I'm a Druid at a farmhouse.

Chapter 27 A Gathering of Heroes

"I don't have a chef's certificate, and I'm not from a restaurant," Song You replied crisply.

The pen in the staff member's hand stopped in mid-air. He looked up, and a crack finally appeared in his expression.

"No restaurant, no chef's certificate, then what are you registering for?" His tone was tinged with suspicion.

Is this guy here to cause trouble?

"I saw in the rules that anyone who is confident in their knife skills can sign up." Song You pointed to the signboard next to him, his expression calm. "I am confident in myself."

"Confidence?" The staff member was almost amused by his words. "Young man, this isn't child's play. Going on stage requires showing real skills, not just confidence."

Several chefs who were queuing up to sign up also cast curious glances at the spectacle, and some even laughed out loud without any attempt to hide it.

Song You ignored the noise and simply looked at the staff member, slowly adding, "I run a farmhouse inn. It's normal for a farmhouse inn owner to have good knife skills, right?"

The staff member was taken aback by his self-righteous attitude and was about to say something when the walkie-talkie on his chest rang.

"Xiao Zhang, what's going on down there? Why haven't they brought up the list yet?"

"Mr. Zhao, there's a little problem here." Xiao Zhang held the walkie-talkie, glanced at Song You, and looked somewhat troubled.

"What's going on?"

"A food delivery person wants to apply, but doesn't have a license."

"Fork out...wait, he looks familiar, what's his name?"

"Song You".

There was a few seconds of silence on the other end of the walkie-talkie, then a steady voice came through: "Let him go up."

Xiao Zhang froze, holding the walkie-talkie, unable to believe his ears: "Mr. Zhao, you mean he should sign up?"

"I told you, let him go up and register, hurry up." The voice on the walkie-talkie sounded impatient.

Xiao Zhang didn't dare to ask any more questions. He put down the walkie-talkie, and the way he looked at Song You changed.

He picked up a pen and wrote "Song You" on the registration form. Then, hesitantly filled in "farmhouse inn" in the "work unit" column.

The surrounding crowd of onlookers erupted in excitement.

"What's going on? You can claim compensation without a certificate?"

"If even delivery drivers can do it, then can't I?"

"Let's go, let's join the fun! Maybe I can win a prize!"

Suddenly, the registration area, which was originally only occupied by professional chefs, was suddenly surrounded by several citizens who were eager to watch the excitement and clamored to register as well.

The staff member, Xiao Zhang, had a face that looked like a bitter gourd.

Song You acted as if nothing had happened. After signing the papers, he carried his snakeskin bag and walked to the contestants' waiting area.

Meanwhile, in the judges' lounge backstage, the atmosphere was lively.

Several people dressed in high-class chef's uniforms, who looked very important, were sitting together, including Wang Guoming.

"Master Wang, I heard you went to the countryside to gather inspiration a couple of days ago. Did you make any new discoveries?" a respected-looking old chef asked with a smile.

Upon hearing this, Wang Guoming immediately perked up.

"Don't even mention it, Chairman Liu." He slapped his thigh, his face full of wistful relish. "I ran into a genius! That knife skill, I dare say, I've never seen anything so amazing in my life!"

"Oh?" Chairman Liu's interest was piqued. "Even more ruthless than you?"

"Compare me to him?" Wang Guoming waved his hand. "My mediocre skills are nothing compared to his; I'm not even worthy of carrying his shoes!"

As soon as he said that, everyone in the lounge fell silent, and all eyes turned to him.

Everyone present knows Wang Guoming's strength. He is a disciple of a master of Hunan cuisine and a national gold medalist. What level must someone be to make him say such things?

"Old Wang, aren't you going a bit too far with what you're saying?" a voice came from the side, sounding somewhat dismissive.

The speaker was a middle-aged man around forty years old, with a slender build, a slightly raised chin, and an arrogant look in his eyes.

His name is Liu Kun, a representative figure of the Hengshan cuisine in Hunan cuisine, known as the "Third Master of Hengshan Knife" for his exquisite knife skills.

"In my entire life, I only admire my master's swordsmanship." Liu Kun picked up his teacup and gently blew on the steam. "As for the others, in my opinion, they are all just flashy, unorthodox practitioners."

"A self-taught method?" Wang Guoming was displeased. "Master Liu, you haven't seen it with your own eyes, so don't speak so confidently. The person I'm talking about can process a chicken, from deboning to cutting into pieces, in less than a minute. The skeleton is intact, and the meat pieces are evenly distributed. He's incredibly clean and efficient!"

"Oh?" Liu Kun put down his teacup, a slight smirk playing on his lips. "So, what level of chef is he now? And who is his apprentice?"

Wang Guoming was stumped by the question.

"He's just someone who runs a farm stay."

"Heh." Liu Kun let out a short, cold laugh, his contempt undisguised. "A country cook, without even a master, no matter how fast his knife skills are, what kind of technique can he have? It's just brute force from practice, nothing to brag about."

Wang Guoming was so angry that his face turned red. Just as he was about to retort, the door to the lounge was pushed open and a staff member walked in.

"Distinguished judges, please prepare to take the stage. The competition is about to begin."

On the stage, the lights shone brightly.

Dozens of contestants have already lined up in two rows.

On one side were rows of chefs dressed in identical white uniforms, each with a serious expression and an imposing presence.

On the other side, the scene was quite diverse, with young people in T-shirts, middle-aged women in aprons, and even an uncle in a security guard uniform.

Standing at the very edge, wearing that eye-catching yellow delivery uniform and carrying a snakeskin bag, Song You was undoubtedly the most stylish guy there.

After the host gave a passionate introduction to the competition rules, the judges filed out from backstage and took their seats in the judges' panel in front of the stage.

Wang Guoming spotted the conspicuous yellow figure in the team at a glance.

"Heh, this competition is getting more and more interesting." He lowered his voice and teased Li Zhe next to him, "Even the delivery guys are joining in the fun. It seems everyone is very confident in their cooking skills."

Liu Kun heard it too, and following his gaze, he also showed a disdainful expression: "Trying to attract attention."

Wang Guoming smiled and shook his head, about to look away, but when he saw the delivery guy's face clearly, his smile froze instantly.

He rubbed his eyes and looked at it carefully again.

Yes, that's the face!

Just a few days ago, the young owner of the farmhouse restaurant was performing a fish-killing and chanting ritual in front of him, making him so hungry he was practically drooling!

"puff--"

Wang Guoming almost spat out the mouthful of tea he had just taken a sip of.

He forced the water down, choking and coughing repeatedly, his chubby face turning bright red.

"Old Wang, what's wrong with you?" Chairman Liu asked with concern.

"No...it's nothing, I drank the water too quickly." Wang Guoming waved his hand, but his eyes were fixed on Song You on the stage, his mind racing.

What's this kid doing here, dressed in a food delivery uniform?

Wasn't he the owner of a farmhouse restaurant? How did it go out of business in just a few days?

There's an important banquet next month, so I can recruit him directly and then take him to meet my master.

He began to consider it seriously, then turned to look at Liu Kun, who was sitting upright with an arrogant expression. A bold and exciting idea suddenly popped into his mind.

Wang Guoming cleared his throat, leaned slightly towards Liu Kun, and put on his usual easygoing smile again.

"Master Liu."

"Huh?" Liu Kun didn't even lift his eyelids.

"Weren't we just talking about knife skills?" Wang Guoming said with a smile. "Talking without doing is no fun. How about we make a bet?"

Liu Kun finally reacted. He turned to look at Wang Guoming and asked, "What are we betting on?"

Wang Guoming stretched out his chubby finger and pointed to the most conspicuous yellow figure on the stage.

"I'm betting I can get first place in today's knife skills competition."