Kobe City

The Great Black Fish Coveted by Others

"I can't eat any more."

Su Mei looked at the generous amount of beef still left in the pot and smiled, shaking her head.

At first, she'd been able to eat a few more slices of beef, its fat and lean meat evenly marbled. But now she was already eighty percent full, and vegetables were still her top choice.

The world-famous Kobe Beef was certainly tender and rich, but its fat content was too high to eat much of it.

It had nothing to do with how much money you had. Even Japanese people didn't wolf down huge chunks of meat.

If Dong Keyan, the beauty anchor who used to have her "Golden Core," were here, she'd probably be rolling around on the floor after just two or three bites.

Li Bai didn't press her. Knowing Su Mei had eaten her fill, he suggested, "Then let's order another plate of vegetables. I saw some Artemisia and bamboo shoots. With a little rice, that should help settle things. If you get hungry tonight, I'll take you out for skewers—some local specialties."

"What are you talking about? This isn't back home. Where would we go for skewers?"

Su Mei laughed as she picked up some vegetables.

This guy loved making things up on the spot. They were clearly in Japan, yet he talked as if they were in China.

"Eh? Of course you can get them here!"

Li Bai shook his head and said in all seriousness, "Skewers—fried or grilled, threaded onto bamboo sticks—are an important part of Japanese cuisine. Chicken, beef, pork, fish, shrimp, onions, scallions... you can put just about anything on a skewer. They even say no feast is complete without skewers. What we'd consider casual street food back home is a