A Conversation with the Old god of Cookery / After the Perfect Ending
"Yes! Of course! Teacher!" Shirou hugged Erina, and together they bowed deeply to the old man, answering loudly.
"Mmm..." Erina nodded, blushing.
The Elder Liu looked at the blonde woman beside him and said, "Young lady, with your upright and strong heart guiding you, I look forward to you both entering my field and forging your own unique path."
"Then! Let's present the trophy, the proof of victory for this God of Cookery Cup, which stands atop this building, to the winner!"
Then, a mechanism resembling a fireworks launcher activated, and a golden, pot-shaped object slowly rose into the air from the inner passage.
A flock of very large, round sparrows, invisible to ordinary people, flew out of the Roman temple, over the inverted pyramid, and over the dark, ancient Chinese palace, reaching the highest point above the top floor, where they worked together to take down the sacred cauldron.
Like Magecraft show, an invisible force floated up to Shirou and Erina.
"Here, please accept this Holy Grail!" Cleopatra said, spreading her hands.
The people around him applauded and offered their blessings to Shirou.
"No, this looks like a pot, doesn't it?" Shirou retorted, looking at the large pot handed to him by the sparrow monster.
"No, no, don't say that! Even if it's a pot, this tournament can't possibly be called the Chef God Pot Tournament, can it?" Erina patted Shirou and said reproachfully.
"So how are we going to use this pot?" Shirou asked, tapping the large, golden pot that had been taken down from the roof. After all, he had seen many such things in his previous life; they were essentially magic amplifiers. They did indeed increase one's strength, but they were often accompanied by various dangers, increased enemies, and even the possibility of turning former friends into enemies.
Wishes like resurrecting all the dead or achieving world peace are impossible to fulfill. It's also easily contaminated by troublesome Black Mud; frankly, it's quite useless.
"Well, it's already yours anyway, so do as you wish. If it were me, I'd want a real physical body, but right now, Chaldea's affairs come first. We can conquer the Holy Grail later." Iskandar said with his usual hearty laugh.
"I feel like dealing with this is going to be a hassle, so let's just smash it while everyone's here." Shirou said, picking up the sacred cauldron and raising it as if to smash it down.
Erina stepped forward, nudged Shirou in the stomach with her elbow, snatched the golden cauldron, and said, "Don't even think about it! This is the highest honor."
Shirou looked at the blonde woman with affection and chuckled, "Well, I didn't really sense any trace of the world's evil up there. Anyway, there are plenty of strange gadgets in this world, so one more pot won't make a difference. Let's just use it in the kitchen for cooking."
"No! Leave this to me!" Erina gently rubbed the back of the sacred vessel, holding it tightly. She smiled secretly, out of Shirou's sight. The blonde woman thought to herself, 'This dowry, no matter how picky, is finally complete.'
"Yes, now that everything is ready, let's set a good date when we get back." Shirou lowered his neck, rested his chin on the woman's shoulder, and said softly.
"Whoa! Don't try to read people's minds!" Erina yelled, her fur standing on end, like a frightened kitten.
"No, I was just stating my opinion. What do you think?" Shirou explained, then looked at the woman and said.
"Yes... is that so? Then let's do it your way..." Erina blushed and agreed.
"But Erina definitely prefers Western style? Ah, you find it hard to give up Japanese style too. Why don't we hold two shows? I also want to see Erina a white kimono," Shirou continued.
"So! Everyone says not to presume to read someone's mind!!!" Erina exclaimed, blushing.
Shirou smiled casually, because the blonde woman's expressions were very rich. In front of strangers, she possessed a natural queenly aura, exuding a noble and dignified presence that commanded respect. However, in front of close friends, she couldn't hide her thoughts at all, and he immediately guessed her intentions.
'Marrying an easy-going wife is a comfortable and worry-free thing for someone like me who hates trouble,' Shirou thought to himself as he held Erina in his arms.
"Hehehe, it's a good thing that the relationship is good. Looks like I can go back after the wedding. Congratulations, Brother Nakiri." The Elder Liu said to the parent standing beside him.
"This is all thanks to your kindness, brother," Nakiri Senzaemon replied with a smile. Shirou had won the God of Cookery Cup, and the Elder Liu had even offered to pass on his precious, unique recipes to him. Now, Shirou's value had skyrocketed. In the entire country of Wa, no, even in the whole world, there was no better grandson-in-law. Not only would those in the family no longer be of any use, but they would also actively facilitate the good thing.
Chapter 457 Conversation with the Old Chef
After the awards ceremony and everything at the venue was settled, the next step was to assign tasks to clean up the mess. Because the fox spirit had spread the mind-controlling pink condiment throughout the world, placing it in the hands of ambitious individuals like Pablo, every place could potentially descend into chaos.
"It's all that annoying woman's fault! We really need to find her and teach her a lesson!" Tamamo Cat said through gritted teeth, releasing a murderous aura.
"Calm down, calm down." Shirou quickly reached out to stroke Tamamo Cat's fur.
"Meow ~! Master from the other world, please pet me a little more, and please let me touch your chin too, woof~!" Tamamo Cat looked very comfortable as Shirou stroked her, and then slumped down and said.
"Shirou, according to the Nakiri family's network of connections, our informants have pointed out that several organizations related to the dark culinary world are stirring and planning something," said the Hisako, who was busy contacting people from various places with a phone tucked around her neck and a laptop in her hand, never having a moment to spare.
"Yes, we can't let those guys get away with this for too long. We have to find a way to clean up this mess. We can't let those drugs that can control people circulate all over the world." Shirou nodded and said.
"Yes, now it's up to you. Everyone has a responsibility to make this world a better place. Of course! I will do my best to assist you while I'm here," Caesar said with a smile.
However, Shirou felt that he was just trying to fool him again, and looked at Caesar with disbelief, saying, "So you mean you can just leave and then ignore everything?"
"..." Caesar paused in his laughter, then burst into laughter, saying, "Hahahaha, how could this be..."
"As compensation, our assets in this world will be handed over to a trustworthy organization to cover all future expenses," Cleopatra quickly interjected.
Erina's eyes lit up upon hearing this, and she chuckled as she agreed, "No, to be honest, the ingredients you left behind are enough to cover this expense. Even if it's just the ownership of this building, if you can give it to me, I'm confident that as a tourism company, I can earn back all the investment within ten years."
"Then I'll leave it to you, Miss Nakiri." Cleopatra smiled and extended her hand to the blonde woman.
"Yes, then leave the rest to our Totsuki clan." Erina smiled confidently and grasped the female pharaoh's hand.
The two strong women hit it off, shook hands, and quickly reached a series of agreements.
"Running a business is tough, and finding a trustworthy person to entrust it to is also very important," said Enma-tei, nodding with deep feeling as she stood to the side, arms crossed.
"If that's the case, that would be best. I've discussed it with Erina, and we want to take a trip to Europe and North and South America," Shirou said.
When it comes to the Dark Cuisine World, Europe has a lot of influence, but the other two continents are not so bad. In North America, Canada, as a member of the Commonwealth, now closely follows the United States politically and has no innovation in its food culture, so it is not worth worrying about.
While the United States boasts a diverse and vibrant culinary culture due to its inclusiveness, it is also plagued by chaos. South America, on the other hand, has its own unique food culture, but its chefs are not particularly renowned.
The main concern is something happening in Asia. There are an astonishing number of chefs in China, and almost everyone has a taste for poison to some extent. Moreover, history has proven that their resistance to poison is not high. Even with Elder Liu in charge, if some chefs obtain that kind of dangerous poison and escape from the mainland to the surrounding countries, it will be a serious problem.
"With me in Wa Province, you still don't feel at ease?" Nakiri Senzaemon shouted angrily.
"But..." Erina.
After all, Nakiri is Elder Nakiri, and to be honest, she really couldn't rest easy about facing those dangerous opponents.
"Don't worry, I'm with you all. Once I've stabilized the situation in China, I'll keep an eye on the situation in Asia. At that time, I'll need Brother Nakiri's cooperation as well," said the Elder Liu.
"Of course! Thank you so much, Mr. Liu!" Nakiri Senzaemon was deeply moved and bowed deeply to the old man to express his respect.
"No need to worry, as long as I'm here, they won't be able to cause any trouble! I won't tolerate any nonsense!" The Elder Liu said with a sharp glint in his eyes, full of momentum. What he hated most were those troublemakers who brought trouble to the country and dragged it down.
"Teacher..." Shirou had not expected that the Elder Liu would not only give Shirou his recipes, but also help them take care of and save the people of Wa.
That night, Shirou went alone to the Elder Liu's room and asked him the question that had been bothering him.
"Teacher, you experienced World War II. Don't you hate this country?" Shirou looked at the old man, hesitated for a moment, and then asked.
The Elder Liu, shook his head and chuckled, saying, "Hate? How can you hate enough? You just don't know what I've been through, what I've witnessed. What recent generations have seen, what I've seen is a weak motherland being slowly torn apart by neighboring countries over the past century."
The Portugal, the Netherlands, Russian Empire, the Eight-Nation Alliance, Japan, the Soviet Union, Vietnam, India... Sakhalin Island, the Spratly and Eastern Islands, Vietnam, the Philippines, Indonesia, and other countries still occupy dozens of islands and reefs in my motherland, some even flexing their muscles. The only thing that comforts me is that my motherland is now growing stronger. The tragedies of the past are destined to remain unchanged, but we can protect the present and prevent such tragedies from ever happening again in my motherland.
Shirou fell into deep thought. This old man had likely spent most of his life in pain... When the nation is in peril, no matter how capable one is, one cannot change anything.
Even in the poorest, most backward, or war-torn countries, there are still a small number of people who live a life of luxury and indulgence.
However, the feeling was completely different. After going abroad, the students who studied abroad lost all faith in their motherland and felt desperate. They could only clamor for the abolition of Chinese characters and believed that only complete Westernization could save China.
People who travel abroad in modern times often develop a greater love for their country and feel genuinely proud of their motherland.
The 19th century was the century of Western powers, the 20th century was a century in which Asia was plunged into suffering and turmoil, enduring immense torment, and even in the 21st century, the Middle East has not been able to escape the ravages of war...
Shirou understood all this; the world was full of injustice and disaster, and it was precisely because of this that his past self yearned for justice so much.
To emerge from that poverty, weakness, and humiliation, countless lives were sacrificed, requiring generations of blood, sweat, and tears. If the Elder Liu truly lived from the Qing Dynasty to the present day, how much trauma must he have endured...?
Shirou said, "I'm sorry... I hate war, and I've punished those who started it in an attempt to prevent tragedy from happening. But I can't represent Japan in that era; I just want the ordinary people around me to be happy."
The Elder Liu, said slowly, "War is too far away for you, and even more so for Heguo. So the younger generation doesn't understand, and that's just how it is. At least for now, among those who have experienced war and are still alive, no one wants to go to war."
"My motherland has suffered a lot of harm. More than a dozen countries have sucked her blood to strengthen themselves. Even now that it has been revitalized, it faces all sorts of unreasonable difficulties when it wants to cooperate openly and honestly. The land that was ceded back then can never be taken back."
Even those of the same ancestry and race who took the opportunity to abandon the mainland where their ancestors had lived for generations, and instead embraced the cultures of these dozen or so countries. I am so glad that a young person like you has such thoughts. When I traveled around the world, I experienced discrimination in every place I visited, but there were also kind and friendly people."The Elder Liu, slowly recounted his past.
"Teacher..." Shirou didn't know how to comfort the old man.
The Elder Liu tossed his hand and said, "Alright, after the failure of the anti-Qing restoration movement, Zhu Shunshui was still able to cross the sea to Japan and establish academies in Edo and other places to teach traditional Chinese culture. At that time, even the Tokugawa Shogun, who was in power in Japan, treated him with the respect due to a disciple. Now that China is on the road to revival, can't a cook like me be a teacher to the people of Japan? I only care whether I have misjudged them and whether the disciples I have taken on are worthwhile."
"Yes, teacher! I will never forget everything you have done," Shirou said, clenching his fist.
"Hahaha, I'll wait and see," the Elder Liu said with a laugh.
Even in the darkest places, there is still light. Just as people yearn for light because the world is full of darkness, even the Japanese political world, which is criticized by the whole world, is divided into left and right wings, and within the left and right wings, there are often multiple parties, including centrists and more extreme left and right wings.
The nature of left-wing and right-wing wing varies depending on the ideology of different countries.
In the Western world, the left is often represented by political parties centered around workers, farmers, and the general public. These are often the groups that organize demonstrations, are hostile to the upper classes, demand freedom, human rights, and welfare, ideally targeting a few landlords each year and then distributing the spoils equally. The right, on the other hand, is more often represented by the middle class and above, emphasizing survival of the fittest, elite governance, and the promotion of the capable to the demotion of the incompetent.
In China, the left wing prioritizes national strength, even if it means a difficult personal life for those who support the government. The right wing, on the other hand, seeks personal freedom and fulfills individual interests. When either left or right reaches an extreme, it often refers to those who blindly follow right and wrong, ignoring facts and engaging in blatant disregard for truth or facts. In the past, both left and right wings in China have faced periods of suppression and backlash. Currently, the prevailing trend is towards a more balanced approach, prioritizing development.
People like Han Han and Mo Yan are well-known right-wingers who are more critical of the country and prioritize their inner ideals over their political stance. Mo Yan's Nobel Prize-winning book, Big Hips and Wide Breasts, is also a collection of erotic novels that primarily depict the Dark Side of the country. Therefore, even after winning the Nobel Prize, Mo Yan...
The official channels never promoted it extensively, and even when they mentioned it, they wouldn't specify which book it was. Later, it was criticized by a prominent figure without being named. Of course, if it hadn't been written this way, it probably wouldn't have won the award.
The left wing in Japan is a socialist and pro-Japanese faction. They focus on people's livelihood, help the poor, and hope to take a peaceful development path. However, with the economic decline, the poor people who are their main supporters see no hope, and their influence is declining.
However, the majority of the Chinese arts and culture circles are left-wing, prioritizing the needs of ordinary people. Many film Director and animators like to satirize the political scene in their works, criticizing the presidents and leaders of certain countries and portraying them as the shadowy figures behind the scenes.
Literary writer Kenzaburo Oe, animation masters Hayao Miyazaki and Osamu Tezuka Otomo, manga god Osamu Tezuka, and the creator of Doraemon—these older generation of artists were all leftists, and some were even members of the Japanese Communist Party. They once greatly admired China under the red regime.
They are all willing to face history squarely and apologize to the countries that have been harmed, such as China and Korea, even in person and in the media. They value the justice and fairness they pursue more than national interests.
However, the United States is ultimately subject to the United States and is itself a country that leans towards Western ideology. It has always been actively trying to break away from Asia and join Europe, and now the right wing is in power.
The right wing in Japan is the so-called hawks, which includes many well-known manga artists and novelists, such as Aoyama, the author of Detective Conan, and Hajime Isayama, the author of Attack on Titan. As for other creators, although there are many, they are not well-known and will not be named. They are happy to smear other countries in their works and, incidentally, elevate the status of their own country.
For example, the mastermind behind the scenes in the theatrical version could be portrayed as an evil organization from China.
For example, one might incorporate a war criminal they admire into a character in their work.
For example, in fighting comics, any character who uses Chinese martial arts is always knocked out in one round by a karate or judo master when they encounter Chinese people.
There are many public figures in China who are comparable to him, such as "Big Brother Cheng." As an actor, his dedication to his craft, his willingness to take risks and fall, is impeccable. Even in Japan, he is admired by many women and worshipped by many men, who call him "Big Brother." Back then, a Japanese woman even committed suicide after hearing about his romantic relationship.
The gangster boss, Cheng, who usually values brotherhood and doesn't touch those kinds of anti-Japanese war films, actually made one for his troublesome son who gets into trouble multiple times.
At least the eldest brother has high emotional intelligence. He is very approachable in public and actively protects the country's image. Even though he can never shake off the reputation of being a "promiscuous man" and has a troublesome son, his acting career has still been recognized worldwide. He is also the first Chinese to receive an Oscar Lifetime Achievement Award.
People with both ability and intelligence, who always maintain political correctness, follow public opinion, and avoid breaking the law, naturally thrive and remain in Aoyama.
Chapter 458 After a Perfect Ending
In fact, in every country, there are people who portray enemy or competing countries as antagonistic forces in their works and suppress them with overwhelming power.
There will always be people who are centered on their own ethnicity, and many of them are even more arrogant and self-centered. They look down on other ethnic groups, and even within the same ethnic group, people can launch sweeping general attacks and quarrel fiercely just because they live in different regions.
They gossip a little, criticizing potential hostile forces or rival countries. This kind of thing happens in every country; one side criticizes you for being toxic, the other for being undemocratic.
Under the wise leadership of the ruling party, the lives of the people in one's own country are improving day by day. Meanwhile, other countries are experiencing disasters and wars, with people living in dire straits. After a while, one gets used to it all.
However, in Chinese works, the number of Japanese people killed each year, even those other than war criminals, must be at least tens of millions, if not hundreds of millions.
Ultimately, everyone has a dark past. If you want to fight, then fight! Let's hurt each other! Officially, there's the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; privately, there are hundreds of millions of netizens willing to act as keyboard warriors. In the end, who will be more disgusting, who will be more thuggish, and who will have more sophisticated insults—who knows?
"There are good people with a conscience, and they are often not born into good families. Or rather, they are not always good people. It is only after experiencing certain things that they suddenly repent and become good people," the Elder Liu said calmly.
"Yes..." Shirou listened quietly, thinking of Kiritsugu. The person he knew and the person he had heard about were completely different people. But even so, Shirou still respected him, thinking that the way he acted like a messenger of justice, desperately trying to save people, and how he felt as if he had been redeemed after saving someone, with tears streaming down his face, was something to admire.
"Of course, there are also people who were good at first but turned into villains without realizing it. And the children of good people are not necessarily good people. Even if they do well at the beginning, many of them change their ways along the way. So whether they are enemies or friends, you have to get to know them personally to find out."
Hayao Miyazaki was born into a family that owned an aircraft manufacturing plant. His father was actually a war profiteer who manufactured aircraft for the Japanese military. He was also responsible for manufacturing the engine for the Zero fighter. In order to meet the agreed deadline, he cut corners and caused many accidents, and was once condemned as a traitor to Japan.
When Hayao Miyazaki's mother became seriously ill and unable to take care of herself, his father callously abandoned him and his mother.
Because of the various events that happened during his childhood, and the experience of his family fleeing during the bombing of the United States, Hayao Miyazaki has an intense hatred for war.
He sees his father as a negative role model, constantly urging him to be an honest and conscientious good person. Therefore, Hayao Miyazaki is an obsessive workaholic at work, not only very self-disciplined himself, but also known for his strictness towards his subordinates.
Even in modern times, Japan is still a technological powerhouse in digital products, but the animations created by Hayao Miyazaki do not rely on digital products; they are all hand-drawn.
He created many works opposing war and calling for peace, which led to him being denounced as a traitor to Japan by the right wing and being misunderstood by many people in China.
"The Wind Rises" is ostensibly an adaptation of a novel depicting the life of the inventor of the Japanese Zero fighter plane, but to a greater extent, it also reflects Hayao Miyazaki's own psychological journey throughout his life.
The animated film that inspired him to become an animator was The Legend of the White Snake, produced by the Shanghai Animation Film Studio. However, when he went to Shanghai full of hope, the artists who had once dominated everything had grown old, and all he encountered were bureaucrats who talked about money all the time and artists who only knew how to bury themselves in their work. Heartbroken, he was utterly disappointed with China.
Like the minimalist masterpiece, Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea, this animated film alone took five years to complete and used a staggering 170,000 drawings. It is precisely this dedication that has cemented his status as a world-class animation master. With such meticulous attention to detail and the author's unique philosophy of life, his works can deeply move people, prompting them to reflect and elevating storytelling to the level of art. How could people not love such works?
Of course, there are also people like Haruki Murakami, who don't distinguish between left and right, but only follow their own thoughts to criticize everything and everyone, saying that they don't need any awards to prove themselves and that they don't care about the Nobel Prize at all, which has caused them to make countless enemies in the Japanese literary world.
Murakami has written about the invasion of China and the Nanjing Massacre in many of his works, such as The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle and The Case of Commendatore, revealing the cruelty and madness of the Japanese army at that time.
He openly stated in the media that Japan should apologize to China for what it did back then. However, on the Diaoyu Islands and Takeshima Islands issues, he mostly appealed to all of humanity not to be bound by national borders, asking why things had to be made so big that Chinese bookstores even removed his books from their shelves.
In some of his works, he made no secret of his aversion to the Chinese people he encountered, which can be summarized as "If you have talent and money, you have the right to be willful" and "If you're in a bad mood, you can still criticize anyone, no matter who they are!"
If it's only this level, it's not a big deal. After all, since ancient times, there have been all sorts of talented people in the world. There are high-minded scholars and great Confucian scholars, there are hermits like Tao Yuanming who leisurely gaze at the southern mountains, and there are eccentric scholars like Mi Heng who could make Cao Cao and Liu Biao have heart attacks, but they couldn't kill him and could only give him away.
After conquering Persia, Alexander the Great had a conversation with the philosopher Diogenes. Alexander the Great promised to grant Diogenes all his wishes, but Diogenes, who lived a life of beggarhood by a wooden barrel, told Alexander the Great, "Move aside, don't block my sunlight."
Alexander later said, "If I were not Alexander, I would prefer to be Diogenes."
Whether it was the first true hegemon of the Western world or the philosopher who practiced cynicism, neither of them interfered with the other's way of life, living the life they chose. They were both among the freest people in the world.