Cause and Effect, Taking Fugui as Disciple

Chen An felt a bit disappointed hearing the name, because the person from his memories went by the alias Hong Fugui, while this one was Cheng Fugui—they were worlds apart.

Yet, his appearance truly carried the bearing of that old acquaintance, especially this queue hairstyle. He had never seen any fallen person sport such a look; oh wait, he had. In his impressions, it seemed this style had indeed been popular once...

"Why are you here?"

Chen An chose to act as if he hadn't seen the earlier events and asked. Zhu Zhuqing, with tacit understanding, didn't expose him and stood quietly by his side.

"I..."

Cheng Fugui hesitated instinctively, but seeing the bread Chen An handed over, his hesitation faded.

He took the bread and tore into it fiercely, finishing the long loaf in moments. The bread was soft, not the hard, crusty kind. He then took the water, drank a few gulps, and was so moved he nearly shed tears.

"I am an apprentice at the Suotuo Grand Restaurant, and I was just fired."

Fugui closed his eyes and spoke slowly, his tone filled with desolation. Chen An felt there must be a story behind this; otherwise, the restaurant's output wouldn't have been so abysmal after Fugui left.

"Why were you fired? Even if you were fired, you didn't have to leave with absolutely nothing, did you?"

The boy had brought nothing with him, wearing only his thin chef's uniform. The fact that he was sitting here in a place like this instead of going home made the situation even more suspicious.

"I have no home, and I have no property."

Such a situation was normal in Douluo. When commoners or refugees were taken in by Spirit Masters, their future assets would belong to their benefactors. The three teachers in Phantom Star were somewhat similar, though Chen An at least provided them with a salary.

"Earlier, the manager was out on business, and his wife came to boss everyone around. She started meddling according to her own whims, and when I tried to advise her against it, I became a target.

Later, when something went wrong, they pushed me out as the scapegoat. Under threat, I had no choice but to accept the blame."

Fugui's tone was low and mature. It was only natural; he had been drifting on the streets since he was old enough to understand the world, struggling to survive. It wasn't strange for his way of speaking to be mature.

Chen An didn't question the truth of his words. Judging by his face, he wasn't faking it, and the scenes he had witnessed inside the restaurant earlier served as proof.

"Then what do you want to do in the future?"

Fugui's pupils constricted. He didn't understand why he was being asked this, and the question left him stumped. He didn't know what he was going to do next either.

Having offended the largest restaurant in Suotuo City, his career as a chef in this city was effectively over.

No one would hire him. Even if he had been framed, the fact remained that he had been fired. That single point was enough; no one would want him.

"I don't know, but I think I should continue to strive for my dream of being a chef. I don't believe the God of Cookery can only be a Food-type Spirit Master."

He had big dreams, and as he spoke, his gaze grew firm.

"Master, why don't we..."

Zhu Zhuqing whispered to Chen An, but Chen An already had his own plans. He knew this kid's heart was relatively simple—the kind of clarity one could spot at a glance, like looking at an innocent college student.

He had grown up on the streets, but he was still young. If he spent another two years out there, it was hard to say if he would remain so simple. After all, he had already been tainted by some of society's grime.

"Oh, so you're saying you can cook?"

Hearing this, Fugui jolted and kowtowed nimbly.

"I can, sir, I can cook."

He had originally wanted to say "Master," but he had a vague premonition that if he used that title, this stroke of fate would slip through his fingers.

So, he hurriedly changed his words to "sir."

"Hmm, in that case, come along. Let me see what this 'cooking' of yours is like."

Chen An finished speaking and, ignoring the boy's confusion, hoisted Fugui up and brought him to a slightly more secluded spot.

After landing, he realized he had forgotten something. He looked around and noticed something obvious was missing.

"Uh, sorry, sorry, I forgot for a moment."

He returned to the original spot and brought along the bewildered Zhu Zhuqing.

He had been in too much of a hurry earlier and had forgotten her.

"Hmph."

"Hehe."

Chen An felt slightly awkward, and to ease the tension, he looked at the boy, Fugui.

"Please, begin your performance."

He had already laid out a pot, a spatula, three types of vegetables, and some salt, wanting to see how the boy would choose.

To his surprise, Fugui weighed the spatula Chen An gave him, set it aside, and instead summoned his own Spirit—a spatula.

"Interesting."

Chen An thought to himself. The boy's movements weren't bad; although not refined, one could tell he was someone who truly knew how to work.

Someone like this could be called slightly talented, but how far that talent would go remained to be seen over time.

"Sir, the stir-fried greens are ready. Please take a look."

The color was decent, qualifying as a stable, professional output—around the passing mark.

It was the result of the training he had received while at the restaurant.

"Your skills still have room for improvement."

Taking on an apprentice has never been a matter of a single sentence; it is always a process of precise manipulation.

Aside from those who come to offer themselves, which of Zhu Zhuqing or Ning Rongrong didn't make up their minds only after seeing that Chen An was strong enough?

He is not Yu Xiaogang, relying on sweet talk to recruit disciples. Therefore, he now intends to show off a little.

Turning up the heat and picking up the spatula, this is not about processing spirit meat or vegetables rich in spirit power, so there is no need to use spirit power for cooking.

"Done."

He used the style of Cantonese cuisine for the stir-fried greens—simple, flavorful, with the heat control mastered to perfection, and sufficiently fresh.

Fugui looked at this plate of food and blinked, finally understanding Chen An's intentions.

Without any warning, he knelt down and kowtowed with a dull thud, catching Chen An off guard before he could even defend against such a move.

"Master is above, please accept this disciple's bow. I implore you to take me in as your apprentice."

His attitude was very sincere; people like him are even more sensitive to the word "Master," so the tone of his speech was also genuine.

"Uh, get up."

Chen An felt a bit of a headache; this new apprentice had placed himself in a position far too low.

But at this moment, it was better to maintain his dignity as a master.

"Thank you, Master."

He truly wanted to learn the craft and was sincere about the apprenticeship, so there was nothing more to say—since he had accepted, he would just teach.

The main thing was the matter of affinity; had he looked different, Chen An might not have had the thought of taking him on as an apprentice.

But what was more important at this moment was this damned hairstyle. This world had no Qing Dynasty, yet wearing such a hairstyle was just... ugh.

"Uh, Master, this hairstyle was favored by the previous head chef. I will cut it off right now."

As he spoke, he grabbed a pair of small scissors from the kitchen tools and snipped off the Queue.

"Good. Do you have anything else to do? If not, come with me."

Fugui shook his head. He originally had no attachments, so he was ready to go.

On the way, Chen An thought about how to teach Fugui. His heart was set on culinary arts and he had no interest in combat, so giving him a cultivation manual to ensure his speed of practice would be enough.

After all, some ingredients require spirit power to process, so cultivation is still necessary.

"Hm? Something's up?"

On the way back with the two children, Chen An suddenly frowned, then spoke in a low voice.

"Zhuqing, you take Fugui back first and see to his arrangements. I have some business to attend to."

Having said that, he pulled away and vanished in the blink of an eye.