Chapter 98: Renz Under Scrutiny
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"How would I know? Weren't you the one who abandoned Erina?" Senzaemon Nakiri scoffed, hearing his daughter's sudden passionate tone. There was cause and effect. Originally, Erina shouldn't have been raised by him, her grandfather. Although Erina was adorable, growing up without parental affection could easily lead to rebellion.
In Senzaemon Nakiri's eyes, this current dating, and even marriage, incident was likely a decision made by Erina out of rebellious spirit. There was still a generation gap between him and Erina, which Senzaemon Nakiri couldn't fail to notice. Sometimes, when Erina wanted something, she would hesitate to speak. It was nothing more than her fear that he, an old man, wouldn't understand. Could he manage all these aspects?
Now, she was blaming him. And did she think he wasn't worried? Dating was one thing; marriage was another entirely. This already had legal effect, and Erina was, after all, his own granddaughter, his flesh and blood. If she was bullied by outsiders, he, the Old Man, would also suffer.
Mana Nakiri was silenced by that remark. In fact, after she learned that Erina possessed the God's Tongue, she began to feel anxious about her future. At that time, Mana Nakiri's God's Tongue hadn't yet developed the "physiological reaction" side effect of anorexia, nor had it reached the point of vomiting after eating. Although her husband, Azami Nakiri, took great care of her, his attempts to suppress the God's Tongue simply couldn't keep up with its evolutionary speed.
To find a solution, Mana Nakiri began using her influence to organize various cooking competitions and travel the world seeking a cure. However, she never found a cure for the God's Tongue. Instead, her God's Tongue evolved at an accelerated pace after being stimulated by various gourmet dishes, leading to her current state where she relied on nutrient infusions to survive.
After establishing the WGO culinary alliance, the demands of her work combined with her quest to solve the God's Tongue dilemma led her to neglect her feelings for Erina, the child.
"Renz, huh?" Mana Nakiri silently repeated the name in her heart. As a mother, she had undoubtedly failed in her duties, but upon hearing this significant news, Mana Nakiri had to take it seriously.
"I'll make time to see Erina," Mana Nakiri said with a solemn expression, then a hint of nostalgia appeared on her face. This would be a long-awaited reunion.
"It's good that you're coming," Senzaemon Nakiri took a deep breath. "If the situation isn't right, you can also persuade Erina. Marrying at this age is too impulsive." Since the investigation results came out, Senzaemon Nakiri hadn't rushed to talk to Erina.
What if it was truly a rebellious phase? If their communication went poorly, with Erina's courage, she was perfectly capable of eloping, and eloping would make the situation much more serious.
If she didn't elope and remained within his sight, Senzaemon Nakiri could manage whatever Erina did or was capable of doing. But what if she eloped? What if she ran off to another country? Senzaemon Nakiri's arm wasn't that long. Then, with no news, Senzaemon Nakiri wouldn't be able to stop whatever that brat did to Erina, and he might not even be aware of it.
Now, what needed to be done was to ascertain the true nature of their relationship. Was it just Erina's rebellious phase, or were they truly in love? If they were genuinely in love, Senzaemon Nakiri would be willing to accept him marrying into the Nakiri family. There was no need to refuse someone who was genuinely good to Erina. The trouble lay in the "uncertainty." Senzaemon Nakiri wasn't familiar with this young man. Headache.
"Yes, I understand," Mana Nakiri said. With her father bringing it up, Mana Nakiri's thoughts were now entirely on Erina. "Talk to you next time," Mana Nakiri said before hanging up. Then, she immediately called Takeshi Takenaka, the general director of the "Midnight Chef" program. Takenaka, who was burning the midnight oil at Tokyo TV, preparing the program's proposal, was stunned to see the caller ID.
Who was Mana Nakiri? She was currently the person with the highest value in the Japanese culinary world, truly the highest, and her historical standing in the Japanese culinary world had already surpassed her father, Senzaemon Nakiri.
The God's Tongue significantly boosted one's value in the culinary world; possessing it almost guaranteed a position at the pinnacle of food criticism from birth, more professional than any other critic. While Senzaemon Nakiri was undoubtedly an educational titan in the Japanese culinary world, his influence on the culinary world's development was far less assertive than Mana Nakiri's.
The cooking competitions Mana Nakiri organized promoted external publicity for cuisine, and the WGO culinary alliance, though only developing for a little over a decade in the eyes of ordinary people, had become a renowned entity. Senzaemon Nakiri was only famous within the Japanese culinary world, but Mana Nakiri had achieved international recognition. Not to mention in a small place like Japan, she was a well-known figure both domestically and internationally, whether in America or China.
In this program, General Director Takeshi Takenaka could offend anyone without issue, but he absolutely couldn't offend Mana Nakiri, because she was the biggest draw for the food program, and even the entire show's backbone.
Takeshi Takenaka had long wanted to call Mana Nakiri to discuss some program details, but he feared that calling her would cause her trouble and displease her. He decided to wait until she personally inspected the program location before bringing it up. Who would have thought that Mana Nakiri, whose status in the culinary world was comparable to a "deity," would call him?
"Hello..." Takeshi Takenaka said respectfully, "May I ask what you need?"
"Yes, in the 'Midnight Chef' program, isn't there a young man named Renz? Please send me all the information you have on him," Mana Nakiri said blandly.
"Oh, oh, yes, certainly," Takeshi Takenaka replied, nodding, but secretly making a mental note of the name. Renz? Was he that rising star in the culinary world who passed the God's Tongue's review and performed exceptionally well in the Totsuki Academy friendly match? Takeshi Takenaka hadn't actually placed Renz on his primary list of focus contestants.
It was simple: the core promotion of this program was still Japanese chefs. For Filipino chefs, their names were hard for the audience to remember, regardless of their skill. Takenaka intended to reduce their screen time. But hearing this, it seemed this person might have some real skill, enough to attract Mana Nakiri's attention. Otherwise, why would she specifically call just for him?
"By the way, Mana-sama, we have some details about our program we'd like to discuss with you. Can we talk about it over the phone?" Takeshi Takenaka asked cautiously.
"I don't want to meddle in your program's affairs. I'm just here to judge. Other content is your job," Mana Nakiri wasn't bothered with such matters. Her call was simply to get information on Renz. She wanted to see what kind of person Erina had chosen.
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