Chapter 2067 Hooking Three Tails
“Let me demonstrate for you how it should be done.” I picked up my chopsticks and, with a slice of raw fish, I had to admit Mari’s knife skills were indeed excellent. The fish slices were as thin as cicada wings, and I could even see the moonlight in the air through them when I picked them up.
“What is this tool?” “It seems to be called chopsticks, a kind of Eastern eating utensil.” “It looks quite interesting, very agile.” “Not agile at all, I’ve used them, they’re terribly difficult to use. I don’t know how those Easterners manage to pick things up with them.”
As I listened to the merchants’ discussions beside me, I skillfully used my chopsticks to roll the shredded ingredients into the fish slice, dipped it in my own prepared sauce, and brought it to my mouth.
The merchants were stunned by my way of eating. They all had the same feeling: elegant, so high-class. To prepare eight small dishes of condiments, and then to roll the fish slice and dip it in sauce – what a sophisticated way to eat!
They suddenly felt that the grilled fish on their own stove seemed too plain and crude. Everson was indeed a diamond merchant, even his fishing meals were so exquisite.
“Let me try.” Older Brother Jayad said. He always knew that everything I made was delicious.
I didn’t give him the chopsticks. Instead, I personally wrapped a slice of fish and brought it to his mouth, “Brother, ah~”
“Ah~ Mmm~” Jayad took a bite of the raw fish. The crisp, fresh texture, combined with the layered flavors of various condiments and the pure umami, instantly filled his mouth. He couldn’t help but exclaim, “Good, delicious!”
“Is it really that good?” Mari also picked up her chopsticks and took a slice, following my method, adding condiments, dipping it in sauce, and swallowing it in one go.
“Delicious! Oi shi…” Mari exclaimed in her native language. This was a taste she had never experienced before. After eating sashimi for so many years, she had never realized it could be eaten this way. It was truly unexpected.
When she was learning to prepare sashimi, she had heard that there was also sashimi cuisine in the southern part of the Central Plains, but she had always believed it was not much different from Eastern Ying.
After all, sashimi is meant to be eaten without cooking, to savor the freshness and sweetness of the fish. The main difference lies only in the freshness and texture of the fish. Without any processing, what kind of flavor difference could there be?
She was proven wrong. With side dishes and dipping sauces, it was indeed possible to create a variety of flavors and aromas, and they complemented each other to create an even better taste. Mari even began to doubt if this was the sashimi she had sliced herself, as the taste was completely different from her memory of sashimi.
Mari took another bite of the sashimi dipped directly in soy sauce, without the side ingredients, which was the Japanese style of eating. After tasting it, she immediately frowned and shook her head.
The core of Japanese sashimi sauce lies in soy sauce and wasabi. Now, this sauce was neither specialized sashimi soy sauce, nor could the chopped chilies at all replace the function of wasabi.
The purpose of wasabi is to eliminate the fishy smell, enhance the aroma, and stimulate the taste buds. Now, replacing it with chili, while it couldn’t be said to be not delicious, it was still soulless.
Mari picked up another slice of sashimi. This time, she again picked up the side ingredients, dipped it in the spicy sauce, and took a mouthful. It tasted right. Although this was the Chinese method of eating that she was not used to, it was at least delicious and fresh, and did not necessarily require wasabi.
At this time, China and Japan had not yet erupted into war. Eastern Ying was also an Eastern country being invaded, colonized, and oppressed by Western Europe. The people of Eastern Ying did not feel that they were inferior or poorer than the Great Qing.
The general impression of the Eastern Ying people was that the Great Qing was a mysterious and vast ancient empire, and they even had a favorable impression, believing that they could unite and resist the West together.
The habit of always admiring and revering the Central Plains dynasty remained in their bones. Upon hearing that this was a Chinese way of eating, Mari accepted it very quickly, feeling it was very grand and sophisticated.
Soon, she realized that simply dipping in soy sauce was not good, but rolling with side ingredients and dipping in the specially prepared sauce was excellent!
Our family all started to help themselves, eating with great delight. Older Brother Jayad even raised his hand and beckoned to the surrounding anglers, “Hey, hey, let’s eat together! Come and try, it’s delicious!”
The merchants had already been craving it for a long time. They handed their fishing rods over to their servants and subordinates to manage, and then came over with their cutlery.
Although they were not skilled with chopsticks, they could still use cutlery to roll the raw fish slices. They would pick up a piece of sashimi with a knife, use a fork to push the ingredients onto the fish slice, and then roll it up and put it in their mouths.
In fact, some people were not very receptive to raw food. However, having traveled extensively, they had seen all sorts of bizarre cuisines. It was not impossible to try raw food, especially when everyone else was exclaiming how delicious it was.
Then they all declared it delicious. Everyone who had tried it praised it, and they couldn’t stop eating. They ate with great enjoyment, and soon the scene turned into a feast.
However, a few merchants wanted to learn how to use chopsticks. They awkwardly held the chopsticks and fumbled for a while, unable to pick anything up, and finally resigned themselves to using cutlery.
Using European tableware, dipping in Chinese condiments, and eating Japanese sashimi made the scene incredibly comical.
After tasting a few slices herself, Mari immediately rushed back to continue slicing fish. Otherwise, they would eat too fast and the sashimi would not be enough.
But her knife skills were truly fast. The speed at which she sliced was enough to satisfy the fish-eating needs of more than a dozen people, even faster.
I had to restrain my appetite and not eat too much, as it might arouse suspicion from others. So, I decided to go back to sea fishing. Speaking of which, I hadn’t caught any fish yet.
I ran to the fishing rod rack and saw that the bait had already been eaten by fish. They hadn’t taken the hook, so I had no choice but to reel in and prepare another bait. At this moment, Older Brother Jayad also came to my side, preparing to cast his next line.
After all, we came here for sea fishing, not a picnic. A taste of sashimi was enough. Fishing was more fun.
The other girls also walked to the fishing platform. Seeing Older Brother Jayad catch a fish, they also decided to try their luck.
We cast our lines together this time. We didn’t cast in the same spot, but dispersed around the area near the fishing light. Then we waited for the fish to take the bait, seeing who could catch one first. We all started preparing to compete with each other, although we were all newbies, just a mutual spar among amateurs.
Just then, Older Brother Jayad’s bell rang again. This time he had learned and didn’t cast directly, but grabbed the reel and quickly reeled it in.
“Boss, don’t be so anxious. It’s not about reeling it all at once. You need to pause, then reel a bit, and slowly wear down the fish’s strength,” Fuldamantha instructed from the side.
Judging by Jayad’s fishing style, he was undoubtedly a beginner. But why was he hooking fish so quickly? This made Fuldamantha wonder if it was beginner’s luck.
But Jayad was confused. He felt it was just a small fish, and its struggles couldn’t compare to the big cod from earlier. Why the tugging? So he continued to turn the reel and pulled up the hook in an instant.
On it were three small fish, each about twenty to fifty centimeters long, all hooked at once.
