The Cheat Emperor of the Culinary World

Liu Yunong glanced at the work in Fu Yu’s hands and instructed, "Xiaofu, put your current work aside and come with me. I have something to discuss with you."

Fu Yu noticed Liu Yunong’s expression and immediately grew curious, sensing that it seemed like an important matter!

He quickly nodded and replied, "Okay, Master!"

Fu Yu followed Liu Yunong to the storeroom.

After closing the door casually, Fu Yu turned around and asked, "Master, what’s the matter?"

Liu Yunong smiled and said, "I’m planning to add the Peony Fish Fillets to the restaurant’s menu."

Fu Yu was somewhat surprised!

So Liu Yunong was planning to make this dish a part of the sales menu, no wonder she was so attentive.

Liu Yunong continued, "In a while, I’ll cook it again to try it out, and you can assist me by keeping an eye on it. Is there any problem?"

Liu Yunong smiled slightly.

She felt that she should be able to do it too.

Fu Yu’s previous cooking had greatly inspired her, benefiting her immensely, almost like a sudden enlightenment.

Fu Yu hurriedly nodded, "No problem!"

In the next second, an electronic notification sounded in his ear:

[Ding! NPC Master Chef Liu Yunong is inspired by you and is about to create the Liu Family’s Peony Fish Fillets. Reward received: Task experience +200, finger dexterity +10, a pair of Universal Chopsticks]

Before Fu Yu could react, the electronic notification continued:

[Ding! Task experience is full, your level has been upgraded to lv10, and you have received one skill point.]

He actually leveled up!

Just completing an inspiration task earned him 200 experience points!

Why did the system suddenly become so generous?

In the past, it was only 10 or 20 points given.

Moreover, besides that, he even received two good things.

In front of Liu Yunong, even though Fu Yu’s heart itched, he had to restrain himself from checking.

Perhaps it was because of Liu Yunong’s involvement that he received such generous rewards all at once. Fu Yu now found Liu Yunong even more appealing.

Those eyebrows, so delicate!

Those eyes, so captivating!

That nose, so high and straight!

That mouth...

Eh?

Wait a minute!

How did he not notice before that Liu Yunong looks somewhat familiar?

Like she’s...

"Xiaofu, aside from this, there’s something else I want to discuss with you, and I’d like to get your opinion."

Just as a thought was faintly forming in his mind, Liu Yunong’s words pulled Fu Yu’s attention away.

Fu Yu’s curiosity flared up again, and he couldn’t help but ask, "Master, what’s the matter?"

Liu Yunong said, "I don’t know whether you’ve heard about the National Chef Competition that’s coming up after the new year. I wanted to hear your thoughts on it."

He never expected that what Liu Yunong wanted to talk about was actually this matter!

The National Chef Competition!

Fu Yu’s heart raced for a moment.

This competition... with his current level, could he participate?

The National Chef Competition is held annually and, since it’s nationwide, the competition is very fierce and highly authoritative.

Last year, when the chef competition took place, Zhao Meng wanted to sign up, but couldn’t fulfill the conditions.

Moreover, a few years back, even though Zhao Meng successfully signed up, he didn’t get a place or reward.

It’s evident that all the competing chefs are very skilled and experienced.

If Zhao Meng couldn’t make it, could he?

He’s still so young and hasn’t even become a head chef, having only been in his current position for less than half a year.

How could he possibly qualify to participate?

However...

With Liu Yunong bringing up this matter right now, it seems there might be a chance!

If he really could participate...

Fu Yu was very much looking forward to it!

Even though he had poor qualifications, low skill levels, and a humble background, Fu Yu was especially eager to participate!

He very much wanted to compete with those culinary masters on the same stage and to see the world outside, broadening his horizons.

Fu Yu, excited, looked at Liu Yunong and was about to nod when he was surprised to see a [?] over Liu Yunong’s head.

A task could be taken.

His nodding motion paused, and he quickly said, "The National Chef Competition? I’m really not very familiar with it."

Regarding Fu Yu’s response, Liu Yunong could understand.

After all, she herself wasn’t very clear about the entire process and content of the competition.

In the past, she would just randomly look up some outstanding competition videos online and selectively watch them.

After all, for such nationwide competitions, there were so many and varied participants.

Especially during the preliminary rounds, there were all levels of chefs with varying degrees of culinary skills.

Some participants were purely there to join the fun, and watching their cooking videos was just a waste of time.

However, precisely because it’s broad in scope and large in scale, there’s always one or two exceptional participants that stand out every year.

Liu Yunong explained, "The National Chef Competition is an official event with a certain level of influence. There are certain requirements for participants. As for the content of the competition, it is generally set as two events: hot dishes and dim sum."

"Since there are so many participants, it starts with regional preliminaries divided into six zones. The top two winners from each zone will advance to the final competition."

"Compared to regular cooking competitions, the national competition requires participants to process and complete a certain number of meals based on the actual business procedures of a restaurant at the competition site. It not only tests the chef’s skill level but also their kitchen management and service capability."

"Last year’s competition required participants to use local specialty ingredients to make two self-selected dishes on-site, with 83 portions of each (each portion of hot dishes weighed 120-160 grams and dim sum weighed 40-60 grams), all within 240 minutes."

"As for this year’s competition content, we haven’t been able to find out yet."

As she spoke, Liu Yunong even showed Fu Yu the competition flyer from last year.

Last year, Fu Yu also paid attention to the competition.

Since Zhao Meng’s application was unsuccessful, he cared even more about this nationwide chef competition.

Fu Yu watched the entire competition video with Zhao Meng and listened to his lengthy evaluations of the competing chefs’ culinary skills.

Upon hearing Liu Yunong’s explanation, Fu Yu now had a more comprehensive understanding of the competition.

Liu Yunong saw how attentively Fu Yu listened and how enthusiastic he seemed, so she smiled and asked, "How about it, do you feel confident about participating in next year’s National Chef Competition?"

Almost as soon as she finished speaking, an electronic notification sounded in Fu Yu’s ear:

[Ding! NPC Master Chef Liu Yunong’s chain task: Participate in the National Chef Competition! During the event, every successful advancement will earn task rewards]

After hearing the system’s notification, Fu Yu’s breathing became even more rapid.

To skip such an event would be a huge loss for him!

Thinking of this, Fu Yu looked at Liu Yunong and earnestly asked, "Master, do my qualifications make me eligible to participate?"

Liu Yunong smiled slightly, "Why not?"

Fu Yu pointed at the participation requirements listed on the flyer, saying, "It’s written here that you need to be a member of a relevant association and must be recommended by your work unit, and the unit’s requirements are also quite high, but Qianlima doesn’t seem to meet the conditions."

He happened to satisfy the association member requirement, fortunately having joined the provincial culinary association early on.

However, regarding the work unit recommendation, Fu Yu knew Qianlima definitely did not meet the standard, and the music restaurant wouldn’t make the cut either.

If otherwise, Zhao Meng wouldn’t have failed even at the registration stage last year.

But if I could be registered with Shangshi Private Kitchen...

Fu Yu’s heart was moved, was Liu Yunong really thinking of elevating him to participate?

But...

There are so many branches of Shangshi Private Kitchen, and quite a few chefs; there must be many with enough qualifications, high skill levels, and rich experience.

Even if there are age limits for participation, there are so many young and middle-aged chefs. Compared to them, himself... really doesn’t amount to much.

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