Immediately, many gazes focused on Satou.
"Who is this? Is he your son, old ghost Hojo? When did you have a son? Could he be an illegitimate child?" Hiroshi Tomita scrutinized Satou, frowning as he asked.
"Hehe, Satou is not my son, he's Miyoko's classmate!" Hojo Head Chef chuckled, deliberately emphasizing the word "classmate."
This immediately led everyone to misunderstand.
Since Satou could represent Kitajo Restaurant and Hojo Head Chef said he wasn't an outsider, he must be the future son-in-law.
"You old thief, when did you quietly find a son-in-law?" Hiroshi Tomita muttered.
He had originally been quite fond of Miyoko. Not only was she beautiful, but she also had a good personality and was very outstanding. Marrying her would not only gain a virtuous daughter-in-law but also allow them to inherit Kitajo Restaurant in the future.
"No, please don't misunderstand," Miyoko Hojo's cheeks flushed crimson, and she glared at her father unhappily.
Seeing the disappointed expression on Hiroshi Tomita's face, Hojo Head Chef burst into laughter, feeling incredibly pleased.
Having a son-in-law felt great! Who would dare say he only had a daughter now?
However, his only regret was that Satou wasn't his son-in-law yet. It seemed Miyoko needed to work harder. Then he wouldn't have to feel inferior in front of others anymore.
He stroked his chin, thinking to himself.
Looking at everyone's expressions, Satou also felt a bit speechless.
Suddenly, he noticed a gaze that carried a slight hint of hostility, coming from Tomita Jouji.
Tomita Jouji smiled politely when he saw Satou looking at him.
Could this guy be interested in Miyoko?
Satou thought, a little surprised.
"Oh, by the way, this is Mr. Ayato from Dragon Chant Residence in China, a special guest invited to this Gourmet Festival, and his young disciple, Momo."
Hiroshi Tomita suddenly remembered something and quickly invited the two people behind him forward, introducing them to Hojo Head Chef.
"Oh? Dragon Chant Residence?"
Hojo Head Chef was slightly startled; this was a very famous restaurant in China, with several hundred years of history.
It was also Satou's first time seeing chefs from mainland China, and he couldn't help but size them up.
That Ayato was over eighty years old, with white hair, a very slender build, and a hunched back, but his demeanor was very kind.
His young disciple, Momo, was very young, only in his twenties, with a humble attitude, bowing slightly and following his master with downcast eyes.
"Master Yang, we are truly grateful for your visit to Japan."
Hojo Head Chef said solemnly, Ayato was very prestigious in the Chinese cuisine world, and his willingness to come to Japan was already a great honor for them.
Ayato smiled freely, waved his hand, and said in somewhat stiff Japanese, "Hojo Head Chef, there's no need to be so polite. In fact, I should thank all of you for promoting Chinese cuisine in Japan. This time, we also hope that through this event, more people can understand and enjoy Chinese cuisine."
Then, he turned his gaze to Miyoko Hojo and Satou, seemingly very interested in them.
"I heard just now that your daughter and son-in-law are students of Far Moon?"
"Haha, the two children aren't officially together yet."
Hojo Head Chef laughed loudly, but despite what he said, his tone was quite proud.
Miyoko Hojo rubbed her temples helplessly, quite vexed by her father.
"Far Moon is the number one culinary school in Japan. Hojo Head Chef truly has successors."
Ayato said with a smile.
Hojo Head Chef couldn't help but smile even more proudly.
"I've invited lion and dragon dance troupes; let's liven things up!"
Hiroshi Tomita suddenly said with a laugh.
Sure enough, in a short while, two troupes came over, one on the left and one on the right. One held a tall dragon head, with a child leading the way, while the other consisted of two lions, playfully frolicking as they approached, accompanied by gongs, drums, and firecrackers, creating an incredibly lively atmosphere that made one feel as if it were New Year's.
Nearby tourists stopped one after another, taking out their phones to take pictures, clearly very curious about this traditional Chinese art.
Satou also watched in amazement. This kind of dragon and lion dance technique was already uncommon in China, but many people in overseas Chinatowns still performed it.
After the excitement, the Chinatown Gourmet Festival officially began, consisting of two segments: a knife skills demonstration and a cooking demonstration.
Several restaurants representing Chinatown would showcase their skills in front of tourists, and ultimately, the most popular restaurant would be selected based on voting results.
Initially, this event was purely a competition among the major restaurants in Chinatown, but later it evolved into a popular spectator event for tourists. However, even though it is now primarily for entertainment, some competition still exists among the restaurants.
"Satou, it's not important what place we get in this event, as long as that old scoundrel doesn't beat us."
Hojo Head Chef leaned into Satou's ear and whispered.
Satou was a little speechless, but still said, "I understand."
To complete the mission, he was determined to get first place!
Subsequently, the chefs representing several restaurants, along with Momo, the representative of the invited guest Dragon Chant Residence, walked to the cooking stations and began to perform their knife skills.
Hojo Head Chef winked at his daughter. Miyoko Hojo was a little helpless, but she naturally stood by Satou's side, acting as his assistant.
"Satou, what knife skill piece do you want to demonstrate? If you didn't bring your tools, Kitajo Restaurant has them."
She said.
"Mm, I already brought them."
Satou nodded. He had prepared in advance and brought Wenqu.
Last time he carved Tofu Threads, this time he thought about it and decided to do ice carving.
Ice has a very high hardness, and like Tofu Threads, it also greatly tests knife skills.
Because he didn't know the skill level of the other restaurants, he was prepared to go all out to get first place.
Soon, a large block of ice was carried over by the on-site staff.
"Hmm, are you planning to do ice carving?"
At this moment, a voice sounded from beside him.
Satou turned his head and saw it was Momo from Dragon Chant Residence.
Previously, he had followed his master with downcast eyes, and Satou hadn't paid much attention to him, but he hadn't expected his Japanese to be so good.
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