Everyday Life Starting with Food Wars

The two followed the crowd and walked through the long sandalwood corridor.

The meeting room for Group F was located in a large, well-lit Japanese-style restaurant on the side of the main building of the resort.

Pushing open the two sliding doors, you'll find excellent air circulation inside. A dozen or so kitchen countertops, their natural wood color gleaming and polished to a high shine, are arranged in a fan shape, complete with all kinds of high-end cooking utensils.

Hinako Inui was already standing on the podium, smiling and waving to the students who were coming in.

There were already more than a dozen people in the classroom. Chen Yuxing glanced around and spotted two familiar strands of blonde hair near the window.

"Ah! We meet again!" Takumi Aldini crossed his arms and leaned back against the clear glass of the floor-to-ceiling window.

His younger brother, Isami, sat on the corner of the kitchen counter and waved to Chen Yuxing and Tadokoro Megumi: "What a coincidence!"

“I told you so!” Takumi strode over and stood in front of Chen Yuxing without any politeness. In his deep blue eyes, the sparks of rivalry were clashing fiercely.

"The gears of fate are turning after all! The challenge I made in the square just now, God of Cookery, is now fulfilling it for me! This time, I will definitely show you the true power of the Aldini family's authentic cuisine!" Takumi's words were full of chuunibyou (adolescent delusions of grandeur).

"Okay, okay." Chen Yuxing casually picked at his ear, completely ignoring the comment. "However, I suggest you save your energy for the exam."

As time passed, all about thirty students in the venue had arrived.

Everyone found their respective workstations and stood in low voices, their conversations filled with anxiety, clearly indicating that the pressure from the hall earlier still lingered in their minds.

The trainees gradually arrived at the venue, numbering about thirty, and were scattered in front of various workstations, their hushed conversations a mixture of tension and excitement.

"Crack! Crack!"

On the stage, Hinako Inui gently clapped her fair hands. The crisp applause, amplified by the excellent acoustics of the room, instantly silenced everyone.

"Welcome everyone to my seminar." Hinako Inui's voice was gentle yet clear. "I won't waste any more time. What we're about to do is the first task of our six-day survival in purgatory—"

Hinako Inui stood up and pointed to a square, empty table next to the control panel.

"Using all the ingredients available here, we will create a main course that perfectly embodies the 'essence' of Japanese cuisine!"

Upon hearing the question, the students instinctively turned their heads and stared at the empty table for about two seconds in silence.

Then someone raised their hand: "Chef Qian, but we can't see any ingredients at all!"

"Ara ara~ Who said there are no ingredients?"

Hinako Inui's smile deepened.

She walked to the window and reached out to push open the floor-to-ceiling window that faced the back of the hotel.

Accompanied by a series of crisp "whoosh" sounds.

All the floor-to-ceiling windows were opened at the same time, and a mountain breeze carrying the coolness of the stream rushed in, causing the pale white curtains around them to billow high.

"Nurturing life, flowing with clear water, and the vibrant gifts hidden in the soil and forests—isn't this magnificent nature the best treasure trove of natural ingredients?"

With her hands behind her back, Inui Hinako turned around, her graceful figure facing away from the rugged mountains and forests outside the window, like a beautiful painting. But the words she spoke were like a hammer blow to everyone's heart.

"I have already prepared the seasonings, oil, and kitchen utensils for everyone in advance."

She held up one finger and pointed to a large storage basket in the corner of the classroom: "Also, you can take the fishing rods, insect nets, and even small hoes in that corner."

"This entire mountain area outside is the private property of the Far Moon Group, and it's surrounded by fences to demarcate its boundaries, which means..."

Hinako Inui squinted at the group of students below who were completely petrified: "Any living creature or plant within the fenced area can be harvested and hunted as food. Use the ingredients provided by nature itself to make a 'Japanese main dish' that satisfies me, and you'll pass the test."

"Time limit: two hours."

"Alright... the wilderness survival challenge, now—the timer begins!"

"Tick-tock." The timer in her hand was pressed down hard.

The entire classroom fell into a terrifying silence that lasted for three seconds.

The next second, it completely exploded!

"Holy crap! What's going on?! In the mountains? Fishing rods?! We're supposed to catch our own food with our bare hands?!" A boy screamed in despair, clutching his head.

"Do you think this is a survival game?! Are you channeling Bear Grylls?! I'm here to cook, not to hunt!"

"Stop howling! Get moving! The area outside is only so big. If we're too late, all the fish and other easy-to-catch creatures in the river will be wiped out by others!!"

The students who reacted a little faster rushed toward the large basket full of props, scrambling to grab fishing rods, portable nets, and small digging shovels.

The sounds of collisions, shoving, and shouts of fighting over hunting tools blended together, turning the classroom from quiet to complete chaos in less than ten seconds.

Takumi Aldini took the lead, showcasing the formidable physical prowess he had developed from childhood in Italian kitchens.

He shoved aside two people wrestling next to him, quickly pulled out two fishing rods that looked extremely tough from the basket, and shoved one of them into his younger brother Isami's arms.

"Isami! What are you daydreaming about? Go get that sturdier net over there and the small bamboo basket for holding live fish! The current is fast, we need to seize the location upstream with the slow-moving, meandering terrain as quickly as possible, there must be plenty of high-quality river fish with firm flesh there!" Takmi decisively finished giving the tactical instructions, then grabbed his fishing rod and dashed off like a golden flash.

Chen Yuxing didn't rush to grab the props. He first walked to the window and peeked out.

A clear stream, about five or six meters wide, flows straight through a dense thicket of mixed trees.

If you look closely, you can even see the slender shadows of fish that startled the students and began to swim quickly in the stream. On both sides of the stream, there are also wild ferns as tall as a person and a large patch of unidentified broad-leaved grass that emits a special fragrance.

On the other side, several sturdy wild pepper trees growing by the stream were particularly eye-catching. Strings of wild peppers, not yet fully ripe but bright green, hung on the trees. In the deeper forest, the crisp sound of wild pheasants flapping their wings could be heard from time to time.

Tadokoro Megumi stood quietly beside Chen Yuxing, following the direction of his gaze.

"There should be large patches of natural lichen in the damp mud near the stream. On the bay where the water flows more slowly, there are clusters of leaves with three petals, which are natural celery. If these two wild vegetables are combined properly, they can be a very high-end Japanese spice."

Although Xiao Hui's voice trembled slightly, she didn't hesitate at all when explaining her professional knowledge: "Also, Ah Xing, look along the upstream of the stream. There's a small, man-made slope. Downstream from that part, there must be a large area of ​​shallows. The rocks there must be covered with moss, and where there's moss... there must be wild sweetfish that like to nibble on moss!"

Chen Yuxing turned slightly to look at the girl beside him who had a serious expression on her face.

With just a few glances, one can analyze the general location of various ingredients from the environment in front of them.

"No wonder she's a head chef from a port city." Chen Yuxing couldn't help but smile and reach out to gently ruffle Xiao Hui's smooth blue hair.

Suddenly being patted on the head, Tadokoro Megumi's face flushed red again, but she didn't dodge. Instead, she bit her lip and looked at Chen Yuxing with bright eyes.

He walked up to the prop box that had been looted and was now just a pile of broken metal, and picked up a fishing net, two small fishing rods, and a small bamboo basket for washing vegetables.

"Let's go, Xiao Hui."

Chapter 20 Preparation of Ingredients

The two walked out of the classroom one after the other, and followed the gravel path behind the classroom to the path leading to the stream.

The soil underfoot was still damp from the rain a few days ago, making a slight rustling sound as I stepped on it. The air in the forest was damp, filled with the scent of decaying leaves and wild mint.

Upon reaching the stream, Chen Yuxing stopped at a point about four meters from the artificial stone embankment.

Here, the water flow is divided into two streams by a large rock, forming a backwater with a slightly slower flow in the middle.

"When sweetfish swim upstream, they like to rest in places where the current is gentle."

He handed one fishing rod to Tadokoro Megumi, then squatted down by the water with the other one, skillfully baited it with a small piece of bait, and casually cast it out.

Tadokoro Megumi stood next to him, her hands holding the fishing rod a little stiff. She imitated Chen Yuxing, baiting the hook with bait and then casting it with force.

As a result, because the line was too short, the float pitifully landed less than a meter from the shore, and didn't even enter the backwater; it just started drifting downstream with the current.

"oops……"

Xiao Hui bit her lip and reeled in the line with some annoyance. She carefully inspected the hook and found that the bait she had just put on had been washed away by the current.

She stood still, took a deep breath, baited the hook again, adjusted her wrist slightly, and this time, aimed at the edge of the backwater and cast the hook with force.

The float landed steadily on the edge of the backwater area and began to spin along the slight eddy. While waiting for the float to sink, Xiao Hui secretly looked up at Chen Yuxing.

Chen Yuxing was looking at the water, his wrist rhythmically and gently shaking the fishing rod to make the bait underwater appear to be swimming naturally.

"The second throw went much farther than the first, and the angle of entry into the water was also much smoother," Chen Yuxing said without turning his head.

Xiao Hui paused for a moment, then turned to look at him.

"When faced with failure, I don't freeze up or get scared; instead, I immediately look for the reasons and adjust myself."

Chen Yuxing stared at the water, a smile playing on his lips. "These are the qualities a good chef should have, Xiao Hui."

Upon hearing this, Tadokoro Megumi felt her heart skip a beat.

Just then, on Chen Yuxing's side of the water, the red and white buoy suddenly plunged into the water with a "whoosh"!

The previously slack fishing line suddenly taut, and the fishing rod was pulled into a full moon arc by the underwater force.

"They've taken the bait!"

Chen Yuxing didn't rush to lift the rod. Instead, he used his strong wrist strength to lean to the side and control the rod, making the fish on the bottom of the water swirl and circle around. When the fish on the bottom frantically thrashed its tail and exhausted its strength, and a white belly appeared on the surface of the water, he seized the opportunity and pulled the rod up sharply!

"Splash!"

Water splashed everywhere, and a very plump sweetfish was pulled directly out of the water.

The fish scales reflected a beautiful blue-silver luster in the sunlight, and even though it had been caught and was already halfway up in the air, its tail was still frantically slapping the air.

Chen Yuxing grabbed the sweetfish, skillfully removed the hook, threw it into the prepared bamboo basket, and then methodically rebaited and cast the line again.

“Ah-Xing, there’s some celery on that shallow beach over there.” Tadokoro Megumi pointed to a patch of knee-high grass by the stream. “The leaves are heart-shaped with serrated edges and the roots are reddish—it’s definitely celery. The shorter ones next to it are Angelica sinensis. The tender stems can be blanched and used to make sesame paste.”

“Go a little further up, there should be something even better at Shiyan.” Chen Yuxing stared at the water. “You’ve observed this area very closely—do you often come to places like this?”

“I often go to that grove of trees behind Polar Star Dormitory.” Tadokoro’s voice softened. “I always find Yuuki’s chicks there when they run away. When I was a child in my hometown, there was a stream like that behind my family’s inn, and I would often go there to pick wild vegetables.”

"Then I'll take care of the fishing, and I'll leave the task of gathering the ingredients to you, Xiao Hui."

"Okay! Leave it to me!" Tadokoro Megumi nodded vigorously, put down her backpack, walked to the edge of the grass, squatted down, and carefully began to pick the plants. Her picking technique was very professional. She pinched the tenderest part of the plant stem with her fingers and gently squeezed it, ensuring that the picked part would be the most tender and delicious without damaging the plant.

……

Twenty minutes later, four plump sweetfish, all of uniform size and about twenty centimeters long, were pulled out of the basket.

When Chen Yuxing finished fishing, Tadokoro Megumi also returned from the woods.

Her bamboo basket was filled with her spoils: a large bunch of celery with slightly reddish roots, a few tender stems of angelica root still covered in dew, a small handful of fragrant Sichuan pepper buds, a few newly sprouted bracken shoots, and most surprisingly, two rather large matsutake mushrooms.

“Duck celery and angelica can be used as side dishes, matsutake mushrooms can be sliced ​​thinly and mixed into rice to enhance the flavor, sansho sprouts can be reserved for seasoning at the end, and bracken must be blanched to remove its bitterness.” Tadokoro Megumi pointed out each item in the basket to him one by one.

“Perfect.” Chen Yuxing neatly packed the two fishing rods together. “Xiao Hui, take these ingredients back to Group F’s classroom first.”

"Keep two live sweetfish in a basin of clean water, just make sure they don't suffocate and turn belly up; gut the other two right there by the tank, being careful not to break their gallbladders, lest the bitter water contaminate their bellies. Prepare the other vegetables according to the method you just described."

“Okay.” Xiao Hui nodded, then looked at Chen Yuxing’s empty hands with some doubt. “Is there anything else you need to do, Xing? The exam is only two hours long, and almost thirty minutes have already passed.”

“These are enough to make a decent dish, but I think it can be even more perfect.” Chen Yuxing put the two fishing rods together and tucked them under his arm. “I heard a pheasant calling in the woods just now.”

Tadokoro Megumi took the basket, looked up at him, nodded vigorously, and then quickly walked towards the teaching building with the basket in her hand.

Chen Yuxing walked through the chestnut grove and squatted down by the bushes on the leeward slope to examine the claw marks on the ground. The pheasant's claw marks pointed up the slope. He followed the slope and finally located a wild pheasant with its head down pecking at grass seeds at the edge of a large patch of wild ferns that was half a person's height.

This pheasant is very robust, with dark green feathers on its neck that have a metallic sheen, and long, fluffy feathers on its tail. It's clearly a parkour champion in this forest.

Chen Yuxing held his breath and moved with utmost lightness, like a cheetah silently approaching its prey.

Just as he got closer to within about three meters, he accidentally stepped on a dead branch, making a soft "crack" sound.

Pheasants are extremely alert. The moment they hear a noise, they flap their wings and cluck as they dash into the depths of the woods.

"You run pretty fast, now come and be my main course trainee, little Zhiyin."

Chen Yuxing suddenly exerted force with his feet, and the terrifying explosive force made him kick out a mud pit in the ground, and his whole body rushed out like a cannonball!

The pheasant in front of him suddenly changed direction ninety degrees while running wildly. Chen Yuxing turned to the side and reached out to grab the base of its fluffy tail feathers.

However, they underestimated its agility. Not only did they fail to catch it, their hands also slipped. As the pheasant struggled, its two claws kicked hard against Chen Yuxing's school uniform sleeve, sending a large patch of mud flying onto it.

However, this completely exhausted Chen Yuxing's patience.

"You've got a penchant for running, huh? Here, borrow two chicken legs!"

Chen Yuxing accelerated again, pouncing forward like a hungry tiger, his left knee landing precisely on the pheasant, controlling its movement, while his right hand grabbed the pheasant's neck, which was covered in green feathers.

Then, he took out a small boning knife from his pocket, pressed his thumb under the chicken's neck, found the carotid artery, and made a clean, decisive cut. Arterial blood gushed out instantly, and once the blood had drained completely, the plump pheasant finally stopped moving.

Chen Yuxing stood up, carrying the chicken leg, patted the mud off his pants, and was about to turn around and walk back when he suddenly caught a glimpse of a small nest made of dry grass and dead leaves under the tree root where the pheasant had been scavenging.

He walked over and parted the dry grass, his eyes immediately lighting up.

Five or six small wild eggs with light brown spots on their shells lay quietly inside.

He carefully used his coat to hold the eggs and neatly tucked them into his pocket.

When Chen Yuxing pushed open the door to the classroom for Group F's research project, there were less than fifty minutes left before the two-hour exam time limit.

More than half of the students in the classroom had already started plating. The air was filled with the aroma of fried fish, soy sauce, and kelp broth. Takumi Aldini was standing next to the judges' table at the front of the classroom, bringing a plate of rather exquisite-looking grilled sweetfish with mountain vegetable tempura to Hinako Inui. His younger brother, Isami, stood beside him, helping to hand him a sauce dish.

Hinako Inui picked up a piece of crispy-on-the-outside, tender-on-the-inside white fish belly with her chopsticks, put it in her mouth, chewed it slowly for a couple of seconds, and nodded with a smile: "Hmm~ The cooking time is perfectly controlled, and the aroma of wild chili peppers also removes the muddy taste of the fish very well. It's acceptable."