Chapter 863 - 746: Training Apprentices (2)

Fu Yu didn’t want to discourage him, but couldn’t lie either, so he gently said, "Well, it might be after the New Year when you can try your hand at it. It’s unlikely you’ll directly take orders at the stove."

Jin Yu nodded repeatedly, "That’s fine, as long as I get hands-on experience. Whether I take orders or not is not important."

Seeing his delighted expression, Fu Yu sighed... No matter what, having such a motivated mindset is a good thing and deserves encouragement.

...

The news Yao Shi announced in the morning brought the interns over by two in the afternoon.

Since the two schools signed temporary internship contracts with several restaurants and hotels simultaneously, there were a total of ten interns sent to Qianlima.

Six of them were from the tourism school and thus were assigned to the front hall.

The other four were from the culinary school and were immediately taken to the back kitchen.

One must say, they were indeed young students and looked especially fresh.

Four interns, with Zhao Meng and Gu Yunwu each taking two.

Gu Yunwu usually handled the surface-level work; since it was a short-term internship, as long as they could work, it didn’t matter what they were like. So he smiled and let Zhao Meng choose first.

Zhao Meng casually pointed at the two standing next to him and said, "These two."

Gu Yunwu had no objections and took the interns back to assign work.

Zhao Meng examined his two interns and then pointed at one, looking at Sun Qingning, "Xiaosun, you’ll take him under your wing and teach him more often."

Sun Qingning was thrilled at the intern assigned to him, who appeared more agile, and quickly replied, "Sure, Chef Zhao, don’t worry."

As for the remaining one, Zhao Meng handed him directly to Fu Yu but still gave him a bit of advice after a glance, "You’ll follow Fu Yu from now on! Be diligent and learn as much as you can."

The intern was startled and quickly replied, "I will!"

Fu Yu felt a bit helpless, but Zhao Meng calmly said after assigning, "Chef Yao already instructed us; when it comes to assessments, we have to maintain appearances."

Fu Yu nodded, "Understood, I’ll do my best!"

Zhao Meng was finally pleased...

Watching the little chubby intern smiling at him with a flattering expression, Fu Yu couldn’t help but sigh, feeling somewhat emotional inside.

No choice, those who are capable should work more!

Moreover, although this little chubby seemed a bit clumsy, he looked fair and plump, quite festive, which was actually nice.

The little chubby eagerly greeted Fu Yu, "Hello, Chef Fu! I’m Sun Mingze."

Fu Yu asked with a smile, "Hmm, have you already completed a year in school?"

Sun Mingze replied quickly, "Yes, just advanced half a semester, still have a year and a half before graduating."

Fu Yu nodded, "You’re quite capable, being sent by your school to intern."

Sun Mingze chuckled foolishly, "Mainly my teacher takes good care of me. For this internship, our major selected twenty people in total, and our class only got eight spots. Originally, the teacher didn’t plan to send me, but I negotiated with them myself."

Upon hearing this, Fu Yu was immediately intrigued.

Sun Mingze had some similarities with Li Linfeng in being quite bold in speaking, although Li Linfeng looked somewhat better, without the fair, festive appearance of the chubby.

"You’re pretty brave, recommending yourself to the teacher."

"When there’s a chance, you’ve got to find ways to fight for it! My own conditions aren’t particularly outstanding, without opportunities, I have to create them myself."

Sun Mingze had an excellent mindset, although he hadn’t left school yet, his simplicity and purity were evident, speaking whatever came to mind.

He probably felt Fu Yu was quite young, thus speaking more casually.

"Chef Fu, you don’t seem much older than me. I’m 21 this year, how old are you? A few years older than me?"

Fu Yu smiled, "Two years older, but with New Year’s approaching, aren’t you going home to reunite with your parents?"

Sun Mingze cheerfully said, "I’ll be able to go home after graduation, by then there’ll be plenty of time to see my parents. But such internship opportunities might only come once before graduation, I don’t want to miss it."

"Besides, my home is in a small county, without the large restaurants like here in Bei’an. After graduation, if I want to intern, places like this are hard to get into."

"I really cherish this internship opportunity, and I’ve already talked it over with my family. I won’t go home for Spring Festival this year, as the store is closed on the first day of the lunar new year, I’ll go home then instead."

Fu Yu nodded; this chubby really was something, at least very clear-headed, optimistic, and cheerful, with several good ideas.

...

The back kitchen is truly a place that trains people!

Just past two, after distributing the interns, the order clerks began delivering orders within an hour.

Fu Yu took over two regular customer orders: one from the red side and a takeaway order from the grilling section.

The whole back kitchen plunged into busyness again.

Though Sun Mingze was new, he practiced cutting blocks most at school, so Fu Yu, knowing the situation well, sent him to cut blocks with the other workers.

However, Sun Mingze wasn’t cutting just one item but prepared a bit of everything, with Fu Yu checking his work before assigning specialized tasks based on his skill.

Though Sun Mingze appeared rather average and clumsy, this chubby had plenty of ideas, was articulate and sociable too.

Such a person easily blends in the kitchen, especially with a pleasant nature, and others often like him.

Several workers had a good impression of Sun Mingze, chatting while working.

Soon enough, Sun Mingze understood Zhao Meng’s crew pretty well.

Upon hearing Fu Yu got promoted to take orders independently in just one year, Sun Mingze’s eyes brightened.

As Fu Yu checked again, Sun Mingze seemed increasingly warm towards him, and unbeknownst to anyone, started addressing himself as an apprentice.

Moreover, Sun Mingze called Fu Yu "Master" with such enthusiasm that even Zhao Meng glanced over.

Fu Yu quite enjoyed it; who doesn’t like being appreciated and admired?

At evening meal time, it was busier than ever with frequent unexpected events.

Fu Yu just returned from the grilling section when he heard the back kitchen had another issue.

A customer ordered steamed fish without garlic; however, the order clerk failed to note, and when the fish was served, the customer immediately complained for a remake.

Another small party order initially requested four dishes and a soup, then extended two tables once acquaintances arrived, ordering twenty dishes, two soups, and three main courses as an extra-large banquet.

Fortunately, the back kitchen was experienced and fully staffed today, so handling it was swift.

Fu Yu managed the regular customer orders alongside Zhao Meng for the large banquet cooking.

Meanwhile, Sun Qingning and Jin Yu continued handling the first and second rounds of oil fry work.

Workers likewise attended to their roles, from the back kitchen start without a chance to rest, continuously cutting blocks and preparing ingredients.

The combined party consisted of college students reuniting during the winter holidays, running into acquaintances, gathering together for revelry.

After continuous additions, the private room’s waitress was quite surprised.

Goodness!

They sure eat a lot!

Eight or nine people cleared twenty dishes!

Luckily, bonuses here depended on sales; the more customers ordered, the higher their spending, and the more substantial the service commission.

Realizing this, waitresses and runners smiled brightly, their service enthusiasm could hardly be more welcoming.