Chapter 122: You Call Yourself a Food Critic?

Chapter 122: Chapter 122: You Call Yourself a Food Critic?

No one can get cursed out to their face and just take it!

Li Shan’s face was livid as he snapped:

"I’m showing you some respect because you’re an old man, but that doesn’t mean I’m scared of you! Taste is a subjective experience! What’s more, I’ve had Texas Roasted Chicken hundreds, if not thousands of times. I know what a truly good one tastes like! If you don’t know, then please stay out of my profession and my work!"

Many people in the bullet comments were agreeing:

[Yeah, Li Shan is a food critic. He’s seen it all, so his palate is definitely more discerning than the average person’s.]

[Why can’t he be harsh on Nan Zhi? The variety show is practically promoting her as a modern-day goddess of cooking! Are we not allowed to have a professional offer their opinion now? A bit too thin-skinned!]

[I think Teacher Li Shan has a point. It’s a big world out there. If it can handle praise, it should be able to handle criticism!]

[This old guy is so annoying. Who does he think he is, throwing his weight around because of his age? It’s true, all the unreasonable troublemakers have just gotten old!]

[Hehehe, I’ve met people like this. They use their age and seniority to just attack everyone. You can’t reason with them. Teacher Li Shan, just ignore him!]

...

The argument even drifted into the ears of Nan Zhi, who was busy in the kitchen.

She temporarily set aside what she was doing, wiped her wet hands on a towel, and walked to the kitchen doorway.

A little tail, Nan Yi, followed closely behind her.

Xie Yu also came along, curious.

They happened to run right into Fu Chao.

Xie Yu frowned and glanced outside.

"What’s going on?"

Fu Chao was concise.

"That food critic from earlier was looking for trouble, and a customer is righteously speaking out!"

His phrasing... one could say his bias was glaringly obvious!

Even the bullet comments went silent for a few seconds because of Fu Chao’s attitude.

Someone spoke up, accusing Fu Chao of being too biased.

Fortunately, Fu Chao had a huge following, tons of fans, and was well-liked by the general public, so a large group of people immediately came to his defense.

"Momma."

Nan Yi clutched Nan Zhi’s hand worriedly, her brows furrowed tightly as she asked,

"Is that man saying bad things about you?"

Nan Zhi comforted her.

"Who cares what he says! Even if they’re bad things, we don’t need to pay them any mind."

Her calm and nonchalant attitude revealed a powerful inner confidence.

Or rather, it was confidence in her professional abilities!

’A joke!’

’She had once reached the pinnacle of the culinary arts in the Otherworld, controlling the fate of a nation as a goddess of cooking. Was she really supposed to care about the paltry criticism of some self-proclaimed food critic?’

’Mere barking!’

Her conviction was contagious, reassuring Nan Yi and also calming the worried Fu Chao and Xie Yu.

Only the audience in the live stream was not too pleased to hear that.

[Nan Zhi is a bit too arrogant. Be careful or you’ll take a fall.]

[Before, her fans could claim it was just the show’s marketing, but now it seems Nan Zhi really thinks she’s a goddess of cooking!]

[Brother Fu, stop giving a thumbs-up, can you just chill for a second... Ah, whatever, it doesn’t matter. I’ll spoil you rotten anyway!]

[Sigh, Nan Zhi is really a bit too brash for her age. She doesn’t realize there’s always someone better out there. You should be more humble.]

...

If Nan Zhi heard someone say she wasn’t humble enough, she would probably laugh out loud.

’Her, not humble enough?’

’If she were truly arrogant, with her skills, she should have just stepped forward, pointed at everyone, and said—’

’Everyone here is trash!’

At this moment, Nan Zhi wasn’t in a hurry at all. She simply leaned against the doorway to watch the show.

Beside her, Fu Chao was cracking his knuckles.

"Don’t worry! If that guy dares to bully the old uncle, I’ll go up there and hit him with a left hook!"

Fu Chao’s fans: ’...Big bro, are you really allowed to say that out loud?’

However, the next development was somewhat unexpected—

The portly old uncle didn’t get into a shouting match with Li Shan. Instead, he calmed down.

On the surface, at least.

His eyes were still filled with contempt for Li Shan.

"Professional? If someone like you can be called a professional, then every food magazine in the world might as well go out of business! You’ve eaten a lot of Texas Roasted Chicken, have you? Then tell me, what are the characteristics of a Texas Roasted Chicken?"

Li Shan had a bad feeling, but he remained stubborn.

"Of course I know! It’s that the meat is tender and falls off the bone!"

"That’s right, the meat is tender and falls off the bone! After being braised over a low fire for a long time, the shape looks intact, but when you lift it with chopsticks, the bones automatically separate! So there’s a fine balance to it—if it’s overcooked, the chicken turns to mush in the pot; if it’s undercooked, the bones won’t come loose! This restaurant’s Texas Roasted Chicken, from the moment it leaves the kitchen to when it’s served, has a perfect and beautiful shape. It’s easy to mistake it for being held up by the bones. But I saw it just now. The moment your chopsticks touched it, without any real force, the meat just slid right off. Is there anything that better embodies the phrase ’the meat is tender and falls off the bone’?"

As he spoke, the old uncle quickly turned, picked up the chopsticks from his table, and put a piece of chicken into his mouth.

He nodded frantically while eating.

"Mmm, the meat is tender and the flavor is mellow, with an aroma that penetrates to the bone. A Texas Roasted Chicken like this is a masterpiece! Even I’ve never had a better one! You just tasted it, and you can still spout all that nonsense? Are you sure you weren’t paid to come here and cause trouble?"

The old uncle, as if filled with righteous indignation, fiercely stuffed two more chopsticks’ worth of chicken into his mouth.

As he chewed, his expression switched back and forth between bliss and anger.

...Because his series of actions was so natural, it never occurred to anyone that the old uncle might be deliberately sneaking extra bites!

A glance at the old uncle’s own table revealed that, hmm, not a single dish had been served to him yet.

Li Shan’s expression was not pretty.

He hadn’t expected the person before him to be a real expert. Every word he said hit the nail on the head, making his own earlier critique seem incredibly shoddy.

But he couldn’t admit it.

This was no longer just about him being paid for a job; it concerned his professional reputation and his entire career!

So he had no choice but to keep up his stubborn act.

"Uncle, I’ll say it again: I’m a professional. My perspective on these dishes is different from that of an ordinary diner. There are some things you just wouldn’t understand!"

The old uncle retorted confidently,

"What could be so different? Isn’t it all just eating? You’ve managed to get a superiority complex from eating something!"

"How can it be the same! I’m a judge for the Gourmet Record!"

Li Shan exclaimed harshly!

The old uncle’s expression froze, then turned strange.

’It was the embarrassing, shameful, and complex feeling of seeing a house collapse, running over to join the crowd of onlookers, only to get closer and realize it was your own house that fell down.’

Li Shan, however, thought his status had finally intimidated the unreasonable old man.

He lifted his chin.

"See, Uncle? You don’t understand my business. This is professional..."

"Who..."

The uncle propped his head on his hand and asked weakly.

Li Shan frowned.

"Who is who?"

"I’m asking you, who was the person who recommended you for the Gourmet Record’s panel of judges! Tell me their name, now!"

The uncle rolled up his sleeves, his furious stance making it clear he was about to go settle a score!