MAC’60s Chapter 63.2

As for Chen Dong, his apprentice is skilled and will eventually be transferred to the city.

As for himself, after years of teaching Ma Dalian’s eldest son, who had been chopping and preparing for years, the kid still couldn’t even reach the level three certification.

Master Ma felt embarrassed and feared that others would gossip about him.

Chen Dong, even as a level two, could produce a great apprentice. Why couldn’t he, a level one chef, do the same?

That’s why Master Ma came up with a quick idea to make things easier for his nephew and help him pass.

But he didn’t expect Chen Dong to turn against him!

Master Ma: “Old Chen, Old Chen, come here, I need to discuss something with you…”

Could Master Su give him that opportunity? Of course not.

Master Su: “Master Ma, it’s about to begin, if you have something to say, better wait until it’s over and talk to Master Chen then.”

Chen Dong was caught between the two men, pulled back and forth.

This back-and-forth tugging was quite obvious, and Wang Ying saw it from outside. She nudged Xu Shuang: “Hey, look at what our master is doing? Is he being bullied?”

Wang Ying thought that if they were bullying Master Chen in front of her, she would have to step in and deal with them.

Xu Shuang: “It’s fine. Master won’t be at a disadvantage.”

Xu Shuang didn’t know how to handle such things, but he had seen Chen Dong do it for years.

Chen Dong was like a young master from the old society. Even though he was living a carefree life now, he had once managed a household and understood the importance of balance and control.

Otherwise, why would a chef with no great skills have so much say in the restaurant?

Wang Ying, upon hearing Xu Shuang’s explanation, was stunned.

So, Master Chen, the benevolent, kindly elder, was actually a “white cut black” (appears kind but is actually shrewd)? Wow, his tactics were no different from the office politics at her hospital in her previous life.

The young couple watched the drama unfold.

After being tugged back and forth for a while, the outcome was decided.

Master Su won.

Ignoring Master Ma’s dark expression, Master Su immediately declared the draw to start!

“Come on, come on, you guys go to the backyard and draw the lots. Level three first, then level two.”

Master Su was quite pleased!

He felt a huge sense of relief!

Master Ma was furious, but at this point, he had no choice. He waved his hand and called his nephew over.

In a panic, he said, “The two dishes I prepared for you before might not be suitable now. Remember, Master Su specializes in Hunan cuisine, his taste is biased towards Hunan. Master Chen specializes in Shandong cuisine. Although Master Su will choose the questions, the grading is done by all of us. If there’s a difficult choice, the Shandong style might have a slight edge. As long as Master Chen gives a pass, we’ll be fine. Two votes to one, it’s still worth a shot…”

Master Ma wasn’t too sure about it either. Level three focused on basic skills, especially knife work and heat control, not so much on seasoning. So his suggestion about seasoning wouldn’t make a huge impact.

But his nephew, Ma Yongjun, was confident: “Uncle, don’t worry, it’ll be fine!”

Ma Yongjun was very secure. Among the three top chefs, while Master Ma was his uncle, he knew relying on one person wasn’t enough.

So he had already set things up!

Ma Yongjun was secretly pleased.

He had originally thought that passing the level would be very difficult, after years of chopping and prepping, he still couldn’t reach level three. So he had discussed with his mother.

Of the three top chefs, Master Su was out of the question. He was difficult to deal with, and Master Su didn’t get along with his uncle. If he got close to Master Su, it would definitely offend Master Ma.

Since Master Su was hard to get along with, the only choice left was Master Chen.

Ma Yongjun figured that to pass the exam, he needed at least two approvals. One of them had to be Master Chen.

His family and Master Chen were in the front and back yards, a convenient situation. Ma Yongjun’s mother, Ma Dalian, had planned to give a gift to Master Chen, say a few good words, and surely Master Chen would consider their proximity and give him a pass.

But Ma Yongjun had a second thought and realized this idea was a bit shallow.

Master Chen was a single old man!

And he was rumored to be quite wealthy.

If his mother got together with Master Chen, not only would he get the chef certificate, but he could also gain a new father figure!

Moreover, Master Chen had no children, and he had three main rooms in the back yard!

Ma Yongjun explained all this to his mother, Ma Dalian, and after thinking it over, she agreed.

Although Master Chen didn’t look much, he was chubby, but that was a sign of prosperity! Unlike her whole family, they were all thin and underfed, looking like they had no good fortune.

Ma Dalian immediately agreed. If she were to get close to Chen Dong, not only would it solve her eldest son’s certification issue, but there would also be housing and a salary, the benefits were plenty.

Ma Yongjun was also very pleased. He didn’t tell Master Ma about how his mother had been currying favor with Chen Dong, thinking he would only bring it up once everything was settled.

His mother had already told him that things were progressing smoothly on her end.

It seemed that it wouldn’t be long before he would be part of Chen Dong’s family. So, for this exam, Ma Yongjun was confident it was nearly a sure thing.

When Master Ma saw how confident Ma Yongjun was, he became completely disoriented.

Where did this confidence come from?

Does he not know how bad his skills are?

I, as his master, am anxious about this, and yet he’s patting his chest saying he’ll definitely pass.

Can he pass?

Does he have the ability, or does he not know that?

Master Ma was furious, “Pay attention! This time, the questions are being set by Master Su! And that old bastard Chen Dong has turned against me, if you don’t work harder, don’t even think about passing!”

Ma Yongjun agreed meekly, but inside, he wasn’t worried.

Ha! You don’t know the relationship between me and Master Chen!

Master Chen will definitely give me a pass!

With this thought in mind, Ma Yongjun went to draw lots.

And he drew first place.

Master Ma’s face turned red, and his brows were furrowed deeply.

Ma Yongjun walked proudly to the kitchen to start his exam, and as expected, Master Su tore into him severely, making him completely fall apart.

Master Su: “What is this mess you made? Did you cut the vegetables with your feet? Look at this knife work! Even the kitchen staff cutting vegetables is better than this! You sliced the potatoes so thin they’re like your little finger! Didn’t you hear the standard is matchstick-sized? Compare your finger slices to matchsticks and see the difference! And the chicken pieces for the spicy chicken are burnt! For your optional dish, you made cold cucumber salad—are you here to mock our kitchen?”

In usual exams, such harsh words wouldn’t be used, since it’s an exam, not teaching. But…

Chen Dong completely understood Master Su’s frustration.

If you could make dishes like this in our kitchen, you’re insulting the skills of every chef here.

Master Ma’s face turned red. He couldn’t even say that Ma Yongjun did well.

He was angry too—he had trained Ma Yongjun, so how could he end up like this?

The cucumber—he told him to make “cucumber with snowflake” style! But what did he bring out? A plate of cucumber slices!

It wasn’t surprising, then, that Master Su made a big mark and gave Ma Yongjun a fail. He was sprayed with criticism, but Ma Yongjun had thick skin and didn’t mind. Instead, he focused on looking at Chen Dong for his grade.

Chen Dong smiled and, without hesitation, gave him a fail.

Ma Yongjun was completely stunned.

This isn’t right!

Wasn’t my mother saying she’d already sorted things out with Master Chen? How could Master Chen fail me?

Under the blow, Ma Yongjun didn’t even get as upset about Master Ma’s fail as he did about Chen Dong’s.

After the first round of exams, Master Ma couldn’t hold back anymore. He dragged his dazed apprentice out of the kitchen, pulled him into a corner, and scolded him fiercely.

“Are you out of your mind? Why didn’t you do what we said? Didn’t I teach you how to make cucumber with snowflake style? Why didn’t you follow the instructions? And the spicy chicken! Didn’t I teach you to control the oil temperature? How could you burn the chicken?”

Master Ma was so angry, he felt like he might strangle him. He prided himself on being a responsible teacher, and he had trained his own nephew with no reservation.

And this was the result?

Ma Yongjun mumbled to himself, “This shouldn’t be happening. How could he not pass me? My mom said it’s all settled…”

Ma Yongjun really didn’t understand. He didn’t care about Master Ma’s anger anymore, he just couldn’t understand why Master Chen didn’t give him a pass.

Master Ma: “You don’t think you’re getting a pass after that? You see how you made a mess, how could I give you a pass?”

Ma Yongjun kept mumbling, and Master Ma gradually realized what was going on: “Who are you talking about? What did your mother say?”

Ma Yongjun looked at his excited master and mechanically said, “My mom said that she’s going to marry Master Chen soon, and Master Chen will soon be my stepfather… Master, you see, if Master Chen is going to be my stepdad, how could he not pass me? This shouldn’t be happening…”

Master Ma stared at his apprentice, bewildered by the absurdity of his words.

No wonder!

No wonder Chen Dong turned against me today.

No wonder Chen Dong suddenly teamed up with Master Su.

So it was you two who caused this!