The Rise and Fall of the Last Imperial Cook

32. Find Compradors

Translator: Luo Yixin

Proofread by Peter Gong

The crowd doesn’t react at first. It takes about three or four seconds before someone realizes what Xu Zhiwei is showing at one fling. The man couldn’t help but shout ‘‘Bravo’’. It is the head of the few gangsters who makes the sound.

After the first “Bravo”, the crowd cries “Bravo” several times again. After a while, surprise, applause, and praise fill the whole Shengxin Restaurant.

Xu Zhiwei slowly lays down the knife in his hand, with the edge outwards. He is trying to show the gangsters that the red paper covering the knife edge still remains intact.

With a hurried glance, the gangsters are squeezed away by others who come for congratulations. They all gather to have a look at Xu Zhiwei’s knife that hasn’t cut through the red paper. At this time, the knife assumes certain magic power in their eyes, and it is even more miraculous than Xu Zhiwei’s “splashing water on the bean curd roll”, so that they completely ignore the presence of those gangsters.

It could not deter the gangsters by the cook’s picking up the knife for his boss. Xu Zhiwei knows that he should consider the last resort. But he has neither ability nor courage to chase after these gangsters with a knife like Liu family who runs a shop selling knives and scissors, so he has to try out his unique technique of using knives.

Dry roll of bean curd is the most suitable material, he thinks. Only this kind of soft material can be chopped apart through a layer of paper. The surface of the chopped roll is rough but actually sticky. Besides, the moisture of the dry roll is squeezed out during the process, and its weight gets lighter, which is also conducive to the stickiness. With the first chop at the dried roll, the success of “splashing water on the roll” is actually within Xu’s expectation.

The chopping process is not without thrills. Later, someone unfolds that knife wrapped in red paper, which has only one layer left. It’s just that the remaining layer is in the outermost, while the broken layers are hidden inside, so that the crowd can’t tell the difference.

However, Xu Zhiwei knows it clearly. He felt something wrong with the touch of the knife falling on the dry roll, so he stopped halfway. Although the outermost layer seems to be the direct contact surface, it is not broken because it is adjacent to the dry roll. The innermost layer collided with the knife edge, so it broke quickly. Fortunately, with the blunt cutting edge and large red paper with many layers, Xu Zhiwei could chop out a handful of dry rolls.

Xu Zhiwei’s knife skill allows him to chop such refined dry rolls even with a blunt knife wrapped in paper, which really scares those gangsters. With a sharp knife in hand, is there anything Xu could not chop? Mr. Liu, the owner of the knife and scissor shop, could only be regarded as fierce when chasing after others with a knife. When it comes to knife skill, the cook can sharpen their heads into the shape of duck eggs in an instant, let alone claim their lives.

Frightened, they don’t react to the crowd who ignore and push them. Instead, they retreat to the gate, ready to take this opportunity to escape.

“Wait! Don’t go!” Just as the gangsters are about to slip away, a shout suddenly comes from behind, which freezes them in place where they stand, shivering. It is Zhu Shengpeng who shouts. He hurries over and stops the gangsters with a flattering smile, “Today is our opening day, and your presence is a great honor to us. How could you leave without a sip of tea? Wouldn’t it be our breach of etiquette?”

“What the hell do you want?” The head asks alertly.

“This is not the place for conversation. Come with me to a private parlor. I will have good wine and delicacies prepared for you. Come on!” Zhu Shengpeng leads the gangsters in while giving orders.

Not only are the gangsters confused about his deeds, but also Xu and Cai fail to understand what he is going to do. They eventually scare the gangsters away, why does Zhu keep them from leaving? However, Xu and Cai know that Zhu Shengpeng, as a steady and prudent man, must have his own reason for doing so. Without expressing any doubt, they immediately prepare wine and delicacies according to his orders and send them to the private parlor. Such mutual trust is necessary among partners. Many joint restaurants fail to operate simply due to the lack of mutual trust.

The gangsters hesitate for a while, and finally enter the parlor at the warm invitation of Zhu Shengpeng. Exchanging pleasantries, Zhu gets the information that the gangster head’s name is Shuishuantou (Water Bolt).

Almost all the gangsters come from Shandong province. At that time, people from Shangdong seeking a livelihood in Shanghai account for the highest proportion, but they also account for the highest proportion of those who fail to seek a livelihood. In the end, most of the beggars on the street are from Shandong. Shanghainese call Shandong people “Sai Deng Ning”, which is similar to ‘‘lower class people’’ (Xia Deng Ren) and ‘‘third-class people’’(San Deng Ren) in the pronunciation of Shanghai dialect. Besides, foreigners call them beggars in English, and the word “beggar” pronounces similarly Bie San in Chinese, thus “Bie San” actually becomes an equivalent to “inferior people”. The gangster clique of such people is actually equal to the beggar gang. In this way, the term ‘‘Bie San’’ means a gangster.

But Shuishuantou is not from Shandong. He is a native Shanghainese. His family used to live on a small boat for shrimping and clamming in the inland river. Later, the boat getting broken and his parents turning old, his brothers had to go ashore to find a way out. In the past days, people living on the water were ignorant and clumsy, and they could only do some heavy manual labor to make a living. However, Shuishantou is unwilling to do physical work, so he hangs out with the gangsters in the street market, playing tricks of bumping, bullying and blackmailing. He barely scrapes by on money and food gobbled up from others. There is no problem for the Shandong people in the gang to fight with strong limbs, but they could not survive if fighting alone. In many cases, they still need a developed brain.

When Shuishuantou was found to have both brawn and brain, he was elected to be the head. “Big Shui, let’s go straight to the point. There is one little thing that we need to discuss.’’ After a few drinks under their belt, Zhu Shengpeng comes to the point.

“What thing to discuss?” His relieved nerve tightens again. The wine is a Greek gift which is to trap him, Shuishuantou thinks. Other gangsters put down their wine glasses and stop chewing quickly.

“Hahaha, it is a good thing, a thing that makes us a fortune.” Zhu Shengpeng lightens the mood with his deliberate laughter.

“Make a fortune?”

“Yes, both you and me. A mutually beneficial thing.” Zhu Shengpeng says with certainty, “We have to purchase a large amount of fresh vegetables for the restaurant every day. But we are all outsiders, and those native sellers would take advantage in terms of price and quality. Boss Shui, as a local, and other bosses who have been on the street for a long time, receive respect from everyone. If you can come forward, you will definitely make the deal at the lowest price. I can provide you a list every day, and you just need to get the ingredients as written on the list. That’s it. No matter how low the price is, I will pay you at the market price, all in cash.”

After a slight pause, Zhu Shengpeng adds, “You just need to ensure that these ingredients must be fresh, since our chef is particular about that.”

By this time, it can be seen that Zhu Shengpeng is absolutely a thoughtful businessman. Yuan Mei, a gourmet of Qing Dynasty, once wrote in Suiyuan Food List: “For a table of delicious dishes, the chef’s contribution ranks sixth, and the comprador’s contribution ranks fourth.” That is to say, good ingredients also play an important role in making a delicious dish in addition to cooking skills. Zhu Shengpeng and Cai Renxin can buy the valuable ingredients such as dried seafood. For one thing, the price differs so greatly that they can’t totally trust other compradors; for another, they are thorough experts in this kind of business, and there is nothing that can hide from their eyes. They will worry if it is undertaken by others.

But a restaurant features ingredients such as chicken, duck, fish and seasonal vegetables. The large quantity and absolute freshness overshadow the low grade and low price. The importing ship of vegetable having been monopolized by the Green Gang, it is impossible to get first-hand ingredients from there. Besides, it takes a period of time for the ship carrying ingredients from other places to arrive, which causes staleness of fresh goods as a result. However, local ingredients are of low output and high price. Sometimes you cannot buy in even if with a lot of money, since many local vegetable farmers are self-sufficient that they don’t sell their products on the market.

Xu Zhiwei took over the knife for Zhu Shengpeng, and Zhu quickly got to know where the gangsters came from after he was back. Then it occurred to him that dealing with these gangsters is a great trouble to them. Even if Xu Zhiwei gets them away today, the troublesome rogues would harass them other days, overtly or covertly. For a restaurant, a dirty trick may ruin its reputation, so they must find a way to appease them or establish a mutually beneficial relationship.

Then he thought of the comprador who would buy daily ingredients. With a short opening time and a poor local popularity, they cannot quickly form a fixed supply channel like other restaurants. And outsiders like him would certainly be bullied when buying local ingredients in the market. However, it is not the same story for these gangsters like Shuishantou. They might get the freshest vegetables, chicken, duck and fish from the suburbs even without spending money. So he can give them the purchase list and get a good name at the same time. As for the market price, it is to evade expensive goods. But it is still profitable to Shuishantou, so he will definitely do his best.

To put it bluntly, Zhu Shengpeng wants to build his fixed supply channel with the deterrent effect of Shuishantou. Having been messing around for a long time, the gang has certain leverage, even without a good name. In this way, they can guarantee the daily supply of ingredients, as well as spare themselves other troubles in the future. If necessary, the gang may also come in handy for other purposes.

At the end of the talk, Zhu Shengpeng mentions the picky chef Xu Zhiwei, which acts as a deterrent to them so that they would not foist the inferior ingredients on them to double the profit by taking advantage of both the seller and the restaurant.

Merely thinking for a while, Shuaishuantou reaches the agreement with Zhu Shengpeng. They fool around on the street every day, narrowly getting by even without fixed income. The source of income provided by Zhu Shengpeng is a reliable guarantee for them. No matter what happens, the income is stable. After the opening of Shanghai port, more and more people come here to make a living, and more and more fail to make it. And those failures can only hang around on the streets of Shanghai, and the life of Shuishuantou and others is getting more and more difficult.

In the past, they controlled more than 20 streets, but after the emergence of other gangs, their dominion is shrinking. Therefore, the income source road provided by Zhu Shengpeng, like a pie in the sky, is timely and important to them. In addition, the shrewd Shuishuantou knows clearly that with their little tricks they can benefit a lot by reselling goods to Shengxin Restaurant. Their coming today is not unsuccessful, instead, they find a larger and longer wallet.

With two strings of firecrackers set off at the gate, it is the time to open the kitchen. Xu Zhiwei lights an incense stick, offers water, oil, and sugar on the stove to worship the Kitchen God, and then lights the stove. While Xu Zhiwei is preparing in the kitchen, Zhu Shengpeng and Cai Renxin pull down the red silk from the plaque in the hall.

At this time, everyone sees that the plaque is not the statue of God of Wealth, nor the statue of Peng Zu, but an inscription of the restaurant motto: “Eat no rice but is of the finest quality, nor meat but is finely minced. Taking ingredients sufficient, fresh and authentic, being honest, humble and upright. Cook all kinds of tastes in the world, earn a reputation for Shengxin Restaurant.”

On the opening day, Xu Zhiwei shocks the surrounding streets with “operating knife through paper” and “splashing water on rolls”, and then he makes a name of “pork ribs in sauce” and “smooth gluten” with the inviting fragrance.

The two dishes sound to be ordinary without rhetoric names, but they get the name with the joint decision of Xu, Zhu and Cai, since an ordinary name appears to be down to earth. The customers can easily identify the ingredients and thus feel a sense of trust and intimacy without an unreliable superiority.

In fact, the procedure of the two dishes is not at all ordinary. Pork ribs in sauce combines the features of “Neon Covering Golden Beams” and “Pork Chop with Tea Fragrance”, simplifying the procedure, replacing tea with sauce and sugar. Smooth gluten comes from “Three Fresh Stewed in Thick Juice”. The original name is so not clear enough that people could not know its ingredients at the name. This makes the dish a mystery that the diners dare not order for fear that they may be fooled or overcharged. However, it is different when ‘‘gluten’’ directly appears in the name of the dish. This allows diners to immediately get the information of its main ingredients and reasonable price. The cooking method has not changed much, and its main ingredients have remained the same as before, but the proportion of the gluten has been increased, which matches its name. In addition, the thickness of soup gets increased, and its taste becomes more sweet and delicious.

Those who have the priority to eat the dishes are the congratulating guests, but they don’t pay much attention to “pork ribs in sauce” and “smooth gluten”. To follow their hearts, they will feel that every dish in Shengxin Restaurant is delicious, and every dish is unique in form and taste. This owes to the superb cooking skills of Xu Zhiwei and the deliberately arranged serving order of dishes. Each dish is related to other dishes served before and after, achieving the effect of pushing, turning, overlapping, or extending in terms of taste. So the guests experience an endless journey as if sightseeing wonderful scenery along the way. And when Shengxin Restaurant finally recommends the two special dishes, many people make a little shrug, thinking that there are many other dishes exceeding the two.

In fact, Xu Zhiwei knows that some dishes might be better than “pork ribs in sauce” and “smooth gluten”, but it is because of the use of upscale ingredients, such as black ginseng, jade back, and southern hams. Such dishes could not be promoted in their restaurant and their business circle. However, the two dishes, “pork ribs in sauce” and “smooth gluten”, suit their restaurant properly. The price is moderate and affordable, and their actual profit is not low yet.

In addition, there is another reason that Xu Zhiwei introduces the two as special dishes. Shanghai has a sauce suitable for cooking the two dishes, a sauce that is not inferior to that of Beibu Sauce Farm in Liangxi, Wuxi. There have been many sauce farms created by the “Salt Gang” in Shanghai and the “Ning Gang” in Ningbo, who produce fresh and delicious soy sauces. However, Xu Zhiwei believes that the best soy sauce should be the local “Qian Wanlong” in Gaodong Town after his taste and judgement. This is not to say that Qian Wanlong soy sauce exceeds Salt Gang and Ning Gang in all aspects, but that it is more suitable for cooking the two special dishes. Appropriate seasonings can often increase the confidence of the chef, and the specialty dishes he cooks can be more delicious.

“Pork ribs in sauce” and “smooth gluten” arouse a good response among those guests. Anyone who has once ordered the two dishes leaves a favorable comment, and later those who come to eat the two dishes would even take away a second order. Although some residents in the surrounding area can’t come frequently, they will also take a bowl to order the dishes back home.

As Xu Zhiwei has expected, the two dishes, thick and juicy, fresh and sweet, meet people’s dietary tastes. It is easy to stimulate their taste buds if they have not eaten other dishes or have just simple side dishes.

Therefore, it is not surprising that Shengxin Restaurant becomes a hit after its opening, since Xu Zhiwei has set two hooks with the two special dishes. Later, they will cast a net with more delicious dishes.