Wang Fan wasn’t really busy making this West Lake Vinegar Fish, as long as each step was timed well. The ones really busy were the diners eating away.

Surrounded by a bunch of people with empty stomachs, they had to finish eating before the fish got cold, and more importantly, post on their social media before anyone else.

Having eaten the authentic, delicious West Lake Vinegar Fish personally made by Boss Wang in Guizhou, isn’t that worth bragging about in a post?

But the boasting isn’t the issue. These people are a bit mischievous and specifically tag West Lake Tourism.

"Oh, our Hangzhou’s tourism department, I’m just saying, Boss Wang went to Hangzhou for a trip, and you guys didn’t even know, missing out on an incredible opportunity."

"Oh right, Hangzhou is already a big tourist city, maybe you don’t need Boss Wang to bring more traffic, but aren’t you curious to research the West Lake Vinegar Fish he made?"

"Constantly mocked as a culinary desert, but as soon as Boss Wang steps in, it’s a triumph. The authentic West Lake Vinegar Fish he made is incredibly delicious, can’t anyone learn from him?"

"Exactly, thinking the culinary desert was due to no good food, it turns out just not being done well. Boss Wang said he followed traditional methods, just did each step more meticulously. So who’s not detailed enough?"

This barrage of tags put quite a bit of pressure on the tourism media.

You could say Hangzhou doesn’t lack tourist traffic, but the food...

That’s always been a painful spot!

Hangzhou’s three major delicacies, KFC, McDonald’s, Burger King, though it’s a joke, it’s one even locals acknowledge!

Seeing the live pictures and videos of people devouring the West Lake Vinegar Fish, they felt awful.

Whose West Lake Vinegar Fish can have people eating two plates? Ha?! Isn’t it supposed to be hard to eat two bites?

How do you even respond?

They didn’t have the guts to rebut either. You could argue the photos were staged, but they even showed videos of the cooking and eating process, what else can be said?

Some local netizens, seeing their tourism being criticized, quickly stepped up to defend it, not letting their local tourism media fight alone.

"Who says there’s no good food here? Harbin grilled cold noodles, Sha County snacks, KFC, Wallace, Burger King, Pizza Hut, we’re no worse than anywhere else."

"Sure, those who say it’s bad probably haven’t tasted the authentic version. After eating the authentic one, we all say ’the authentic version tastes bad’."

"Whose side are you on? Isn’t Longjing Shrimp delicious? But thinking about it, river shrimp is delicious however it’s cooked?"

"You remind me, our Longjing Shrimp is cooked with the tea leaves in the shrimp. In the dish that Boss Wang made at a Michelin restaurant, it was smoked with tea leaves. I now wonder if any restaurants in Hangzhou learned this trick? I’d love to try."

"? Smoking with tea leaves? That can’t still be called authentic Longjing Shrimp! Even if it’s good, if it’s not authentic, it won’t do!" 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

The person in charge was initially pleased with the local IDs standing up, but seeing these remarks made them feel it best not to read it further, lest they get a stroke at a young age.

"On behalf of the vast number of local Hangzhou food enthusiasts, I sincerely invite Boss Wang to visit Hangzhou slightly off-peak and share some tips on how to make authentic dishes even better."

Destroy it, reading online news is too exhausting!

He stopped looking, but online it remained as lively as ever.

"I originally wanted to question if Boss Wang’s dish was authentic, but after my grandfather, who was the head chef at Louwailou twenty years ago, saw it, he praised it as very authentic. The ingredient selection was also very thoughtful. Just that he said if the cornstarch in the sauce could be replaced with lotus root powder, the sauce would be even clearer and smoother."

"I’m in my fifties, and I ate West Lake Vinegar Fish at Louwailou twenty years ago. To be honest, it can’t compare to what’s being made now. Can’t blame the dish, but the chefs’ skills are too old-fashioned."

"Back then, restructuring broke many master-apprentice relationships in big restaurants, and hardly any legitimate inheritors of Lake Gang cuisine were left, so what good could come out of it?"

"Watching this young friend Wang Fan’s cooking process, I can only say it was masterful to the smallest detail, a true sign of a master. When I was around his age, honestly, even at my peak, I might not have been as good as him. Written on behalf of my grandfather."

Attached was a photo.

The photo was a bit old, but the character and background were clear—it was a man in a chef’s tall hat, holding an iron spoon under the Louwailou sign.

Some curious folks used image search and really found this former titan of Hangzhou Cuisine.

"Wow, he really was the former head chef, even took part in a state banquet, and it was the West Lake Vinegar Fish he made."

"Incredible, one of the top ten outstanding masters of Zhejiang cuisine, truly a boss-level figure in the culinary world."

"Boss Wang already has endorsements from two master-level figures, like the kid next door."

"Wow, if that kind of next-door kid lives near you, wouldn’t your own mom beat you up?"

"Now it’s up to our local chefs to see if they can feel the shame and then find courage. Being called a culinary desert for so many years, I’m honestly embarrassed."

Wang Fan paid no attention to the online commotion.

After selling today’s 100 fish, he packed up, then started searching for chickens in the System Mall.

Don’t overthink it, it’s a very proper kind of chicken.

There are plenty of free-range chickens in Guizhou, a quick search brought up tons. Having set the slaughter and delivery times, he continued buying other ingredients to recreate the authentic Jiangsu and Zhejiang cuisine.

He’s always been very serious about cooking various dishes, especially when making a region’s representative dish. He strives to recreate the original taste.

Not necessarily aiming to make these local foods famous, but at least not to disgrace them, right?

When in France, he made beggar chicken, all ingredients and steps were well-memorized, just that marinating a free-range chicken takes longer for the flavor to penetrate, making tonight a busy one.

Fortunately, he didn’t need to wake up especially early.

The scenic area opens at 9, and drifting from upstream takes two to three hours, so he just needs to have the food ready for tourists by noon.

Zhuo Qianqian wondered if the boss has a grudge against Louwailou.

This dish of beggar chicken is also a famous dish there but equally criticized.

Tasteless chicken, dry texture, very expensive, not tasty...

Just after the slap with the West Lake Vinegar Fish, is he going to do the same to beggar chicken?

If Wang Fan knew she thought this way, he’d surely correct her because he genuinely had no ulterior motives, just thought it was too good an opportunity with these free-range chickens not to try making beggar chicken.

Besides, both of them quite like eating chicken, and it’s good to indulge a little, no?

That’s the perk of being a chef; you can cook whatever you feel like eating. My wok, my rules.