Chapter 10: CH 10

After Lu Rong finished his PE class, he went to the cafeteria. He instructed Li Nanbian, “I’ll leave it to you.”

Li Nanbian, “Don’t worry.

The third period was English. The teacher was a fresh graduate with a master’s degree, she was slim but not unattractive, and usually wore skin-tight clothing. If not for her imposing aura, she definitely would become the dream girl of many boys. This good-looking dream girl was quick-witted, she realized Lu Rong’s disappearance as soon as she entered the class. But it was nothing when a boy came late, so she started her lesson.

After ten minutes, because Lu Rong still hadn’t come, she put down her textbook. “What happened with Lu Rong today?”

Li Nanbian raised his hand and answered, “He didn’t feel well after PE, so I sent him to the infirmary. The doctor said he had to be under observation, and if it was acute gastroenteritis, he had to be sent to the hospital.”

The English teacher reminded everyone, “You have to take care of what you eat.”

The students felt a little touched.

Lu Rong, who had “acute gastroenteritis”, was in the middle of inspecting the cafeteria food safety. He noisily entered the kitchen and was immediately called back, “What are you doing?! You cannot enter here wilfully, can’t you see?!”

Behind the cafeteria window was the kitchen, with white walls and white tiles. Always damp and greasy, it felt like stepping on not fully dried asphalt. The same iron cold colour scheme for countertops, stoves and materials, plus a big ventilation duct above, it felt like a socialist manufacturing factory.

The chefs here were also expressionless, wearing the white chef uniform, white hat, along with a heavy and firm dark-coloured apron. Walking around busily with black overshoes, it was unclear whether they were socialist chefs or pig breeders.

This place was strictly managed with lots of rules, “no entry for idlers” was one of the first. Lu Rong, who was wearing his school uniform, walked through the door with “Back Kitchen” written on it. He was extremely eye-catching in the kitchen, and was immediately ordered to withdraw by the management.

Lu Rong walked to the management, unhurried. “The head teacher asked me to come here. I didn’t finish my food and forgot to throw the leftovers into the bucket. The head teacher punished me by working here for half a day, to let me realize that it was not easy to make food.”

Lu Rong was a good student who usually ate all of his food then put his tray back, but he often saw Zhu Renliang admonish others in front of the dirty tray bucket, to help in the kitchen was not without precedence.

Sure enough, the management grimaced. This was indeed something that could be done by Zhu Renliang, he always sent problematic children to their kitchen.

He perfunctorily said, “There is nothing you can help with, go back.”

Lu Rong, “I can’t go back, the teacher will scold me.”

The management, “Then you stay here, don’t move around, don’t disturb others working.”

Lu Rong, “Okay.”

After the management left, Lu Rong immediately moved around, observing the chefs one by one. The chefs were methodically preparing ingredients, only those in charge of giving food behind the window gathered to chat. Some people had cigarettes in their hands, curiously looking at Lu Rong.

Lu Rong retracted his line of sight, focused on the kitchen. After walking through a few rooms, his eyes lit up, it was this person!

He walked forth, asking, “Excuse me, are you making fish cakes?”

Head chef, “Such good taste, bro.”

Lu Rong, “Anything I can help with?” Seeing the head chef’s face crack, “I was assigned to help you.”

The head chef was slightly surprised, “Assigned?”

Lu Rong, “En—Are you making sauce? The bones were smashed together?”

Head chef, “That’s right, yellow croakers’ bones are soft, usually the bones are eaten with the fish after steaming. When making sauce, remove the head, then put in all that’s left. You understand quite a lot, you can cook?”

Lu Rong, “Yes, a bit.” After a few pauses he said, “I want to be a chef.”

Head chef, “What ambition is that?”

The kids nowadays had great aspirations. When young, they wanted to be scientists, after growing up, they wanted to get rich overnight, they looked down on barbers, chefs, contractors and engineers. The head chef was in Chengnan High for many years, he had long understood the disposition of these blessed sons of heaven. Even his own ten-year-old boy looked down on his occupation, not to mention these youths.

He made fish cakes here all day long but the popularity and glory of fish cakes had nothing to do with him, it was indeed lonely. In this lonely work, a rare guest suddenly appeared. Even more so, it was a rare guest who wanted to be a chef. The head chef was curious, he took the stance of an elder, asking in a hoarse voice, “Why do you want to be a chef?”

“It is interesting.” Lu Rong didn’t wait for his command, he pulled his sleeves up, pinched a small part of the dough, spread flour on the counter, and kneaded it steadily.

“Making those that fly, swim and walk into cooking materials, taking those that grow on earth and those born from the sea and fermenting them into mixing ingredients, then cooking them proportionately into new items to provide energy to humans. There are various things that can be eaten, there are inexhaustible combinations. It is more interesting than chemistry, moreover, chemistry products can’t be eaten.”

Was it interesting? The head chef thought it over, recalling his aspiration to be a chef. He didn’t think of it a lot, it was just learning a profession, earning money.

But after listening to him, the chef suddenly felt a sense of pride that he learned a profound and infinite talent and provided the material for the survival of all mankind. He couldn’t help but feel satisfied with his job and the disciple beside him.

“You are good at kneading!” The head chef praised. The fish paste was also just done, he poured the fish paste into the plate, took the dough Lu Rong had kneaded, then filled it with a spoonful of fish paste. He quickly kneaded the opening close, shaped it round, then arranged it on the iron plate.

“This fish paste is different from what we make at home.” Lu Rong watched attentively. Although his movement was also proficient, compared to the head chef’s phantom-like speed, his seemed relatively unskilled.

The head chef intentionally showed off, proudly saying, “Of course, it’s a family secret recipe.”

Lu Rong looked into the paste machine. “It was not put in when making the paste, is it pickled?” He scooped up a spoonful to smell, “Sugar, vinegar, salt… what is this aromatic smell?”

The head chef said haughtily, “Your guess?”

Lu Rong, “I can’t guess it, I can’t smell it out.”

Head chef, “Of course. I put lard in. Your generation doesn’t eat lard. In our region, especially in poverty stricken places, lard is the ingredient that has to exist on every meal. Put a spoonful when eating noodles, and it will smell extremely alluring.”

Lu Rong’s eyes brightened, he asked with a calm face, “Turns out it was lard.”

He helped the head chef make fish cakes and wrapped them with egg white and bread crumbs. The head chef looked at the time, “Now let’s wait until the fourth class is over, then deep-fry.”

Anxious expressions emerged from Lu Rong’s face, he embarrassedly gave the chef a few glances.

The head chef felt this student was quite cute, everything was written on his face, “You are hungry after this little work?”

Lu Rong stared at him wordlessly.

The head chef turned on the stove. After the oil finished heating up, he put two fish cakes into the oil with long chopsticks. Lu Rong walked to his side and opened his phone to measure time. Not long after, both sides of the fish cakes were fried golden. The head chef took the fish cakes up and put them to the side. Lu Rong lowered his head to look at his phone— 3 minutes 23 seconds.

The head chef said seriously, “No phone when working!”

Lu Rong, “Oh. Can I eat now?”

Head chef, “No, there is one important process left—refry.”

Lu Rong, “What is refry?”

The head chef drip-dried the fish cakes then put it back into the deep fryer. “Refry is frying for the second time. The second fry will absorb the oil from the fish cake’s filling.”

Lu Rong put on a stopwatch again. After 30 seconds, the fish cakes were scooped up once more. The head chef gave him a pair of chopsticks and a plate, then put the fish cakes on his plate. Lu Rong took the fish cakes, it was indeed hot and dry, there was no oil on the plate.

Lu Rong, “Awesome.”

The head chef took one of the fish cakes from the plate complacently, and two people ate the fish cakes together.

Lu Rong, “Is it alright for us to eat fish cakes stealthily?”

Head chef, “Doesn’t matter, I am the boss here.”

Lu Rong, “Is your salary high?”

Head chef, “Do you have to ask this?”

Lu Rong finished off the fish cakes , stood up and said, “My assignment is done, I will go back to class. I’ll ask for your advice later.”

Head chef, “Practice makes perfect.”

The fourth period was the homeroom teacher’s language class. The homeroom teacher asked right after she arrived, “I heard from your English teacher that Lu Rong is ill. What happened, did he need to go to hospital? Class monitor, you go take a look.”

Li Nanbian, “I’ll go take a look too!”

Homeroom teacher, “The class monitor scored 99 on language while you scored 59, would you make up for the score of the class you drag down?

Li Nanbian, “Class monitor will make up for it.”

Class monitor, “…”

Li Nanbian, “Teacher, if Lu Rong needed someone to support him walking, can the class monitor do it alone? We are on the third floor!”

Homeroom teacher answered, “If that is the case, you directly call the ambulance.”

Li Nanbian wanted to warn Lu Rong after arriving at the corridor, but the class monitor quickly took his phone and said vigilantly, “He can’t be skipping class, can he? You sent messages to him?”

Li Nanbian, “How can I! I’m not even familiar with him.”

Class monitor, “Give me your phone.”

Li Nanbian, “You violated my privacy!” He said while putting his phone back, “Are you satisfied now? Hng, measuring the heart of a gentleman by the means of the vile, I am clearly reading porn.”

Class monitor, “Reading porn while walking?!”

Li Nanbian couldn’t send the information over, so he pretended to stumble when passing class 6, making a scene. Yan Gou realized his movement and immediately sent messages in “The Evil Team” group chat, informing that Li Nanbian and the class monitor had appeared together in the corridor.

Li Nanbian and the class monitor arrived in the infirmary. Lu Rong was sitting, his hand holding a plastic bag with a lot of stomach medicine. After he finished asking the detailed dosage of each medicine, he saw Li Nanbian and the class monitor walking in, then he said to the infirmary teacher, “I’m going back to class.”

The teacher said worriedly, “I recommend you to go to check your stomach in the hospital.”

Lu Rong waved his hand, “The class is more important.”

Li Nanbian side-eyed the class monitor, then he stepped forward to support Lu Rong who pretended to be sick.

Lu Rong stubbornly pushed him away, “I’m better now.”

After he finished learning how to make fish cakes in the cafeteria, he directly went to the infirmary. He had a tacit agreement with Li Nanbian, the reason Li Nanbian gave to the teacher was a stomach-ache. There were a lot of symptoms for gastric disease; bloating, defecating, stomach-ache, he could randomly choose one to use for pretending. The infirmary couldn’t give any real medicine, they could only give him some medicine to strengthen his stomach or to help digestion and observe him for a while after eating, so his alibi for not going to class was absolute.

After Yan Gou sent the message, Lu Rong knew that his preparation was going to be useful and put more effort into his pretense.

The class monitor was speechless. He stepped forward to ask Lu Rong, “What did you eat?”

Lu Rong, “The dish made by my mother.”

Class monitor, “…”

After the class monitor and Li Nanbian sent Lu Rong back to class, Li Nanbian received the class monitor’s message, “Send the porn to me.”

Li Nanbian, “…”

T/N: ch 9 is the supposed to be posted last week. sorry for being late.