Dragon Lady saw Han Sen walking and talking to himself all alone, so she said, “It is so late. What are you doing here alone?”
Han Sen looked at Dragon Lady and replied, “I came back from Mister White. It is already late, so why are you not asleep?”
“I have invented a new dish. Everyone is resting, so no one can try it. It is perfect that I have found you here. I suppose you can be the first to try out my new dish.” Dragon Lady dragged Han Sen over to her kitchen.
“I really do not have much of an appetite.” Han Sen was not in much of a mood to try anything. There was a fight coming soon, and he was concerned more about the safety of his friends and family. Eating new foods was low on his list of priorities.
“That is excellent. My food can certainly boost someone’s appetite. I heartily recommend you have a bite.” Dragon Lady did not say much. She pulled Han Sen to the kitchen and put a dish down in front of him.
Since he was already there, Han Sen decided he would at least eat a bit. After all, he did not want to hurt her feelings.
Dragon Lady was very skillful. There was every chance that across the whole universe, there was not a chef greater than her. Unfortunately, Han Sen really was not in the mood to eat. He did not think about the food on the table in front of him, so he just had a bite. The texture was good. He said, “It tastes great.”
After hearing what Han Sen had to say, Dragon Lady asked him for more. “If you think this dish is great, then please tell me what you think is good about it in further detail.”
Han Sen felt a bit embarrassed. He had only casually said what he did. He did not expect Dragon Lady to ask him a question in pursuit of more critique. He was just being polite on a whim. He did not really take the time to properly taste the food and understand how it tasted.
“You must understand that I am not a professional food taster,” he said. “I just thought it tasted great. There is not much more I can say. If you ask me what part of the food tastes the best and why, I cannot really tell you.” He put more meat into his mouth. This time, Han Sen tried his best to taste the food. He did not expect he would be able to tell what was so good about the dish. More than anything, he just wanted this to be over and done with it.
When Han Sen tried it this time, he was more than surprised.
“That is fine,” Dragon Lady said. “Just tell me what your heart is telling you. The way it was cooked was not for the food taster to taste. My purpose was to create something long-lasting.”
This was the first time Han Sen had heard a theory like this. Now that he was curious, he asked for more detail. “Long-lasting? What do you mean?”
“There are lots of nice foods in this world. In this universe, new dishes are being invented every moment. Many dishes can be very popular. Those that are draw in lots of people who want to eat them. Many people will queue for a long amount of time just to get a taste, but food like this might find itself ignored and forgotten after a short amount of time. Even if it remained on the menu, not many people would order this. People would only order this now and again, but a very simple dish can prove itself reliable. Because of that, it can last millions of years. It can be a solid dish that, even if you ate it every day, you would not grow tired of it. I am looking for that. Something long-lasting. I want a dish that many people will want to keep eating for a long period of time and not for a one-off. Ideally, by coming up with this sort of dish, I can invoke a change in people’s diets.”
“I understand where you’re coming from,” Han Sen said. “To make food that can last a long time is not an easy task. Before humans started exploring other planets, their food options were very lacking. They just ate whatever they were able to. They then developed particular foods that were considered traditional. Now, in the universe, you have all sorts of ingredients to make food with. You might say there are too many foods, so traditional, long-lasting meals don’t really exist.”
“That is why this means so much to me. It is a challenge, and that is what I am after. If it was not difficult for me to do, I would not be bothered doing this.” Dragon Lady smiled. She looked at Han Sen and said, “To be able to say all you did, it means you really understand food. Why don’t you tell me what this dish really tastes like? Just so you know, I call it Spring Autumn Meat. Do you think this has what it takes to be a long-lasting food?”
Han Sen lowered his head and stared at the meat. He started to look at it strangely.
Dragon Lady thought Han Sen would have said something by now, so she said, “You can tell me anything. Is there something you can hide from? I thought we were close enough to share everything.”
Han Sen was silent a moment before proceeding to say, “I do not know if this dish has what it takes to be long-lasting, but from what I see, this dish has a problem.”
“What problem?” Dragon Lady asked.
Han Sen did not answer her immediately. Instead, he made a request. “How about this? You make this food again. Perhaps then I can better identify what the problem is.”
Han Sen was not a professional food critic, but Dragon Lady admired him all the same. She did not disregard his opinion just because he was not a professional, so she went ahead to do what Han Sen had told her. She produced more of that Spring Autumn Meat.
Dragon Lady summoned a wok, spoon, knife, and spatula. She brought out a few ingredients and went ahead to cook the Spring Autumn Meat right in front of Han Sen.
Dragon Lady’s skills were very good. No matter the food choice, the process, or even the whole controlling of the fire aspect, everything she did was perfect. Even the top-class chefs and food critics from all across the universe would have been unable to identify a single fault.
In Han Sen’s eyes, all of this made him start to look weird.
Han Sen was able to cook meat, but his cooking ability was simple. Even some grilled meat was considered very special. Before Dragon Lady, his cooking meat skill paled in comparison.
As Han Sen watched Dragon Lady make food, he had a weird feeling. Dragon Lady’s every movement was something that resonated familiarity with him.
It was like as Dragon Lady made food, every step and every movement were something Han Sen had seen before.
Most of Dragon Lady’s movements were something Han Sen was familiar with, but there were also times Han Sen thought her movements were different.
The places and moves Han Sen could not feel familiar with were the times Han Sen thought Dragon Lady was making a mistake. It made Han Sen feel pretty weird.
When it came to fighting powers, Han Sen could defeat Dragon Lady. When it came to cooking talents, Han Sen would never catch up with Dragon Lady. Their levels were nowhere near the same.
Now, Han Sen believed that Dragon Lady was not doing things right, and that feeling was very strong. It was a little unbelievable.
“What is going on? Why do I have this feeling? Is that the With Light and Dust Mister White was talking about?” Han Sen was as much shocked as he was confused. He suddenly did not know what to do.
Dragon Lady had already cooked the Spring Autumn Meat. She put it down in front of Han Sen and asked him with seriousness, “Now, do you mind telling me what is wrong with the dish?”
“It is really hard for me to explain.” Han Sen thought for a moment and said, “There is this feeling I have, and it prohibits me from speaking. How about I make one myself, and you get to rate how well I do it?”
He did not believe his feelings were right. He did not know what to think, so he did not confess what he was feeling to her.
“Are you going to make Spring Autumn Meat for me?” Dragon Lady looked at Han Sen with shock.
With Han Sen’s cooking skills, she could already predict how awful this was going to turn out. While the Spring Autumn Meat looked simple, there were two different vegetables and meats that required different timings and temperatures. Han Sen would have to watch the temperature. Chefs that weren’t professionals would not be able to juggle like that. With Han Sen’s lack of ability, she did not think he would be able to produce the dish.
