Chapter Thirty-Three: The Master Chef Yi Ya

“All right, let’s set aside the small talk,” Tang Yi said to Hua Shaojie. “Elder Lu has just informed me that the Institute of Rapid Cultivation will be established in the Changbai Mountain Range. The announcement can be made at tomorrow’s convention, and we’ll also need to advertise our group’s recruitment drive.”

“The ad for the Institute is easy enough, but how should we word the recruitment ad for our group? What kind of people are we looking for?” Hua Shaojie inquired.

“Just say this: The Tang Group is offering generous salaries to hire technical staff, with an annual salary of one hundred thousand mid-grade spirit stones. The work schedule is five days a week, eight hours a day, with weekends off and all statutory holidays. The Tang Group has a comprehensive benefits system, including full attendance bonuses, special contribution awards, year-end bonuses, and red envelopes for the New Year. Every year, each employee receives a seniority raise: one thousand mid-grade spirit stones added to their monthly pay for each year of service, up to a maximum after ten years. That should be enough. Also, we’d prefer to hire those whose cultivation is below the Spiritual Tranquility stage,” Tang Yi said as he thought aloud.

“Wow! Brother Tang, do we get all these benefits in our group too? Or do we have even better perks?” Zhang Qiang called out, his mouth full.

“Hmph! All you know is eating. If you don’t start training and working properly, I’ll dock your bonus for ten years,” Tang Yi snapped, annoyed at Zhang Qiang’s behavior.

“But Brother Tang, I really do put in the work and the training. If you don’t believe me, ask Mingde and the others—they can vouch for me!” Zhang Qiang protested.

“Shaojie, did you get all that down? Good, then let’s eat! Oh, and add an ad tomorrow for a head chef, with the same benefits. After all, we need good food to have energy for work, don’t we?” Tang Yi said, leading Hua Ruoxue and the others into the main hall.

“Yeah!” The whole group cheered happily at the news.

The next day, at the trade convention, the Tang Group’s recruitment ad caused quite a stir. Such high salaries were unheard of in the world of cultivation.

The convention lasted ten days, longer than ever before, but the time flew by. As soon as it was over, the Tang Group launched its recruitment drive.

The scene was bustling, and in just one day, they had filled all three hundred positions they needed. However, not a single person had applied for the head chef position, as most cultivators felt that such work was beneath them. Usually, only sects would assign someone to manage meals, but otherwise, no one wanted the job.

“Looks like nobody’s going to apply for head chef. We’ll still have to take turns cooking,” Hua Shaojie sighed, watching the sun sink in the west.

“You’re lucky, Shaojie! You’ve got Gu Zhenzhen to help you sometimes. Us bachelors have it worse!” Liu Mingde joked.

“Don’t worry! There’s still hope—look, someone’s coming to apply!” Lü Zhengyang pointed out as someone approached.

“Excuse me, are you still hiring a chef?” the newcomer asked.

“Of course! Can’t you see the big sign? Head Chef Wanted—Tang Group!” Hua Shaojie said, pointing to the banner over his head.

“What are the requirements? What are the benefits?” the newcomer asked in a gruff voice.

“Take a look at this jade slip—it has all the job details and benefits. If you have no objections, record your information on this resume jade slip, and we’ll contact you,” Hua Shaojie said, holding out two jade slips.

After a moment, the man set down the first jade slip, picked up the second, and used his spiritual energy to inscribe his details.

“All right. When can I start?” he asked, handing the jade slip back to Hua Shaojie.

“As I said, we’ll notify you after our leader approves everything. Please leave your contact mark,” Hua Shaojie replied, producing a communication jade pendant.

“You’re behind the times. Here—this is my mobile video communicator number. If you don’t have one of these new communicators, go buy one and then contact me!” the man said arrogantly, tossing a business card onto the table and swaggering off without a backward glance.

This business card was actually a promotional tool Tang Yi had created to market the communicator. It was made from Hengsha Paper, a high-grade talisman paper used for advanced spells in the cultivation world. Each number came with a hundred sheets of this paper, which could be cut into four business cards apiece. Cultivators could use their own spiritual energy to inscribe spells, formations, names, and numbers on them with ease.

“This guy’s got an attitude! But wait—how could someone who can afford a communicator want to be a chef? Who is this guy? Shaojie, check his name,” Ding Pengfei grumbled, annoyed by the man’s arrogance.

Hua Shaojie activated the jade slip with his spiritual energy, his face adopting a strange expression. He passed the slip around; everyone who read it ended up with the same odd look—everyone except the clueless Zhang Qiang.

“Who’s this Yi Ya?” Zhang Qiang asked, puzzled by everyone’s reactions.

“We’ll talk about that later. For now, it’s all settled—let’s pack up and head home. Tonight Zhenzhen’s cooking for me! If we don’t get back soon, Brother Tang might eat everything!” Hua Shaojie said excitedly. “Let’s go!” And the group dispersed.

…

“Yi Ya? Could it be the same Yi Ya who killed his own son to serve Duke Huan of Qi a human meat feast?” Tang Yi mused after reading the jade slip.

“Killed his own son for a feast? That can’t be true, right? Mingde, what do you think?” Hua Shaojie asked, confused.

“I’m not sure myself. The older generation might know more about it,” Liu Mingde replied honestly.

“All right, we’ll deal with that later. First, let’s get the three hundred new hires sorted. Zhengyang, you’ll take charge of preparing materials for the product; Pengfei, you’ll handle component manufacturing; Qiangzi, you’ll be responsible for assembling them. Shaojie, you’ll be in charge of logistics, and Mingde, you’ll oversee everything. The manufacturing base will also be in the Changbai Mountains, not far from the Institute of Rapid Cultivation. That way, both operations can be managed together. We’ll head out tomorrow. Now—” Tang Yi began, but the others interrupted him.

“Let’s eat!” they shouted, rushing to the dining hall.

…

After dinner, Tang Yi sat in the backyard on a bamboo chair, holding Yi Ya’s business card and debating whether to call him. Suddenly, the ring on his left pinky vibrated and played a cheerful tune: “You are electricity, you are light, you are…”

This ring was a device Tang Yi had designed to go with the mobile communicator. Normally, cultivators stored their belongings in spatial rings, which had no sense of time. Without the ring, it would be impossible to know if someone was calling.

Tang Yi pulled out the communicator: the caller ID displayed Qiu Chuqing’s name…