Siheyuan: Awakening the Shadow Realm, My Cooking Crushes the Steel Mill

He Yuzhu brings forty years of future experience with him when he lands in the 1950s of Love in the Courtyard. His father abandons the family and leaves, leaving behind two old rooms, an eight-year-old sister, and He Yuzhu’s job as an apprentice in the steelworks kitchen. On his first day at work, the new director makes trouble for him, ordering him to peel and chop three baskets of potatoes within a time limit to put him in his place.

But He Yuzhu is no longer the impulsive, reckless Silly Zhu. With his family’s secret Tan cuisine and mastery of Sichuan cooking, he carves out a path for himself right at the stove. On the day of the taste test, he jumps straight from apprentice to head chef, doubling his salary. When word reaches the courtyard, Liu’s father and son block his door and shout that they will “discipline” the eighteen-year-old in place of his runaway father. He Yuzhu does not back down an inch. In a few quick blows, he knocks them both down, shaking the entire courtyard.

By day, he dominates the steelworks with his cooking. By night, he slips into the “Shadow Realm” to spy on what is happening throughout the courtyard. The wave of public-private partnerships is drawing near, and before the great changes arrive, he must use his hands and supernatural abilities to secure a comfortable, stable life for himself and his sister. As for the father who abandoned everything and left, he will eventually go to confront him in person and demand answers.

This novel and its characters are entirely fictional. Any resemblance to actual people or events is purely coincidental. Do not imitate.