NOVPUBChapter 823: 822
Chapter 823: 822
After finishing the dumplings, blowing out the candles, and dividing the cake, it was finally time for the exciting heart-to-heart talk.
This winter solstice dinner and dumpling event wasn’t mainly about eating dumplings, celebrating birthdays, or having cake; the core purpose of holding this event was to have a heartfelt talk with Jiang Feng.
Although such heart-to-heart talks are essentially useless, every time Jiang Feng acts abnormally, everyone wants to have a talk with him. Although everyone feels that the process of the talk is pointless, soon after, they always manage to reap a small benefit—Jiang Feng comes to a realization by himself.
It was precisely because of the unexplainable effectiveness of the previous talks that everyone was convinced that they still needed to have this discussion, just in case it proved helpful.
This time, considering Jiang Feng’s condition was more severe, the heart-to-heart representatives changed from Wang Xiulian and the great-aunt to Sir and Jiang Weiming, the two most influential people of the Jiang family were said to be personally stepping in for the talk.
All of this had been discussed in advance, and everyone was clear about the steps and procedures.
So when the cake was finished, the dishes were washed, and everyone sat on the sofas and chairs, silently savoring the fullness and the delightful aftertaste of the meal, it was time for those in charge of advancing the plot to start their performance. 𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒑𝒖𝒃.𝙘𝙤𝒎
“Oh my, I’m so full.” The newcomer, Wu Minqi, was still not quite proficient in her work, and her over-the-top acting was incredibly conspicuous.
Fortunately, the veteran actress, Wang Xiulian, caught on to the act.
“I’m pretty stuffed too, Minqi. Let’s go downstairs for a walk and get some air,” Wang Xiulian said.
“Wife, I’m coming too!” Jiang Jiankang stole the spotlight.
“Me too, me too,” the supporting actors began to chant their lines with enthusiasm.
In just a few minutes, the room emptied, leaving only Jiang Feng, Sir, and Jiang Weiming, while everyone else went out for a stroll.
Jiang Feng: ?
It was so cold outside that the artificial lake in the community had frozen over, allowing children to ice skate on it, prompting the property management to put up a fence. In such temperatures, everyone actually went out for a walk after a full meal at night.
Wasn’t his Minqi the one who hated the cold the most?
Seeing that those who needed to leave had done so, and the act had been carried out to this point, Jiang Weiming felt there was no need for further drama and it was time to cut to the chase. He stood up, poured three cups of hot tea, set them on the coffee table, and sat opposite Jiang Feng, forming a triangle with the two men, effectively framing the coffee table.
“Feng, it’s not often that you have the time to sit down and talk with me and your grandpa. Let’s chat about your recent professional endeavors,” Jiang Weiming said as he pushed a cup of tea towards Jiang Feng.
Sir remained silent, clearly not wanting to make any comments in the early stages of the talk. He probably still couldn’t believe that what Jiang Feng was doing was as great and foundational as what Jiang Chengde did in his time and wanted to listen further before making any judgments.
Jiang Feng felt like he was attending a trap, like the Feast at Hongmen, and became nervous. He sat up straight and even remembered to clear his throat before speaking.
“Just… didn’t we already talk about it? I just want to create something of my own, but there’s been no progress,” Jiang Feng said.
Jiang Weiming nodded, his smile growing warmer, “About that, your grandpa and I did chat briefly while we were eating dumplings.”
Jiang Feng sat up even straighter, ready to listen attentively.
“We can’t help you with much.”
Jiang Feng: ?
“Actually, your culinary skills are already very good, and in some areas, you can even be said to have surpassed me and your grandpa. We don’t have much to teach you in terms of skills. If you’re confused about experience, perhaps the two of us, having trained for so many years, could give you a tip or two. But if it’s about something deeper, both of us haven’t even grasped it ourselves, so how can we give you advice?”
At this point, Jiang Feng still hadn’t realized what Jiang Weiming meant by something deeper.
“But I know that with your current approach, you certainly won’t figure it out,” Jiang Weiming abruptly changed tact. “You can’t accomplish anything by working in isolation. What can you possibly come up with by locking yourself up in the house every day?”
“Now, with such good conditions and opportunities, if you can’t find answers from us, you can go upstairs to talk to Master Sun, or even to Yonghe House to ask Master Peng. I believe Master Peng would definitely not mind giving you some guidance in this area, and he definitely has the capacity to do so.”
Jiang Feng really wanted to say that he wasn’t isolating himself. He was also deeply learning from masters, only that the masters he was learning from were Jiang Zhonghe, Cao Guixiang, and even Peng Changping’s own father, the previous generation of Master Peng.
He watched the video tutorials of the recipes every day, over and over again, so familiar that he could envision the scenes of chopping vegetables even with his eyes closed at night before sleep. Not just the video tutorials, he was also making good use of the backtracking function, inserting CDs to enter Cao Guixiang’s memories decades ago in Yonghe House’s kitchen, absorbing the experience of Tan Family Cuisine.
In a way, Jiang Feng felt that with his current learning method, he only needed two or three days to master the braised shark fin, and he would be ready to graduate using exclusively Tan Family Cuisine techniques.
He watched so many videos every day in search of improvements, uniqueness, and areas to inject his own elements.
But it wasn’t working.
His talent was in knife skills, but at the S-level dishes, knifework’s contribution to the dishes had become very weak. Even if he carved designs on the sea cucumbers in Jiang’s Sea Cucumber Soup, it wouldn’t change the final taste of the dish. It would only make the diners think that the chef might be too idle and had developed a fixation.
And seeking distinction in seasoning and fire control was also extremely difficult, as he relied too heavily on video tutorials in the past and found it hard to change now. Some dishes felt almost impossible to cook when deviating from the methods in the tutorial. Switching from S-level to A-level was pointless.
Most of the dishes in the recipes came from famous chefs, meaning these dishes’ techniques and skills were already very mature with little room for improvement. Jiang Feng had always been learning this way, through imitation, making it exceptionally difficult to explore and create new methods of his own.
He really wanted to explain all this to Jiang Weiming, but he couldn’t.
All he could say was—
“Granduncle Weiming, actually, I have been interacting, not just shutting myself in the house.”
“So who have you been interacting with? Master Sun hasn’t mentioned it to us. Are you calling Master Peng every day for video chats?” Jiang Weiming asked.
Jiang Feng: …
Jiang Feng gritted his teeth, “I watch video tutorials online every day!”
Jiang Weiming: ?
Jiang Weiguo: ???
For some reason, Sir felt an itch in his hand and had a particularly strong urge to hit his grandson.
Jiang Weiming was completely baffled, and couldn’t figure out Jiang Feng’s thought process. Instead of seeking guidance from the many masters around who were more than willing to teach him, he ran to the internet to watch video tutorials.
What kind of extreme maneuver was this?
Jiang Feng hurriedly tried to remedy the situation, “Actually, I wasn’t exactly learning from them, I just wanted to see if the tutorials online had any new methods that I could borrow or that would inspire me. There are a few dishes I learned from Master Peng, and I followed his instructions to the letter. Sometimes, I feel like the dishes I make aren’t mine, they’re Master Peng’s.”
“So I deliberately didn’t seek guidance from Master Peng and Master Sun because I wanted to try something new.”
Jiang Weiming nodded, seeming to understand a little bit.
Sir, however, was furious. He had wanted to listen more, but now he couldn’t hold back. The fact that he didn’t physically smack his grandson was already the greatest display of love he could offer.
“Bullshit!”
“Nonsense!”
“Absurdity!”
“I think your brain must have been kicked by a donkey, and you’ve left the water in there without draining it. Do you want to shake your head now and count how many fish you’re keeping in that fishbowl on your neck?”
Having not heard it for a long time, Sir’s sentences for cursing had become richer.
“You don’t want to make dishes like Master Peng’s, so you intentionally avoid asking him and go watch those messy videos online to change your mindset. Why don’t you, if you don’t feel like eating, go lie in the pigsty and fight with the pigs over some food to change your taste?” Sir was clearly infuriated by Jiang Feng’s remarks.
“Cough, cough.” Jiang Weiming coughed lightly twice, signaling to Sir that while it’s okay to curse, he should not keep on cursing and should get to the point.
“What’s going on in that head of yours? How did that brain of yours learn to cut vegetables in the first place? How come you didn’t cut your own hand off like a radish on the first try?” Sir couldn’t help cursing a couple more times before starting to get to the point, “When I was teaching you cooking as a child, what did I tell you was the most important thing in learning to cook? Apart from talent, what’s the most important thing?”
“It’s the master!”
“Without a good master, talent is useless. If no master takes you under their wing, do you think you can carve a radish into a flower just by being handed a kitchen knife? Can you make plain vegetables taste like ambrosia just by being given a pot? Can you know how to make a rich chicken stock just by being given an old hen?”
“Others have talent but suffer from not having a famed master to guide them. You, on the other hand, are the opposite. You have so many masters around you but don’t seek their guidance, running off to the internet to watch those broken videos. Others would be thrilled to receive even a couple of pointers that would benefit them for life, but you get daily guidance and yet you act all finicky and precious.”
“Do you know the saying, ‘Having more skills will not weigh you down’? You can’t do anything, you haven’t fully grasped and mastered the skills, and yet you want to comprehend and create your own, by what right? Do you deserve it? Just because you have a face, just because you can think more than others, your head is so full of water you could keep fish in it.”
“Do you know why you haven’t fully grasped it? Because you yourself haven’t reached that level! You haven’t learned thoroughly or mastered the skills. How much have you learned? You’ve learned the craft from me, then Granduncle Weiming taught you a bit, Master Peng taught you a bit, and maybe Master Sun also gave you a pointer or two here and there. What, now that you’ve made a few good dishes and have been flattered a bit, you’ve become so full of yourself, not knowing your own surname, not knowing your own abilities. You want to establish your own school, become a master, and be remembered for eternity. Have you even pondered how many dishes you truly know how to cook, whether you’ve mastered and thoroughly understood each one? Do you really think that knowing how to make a superior stock is all it takes? That being good at seasoning a clear soup makes you unbeatable? Have you mastered flipping the pan yet? Get to know your own turf first before thinking about all these extraneous things.”
“You’re really cut from the same cloth as your dad, stupid all the way through. Just like your dad, trying to fly before you’ve learned to run, not even looking in the mirror to see what you look like, daring to make ‘Buddhas Jumping Over the Wall’, really spoiling good things.” Sir chastised his grandson while also not forgetting to berate his son in passing.
Jiang Jiankang, who had returned home early due to the intolerable cold during his walk, and just as he opened the door, he heard his own father scolding him: ???
Seeing that Sir had finished his scolding and was starting to attack indiscriminately, Jiang Weiming began to wrap up.
“Your grandfather does have a point. With such good resources at hand, you should definitely seek more guidance. Cooking is all about interacting with those who are more skilled, discussing and comparing notes to progress and gain insights,” Jiang Weiming said.
“I understand what you’re saying, but these things can’t be forced; sometimes it depends on luck. If you’re lucky, you might grasp it quickly; if not, it could take many years. The most important thing is to adjust your mindset. Don’t lock yourself up at home like you did before. That’s no way to live. Starting tomorrow, you should still go to the restaurant every day, even if you’re not working, just to change the environment and talk more with everyone.”
Jiang Feng was still a bit dazed, the barrage of stern words from Sir still echoing in his ears.
Although they were directed at him, he felt like he really learned something.
Seeing Jiang Feng deep in thought, Jiang Weiming knew that Sir’s scolding had the right effect; he smiled and indicated for Sir to keep quiet and not disturb him. They both got up quietly, preparing to go downstairs and head back.
Jiang Jiankang still stood at the doorway, not daring to move.
Tonight, for some reason, the wind was particularly strong. The windows in the hallway were left open, and the howling north wind whooshed directly onto Jiang Jiankang’s back, not coming into the house but blowing squarely onto him.
One side was warmth, the other was cold.
Jiang Jiankang really wanted to enter the room, but he didn’t dare to go in, only daring to stand at the doorway to bask in a bit of the warm air.
Seeing Sir and Jiang Weiming about to leave, Jiang Jiankang quickly stepped aside, missing out even on the warmth, and called out in a very aggrieved tone, “Dad,” wanting to ask if he could now come in because it was really too cold outside.
“Shut up!” Sir scolded in a low voice, closed the door, and, by doing so, left Jiang Jiankang outside as well. Then he entered the elevator and left with a flourish.
Jiang Jiankang: QAQ
I want to go home.
(━┳━_━┳━)
