Chapter 102: Unassailable

Bai Renzong gave Han Jiayi a meaningful glance, then cleared his throat, ready to begin.

“W-wait a moment!” Han Jiayi grabbed his wrist nervously and asked, “What are you planning to do?! You should have warned me beforehand! Otherwise, I won’t be able to keep up with your rhythm!”

“Just like usual. I criticize him, and you prove that I’m right,” Bai Renzong frowned.

“Are you sure you want to criticize him? These French dishes are very—authentic!” Han Jiayi said seriously.

“Why emphasize ‘very’ so deliberately?” Bai Renzong said displeased. “Trust me! Stand by and cooperate.”

With that, Bai Renzong turned to the Frenchman and smiled slightly. “Mr. Bissier, as long as you create delicious dishes, everyone will enjoy them. This has nothing to do with whether they suit one’s personal taste. I believe that these French dishes you’ve prepared clearly demonstrate strong fundamental skills, undoubtedly proving your extensive experience as a chef…”

While Bai Renzong spoke, an office lady translated his words on the side.

When she finished, the Frenchman nodded approvingly. But then Bai Renzong’s expression darkened. “However…”

He turned to the empty plates behind him. “These dishes themselves still have shortcomings and room for improvement.”

After hearing the translation, Laurent was momentarily stunned, then laughed heartily. He said something to Bai Renzong with a smile. Though Bai Renzong didn’t understand French, he could tell from Laurent’s tone and expression that the man found him amusing—how dare a young upstart critique me, a chef who’s cooked more French dishes than he’s ever eaten?

“He says you’re really funny…” Han Jiayi whispered the translation.

“I know,” Bai Renzong said calmly.

“Have you studied French?!” Han Jiayi asked in surprise.

“No, but I’ve studied human pretentiousness,” Bai Renzong replied. Then, turning to Laurent, he smiled, “I know you might be thinking, ‘What could this young kid, who’s barely out of his teens and has cooked fewer French dishes than I have, possibly know?’ But I can prove with facts that I’m right.”

He grabbed Han Jiayi’s shoulder and pulled her in front of him. “Coincidentally, this lovely lady by my side is also skilled at French cuisine. If you agree to lend us your kitchen, I will have her prepare the exact same dishes so you can judge for yourself which is better.”

“Lovely lady…” Han Jiayi raised an eyebrow, secretly pleased. Why did he only call me lovely? Don’t I have any other merits?

Laurent exchanged a few words quietly with the translator, then spread his arms in a carefree gesture, meaning “Welcome.”

Although this restaurant was quite famous in Nanhua City, it had only recently opened in Beichang City. Moreover, it was nearly eight o’clock, and the dining room was nearly empty, so lending the kitchen to them was no problem.

The two of them then went to the kitchen, where the other chefs respectfully stepped aside.

“This is your domain. I can only give you suggestions,” Bai Renzong said, folding his arms.

Han Jiayi hesitated and asked, “What do you want me to do?”

“Recreate those dishes he made, but with my improvements,” Bai Renzong replied.

These were all classic French dishes that Han Jiayi knew well. Recreating them wasn’t difficult, but surpassing Laurent’s cooking was another matter entirely.

Decades of foundational skills aren’t easy to match. It’s like combining Han Jiayi’s technique with Bai Renzong’s seasoning — following the rules strictly won’t outdo the original; only subtle tweaks could make a difference.

But this was only true for Han Jiayi.

For someone trained in French cuisine like her, these dishes were textbook examples—everyone followed this manual.

So, critiquing these dishes was essentially critiquing the very concept of French cuisine…

But so what? Textbooks are written by people!

The solutions in the textbook may be correct, but are they necessarily the best?

“Are you sure? I’m a bit…” Han Jiayi’s hands trembled slightly as she began. “If you change how the French escargot is prepared, it might taste better, but then it wouldn’t be French escargot anymore…”

“So what? We’ll just call it New French Escargot!” Bai Renzong snapped. “Anyway, I want you to make dishes tastier than that old man’s, to humble him… And don’t worry, I won’t change anything too drastically. Now hurry up, do as I say.”

“Okay…” Han Jiayi replied reluctantly and busied herself at the stove.

Soon, the same four dishes were served in front of Laurent Bissier:

Salmon stuffed with whole egg, French onion soup, French escargot gratin, and French pan-seared foie gras.

Laurent looked confused. “Isn’t this exactly the same as what I made?”

Still, he graciously took a bite. After tasting the salmon stuffed with whole egg, he raised his eyebrows, sensing subtle differences: though the flavors were familiar, each note was more intense, and the layers of taste more distinct.

Laurent looked at Bai Renzong in puzzlement, clearly unsure how such a difference was possible.

“I had this lovely lady replace the seaweed salt with crushed seaweed,” Bai Renzong explained. “Using the freshness of the seaweed to amplify the flavors of the egg mixture and salmon itself, while the roasted seaweed also adds a bit of saltiness. It’s an adjustment of the balance between seaweed and salt to better highlight the natural freshness of the ingredients.”

As the translator conveyed this, a hint of surprise appeared on Laurent’s face.

Next, he tasted the French onion soup, paused to think, then asked a few questions.

“Mr. Bissier wants to know: what spice unifies the entire soup?” the translator asked.

“It’s not a spice, but oil. Only oil can give a dish a cohesive aroma,” Bai Renzong explained simply. “Olive oil has its unique scent, but it weakens when heated, so its aroma is completely overshadowed by butter in this dish. So I used tea seed oil, which has a stronger fragrance, resulting in a higher level of flavor layering.”

Han Jiayi glanced at Bai Renzong and thought secretly: annoying, suddenly I find him so handsome, daring to challenge a chef of this caliber…

She quickly shook her head. Han Jiayi, control yourself! Don’t get infatuated!

For the French escargot gratin and the pan-seared foie gras, Bai Renzong similarly made only minor tweaks to enrich the flavor and complexity while keeping the original preparation intact.

Laurent Bissier’s dishes were excellent, but to the palate of a god, perfection was still out of reach.

In plain terms: today, I, with my godly palate, am teaching you a lesson. Are you convinced or not?

French cuisine may be young compared to the long history of Chinese cooking, which continues to evolve. Why should French cuisine be exempt from critique and improvement? What a joke!

After hearing the translation, Laurent finally stopped doubting and smiled in relief. He stepped forward, shook Bai Renzong’s hand, and launched into a torrent of chatter.

Han Jiayi quietly explained, “He says your understanding of French cuisine is really profound…”

“Not at all. Your culinary skills are also exquisite,” Bai Renzong responded with mutual compliments. “But even classics can evolve with the times to remain beloved. That’s something I learned from a decades-old restaurant in our city.”

Laurent’s expression grew serious, and he rambled on a bit more.

“He says he has a question and hopes you can answer it…” Han Jiayi whispered.

(Thanks to Xinyu Yiyin, Laozi Wuzhi, Yeluo Yusheng, and Dr. Zhuzi Ge for their two monthly votes, and thanks to Bookworm Yori and Kefeier for their monthly votes.)