Not even an hour had passed when Chen Xiaobei returned to Shallow Grass Mountain.
Chen Xiaobei told Uzuishi Yasai that he would be back in two hours so he still had another hour to spare! He put on the Chen Zhufeng mask and knocked on the door of the temple. Again, it was Uzuishi Yasai who answered the door. “May I know who you are? Why are you here?”
“I’m Chen Zhufeng from China.” Chen Xiaobei spoke in his own voice. “I heard about Master Akaihi and I want to invite him to cook for me.”
Uzuishi Yasai looked concerned.
“Do you know my grandfather’s criteria?”
“Of course.” Chen Xiaobei nodded.
Uzuishi Yasai replied, “Since you know that already, then you should be aware that my grandfather will not accept any run-of-the-mill dishes! I might add that my grandfather has not cooked for anyone for a few years already…”
“I understand. Master Akaihi is picky. I won’t be surprised if he rejects me.” Chen Xiaobei said earnestly, “But I’ve traveled all the way to Japan, if I don’t give it a try, I will regret this my whole life!”
Uzuishi Yasai’s frown deepened and said, “Let me give you one last heads-up: Grandfather is scolding someone right now… If you are not afraid of being reprimanded then you can follow me.”
“No, I’m not! Let’s go in!”
Chen Xiaobei grinned. What is there to be afraid of? He already had a card up his sleeve.
In the dining hall of the temple.
Chen Xiaobei was following behind Uzuishi Yasai when they heard a seething voice lambasting someone’s cooking.
“Rubbish! How could even think of serving this to me? Did you think that I don’t know western food? Take this crap and get out of my sight!”
The door creaked open and a European chef carrying a plate of scrumptious looking seafood dish walked out, hanging his head in shame.
When they were hiking up the mountain, Yamaguchi Takaki had introduced this chef to Chen Xiaobei. He was the winning champion of the Seafood Category of the World Culinary competition. All the European officials and dignitaries must place a booking three months in advance if they want to eat at his restaurant.
But here in the tiny Shallow Grass Mountain, his dish was deemed rubbish and he did not have the impudence to challenge that statement! That was because the person criticizing his cooking was Uzuishi Akaihi!
Uzuishi Yasai glanced at Chen Xiaobei and said, “You can leave if you want…”
“No, I don’t want to.” Chen Xiaobei said, smiling, “We Chinese men can lose a battle but we will not run away from it!’
“Alright. That’s all I can help you with…”
Uzuishi Yasai nodded, and then brought Chen Xiaobei in.
There was a line of ten dining tables stretched across the room. Minus the one that had just been removed, there were nine left. On each of the tables was a mouth-watering dish with its creator, looking somber and acquiescent, standing behind it.
Yamaguchi Takaki stood aside, swallowing every now and then—he was both drawn to the inviting dishes and afraid that none of these nine dishes were enough to please Uzuishi Akaihi.
“Huh? Who is he?”
Uzuishi Akaihi was pouring himself a cup of tea to gargle with when he caught sight of Chen Xiaobei.
“He is also here to invite you to cook for him. He did not make any appointment but he came all the way from China so I invited him in,” Uzuishi Yasai answered.
Upon hearing this, the chefs became exasperated.
“This kid must think very highly of himself! Even we don’t dare hope for Master Akaihi’s approval! He’s just a young nobody with no experience! What qualifies him to come here and show off?”
“Master Akaihi has way more cooking experience than that bastard! How dare he come and blow his own trumpet?!
“Yeah! What is so great about Chinese food? Even if the top Chinese chef came, he would only be reprimanded for his cooking!”
“Yeah! Chinese food is disgusting! Also, China and Japan are not on good terms. Who knows, maybe Master Akaihi will just give the kid a boot!”
…
The nine chefs whispered among themselves. In their eyes, Chen XIaobei was unworthy, China’s dishes were unworthy—unworthy to even be standing next to them. But before Chen Xiaobei could even do anything about it, Uzuishi Akaihi gave them a slap in the face.
“You are a bunch of ignorant fools! What do you know?” Uzuishi Akaihi said unsmiling. “Chinese dishes are really complex! Any of the eight delicacies is enough to impress me! One of my biggest regrets is that I have yet tasted all of China’s delicacies! This young man came just in time!”
“Huh…” the nine chefs were all rendered speechless and their faces burned with shame.
If someone else were to call them ignorant fools, they would have already given him a piece of their mind.
But since it was the titan of the culinary world who said it, they could only bow their heads meekly and swallow.
“That’s just a misunderstanding, Master Akaihi. Please don’t take it to heart…” Yamaguchi Takaki, who had been quiet, tried to smooth things over.
Uzuishi Akaihi could not care less for him. Instead, he looked enthusiastically at Chen Xiaobei and asked, “Young man, what do you want to prepare for me? Szechuan Cuisine, Shandong Cuisine, Cantonese Cuisine, Fujian Cuisine, Zhejiang Cuisine, Hunan Cuisine, Anhui Cuisine, and Huaiyang Cuisine, these are all the eight dishes that I’m really interested in!”
Uzuishi Akaihi picked up a cup and drank and gargled.
“I don’t plan to cook these eight cuisines because I don’t know how to!” Chen Xiaobei flashed a warm smile and said, “The dish I want to make is a fruit platter!”
“Pfft…”
When Uzuishi Akaihi heard this, the tea he had just drank sprayed from his mouth.
“What? The kid wants to make a fruit platter? Did we hear wrongly?”
Everyone in the room was dumbstruck.
“If we heard right, then that kid is a retard!”
“Yeah, what normal person would come all the way to Shallow Grass Mountain to make a fruit platter? Did a donkey kick him in the head?”
“Hey dumbass! You better get out of here! You want to make a fruit platter? That is an insult to Master Akaihi!”
…
The nine chefs took the chance to mock Chen Xiaobei. They had just been slapped in the face, so now they were venting their anger on Chen Xiaobei. Even Uzuishi Akaihi was pissed. He was prepared to give Chen Xiaobei a good roasting.
This kid with no cooking experience wants to win him over with a fruit platter?! This had never happened to him before! Uzuishi Akaihi felt immensely offended!
“Don’t speak too soon or too much, otherwise you’ll be slapped till your face rips open later!”
No one had noticed the plastic bag that Chen Xiaobei had been carrying in his hands.
Now, he opened the bag and took out a larger round water honey peach.
“Is that… a peach? It looks like a jade sculpture…”
Before you know it, every single person in the room were bowled over, leaving their mouth ajar and their eyelids in a permanent stretch.
“How could a peach like that exist?” Uzuishi Akaihi was just as astounded as the rest. A Chinese poem came to mind:
There is a rare beauty in the north;
Unequaled, there is none like her.
One look at her and a city falls;
A second look leaves a nation in ruins!
That’s right! The peach in Chen Xiaobei’s hands was the reflection of this poem!
Even if you turn Japan, or even the world, upside down, you would never be able to find another peach as beautiful as this one!
“Master Akaihi!” Chen Xiaobei asked, grinning, “Do you want to have a taste of my fruit platter?”
