Food Wars, my food not only glows!

　Young, inexperienced boys like this are the easiest to deal with.

　"Great! I've learned this before, I guarantee I'll give you a really comfortable massage!"

　Unexpectedly, Bai Yuan not only did not back down, but instead revealed a hint of excitement. While speaking, he grabbed her ankle and stroked the sole of her foot with his fingers.

　"Eh..."

　This left Kobayashi Rindou somewhat bewildered, letting out a confused "Eh?" But since it was her own foot that she had offered, she couldn't very well refuse.

　"Don't worry, it might hurt a little at the beginning, my technique is very good."

　After staring at it for a long time, Bai Yuan could no longer contain himself. After saying those words, he pressed down directly on the sole of the foot.

　The girl's jade-like feet were warm and smooth, and because they had been trapped in shoes for a long time, plus after working at home for half a day, they had sweated a little, making them feel incredibly delicate.

　However, Bai Yuan remained calm and began to massage the soles of her feet with great skill. This was a technique he had learned specifically for Nakiri Alice to help her relax.

　Alice Nakiri, understanding his exhaustion, would also massage each other's feet once a week, and once a month.

　This is the first time I've ever massaged someone else's phone.

　"It hurts! Wait... don't push anymore!!"

　"

　"It's always like this the first time. Just bear with it, and it will start to feel better after you get through it."

　Seeing Kobayashi Rindan's face flushed red, her body trembling slightly, and her thighs stiff, Bai Yuan refused to let go, his hand tightly gripping her ankle.

　Her flamboyant red hair swayed slightly as she struggled, adding to the girl's disheveled and embarrassed appearance, but also making hearts race even faster.

　Twenty minutes passed in this way, and seeing that he could not break free, Kobayashi Rindou gritted his teeth and accepted it.

　I thought it would be a painful ordeal, but just as Bai Yuan said, after the pain came an indescribable comfort that spread throughout my whole body!

　"Do you feel better now? I wasn't lying to you."

　"If you don't pay, have you never even had a foot massage before? Normally, it's not like you do; people who don't know better would think I'm butchering a pig."

　Thinking of the scene of slaughtering pigs in the countryside, Bai Yuan couldn't help but joke that the way Xiao Lin Longdan struggled just now really looked like a pig being slaughtered in the countryside.

　You're the pig!

　Upon hearing Bai Yuan's words, Kobayashi Rindou, who was just about to praise his skill, suddenly frowned and put his hands on his hips, saying angrily.

　However, she was still not satisfied, so she knelt on the sofa, bent down, and stretched out her hands to tickle Bai Yuan in order to prove her dissatisfaction, but she missed because she used too much force.

　Actually, he didn't miss his target. He ended up lying on Bai Yuan's lap, feeling a softness that aroused him slightly. He couldn't help but marvel at how well-endowed Kobayashi Rindan was.

　"Bang bang bang."

　Just then, there was a knock on the door. Kobayashi Rindou froze, realizing his posture was wrong, and hurriedly got up.

　"Who is it? Please wait a moment."

　Rolling his eyes at the man next to him, Kobayashi Rindou propped himself up on the sofa, not even bothering to put on his slippers, and fled to the door.

　"call..."

　Standing at the door, having calmed his tense emotions slightly, Kobayashi Rindou let out a long breath, wondering who would come at this time.

　You should know that she comes and goes without a trace, and she doesn't stay at home most of the time. She only comes back occasionally, and people usually contact her by text message.

　Furthermore, very few people probably know the location of her home.

　So, who could it be at this time?

　Opening the door with curiosity, Kobayashi Rindou was about to say something when he saw the three people standing in the doorway and immediately showed a surprised expression.

　"Erina, Alice, and the secretary, I thought it was someone else, but it's you three. What do you need me for?"

　"We've come to deliver something to Brother Baiyuan. You look very tired?"

　Alice Nakiri answered, her gaze sweeping over Rindou Kobayashi, then her brows furrowed slightly, as if she were thinking of something.

　"I'm a little tired from cleaning the house just now."

　Upon hearing Alice Nakiri's words, Rindou Kobayashi awkwardly looked away, his face flushed and showing signs of guilt.

　"Is cleaning the house really that tiring?"

　Seeing her like this, Alice Nakiri's suspicions deepened.

　"After all, you have to walk back and forth, which consumes a lot of physical strength, so it's normal to feel a little tired."

　Kobayashi Rindou's face turned red, but she couldn't say that Bai Yuan had done this to her. Even though it was just a foot massage, saying it would definitely lead to misunderstandings!

　Although she didn't care about being misunderstood, and even sometimes found it amusing, those were people she didn't care about, and Bai Yuan was clearly not among them.

　"Cleaning the house is really tiring, but if you want to chat, can we come in...?"

　Seeing that the two refused to stop, Erina Nakiri, who had been standing silently to the side, suddenly spoke up, her expression showing a hint of helplessness.

　Hisako Shinto stood behind her, head down, silent, worried that she might accidentally say something that would cause trouble for Erina Nakiri.

　"Take your own slippers from the shoe cabinet."

　Seeing that Erina Nakiri had come to his rescue, Rindou Kobayashi immediately changed the subject, pointed to the shoe cabinet next to the entryway, and turned back to the living room.

　"Oh..."

　Watching her departing figure, Alice Nakiri still wanted to say something, but the topic had already passed, so she could only swallow her questions.

　Soon, the three of them changed into slippers.

　Upon entering the living room, I saw Bai Yuan lounging on the sofa, legs crossed in a relaxed posture.

　"Erina and Hisako are here too."

　Seeing Erina and Hisako next to Alice, Shirabuchi's expression was somewhat surprised.

　"Because I didn't know where Kobayashi-senpai lived, I called Erina to ask. Even though I didn't need her to come, she insisted on coming anyway."

　She sat down naturally next to Bai Yuan, her nose twitching constantly. After confirming that the familiar smell was gone, she calmed down a lot and even had the mood to complain to Nakiri Erina.

　"Wherever Teacher Baiyuan is, I will be there!"

　Erina Nakiri did not refute, but said with a slightly flushed face, her eyes, which seemed to see through autumn water, were very pitiful.

　"I want to stay by Erina's side."

　Beside her, Hisako Shinto also said that as a professional secretary, she would always be working with Erina Nakiri no matter what.

　"Come on in, rest here for a bit. Alice, when will your molecular gastronomy machine arrive?"

　He turned his head to look at Alice Nakiri sitting next to him; the girl was currently holding his hand tightly.

　It softly and completely enveloped his arm.

　"They'll be here soon. They're bringing it by car, so it'll take them a few minutes longer than us."

　Hello, is this the place?

　Speak of the devil, and he appears. Not long after Alice Nakiri finished speaking, a muffled greeting came from the doorway, and two men in black suits carried the molecular gastronomy machine to the door.

　"Yes, we can just move it to the kitchen."

　Hearing the sound, Alice Nakiri stood up from the sofa and beckoned the man in the black suit to come in. Soon the molecular gastronomy machine was plugged in, and the man in the black suit left Rindou Kobayashi's house.

　"What are you planning to do? You've gathered so many cherry blossoms, are you preparing to make a cherry blossom-themed dish?"

　Looking at the cherry blossoms on the kitchen counter, Erina Nakiri asked curiously, as she genuinely didn't know why Shiro had suddenly brought so many cherry blossoms.

　I do recall a few dishes that required cherry blossoms, but I don't know which ones specifically, since there was nothing else on the cooking table besides cherry blossoms.

　"Cherry blossom mochi."

　Alice, help me extract the cherry blossom pigment.

　Shirabuchi handed the cherry blossom petals that had been drying on the balcony to Alice Nakiri and gave her an instruction.

　"Alright! Don't worry about it, leave it to me."

　Alice Nakiri excitedly agreed and then began operating the molecular gastronomy machine, which was a piece of cake for her.

　"Can I help you with anything?"

　Seeing that Alice Nakiri had something to do, Erina Nakiri, who was standing next to her, was also unwilling to be idle. She rolled up her sleeves and spoke to Shirahara.

　"Why don't you and Hisako go outside and pick some cherry blossoms? I've only picked enough for two people. It should be ready by the time you come back."

　"Okay, Hisako, let's go!"

　Upon hearing that there was something to do, Erina Nakiri immediately showed an excited expression, and walked with even more energy, heading towards the outside with a gust of wind.

　"Wait for me, Lady Erina."

　"I'll go with you too."

　Hisako Niito immediately quickened her pace upon seeing this, and Rindou Kobayashi, feeling bored being alone, followed the two as they walked away.

　It has to be said that Bai Yuan's foot massage technique is indeed quite good. She can walk much more easily now, and much of her fatigue has been relieved.

　"Then you go ahead with your work, I'll start making the red bean paste."

　Watching the three leave, and Alice Nakiri busy in front of the molecular gastronomy machine, Bai Yuan went to the sink and washed his hands.

　Open the pressure cooker, remove the red beans and drain them. Put two-thirds of them into a blender and blend them into a paste. Leave the remaining one-third in a bowl.

　Heat some oil in a wok, add the cooked red beans and red bean paste, and stir-fry over low heat for 15 minutes with a wooden spoon to enhance the texture of the red bean filling. Do not stop stirring at this time, otherwise the bottom will burn.

　After stir-frying for fifteen minutes, start seasoning.

　Add a small amount of brown sugar and stir-fry for three minutes, then add maltose to increase viscosity and flavor. Based on the aroma wafting in the air, Bai Yuan added more brown sugar, then a pinch of salt, and continued to stir-fry for a while before taking it out of the pan.

　"Brother Bai Yuan, I'm done."

　Your red bean paste looks so delicious; it makes my mouth water.

　Holding a small bowl of extracted cherry blossom plant pigment in her hand, Alice Nakiri looked at the red bean paste that had fallen onto the plate and exclaimed in admiration, her Adam's apple bobbing.

　"If you want to eat, eat two more later."

　Noticing Alice Nakiri's little expression, Bai Yuan smiled and took the cherry blossom plant pigment she handed him, then poured it into the soaked glutinous rice.

　Let it sit for 30 minutes to allow the color to develop.

　During this time, Bai Yuan and Nakiri Alice chatted casually.

　Although they live together, they actually have very little time alone together, so these moments of chatting are precious to them and they cherish them.

　Thirty minutes later, Bai Yuan wrapped the colored glutinous rice in gauze and placed it in the steamer.

　Wrap each layer in a piece of gauze, but do not place rice grains on top, otherwise the rice will heat unevenly and affect the taste and texture of the final product.

　Every detail can determine success or failure.

　Wrap each portion of glutinous rice in cheesecloth and place it in a steamer to steam for 20 minutes.

　The time in between was used to prepare the red bean paste filling. The red bean paste filling that had been stir-fried earlier was still slightly warm. Bai Yuan skillfully divided each portion into 25-gram pieces and covered them with plastic wrap.

　Twenty minutes later, the steamed cherry blossom glutinous rice was taken out. Upon seeing this, Bai Yuan immediately stepped forward to break it up and sprinkled cold water on it before putting it back into the pot to steam for another thirty minutes.

　"Actually, I've wanted to ask you this for a long time: don't you feel hot like this?"

　Erina Nakiri, who had just picked a pot of cherry blossoms, happened to see this scene and, unable to contain her curiosity, asked a question.

　"When my hands were still soft, I thought that I wouldn't feel the heat anymore. But after doing this kind of thing a lot, I developed calluses on my hands and naturally stopped feeling the heat."

　Upon seeing Erina Nakiri return, Bai Yuan rinsed his hands with cool water and said with some emotion.

　In China, almost no chef is afraid of getting burned, because anyone who works in the kitchen deals with high temperatures every day and has long since developed a pair of ruthless iron hands.

　"Chinese chefs are generally not afraid of getting burned because they are better at stir-frying dishes. Sometimes they will directly use their hands to test the state and doneness of the food."

　In contrast, Western cuisine often uses frying techniques and prefers undercooked dishes, sometimes even...

　It's okay at all; I'm more afraid of getting burned.

　Rindou Kobayashi's voice came from behind. Having represented the school in international competitions and witnessed the cooking of chefs from all over the world, he had unique insights into this subject.

　"besides..."

　The group chatted about this topic, and before they knew it, the glutinous rice in the pot had been cooked through during their conversation.

　A faint fragrance wafted from the steamer. Bai Yuan took it out, put it in a stone mortar and ground it, turning it from a separate grain into a sticky paste.

　Take a piece of red bean paste, wrap it with cherry blossom-colored glutinous rice, then wrap it with a layer of salted cherry leaves, and garnish it with salted cherry blossoms for added flavor.