Chapter 854: Chapter 853: Defeat (Part 1)
After the New Year’s Eve family reunion dinner, it’s the first day of the New Year.
At dawn, the wooden stairs of the old mansion creaked as Xia Yu yawned and came down from his bedroom on the second floor.
"Splash——"
A sudden sound of splashing water.
In the middle of the skywell, several wooden barrels were filled with cold well water. The old man, topless, lifted one bucket after another, pouring it over himself. Perhaps it was his high body temperature or some kind of inner strength, but steam rose from the top of the old man’s head, making Xia Yu secretly click his tongue.
But even when they were in Neon, the old man often took cold baths, and sometimes even late at night, the sound of splashing water could be heard, frequently disturbing Xia Yu’s sweet dreams. Therefore, seeing the old man bathing was quite a usual sight for Xia Yu.
"Oh right!"
Xia Yu also used the well water to wash his face. The chill quickly spread from his cheeks to his entire body, waking him up completely. He turned to ask the old man who was wiping his body with a towel, "Today is the first day of the New Year, don’t we need to make rounds visiting relatives and friends?"
According to New Year’s customs, it’s customary to go around, meet relatives and friends, and exchange greetings for prosperity.
Unexpectedly, the old man coolly said, "There’s no one our family needs to visit!"
"Oh, I see."
Xia Yu laughed happily, "This means we can just stay home again, I thought we’d be busy spinning in circles for the Spring Festival!"
"Stay home?"
The old man threw the towel over his broad and sturdy shoulder, suddenly saying, "Starting today, I’ll teach you some things."
Ah!
The step he was about to take froze.
Xia Yu was quite shocked; this was the first time his own grandfather had said he would teach him something, "What is it?"
His curiosity was instantly piqued.
The old man led him to the kitchen.
"I heard from Senzaemon that you’ve learned the ’Demon King Ramen’ recipe and have some insights on it. So, show me your skills first."
He pointed to the kitchen counter, where Xia Yu glanced over and was startled to see bags of buckwheat, mixing bowls, and other tools and ingredients piled up, indicating that the old man was well prepared.
"Ha——"
Xia Yu laughed, arms crossed, and said bluntly, "Old man, if you want to eat my breakfast ramen, just say so outright, don’t use this kind of excuse to mooch a meal, we’re family after all."
Xia Qing replied flatly, "If you think that a casual and perfunctory attitude will satisfy me, you can go ahead and try."
Even though he was bare-chested with a wet towel on his shoulder, at this moment, the old man was clearly serious.
A hard-to-describe aura enveloped Xia Yu.
Hmm?
Xia Yu slightly restrained his smile and narrowed his eyes.
"Now, I will evaluate your cooking from the standpoint of a top Dragon Chef, and I will only eat the designated Demon King Ramen. Are you ready to take the challenge?" The old man’s eyes inexplicably conveyed a sense of danger.
"Tch!"
Xia Yu pouted.
His Demon King Ramen had once been highly praised by Senzaemon, and being on the same level as Senzaemon, the old man’s taste buds couldn’t be that difficult to conquer. Surely he wouldn’t eat something delightful and say otherwise, right?
That bit of integrity, the old man surely has it, so Xia Yu was quite confident.
"You old man, let me overwhelm your taste buds today and gain your complete approval—" Xia Yu immediately took down the coarse apron hanging on the wall peg and then moved around to prepare the ingredients.
The ’Demon King Ramen’ recipe focuses heavily on garlic, garlic, and more garlic!
Originally, Xia Yu was worried about finding ingredients like garlic chicken and Bluestar Bath at home, but the old man had prepared those as well, making it a caretaker-style culinary test!
After finding the steamer, Xia Yu put the chopped chicken and other ingredients in it and threw them all in at once. He then felt the kitchen was too quiet and couldn’t help but look back.
Xia Qing sat with arms crossed on a bench, watching him with steady eyes.
That look and posture were reminiscent of the stern-faced invigilators at the front of a classroom.
"Man, the old man is seriously going all out with me!"
Xia Yu chuckled to himself.
Before perfecting his culinary heart, he might have felt nervous, but now with his heart complete and his culinary skills unrestrained and imaginative, he wondered just how tough the old man’s palate and stomach were to conquer.
At this moment, Xia Yu felt more excited than he did on the stage of battles he could not lose.
He knew that earning the old man’s approval wouldn’t be easy.
That’s where the challenge lies, much more interesting than defeating an inevitable opponent!
...
Morning time slipped away.
The Xia family grandfather and grandson couldn’t have predicted that on the first day of the New Year, there would be a group of unexpected visitors at the Xia Mansion.
"Is it here?"
Having returned from Shanghai to Shu and stepped down as the temporary Executive Chairman of the current convention, Lan Fengxian opened the car door and stepped out, surveying the district full of old mansions.
"Yes, this is it. I used to come here often as a child, and the surrounding buildings haven’t changed much since then."
A gentle voice, clear and melodious.
Zhu Qing’s nemesis, Lan Chuhai, followed behind the old man out of the car.
"Haha, speaking of which, Ah Han, you and Aqing grew up as close friends playing in the mud together. How did you become such rivals?"
The two walked through the alley.
Upon hearing this, Lan Chuhai frowned slightly and replied, "People always grow up, right, Grandpa?"
Lan Fengxian chuckled noncommittally.
They found the Xia Mansion after a short distance, and Lan Fengxian stopped, turning to Lan Chuhai to remind her, "When you see that old fellow Xia Qing later, remember to give him proper respect. He forced Huang He into passive retirement, and the White Jade Tower suffered because of it. Xia Qing is not who he used to be."
Lan Chuhai snorted lightly through her nose, looking at Lan Fengxian with a hint of ridicule.
"Grandpa, I remember when the Xia Family was at the center of a storm and on the verge of collapse, you told me something different. Back then, you pulled me aside and told me to stay away from the trouble..."
"Ahem, ahem!"
Lan Fengxian’s old face flushed with embarrassment as he glared at his granddaughter.
"I only did all that for the sake of our Lan Family. If you younger generation had the overwhelming presence of Demon King Xia among your peers, would I need to humble myself like this on the first day of the New Year right after our ancestral worship just to solicit goodwill?"
Thinking of that overwhelming culinary competition that had the whole country talking, Lan Chuhai fell silent.
Knock, knock!
Lan Fengxian, whose reputation echoed throughout Shu, known as the top chef of Shuchuan and the president of the Shuchuan Chef Association, just stepped up to the door and knocked.
"Ah, coming, coming!"
Zhu Qing came to open the door and peeked out, seeing Lan Fengxian and Lan Chuhai. Her elegant eyes widened in surprise, "You guys, what are you doing here?"
Lan Fengxian replied warmly, "Haha, is Brother Xia in? I’m here to pay him a New Year visit..."
Just as he finished speaking, the sound of an argument came from inside.
"I refuse to accept this!"
A slightly younger voice shouted, "You say it’s not good, so it isn’t? I assure you, this is made with sincerity, not sloppy at all, and it is in no way inferior to the dishes I made during culinary competitions!"
"... Do you need detailed criticism to be convinced? Then let me point out each issue, starting with your handling of the ingredients. Are you overly satisfied with your current knife skills?"
The elderly voice, on the other hand, sounded stern and cold.
Lan Fengxian and Lan Chuhai immediately recognized the voices were those of the Xia grandfather and grandson, exchanging puzzled glances.
Zhu Qing stuck her tongue out awkwardly and said, "Um, Senior Lan, you see..."
"It’s fine, it’s fine!"
Lan Fengxian shook his head and walked in.
Given his status, even though Zhu Qing had a somewhat special identity, she dared not physically prevent Lan Fengxian from entering.
However, with Lan Chuhai, Zhu Qing wasn’t as friendly, sarcastically saying:
"Ah yo, what a rare guest!"