Chapter 275: The Sealing Ring

Factory Director Chen personally led Zhou Yimin and his group to the cafeteria. They didn’t need to queue and were even treated to dishes prepared by the factory’s best chef.

When the chef heard that good food might persuade the expert to stay at the factory—potentially leading to a promotion—he instantly gave it his all, putting in 120% effort.

Once Zhou Yimin and the others were seated in a private room, the cafeteria director said, “Chef Jian, you can start serving.”

Chef Jian had been recruited to the rice cooker factory by Factory Director Chen from the prestigious Hongqi Restaurant. Although he hadn’t been one of the top chefs there, he was well-known even as a second-tier chef. Recruiting him had taken considerable effort.

Hongqi Restaurant was a century-old establishment in Jinmen, founded in 1925. It was famous for serving local specialties such as Crab Roe Shark Fin, Eight-Treasure Fish Maw, Jade Rabbit Braised Pork, and Silver Fish & Purple Crab Hotpot.

Beyond its cuisine, Hongqi Restaurant was also celebrated for its excellent service—attentive and enthusiastic.

As for pricing, the dishes were reasonably priced with high value for money.

The restaurant had been officially recognized by the Ministry of Commerce as a “China Time-Honored Brand,” and by the Jinmen Department of Commerce as a “Jinmen Old Brand,” having received numerous culinary honors over the years.

For this particular meal, Chef Jian brought out all his best skills, preparing five dishes in total, four of which were meat-based.

Soon, the cafeteria staff brought all of Chef Jian’s dishes to the table.

Chef Jian himself didn’t follow; unless specifically called upon, chefs usually remained in the kitchen in case more food was needed.

Once all five dishes were on the table, Factory Director Chen said warmly, “Yimin, have a taste—these are all Jinmen specialties.”

“This one is Zeng Beng Carp, a very distinctive local dish.”

Zeng Beng Carp is one of Tianjin’s specialty dishes, known for its crispy bones and scales, tender meat, and a bold sweet-and-sour flavor. It’s made by marinating fresh carp in a special sauce, deep-frying it until golden, and then pouring hot gravy over it—sending up plumes of steam and an enticing aroma.

Zhou Yimin was also a food lover. Though his cooking skills were average and none of the people he knew were particularly good cooks, he did have plenty of ingredients on hand. What he lacked was someone with real culinary skill to prepare them. He couldn’t wait to dig in.

One bite was all it took to recognize the chef’s prowess. The dish was a feast for the senses—colorful, fragrant, and delicious, practically begging to be eaten.

Zhou Yimin commented, “The fish is crisp and tender. The scales and bones are fried to a perfect crunch, and the flesh is juicy and flavorful. The bold sweet-and-sour sauce ties everything together—truly unforgettable.”

“I didn’t expect you to be such a connoisseur!” Factory Director Chen said in surprise.

Zhou Yimin replied, “Not really. It’s just that the chef did an excellent job. I’m merely expressing what I felt.”

The rest of the dishes were also delicious. Zhou Yimin usually cooked with good-quality ingredients, but the results were just edible—not actually tasty.

He felt a slight twinge of disappointment that there were no Goubuli meat buns on the table.

Director Chen noticed Zhou Yimin looked a bit disappointed and asked, “Yimin, are you unhappy with the dishes?”

“No, not at all. Everything is great. It’s just a bit of a shame that I didn’t get to try Goubuli meat buns,” Zhou Yimin said with a hint of regret.

Even in the future, he’d never eaten authentic Goubuli buns. Whenever a food became famous, it would be widely imitated, but rarely done right. He’d never been to Jinmen and never had the real deal.

“That’s all? If you want to try them, I’ll have Chef Jian make you a batch of authentic Goubuli buns,” Factory Director Chen said, relieved.

He’d eaten plenty of Goubuli buns himself and didn’t consider them rare or precious.

The cafeteria director went to request the dish: “Chef Jian, the expert wants to try Goubuli meat buns.”

“Alright,” Chef Jian replied.

He was a bit puzzled—he had already made such an elaborate meal, and now the guest wanted plain buns? But the leadership had spoken, so he could only agree.

No one in their right mind would defy a leader. While leaders couldn’t just fire people on a whim anymore, they could still make things difficult behind the scenes.

Chef Jian began kneading dough and, after a short wait, finished shaping the buns and placed them into the steamer.

Buns didn’t take long to steam—just over twenty minutes. Once ready, he called out, “The buns are done. You can serve them now.”

“Got it, Chef Jian,” one of the assistants responded.

To serve the buns at their best, the assistant didn’t dare delay even a second. Wearing protective gloves, he immediately carried a steaming tray of buns to the private room.

Inside, Zhou Yimin and the others were in the middle of a discussion about how to further improve the rice cooker. From his modern-day perspective, Zhou Yimin didn’t fully understand all the inner workings, but he could still offer insightful suggestions.

To the R&D department, Zhou Yimin’s comments were eye-opening. These were questions they had been puzzling over for ages, yet Zhou Yimin could casually point out the rice cooker’s future developmental direction.

The R&D section chief earnestly said, “Yimin, how about staying here? I’ll give up my position as section chief for you.”

He genuinely meant it. He knew Zhou Yimin was more capable than he was. The only reason he had become section chief was because all the truly brilliant people had been reassigned to classified projects and gone underground.

Factory Director Chen hadn’t expected Section Chief Wang to be so direct. He and the deputy director had also been considering giving Zhou Yimin a department head position in hopes of keeping him at the rice cooker factory—which would benefit them all.

From the expressions on the faces of the R&D staff, it was clear Zhou Yimin was a man of exceptional talent. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have impressed the whole team—enough for Wang to offer him his job.

Of course, Chen couldn’t allow Wang to step down like that. It would demoralize the longtime employees. They had a better plan in place.

Just then, the door to the private room opened, and someone walked in carrying a tray of steaming buns.

Zhou Yimin quickly changed the subject: “Let’s eat first. Good work takes time, after all.”

Especially since these were the Goubuli meat buns he’d been longing to try. He couldn’t wait to compare them to the versions he’d had in the future.

“Alright then, let’s eat first and talk afterward,” Factory Director Chen agreed. He knew not to push things too quickly.

Zhou Yimin was practically bouncing with anticipation. He quickly picked up a bun and took a bite—and was immediately stunned. Compared to the Goubuli buns he’d had in the future, there was simply no comparison.

The skin was thin and soft, the filling was generous, and the meat juices were abundant.

(End of chapter)