God-Given Business Genius

“I’ll go with this one.”

The winner Hwang Wei chose was…

All eyes followed the direction of his fingertip. Hwang Wei’s hand pointed to the plate on the right.

“Junghwa-jeyuk-myeon!”

Both MCs exclaimed in unison.

“Junghwa-jeyuk-myeon! Chef Song’s Junghwa-jeyuk-myeon takes the first victory!”

“How did this happen?! What an incredible twist!”

“This is the rebellion of young blood! Chef Song has defeated the disciple who trained for over 10 years under a Chinese cuisine master! She clinches the first win!”

The MCs celebrated my victory with exaggerated enthusiasm.

Clap, clap, clap, clap!

The chefs applauded and offered their congratulations.

“Congratulations. It was delicious, wasn’t it?”

“You should share the recipe in detail. I want to try making it at home next time. Hahaha.”

I wasn’t sure if they were just being polite, but their attitude towards me had clearly changed after tasting my dish.

Before, they probably looked down on me a bit due to my limited experience, and might have even felt their pride hurt by appearing on the same program as me. But true masters recognize each other.

You can tell a person’s skill just by watching their hands as they cook. The chefs had now recognized this unexpected quality in me.

‘They must have realized I’m not such an easy opponent after all.’

So now they were offering praise out of respect for a fellow culinary professional.

“Thank you.”

I bowed in gratitude with a bashful smile. To be honest, I had used a bit of a trick.

‘This was actually one of the new menu items I had prepared before my regression. Our new menu development team had all worked on it together, and I had personally checked it dozens of times. It would be hard for it not to taste good.’

It was a new menu item that was supposed to be launched at one of our brands. But in the end, I came back to the past before it could be introduced to the world.

In a way, you could call it an ill-fated menu item.

“Hwang Wei-ssi. Didn’t you struggle because both dishes were so delicious? Is there a reason you chose the Junghwa-jeyuk-myeon?”

“Ah, they were both incredibly delicious. It was really hard to choose.”

Hwang Wei looked back and forth between An Derek and me as he spoke.

“The mapo tofu was truly excellent. It even made me think of my hometown for a moment. I was amazed at how it reduced the unfamiliar flavors and turned it into a taste that anyone could enjoy. If possible, I’d like to know that recipe too.”

“He’s full of praise for the mapo tofu as well! Despite that, why did you choose the Junghwa-jeyuk-myeon?!”

At the MC’s question, Hwang Wei thought for a moment before answering.

“I felt like my friends would prefer this one.”

“Oh, your friends?”

“Yes. The theme was dishes that would be good to make for Korean friends, right? The mapo tofu is delicious, but one or two people might not like it. Because it has the flavor of doubanjiang.”

“That’s true. It does have a slightly exotic flavor.”

“But this one has a taste that my Korean friends would really enjoy. To be honest, it’s a bit disappointing that it doesn’t have much of a Chinese flavor. But I think my friends would enjoy eating it, and I feel like I could easily make it myself.”

“It would be difficult to replicate that fire show at home, after all~”

“Chinese cuisine is all about controlling the heat! It wouldn’t be easy to make mapo tofu of this quality with the power of a home gas stove.”

“This is something only a chef can do, you know.”

The MCs chatted away busily. As expected, it was a victory for mass appeal.

Didn’t I say it?

When an ordinary person is the judge, I can make food that tastes better than a chef’s.

Of course, it’s hard to deny that it caters to a sweet, salty, and stimulating palate.

As I was lost in these thoughts, I heard another voice from beside me.

“Congratulations, Chef Song.”

“!”

I turned my head to see Jang Ha-neul smiling kindly at me. Recognition from Jang Ha-neul, known as a master of Chinese cuisine.

I hurriedly replied.

“You can call me casually. I still have a lot to learn before I can be called a chef.”

“Too much modesty can be poisonous. From my perspective, Chef Song seems more than qualified to be called a chef.”

“You’re too kind.”

“I really mean it. You handle Chinese cuisine cleverly. I always tell my disciples to think while they move their hands.”

As Jang Ha-neul spoke, the other chefs began to nod and listen attentively.

“You shouldn’t just move without knowing why, or merely follow what you’ve learned or what’s in the recipe. If you do that, you might be able to mimic the appearance, but you can’t truly recreate the taste.”

Wise words indeed.

“In that sense, Chef Song seems to be doing exactly what I hope for from my disciples. I can see that you’ve thought deeply and researched thoroughly.”

“Thank you.”

As I bowed deeply in gratitude, Jang Ha-neul laughed heartily and continued.

“It’s nothing. I should be thanking you. For teaching my disciple a lesson.”

“When you say disciple…”

“He must have realized something by now.”

Jang Ha-neul’s gaze shifted past me to my back.

I turned around to see An Derek standing there, staring blankly at his bowl, seemingly shocked by his defeat.

The atmosphere was so gloomy that even others were hesitant to approach him.

Tap.

Jang Ha-neul gently pushed my back.

“What are you doing? Go on, tease him a bit.”

“Pardon?”

The playful tone made me wonder if I had misheard. But Jang Ha-neul smiled mischievously and said:

“Why? I’m serious. Go and tease him thoroughly. That’ll make him work harder, even if it’s out of spite.”

You’re raising your disciple quite strictly…

“Despite his fierce looks, he’s not a bad kid. He won’t misunderstand. Don’t worry, go on.”

Look, I don’t really have anything to say to that person. But with Jang Ha-neul urging me on, I couldn’t just ignore it.

Finally, I walked over and stood in front of An Derek. Sensing my presence, he lifted his head to look at me.

A cold chill emanated from his expressionless face. What a fierce look.

“It was a good match.”

I extended my hand first.

“The mapo tofu. I tried it earlier, and it was really delicious.”

A chef is a chef indeed.

To create such a flavor in these poor conditions. To be honest, An Derek’s dish was far superior in terms of delicacy of flavor.

Of course, that strength would shine through with a taster who could appreciate it.

“Actually, I was confident. This recipe I created. So I thought I wouldn’t lose easily… but when I tasted the mapo tofu, I felt a sense of crisis.”

Ah, am I going to lose? That thought flashed through my mind.

It must have been because my palate is well-developed from tasting and researching countless dishes. I’m quite sensitive to even subtle differences in taste.

“I guess I was lucky.”

As I grinned, I saw An Derek’s eyes flicker slightly.

But what’s he doing? Not shaking my hand?

Just as I was considering awkwardly withdrawing my outstretched hand…

Clap.

An Derek grasped my hand.

“Likewise. I learned a lot.”

He shook it firmly a couple of times and released it cleanly. It was a courteous handshake.

“Chef Song.”

“!”

I couldn’t help but widen my eyes in surprise. Chef? Did he just call me Chef?

This prideful person?

Seeing my puzzled expression, An Derek calmly continued.

“I was surprised when I tasted it. It was delicious.”

He seems less stubborn than I thought. Usually, even if people find something tasty, they tend to deny it and rationalize, saying ‘that can’t be.’

‘How could it not taste good with all that sugar?’

‘The MSG makes the umami shallow. It lacks depth.’

It’s not uncommon to hear such disparaging comments. How many people can cleanly admit ‘it’s delicious’ like this?

“I was rude earlier.”

It’s rare to see someone who can acknowledge and reflect on their mistakes.

My, my. I could hear Jang Ha-neul repeatedly exclaiming in admiration behind me. Her tone was filled with pride, as if watching a grown-up son.

“What’s this, what’s this? You two?”

“Pardon?”

Bong Kang-min suddenly interjected, and I reflexively asked back. Bong Kang-min continued undeterred.

“Is this what I think it is? Rivals?”

“Me?”

I really hope such rumors don’t spread. Contrary to my wishes, Bong Kang-min spoke up once more.

“This is totally it~ You know, the genius protagonist who didn’t receive formal education and the elite rival. Wow~ It’s like a manga plot, just like that.”

“Ooh, you’re right.”

People around started to murmur and agree one by one.

Come on, people. Why are you exaggerating?

“Hey now. What are you talking about? I just got lucky today, that’s all.”

I tried to smooth things over, but it was already too late.

“Ah, so Chef Song and Chef An are rivals like this?! The characters are clearly defined from the first episode~”

“Hahaha. It’ll be quite interesting when these two clash in the future. I think it won’t be long before Chef An seeks revenge for this defeat!”

“Yes, then shall we tidy up the kitchen and move on to the next battle?”

“The next battle will be between Chef Bong Kang-min and Chef Park Jun-su, who drew numbers 3 and 4…”

Wait. Are we just moving on like this? I glanced at An Derek, who I had suddenly been paired up with as a rival.

I thought he might be fuming, but An Derek’s face remained impassive.

‘I’m really worried about how this will be broadcast.’

It looks like I’m about to be framed as some kind of genius out of nowhere. This is driving me crazy!

⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱

“Hehehe…. Hahahahahaha!”

PD Kim, or rather Kim Seol, shouted in jubilation as she looked at the incoming viewership statistics.

“Yeeha!”

3% viewership.

For a cable TV show, especially for just the first episode, this could be considered a tremendous success.

Who do we have to thank for this?

While credit is due to Chef Bong Kang-min for his witty responses and the MCs for their entertaining banter while rummaging through the refrigerator…

The person at the center of all the buzz for “Raid the Refrigerator” was someone else entirely.

It was none other than Song Woo-yeon.