smart! I can’t understand any of it."

"If you study hard, you’ll be able to understand just like Mommy when you grow up."

"Ngh, okay," Jiang Tongtong wilted.

’She only loved Daddy, not studying.’

Morse stepped forward with a fake smile and looked at Jiang Liu. "This must be Master Jiang?"

He again spoke in English, his words coming out quickly.

’Jiang Liu was annoyed. He had wanted to reply in Chinese, but then he realized it would be pointless. The other man also knew Chinese, so it would only make him look like he was being one-upped.’

"He’s asking..." Jun Xinghe, worried Jiang Liu would be embarrassed, quickly started to translate.

’This wasn’t a level of conversation someone could handle just by knowing a little English.’

But in the next moment, he was stunned.

He watched as Jiang Liu replied in equally fluent English, "Yes, Mr. Mo. And the gentleman beside you must be Chef Fu?"

When it came to practical, conversational English, he had never feared anyone. In the past, not only was his English good, but he had also made many foreign friends.

Jun Qingmeng was completely surprised.

’Her own husband’s English seemed to be even better than hers!’

Tongtong’s object of adoration instantly switched to Jiang Liu.

’Daddy sounded so cool when he spoke English!’