Chapter 7 Chapter Six

As expected, after Kurita brought Aoi back to Kurimaru-do, both Nakanojo and Shiho expressed their concern emotionally. "Li, brother Li! Wait a minute! Who is that lady who looks like a lady from a famous family!" "Ah Li, I really misjudged you! How could you lure an underage girl into your home in broad daylight? Even if God doesn't punish you, this girl won't let you go!" "Stop making random guesses over there! She is purely someone introduced by the owner of the coffee shop to help." "Yes, yes! I am purely here to help, my name is Aoi..."

After introducing herself nervously, Aoi revealed surprising information: "I...well... don't look at me like this, I'm actually a bit old, I just passed my twentieth birthday recently, so I'm already a mature grown ups……" "What?" Kurita was really taken aback, he didn't expect Aoi to be older than himself. "Huh? Mr. Kurita, what's the matter? Why do you suddenly show an expression as if you've eaten a sour plum?" "No, it's okay, can I invite you to come to the kitchen first? Uh...that...Miss Aoi." "I hate it! I was called by my name when I first met, so shy..."

Aoi quickly covered her face with her hands and said.Kurita couldn't tell if Aoi was joking or really shy. "...Is it you who reported your name like this! Isn't 'Kui' your surname?" Aoi's name does not seem to be "Aoi XX", but "XX Aoi". "I'm really, really sorry. I haven't been to someone's house for a long time, so I'm quite excited now. It's okay, take it easy..." ——Is there any problem with this person?Although he didn't ask that, Kurita felt a little uneasy in his heart and led Aoi to the kitchen.

After Kurita explained the situation to Shiho and Nakanojo, he asked them to leave him and Aoi alone in the kitchen. Not only Kurita, Aoi is also wearing a chef's hat and white chef's clothes at the moment. ——Aoi is not an outsider, it is obvious that she is very used to wearing chef clothes. Although somewhat curious about Aoi's origin, Kurita still kept a poker face and asked, "Has the owner of the coffee shop explained the situation to you?" "If possible, I hope that Mr. Kurita will explain it to me in detail. Maybe I missed something." "Actually, it's not a complicated situation..." Kurita Kooi re-explained the details.

Including Yagami Yuka's distant relative Tanabe, who was targeted by villains in Asakusa 20 years ago, and Tanabe being taken care of by Kurita's father. He also explained that Tanabe came to Kurimaru Hall because he couldn't forget the taste of the soybean Daifuku he ate at that time, but the taste he ate was different from the taste he remembered. "There is no way to do this, after all, the taste of the red bean paste is different..." When Kurita described what Tanabe said, Aoi stroked her slender chin and was silent for a few seconds. "Hmm... This seems to be a seemingly simple case, but it is actually quite complicated. How should I put it? The contradictory behavior... Mr. Kurita, can you show me how you make red bean paste?"

"Is this questioning whether there is something wrong with the red bean paste stuffing I made?" A burst of anger suddenly surged from Kurita's heart. "Miss Aoi, your posture is quite high." "No... Although in terms of height, it is obvious that you are above me now, but as long as it is about reconciliation, I will not compromise..." Aoi was surprisingly calm and retorted calmly.Kurita couldn't help but wondered curiously, "Where did she get her confidence?" Kurita also noticed one thing: In fact, as long as you calm down and think about it, you will know that Aoi's proposition is not necessarily wrong.

The Dou Daifu method of Limarutang is mainly divided into two parts. 1. Make bean paste stuffing with skin. Second, the red bean paste is wrapped in a thin mochi skin sprinkled with peas. In the production of mochi skin, Kurita and his father also use a rice cake pounder for business use; the red peas boiled in salt water in the mochi skin are red peas from Tokachi, Hokkaido.In other words, in terms of utensils and materials, there is no difference from before. In this way, it means that the problem really lies in the production technique of red bean paste. Red bean paste is the basis of wagashi, and it is also the key for the store to show its unique taste, and it will faithfully reflect the core part of the master's craftsmanship.

——She really knows a little bit about fur. After Kurita felt that his opinion of Aoi had changed, he said in a cold tone: "...Then I will do it as usual." "sorry to bother you……" Kurita carried the bamboo cage filled with a large amount of Tokachi red beans onto the stainless steel workbench. Pick out the red beans that have been eaten by moths one by one, and soak the selected red beans in well water.After the red beans absorb water, the skin will become soft and fluffy. Kurita looked up at Aoi who was observing his work.Aoi's cute appearance is still the same, but now there is a serious expression on her face that is different from before.

When a person focuses on something, it will make people feel that this person is full of strength.Kurita couldn't help being shocked by Aoi's beautiful eyes. Kurita coughed lightly and asked: "In this season, our shop is used to soaking red beans overnight. Unfortunately, it's not summer, otherwise it would be enough to soak for about six hours... What are your plans, Miss Aoi." "No matter what, it's impossible to wait for twelve hours, so let's omit this part. I just want to see how you make red bean paste today." "learn." Kurita heats red beans and water in a bald pot.The bald pot is also called a round bottom pot, because the bottom is in a semicircular arc shape, so the bean paste filling is not easy to burn.Although ordinary families rarely use bald pots, bald pots are actually a cooking utensil that conducts heat quickly and is convenient.

After boiling over high heat, the red beans start to dance and rise to the surface one by one.At this point, Kurita pours cold water to cool down, allowing the red beans to sink into the water again. In Kurimaru-do's traditional method, after this, it takes time to boil slowly.This method can expand the wrinkles of the red bean skin and heat it evenly. After a while, the red beans were cooked, and the aroma filled the kitchen. Aoi glanced at the white froth floating on the surface of the soup, and asked, "Mr. Kurita, how about removing astringency?" "Of course we will."

As the literal meaning suggests, the action of removing astringency is to remove the bitter ingredients and foam.If this step is missing, the taste of bean paste filling will not be mellow enough, and it will not be able to present a refreshing taste. After Kurita poured out the boiling water to wash the pot, he quickly rinsed the red beans in the sieve with clean water. Then, he poured the red beans into the pot again to heat, and after boiling, he added cold water to cool down. Kurita repeated such movements tirelessly. "Hmm... your movements are very neat. Kurita-san, your movements are very careful." "I'm a person who loves to pay attention to small details like this." "It's amazing." Kurita lowered his chin slightly. Normally, if a person who was not much better than an outsider said such things to Kurita with a high attitude, Kurita would definitely get angry, but for some reason, Kurita didn't feel angry when facing Aoi who had been showing a serious attitude since just now. Not long after, Aoi suddenly asked a strange question: "However, why are you taking this matter so seriously?" "what?" "Ah... I'm sorry. I heard a little bit from the owner of the coffee shop. I heard that Kurimaru Hall's current business situation is not very good, isn't it? Then, why do you still want to contribute to something that is not beneficial at all? " "Oh, that's what it means. You're quite stinging." "Sorry... But, it is impossible for a person who happens to return to his hometown to become a regular customer." Although Aoi apologized, she went on to say something even more stinging.Kurita sighed softly and replied, "Yes. But, it doesn't matter." There is one person who still remembers the taste of Kurimarto after twenty years - this makes Kurita very happy.On the other hand, the fact that he was not able to reproduce his father's taste also made Kurita feel reconciled. Only Kurita can face this matter.If he chooses to escape, how can he be called a man. "This matter has nothing to do with the profit or loss of the business. I do it because I want to do it. Is this not good?" "I feel good." Aoi's tone became cheerful. "I'm full of energy now. I'll do my best to help!" "Well, although I don't quite understand the situation, I will leave everything to you." Perhaps it was Aoi's silly personality that can even be described as innocent that made Kurita let go of his guard. Unknowingly, Kurita became able to accept Aoi's smile very naturally. After repeating the astringent removal action about four times, the time has passed for about an hour.After boiling the adzuki beans until they crumble with the touch of a finger, Kurita drains them and adds sugar. The sugar used at Kurimarudo is coarse granulated sugar with large crystals and high purity.Compared with ordinary sugar, the bean paste cooked with coarse sugar has an elegant and refreshing sweetness. "Then boil it over low heat for about 30 minutes. After boiling, stir it repeatedly with a ladle to let the water evaporate; add a pinch of salt at the end, and you're done." Kurita poked his head out to observe the situation inside the pot quietly. Although it looks like a pot of thick black soup at present, as long as it cools down, it will turn into a soft, fluffy and easy-to-knead bean paste filling. "That's right." Aoi nodded frequently. "Seeing this, I probably know what's wrong with your red bean paste stuffing." "—What?" Kurita's eyes widened. "Hey! What do you mean by that? You haven't even eaten, how could you know where the problem is?" Kurita couldn't help speaking in a rude tone.He didn't want to hear irresponsible ramblings in a sacred workplace. "I have eaten." "what……?" "However, that was a long time ago. After all, the Dou Daifuku in Asakusa Rimaru Hall is so famous. It should have been about ten years ago. When I was a delicate elementary school student, I once tasted the bean curd bought by my father. Delicious soybean meal." Aoi said firmly: "As long as I eat it once, I will never forget the taste of wagashi." "True, true or false?" "real!" Aoi made an extremely serious statement with an extremely serious expression on her face, which immediately weakened Kurita's momentum a bit. "But... Does the taste in your memory have anything to do with the production process I just did?" "That's right. Although it's limited to sweet things, I only need to take a bite to know what kind of ingredients it's made of." Kurita was speechless. how is this possible?Although Kurita couldn't help but secretly think so, he knew it wasn't impossible.If you are a master cook with excellent craftsmanship, you may be able to do similar things.It is by no means an impossible task, provided one possesses superior palate and knowledge. ——But, does Aoi have such ability?Kurita hesitated. Aoi's speech means that she found the difference after comparing the taste in her memory with the production process she saw just now.No matter how good Kurita's craftsmanship is, he can't show such ability. "That... I'm sorry, please don't look so fierce, I just want to help you." "Where am I fierce? I was born like this." Kurita slowly raised the corner of his mouth with a threatening look and said, "It's not important. Now that you know it, let's listen to it. Why does the bean paste taste different?" "Okay, please put your ear close." Aoi put her face close to Kurita's ear and whispered.In the next second, Kurita couldn't help but let out a low voice and said, "What...?" Kurita had no room for rebuttal.Because Kurita is an expert, he can understand that Aoi's answer is the correct answer. ——Who the hell is this guy? Kurita looked at Aoi carefully again. "It's a blind spot, isn't it? Please try it another day. By the way, there is one more important thing. It really can't be said too loudly..." Aoi should have said something even more shocking than before, but Kurita didn't bother to guess.Before he knew it, his mentality had changed, and he had become able to believe in the extraordinary. "……how so?" "Anything is possible in this world," Aoi took off her white chef's coat and chef's hat, put on her cloak-style coat again, and showed a gentle smile to Kurita.Covered by the golden light streaming in from the window, Aoi's smiling face looked dazzling and warm. "By the way, Kurita-san, I will be scolded by my family if I come home too late, so it's time to go. I'm sorry, but I made such a rush at the end." "Oh, um...sorry for taking you so late." When Kurita realized it, it was already evening. Various things happened one after another today, and it feels like a day has passed in the blink of an eye. The moment she was about to step out of the staff entrance, Aoi turned around as if thinking of something and said, "Mr. Kurita, your craftsmanship is definitely not bad. It should be said that you are very talented. I have seen your performance today. After that, I was really moved. As long as you accumulate more knowledge and experience, you will definitely become the number one in Asakusa. As long as you don’t mind, I am always willing to provide assistance.” "...Oh, thanks." Kurita replied weakly.His mind had already been fully focused on Aoi's speech just now. Aoi lowered her voice a little and continued, "—For that Tanabe-san, please be careful." Aoi left such an intriguing sentence.Kurita was in a half-trance state, watching Aoi's back as she left.