Chapter 185
Chapter 185
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 185
Chapter Title: Family Gathering
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Pork Sausage.
Pork (豚), small (小), arrow (矢), stick (汦).
It was a special menu item, developed by adding a martial arts world flair to modern sausages, and it had saved the Dragon-Slaying Gate from the brink of bankruptcy.
The problem was.
‘These bastards!’
That menu item, which I thought had naturally vanished when the festival ended, had reappeared.
And without the permission of me, its original creator.
In an era with no concept of copyright…
‘Ah, for these guys, the era isn't the problem.’
Even in modern times, the concept of copyright is faint in this neck of the woods.
In any case, if they were going to do business like this, wasn't it common courtesy to at least ask me?
*Bang!*
Furious, I kicked open the door of the former Autumn Wind Inn, now the Pork Scent Pavilion.
“Gaga?”
Jeok Hwa-ran called out to me in surprise, but.
“Stay put. This is a matter of my pride.”
I left the surprised woman behind and strode forward.
The customers filling the hall threw bewildered glances my way.
“Who the hell are you?!”
As expected, the waiters… no, the servers, rushed out.
Judging by their somewhat familiar faces, they seemed to be disciples of the Dragon-Slaying Gate.
“Where's your Gate Master?”
“*Gasp!*”
The men saw me and retreated in alarm.
“I asked, where is your Gate Master?!”
“*Eek!*”
*CRASH!*
A Battle Lord Arrow flew out and shattered the dangling door to pieces.
“I-I’m here!”
At the same time, the Master of the Dragon-Slaying Gate came rolling out from the passage leading to the back garden.
To be precise, he had walked, but because his body had nearly tripled in size, it looked as if he had rolled.
“…What in the world happened to you?”
* * *
The Master of the Dragon-Slaying Gate led Jeok Hwa-ran and me to the back garden and served us rather fine liquor and food.
“Hahaha, I am truly sorry about this.”
“Munch, munch… Gate Master, really. *Gulp*. We’re not strangers. If you’d told me you were opening an inn, do you think I would have told you not to?”
“W-well, that’s true.”
“By the way, the taste has really gone downhill.”
“Really? I think it’s delicious… and it’s quite unique, too.”
“That’s because you don’t know any better. The original recipe… ah, the original method is much tastier. Huh? Gate Master, what's with that look in your eyes? You look like a chef who just lost a cooking competition.”
The Gate Master broke out in a cold sweat and waved his hands dismissively.
“N-no, not at all. I was just curious since you said the taste had declined…”
I channeled my inner Chef Baek and split a sausage in half with my chopsticks.
“Look closely. There are no juices, are there?”
“W-well, it was too mushy…”
“No, that’s the whole point! Hmmm… this pork, it's low-quality, isn't it?”
“If we use high-quality meat, the cost…”
“Hah… this guy won’t do. Don’t you know that the more you compromise on ingredients, the further you get from being a good restaurant?”
“N-no, sir. We will only use high-quality ingredients from now on.”
“Good thinking. It's not like pork is an expensive meat, is it?”
In this era, the most expensive meat was lamb, followed by beef. Pork, along with chicken, was the meat of the common people.
It was so common that Su Dongpo even developed Dongpo pork, a dish specifically for the commoners.
Though, in modern times, they charge 50,000 won for ten pieces of it.
“Anyway, why did you suddenly open a tavern? Didn’t you pay off the fraud debt with the money you earned from the festival and the money the kids earned from working?”
The Gate Master answered my question with a rather serious expression.
“Actually, a family council for the collateral branches of the Bukgung family was recently formed. It's an expression of their will to no longer hide.”
“What?”
The main family isn't even doing anything, so what are they doing forming a family council on their own?
As I stared at him with a bewildered look, the Gate Master cleared his throat and continued.
“Ahem, I missed the chance to become the first head of the council, so I'm planning to run for the second term.”
“…”
“However, the current head, the Master of the Black Serpent Gate in Hebei, is throwing around so much money that I had to acquire this inn to raise funds. And I gained all this weight from eating so much pork sausage.”
“Black Serpent Gate? The name sounds like it belongs to the Unorthodox Faction.”
“It is indeed a Black Path sect.”
“…Weren’t we part of the Righteous Faction?”
“Great Hero Jin, you seem to be unaware. The Bukgung family was a martial arts house that was on friendly terms with the Righteous Faction, straddling the line between righteous and unorthodox.”
“No wonder.”
I had been suspicious all along.
I couldn’t believe that the Flame Demon King of the Black Sand was the legitimate heir of the Righteous Faction.
No matter how I thought about it, he seemed more suited to be a great demon of the Unorthodox Faction.
“…Well, at least it's not the Unorthodox Faction.”
To be honest, it wouldn't matter much even if they were, but… since I'm living in the martial world, it's better to live as part of the Righteous Faction.
If I lived as part of the Unorthodox Faction, I could be attacked by the countless extraordinary masters of the Righteous Faction.
“Anyway, can a mere Black Path nobody become the head of the great Bukgung family's collateral council?”
“Ah, he became the head because he has so much money. He gave wealth to the collateral branches that were struggling financially, so of course he won.”
“…”
It seems the formula 'money makes you the big brother' applies in the martial world too.
However, as the nominal legitimate heir of the main family, I couldn't just let some Black Path nobody take the position of head of the great Bukgung family's collateral council.
“Alright. I'll help you, Gate Master, become the council head.”
I decided to back the Gate Master.
“*Gasp!*”
*Gurgle. Thud.*
The Gate Master shot up from his seat in alarm.
His enormously bloated belly pushed the table away.
“This grace! I will never forget it!”
* * *
A moment later.
The three of us put on aprons and entered the kitchen of the Pork Scent Pavilion.
“…Weren’t you going to support me with funds?”
“What money? I don't even have enough to eat and die.”
“If you don’t have any, I can lend you some. If you marry me later, you won’t have to pay me back…”
I lightly ignored Jeok Hwa-ran, who was spouting such horrifying words, and looked at the Gate Master.
He had gained so much weight that his eyelids covered his eye sockets, turning him into an artificial slit-eyed character.
“I'll teach you a new secret recipe. You'll be able to earn much more money than you are now.”
“*Gasp!*”
The Gate Master couldn't hide his astonishment. He seemed shocked at the idea of making more profit than he was now, with the place already packed with customers.
‘The price per table is the key.’
Currently, the signature menu of the Pork Scent Pavilion is pork sausage and bing, a type of Chinese bread.
It's a menu composition that makes you feel like that's all they know how to make, but it's perfect for lunch.
However, it wasn't suitable for a tavern where liquor sales are key.
I came up with a menu that perfectly matched the Gate Master's current appearance.
“The name of the new dish is Budae-jigae (部大之蓋). It means 'a lid that commands many things'.”
“…”
The transmission of the recipe, which began like that, was arduous from the start.
“Again! The pork sausage itself is wrong! You're the owner of a tavern, what are you going to do if you can't even season it properly?”
“Th-the disciple in charge of the kitchen is someone else…”
“Hah, have you ever seen someone so frustrating? Don’t you know that the owner needs to know the method for the kitchen to run properly?”
“…”
“This won't do. From now on, Gate Master, you will call me Drill Instructor.”
“What does that…”
“Your response will be a short and concise 'Sir!' Got it?!”
“S-sir!”
“Then, again!”
“Sir!”
After responding, the Gate Master began to mince the newly bought pork.
Perhaps because he was as strong as an ox, the pork was minced beyond recognition in no time.
“Put it directly into the intestine. Execute!”
“Sir!”
He stuffed the salted and seasoned minced meat into the pig's intestine.
This was to make it retain more umami flavor than the existing method of coating it in flour and frying it.
“It burst! Again.”
“Sir!”
After several attempts, he finally succeeded in making an authentic German-style sausage.
“Hwa-ran.”
“Yes, Gaga.”
Jeok Hwa-ran, who had been making broth with a pig's head on the side, poured the broth into a Chinese wok.
The Gate Master added the thinly sliced pork sausage and other ingredients and turned up the heat.
*Bubble, bubble.*
Before long, a savory aroma spread through the air.
*Slurp.*
My mouth was watering without me even realizing it.
‘It would have been great if there were ramen noodles…’
This was the martial world. Oil was precious, making it difficult to make ramen, so my next best choice was glass noodles.
They weren't as good as ramen noodles, but the rich flavor was supplemented by the pig's head broth, so it would taste somewhat similar.
Now, all that was left was the seasoning.
“I'll teach you the seasoning, so keep it to yourself and don't let anyone know. Especially, never pass it down to your daughter-in-law.”
Because a true delicacy must be made with a secret recipe unknown even to the daughter-in-law.
“Sir!”
“Use Sichuan pepper and ginger for a sharp taste, soy sauce for flavor, and finally, salt to adjust the seasoning. Got it?”
“S-s-sir?”
After a moment of hesitation, the Gate Master asked in a low voice.
“How much of each should I add…”
“…Add a suitable amount.”
“Sir?”
“I've taught you how to cook rice from grains; do you expect this drill instructor to spoon-feed you as well?!”
“Sir!”
Five times like that.
The Gate Master was able to find the perfect balance and bring out the proper flavor.
Considering he was a terrible cook when I last saw him, this was truly a leap in progress.
“…Excellent.”
At the end, he even added a few more spices, creating a flavor close to mala budae-jjigae.
‘To think I'd be eating mala budae-jjigae here, a dish that was supposedly developed right before I died.’
“There has never been a taste like this before!”
“It tastes really good!”
Praise poured in from the War King Gate disciples who were called in as a tasting panel.
“Mmm? This is really delicious. It’s good enough to be sold at the Red Blossom Pavilion.”
Even receiving the acknowledgment of the picky youngest granddaughter of a chaebol family, Jeok Hwa-ran.
“Good work.”
“Sir!”
“From now on, the Pork Scent Pavilion will be renamed Nolbu Pavilion.”
“Sir?”
It was the beginning of the so-called martial world version of Nolbu Budae-jjigae.
* * *
“Phew. I'm full.”
Jeok Hwa-ran patted her small belly as she walked ahead.
The sun had already set, and her shadow stretched long under the light of the lanterns lit here and there.
“Ah…”
I suddenly felt a pang of guilt.
We had gone out with the intention of having fun, but I ended up just making her work.
“Hwa-ran.”
“Yes?”
“Since we're out, let's go have a drink. I know a tavern where the liquor is amazing.”
“I'd love that.”
Seeing her smile shyly reminded me of our time at the Heaven-Ascending Pavilion.
‘Oh, are you eating alone again today? You poor thing. I-I'll eat with you.’
‘What? You want to borrow money again? How many times is that now? Ah, n-not that I won't lend it to you…’
‘*Sniffle*… Ah, it's nothing. There's no need for you to get involved, senior. Huh? You're going to beat them to death? The girls? Ah… Senior Baek Mu-ha… No! Absolutely not. You don't know what kind of person Senior Baek Mu-ha is, do you? You could get into big trouble.’
Ugh…
Thinking about it now, I should have torn that bastard Baek Mu-ha's right arm off at the shoulder back at the Hwangju Merchant Guild.
For that tiny kid to instigate other girls to bully her.
All for the stupid reason that she ate with me.
‘Well, still.’
The girls who bullied Jeok Hwa-ran were seriously injured in a series of accidents and had no choice but to give up their martial arts.
Since it happened to every single one of them, they must have received divine punishment.
“Gaga, hurry up.”
I must have been lost in memories for too long, as Jeok Hwa-ran grabbed my arm.
“Alright. Let's go.”
Because we were full, we only ordered two simple dishes and a mid-priced bottle of white liquor, but the prices at the SSS-class tavern, Moon Scent Pavilion, were still eye-poppingly expensive.
“Oh? This is… our liquor, isn't it? And a high-end white liquor at that.”
“Heheh. I negotiated with the Red Dragon Hall Master. I offered to sell his high-end liquor in exchange for helping the War King Gate.”
“If something like that comes up, you should have told me first. My grandfather can't say no to me.”
“Don't be silly. Nothing is more tiresome than letting personal feelings get involved in business. A fair exchange is a hundred times better. There's a reason why the alchemists of the Western Regions emphasized the law of equivalent exchange.”
“Equivalent exchange and alchemists… I've never heard those words before.”
“I tend to know a lot of things.”
Just as we were pleasantly enjoying our drinks.
“A gift from the owner.”
A beautiful maid brought over four more bottles of liquor.
“Oh my? This liquor is even more expensive. You must be close with the owner for him to send a gift like this.”
“Well…”
Unlike Jeok Hwa-ran, who was smiling brightly and seemed pleased, I couldn't help but fall into serious contemplation.
Because the note attached to the liquor read, 'In a cave with no tiger, a wildcat plays king.'
‘In a valley without a tiger, a wolf plays king…’
The answer was obvious.
‘It seems there are those who cannot accept the War King Gate.’
Now that the Nine Dragons Fortress has left Hanzhong, they intend to play king themselves.