Food Wars, My Dishes Don't Just Shine

"I am back."

In Zhuang Huiyuan, Bai Yuan's voice rang out.

The next moment, two figures, one tall and one short, strode out of the hall. Tadokoro Megumi walked hurriedly, only breathing a sigh of relief when she saw that Bai Yuan was safe and sound. But she was still worried, so she went up to Bai Yuan and looked him over from left to right, afraid that he might be injured but wouldn't tell her.

"Relax, this is a time of peace, why would they really be wielding knives and sticks? I'm perfectly fine, let me go in and have a drink of water first."

Bai Yuan felt a warmth in his heart at Tadokoro Megumi's concern and raised his hand to let her examine him. However, not wanting to linger at the door for too long, he smiled and asked to end the visit early.

"I'll go get you some water."

Upon seeing this, Mieko Tadokoro immediately spoke up.

"No need, no need, I can go by myself in a bit."

Seeing that Tadokoro Mieko was about to pour him water, Bai Yuan hurriedly waved his hand, telling his mother-in-law to pour water for him, which was really going against the natural order!

"You've gone to so much trouble for me, it's what I should do."

Tadokoro Mieko spoke firmly, then turned around and went back inside to pour water, before carrying the water out again.

"Thank you."

Because he was restricted by Tadokoro Megumi, Shiro didn't actually stop Tadokoro Mieko. Seeing the water she handed him, he didn't hesitate any longer and accepted it generously, while looking at Megumi in front of him.

"It seems like there shouldn't be any problems."

After drinking the water and having their bodies checked, Bai Yuan smiled and patted Tadokoro Megumi's head as she breathed a sigh of relief. He then joined the two of them in Zhuang Hui Garden, returned to their original dining spot, and began discussing the inn across the street.

"Have you gathered any useful intelligence?"

Mieko Tadokoro was the first to lose her composure, her eyes sparkling as she looked at Bai Yuan, her gaze filled with both anticipation and apprehension at the prospect of her expectations being dashed.

“Yes.” Bai Yuan nodded. “They will most likely agree to the food battle invitation, since their ultimate goal is to take over our inn.”

"That..."

Upon hearing Bai Yuan's words, Tadokoro Mieko's face showed a worried expression, while Tadokoro Megumi next to her breathed a sigh of relief.

She knew that since her opponents dared to accept the challenge, it meant that they must have exceptionally skilled chefs. But the one standing in front of her was Bai Yuan, the youngest Special Grade Seven-Star Chef in history!

"Don't rush. Although they have decided to take over Zhuang Huiyuan in the end through a food battle, they don't plan to make a move so early. Instead, they intend to put some pressure on us first."

In fact, we don't have that much time to wait. If they really resort to delaying tactics, even if it's a food war, we probably won't be able to participate.

"What if it really turns out like that?!"

Shiro's words made Tadokoro Mieko somewhat lost in thought, and she couldn't help but mutter to herself. She had never been very confident in the food battle, and if the inn on the other side insisted on dragging it out until Shiro and her daughter left, then she really wouldn't have any chance of winning.

After all, Zhuang Huiyuan's best chef passed away two years ago, and the guys working in the kitchen now are only second-class chefs at best. They're not bad in a small town, but they're no match for the strong chefs from the big city.

Ultimately, they are a hotel, and their business is providing accommodation, not catering to guests.

Thinking of this, Mieko Tadokoro's face showed some worry. Now it seemed that rashly starting a food battle was not a good thing.

"Don't worry, I have a way to get them to agree to the food battle within the next few days."

Seeing Tadokoro Mieko's worried expression, Shiro's voice rang out at the right moment.

Getting the other party to agree to a food battle isn't difficult. If they want to put pressure on them, then they can just put pressure on them in return!

Repay the other person with his own way.

It's very simple.

"Xiaobai, do you have an idea yet?"

Upon hearing Bai Yuan's words, a look of surprise flashed in Tadokoro Mieko's eyes. Then, as if grasping at a lifeline, she looked at him expectantly.

"Of course, it's actually quite simple..."

Seeing the other party's anxious look, Bai Yuan didn't keep her in suspense and directly stated his thoughts, which made Tadokoro Mieko fall into deep thought.

"You mean, attracting tourists with top-notch cuisine? But how is that even possible? Customers are already checking into the hotel across the street..."

Mieko Tadokoro looked troubled. Attracting customers to stay by cooking seemed like a great idea at first glance, but upon closer inspection, it was very unreliable!

Not to mention that their hotel is now infamous, customers who have already checked into the hotel across the street are unlikely to pay extra to stay at their place.

"Mom, please trust Teacher Bai Yuan. Since he proposed this solution, it must be feasible."

When Tadokoro Mieko questioned Shirai, Tadokoro Megumi immediately became displeased and said to her seriously.

After all, Bai Yuan was her faith, an invincible figure in her heart, and no one could underestimate him.

Even if the other person is her mother, it's not allowed!

"But this method..."

Seeing Tadokoro Megumi's serious expression, Tadokoro Mieko was somewhat surprised, seemingly not expecting her daughter to trust the man in front of her so much.

"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing. I'll use this one dish to attract all the customers in town!"

Bai Yuan's voice rang out at this moment, stopping the mother and daughter from arguing. He then pointed to the dining table in front of them until the two looked at him.

Because she was worried that he might not have eaten enough and would be hungry when he came back, Tadokoro Mieko did not remove the fish stew, but instead heated it up and put it back on the table.

The two men looked at the fish stew on the table with some confusion.

They've eaten this dish since they were kids. It's incredibly delicious, a taste of their hometown, but it's far from enough to make customers willing to give up everything to come and try it!

Moreover, there are at least a dozen or twenty restaurants in town that specialize in this dish, and most of them taste better than theirs.

"They attracted all the customers to the town with a stew of fish offal..."

Mieko Tadokoro murmured, her voice filled with disbelief, but when she looked at Bai Yuan, she saw his confident expression, and her tense heart calmed down.

There was no way around it; Bai Yuan acted too effortlessly, giving the impression that he had everything under control.

"There should still be the necessary ingredients in the kitchen, right?"

There are still some left.

"That's good, Xiaohui, come into the kitchen with me."

"it is good."

Having confirmed that there were still the necessary ingredients in the kitchen, Bai Yuan looked at Tadokoro Megumi, who was standing next to Tadokoro Mieko, and beckoned her to come into the kitchen with him.

Watching the two figures disappear into the distance, Tadokoro Mieko was still a little worried, so she quickly followed them, and soon the three of them appeared in the kitchen.

Because there were no customers, the kitchen staff were all resting. They only stood up and greeted Tadokoro Mieko when they saw her.

"Could you please use the kitchen, Master Fengcong?"

"Please make yourself at home, there aren't many customers around anyway." Master Feng Cong waved his hand, but his gaze couldn't help but linger on Bai Yuan a few more times.

Bai Yuan didn't pay attention to these things. Instead, he looked at the ingredients in the kitchen and started picking and choosing. He found that this one was not fresh or that one was not properly prepared.

The final list included: "White radish, carrot, burdock, lotus root, taro, pumpkin, buttercup, shiitake mushroom, bamboo shoot, konjac, potato, komatsuna, and garland chrysanthemum... These are more suitable for stews."

Megumi Tadokoro quickly jotted down the list, then looked at Mieko Tadokoro standing to the side: "Mom, I'm counting on you for these ingredients."

"Don't worry, leave it to me." As she spoke, Tadokoro Mieko took the note and couldn't help but gasp inwardly at the large quantity of ingredients listed on it.

The list Bai Yuan gave her contained more ingredients than she originally needed to make fish stew.

However, looking at this list, her confidence in Bai Yuan increased considerably.

The more ingredients used, the higher the skill level required of the author. The fact that the other party dared to use so many ingredients proves that they have absolute confidence in their abilities.

The thought of enjoying the most exquisite delicacies filled me with intense anticipation.

After moistening her lips, Tadokoro Mieko left without looking back, went to the market to buy all the ingredients Shirabuchi needed, and then returned.

“Smells so good!”

Back at Zhuang Huiyuan, as soon as she arrived at the kitchen door, a rich aroma made Tadokoro Mieko unable to move, and a look of infatuation appeared on her face.

"You're back, Mieko-nee."

Hearing the sound from the doorway, Bai Yuan turned around and saw Tadokoro Mieko standing there. He immediately went up to her and took the bag from her hand.

After a quick glance at the vegetables inside, Bai Yuan nodded in satisfaction.

As for his current form of address, it was at Tadokoro Mieko's insistence. She said that they should address each other as they see fit, and calling her "Auntie" felt like making her sound too old.

Because her husband died early, she is now in her thirties and takes good care of herself. People would believe she is only twenty-five or twenty-six. She looks incredibly young!

"Where's Xiaohui? And the others...?"

He glanced into the kitchen and saw that Tadokoro Megumi, who was supposed to be cooking with Shirai, was nowhere to be seen. All the other chefs had also left, leaving him alone.

"I asked her to go to the market to buy some fish for me, and the others were responsible for transporting them back. After all, we need to prepare dinner for tonight, and we need to buy quite a lot of fish."

As they were talking, Bai Yuan took a potato from the vegetables that Tadokoro Mieko had bought, quickly peeled it, cut it into chunks, and put it into the pot to stew with the seafood.

Potatoes, with their soft texture and ability to absorb the flavor of broth, are a perfect side dish and are commonly found even in Western cuisine.

After adding the potatoes, stick a few sheets of dough around the sides of the pot, and it will resemble the iron pot stew from Northeast China.

However, one leans towards seafood, and the other towards meat, so the requirements for vegetables in various aspects of cooking differ.

As Bai Yuan spoke, he stuck the freshly made dough onto the pot, then covered it with the lid. The heat of the iron pot naturally cooked the dough. Once cooked, he scooped it out of the pot, and after absorbing the broth, it became an unparalleled delicacy!

The purpose of flatbread is the same as that of potatoes: to increase edibility.

At the same time, both flatbread and potatoes can enhance the flavor of the soup base.

"Shouldn't we add the rest?"

Walking over to Shirayuki's side, Tadokoro Mieko looked at the untouched vegetables on the cutting board and asked with some confusion.

"Some ingredients need to be added to the pot at the beginning of cooking, otherwise the flavor will not be fully released. Adding them now would be a waste."

At the kitchen counter, Bai Yuan felt a fragrant breeze waft over and turned his head to see Tadokoro Mieko, who had a curvaceous figure and exuded a strong sense of wifely charm, bending over to look at the pot.

When asked, he gave a brief explanation and then quickly looked away.

"I see."

Mieko Tadokoro nodded as if she understood, a strange look in her eyes. She was the type who could cook a little, but not very well.

This level of financial stability is more than enough to provide for the family's daily meals, but it doesn't allow her to run a shop outside; she's just an ordinary housewife.

"Hmm, this pot is almost ready."

As soon as the lid was lifted, a rich aroma wafted out. Tadokoro Mieko, who had been able to remain calm, suddenly felt weak and her face lit up with an expression of utter infatuation the moment she smelled the fragrance.