Starting from a Bankrupt Sichuan Cuisine Restaurant

After lunch, the workers got off their shifts, and the restaurant immediately hit its peak rush hour.

Just like before, Zhou Yan was responsible for the other dishes, while his master handled the Fiery-Hot Pork Liver.

Zheng Qiang stood to the side, diligently studying the master-level technique for the Fiery-Hot Pork Liver, while also covering the line support duties.

The three of them shared the cooking line, working with remarkable chemistry and never getting in each other's way.

'This… is probably another form of the legacy passed down by our school, isn't it?'

After all, they were taught by the same Grandmaster, so they knew exactly what the others needed and what their habits were.

When Zhou Yan was stir-frying cabbage with pork cracklings, Xiao Lei and Zheng Qiang would take turns giving him pointers. It was like a live masterclass, and the improvement in his skills was significant.

[A Rather Good Stir-fried Cabbage with Pork Cracklings]

Zhou Yan looked at the plate of Stir-fried Cabbage with Pork Cracklings fresh from the wok and couldn't help but grin.

'I did it!'

'I've finally broken through to the 'Good' level!'

Xiao Lei glanced over and nodded. "Not bad. A bit better than before, but there's still room for improvement."

"You got it! I'll keep working hard," Zhou Yan replied with a smile.

Then it was Xiao Lei's turn to cook the Fiery-Hot Pork Liver.

As Zhou Yan cooked his own dishes, he started giving commentary:

"The heat's a little low!"

"Did you skip lunch? Get that spatula moving!"

"It's burning! It's burning! Plate it already, or I'll..."

Zheng Qiang stood to the side with his hands clasped behind his back, his eyes darting between Zhou Yan and Xiao Lei. He looked like he wanted to speak but couldn't bring himself to.

'Wait, has Junior Brother Zhou always been this audacious?'

'Who's the master and who's the apprentice?'

'You can't just chew out your master like that.'

'Then again, my junior martial uncle must have incredible self-control not to get angry after being berated like that.'

'If it were *my* master, a spatula would have already met my face, followed by a roar: "Since when do I need *you* to tell me what to do?"'

Over the course of the lunch service, Xiao Lei cooked 36 orders of Fiery-Hot Pork Liver.

It didn't seem like he'd made much progress. He was still a ways off from the perfect Fiery-Hot Pork Liver he was aiming for.

This left Master Xiao a little quiet, his brow furrowed in thought.

Zhou Yan sensed his master's mood and glanced at his quest progress, an eyebrow shooting up.

[Side Quest: The Master's Obsession! Progress: 92%]

'Wait, didn't that just go up by 4%?'

Zhou Yan immediately switched into praise mode. "Master, your Fiery-Hot Pork Liver has improved so much today! I just heard several tables of customers complimenting how good it was. Your Fire Control is getting more and more masterful. I'd say it's almost no different from mine now."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Lei's eyes lit up, and the furrows in his brow smoothed out considerably.

Everyone loves to hear praise and affirmation, after all.

"You're not pulling my leg, are you, Master Zhou?" Xiao Lei asked, looking at him.

Zhou Yan replied seriously, "Of course I'm not. You know my standards have always been strict."

Xiao Lei nodded. "I still think there's a small gap, but you're right, it's not a big one anymore. We have to go shopping this afternoon, so I'll be back tomorrow."

"Sounds good," Zhou Yan said with a smile.

Xiao Lei untied his apron and walked to the kitchen doorway, then stopped. He turned back to look at Zhou Yan and said, "Zhou Yan, back when you were first learning to cook, I was a little strict with you. I said some harsh things. Don't take it to heart, okay? It was all for your own good."

"Master, don't worry. I won't use this as an opportunity for revenge," Zhou Yan said reassuringly.

"As long as you know what's what," Xiao Lei said with a smile, then left with Zheng Qiang.

Zhou Yan untied his apron and walked out of the kitchen. Zhou Momo immediately lunged for him and hugged his leg, lifting her feet to hang off him like a little charm. She tilted her head back to look up at him and whined playfully, "Brother, can you take me out to play? They don't let me use the slide during school hours."

"Let your brother catch his breath. He's been busy all morning without a single break," Mrs. Zhao said, handing Zhou Yan an enamel mug. She reached out to take Zhou Momo from him.

"It's no problem. I can take her out for a walk," Zhou Yan said with a smile. He picked up the mug and chugged the large portion of warm water in a few big gulps. It had a hint of sweetness, likely from rock sugar, and he felt much better after finishing it.

He set the mug on the counter, then scooped Zhou Momo up and set her on his shoulders.

The little girl giggled with delight, bobbing her head as she hummed a little tune she'd made up on the spot: "Riding my horsey~ to Rongcheng~ to catch a panda for school!"

'That's totally illegal!'

Zhou Yan chuckled and carried her out the door.

After a short walk along the factory's perimeter wall, the factory-run elementary school came into view. A group of children were in the middle of gym class on the playground—playing hopscotch, climbing poles, and using the slide. The air was filled with their cheerful laughter, and every face wore a bright smile.

Children in this era hadn't yet been forced into the academic rat race. Gym teachers still had some authority and could defend their right to hold their classes.

Zhou Momo's eyes sparkled as she watched the other children. "Brother," she asked wistfully, "why can't I go to school?"

"Does Momo want to go to school now?" Zhou Yan asked with a smile.

"Uh-huh, I want to play on the slide every day," the little girl said, nodding eagerly.

"Okay, then. After the New Year, we'll send you to kindergarten," Zhou Yan said.

"Yay!" Zhou Momo was overjoyed. She leaned down and planted a kiss on Zhou Yan's cheek. "Brother is the best! I'm going to school too!"

The corners of Zhou Yan's mouth lifted. 'I just wonder if she'll still be smiling when she actually has to go to school,' he thought.

Suji had a town kindergarten and one run by the textile factory. Children usually enrolled at age three.

However, there were a lot of children these days and not enough schools, so spots were relatively scarce.

Zhao Tieying and the others had come to town to inquire about it before. Since she missed the age cutoff by a month, they couldn't secure a spot and were told to wait until the following year.

'It's not like it's a government-run kindergarten with ironclad rules. If you pull a few strings, you can get a child in by September.'

'Mrs. Zhao and Comrade Zhou are just too straight-laced.'

'When the schools let out for winter break, I'll figure something out. I'll see if I can pull some strings to get Zhou Momo into the textile factory's kindergarten. It's close by, the school is new, and the facilities are nice.'