Reborn in Japan as a Chef God

"I'm back!"

Xia Yu stretched languidly as she entered the shop.

"Where's Eriina?" Yuchuan Meisha came up close, looking around, but she couldn't find the figure of the girl dragging the suitcase.

"Ah, she came over?" Xia Yu asked without blinking an eye.

Zhu Qing, who was watching TV with interest, cast a playful glance, "The poor girl waited all afternoon—did you, this little rascal, head out early in the morning on purpose to avoid someone?"

Facing Zhu Qing's "perceptive" gaze, Xia Yu felt inexplicably nervous, "Not at all!"

He protested, "There was work to do on the farm!"

"Oh, I believe you," Zhu Qing said.

"I believe you too!"

Yuchuan Meisha nodded seriously.

"Even if there were things to busy with, it shouldn't be on Christmas Eve. Besides, the food festival in the shopping street is also hectic!" Yuchuan Ayaka quietly added her input.

"Get out of here!"

Xia Yu feigned a scolding tone, "But speaking of which, are the snacks for the Christmas Eve food festival ready? I don't want Xia's Restaurant to be the only quiet spot on a bustling street—that would be embarrassingly desolate!"

"Yes, according to your instructions, everything is prepared!" Yuchuan Meisha responded as if at attention.

Yuchuan Ayaka's voice emanated from the kitchen, "...We've prepared our part, just waiting for you, the head chef, to show off your skills."

Per the plan, for the Christmas Day food festival, everyone at Xia's Restaurant, including Zhu Qing, was to cook and create popular snacks. As evening approached, it was time to set up an outdoor stall in front of the shop to sell food and join in the festive celebration.

"Ha, what have you all prepared?"

Xia Yu put on an apron, washed her hands clean, but did not rush to cook; instead, as she asked, she took out her phone, opened an app and seemed to order some ingredients.

A delightful aroma of baking food wafted from behind.

Yuchuan Meisha presented a delicately arranged small plate, "German gingerbread cookies!"

Huh.

Quite interested, Xia Yu glanced at the plate, where the cookies carved into pentagon shapes were piled up, adorned with ribbon bows, looking quite appealing.

Besides, the plate was garnished with decorative pine branches, pine cones, fiery red cherries, dogwood fruit, and various colorful candies—a full plate vivid in color, brimming with festive ambiance.

"Gingerbread?" Xia Yu sniffed the air. Desserts weren't his specialty, but having mastered the Qilin Gate, just a whiff signaled the composition of the cookies to him, "Honey, almonds, and some added spices, with a slight kick, is that white pepper? This is pepper-flavored gingerbread!"

"There's also one with a main butter flavor!"

Yuchuan Meisha, with a beaming smile, pulled out a cookie with a ribbon bow from behind her and placed it on the plate. Holding the plate with both hands, she pushed it towards Xia Yu, nudging with her chin, "Boss Xia, have a taste and give it your stamp of approval!"

Xia Yu did not hold back, tasting a cookie of each type. To his surprise, he found the white pepper gingerbread suited his taste and gave a thumbs up: "This is more than enough to be part of the Christmas festival offerings!"

Yuchuan Meisha smiled, "Gingerbread is an essential festive food for Europeans at Christmas. But it's more than just food—pastry chefs often convey their best wishes through it. So, from a symbolic perspective, selling gingerbread at Xia's Shop is the perfect festive gift!"

After saying this, she turned her head and called towards the kitchen, "Sister, bring over the food you've prepared!"

Thump, thump, thump.

A sound of footsteps.

Yuchuan Ayaka appeared from the kitchen, drawing a slightly intrigued look from Xia Yu.

In her day-to-day, always wrapped in a Bohemian style, favoring long skirts—the epitome of a goddess. But now, she was dressed in a complete Christmas theme, with red and white tones, a red pleated skirt, a snug waistcoat, a cute reindeer-themed Christmas hat with an attached cape flowing behind, and even the sleeves carried a Japanese traditional style with wide hanging cuffs that added an elegantly playful and sexy touch.

The red suspenders decorated with little golden stars stretched above her knees, paired with matching high heels of a red hue.

Anyway, as soon as Yuchuan Ayaka entered the kitchen, the previously undecorated space instantly felt festive.

"I've prepared two kinds of snacks."

She placed a white plate and a small transparent box with a lid on the countertop.

Glancing over, Xia Yu chuckled, "Hey, hey, how much do you love colors?"

Just like her usual style of dressing, the snacks were brightly colored: on the plate were round, sliced lollipops, and the box was filled with colorful gummy fruit candies.

Both the lollipops and gummies were rich in color and delicately made, appearing quite pretty and tempting, with a sweet and sour fragrance wafting through the air, stimulating the salivation in one's mouth.

Xia Yu, feeling his appetite getting out of control, turned slightly pale, "You added..."

"Fruit juice."

Yuchuan Ayaka replied, "Rainbow fruit juice."

"You're amazing, so generous!" Xia Yu could only give a thumbs up, "Making lollipops and gummies with Miracle Juice, and keeping them to yourself is one thing, but selling these treats at a festival's food stall might just make the customers feel like they've struck gold."

Yuchuan Ayaka's mouth curled into a smile that wasn't quite a smile, "It's just a drop's worth."

"Boss Xia, this is your own neighborhood food festival, don't you plan on doing something?"

"Uh..."

"Yeah, yeah, Boss Xia, if we don't make a big splash today, you won't be the famous Chef Xia I know," Yuchuan Meisha called out from outside; she had just come down from changing on the second floor, leaning on the stair rail and teasing with a giggly smile.

Xia Yu glanced over; the girl had changed into a Christmas-themed maid outfit, still emphasizing the festive red and white colors, wearing a little red witch's hat, red gloves, and white cotton stockings, looking like the epitome of a Christmas little chef.

"Do something?"

"Yeah, make a big splash?"

Hearing this, Xia Yu seriously propped his chin, decisively declaring, "Then let's stir things up, let's get on with it!"

Since it was a neighborhood food festival promotion, there was no need to be secretive.

Just as the "Seven-Colored Snow Woman" had made a name for Xia's Farm, the business on the shopping street was already booming, but stirring things up to generate another wave of excitement and attention would only benefit the development of the shopping street.

It took about half an hour for the four people inside the store, including Zhu Qing, to put their heads together and finally set up a food festival stall outside the shop.

When the tent was erected, the sky was overcast, and a misty drizzle started to fall.

There wasn't the goose-feather-like heavy snowfall seen in animations and comics; during December and close to January in Tokyo, snow was a rare occurrence unless the weather was exceptionally strange, with temperatures in the city typically ranging from 5 to 10 degrees Celsius. Hence, one could see many girls on the shopping street either wearing stockings or even baring their beautiful legs – a sight unimaginable in Hokkaido.

At the shop's entrance...

"Put it on, quick!"

Xia Yu, who had draped on a Santa Claus suit, was scared silly by the fake wig and beard that Yuchuan Meisha stuffed into his hands, waving them off, "No need for the beard and wig, they'll get in the way of my cooking!"

"And what about your preparation for the food festival?"

Zhu Qing blew cold air from the side.

True enough, apart from Yuchuan Sisters' candy and biscuit snacks and some apple candies that Zhu Qing grudgingly made as if just going through the motions, the red-tablecloth-covered table was quite bare.

Speaking of apple candies, they were essentially candied apples, each apple coated in a shiny syrup that hinted at its sweetness, skewered with a wooden stick through its core.

A few big baskets full of apple candies were quite attractive despite the murky weather.

Xia Yu was about to speak when an IGO food material transport truck slowly made its way over.

"And here it is, just in time."