Everyday Life Starting with Food Wars

"Moreover, the two of them cooperated well, and we could see it clearly from the counter." Lin Shaoxiong looked at Chen Yuxing, who was leaning against the cooking counter in the distance. "Both the head chef and the assistant chef demonstrated their skills and showcased them in the dish. In this competition, your dish was the biggest surprise."

"You're Japanese, right? Your surname is Hojo?" Xie Guohua suddenly asked.

"Yes."

"What is Hokujo-ro, the long-established restaurant in Yokohama Chinatown?"

That's our family's restaurant.

"Then you must be Hojo Tokitoshi's daughter."

"Do you know my father?" Hojo Miyoko looked at Xie Guohua with some surprise.

“I had an exchange with your father when I traveled to Japan before,” Xie Guohua recalled, stroking his chin. “It was about two years ago. I had a little sparring with your father back then, and we ended up drawing. But I didn’t see you at that time.”

"No wonder you speak Chinese so well despite being Japanese." Aunt Mai nodded in agreement. "The dishes you make also have an authentic Southeast Asian flavor. You have a strong learning ability. What impresses us even more is your independent thinking and courage. You were able to choose dishes that were completely different from others in the competition and make adjustments to the recipes on the spot. You are truly an excellent chef."

"Overall, you both performed very well, and you have advanced without any doubt."

Without hesitation, all three judges gave high scores on their respective evaluation forms.

Miyoko Hojo, who had been feeling anxious, finally breathed a sigh of relief. She thanked the three judges with some emotion and then stepped off the stage.

She walked back to Chen Yuxing's side and waved her fist at him, "See! I told you I wouldn't hold you back!"

"Well done! Both your choice of curry and your improvements were excellent. You truly live up to your reputation, Hojo-kun." Chen Yuxing didn't hold back his praise and then gave Hojo Miyoko a high five.

"Thank you," Hojo Miyoko said, blushing slightly as she looked at Chen Yuxing.

While the two were talking, the other contestants also finished their judging one after another.

There were cheers and dejected expressions. As the evaluation of the last contestant ended, the host walked onto the stage with the final list.

At this point, only the last four teams remained out of the original thirty-six teams.

"Everyone! The second round of the competition is now completely over!"

"After two rounds of intense elimination matches, many excellent pairs have been eliminated due to a few mistakes. Now, only the last four pairs of players remain on this stage, which are the top four in our Mahjong King Competition!"

"They are—Chen Yuxing and Hojo Miyoko, travelers from out of town! Master Zhou and his apprentice from 'Guangzhou Restaurant'! Master Zhang and his apprentice from 'Tao Tao Ju'! And finally, the mysterious dark horse from Shunde, the A-Qiang duo!"

"Congratulations to these four groups of contestants for advancing to the final third round—the 'Peak Showdown'!"

A burst of enthusiastic applause erupted from the audience. Those who survived two rounds of elimination were all monsters, and most chefs felt very lucky to have made it to the second round.

"The third round of the competition will officially begin at Liwan Plaza at 6:00 AM tomorrow!"

"The official rules for the third round of the competition will be announced then. Masters, you can go back and rest and prepare. See you tomorrow!"

Upon hearing that the final match wouldn't start until tomorrow, the crowd gradually dispersed, and the remaining three groups of contestants all left.

Hojo Miyoko and Chen Yuxing tidied up the kitchen counter and were about to leave when Chen Yuxing saw Su Youfu still standing in the spectator area, looking slightly forlorn. His little apprentice was also standing to the side with his head down, his shoulders shaking as if he were crying.

Chen Yuxing patted Hojo Miyoko on the shoulder, "Wait for me outside for a while, I'm going to say a few words to Master Su."

He walked through the crowd to Su Youfu, who was taking a pack of tissues out of his pocket and handing it to his young apprentice.

"Master Chen." Su Youfu's face didn't show any embarrassment at losing the match when he saw Chen Yuxing. Instead, he cupped his hands in greeting and said, "Congratulations on advancing."

"Thank you, Master Su." Chen Yuxing nodded to him, then his gaze fell on his young apprentice wiping away tears beside him. "Is your apprentice alright?"

"I'm sorry to have made you laugh. My apprentice has been learning from me for three years. He was so eager to win this competition, but he was also too nervous, which caused him to make a mistake at the last moment. But young people are like that; losing once or twice is not a bad thing." Su Youfu patted his apprentice's head. "Alright, don't cry. It's okay to lose. Just work harder next time and try to win it back. Don't let outsiders laugh at you."

After reprimanding his apprentice, he turned to Chen Yuxing and said, "I didn't expect to go very far in this Mahjong King Competition. I just wanted to experience the feeling of competing with masters from all walks of life again."

"The real battle will begin in the third round. None of the remaining three contestants are easy to deal with. Master Chen, well, with your skills, you don't need me, an eliminated contestant, to worry about you."

Su Youfu grinned and said, "To be honest, I, Su Youfu, have few people I truly respect in my life. You, Master Chen, are one of them. I believe you can definitely outperform those old guys."

"Thank you for your blessings, Master Su." Chen Yuxing looked at Su Youfu and shook his hand firmly. "Now that we've come this far, we're definitely aiming for the championship."

Watching Su Youfu's departing figure, Chen Yuxing stood there for a while, then turned around and walked out of the square to find Hojo Miyoko.

"Are you done talking? What are we going to do next? Should we buy some ingredients to try making the dishes?" Hojo Miyoko asked with concern when she saw Chen Yuxing come out.

"No rush, it's time to have dinner. Let's rest for a while first, then have dinner and some sweet water. Tomorrow's competition will depend on the rules."

Chapter 48 Pre-match Rest

By the time the two walked out of Liwan Plaza, it was already completely dark outside.

The two first went to a street vendor and bought a cup of herbal tea. She looked at...

Miyoko Hojo walked ahead, sipping her herbal tea and chatting excitedly with Chen Yuxing.

"Speaking of which, this is my first time participating in this type of competition, and I've never been here before. It's quite interesting, which is unexpected." Hojo Miyoko looked at the pedestrians on the street with some emotion. "I was really nervous when those judges were tasting my dish. I was more nervous than I was even back in Totsuki Academy."

“That’s right. After all, the ‘King of Mahjong’ is a real competition with such a long history and the judges are all very capable people. It’s normal to be nervous.” Chen Yuxing took a sip of her herbal tea and smiled. “And you did a great job. You didn’t stick to the idea of ​​choosing Chinese cuisine just because it’s a Chinese competition.”

"To be honest, I was quite surprised when you chose curry."

"Aren't you worried I'll mess this up?" Hojo Miyoko stopped and turned to look at Chen Yuxing.

"I'm not worried." Chen Yuxing shook his head. "After all, there are no restrictions in the second round of the competition. It would be wrong to choose a dish you're not good at just to compete."

"And since you chose curry, it means you are very confident in your choice. As your kitchen helper, I certainly trust your judgment and will do my best to help you. That's what I'm going to do."

Hojo Miyoko froze upon hearing these words, looking at Chen Yuxing with an inexplicable feeling.

The two walked slowly along the street when Chen Yuxing suddenly smelled a very fragrant aroma.

It's the aroma of charred oil produced by roasting at high temperatures, mixed with the scents of cumin, chili powder, and some spices unique to the south.

"barbecue?"

He paused in his steps.

"What's wrong?" Hojo Miyoko stopped and followed his gaze into the alley.

"There's a really nice barbecue smell. I'm feeling a bit hungry. How about we go grab some late-night snacks?"

"sure."

The two walked and talked as they entered the alley. Although the alley looked small from the outside, it was quite spacious inside. There were several barbecue grills, and a shirtless man was fanning the charcoal fire with a palm leaf fan. Several tables of customers were also sitting on the side.

Chen Yuxing led Hojo Miyoko to a plastic stool and found a place to sit. There were menus on the table with all kinds of barbecue snacks, such as grilled oysters, grilled ribs, grilled eggplant, and some other snacks that Hojo Miyoko didn't recognize.

When the uncle saw people coming, he continued fanning the charcoal fire while greeting the two: "Handsome guy and pretty girl, want something to eat?"

"Boss, a dozen oysters, half with garlic and half plain, plus five lamb skewers, two servings of eggplant, and a serving of salt and pepper flounder, all mildly spicy, with a generous amount of garlic." After ordering some dishes, Chen Yuxing turned to Hojo Miyoko, "See if there's anything else you'd like to eat, we can add a little more, and some drinks too."

"Do you come to places like this often?" Hojo Miyoko looked around and then at the menu. "I'll have a radish cake."

She grew up in Yokohama Chinatown and was no stranger to barbecue, but this was her first time at a street food stall.

"Not really, but it's nice to eat at one of these little stalls once in a while. Plus, it smells really good, so I thought I'd come in and have a bite." Chen Yuxing wiped the table with a tissue. "Boss, could you please give us another serving of radish cake and two more cans of beer?"

"Okay." The uncle replied as he began to prepare.

The uncle worked quickly, prying open the oysters and arranging them neatly on the grill. Then he scooped a spoonful of minced garlic onto the oyster meat, and they began to sizzle and bubble as they grilled over the charcoal fire.

The aroma of garlic mixed with the sweet scent of oysters wafted over from the grill. Hojo Miyoko wasn't feeling very hungry at first, but the smell made her appetite return.

"By the way," she said, opening a can of beer and taking a sip, "do you have any ideas about tomorrow's third round?"

"what idea?"

"It's about rules and such."

Miyoko Hojo put down her beer. "I also chatted with the other contestants' kitchen helpers during my free time this morning."

"They said the rules for the Mahjong King Championship finals seem to be different every year. Some require specific dishes, while others test knife skills, and so on."

"Actually, I don't think it's necessary to think about these things. We'll know the rules when we get there tomorrow morning."

Chen Yuxing took the grilled oyster and scraped the oyster meat off the shell with chopsticks. "And no matter what the rules are, I'm still very confident in us. In the end, the competition is about who cooks the better dish, isn't it?"

He placed the first oyster in front of Miyoko Hojo, gesturing for her to try it.

The oyster meat was very plump and juicy, grilled over charcoal until the edges were slightly charred, and topped with golden garlic sauce, making it look incredibly tempting.

Miyoko Hojo picked up an oyster and took a bite. The juice burst in her mouth, and the oyster's sweet and fresh flavor, along with the aroma of garlic and the unique charcoal fire, was incredibly delicious and had absolutely no fishy taste.

"Delicious."

After tasting the grilled oysters, her eyes lit up. She quickly ate the whole oyster and immediately grabbed a second one. "I've had this before in Chinatown, but the two taste completely different. The one in Chinatown was very bland and had a slightly fishy taste. It's not as good as this one."

“Right, the two sides are handled differently, but I still think the barbecue here in China is better.” Chen Yuxing picked up a skewer of lamb and paired it with a beer. “And you have to eat barbecue with ice-cold beer, it’s so refreshing. There are also meat skewers, fish, and the radish cake you ordered, they are all very delicious.”

"Hmm!" Hojo Miyoko picked up the grilled skewers and radish cake next to her and tasted them. "The taste of these skewers is a bit so-so, they taste the same as the ones in Japan. This radish cake is the first time I've seen it, it's white in color and soft to the touch."

"I've never seen radish cake in Japan before. It's a local specialty here, also called radish cake or turnip cake, which has auspicious meaning."

"Chen Yuxing, can you make this too?" Hojo Miyoko asked Chen Yuxing. "Could you teach me when we get back? I'd like to learn how to make this radish cake."

"Sure, I'll teach you after I go back to Totsuki after the holiday."

"it is good!"

"Speaking of which, are you really not worried about tomorrow at all? Even though you said that just now, I'm still a little nervous about tomorrow's match."

"Really, there's no need to be nervous." Chen Yuxing picked up a salt and pepper flounder and took a bite. "Let me give you a brief analysis."

"Look, the final round of the competition starts at six o'clock tomorrow morning. Since the competition starts so early, we can probably guess some of the topics. It will most likely involve making something like morning tea, and then there's the Mahjong King competition. When I went to register, an old man there talked to me about it. For example, he explained why the competition is called the Mahjong King Competition. He said that the Mahjong King is the leader of the sparrows, and sparrows love to chirp. The Mahjong King can make the sparrows shut up and follow him. So, it must be about conquering all the diners."

"Of course, this is actually a bit far-fetched, so I'm just guessing."

Miyoko Hojo put down her chopsticks and thought for a moment: "You mean... tomorrow's competition might not have only three judges like today?"

"I don't know either, we'll find out tomorrow." Chen Yuxing finished the last oyster, then stood up and patted his pants. "Boss, check please."

When the two came out of the alley, the air, which had been somewhat stuffy, gradually cooled down.

Passing by a dessert shop that was still open, Chen Yuxing bought two cups of chilled mango pomelo sago.

He and Miyoko Hojo stood by the roadside, leaning against the railing, drinking.

“When I was the head chef at Hojo-ro…” Hojo Miyoko bit her straw, looking at the flashing neon lights between the buildings across the street, “I always thought I was pretty good. I even won two championships in Yokohama, but my family still didn’t trust me. So, to prove myself, I took the entrance exam for Totsuki Culinary Academy and successfully got in. But it turns out that both here and at Totsuki, there are many chefs who are better than me.”

"You are indeed very good. Don't underestimate yourself. You are already a very good chef in Totsuki Culinary Academy. Not to mention this competition, all the contestants are more experienced head chefs than us. Moreover, you just won a competition. I believe you will definitely reach even greater heights in the future."

Hojo Miyoko didn't say anything, just stared blankly at Chen Yuxing.

"What's wrong? Is there something on my face?" Chen Yuxing touched his face.

“It’s nothing…” Hojo Miyoko turned her head away and took a big gulp of mango pomelo sago.

"Alright, it's about time to go back." Chen Yuxing cracked his neck. "It's getting late now. We need to get there by six o'clock tomorrow morning. We should go back and rest and get some sleep."

"Ah."

It was already past ten o'clock when they got back to the hotel. The two went to their respective rooms to take a shower and go to bed. Before they parted ways in the corridor, Hojo Miyoko said to Chen Yuxing, "I will definitely do my best tomorrow and will not hold you back." Then she ran off immediately.

Chen Yuxing smiled and shook his head before returning to his room. He quickly took a shower and went to bed, but instead of resting immediately, he went over the events of the day in his mind.

He leaned against the bed and began to think. The first two rounds of the competition eliminated most of the contestants, leaving only four groups. As for the final round, although the old man who registered him told him that there were no restrictions on the theme of the third round, no one knew what would happen tomorrow.

Moreover, since it's already the finals, the remaining three groups of contestants must be very strong. If, as he guessed, tomorrow's competition requires making breakfast, he's really not sure what to do. Under normal circumstances, he's quite confident in his breakfast skills, but in this kind of competition, compared to the more experienced local chefs, his dim sum is really not up to par.

Moreover, as they entered the final round, the judges were sure to be even stricter. Chen Yuxing went through all the recipes he was best at in his previous life and the recipes he received as rewards from the Book of Gourmet Food. After finalizing a few countermeasure recipes, he turned off the lights and went to sleep.

It was five o'clock in the morning, just as dawn was breaking.

When Chen Yuxing finished washing up and went downstairs, he found that Hojo Miyoko was already waiting for him in the lobby.

"You're up so early, did you get a good rest yesterday?" Chen Yuxing greeted her.

"It's alright, the competition's coming up soon, so we need to be a little early." Hojo Miyoko flexed her wrists. "How about you?"

"Pretty much." Chen Yuxing slung his backpack over his shoulder. "Let's go, let's set off."

When the two arrived at Liwan Plaza, it was not yet six o'clock, but there were already many people there.

It was even more lively than yesterday. Today, in addition to the contestants and staff, there were also many tourists who came spontaneously.

I guess they saw how lively this place was yesterday, inquired about it, and then came to join in the fun after learning about the competition. Although this competition isn't being advertised, no one will stop people from coming to watch once they know about it.

Compared to yesterday, there are only four cooking stations left on the counter today.

"The four finalists, please come up to the stage!"

The host's voice came through the loudspeaker, and the previously noisy audience quieted down.

The four groups of contestants walked onto the stage together and each chose a cooking station to stand at.

The host cleared his throat and spoke again.