After a short break, the photographers will take the eliminated contestants to record some brief clips, which will be edited into the show later. The advancing contestants will also discuss their thoughts on the other participants and the judges' evaluations of them.
The selected contestants are all from the popular group, and Jiang Xun's ability to prepare braised beef tendon on an iron plate naturally garnered everyone's attention.
In the afternoon competition, 100 out of the 300 popular contestants will be eliminated.
The judges carefully deliberated and selected 10 dishes, writing them on bamboo sticks.
The contestants will take turns drawing these dishes at random.
They must prepare the dish they draw on the spot.
This is the best way to test their basic skills and professional abilities.
It seems this round of the culinary competition was recruited online.
Most of the participants are young.
Few of them have shown truly impressive skills.
However, young people have their own unique ideas. Many of their fusion dishes were highly praised even by the fusion cuisine masters present.
Jiang Xun was also among the most discussed contestants.
When Liu Chef tasted Jiang Xun's dish, he was quite impressed.
Upon learning that Jiang Xun created the dish purely from imagination, Liu Chef became even more convinced of the young man's extraordinary talent. He definitely had some real skills.
Just then, someone called Liu Chef aside and said, "You really don't know about Jiang Xun's background, do you?"
Hearing this, Liu Chef's heart skipped a beat. He immediately said, "Tell me the details!"
His expression changed slightly because he had been quite impressed with Jiang Xun.
In their line of work, they often deal with young people, so personal character is of utmost importance.
Sensing there might be some juicy gossip, Liu Chef didn't dare to act rashly.
The chef beside him quickly explained Jiang Xun's relationship with Si Jing and carefully outlined the online buzz surrounding it.
Liu Chef rarely goes online, and with his busy schedule at the kindergarten and tending to the vegetable garden, he really doesn't have much time to browse news online.
So this was the first time he had heard about this incident.
He had never met Si Jing personally, but being in the same industry, he had heard of him.
After listening to the whole story, Liu Chef was at a loss for words: "What kind of situation is this?"
He had initially thought it was another case of an apprentice betraying their master. He didn't expect it was just about refusing an arranged marriage.
Marriage is a serious matter and shouldn't be taken lightly. It should depend on the compatibility between the two young people, not forced upon them.
The Qing Dynasty is long gone; there's no such thing as arranged marriages anymore.
True, Si Jing was the master, but the master-apprentice relationship nowadays is different from the old times.
To cause such a fuss just because Jiang Xun wouldn't marry his daughter – it's embarrassing for the culinary community.
Forcing Jiang Xun to leave, enduring public insults and cyberbullying – why create such unnecessary trouble?
Liu Chef didn't agree with this.
As he was about to leave, someone stopped him. "Si Jing is a petty person. He's previously warned many people not to hire his apprentices. If you support Jiang Xun, aren't you openly challenging him?"
"We're all in the same circle, bound to run into each other. I've seen quite a few promising talents here today. Why not just give up on Jiang Xun?"
Liu Chef replied, "I can't do that kind of thing."
"Maybe there's just a misunderstanding between the master and apprentice. If someone could mediate, the misunderstanding might be resolved."
He could see that Jiang Xun was a promising talent.
Moreover, Jiang Xun seemed straightforward, without ulterior motives.
Unlike the shifty eyes of his previous apprentices, Liu Chef truly wanted to nurture this talent.
Seeing that he couldn't persuade Liu Chef, his friend could only sigh.
But thinking about it, Liu Chef and Si Jing weren't really in the same league anymore.
Liu Chef had moved into the kindergarten sector.
Si Jing was still catering for private events.
If they didn't cross paths, there shouldn't be too many problems.
Indeed, as he got older, he too had started to dislike trouble.
In the afternoon, during the draw, the bamboo sticks were inscribed with various popular online snacks. There were spicy beef, boneless chicken feet, spicy tripe, and so on.
Jiang Xun drew duck necks.
The online audience went wild: "I just ordered a portion. Whoever came up with these dishes must have been looking at my takeout order history!"
"This is great! I can immediately tell which ones are good or not. I consider myself a duck neck connoisseur."
Jiang Xun first braised the duck necks.
After they were cooked, he deep-fried them briefly.
The result was a crispy exterior with a slight reddish sheen.
Still not satisfied, he cut up the duck necks and stir-fried them one more time, creating a spicy stir-fried duck neck dish.
The reddish color was dotted with sesame seeds, making the online audience's mouths water.
"With my 20 years of duck neck eating experience, I can tell these duck necks are definitely delicious."
"He also added a bit of sugar. Is it sweet and sour? I've never had sweet and sour duck necks before."
"It should be sweet, sour, and spicy. He sprinkled some chili powder on top. Actually, everyone can follow along and make this. His steps are quite clear."
"Forget it, I'll just buy some. It's too much trouble. When is he opening a shop? I want to buy this."
Soon, everyone started tasting.
His spicy duck necks received the most praise. The sugar and vinegar weren't as pungent as people had imagined.
Instead, they added a very subtle umami flavor to the spicy duck necks.
It was delicious, and the meat texture was like air-dried duck neck. The meat came off in strands, and one small section could be savored for a long time.
At the judges' table, some were eating boneless chicken feet, others spicy crispy tripe.
But most people's favorite was still the duck neck series.
They all forgot about their image. Despite being dressed up like delicate fairies, when it came to eating duck necks, they showed a 'leave no one behind' attitude.
The online audience was so tempted that they started urging for their orders: "Why hasn't the duck neck I ordered earlier arrived yet?"
"I'm dying of hunger here."
After the second round, Jiang Xun was among the 200 people selected.
This time, Si Jing couldn't sit still anymore. He directly called someone to pass a message to Liu Chef, insisting that Jiang Xun must be eliminated.
