Border Cook

Xia Mingyue paused and said, "Ten taels of silver is indeed a bit too much. Principal Zhou, you don't have to spend so much money. Just pay me according to the wages of an ordinary cook. But in my spare time, I would like to study with the teacher or students and learn more words. I hope Principal Zhou will agree."

Now that you have arrived at the county school, you must seize the opportunity and learn this skill well.

This way, it will be very convenient to write franchise documents, negotiate business with others, or even buy a few books for leisure and entertainment in your spare time.

Seeing this, Zhou Zhiqing nodded repeatedly, "Then let's do as Madam Xia said."

Although he was the principal of the county school and his monthly salary was not small, he liked reading and loved calligraphy and painting even more. He spent a lot on these things on weekdays. Occasionally, he had to help students who were smart and studious but came from poor families. So his purse was indeed not very full.

Ten taels of silver was the number he said after gritting his teeth.

Now, Zhou Zhiqing was naturally happy that he could help Xia Mingyue learn to read and write in exchange for the ten taels of silver.

Although Xia Mingyue is a businessman, he also knows how to study and make progress. He knows the benefits of reading and writing for people. He is indeed an intelligent person with a long-term vision.

Zhou Zhiqing smiled and said, "When the time comes, I will personally teach Madam Xia how to read and write."

In this way, he had ample opportunities to go to the canteen frequently.

He taught her wholeheartedly, and Madam Xia was grateful. She would probably cook for him once or twice in private and prepare some other food...

Zhou Zhiqing felt refreshed when he thought about the wonderful life in the future.

Even when he left Xia Mingyue's house and headed to the county school, he always had a big smile on his face.

This made Dai Changnian, who met Zhou Zhiqing at the county school, a little confused. "The principal is so happy today. Could it be that the results of the autumn examination have come out and the students have performed brilliantly?"

Zhou Zhiqing felt that he had lost his composure, but was afraid that Dai Changnian would notice something, so he quickly put away his smile.

However, the corners of his mouth could not be suppressed no matter what, so he could only lower his head slightly, "The results of the autumn examination have not been announced yet, but I see that the students are still studying hard at this time, and I am very pleased."

"Indeed." Dai Changnian nodded in approval.

The autumn examination has passed. Logically speaking, this is the time for students to relax and wait for the announcement of the results.

But the students in the entire county school were still studying hard, day and night.

When asked why, the answers were different but the general idea was the same.

If I can make it onto the list of the imperial examination this autumn, I will have to prepare for the imperial examination next spring, and I certainly cannot slack off in my studies.

If I fail this time, I will have to study harder to prepare for the exam next spring.

What's more, reading is the best way to grow your mind, understand things and broaden your horizons. Reading at any time is beneficial to yourself, and time is fleeting, so you must not waste it.

Such a response was indeed enough to make Dai Changnian, a teacher, feel gratified.

Dai Changnian also felt that the headmaster was probably happy about this matter, so he stopped talking and just smiled and said, "The headmaster has been out for a long time. I just heard from the servant that the headmaster went out because of the canteen. Is he going to find a cook who can cook for the canteen?"

"Exactly."

When Zhou Zhiqing mentioned this, he could only turn his face away and said, "I have found a cook who suits my taste. She will be able to work in the canteen tomorrow."

"That's good." Dai Changnian breathed a sigh of relief.

In the past few days, although all the students seemed to be studying hard, the discipline was much lax because they had to go out for three meals a day, which made Dai Changnian very worried.

He was worried that if things continued like this, the lax state would affect the students' study. "I just don't know how good this cook is at cooking." Dai Changnian frowned again.

"I picked it myself, so you can be assured." Zhou Zhiqing said hurriedly, "Let's not talk about other things, but the craftsmanship will definitely satisfy you."

"But I suddenly remembered that I still have some things to take care of. Master Dave, please go ahead."

After saying this, Zhou Zhiqing didn't give Dai Changnian any chance to speak again. After bowing slightly, he hurried back to his own yard.

Dai Changnian bowed and saw him off. After a long time, he stroked his beard, which had become a little thinner due to his busy schedule in recent days.

It is often said that a true friend is the hardest to find in the world, but God was very kind to him and gave him many close friends.

For example, Mr. Shen and Mr. Zhou are both people who can agree with his views, which is rare.

It’s rare...

Dai Changnian smiled knowingly and decided to tell all the students during the afternoon class the good news that the canteen would be open for lunch again tomorrow at noon.

After hearing the news, all the students looked calm on their faces, but their hearts were like a thousand horses galloping and they couldn't calm down for a long time.

They thought that during the time when Chef Wei was away, they could go out to find food at will, and eat peacefully at Xia Ji's food stall for a while.

But now, but now...

Happy times are always too short.

It's regrettable and missed.

Many students discussed taking time out tomorrow to go to Xia Ji's to buy some more food.

Even if the county school doesn't allow you to bring food in, you can still eat as much as you want outside. Eat until you're full and make it through the whole lunch hour!
Watching everyone busy discussing tomorrow's affairs, a student named Zhu Guangyuan turned a page of the book disapprovingly and said quietly, "Have you ever thought that maybe the new cook this time is better than Chef Wei's cooking?"

When these words were spoken, everyone fell silent for a while, and then burst into laughter.

"Brother Guangyuan, you don't have to trust anyone, but you must trust the ideas of Shanzhang and Master Dai."

"That's right. How could Shanzhang and Master Dave possibly find a cook who can cook delicious meals?"

"Don't worry, the sun still rises from the east!"

"I think you should go to bed early. You can have all kinds of dreams..."

Listening to the chatter of others, Zhu Guangyuan rubbed his ears and blinked his eyes.

Shanzhang and Master Dave naturally wouldn't specifically look for a cook who could cook delicious dishes, but Chef Wei's cooking skills were not very good and the food he made was unpalatable. It would probably be difficult to find a cook whose cooking skills were worse than Chef Wei's.

All in all, if the food is to be compared with Xia Ji’s, it is definitely not as tasty. But if compared vertically, it will probably be better than Chef Wei’s, which is a good thing, right?
But now, people don’t seem to care about these things and only compare the new cook with those outside.

There is no comparison at all. How can people be so greedy?
Zhu Guangyuan raised his eyebrows, "How about we make a bet?"

"What are you gambling?"

"Let's bet that the new cook's food will definitely be better than Chef Wei's." Zhu Guangyuan said with a smile, "Those who agree can write their names on this piece of paper, and those who disagree can write their names on another piece of paper. No matter what the result is, the losers must complete the copying of the winner. How about it?" (End of this chapter)