Although Zhao Rang had been traveling around the world for some time away from home, he had never interacted with a cook before. For a moment, he didn't know what topic to use as an introduction, and the two of them could only remain awkwardly silent. The old master was already nervous when facing Zhao Rang. Now he couldn't figure out Zhao Rang's purpose. Seeing him standing still, he stood still too...
Before long, big beads of sweat rolled down his forehead, soaking his collar.
It was only then that Zhao Rang smelled the smell of fireworks coming from the kitchen, and then he realized why he didn't ask the old chef what he had for lunch... As a cook, when he opens his eyes every day, he is thinking about the menu in his mind, and It was the perfect time for him to talk about food.
He immediately got into the kitchen and said to the other cook:
"You go about your business, I'll just take a look."
The young cook and the old master had the same expression on Zhao Rang's face at first, and they were both a little confused. However, the movements in his hands did not stop, and he was cutting a bunch of fresh leeks.
Most people in the Western Regions make a living by nomadic herding, with very little farming. Only among the upper four countries, there is fixed farmland to produce food and supply it to the countries in the Western Regions. As for rare things like vegetables, they had to be purchased from Dawei, transported through Yangguan, and then sent to the merchant alliance to obtain approval before they could enter the Western Regions.
The vegetables sold here have suddenly skyrocketed in value, and ordinary people can't afford it. Only a big family like Tongbao Bank, which has its own farmland in Dawei and the ability to transport it by boat and cart, can enjoy it.
The most popular among them is leeks.
Leeks grow quickly and can be harvested one after another. The taste is also very good, especially if there is too much fishy meat, leeks can relieve the greasiness.
Zhao Rang looked at the leeks on the chopping board, which were already a little wilted. This is caused by the long distance from Dawei to here. Winter is probably okay because of the low temperatures, but now it’s getting closer and closer to the province. Coupled with the dryness of the western region, the harvested leeks will shrink overnight!
However, Zhao Rang saw that the cuts of these leeks were very neat.
Wilted leeks are no better than fresh ones.
Fresh and crisp, it cuts easily. The wilted ones have lost moisture and increased their toughness. When the kitchen knife is dropped, it will definitely slip. Unless the chef's own knife skills are very exquisite, each knife must be adjusted to the optimal angle.
Zhao Rang watched the young cook make several cuts and found that he had no intention of adjusting the angle. He just used his left hand to calculate the distance and then cut downwards one by one. The cut of the leek would be extremely smooth and even.
"Wait a minute!"
Zhao Rang patted him on the shoulder. The sudden contact made the young cook tremble, and then he let go of the kitchen knife in his hand.
If the cook's posture and angle are not adjusted, the problem lies with the kitchen knife. The edge of a kitchen knife must be as thin as possible, so that it can be sharp enough. In addition, it must be forged with good steel, because a cutting edge that is too thin will be brittle! If you are not careful, it will break during use.
If the edge of a kitchen knife could be thin, strong, and tough at the same time, it would take a master to forge the knife!
Surprised, Zhao Rang quickly picked up the kitchen knife and looked at it carefully.
The edge of the blade emits a faint blue light, which is formed by sudden quenching at extremely high temperatures. Zhao Rang carefully fiddled with the blade with his thumb, and a very harmonious sound came out. This is a point that can only be achieved when the blade is thin enough and tough enough at the same time!
"Where did this knife come from?
Zhao Rang shook the young cook desperately, and unconsciously the strength in his hand became a little stronger. The cook screamed in pain.
The old chef who was outside quickly ran in and saw Zhao Rang holding a kitchen knife in one hand and squeezing the cook's shoulder with the other. He knelt down and kowtowed vigorously:
"Sir! My apprentice is ignorant... You have a lot of people, please spare his life, sir! I beg you, sir!"
The clanging sounds of kowtowing and wailing were mixed together, and the whole kitchen seemed to have turned into a Shura field. The little girls who were already hiding, when they heard what the master just said, they completely let go of their voices and ran and screamed.
Such movement finally attracted the guards inside Tongbao Bank.
The leading guard, who of course knew Zhao Rang, stepped forward, cupped his hands, and asked politely:
"Mr. Zhao, I wonder where these two chefs offended you?"
Zhao Rang looked innocent and turned around with the knife in hand.
The guard stared at the kitchen knife in Zhao Rang's hand and couldn't help but swallow.
"look!"
Zhao Rang suddenly raised his hand, and the blade of the kitchen knife reflected a white light, hitting the beam above his head.
As for the guard, it was even more exaggerated... As he stepped backwards, the knife at his waist had been unsheathed subconsciously, and he was holding it in his hand, with the tip pointed directly at Zhao Rang.
"They, no offense!"
Zhao Rang felt that the guards and clerks in the semicolon, as well as a bunch of miscellaneous people, probably all compared him in their hearts to a monster that drank blood and killed people like hemp! Otherwise, how could one of my ordinary actions make the other party so scared?
"I just want to ask about the origin of this kitchen knife!"
After hearing what Zhao Rang said, the guard sheathed his sword with shame, then turned to the two cooks and said:
"Master Zhao wants to know where the kitchen knives you use come from. Just answer truthfully! No... nothing to be afraid of!"
The guard himself said this last sentence very unconfidently.
But in order to answer Zhao Rang's question, he must have both momentum and airs!
"Sir, are you asking about this kitchen knife?"
The old master spoke first.
Zhao Rang nodded.
This kitchen knife is in very new condition. It must have been used not long ago. It may be in a nearby blacksmith shop!
The old master pointed outside, then rummaged in the cabinet on the side, took out a slightly dull kitchen knife, and said:
"Sir, these two kitchen knives were bought from the same person, but there was a gap of several years between them. How many years have passed... oh, my brain is out of control. I can't remember. Anyway, there was a few years!"
Zhao Rang heard that the two kitchen knives were made by the same person, and he immediately became interested. I quickly took it from the old master and compared it with another one.
The old kitchen knife of the old master has some mottled rust. Moreover, the blade is not as thin and light as the later one, and the toughness is of course much worse.
But what shocked Zhao Rang was that if the old master remembered correctly, these two kitchen knives were made by one person. It only took the blacksmith a few years to forge and enter the realm of a great master!
Such progress can be described as rapid.
Even Zhao Rang, a family with a long history of swordsmanship, has never seen a blacksmith who has improved so rapidly.
I immediately changed my mind and thought, if such a person can beg to return to the Zhao family, then his forging skills will definitely improve a lot in the future! Even if there is nothing gained in the Western Region this time, it is a worthwhile trip to bring back a forging master with such skill!
"Master, you must be alone!"
The old cook thought for a while, rolled his dirty eyes a few times, and said firmly:
"It is indeed one person!"
"But that person may not be easy to find..."
Zhao Rang asked:
"Do you know who he is?"
It is not easy to find someone in an unfamiliar place. But if he knows that a person is difficult to find, then he must know this person.
The old cook licked the corner of his mouth and said:
"I don't know him. I bought a knife at that time and thought it was very useful, so I wanted to buy another one to keep. But I couldn't find it. No matter how I looked for it, I couldn't find it. Later I took on an apprentice and came across it by chance. He just bought one for his apprentice!"
Zhao Rang asked:
"Then why don't you get yourself a new one?"
The old cook's kitchen knives were already rusty.
Although it can still be used after re-sharpening, it is not as good as new. What's more, the craftsmanship of those who forge kitchen knives has improved by leaps and bounds in the past few years, and the kitchen knives they create are now different from what they used to be.
"I thought, what cook doesn't like knives! But the man said...it seems to mean that he also accepted an apprentice, so if he has to teach the apprentice in the future, he won't have time to practice knives. My apprentice's one is still his. It’s a gift because I’ve been thinking about him for so many years.”
After finishing speaking, the master did not forget to add:
"They're pretty cool!"
According to the direction pointed by the old master, the guard said it was called Songtaoshan.
Chagan Tologai itself is a mountain nest, surrounded by mountains. However, these mountains are all continuous mountains. When Dawei was at its most prosperous and powerful, the people of the Western Regions once thought of shrinking the border, giving up the entire Lan Mo Kingdom, huddled behind these mountains, and relied on natural barriers to resist.
But Songtaoshan is an exception.
This is the only independent mountain top within a hundred miles around Chagan Tologai. People in the Western Regions are not good at naming places, and they basically use topography and iconic natural existences to name places. The reason why it is called Songtaoshan is because there are only two kinds of trees on the mountain - pine trees and peach trees.
The terrain here is high and densely covered with pines. The wind blows and the sound of the river surges. However, the peach tree was a bit too abrupt. Zhao Rang had never heard of a peach tree growing so tall! In peach orchards in the north of Dawei, before winter approaches, peach trees are protected to prevent them from freezing to death in the long northern winter.
The winter here is of course colder than in the northern part of Dawei, and there will definitely be no one to take care of these peach trees. It is simply a miracle on earth that they can survive!
However, Zhao Rang did not go there rashly. Instead, he called the guard who was familiar with the surrounding terrain and asked:
"Where are the directions around Chagan Tologai going?"
The guard asked back:
"Mr. Zhao, where do you want to go?"
Zhao Rang said:
"You just have to tell me everything from east to west!"
The guard thought for a moment, took the bowls and chopsticks in the kitchen, used them as a reference, and said:
"We're here now!"
"Going to the east is the Lanmo Kingdom, which is the direction you are coming from, Mr. Zhao. Songtao Mountain is here, and it is the only way to go to the other three of the Upper Four Kingdoms!"
"Then go to..."
"Wait a minute, you said that to go to the other three of the Four Kingdoms, you have to go over Songtao Mountain?"
Zhao Rang interrupted the guard's story and asked.
