Chapter 539 Arrogant at the front and respectful at the back

"Is this the rare ingredient you sell for 500 dollars a piece? Is this a tiger fish?" In a huge transparent fish tank in the back kitchen, Jack saw seven or eight fish with a body length of more than 50 centimeters and eye-like black spots on their backs. The fat puffer fish is swimming around happily.

"Hey, this is the 'Fugu King' from Shimonoseki City in our country. It is the top 'Fugu'."

Chef Katsui's expression became very nervous, and his originally straight back became a little stooped unconsciously, as if he was ready to bow and apologize at any time.

He has been working in New York for 20 years, and this is the first time he has seen a white man who can recognize the species of puffer fish at a glance. Seeing the young ghost in front of him with an expression that was half-smiling but not smiling, he gradually felt something in his heart. Bad feeling.

"Wow." Jack rolled up his sleeves, fished out a fat tiger puffer fish from the fish tank with a dip net, and gave it two heads. The guy immediately inflated like a balloon.

"So cute." Hannah on the side lit up with starry eyes, stretched out her fingers to tentatively poke the cute thing that had completely turned into a ball, but Jack grabbed her wrist.

"Be careful, pufferfish are very ferocious carnivorous fish, and their bite force can easily break through hard shells."

Mike Taylor and Stella watched in confusion as he carefully inspected the mouth and lips of the puffer fish, but unexpectedly discovered that Chef Katsui's forehead was now covered with dense beads of sweat.

"Tsk." Jack pinched the puffer fish in his hand, wiped his shoes with its abdomen covered with small spines, and threw it back into the fish tank. It seemed that if he didn't do this, a certain process would not be completed.

"Pfft." Before everyone could react, Chef Katsui, who was still a bit arrogant, was already kneeling on the ground in a perfect orz (earth seat) position, with his head close to the ground, and shouted at the same time, "Mo Xia’s scumbag Aunt Thain!”

The three people except Jack were startled. Mike Taylor subconsciously thought that this guy had confessed and reached out to take out the handcuffs.

"None of these fish are poisonous. This matter should have nothing to do with him." Jack reached out to stop him and shook his head, dumbfounded.

Stella was very confused, "You can tell just by looking at it?"

Obviously, in her understanding, the instrument has the final say as to whether they are poisonous or not. She should capture all these cute creatures and mix them into meat sauce to test the ingredients.

Jack did not explain immediately, but raised his hand to Chef Katsui who was still lying on the ground, "Get up, we are here to find the murderer, not to cut off your money. Help us find a quieter room. .”

A few minutes later, several people sat cross-legged on the tatami in a luxurious box. Several beautiful waitresses in yukata served exquisite refreshments. Hannah picked up a piece of cherry cake and took a bite, narrowing her eyes slightly. There was an intoxicated expression on his face.

"Try this. Yokan from the island country is an indispensable supporting role in their tea ceremony. The craftsmanship here is not bad." Jack also picked up a piece of purple pastry from the food box and tasted it, and then said to the two of them like a host. The CSI detective recommended.

Mike Taylor and Stella each picked up a piece and chewed it, with unconcealed curiosity in their eyes, "Can you explain what's going on? How did you see at a glance that none of these fish are poisonous?"

“Pufferfish are extremely aggressive carnivorous fish that are prone to cannibalism due to stress during breeding and transportation, so farmers will cut off their teeth and sew their mouths shut before transportation.

I just checked the tiger puffers in the fish tank. They are not the expensive and rare wild species that the chef claimed. Those puffer fish are indeed valuable, so they are transported individually. They can neither cut their teeth nor sew their mouths. , and the price of these cultured species in the fish tank just now is about twenty or thirty dollars per pound. "

"If I remember correctly, that guy said before that a piece of fish here costs 500 US dollars!" Stella took a breath of air, "Is it so easy for these rich people to make money?"

Jack shrugged and pointed to the beautiful waitresses wearing traditional Japanese yukata outside the door, "Do you think those rich people really care about what they eat in a place like this?

Here, not only are the girls lying on the table using their bodies as dining tables undressed, I believe those girls wearing kimonos and yukatas also follow tradition and do not wear underwear underneath. "

"Why do you know so much?" Hannah cast a suspicious look at him.

Since Jack dared to speak, he had naturally prepared a response, "When you want to learn the language of a country, you have to understand the culture of that country, not to mention that I also need to prepare the material for the novel."

Then he brought the topic back, "The currently accepted view is that puffer fish themselves do not produce toxins. The TTX in their bodies generally comes from the food they ingest, such as certain algae or shell organisms such as weaver snails. .

Because the farmed pufferfish is fed carefully selected feed, it is not only non-toxic, but also tastes more tender and plump than the so-called wild pufferfish in the wild environment, which has different quality due to different food intake.”

"Everyone, please take your time." Chef Katsui walked into the box and held a large plate of cut watermelon. He knelt down in front of everyone and placed it respectfully on the low table.

Knowing that this guy was deliberately interrupting his science education, Jack didn't argue with him. He had said before that he would not cut off other people's wealth, and it was none of his business for islanders to make money from rich Americans.

"Has your store been blackmailed or threatened recently?"

Chef Katsui shook his head in confusion, "No, we have always had a good relationship with the local people."

Knowing that they must be covered by a gang, Jack didn't ask any more questions and changed the topic.

"Katsui-san, does Deborah Gale often come to your restaurant to dine?"

"Yes, Miss Gale is our distinguished guest. She has been here many times, especially in the past two months, almost every week." Chef Katsui lowered his head with an extremely humble attitude.

"Talk about the impression she made on you."

Jack's question made Chef Katsui frown. After a long time, he hesitated and said, "Her interest does not seem to be in our food."

"Why do you say that?" Mike Taylor straightened up awkwardly. This cross-legged sitting position really made him very uncomfortable.

Chef Katsui hesitated again for a while, and then he hesitated, "A waiter in our store once complained to me and hoped that she would not always be the one to receive Miss Gale, but I told her that we do not have the right to choose customers. Especially when the other party is a distinguished VIP customer."

The eyes of the four people, including Jack, suddenly lit up, and Stella asked impatiently, "Is the waiter you are talking about the one who serves as a dinner plate? She was also the one who received Deborah Gale when she ate today. ?”

Chef Katsui nodded vigorously, "Yes, I will ask someone to find her right away."

Soon, a beautiful mixed-race girl was called to the door. As she walked, she complained, "I feel very uncomfortable. I don't want to receive any more guests today."

Seeing the four people sitting upright in the box, she couldn't help but be startled, turned around and wanted to leave, but froze in place under the unkind gaze of Chef Katsui.

"Michiko, what exactly did you do?"

The girl named Michiko looked flustered and her eyes wandered, "I didn't do anything. I don't know what you are talking about."

"Please come in, Miss Michiko, I believe we have a lot to talk about." Hannah stood up and walked to her, grabbed her arm without any doubt, and then closed the sliding door.