Chapter 62

Chapter 62

Visit

I as always peacefully sat in the restaurant's office and unfolded several today's newspapers.

The first one I picked up was The Times.

The main article was as follows.

"The New York Stock Exchange is now being established? And the professional baseball league is also decided to be made now...? This originally didn't exist?!"

The tone was roughly the national pride article of teasing that the 2nd grade country America is only now following Europe's latest social system.

The Times was the side that put out voyeurism articles about America in this way more often than thought. Somehow because numerous reporters who were determined to see how well they do escaping from Britain's shadow were positioned.

And that was also somewhat fact.

No matter how much America is developing technologically and has the strongest honey land in history, because basic social infrastructure was almost none they had to newly build everything.

In fact infrastructure is nothing special. In the end if filling it's over.

The real problem was the absence of culture due to no history and the thirst due to that.

America's rich who became nouveau riche with resources like oil, steel, gold mines yearned for the lives of British nobles. So there were even rich young ladies who said it doesn't matter even if second son or third son without inheritance rights and came holding money saying they'll marry.

I clicked my tongue. For me I knew the future that America becomes a superpower great power even in the mid to late 20th century, but in the current era it was content one couldn't even imagine.

Although Britain was tilting pressed by the weight of worldwide colonies, and the German Empire was threatening the technology power position, still until now it was an undeniable fact that the British Empire is the world's strongest country.

France fell to a third-rate country after the republican revolution, Spain, Italy, Austria were just 2nd grade countries. As 3rd grade country there was Russia, and right behind that America was closely following the situation.

"Then America isn't even 3rd grade. It's 4th grade treatment?"

But I even thought of immigrating to America at an appropriate time to avoid the ravages of the world war?

Of course since receiving knighthood from His Majesty Edward VII immigration is now impossible. Rather compromising in the direction of volunteering rear support utilizing the connections built so far might be better.

Anyway next I unfolded The Daily Telegraph.

This side was largely propagandizing the war situation of the Boer War. Because it was a position like the government's mouthpiece newspaper a bit, usually they wrote the articles the government told them to write.

The front line in South Africa was so wide, and it was so hot and dry place, and the locals also didn't like Britain much so until now fierce battles of pushing and being pushed were continuing.

But the newspaper of course exaggerated Britain's victories, glossed over the retreats in one line, and the end invariably ended with the recommendation to volunteer as a soldier for the British Empire.

Every time I see Boer War articles I often stroke my chest.

Because the conscription age was from 17 years old, if slightly wrong I might have been dragged to Africa too.

In fact insisting my age as 16 years old was also somewhat because of the Boer War. The age of barely not being conscripted was 16 years old. Most were volunteer-centered but who knows?

I don't know well exactly how old my age is. Seeing suddenly growing a lot at some moment I know it's not 16 years old.

Other working class kids also had many cases where apparent age and actual age didn't match, so there was a social atmosphere of everyone letting it be for about a few years age difference.

Since there were many kids working at factories from early teens, it was the talk that if roughly over 15 years old they treat as somewhat adult.

Next was The Daily Express.

It was a newspaper founded 1 year ago, but for newspaper sellers like me it was a newspaper that made money in its own way.

From the founding they targeted the numerous laborers scattered in London, so it sold quite well.

Usually other newspapers place advertisements from the 1st page, but this newspaper rather placed articles from the 1st page and differentiated, and the content was also centered on sports or crime, popular culture that laborers would be interested in.

Short content to the point of being short form by 1901 standards, concise and visually clean layout, narrative composition centered on breaking news competing and it worked well.

So from the early issuance gathering a readership to the point of rivaling existing major newspapers like The Times or The Daily Telegraph was also successful.

When accidentally discovering news that majorly dealt with the grilled eel craze in such Daily Express I also couldn't help but be surprised.

I swear this time I didn't take bribe. And I wasn't particularly close with the reporters over there either. It wasn't that I knew all reporters and went around.

So perhaps, I also immediately noticed that the article was somehow strange.

"The article content doesn't make sense? Jellied eels already all collapsed?"

If 30% of stalls changed lines to grilled eel in 3 days, it was a change that doesn't make sense by current era standards.

I expected grilled eel would gain popularity. A week ago I went around continuously meeting jellied eels stall vendors holding the skewers I made, and most people didn't know the method even if wanting to make eel delicious.

Eel pie is cumbersome to make and doesn't particularly compete compared to meat pie, but jelly is convenient and sells cheap so it competes.

In the end bad money called bad money. So I wandered all day long the major streets of London and slightly tipped methods of earning more money.

Anyway jellied eels are sold in 5-7 pieces. Grilling is 3-4 pieces. Even if the effort that goes into preparation grilling takes about 20-30% more, conclusively if calculating making and selling the same amount of ingredients as grilling earns more money that theory.

There was also the calculation that if only the taste is good no one would care about the amount. Because anyway jellied eels sold too cheaply.

What crazy guys in the world sell food for half a penny? So most of the stall vendors I visited were persuaded by my logic.

"Still 30% conversion rate in three days, the exaggeration is too severe! It's not even that I went around a survey and how many stall vendors selling jellied eels do they know and say 30%? Who on earth is the guy who wrote this article?!"

Of course there was no reporter name. In modern times they emphasize reporter names but now is an era where anonymity is basic.

Because if revealing the name even if lynched on the street one couldn't find the perpetrator. It's not that there's CCTV either.

Probably this person, seeing a few stall vendors of the alley he often went changing to grilled eel wrote as if all of London is like that? If I didn't inform the eel preparation method, they would have put out fishy smell nonsense grilling?

But then it's no different from jellied eels? Before the guys ruining the quality of my grilled eel make everything nothing the thought that I have to take some measure came.

I hurriedly took out pen and paper.

"It would be good to contribute under a pseudonym? Let's decide the title first. Regarding the secret method for eliminating eel fishy smell and doing delicious cooking that John Tito's great-grandmother transmitted..."

Eel doesn't lose the fishy smell just by washing in water. From the start they lived in water would mucus disappear just by wiping with water?

The solution is exactly salt. If utilizing the osmotic pressure of salt absorbing moisture, just scraping against the eel surface a considerable amount of mucus is immediately removed.

Next one has to process the innards and bones. Fix the head part and cut half with a knife to the tail, carefully take out all innards so as not to burst the gallbladder. If the gallbladder bursts it tastes bitter and is not good for grilling.

What's important here is being careful not to touch the spine when cutting.

First before preparing the eel put a knife in the head and find the spine position, then slightly twist the angle and cut straight avoiding the bone.

After that spreading the meat and only scraping out the spine again is the finish of preparation.

And then washing once more in water and removing the blood is completion.

It's an easy work to the point anyone can follow if just shown a few times, but trying to explain in writing the head throbbed. Rather would it be better to draw pictures too? While pondering, the office door opened noisily.

It was a member of the jellied eels attack team.

"Mr. Durand! I saw the article! What magic on earth did you cast in London?! You really eliminated jellied eels!"

The first was Mr. Doyle. As expected in his hand was a crumpled Daily Express newspaper.

"Ah, that's not fact. It's exaggeration."

"Exaggeration?!"

"Yes. Do you know how many stall vendors selling food there are in London?"

"...At least thousands wouldn't there be? There were dozens each per street."

"Among them how many stores selling jellied eels?"

"I don't know well. It's not the Metropolitan Police how would anyone know that specifically... Ah!"

"You understood, right?"

As expected befitting the incarnation of Holmes, Mr. Doyle who quickly reached the truth.

He seemed to have received shock and staggered and plopped down on the chair.

No, surely he really believed the article content at face value until now?! Isn't fabrication and agitation basic? In a world where mouthpiece newspapers are rampant?

I was thinking of recommending a cup of black tea to calm the excitement, but another person clutching the newspaper came running in a hurry.

"Jean! What on earth matter did you cause! It's not even a week since we discussed together and already eliminating jellied eels in London!"

It was Mr. Henry. Moreover the exact same lines without changing even one letter with Mr. Doyle!

So my answer also couldn't help but be the same. In the end Mr. Henry also staggered and sat down on the chair next to Mr. Doyle.

Next the one who appeared was the Earl of Derby.

But the Earl wasn't holding a newspaper. Instead...

Munch munch.

"Wow, this is really delicious! Who on earth brought out such an amazing idea of spreading sauce mixed with ginger and garlic in Worcestershire sauce on eel and grilling? Looking at sweet taste being felt sugar also seems to have gone in! There seems to be other secrets too... Oh, when did you all gather?"

"...Earl, where did you buy that skewer again?!"

"Oh, don't you know? This is exactly the eel skewer that became a big trend on London streets in a few days! As soon as entering Lombard Street here there were already seven places selling this? While coming riding the landau carriage the smell had to be amazing!"

Eh, what nonsense... Until yesterday it wasn't that level? The Earl is also exaggerating severely like the reporters!

But the gaze naturally headed to the Earl's hand. Already holding five or six skewers precariously full in both hands so one couldn't take eyes off.

"Earl, did you originally eat street stall food too?"

"What is that saying? Your Chicken and Chips was also originally stall food! Where do you think I ate that?"

As soon as the words ended one skewer disappeared into the Earl's mouth!

"The meat is very chewy! And eating eel strength seems to overflow! The satiety is also tremendous, today it seems okay even without eating Chicken and Chips? It seems a tremendous competitor has appeared to your product? Uhahat!"

"...Don't you remember we discussed changing jellied eels to grilled eel last week?"

"Hmm?"

Somehow the Earl seemed to think by coincidence someone else invented eel skewers before me.

So I immediately corrected the fact.

"...You mean this was that you said? Not made by someone else?"

"Then would it be different? This is skewer grilling!"

"Heh... Anyway you mean you invented this too? I thought another new rising star other than you appeared in London's cooking world..."

Thud.

The Earl of Derby who received shock and sat down next to Mr. Henry.

Why on earth is only the Earl surprised at a different point?!

Anyway the Earl who lost energy showed an un-Earl-like appearance of also sharing one each of the skewers he brought to Mr. Doyle and Mr. Henry.

...Somehow it seemed he already ate five or six more outside and the stomach was full.

Mr. Doyle and Mr. Henry seemed to have first encountered the rumored grilled eel today, and as expected were greatly surprised.

"Eel had this taste? Is it eel fished from the Thames River? Mr. Durand! As expected your thought was accurate. As expected one can't help but admire. Then how on earth should Dumont be described..."

"Jean... Shall we sell this at our restaurant? If selling it seems money will be made... But making more delicious than this and making pay a more expensive price would be difficult. Just let the words just now go in one ear..."

Lastly, although not a member of the attack team Joe who faithfully played the escort role in the stall visits appeared.

"Boss! It seems an important person has come what shall we do?"

"Important person? Who?"

Who on earth is finding me from the morning?

"I don't know. He says to deliver this letter for now."

I received the letter Joe handed. It was quite a luxurious letter.