On the glacier, eight hundred people stood neatly on the training ground, undeterred by the biting cold wind.
This was the Black List's instructor team, along with 600 candidates to become instructors.
If the team was to be expanded, the first step was to expand the instructors.
The Black List had always adhered to a small class system, with one instructor leading two to three trainees until they graduated.
The assessment for chefs was extremely strict, including the assassination of one's teacher, and there were indeed cases where teachers met their demise.
Therefore, the quality of Black List assassins had always been exceptionally high, earning them widespread acclaim in the industry.
Usually, it took leading five to ten missions under a teacher to grasp the assassin's modus operandi.
"That is to say, even with eight hundred instructors, I can only bring in two thousand four hundred people at a time..."
The numbers were simply not enough!
Expansion!
Each class should be increased to four to six people, which required instructors to have sufficient strength.
Qingcheng was leading the team this time. This little vixen, due to her power being in her hands, had not hesitated to abuse her authority to mess with the team. Many men had suffered under her persecution, leading to the instructors in the team having rather complicated expressions towards her.
"Don't resist, follow me!"
The Treasury Hall!
The West Side Hall!
"Qingcheng!"
"Your servant is here..."
Her voice was soft and weak. Zhang Wei frowned, "Are you alright?"
"I haven't been feeling well lately."
As she spoke, Qingcheng feigned a cough, her seductive arts seamless.
Qingcheng said pitifully, "You all left, leaving me alone. It's so tiring... A few days ago, I was so exhausted at work that I was sent to the doctor."
"Hmm?"
"Don't you believe me? It's true. The doctor even prescribed me medicine!"
"What did the doctor say?"
"The doctor said I have a fever and need mugwort to relieve it~"
Fever?
Mugwort?
Mugwort can treat fever?
Qingcheng said seriously, "Yes, mugwort can really treat fever! I only have a slight fever now..."
After a long moment, Zhang Wei finally understood!
Damn it!
This wasn't a slight fever, it was a complete scorcher!
Can I really trust you with these instructors? Don't go and mess them all up!
Fearing that Qingcheng might overheat herself, Zhang Wei quickly handed over the mission, arranged the handover with Tang Zhihun, and slipped away.
Wait, I should also find a teammate for Qingcheng... Hmm...
Let's assign it to that old fox, Xifeng. As my steward, his strength can't be too bad. As for the work during this period, I'll do it myself.
Xifeng...
Qingcheng...
Heh heh, what a perfect combination!
In addition, the Black List's new five members were also assigned by Zhang Wei to train with the instructor team.
They were Dessert Devil, ranked sixth;
Lard Chacha, ranked seventh;
Mosquito Man - Domichi, ranked eighth;
Leech - Olado, ranked ninth;
Liaoyuan, ranked tenth.
These individuals were all exceptionally talented youngsters who had made significant contributions in the battle of Yunzhi Kingdom, and had achieved numerous successes thereafter, possessing both strength and wisdom!
Arriving at the chef's camp, today's ingredient was the Thousand-Layered Onion!
It was a level thirty ingredient, possessing a thousand layers of paper-thin protective shells. The tender onion inside was delicious whether stir-fried or served cold.
The only difficulty was these thousand layers of outer skin. Only one could be peeled off at a time, and it had to be along the grain. Moreover, the grain of each outer shell was different...
The second dish was the Chirpy Ant Swarm. When they encountered danger, they would harden themselves to protect the queen, making them very difficult to open. Similarly, they had to be cut along the grain.
One wrong move could easily cause a knife to chip.
However, when the Chirpy Ant Swarms gathered together, they resembled a chirpy puzzle. If one had enough spatial logic, it would be twice the result with half the effort.
Of course, even if you understood it, it would still be a test of your knife skills!
"How is the training going?"
Tang Zhihun reported, "It's very slow. The difficulty is too high. Talent is immediately apparent... The threshold we set has completely excluded those without talent!"
So far, half of the people hadn't even passed the first stage.
Zhang Wei sighed, "There's no need to make things too difficult for them. If they still can't pass after half a year, they'll be sent back to the Gourmet City for formal employment."
Since Zhang Wei had pulled them away, the Gourmet City had been increasingly short-handed.
However, half a year here was only three days in the outside world, so there was no need to rush.
...
A airship landed outside the great glacier, and the first batch of ten thousand refugees arrived.
Zhang Wei instructed them to use the passenger terminal, otherwise, with their physique, they would die in the northern winds and snow within minutes.
At this time, they were still panicked and bewildered, filled with fear in the face of an unfamiliar environment.
Zhang Wei didn't linger on anything else, but instead collected their dirty clothes and sent them to the swimming pool for a wash.
Their tattered cotton-padded jackets and quilts were all discarded.
That night...
The Red Romance Bathhouse was sealed off, and its pools...
Were completely blacked out!
Cough, cough, ten thousand people were indeed too many!
From scrubbing to washing, combing hair and cutting it, each person was given clean and tidy clothes. Two more clothing cities were emptied.
Afterward, Zhang Wei led them into a large reception hall, resembling a sports stadium, capable of accommodating one hundred thousand people.
Waiters continuously brought out generous and delicious dishes. Although they were only level one or two ingredients, the refugees had never seen such a sight. They ate whatever was served, regardless of the circumstances!
Next was the job allocation segment!
The host first asked, "We need a batch of chef apprentices. Those unwilling to participate, please step aside!"
Chefs?
Chefs!
The refugees' eyes widened. What were chefs?
They were treasures! Countries fought tooth and nail for them! And no matter how the war developed, chefs would always be at the top, respected in any country!
If a chef was harmed, even an entire squad would be punished!
However...
The war had been going on for so long, and those who could cook had long since been snatched up.
"Are there really people among us who can become chefs..."
"Apprentices!"
"Even apprentices!"
Apprentices were fine too!
A subordinate official to a prime minister was still an official. A chef apprentice was definitely a person of status!
The test began. Formal chefs started moving through the crowd like they were selecting ingredients, constantly using props to conduct tests.
Vegetables, fruits, aged vinegar, soy sauce...
They examined palm lines, felt bone structure, and measured culinary fortune...
Out of one hundred thousand people, a few hundred lucky individuals were actually selected!
Zhang Wei nodded. It was finally a supplement for the lack of miscellaneous workers. This batch of chef apprentices would be kept for now. Once five thousand were gathered, they would be sent to the West Side Hall.
By then, the eliminated chefs should have been screened out.
Seeing the disappointed expressions of the remaining refugees, the host announced again, "It's okay if you didn't become a chef apprentice. We have other professions for you to choose from!"
"There are more?"
"Have you heard of Gourmet Hunters?"
Of course, they had heard.
However, their reputation wasn't great. They were said to be a group of people who constantly adventured in the wild to broaden the horizons of humanity.
Their income was extremely high, but it was accompanied by risks. It was said that becoming a Gourmet Hunter not only required them to travel far and wide, leaving no time for family, but also carried the risk of sacrificing themselves in the wild.
But, the wild was filled with precious ingredients. Bringing back even one could be equivalent to years of wages!
They had seen a few clumsy Gourmet Hunters before, but they were all generous with their spending, incredibly wealthy!
"It seems to be a pretty good profession!"
"Look at me, I want to do it!"
"Everyone should be careful, I heard it's dangerous..."
"Damn it, compared to being poor, there's nothing to be afraid of in this world!"
"You only see the rewards, not the hardships!"
"Nonsense, someone always gets to eat the meat, why can't it be me!"
The sign-ups were very enthusiastic, but the quality of this batch of refugees was too poor. Only one to two hundred people were selected, even fewer than chefs.
Yes, this was a job people fought tooth and nail for, not one you could just decide to do!
"Mr. Host, are there any other jobs?"
"We want to earn a living..."
"We can endure hardship!"
The remaining people, fearing that Zhang Wei would not take them in, had already started to get restless.
Having witnessed the living standards here, who would want to wander anymore! Even when they were living in peace and prosperity, they had never worn such fine clothes or eaten such good food!
If they could stay here, it would be equivalent to directly heading towards a comfortable life!
The host coughed lightly, "Of course there are. However... you will need to bleed for the Great Glacier, and may even sacrifice yourselves, but... this is voluntary. You can still stay at the Great Glacier even if you don't sign up."
"This..."
A group of people hesitated.
This was like joining the combat troops. If they had this kind of spirit, they would have been recruited by various units long ago. Why would they still need to...
A burly man stepped out from the crowd, "I'll do it!"
Truly a brave warrior! The man said, "Mr. Zhang Wei has saved my family and elders several times. I am willing to shed blood and sacrifice for the Great Glacier!"
Many people were moved!
The sign-ups were enthusiastic!
Of course, more people shrunk back, not daring to look at Zhang Wei.
The host registered the applicants, then smiled and said to the remaining people, "I'm very sorry, you have been eliminated!"
(End of this chapter)