Just as Jiang Caidong was thinking this, someone walked in through the door. It was Liu Xu.
Upon seeing Liu Xu, Jiang Caidong was just about to ask about Li You. But before he could, Liu Xu spoke first. "Boss Jiang, Boss Li is here."
Jiang Caidong was pleasantly surprised.
It suddenly dawned on him. Liu Xu really had run into Li You.
And they had met right outside his shop.
Li You must have remembered their agreement and come straight here after arriving in the county town today.
Then, just outside the shop, he had run into Liu Xu, who had also come for a bowl of noodles.
What a coincidence.
So Li You hadn’t forgotten their agreement after all.
Jiang Caidong was thrilled. He quickly stepped out from behind the counter, saying as he walked, "Boss Li is right outside? I’ll go take a look."
By the time he finished speaking, he was already outside.
Sure enough, he saw Li You chatting with Xiao Yue, Zhang Rui’Er, and the others.
Of course, Jiang Caidong recognized Xiao Yue, Zhang Rui’Er, and the rest of the group as well.
Jiang Caidong walked over with a hearty laugh. "Boss Li, welcome, welcome!"
Li You saw Boss Jiang come out of the shop and figured Liu Xu must have just told him he’d arrived. Seeing Boss Jiang’s warm welcome, he was very pleased and returned the smile. "Hello, Boss Jiang! Hope I’m not intruding."
Boss Jiang replied, "It’s no bother at all! Master Liang and I have been hoping you’d come every day. We’re so glad you’re finally here. Boss Li, please, come in, come in!"
Then he turned to Xiao Yue, Zhang Rui’Er, and the others. "Miss Xiao, Miss Zhang, and everyone, please, you come in as well!"
Li You, Xiao Yue, and Zhang Rui’Er all thanked Boss Jiang and walked into the shop together.
Liu Xu was waiting for them at the entrance.
Once everyone was inside, Boss Jiang showed them to a table and said, "I’ll go let Master Liang know you’re here. He’ll be thrilled to hear it."
With that, he headed for Liang Heng’s break room.
Of course, Liang Heng didn’t need to be in the kitchen at all times.
...
「In Liang Heng’s break room.」
When Liang Heng heard from Boss Jiang that Li You had arrived, he was indeed pleasantly surprised and eagerly asked, "Where is Boss Li now?"
"In the dining area," said Boss Jiang.
Liang Heng nodded. "I’ll go say hello to Boss Li."
Boss Jiang nodded.
The two of them left the break room and returned to the dining area together.
They walked over to the table where Li You, Liu Xu, Xiao Yue, Zhang Rui’Er, and the others were seated.
Master Liang smiled. "Hello, Boss Li! We’re so glad you’re finally here."
Li You stood up and smiled back. "Hello, Master Liang! It’s great to see you again."
Li You could tell that both Boss Jiang and Master Liang were genuinely happy to see him.
’In that case, it was worth making the trip here.’
This made Li You very happy as well.
After that, Liu Xu, Xiao Yue, Zhang Rui’Er, and the others began to order.
Every single one of them ordered a large bowl of Yangchun Noodles.
Their main reason for coming was to eat noodles. They had to get back to work at the company afterward.
Running into Li You was a wonderful surprise, but they still had to eat, didn’t they?
Li You glanced at the menu. The signature dish was Yangchun Noodles, but there were also a dozen or so other types, like beef noodles, rabbit noodles, zhajiangmian, and ranmian.
Li You was a little surprised that Liu Xu, Xiao Yue, Zhang Rui’Er, and the others all ordered the Yangchun Noodles.
The Yangchun Noodles were delicious, to be sure, but they were still a meatless dish.
’Doesn’t anyone want noodles with meat?’
Liu Xu noticed Li You’s confusion and explained with a smile, "You might not know this, Boss Li. Master Liang’s Yangchun Noodles have gotten incredibly delicious. They’re about eighty percent as good as yours now. The other noodles, like the beef or rabbit noodles, are great too—definitely some of the best in the county. But compared to his Yangchun Noodles, there’s still a pretty big gap. That’s why we mostly stick with the Yangchun Noodles, though we’ll have the others sometimes, of course."
So that’s how it was.
Li You nodded, showing he understood.
Boss Jiang and Master Liang were both still standing nearby.
Liu Xu hadn’t tried to hide his words from them.
There was no need to.
After all, they often discussed the quality of the various noodle dishes themselves.
In fact, Boss Jiang and Master Liang had the same assessment.
Master Liang said, "The only reason my Yangchun Noodles taste this good now is thanks to Boss Li’s guidance. Without it, I could never have achieved this flavor in my entire lifetime."
Master Liang had always been extremely grateful to Li You.
Their last discussion about how to make Yangchun Noodles had been a profound source of insight and inspiration for him.
Since then, the flavor of his Yangchun Noodles had improved dramatically.
Now, he had managed to get them to about eighty percent of the flavor of Li You’s own.
Although he still couldn’t fully replicate the taste of Li You’s noodles—and perhaps never would—Master Liang was already extremely satisfied.
With the flavor he had now achieved, besides Li You, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say he had few, if any, rivals in the entire country.
Even if he were to face a Special-Level Pastry Chef who specialized in Yangchun Noodles, Master Liang wouldn’t be intimidated.
Although Master Liang was still only a Junior-Level Pastry Chef, he was absolutely confident he could pass the exam to become an Intermediate-Level one.
He was even fairly confident he could pass the Senior-Level Pastry Chef exam.
However, he no longer planned to take the exams.
It was because of Li You’s influence.
Li You possessed sublime culinary skills, yet he wasn’t even a Junior-Level Chef.
’Why was that?’
’Because he hadn’t taken the exam.’
’And why hadn’t he?’
’Obviously, because he didn’t want to. Junior Chef, Intermediate Chef, Senior Chef... they were all just titles, nothing more.’
’Even Special Chef was just a title.’
’So what real difference did it make whether you took the exams or not?’
’Perhaps they were all just empty honors.’
’Li You must look down on such vanities.’
This was what Master Liang believed, and it led him to his own epiphany.
’Therefore, he decided he wouldn’t pursue any official titles either.’
’He would just remain a Junior-Level Pastry Chef forever.’
Li You, unaware of Master Liang’s inner thoughts, waved his hand dismissively. "You give me too much credit, Master Liang. We were just discussing things. I wouldn’t call it guidance. You’ve achieved this flavor through your own hard work and talent."
Li You wasn’t wrong.
He had indeed intended to give Master Liang some pointers, but not every chef would be able to make such progress from his advice.
It was mainly due to Master Liang’s own high level of talent and perceptiveness.
Master Liang shook his head. "If not for your guidance, Boss Li, I never could have achieved this flavor, no matter how hard I worked or how talented I was."
Of course, Master Liang knew that while Li You had framed it as a "discussion," he had really been intentionally offering guidance.
Li You waved it off and then ordered a small bowl of Yangchun Noodles and a small bowl of beef noodles.
He was going to eat noodles too, of course.
He had originally planned on just having a bowl of Yangchun Noodles, but now he’d changed his mind.
’I’ll try a bowl of the beef noodles too and see what they’re like.’
He couldn’t speak for the other noodle dishes, but when it came to beef noodles, he was an absolute authority.
After all, when he learned the beef noodle recipe, he hadn’t just mastered the optimal cooking method; he had also acquired all existing knowledge about the dish.
When Master Liang heard that Li You had also ordered the beef noodles, he was once again pleasantly surprised.
If Li You offered even a few casual pointers after trying the beef noodles, he would likely benefit immensely.
’The very thought was exciting!’
He excused himself and hurried to the kitchen.
He was going to prepare Li You’s two bowls of noodles himself.
...