The crowd surrounded the little chubby boy.
"How about we trade places?"
Second in line were a few high school students. A blond boy squeezed beside the chubby kid, pulled out his wallet, and tried to slip a 5,000 yen bill into his hand.
"No, no, I'm not trading!" The chubby boy was sweating and handed the bill back to the blond boy.
"Not enough?"
The blond boy gritted his teeth, and this time he pulled out a ten thousand yen bill, which startled his two companions.
A boy with a neutral appearance said blankly, "Yoshitake, isn't ten thousand yen a bit much? That's enough to order three dishes inside the restaurant!"
The brown-haired boy with glasses pondered, "An average dish costs 3,500 yen. Ordering three dishes with ten thousand yen is reasonable. But the staff just mentioned a gratitude dish for the first in line... It's priceless. As long as it's not a sweet dish, paying ten thousand yen for one special dish is quite a good deal."
"I said I'm not trading! I won't trade for any amount of money!" The chubby boy noticed more and more gazes around him and couldn't help but hold his head high with a determined expression.
"..."
Since they were waiting in line anyway, the crowd didn't disperse immediately but continued to surround the chubby boy, using soft coercion and hard persuasion.
The backyard of the small restaurant.
An Yilun also and Sazuma Eri were placed in the usual teahouse by Xia Yu, both holding cups of freshly brewed tea. The burning temperature of the cups told them this was definitely not a dream.
The teahouse was very simple, just a canopy set up along the corridor in the yard, with a low tea table inside.
Xia Yu came downstairs, holding a cushion, which he placed outside the teahouse before sitting down on it.
"Hello, allow me to introduce myself grandly. Actually, I am the owner of this restaurant..."
Before he finished speaking, Sazuma Eri exclaimed in surprise.
An Yilun also was much calmer. He had evidently guessed something from Xia Yu's name, but the latter part of Xia Yu's sentence still left him stunned.
"And I am also the head chef of this restaurant."
"Head, head chef?"
Sazuma Eri stuttered, pointing at Xia Yu in shock.
After a while, she suddenly asked, "…Are you a student of Far Moon?"
"Why do you ask?" Xia Yu raised his eyebrows.
"You seem to be about the same age as us, right?" Sazuma Eri played with her ponytail, trying to hide her wandering thoughts. She thought of Tiqie's Eriina, that arrogant girl who seemed quite hostile to this restaurant. Could it be because of this boy?
The more she thought, the more curious she became.
Sazuma Eri was well aware of Tiqie's Eriina's fame. With her "Divine Tongue," Eriina was the youngest member of the top ten at Far Moon and was gaining considerable recognition in the Neon Food World, praised by many predecessors as the genius most likely to become a special-grade chef in the next decade.
So, to attract the attention and hostility of the "Divine Tongue," it probably required a genius chef of the same age and caliber, right?
An Yilun also didn't have as many intricate thoughts. His mind was full of food, with one delicious Chinese cuisine dish after another seemingly floating before his eyes, causing his mouth to water uncontrollably.
He looked at Xia Yu with excitement and admiration, "Are you really the head chef here?"
Due to the widespread reputation in the ACG community, An Yilun also actually regarded Xia's Chinese Restaurant as a restaurant from the anime realm.
"As genuine as it can be."
"What would you like to eat? I can cook for you right now." Xia Yu smiled, "Consider it a gratitude feast. Honestly, we owe our booming business to your promotion."
"Ah..."
An Yilun also and Sazuma Eri were astonished.
For An Yilun also, his identity as a well-known ACG blogger wasn't a secret among friends. However, other than family and one or two close friends, no one could possibly know that Sazuma Eri was the illustrator of the all-age fan girl artwork.
"You're misunderstood...I didn't do anything!" Sazuma Eri hurriedly waved her hands, her face turning as red as an apple.
Xia Yu smiled without denying, "Why don't you order first? Once the restaurant opens, I might not have the time to cook a lavish feast for you."
Sazuma Eri mumbled, "We don't even know what to eat!"
An Yilun also just stared at Xia Yu without speaking.
"Then I will improvise. Can the two of you eat six dishes?" Xia Yu asked, and seeing An Yilun also and Sazuma Eri nod enthusiastically like chickens pecking rice, he smiled and got up to leave.
In about an hour, the six steaming dishes filled the low table.
"Please enjoy—"
Xia Yu didn't come out of the kitchen. Instead, Sen Tian Makoto replaced him, bringing each dish to the table and thoughtfully handing them a bowl of rice each.
Gulp.
As soon as Sen Tian Makoto left, Sazuma Eri dropped her refined demeanor, wiped her drool, quickly picked up a pair of chopsticks, and gathered a few different dishes into her rice bowl. Mixing them with the rice, she shoveled big mouthfuls into her mouth. As she chewed, she happily hummed long tones, "It's so delicious! Even better than the last time!"
An Yilun also was devouring his food as well.
Among the six dishes, three of them were unexpectedly Stir-fried Qingjiang Vegetable, Magic Mapo Tofu, and Furong Crab Meat Egg!
Three glowing dishes on the same table.
This was the culinary feast that Mu Xiaoyue and An Ya, who were already on a flight back home, dreamt of. But An Yilun also and Sazuma Eri, who were indulging themselves, probably didn't realize the selling price of these dishes in Xia Yu's mind.
Each plate cost 100,000 yen.
Not a yen less.
…
"Have the dishes been served there?"
Xia Yu was washing pots and knives in the kitchen when he glanced at Sen Tian Makoto standing at the door.
"Yes, they're enjoying it a lot." Sen Tian Makoto replied with a smile. She stood watching Xia Yu busy himself while Midori Hozoi also changed into a clean chef's uniform at the kitchen counter, preparing ingredients. The clattering sounds of the knife against the cutting board composed a wonderful culinary melody.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Suddenly, the antique clock in the store chimed loudly.
It was six o'clock in the afternoon.
This time, without needing Xia Yu's instructions, Sen Tian Makoto bypassed the kitchen to move to the front desk to welcome the queue of people rushing into the store.
Having often helped manage the patisserie at home, Sen Tian Makoto had ample experience in service, with a serene face showing a gentle smile as she calmly welcomed the guests.
At the same time, sheets with dish names written on them were handed into the kitchen, finally freeing Xia Yu from having to check each dish himself.
Midori Hozoi took the sheets and moved back and forth inside and outside the kitchen, looking for ingredients and cutting vegetables. With so many people ordering at once and sometimes not managing to keep up, Xia Yu would have her watch over another frying pan.
"Midori, fry the deboned fish for 30 seconds, not a second more!"
"Give me the diced pork!"
"Keep an eye on the clay pot. Once you hear sizzling, extinguish the flame after five minutes…"
Xia Yu skillfully directed Midori Hozoi.
Having an efficient helper made everything smooth, cooking without even needing to catch a breath, just needing to name what ingredients or seasonings he wanted. He didn't realize the unease in Midori Hozoi's heart.