Chapter 242 - 238: There Really Is a Perfect Mapo Tofu

Chapter 242: Chapter 238: There Really Is a Perfect Mapo Tofu

Jiulong Gorge.

The time slowly crept to two in the afternoon, and the last wave of customers finished their meals and left.

Li You, Ye Shengge, and Ling Xiaoru went back to clearing land in the wild fruit orchard.

After today’s work, they estimated it would take at least another full day to be more or less finished.

Of course, they were in no rush. They could just take their time with it.

"Boss, about how many types of wild fruit are there on these mountains?" Ye Shengge asked.

Li You said, "I’m not sure about the exact number, but there have to be at least several dozen varieties. It’s just that some of them taste good, and some don’t."

"Should we transplant the ones that don’t taste good, then?" Ye Shengge asked again.

Li You replied, "Of course! The purpose of our wild fruit orchard is to showcase all kinds of wild fruits, not just the ones that taste good. Besides, I’m also going to try introducing wild fruits that aren’t native to this area."

"Introducing non-native wild fruits... I feel like they probably won’t adapt well to the local environment. They might survive, but they probably won’t bear fruit. Or if they do, the quality of the fruit will be terrible," said Ye Shengge.

Li You said, "You’re probably right. But we still have to try, don’t we? What if some of them succeed?"

"That’s true," Ye Shengge said.

Just then, Ling Xiaoru added, "I also think we should try introducing wild fruits from other places, and even cultivated fruits, too. Boss seems to be very good at growing fruit trees, so maybe it’ll actually work. Even if not all of them succeed, it would be great if even a few did!"

Li You said, "That’s exactly the idea."

The three of them continued to work, chatting as they went.

Time slowly passed until it was five-thirty in the afternoon, when the first dinner customers started to arrive.

Time to call it a day. They would continue tomorrow.

Ye Shengge and Ling Xiaoru went upstairs to rest as usual, while Li You got busy in the kitchen.

...

As it neared six in the evening, Chen Wen finally arrived.

Even though he had prepared himself, the place was even more remote than he had imagined.

Fortunately, it wasn’t too far from Wenxian Town, which he had just passed through—only five kilometers away. If he didn’t want to drive through the night, he could choose to stay in Wenxian Town and leave first thing in the morning.

First, food. ’Should I drive on through the night, or stay over and leave tomorrow?’ He would decide after he ate.

Chen Wen scanned his surroundings before his gaze finally settled on the restaurant not far away.

It was, indeed, just a very ordinary-looking restaurant.

’How did Lao He even find out about such a remote, ordinary restaurant?’

’The owner, Li You, is the number one chef in the world? No matter how you looked at it, it was impossible to believe.’

Chen Wen’s opinion hadn’t changed at all.

He walked slowly toward the restaurant, one step at a time.

When he was close enough to get a good look inside, Chen Wen was quite surprised.

There were quite a few people eating inside.

At least twenty or thirty.

’How can there be so many people?’

Even if they were all from Wenxian Town, it was still surprising.

Five kilometers was very close relative to his journey from the provincial capital.

But in reality, a five-kilometer trip wasn’t a short one.

For people from Wenxian Town to be willing to travel this far for a meal, it meant this place definitely had something special.

He reached the entrance.

"Welcome!" Xiaohai greeted him at the door.

’A robot waiter?’

Chen Wen was amazed. He never expected a place like this to have a robot waiter.

Stepping inside, he saw Da Bai.

There were two of them.

But he didn’t see any human staff.

’Are these two robots the only waiters in the entire restaurant? Can that even work?’

Chen Wen was highly skeptical.

But soon, he realized his doubts were unnecessary.

Da Bai came over to take his order, its movements indistinguishable from a human waiter’s.

’Have robots really gotten this intelligent?’

’This is impressive.’

Chen Wen ordered a Mapo Tofu and a Tomato and Egg Soup.

He had originally planned to order the Boiled Cabbage in Supreme Broth.

He wanted to see what kind of Boiled Cabbage in Supreme Broth a restaurant like this could possibly produce.

But then he thought, ’What kind of authentic Boiled Cabbage in Supreme Broth could possibly cost 568 yuan? It must be a complete fake.’

’Ordering it would just be a waste of money. I’d be better off with the Tomato and Egg Soup.’

It wasn’t that he was short on cash, but he didn’t want to waste it for no reason.

A short while later, the Mapo Tofu was served.

The moment he laid eyes on the Mapo Tofu, a storm surged in Chen Wen’s heart. His face was a mask of shock and disbelief.

He hadn’t even taken a bite. But as an experienced senior chef who had done extensive research on Mapo Tofu, he knew without tasting it that this dish would be better than his own.

Many people know that Mapo Tofu is all about eight qualities: numbing, spicy, hot, fragrant, crisp, tender, fresh, and lively.

Although he could achieve all eight, several of them were never perfect.

Chen Wen had always believed that no one could perfectly master all eight qualities.

Even Yu Hong’s Mapo Tofu, which was a cut above his own, didn’t achieve perfection in all eight aspects.

But now, looking at the Mapo Tofu before him, Chen Wen was utterly stunned!

Because this dish seemed to have perfected all eight qualities.

It was unbelievable!

Of course, whether it truly had perfected all eight qualities could only be confirmed after tasting it.

’What was he waiting for?’

Chen Wen picked up his spoon and eagerly scooped a spoonful of tofu into his mouth.

It was a little hot, but that was the best time to eat Mapo Tofu.

After that one bite, it was confirmed. It truly had perfected all eight qualities.

Chen Wen was once again overwhelmed with shock, finding it hard to believe.

But at the same time, he was incredibly excited. To think that in his lifetime, he would actually get to eat a Mapo Tofu that had perfected all eight qualities.

It felt as unreal as a dream.

Chen Wen truly suspected he might be dreaming, even though he knew he definitely wasn’t.

As a senior chef who had deeply researched Mapo Tofu and was a master of the dish himself, Chen Wen had always dreamed of eating a truly perfect version.

But he had always believed it was just a dream, one that could never come true.

Because even a Special Chef would find it nearly impossible to perfect all eight qualities of Mapo Tofu.

Although he had never eaten Mapo Tofu made by a Special Chef, he had some understanding of their capabilities.

And yet, that dream had come true today, right at this very moment.

He was actually eating a Mapo Tofu that was so perfect it was almost beyond criticism.

So unreal, yet so very real.

So, beyond the shock, what Chen Wen felt most was excitement.

He had never imagined that this dream of his would be realized so suddenly.

At the same time, he now completely believed He Xianfei’s words.

Boss Li You’s skill with Mapo Tofu was truly far beyond their own. Even a Special Chef would likely fall short by a considerable margin.

If judged on this dish alone, Boss Li You could very well be the number one chef in the culinary world.

...