The breathing was very subtle, yet it was present.
Xia Yu noticed it.
Monk Yizhen noticed it too.
Chewing the noodles in his mouth and swallowing them, the old monk composed his expression seriously, brought his palms together, and respectfully expressed his gratitude towards the bowl of ran in front of him.
"Withered trees et spring..."
Imdiately, the old monk looked at the young man with a curious gaze.
Xia Yu chuckled, "To be more precise, it’s an old tree blooming again."
"Old tree?"
The breath, like a candle’s fla in the wind, flickered violently, clearly curious about the term "old tree blooming."
"It" was probably satisfied with this bowl of "Wabi-Sabi Ran."
Xia Yu had this confidence.
Strictly speaking, true "Wabi-Sabi Ran" is actually a plain noodle soup, aning without any garnish, just noodles with soup, not even decorative green onions.
But plainly speaking, isn’t that what "Wabi-Sabi" is?
Discard the external and trace back to the origin!
In other words, the form of ran, including the broth, noodles, and toppings, none of it is important.
"The ’old tree’ is indeed this bowl of noodles."
Xia Yu’s lips curled into a fresh smile.
"Nothing has changed, right?"
"Isn’t it no different from the ’Dragon Noodles’ that spread from China Town to the entire island country?"
He asked the air.
Answering himself.
Monk Yizhen’s eyes flickered but he remained silent, not interrupting.
As for Aoki Motota and Shanben Xiaoshu, their faces bore an expression of "calm," as if they, along with Xia Yu, the old monk, and "it," were in different planes of existence.
"No difference?"
Whispering softly, the refined-looking young monk gradually beca more substantial.
"But why did I taste ’freshness’?"
"The flowers look similar every year, but people change from year to year."
"The noodles are still the sa noodles, it’s just that I am not the sa chef as before, I am in this new era, so of course what you taste in my noodles is different from the past." Xia Yu said.
"Is that so... the chef has changed, the person has changed, does the taste also change..."
Xia Yu smiled slightly, "Regardless of the culinary philosophy, no matter what kind of food the philosophy represents, ’people’ are the fundantal base. It’s not just the hands that cook, the techniques, it’s about fusing my thoughts and characteristics, and bestowing them upon the food."
"Therefore, what you taste is fresh."
"This is the ’Wabi-Sabi Ran’ of this era, are you satisfied with it?"
The young monk pondered for a long ti, slowly raised his head, and his clear, beautiful face, usually showing little emotion, gradually broke into a sunny smile.
"I see now..."
"So that’s it!"
"This is your ’Wabi-Sabi,’ people are the most fundantal origin of your Wabi-Sabi!"
The young monk picked up the chopsticks, eating at, noodles, and sipping soup.
Chewing, he lightly closed his eyes, a look of relief filling his face.
The obsession had dissipated.
It turned out that the "Wabi-Sabi" he had always been obsessed with, the taste of freshness, had always been hiding in the flow of ti.
’Ran,’ or rather, noodles, will never grow old.
Even if the recipe gets older, the people and chefs change generation by generation, the sa bowl of noodles will ultimately taste different, even if the sa ingredients are used.
This is the "essence" Xia Yu endows his ran with—
Ti, life!
More profoundly, it’s eternal change, never-fading freshness!
"Senior brother..."
Hearing the voice, Monk Yizhen looked towards the table.
The young monk was disappearing, his legs coiled on the tatami disintegrating inch by inch.
"I understand now, the reason ’Dragon Noodles’ spread and beca beloved by everyone." An incredibly sincere and pure smile appeared on the young monk’s innocent face, "It turns out ’it’ is forever fresh, forever changing. I can see the vitality in this dish, so I am at peace with it..."
Master Yizhen brought his palms together, bowing his head slightly.
His expression revealed a trance.
As if he traveled back to the beginning of the century, outside a ran shop nad ’Yoshijima Noodle Restaurant’ in China Town, where a young man watched custors leave disappointed and said with great determination:
"I will make this bowl of noodles stay ’fresh’ forever!"
"Guests will always be passionate about Dragon Noodles! They won’t get tired of it!"
Ding.
A system ssage popped up.
Xia Yu looked with surprise at the notification on his retina, ’Dragon-level Kill,’ had it finally been accomplished?
"... created an unnad killer ran recipe."
"Please na it, host."
He had struggled for over a month, unable to sleep, just waiting for a notification like this from the system, yet Xia Yu found himself not feeling joyful at all. What is going on here?
Too casual.
Moreover, this isn’t the ’Dragon-level Kill’ he envisioned.
"Naming? Whatever, system, just pick a default na," Xia Yu couldn’t even be bothered to think.
"’Wabi-Sabi Ran’ has been added to the host’s recipe list. Please check!"
Xia Yu rolled his eyes.
"My kill move shouldn’t be like this." He took a breath, barely brushing aside his emotions, ignoring the new recipe, and checked the mission panel first.
Sure enough!
His eyes filled with intense joy.
"The host has completed one of the personal milestones ’Personal Dragon Kill’!"
"Obtained ’Mother Sun Sphere’ (recipe fragnt) *1."
The glittering fragnt, there was a new piece, Xia Yu quickly opened the inventory. As his eyes shifted to the corresponding golden fragnt, a pop-up asked:
"Synthesize?"
"Synthesize!"
He shouted eagerly in his heart.
"Acquired the complete ’Mother Sun Sphere’ recipe..."
"Learn!"
Continuing to shout.
Suddenly, a familiar needle-like sensation ca from between his brows.
Xia Yu grinned, "The source of light, the pinnacle of the Light Realm recipes in China Town, I’ve got it!"
Just as he was about to laugh heartily in a comical post, soone nudged him.
Master Yizhen had already stood up, patting him on the shoulder, "Co with ."
Xia Yu nodded and followed.
At the door, he looked back at the dimly lit cafeteria, the presence of the little monk had already vanished completely, and Shanben Xiaoshu and Aoki Motota had also finished their steaming ran, undoing buttons, and taking off monk robes at their seats.
Following the old monk all the way to his Abbot’s Court.
This ti, Xia Yu was welcod by the old monk into his private quarters. Here was a small study outside the bedroom, furnished in an antique style. He found a place to sit down, and shortly after, Master Yizhen brought a book and an old newspaper, placing them on the table in front of Xia Yu.
"I have to thank you."
The old monk said, "You also resolved a matter weighing on my mind."
Xia Yu knew what he was referring to and nonchalantly replied, "It’s nothing, just sothing I did easily, and besides, I benefited a lot from it. I got a very authentic ’kill move’."
The abiding monk was montarily stunned, then shook his head and smiled, pointing to the large stack of yellowing newspapers in his hand and handing them to Xia Yu, "Yoshijima Shigeru, my fellow disciple, get to know him."
The newspaper was well-preserved, with tidy edges and no creases.
However, it was still yellowed, clearly indicating its age. Xia Yu looked through it with curiosity and was suddenly shaken by the front page.
The date was 1915.
The front page, in bold black letters, marked the na of the newspaper – ’Food Pioneers Newspaper.’
The first news piece on the front page, accompanied by a picture, had the headline reading:
"Yoshijima Shigeru, the prodigy of our tis, God of Dragon Noodles..."
Upon closer look, it was an obituary.
His achievents in ’Dragon Noodles’ earned him the title of a god in the culinary world of the island country.
He was deed the next head of Shi Lin Temple.
His contributions to the spread of ran in the island country were significant and indelible.
Of course.
This was in another tiline.
At least in his past life, Xia Yu had never heard of such an old professional newspaper as ’Food Pioneers Newspaper.’
In the black-and-white picture, a young man faced the cara, full of spirit.
"Dragon Noodles will never go out of style..."
Xia Yu noticed a quoted sentence in the article, paused slightly, then closed the newspaper and looked up at Monk Yizhen sitting opposite him, "So he left behind an obsession?"
The old monk nodded, "You showed him the everlasting vitality of this cuisine."
"Really?" Xia Yu smiled, his eyes scanning.
"What’s this...?"
Another book was still on the table.
"Yoshijima Shigeru’s Dragon Noodle Insight Manual." Monk Yizhen laughed, "This is the reward you deserve for hosting him."
Xia Yu’s eyes flickered.
He was dissatisfied with the so-called ’Wabi-Sabi Ran’ kill move.
Because the recipe wasn’t what he envisioned.
So, could this manual of insights help him further refine his ’kill move’?
Xia Yu felt that he hadn’t traveled far on the path of ’Wabi-Sabi,’ that there was still a vast space for developnt and exploration.
Besides.
What about ’Extre’?
Is there a possibility for the two to rge?
For a mont, Xia Yu’s mind was a tangled ss, compounded by the stream of information regarding the ’Mother Sun Sphere’ recipe that hadn’t been sorted out yet. Truly, the culinary journey is long and arduous!
Reviews
All reviews (0)