Chapter 428 Cutting Straight to the Chase
“Let me get another savory tofu pudding!”
“I’ll get another sweet tofu pudding!”
One voice erupted after another, all filled with excitement and anticipation.
“I… I’ll also get another savory tofu pudding…” Before Dracula knew it, he had licked his bowl clean, and he raised his arm in a sheepish manner to ask for more.
“Bring me another sweet tofu pudding!” Jinx had also devoured his tofu pudding, but he wasn’t ashamed in the slightest to ask for seconds.
“Please wait for a moment.” Yabemiya answered everyone’s requests while clearing away the bowls on the tables with Sally’s help.
“Uncle Bat, didn’t you say that you wouldn’t eat food cooked by a human even if you were to starve to death here?” Amy turned to Dracula with a curious expression.
Everyone also turned to him with mockery in their eyes. After all, he and Jinx were the ones who had protested against eating the dish the most vehemently.
“Um… That’s… because as a vampire, it’s imperative for us to adapt to different environments and foods for survival.” Dracula coughed with an awkward expression. He turned to look at Mag, and his eyes lit up. A confident smile appeared on his face as he continued, “Also, for us vampires, blood and brains are all foods that can replenish our energy. This tofu pudding is made from brains, so it suits my tastes. I would never eat any vegetables.”
“My apologies, but the tofu pudding isn’t actually made from brains. Instead, it’s made from soybean, so it’s still vegetable-based.” Mag returned Dracula’s confident smile with a smile of his own.
“H… How is that possible?! It clearly feels like brains, and it’s even more delicious than brains! How can it be made from vegetables?!”
Dracula’s smile stiffened, and he glared at Mag as he sprang up from his seat. He felt as if his intelligence were being insulted.
“Exactly! This tofu pudding tastes even softer and smoother than the brains I’ve had in the past. How can this possibly have been made from soybean? You’re not messing with us, are you?” Gustav was also in disbelief.
“The tofu pudding is most definitely made from soybean, with no added meat or brains. We are an honest establishment, and we never lie to our customers,” Mag replied with a calm smile. Chinese dish names were extremely diverse, so not all names could be interpreted based on their literal meanings.
“It’s over! I’ve eaten vegetables again!” Dracula slumped back into his seat, and stared at the bowl in front of him that had been licked clean as he murmured to himself, “I didn’t even notice; I thought it tasted great, and wanted a second bowl… Am I no longer a pure vampire?”
“I don’t care what it’s made from; as long as it tastes good, it’s fine. Hurry up and get me another sweet tofu pudding; this is absolutely delicious!” Tauros slapped his leg with a nonchalant expression.
Dracula abruptly raised his head and turned to Tauros. “Even though this vegetable-based dish has severely dented my confidence, I must say something. Shouldn’t tofu pudding be eaten as a savory dish? How can you add sugar to something so soft and smooth? That’s unimaginable!”
“Bullsh*t! Tofu pudding should be sweet! Otherwise, it’s not real tofu pudding. The sweet flavor coupled with its exquisite texture makes an irresistible combo! Dracula, even though we’re both demons, what you said just now is going too far!” Gustav glowered at Dracula with an enraged expression.
“This tofu pudding is slightly sweet in itself, so the savory juices and other ingredients complement it perfectly. Only by combining those flavors can the consumer experience the true taste of the tofu pudding. If you scoop sweet syrup mindlessly over the tofu pudding, then it’ll mask the pudding’s flavor, making it a lot less delicious.” Fox put down his spoon, and looked at Gustav and Tauros with a serious expression as he said, “Tofu pudding should be eaten as a savory dish!”
“Fox, you’re still as ugly as ever, but I suddenly don’t mind looking at you now. Indeed, I must agree with your opinion on savory tofu pudding.” Dracula looked at Fox and nodded in approval.
“Sweet tofu pudding is the best!” Jinx yelled. He then turned to Havid, and asked, “What do you think, Havid?”
Havid looked down into his bowl, and he was just about to give a reply.
“Remember that I’m paying for the table and chair that you destroyed,” Jinx added.
Havid’s eyes widened with rage. He didn’t think that Jinx could be so shameless.
“Don’t worry, Havid, tell us what you really think. I’ll lend you the money!” Dracula came to his rescue.
“Of course the savory tofu pudding is the best!” Havid immediately offered his opinion on the matter. He turned to Dracula, and nodded as he said, “I’ll be sure to repay you, Dracula.”
“Sweet…”
“Savory…”
The two parties were instantly split into sweet and savory factions. The giant dragons and demons were no longer fighting for their respective races. Instead, they had found allies in former enemies, and were fighting over tofu pudding instead.
Could it be that this was Mag’s plan to break the impasse? Michael glanced at the arguing representatives before turning to Mag with a perplexed look.
He had hosted many conferences of this nature, and from his previous experience, no definitive result could be reached without at least 10 days of negotiations. That was why he had chosen Mamy Restaurant as the conference venue. He wanted to see if Mag’s delicious food could act as a catalyst to speed up this process.
Now, the negotiations had been completely derailed, and everyone was fighting over tofu pudding instead. If the old guys from their respective races were to hear about this, they would probably be fuming with rage.
Mag merely looked on with a smile as if everything was going according to plan. He was well aware of Michael’s intentions. As such, if he wanted to secure the plot of land in front of the restaurant as an outdoor dining area, he had to resolve the conference as quickly as possible.
The dragon and demon species were quite comparable in power, so under normal circumstances, the conference could drag on for days on end. As such, he had to think of some special tactics to avoid such a lengthy process.
“Uncle Bat, you were just arguing with the dragons not long ago, but now, you’re arguing with your own teammates; whose side are you on anyway?” Amy asked with a curious expression.
Everyone suddenly fell silent upon hearing that. They looked at the people sitting across them, then at their own brethren, and peculiar expressions appeared on their faces.
Yabemiya emerged from the kitchen with a platter of tofu pudding and placed the bowls in front of everyone, but no one dug in right away.
“We’ve been united by this tofu pudding, so it shows that we are capable of agreeing on some matters. As such, I think we should make this conference more straightforward, and cut straight to the chase. All of the other nonsense can be skipped, so we can discuss the matter about the island in question rather than continue to hurl insults at one another.” Dracula broke the silence first, and he picked up his spoon as he said, “Of course, all that will have to wait until I finish this bowl of savory tofu pudding.”