Courtyard House: He Yuzhu started in 1948

"Hey……"

Dayong and Shunzi each put one hand on his shoulder and raised their fists, ready to punch him.

But the little beggar immediately said, "Don't hit me! Whoever hits me is a mad dog!"

"I……"

Dayong and Shunzi were immediately unsure whether they should fight or not.

He Daqing became interested, sat up from the recliner, looked at the little beggar, and said with great interest, "Not bad, kid, you're quite the talker. Tell me, what's your name?"

"He Lei!"

The little beggar He Lei showed no fear, looking at He Daqing and asking, "And you?"

"My surname is also He, He Daqing."

"Oh, from the same clan."

Hearing that it was a relative, He Lei's anxiety subsided considerably, while He Daqing's interest grew even stronger: "Where are your parents?"

The little beggar He Lei shook off Da Yong and Shunzi's hands from his shoulders and said nonchalantly, "Heaven is our father, and earth is our mother."

Hey!

He Yuzhu became interested.

You're so young and you're already spouting rhymes, are you planning to take the postgraduate entrance exam?

He Daqing and He Lei exchanged secret signals: "Tian means uncle, Yun means aunt?"

"Um?"

All eyes turned to He Daqing, and He Lei asked curiously, "How did you know?"

"Never mind how I know."

Hearing the child say his surname was He, He Daqing became even more interested: "We people with the surname He are all honest people, earning our living with our skills. How come we have such a mischievous brat like you?"

As he spoke, He Daqing glanced at He Yuzhu beside him, leaving He Yuzhu bewildered.

What do you think I mean?

He Daqing: The unscrupulous businessman is not in the He family genealogy.

He Daqing's expression suddenly turned serious, and he snapped at He Lei, "Tell me, why did you take the watermelon?"

He Lei was startled, but still stubbornly insisted, "I didn't take it! The watermelon isn't from your garden. Why don't you call it and see what it says!"

"Hey, still saying you didn't take it?"

Da Yong raised his fist to strike, thinking that this kid wouldn't learn his lesson until he was faced with a fatal blow. He figured a good beating would make him behave.

What are you doing?

He Daqing scolded Da Yong, then said to He Yuzhu, "Get him some new clothes, and have him come find me for a meal later."

"OK."

Since He Daqing likes this child, He Yuzhu is willing to take care of him.

We've already taken care of more than ten people, one more won't make a difference.

They found He Lei's childhood clothes and dragged him to take a bath. Da Yong and Shun Zi wouldn't let He Yuzhu do it, but they forcibly pulled He Yuzhu away and helped He Lei take a bath.

After He Lei finished showering, he threw away his old clothes and put on He Yuzhu's clothes.

Hmm, he's got a chubby face and looks alright.

He Yuzhu patted his head: "Our family has a long tradition of cooking, and we can't stand waste. From now on, no matter what you make, you're not allowed to waste anything, understand?"

He Lei realized that He Yuzhu was criticizing him for ruining the watermelon, so he immediately stopped arguing and nodded in response, "I understand."

"Go have dinner with your Uncle He."

He Yuzhu sent He Lei to find He Daqing, while he and Dayong and the others went to another room to record the losses in a notebook.

No matter what kind of business you're in, you need to keep accounts.

He Yuzhu didn't intend to ask them for compensation; he just made a detailed record of each item so that it would be easier to discuss things later.

Seeing Dayong and Shunzi bowing their heads and remaining silent, He Yuzhu smiled and said, "A few watermelons aren't that upsetting. You've found my dad a guy who's interested in you, and that's worth more than a few watermelons."

He Yuzhu didn't want them to take it to heart, so he comforted them, "He Lei might follow you guys in the future. If he wastes food again, give him a good beating."

"Okay!"

The two of them then smiled broadly, clearly more concerned about being outmaneuvered by a child even younger than themselves, and feeling embarrassed and unhappy about losing face.

He Yuzhu comforted the two and told them to go find Tian Zao, while he went to the room to see how the two were doing.

As soon as I entered, I saw He Lei pointing to two of the four pieces of tofu on the plate and saying, "You put these two pieces in the wrong order. This one has a stronger flavor, and this one has a milder flavor."

"Is that so?"

He Daqing remained expressionless. Seeing He Yuzhu approach, he pointed to the tofu on the table and said, "Zhuzi, have a taste."

He Yuzhu walked over and tasted all four pieces of tofu, describing the degree to which each piece was flavorful.

Just as the little beggar He Lei said, if the flavor of the four pieces of tofu increases from left to right, then the two pieces of tofu in the middle are indeed overturned.

He Yuzhu could taste it because he was trained by He Daqing from a young age to taste all five flavors, but it was different for He Lei to be able to taste it.

Could this kid be a cooking genius?

He Yuzhu looked at He Daqing, only to find that He Daqing shook his head. He Lei was too unruly; if his temper wasn't tempered, he wouldn't be able to cook well.

The kitchen stove is only a foot square; how can you cook a good meal without enough patience?

He Yuzhu didn't say much more; when it came to cooking and teaching apprentices, He Daqing had more authority.

After He Lei finished eating, He Daqing said amiably, "Little thief, from now on, follow me. As long as I have food to eat, you won't be left eating porridge. How about it?"

"OK!"

He Lei agreed without hesitation.

He Lei had endured countless hardships on his journey from Xingtai to Beiping. Now that he finally had a place to stay, how could he not seize the opportunity?

The first thing He Daqing did with He Lei was to go to the school to make braised pork.

After purchasing the large vat, He Daqing inspected it thoroughly and found no cracks. He tapped the vat wall to listen to the sound and checked whether the inside of the vat was smooth. After checking everything, He Daqing began to have pork delivered to make stewed pork in a sealed pot.

He Daqing and He Yuzhu stood in front of the chopping block, cutting meat that was four inches wide and one inch thick, for two hours straight.

After cutting, marinate the meat with salt for about three hours, and then start frying it.

He Daqing and He Yuzhu did all the work; Zhang Tianyong and He Lei couldn't help much and could only watch from the sidelines.

He Yuzhu tended the fire, while He Daqing fried the meat. He Daqing dictated when to make the fire bigger or smaller, and He Yuzhu would adjust the fire accordingly.

He Lei watched with great interest; such a big pot of meat must taste so delicious.

Zhang Tianyong lost interest after a while and went to his office to read. He believed that he could live without meat but not without books. With books around, even delicacies could not attract him.

In the evening, the slightly cooled fried meat was poured into a large vat and then carried to the basement.

First day's work: 500 pounds of meat, done.

He Daqing was exhausted and exclaimed that he couldn't take it anymore. He was thinking of finding someone to help him tomorrow, otherwise he didn't know how long it would take to fry the meat.

Those who did the work couldn't stand it, but those who watched it found it fascinating and are still full of energy now. He Yuzhu couldn't help but shake his head.

This guy probably got greedy because he saw so much meat.

He Daqing found several trustworthy kitchen helpers, gave them a considerable commission, and asked them to keep it a secret. The kitchen helpers readily agreed. They were people who had received favors from He Daqing and dared not and would not do anything to betray He Daqing, much less spread the matter around.

Thanks to the combined efforts of several kitchen helpers, the braised pork was finally prepared before the students returned to school, so that when the students arrived at school, they could smell the aroma of oil wafting through the air.

Yes, that's the taste.

The cafeteria! Here I come!