Daily life with the ship girl

“Because it tastes good?”

"Not entirely. Look at the customers and the weather today. The sun is scorching, but they don't complain. Look at the diners who left. They all have satisfied looks on their faces. Bismarck, the so-called gourmet food is something that can make the people who taste it look satisfied."

"Admiral, you really like cooking, right? When I was in the Admiral's Mansion before, I just thought that it might just be a hobby for you, but now it seems that you really like cooking."

"Well, there are so many things I like, but if I have to say a hobby, it's probably only cooking. After all, my family is a family of chefs, so it's probably inherited."

Li Ran scratched his head, then said to Bismarck:

"By the way, there's actually a flaw in that shrimp cake that I didn't mention."

"what?"

"It's the flatbread. It's not baked enough, and it doesn't have sesame seasoning, so it's not fragrant enough. In fact, if the shrimp cake just now can be improved in these few places, it won't just be a small stall. I hope the old man just now can listen to my advice."

Li Ran said this with a somewhat melancholy expression, which Bismarck did not quite understand, but she just held Li Ran's hand tightly and said:

"Admiral, you've said enough."

"Yeah, let's not talk about this anymore, it's almost our turn."

……

A few minutes later, it was finally Li Ran and Bismarck's turn to order food.

Li Ran took a look and thought, wow, this restaurant also has the same flag as the snack stand. Now he has to ask about the origin of this flag, but let's order food first:

"Boss, give me some of your signature dishes."

"Okay, Xiaolin, take you two to your seats."

"No hurry, Boss, can I ask you a question?"

"Sure." The boss was fat and wearing a white apron. Because the weather was too hot and she was staying by the stove, she saw that there were not many people behind Li Ran. She wiped the sweat off her face and said:

"But please hurry up, there are people queuing behind you."

"Oh, okay, it's like this, when I was shopping I saw many shops and stalls hanging this kind of red flag with gold patterns, what's the origin of it?"

"Hey, little brother, you don't know that our Xia country is the most famous food empire in the world." The boss said with a proud look on his face, and then said in a proud tone:

"This flag is an award from the Xia Kingdom's Royal Culinary Selection Hall to the most flavorful gourmet restaurant. To be honest, my Lin family's home-style restaurant has been open on Qiyun South Street for more than a hundred years."

"I see." Li Ran did not ask what the so-called Xia Kingdom Royal Cooking Selection Hall was. He quickly said:

"Thank you, boss, for clearing up my confusion."

"It's okay. I see you're from out of town, too. You've come to the right place by coming to my Lin's home-style restaurant."

Master Lin raised the spoon and said:

"Here, you can... Hey? Mr. Li, why are you closing your stall so early today?"

Li Ran was a little surprised when he saw Master Lin suddenly walked out of the kitchen while talking, and those who were in the queue also looked over with curiosity.

"It's like this, I've brought shame to the Li family." Mr. Li was the owner of the stall where Li Ran had just gone to eat shrimp cakes.

"I want to listen carefully, wife, you cook first, I will chat with Mr. Li."

Li Ran didn't care. He pulled Bismarck and was about to follow Xiao Linzi upstairs when he heard Bismarck say:

"Admiral, it's the old man at the stall just now."

"Oh?" Li Ran thought to himself what a coincidence. He turned around and saw the old man talking to Master Lin. He quickly turned around and asked Xiao Linzi:

"Hey, does your boss know that old man?"

"Hey, more than just knowing each other, that old man is the most famous inheritor of a snack with a century-old flag in the entire food street. He is a neighbor of our boss and lives in the small alley behind our restaurant."

"Oh?" Li Ran looked thoughtful, and then he didn't ask any more questions. He followed Xiao Linzi up to the second floor and found that all the tables were full. However, one table of customers had just finished eating, and the waiter in the store was cleaning up. Xiao Linzi quickly said:

"Please sit down for a moment, both of you. Ali, please be quick."

"Got it." The waiter named Ali smiled innocently and started to clean the table.

Li Ran and Bismarck sat down face to face.

"Admiral, there are too many people here. Is it a little unsafe?"

As soon as Bismarck sat down, she noticed some people's eyes on her. As a ship girl, she was a little concerned about these gazes. She was afraid that something unexpected would endanger Li Ran's safety.

"Don't be nervous, they are all looking at you."

"Look at me?"

"Well, you're so pretty, I think those guys wish they were the ones sitting here with me."

"You're joking, Admiral."

Bismarck felt a little embarrassed as it was the first time he heard Li Ran praise him in person, and his cute cat ears twitched.

"Shy."

"No, I just feel a little uncomfortable."

"Just get used to it. It's not shameful to be good-looking. Let them envy you."

Li Ran glared at those people proudly, meaning that this woman is mine and you should stop looking at her.

Seeing that Li Ran was quite strong and did not look like an ordinary person, the diners thought it was better to mind their own business and turned their eyes away from Bismarck.

Li Ran felt relieved after seeing that those people were quite sensible. Then he said to Bismarck:

"By the way, do you have any favorite food?"

"Well, it seems so."

"Talk about it."

"I like German sausages and barbecue. Well, I especially like frankfurters, but the others are pretty much the same."

"Sausages, um, I'll go back and think of a way to get some. By the way, I'll ask the boss if there are any delicious sausages in Qiyun Port."

"Admiral, that's not necessary."

"It's okay. Anyway, we won't be able to return to the port for some time. This time we can treat you as a reward. You have worked hard these days."

"Nothing is really what I should do."

"Look, you're here again, Bismarck. Now is not the time to work. You don't have to be so reserved."

"Understood, Admiral."

"Forget it, you, with this personality, no wonder the fireflies are a little in awe of you, you should smile more."

Li Ran said, then stretched and said:

"In fact, you should learn from Eugen."

"Admiral, do you like Prince Eugen?"

"Yes, I like her. Although she has just arrived in Hong Kong not long ago, I like her quiet and gentle appearance. By the way, I think she has a special feeling for you. Well, how should I put it? She has a special feeling for you."

"Well, I think Eugen is blaming himself."

"Do you blame yourself?" Li Ran recalled that in history, after the Bismarck was separated from the Prinz Eugen, Bismarck was surrounded. Perhaps it was because he inherited the memory of the Prinz Eugen that Eugen always felt guilty towards Bismarck. He thought for a moment and said:

"What's past is past. I'll have a good talk with Eugen when I get back. By the way, after I finish my meal, let's go to North Street to buy some small gifts this afternoon. Firefly once asked me for a stuffed bear. This time I finally have the chance to bring some small gifts to those little ones."

"Admiral, do you like them very much?" Bismarck looked at Li Ran with a smile, and there was a hint of inquiry in his eyes.

"Well, don't look at me like that. I'm not a lolita admiral. Besides, destroyers are so cute, who doesn't like them?"

"Really?"

"Really, it's more real than real gold and silver."

Li Ran felt a little guilty. It would be a lie to say that he didn't have any thoughts about destroyers. After all, the little loli on destroyers were awesome, especially after some destroyers were transformed, the little loli elementary school students turned into little adults. Wow, no, it would be evil to think about it any further.

"Well, I believe the admiral is not a lolita complex." Bismarck said seriously.

Li Ran was a little embarrassed. Why did he feel as if Bismarck was hiding something? He smiled awkwardly and said:

"You have to believe me, really."

"Hmm." Bismarck was very frugal with his words. His cat ears moved, but it was unclear whether he really believed it or not.

Li Ran looked at Bismarck's expressionless face. He felt guilty and changed the subject:

"Ahem, well, after dinner we'll go to the branch of Sihai Trading Company. I'll ask Miss Bai for a car. North Street is quite far away, and it would be convenient to transport the gifts back if we have a car."

"The admiral makes the decision," Bismarck replied.

Li Ran suddenly felt that he had no idea what topic Bismarck was talking about. The atmosphere was a little awkward. Fortunately, the waiter served the dishes and eased the awkwardness.

"It smells so good. Please sit down first. I'll go get the food." Li Ran looked at the four dishes and one soup on the table and said:

"Admiral, let me do it." Bismarck pushed Li Ran to his seat, then picked up the bowl to get the food.

Li Ran looked at Bismarck's slender back, and then saw that everyone's attention was attracted by her. He felt a sense of pride and satisfaction in his heart.

She is my ship girl, you guys can envy her all you want!

Chapter 03: The Mysterious Gourmet

When Bismarck came back from getting his meal, Li Ran looked at Bismarck eating with a spoon. He always felt something was wrong. It was strange that there were no chopsticks in this restaurant.

So, he thought about it and called the waiter and said:

"Hey, don't you have any chopsticks here?"

"What are chopsticks?" The waiter looked confused.

"It's okay, go and do your work." Li Ran frowned. Everyone in this restaurant was eating with spoons, which was really awkward. Although he knew in the port area that there were no chopsticks in this world, but eating out, especially many foods in Xia Country seemed to be similar to those in China, but without chopsticks, it always felt a little strange. Suddenly, a golden idea of ​​making a fortune flashed in his mind, and then he took a mouthful of rice and said to Bismarck:

"Do you think the wood in the harbor can be used to make tableware?"

"Sure, those fairies in our port area helped us make some tableware, including the chopsticks Pinghai mentioned."

"I was wondering why Minato suddenly had chopsticks to use. Turns out Ping Hai made them."

"Yes, but why are you asking this, Admiral?"

"Keep it a secret for now. I'll tell you when we get back to the port. Let's eat. I'm starving."

"Ah."

Li Ran looked at the plate of stir-fried green beans and meat, tasted it, and asked Bismarck:

"what about the taste?"

"Well, it's still a little bland."

"Hmm, not salty enough. I think it might have something to do with the eating habits of Qiyun City?"

"Admiral, how do you know?"

"Intuition, as a chef, is a sensitive intuition. In fact, this is also an important skill in learning cooking. When in Rome, do as the Romans do. The eating habits of each place are different. Some places like sweet, some places like salty, some places like light, and some places like spicy.

As a chef, if you want to make food that customers like, you must fully understand the eating habits of customers and make improvements and innovations. In this process, the chef will enjoy bringing delicious food to diners, which is the most attractive part of cooking. "

"I see." Bismarck nodded as if she understood. She had been secretly shocked by the terrible dishes cooked by Mingwei, but after hearing what Li Ran said, she realized that cooking was not a simple thing.

"Well, try this, braised pork. This dish is the most challenging for a chef. I've made it in the harbor before. Try it and tell me whether mine is better or the one in this restaurant is better."

"Hmm." Bismarck nodded, then scooped a spoonful of meat and put it in her mouth. As a shipgirl of Country G, her eating habits naturally tended towards the Germans, and she especially liked pork. She felt that the braised pork was delicious, but then she frowned:

"Admiral, this braised pork is delicious, but I feel that pork is not as good as the wild boar meat we use in our port area."

"Really?" Li Ran heard Bismarck say this, he also ate a piece, then pondered for a while and said:

"The only downside to this dish is the choice of pork, which is the same downside as the stir-fried green beans and pork dish we had earlier."

Bismarck listened to what Li Ran said, and curiously tried the stir-fried green beans and meat, and then found that it was true. When she was on Xiguang Island, all the meat she ate was wild boar meat. After eating wild boar meat for a long time, she could taste the difference obviously. Wild boar meat was chewier and more tender, and the pork in these two dishes was obviously not as good as wild boar meat. She said puzzledly:

"Admiral, if you put it that way, I really do have a difference."

"Well, there is a big difference. This is what I want to say. There are some things that need to be paid attention to in cooking, that is, the selection of ingredients. Good ingredients can often add a lot to a dish."

"Well, Admiral, what you mean is that only good ingredients can make top-notch dishes?"

"No, that's not right. In fact, the quality of the ingredients will have a clear difference in the hands of a chef."

"The Admiral wants to say that he is a great chef."

"Haha, I am a chef, but I have to say that the fact that this restaurant can cook this dish to this level is proof that it lives up to its reputation."