Siheyuan: Fighting against Japanese Aggression in Beijing

Soon, Big Butt came to Hongbin Building with a few people, smoking.

After entering the restaurant, Xiao Liu immediately went to find the manager. The manager smiled and arranged them in a private room and started communicating with Li Renyi.

After a while, the manager left, and Li Renyi said, "Qinghe, this place is not bad, and it is well-known in Beijing. A chef named Ma will be coming here soon. You can become his disciple and learn cooking from him in the future!"

"Okay, Lao Li, are the dishes here delicious?" Qinghe asked. Although no one spoke along the way, Qinghe was not as reserved as when they first met. In this way, the father and daughter chatted with each other, and the atmosphere was harmonious.

After chatting for less than half an hour, four dishes and a soup were served, along with the dishes, the manager and a chef who was about fifty years old.

"Old Li, this is Master Ma Xueren. You two can chat. I have something else to do, so I won't bother you any more." said the manager.

"Okay, go! Go!" said Li Renyi.

After the manager left, Ma Xueren was not shy and said, "Sir, I am Ma Xueren. Our manager asked me to take in an apprentice. Is it this young man?" Ma Xueren looked at Li Kangri and asked.

"Come, Master Ma, sit down and talk. Don't call me Chief. We are about the same age, and you may even be older than me. Just call me Master Li!" Li Renyi said.

"Haha, okay, Master Li." Ma Xueren sat down and asked, "Does this young man want to learn cooking?"

"It's not my son, it's her. It's my daughter who wants to learn cooking." Li Renyi pointed at Qinghe and said.

"Ah! Is this little girl going to learn cooking? Well, I..." Ma Xueren was stunned. He had never accepted a female apprentice, nor had he seen anyone else accept one! So he didn't know what to say for a moment. He wanted to refuse, but the manager repeatedly told him to listen to the boss. At this moment, he really wanted to die.

"What's the matter? Master Ma, is there a problem with this?" Li Renyi asked.

"Well, Master Li, I have never accepted a female apprentice! Besides, being a cook is not suitable for women. Flipping the wok requires strenuous work, so..." Master Ma said meaningfully.

Seeing what Ma Xueren meant, Li Kangri interrupted, "Master Ma, right?"

"Yes!"

"Master Ma, now is a new era. There is no difference between men and women in all walks of life. Women hold up half the sky. Look at the factories. Aren't there many female workers swinging sledgehammers?" said Li Kangri.

“What you said is true, but I have never accepted a female disciple. I really don’t know how to teach. When we teach our disciples, they sometimes even curse at us. Take this female disciple! You know…” Ma Renyi said distressedly.

"You can rest assured about this. My sister is very smart. She is the kind of child who can understand things quickly. Her skills are not bad now. She just lacks a famous teacher to guide her. The problems you mentioned do not exist, right Qinghe?" Li Kangri said.

"Yes, Master Ma, I really want to learn cooking. I want to cook the best dishes for my mother. Please accept me! I will definitely be obedient and will not cause you any trouble." Qinghe said pitifully.

"Let me think about this." Ma Renyi said with a headache.

"How about this, Master Ma, let me ask my sister to make you a dish of her own creation, and you can try it first, okay?" Li Kangri suggested.

"Well,... okay!" Ma Xueren said helplessly.

"Old Li, wait a minute, ask Qinghe to cook a dish for us to eat together." Li Kangri said.

"Okay, Master Ma, please tell your manager to let my daughter try it!" Li Renyi agreed. He also wanted to try his daughter's craftsmanship.

So Ma Xueren took Qinghe out.

"Anti-Japanese, are Qinghe's dishes delicious?" Li Renyi asked.

"It's delicious. She's so smart. She wants to learn cooking, so she cooks whenever she has the chance over the years. The food she cooks is delicious! I think it's delicious anyway." Li Kangri said proudly.

"Then wait for mine to give it a try!"

……

On the other side, after communicating with the manager, Ma Xueren took Qinghe to the back kitchen. After entering the kitchen, Li Qinghe was as happy as a mouse falling into a rice jar. She immediately put on an apron and started working skillfully, chopping chicken and cutting vegetables. Her movements were as smooth as flowing water, and Master Ma was stunned.

After a while, a large plate of delicious chicken came out of the pot.

"Did you create this yourself?" Ma Xueren asked in disbelief.

"Yes, I created it myself." Qing He lied with a red face. In order to become his disciple, she had no choice but to lie.

"Can I try it?" Ma Xueren asked impatiently.

"Sure! Everyone try it! I'll just take half back." Qinghe said generously.

So, Li Qinghe filled half a plate and took it to the private room.

After Li Qinghe left, everyone tasted the food out of curiosity, and after tasting it, they all praised it highly.

In the private room, Li Qinghe put down the plate and sat down.

At this time, Li Renyi said, "Where is Master Ma?"

"He's in the kitchen tasting the food I cooked!" Qinghe said proudly.

"Then let's eat first and talk about it later. Qinghe, don't worry, I will definitely find a master for you." Li Renyi said.

"Then eat. The world is big, but eating is the most important thing." Li Kangri also said.

So the three of them started eating. When they tasted the big plate of chicken, Li Renyi nodded in praise and kept praising his daughter.

Just when the three were about to finish eating, the manager and Master Ma came in.

"Master Li, Master Ma said that he has accepted this apprentice. Do you think it's okay for him to start as an apprentice?" the manager asked carefully.

"Haha, that's okay, just follow the normal procedure. Qinghe, why don't you hurry over and become my disciple!" Li Renyi said with a smile.

Upon hearing that she could become Ma Xueren's disciple, Qing He happily walked up to Ma Xueren and knelt down to kowtow to become his disciple.

Ma Xueren quickly stopped him and said, "Forget about that. These are all rules from the old society. Just follow me and learn from me."

"Brother!" Li Qinghe shouted.

"Qinghe, listen to your master. You have a long life ahead of you. Follow your master and learn from him well. And also be filial to him." Li Kangri said with a smile.

"Haha, that's good, everyone is happy, everyone is happy! Lao Li, do you think it's okay for you to come to work tomorrow?" asked the manager.

"Sure, you can go now." Li Qinghe said happily.

"Haha, it's not that urgent. It's settled then. We'll leave first." The manager said goodbye.

"Can you lend me two lunch boxes? Ask Qinghe to bring them over tomorrow. There are still a lot of food left here." Li Kangri asked.

"Okay, I'll ask someone to send it to you later." The manager replied.

……

In the afternoon, at Li Renyi's suggestion, the brother and sister followed Li Renyi to stroll around Sijiu City for the whole afternoon. During the period, they also went to the supply and marketing cooperative. After Li Renyi bought Li Qinghe several sets of clothes and a bicycle, they went to Quanjude to eat roast duck, and then the brother and sister returned to the Siheyuan.