Chapter 121: Texas Roasted Chicken

Chapter 121: Chapter 121: Texas Roasted Chicken

Texas Roasted Chicken is a famous dish, and countless ordinary people and master chefs have delved into its secrets.

You can find it everywhere, from common railway station diners to high-end, top-tier restaurants.

This also means that while the barrier to entry is low, the ceiling for mastery is very high.

An average person can follow a recipe and make a version that tastes pretty good.

But to achieve both beauty and flavor is another matter entirely—

In Li Shan’s eyes, this Texas Roasted Chicken was beautifully and elegantly shaped. It rested on the plate like a duck playing in the water, its form even more firm and perfect than the one he’d had from the esteemed Ren Yunqing!

And based on his experience, to maintain such a perfect shape without falling apart, this Texas Roasted Chicken most likely couldn’t meet the strict standard of being "so tender the meat falls off the bone"!

He was therefore brimming with confidence, fully charged and ready to launch a barrage of criticism...

But as a result, the moment his chopsticks touched it, the chicken meat cascaded away from the bone like a blossoming flower!

This left Li Shan not just dumbfounded, but with his chopsticks frozen in mid-air!

He’d eaten so many Texas Roasted Chickens in his life, but this was the first time he had ever encountered such a scene!

Livestream Comments:

[What’s wrong? Why did Teacher Li Shan suddenly go quiet?]

[Teacher, say something!]

[Don’t tell me the production team threatened him!]

[That’s too much! All he did was criticize a few dishes, and the production team resorts to personal threats! Watch out, I’m calling the cops!]

[I’m speechless... I’m witnessing the classic scene ’The Birth of a Rumor’ unfold live in the comments.]

[Who’s threatening him? Maybe your teacher just got a taste of his own toxic medicine?]

...

"Ahem."

Li Shan cleared his throat and came back to his senses.

He was composed enough to manage a calm smile for the camera:

"My apologies. I suddenly remembered I might have left the stove on at home. I’ll have to quickly send a message to my wife and ask."

He made a joke, professional yet humorous, which not only made the viewers in the livestream laugh but also deftly glossed over the fact that he had just been stunned into silence.

Then, Li Shan raised his chopsticks and continued his tasting.

Because the chicken was already so tender it fell off the bone on its own, he effortlessly picked up a large piece of meat from the bottom of the plate.

The chicken, stewed for hours, had a ruddy and glossy skin. You could sense that every fiber of the meat was soaked in broth, clinging to it without dripping, as if it had absorbed all the essence into itself.

He put the chicken in his mouth. The moment he bit down, a rich aroma shot straight to the crown of his head. It was so fragrant that his very soul felt dizzy and disoriented, as if he were drunk.

No, it was even more intense than being drunk!

Every cell in his body was soothed by the deliciousness, making him feel so light he could fly, completely immersed in pure sensory pleasure.

Even Li Shan, who had come in with a prepared script, was a little dazed by the aroma and nearly spoke the truth...

"Ugh!"

He accidentally bit the tip of his tongue.

It hurt, but more importantly, it jolted him back to his senses.

Remembering the purpose of his visit, Li Shan swallowed hard, fighting to keep his spirit from being captured.

"The flavor is not bad."

As was his routine, the first sentence was always a compliment.

What followed, however, was anything but:

"But there are problems. The cooking time was excessive, making the meat so soft it has no texture to speak of. Besides the relatively strong aroma, there are too many flaws. For instance, the spices are overpowering, the malt sugar is too sweet..."

Li Shan went on and on with his critique.

Unlike his relatively tactful comments earlier, this time, he was firing on all cylinders!

He probably knew that this Texas Roasted Chicken was one of the restaurant’s signature dishes.

He hadn’t commented much on the previous signature dishes.

But now, with this Texas Roasted Chicken, he felt he had to launch a critique!

Li Shan’s words were sharp and scathing, making the dish sound almost worthless!

Combined with the groundwork he’d laid earlier, his critique, at first listen, had a deceptive ring of truth to it, leading listeners to instinctively feel he had a point!

「Not far away.」

Fu Chao and Qi Pei’er, who had been eavesdropping with pricked ears, heard everything clearly.

They couldn’t help but grit their teeth as anger surged within them.

If they weren’t mindful of the cameras, the two of them would have probably marched right up to Li Shan to confront him!

「Backstage.」

The production crew members, including Xu Lin, were all full of regret.

They thought his earlier comments weren’t too harsh, but they hadn’t expected Li Shan to take such a sharp, critical turn.

’If only we’d known, we should have cut the camera away, even if it meant getting chewed out later!’

Just look at what the live comments were saying now:

[I’ve had Texas Roasted Chicken before. It’s just okay, I guess.]

[I feel like everything Teacher Li Shan is saying makes sense!]

[Yeah, he’s a bit harsh, but as a customer, he has the right to review it.]

[I can’t take it anymore. I’m turning off the stream. Bye.]

[I even bought a plane ticket to Yanjing to visit Nan Family’s Small Restaurant, but now...]

[Me too. His review totally killed my mood. I guess you really can’t trust the illusions created by variety shows.]

...

The viewership in Nan Zhi’s livestream was steadily dropping.

Some viewers switched to other guests’ streams.

Others simply closed the stream, preferring to see no evil.

Everyone was feeling disheartened.

Just then, a man at the table next to Li Shan’s slammed his hand on the table and stood up, his furious shout exploding like a clap of thunder:

"That’s utter bullshit!"

Li Shan was in the middle of his eloquent speech.

Caught completely off guard by the cursing, he looked up in a daze and glanced around.

He thought a conflict had broken out nearby.

He took a closer look.

’Huh?’

’The person being glared at is... me?’

"Are you... Are you cursing at me?"

Li Shan pointed at himself in disbelief.

At the next table was a chubby older man, perhaps in his sixties. He had a kind and benevolent face, but when he got angry, he possessed a surprising amount of authority!

The older man slammed his hand on the table again:

"That’s right! I’m talking to you! Some food critic you are! The words coming out of your mouth are complete and utter bullshit!"

He made no effort to lower his voice, drawing the attention of many other diners.

Everyone stopped eating to watch.

Normally, Fu Chao and Qi Pei’er should have stepped in to defuse the conflict and maintain order.

But seeing that Li Shan was the one getting chewed out, they were filled with nothing but satisfaction!

"Oh, that table is out of tea. I’ll go get them a refill!"

"Did Nan Zhi just ring the service bell? I’ll go check in the back."

Whether it was refilling tea or heading to the kitchen,

neither task stopped them from glancing back over their shoulders to watch the spectacle as they walked.

Even the declining viewership on the livestream came to a halt—

everyone was watching Li Shan.

Li Shan’s face flushed red with anger and embarrassment.

At any other time, he would have already launched into a haughty, scathing tirade.

But now, knowing the cameras were on him, he feigned an expression of angry helplessness:

"Sir, even if you like this restaurant’s food, there’s no need to curse me out to my face, is there? I am a professional food critic. Reviewing dishes is my job! Or is this a world where only praise is allowed, and criticism is forbidden?"

He puffed out his chest and held his head high, adopting an air of lofty, righteous arrogance.

Unfortunately for him, the older man wasn’t buying it at all:

"A food critic? A guy like you who just spouts lies and nonsense?"