The Game of Life

To create an excellent Eight Treasures Chestnut Fragrant Pigeon, the steps from deboning the whole pigeon, stuffing, tying, steaming, to the final thickening of the sauce must all be executed without a single error.

But even if he managed not to make a single mistake from start to finish, Jiang Feng’s Eight Treasures Chestnut Fragrant Pigeon still fell short of Sun Guanyun’s flavor.

There were gaps in culinary skills, as well as in instinct and comprehension. The two sirs had also once, on a whim, attempted to make the Eight Treasures Chestnut Fragrant Pigeon. They had been present when Sun Guanyun provided a demonstration to Jiang Feng with no reservations. Logically, with the two sirs’ comprehension and culinary levels, it should not have been difficult to produce a pigeon dish comparable to Sun Guanyun’s, but the outcome was till not quite satisfactory.

The taste was good, but it was not the same.

This dish was Sun Guanyun’s original creation, and no one but him could reproduce that particular flavor.

As Jiang Feng deboned the pigeon with scissors, Sang Ming and Jiang Weisheng watched by his side. It wasn’t surprising for Jiang Weisheng to stand by; he would watch anyone practicing in the kitchen as long as the person didn’t mind his presence.

He never spoke; he just watched, silent and invisible. Jiang Weisheng’s thirst for culinary knowledge had not waned with age. On the contrary, it increased day by day, like a sponge that never stopped absorbing water, taking in everything it encountered first and asking questions later.

Regrettably, his sponge was rather leaky.

That Sang Ming would stay to watch and learn was indeed surprising, given what everyone had learned about him over time. Perhaps Sang Ming’s sister really was as he described-unattractive, a bit overweight, quite lazy, not helpful, yet academically adept. But it was clear that Sang Ming was a devoted brother.

A young man of 18 or 19, who would rather skip rest periods, not boast, not play video games, not flirt with pretty waitresses, but instead chat with his sister on his phone whenever he had the chance. The entire kitchen staff could recite the scores she received on her end-of-term exams for every subject. That such a brother-centric man would skip chatting with his sister during lunch break to watch Jiang Feng practice preparing the Eight Treasures Chestnut Fragrant Pigeon was definitely odd!

In a moment of carelessness, Jiang Feng snipped, and the skin tore.

Having ruined a pigeon, Jiang Feng tossed it into a bowl beside him with practiced ease, reserving it for later to stew in Gastrodia and red date pigeon soup.

Wu Minqi wasn’t feeling well today; he would make her the soup tonight to help her recover.

“So it can’t be used anymore?” asked Sang Ming, who thought the mishap with the scissors wasn’t such a big deal.

“Pigeon skin is thin. A single tear can ruin its whole shape, and the flavor won’t be locked in,” Jiang Feng explained. Seeing Sang Ming pay close attention, he asked, “How come you’re not chatting with your sister?”

“No more chatting, she’s coming to Beiping in a couple of days to visit me,” Sang Ming said. “I feel like my knife skills have improved a lot these past few days. If I learn a bit from you, boss, maybe I could make it onto the cutting board.”

There s more money on the chopping board.

Sang Ming actually had a natural talent for knifework. He never had systematic training or deliberate practice; just helping his parents cut vegetables at home had brought him to an intermediate level.

If he was willing to learn and practice, he would become a chef with excellent knife skills in just a few years.

“Young Sang, if you practice well, you might even become a furnace chef in the future,” Jiang Weisheng encouraged.

“The furnace chef makes only three thousand more than the chopping board- It’s too hard. The cutting board is good enough for me,” Sang Ming reasoned ’ convincingly.

“The furnace chef gets commissions,” Jiang Feng reminded out of friendship, so as not to give the staff the wrong impression that Taifeng Building’s furnace chefs earned low salaries, “Each person’s percentage is different. Ji Xue gets 8% for her clay pot rice wine chicken.”

“That much!” Sang Ming’s eyes instantly widened in envy, and he began to calculate in his head how much Ji Xue would earn just from the clay pot rice wine chicken this month.

Five minutes went by.

He couldn’t figure it out…

While Sang Ming was absorbed in calculations, Jiang Feng had already successfully completed the deboning of the second pigeon and started on the third.

After watching so long, Jiang Weisheng realized that deboning a whole pigeon required such high knife skills, he could not discern any particular technique. Without saying a word, he went to the side and started chopping vegetables. “Master Jiang, why are you cutting vegetables?” Sang Ming asked, looking up to find the person beside him gone.

Can you understand what you’re seeing?” Jiang Weisheng asked.

Sang Ming:…

I’ll also chop vegetables.” Sang Ming’s enthusiasm to become a top-notch cutting board chef was undiminished.

Jiang Weisheng, meticulously taught by Jiang Weiming for many years had very solid basic skills and had also learned a thing or two about mentoring from Jiang Weiming. As Sang Ming chopped vegetables beside him, Jiang Weisheng was willing to offer guidance.

The way you’re holding the knife is wrong, move your hand a bit to the side, forward a bit, there, grab it like that. Now you can chop faster. The way you ’ were doing it before made it too easy to cut yourself. I used to hold the knife like that too and couldn’t correct it until…” Jiang Weisheng said, demonstrating as he spoke.

“How did you change it later?” Sang Ming asked.

“Well, one time I was chopping vegetables and got distracted, and I cut off half a finger. That’s when I changed it.” Jiang Weisheng replied.

Sang Ming:!!!

His look towards Jiang Weisheng immediately changed; a mix of fear and a hint of admiration.

“Getting distracted while chopping is the most dangerous. Jiang Feng once got distracted while cutting and slashed a long cut in the web of his hand. The blood scared the hell out of everyone. Later, during the finals, his hand was still wrapped in gauze.” Ji Yue had drifted into the kitchen at some point, munching on a cucumber.

“Why are you here?” Jiang Feng was surprised to see Ji Yue. Logically, she should have been in the hall trying to get a close-up look at Zhang Guanghang’s face.

“Sun Jikai’s cufflink seems to have fallen in the kitchen. He called me just now to ask me to look for it.” Ji Yue said. “Where does he usually hang out?”

“Over that way. See if it’s fallen into some corner,” Jiang Feng pointed indifferently.

Sun Jikai had the night off and had gone home after his shift that afternoon. He had already prepared three pigeons and was now ready to start cutting ingredients and seasoning.

Chestnuts, lotus seeds, lilies, shiitake mushrooms, and various other ingredients were chopped finely by Jiang Feng, seasoned, stuffed, and continuously stirred with a spoon. Under Jiang Weisheng’s direction, Sang Ming was julienning green peppers, while Ji Yue scurried from under one cabinet to another, her bending and twisting enough to make one wonder if she was a dancer.

“Sun Jikai only hung around this spot today?” Ji Yue asked, twisting her neck.

Just this spot,” Jiang Feng confirmed.

“Damn, what is it, did his cufflink grow wings and fly away?” Ji Yue pulled out her phone to call Sun Jikai.

“Hello, Sun Jikai, I’ve looked everywhere and haven’t seen your cufflink.” “Right, it’s not here. I’ve checked under the cabinets, around the table corners it’s not here.”

“Okay, you come look for it yourself then. Ah, bubble tea? I don’t drink bubble tea, I’m on a diet. What? From that place? I’ll have a jasmine roasted milk tea add two portions of pearls. Hurry up and come.” Ji Yue hung up and noticed ’ Jiang Feng’s gaze on her seemed a bit strange.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Since when did you and Sun Jikai get so close?” Jiang Feng’s smile was that of a gossip-hungry onlooker, and he stopped what he was doing.

“We’ve become familiar over the last few days eating barbecue at night. He lives in the same neighborhood, right? We eat at the same barbecue shop every night,” Ji Yue explained, her thoughts drifting to the barbecue, “That place at the eastern gate is really good. The one behind UAL University can’t even compare.”

“How about we go together tonight? Let’s call Qiqi too. Aren’t your two cousins still here? Let’s invite them as well!” Ji Yue suggested enthusiastically.

“Eh, by the way, your family is always so busy, don’t your two cousins get bored staying at home all day?”

“Not at all, they have things to do every day, even busier than me,” Jiang Feng said with a smile that was increasingly mischievous.

Li Mansion—

“Sis, have you finished cutting the potatoes? Can you help me cut some? I really can’t finish all these!” Jiang Junlian was close to tears from chopping potatoes.

“You only have one basket left to chop, right? I still have a whole basket to do; I don’t have time to help you. Stop slacking off-the old man is coming to inspect soon. Hurry up!” Jiang Junqing urged her.

Jiang Junlian felt like crying.

“How can Da Hua eat so much…” Jiang Junlian sighed to the heavens..