Chapter 16: Taking on an Apprentice (Seeking Recommendations and Bookmarks)

Chapter 16: Taking on an Apprentice (Please recommend and bookmark)

"Brother Li, Brother Li."

Wu Xiaoliu noticed Li Qi staring blankly at him with unblinking eyes. Feeling uneasy but unwilling to disturb him, he cautiously called out softly a couple of times.

Yet Li Qi seemed to be in a trance, showing no response at all.

Could he be possessed? Wu Xiaoliu waved his hand before Li Qi’s eyes.

Suddenly, Li Qi snapped back to attention, grabbing Wu Xiaoliu’s arm and asking, “You—what did you just say—that lousy fish—no, the secret recipe for Drunken Carving Fish—is it really worth a thousand guan?”

“A—a thousand guan,” Wu Xiaoliu stammered nervously. “I—I heard it from my uncle. It’s not my business.” Clearly, Li Qi’s sudden shock had startled him quite a bit.

“Haha!”

Li Qi paused in surprise, then released Wu Xiaoliu and burst into wild laughter. Truly, fate had not abandoned him!

After laughing for a while, he stopped, shaking his head with a smile and looking at the stunned Wu Xiaoliu with delight. “How could it not be your business? You’re absolutely right—I damn well love you for this.” He felt like giving Wu Xiaoliu a big kiss right then and there.

Could this be what they call a temporary madness? Wu Xiaoliu’s face turned pale with fright. “Brother Li, I’m a man, you know.”

“What kind of man are you? At best, you’re just a little brat.” Li Qi said, then seeing Wu Xiaoliu’s pale face, suddenly realized something and scowled, “Don’t get the wrong idea—I’m no pedophile. Get lost.”

Wu Xiaoliu felt a huge relief and forced a sheepish smile. “Brother Li, you really scared me just now. I thought—hehe.”

Li Qi rolled his eyes, unwilling to argue further, and earnestly asked, “Right, you said that Master Cai was willing to pay a thousand guan for the ‘Drunken Carving Fish’ recipe. What’s that about?”

“Oh, that. Hey Brother Li, why are you asking?”

Li Qi waved him off, “Don’t ask now. Just tell me what actually happened.”

“Oh!” Wu Xiaoliu pursed his lips and explained, “I heard from my uncle that this ‘Drunken Carving Fish’ was created by the old master. Back then, it was the pride of our Drunken Immortal Tavern, so only our head chef was qualified to learn it.”

Hmph! The “old master”? That must have been ages ago.

Li Qi impatiently cut in, “Enough of the backstory. I only want to know—did you end up selling the recipe to Master Cai?”

“No. Master Cai knew the old master wouldn’t sell it to him, so he tried to approach Chef Zhou secretly. He offered a thousand guan to buy the recipe, but Chef Zhou not only refused, he scolded him harshly.”

Wu Xiaoliu shook his head, then continued, “But Master Cai didn’t give up. Later he found out Chef Zhou had taught the recipe to his apprentice. So he bribed the apprentice with multiple times the pay to join his Jade Pavilion. Now, ‘Drunken Carving Fish’ is their signature dish.”

Turns out Chef Zhou was really a tough guy. Not even a thousand guan could sway him. No wonder Uncle Wu respected him so much.

Li Qi frowned, thinking for a moment. “So, you’re saying Master Cai really was willing to pay a thousand guan for the recipe?”

“Of course.” Wu Xiaoliu snorted. “That man’s ruthless in business. If he wants something, he’ll do whatever it takes—if he can’t get it openly, he’ll sneak around. Really despicable.”

If you’re not a little ruthless in business, you’re probably out of luck. Back in Li Qi’s time, such underhanded tactics were common—just another way to do business.

What puzzled Li Qi, however, was how ordinary the ‘carving fish’ technique was—feeding the fish with wine to enhance its flavor. He’d known that trick since he was a kid. Yet here, such a simple secret was worth a thousand guan. Incredible.

Truly, knowledge is wealth! What about knowledge that’s over 900 years ahead of its time? Li Qi was eager to find out.

Seeing Li Qi lost in thought and smiling foolishly, Wu Xiaoliu nudged him softly and whispered, “Brother Li, are you okay?”

“Oh, I’m fine. What could be wrong?” Li Qi blinked, swallowed hard with some disgust, then brightened up. Picking up his chopsticks, he invited Wu Xiaoliu cheerfully, “Come on, eat up! Hmm, this fish just tastes better the more you eat. Not bad, not bad. Xiaoliu, you’ve got some real talent for cooking.”

Li Qi’s casual compliment brought tears of joy to Wu Xiaoliu’s eyes. “Really? Brother Li, you really think I have talent?”

“Of course—” Before he could finish, Li Qi suddenly sensed there was more to Wu Xiaoliu’s words and stopped himself.

This kid was usually stingy, yet today he was so kind to treat him to such a precious ‘Drunken Carving Fish’. As the saying goes, “No good deed goes unpunished.” Li Qi had been too happy and had praised Wu Xiaoliu rashly. Now thinking it over, he had to be extra cautious and asked, “Xiaoliu, is there something you want me to help with?”

“Hehe!” Wu Xiaoliu smiled slyly, bashful. “You figured it out!”

Damn! Just as he suspected, but what could Wu Xiaoliu want from him? Did he know Li Qi had won a hundred taels at Jade Pavilion and wanted to borrow money? Li Qi was puzzled and probed, “Xiaoliu, you know Brother Li is struggling himself. If you want to borrow—that thing, I’m really helpless.”

“Borrow what?” Wu Xiaoliu blinked, confused. “Brother Li, what are you talking about? I just want to apprentice under you and learn to cook.”

“Apprentice?” Li Qi was stunned, scratching his head. “You want to learn cooking from me?”

“Yes!” Wu Xiaoliu nodded vigorously.

“Why?” Li Qi asked, surprised.

Wu Xiaoliu grinned, “Brother Li, you don’t know—I’ve loved cooking since I was a kid, but—”

“Enough of the nonsense. Get to the point.” Li Qi waved his hand, cutting him off mid-sentence.

“Oh, well, you know the Drunken Immortal Tavern is about to be sold. The new owner won’t want me, so I want to learn cooking from you. Then I’ll have a skill to rely on and won’t starve on the streets.” Wu Xiaoliu explained honestly.

Ah, so the kid was planning ahead. Good. Now was the time to take on help, and Wu Xiaoliu was a great errand runner. Taking him as an apprentice would only be beneficial.

Though he had his own reasons, Li Qi kept a calm demeanor and said, “Actually, you do have a bit of talent. Taking you as an apprentice isn’t out of the question. But there is something I must say first—being my apprentice isn’t easy.”

That was the truth. Li Qi was meticulous at work. When he worked at his father-in-law’s hotel, the assistant cooks lived in constant fear of making mistakes, often getting scolded harshly. Yet after work, whenever they went out for meals or karaoke, Li Qi always paid. The colleagues both loved and hated him, secretly calling him ‘Ghost’s Nightmare’.

Wu Xiaoliu wasn’t stupid, quite clever actually. Hearing this, he was delighted and jumped down from the bed, kneeling with a thud. “Master, please accept this bow from your apprentice!” Then he kowtowed loudly.

Hearing “Master” called out like that made Li Qi uncomfortable. He helped Wu Xiaoliu up quickly. “Stop that—I hate being called master. Just call me Brother Li.”

“Brother Li!” Obediently, Wu Xiaoliu corrected himself. For him, as long as Li Qi agreed to take him on, nothing else mattered. Since the Purple Robe Young Master’s visit, he had admired Li Qi’s cooking and longed to be his apprentice.

Li Qi nodded. “Alright then, since you want to be my apprentice, you’ll have to obey me. Otherwise, I’ll kick you out at any time.”

“Of course! Xiaoliu is known for being hardworking and obedient. Just tell me what to do.” Wu Xiaoliu patted his chest confidently.

(End of chapter)