Chapter 3555

Sun Zhidong's plane arrived quickly.

He not only arranged a plane for Lin Wanan, but he himself also boarded this plane to rush to Jin Ling.

Accompanying him were several dozen top-notch bodyguards of considerable skill.

Jin Ling Airport received a message from superiors, opening the green light wide for Qiu Ying Shan's Rolls-Royce, allowing the vehicle to bypass security and customs and proceed directly into the airport's hangar.

Lin Wanan had her long hair tied into a high ponytail, wore a black outfit, and also wore a pair of black sunglasses and a mask.

The rise of AI and the omnipresence of surveillance systems made Lin Wanan increasingly cautious; moderate disguise could help her evade the risks posed by the combination of AI and surveillance that could detect her.

The Rolls-Royce arrived beneath an Airbus A350, and the elderly Sun Zhidong was already waiting respectfully in front of the passenger boarding stairs.

After the car came to a stop, he stepped forward, opened the car door for Lin Wanan, and respectfully said: "Young Lady."

Lin Wanan asked him: "How did you come here?"

Sun Zhidong bowed and said: "Young Lady, you are going to Japan, and I am not at ease letting you go alone. There are still some battle-tested bodyguards on the plane, each with multiple identities, and I have brought them along to protect you completely."

Lin Wanan smiled and said: "No need to be so tense. This trip to Japan is quick in and out, no delay, and I am only going to one place, so there should be no danger."

Sun Zhidong said with a hint of pleading: "Young Lady, you encountered danger last time in Northern Europe. If Mr. Ye were accompanying you this time, I would also feel reassured. But you going alone, I cannot rest easy no matter what. You need not worry—once you disembark, I and the others will disappear from your sight and will not affect you."

Old Zhang also came forward at this time and said respectfully: "Young Lady, please let Old Sun accompany you; otherwise, Old Slave and Old Qiu staying in Jin Ling would also be worried."

Lin Wanan pursed her lips, then nodded and said: "If that is the case, then let us follow Old Sun's arrangement."

Having said that, she turned her head to look at Old Zhang and instructed: "If Young Master Ye comes to visit the household, just say I have school matters and am not at home. Though he probably won't come anyway, you remember to be prepared just in case."

Old Zhang immediately said: "Old Slave obeys your command."

Lin Wanan nodded, stepped forward first onto the boarding ramp, and without looking back waved her hand behind her, saying: "Old Sun, your legs and feet are not nimble, so I will go up first, lest I stand behind you and make you anxious."

Saying this, she had already jogged all the way up the boarding stairs onto the plane.

Sun Zhidong, Old Zhang, and Qiu Ying Shan exchanged glances, all three smiling silently.

For decades, the Young Lady has always been like this.

When serious, she is stricter and more solemn than anyone in this world.

But when relaxed, she is as childish as any other seventeen- or eighteen-year-old girl.

Half an hour later, the plane was pushed out of the hangar, taxied all the way to the end of the runway, the twin engines roared, and the plane soared into the clouds.

On the plane, all accompanying personnel were in the rear cabin; the several-square-meter front cabin had only Lin Wanan herself, and even Sun Zhidong dared not disturb her, going alone to the rear cabin.

The flight from Jin Ling to Osaka does not take long; after two and a half hours, the plane had already landed at Osaka Kansai Airport.

This sinking airport did not know that it had welcomed its oldest-ever passenger in history.

At this moment, it was 6:30 a. m. Tokyo time, and the sun had just risen from the eastern horizon.

Lin Wanan successfully entered customs under the extremely common Chinese name Wang Jing.

After entering the country, Lin Wanan did not rush to take a train to Kyoto; instead, she first went to a shop in the airport, bought herself a shoulder bag featuring the famous cartoon character Kuromi and a pile of cute little accessories and hair ties, then re-tied her high ponytail into double ponytails before stepping out of the airport.

Afterwards, she arrived at the station, purchased a train ticket with a Kansai accent so pure that no trace of accent could be detected, and took the train from Osaka to Kyoto, while Sun Zhidong and the others secretly protected Lin Wanan.

Living long has many benefits: not only has one visited many places and experienced many local customs, but also mastered many languages.

Moreover, because Lin Wanan lived in Japan for a long time during the Meiji Restoration period, her Japanese is not only extremely proficient, but far more proficient than that of the vast majority of Japanese people. In other words, she is like a foreigner who not only fluently masters Mandarin Chinese and multiple regional dialects, but has also extensively read Chinese poetry and classics, has deep knowledge of ancient Chinese and classical Chinese, and, combined with the fact that East Asian people look almost indistinguishable, she in Japan is like a drop of water merging into the sea, leaving absolutely no trace.

When Lin Wanan arrived in Kyoto, it was already 8:40 a. m.

Kyoto is a city with a relatively slow pace of life; although it achieved modernization early, traditional architecture is well preserved, so here there are not only many ancient temples, but also many long-standing historic residences, such as the old residence of the Ito family located here.

Unlike Tokyo, which is filled with nouveaux riches, Kyoto harbors many old-money families in Japan who are deeply entrenched and wield great influence—truly a place of hidden tigers and dragons.

Lin Wanan did not rush straight to Kinkaku-ji; instead, she followed the direction toward Kinkaku-ji and leisurely wandered through the small alleys of old Kyoto.

When she got hungry, she wanted to find a place to eat breakfast, and by chance saw a shop bearing a hundred-year-old shop sign reading "Miss Saito's Tofu Hot Pot Shop." She slightly curled the corners of her mouth, then walked in alone and sat down.

Tofu hot pot is a relatively traditional food in Kyoto, with simple ingredients: just soft tofu, kelp, and bonito flakes, cooked together with Japanese soy sauce or miso and other seasonings.

However, this shop differs from other shops.

Its signboard is not traditional Kyoto tofu hot pot, but rather Pu'er mushroom tofu hot pot.

The shop is not large; the operators are an elderly couple. The introduction on the wall states that this shop was first established in 1897.

Upon entering the shop, the male shopkeeper warmly greeted: "Please sit anywhere, the menu is on the table, call me anytime if you need to order."

Lin Wanan nodded, found a corner seat, glanced at the menu, pointed to the most prominent item at the top—"Pu'er mushroom tofu hot pot"—and said: "I'll have a bowl of the signature dish, thank you."

"Certainly, please wait a moment!" The male shopkeeper bowed and went to the back kitchen to prepare.

Soon, a very simple tofu hot pot was placed before Lin Wanan.

The broth tasted fresh yet rich—a wonderful flavor combining tea aroma and mushroom fragrance.

Lin Wanan removed her mask, took a light sip of the hot broth, and immediately a satisfied smile appeared on her face as she softly said: "The taste is wonderful."

While wiping his hands with a towel, the male shopkeeper enthusiastically and proudly introduced: "Kyoto has countless tofu hot pot shops, but Pu'er mushroom tofu hot pot is only available at our shop; this was developed in 1899 based on traditional Kyoto tofu hot pot."

Lin Wanan fully appeared as a cute, dazed Japanese girl, exclaiming: "Ah, this country actually has such a long history."

The male shopkeeper chuckled and said: "No, no—shops in Kyoto with over a hundred years of history are actually not considered very old; here there are even shops with four hundred years of history."

Lin Wanan nodded, deliberately asking him: "If I remember correctly, Pu'er tea should be a specialty of Huaxia, right? Why did your great-grandfather use this ingredient?"

The male shopkeeper's expression instantly turned to one of reverence as he said: "In 1899, my great-grandfather's tofu hot pot shop had just opened for two years, but due to fierce competition at the time, his business was poor and on the verge of collapse. At that time, he and his wife, with their three children, sold tofu hot pot in the snow outside the shop's door, living in extreme poverty. Then a lady named Miss Saito, who had traveled to Huaxia, resided in the center of Kyoto City. At that time, Miss Saito owned a large and fine residence in the heart of Kyoto, where she had adopted many orphans. Miss Saito was beautiful and kind-hearted; seeing that his tofu hot pot shop always had few customers, she specially arranged for him to deliver fifty portions of tofu hot pot daily to her residence, giving his ancestors the means to support their family. Later, Miss Saito also gave him the Pu'er tea leaves and dried mushrooms she had brought back from her travels in Huaxia, allowing him to improve the recipe, which is how this unique Pu'er mushroom tofu hot pot came to be."

Saying this, the male shopkeeper's eyes reddened as he lamented: "My great-grandfather always said, Miss Saito is the benefactor of our Sugiki family; if it weren't for her, he and his wife and three children probably would not have survived that winter. Later, Miss Saito left Kyoto and never returned, so he changed the shop name from Sugiki Tofu Hot Pot Shop to Miss Saito's Tofu Hot Pot Shop."

Lin Wanan's face showed surprise, but her thoughts drifted back to the streets of Kyoto over a hundred years ago.

At that time, Kyoto's snow was much heavier and colder than today's winter. She rode in a sedan through old Kyoto, saw a family of five in ragged clothes selling tofu hot pot in the snow by the roadside, watched the three children shivering from the cold, their hands, faces, and ears covered in chilblains, and feeling unable to bear it, she told the male shop owner to deliver fifty portions of tofu hot pot to her residence the next morning.

That man, grateful for the kindness, delivered tofu hot pot that was not only made with substantial ingredients but also generous in portion. Although not particularly delicious, it was clear that real effort had been put into it.

Thus, Lin Wanan let him continue delivering fifty portions daily for ten days. She discovered that the tofu hot pot he delivered each day not only showed no decline in quality, but actually gradually incorporated more expensive ingredients due to the income and profit.

During those ten days, because Lin Wanan was not used to his tofu hot pot, she tried mixing a little Pu'er tea leaves and dried mushrooms into the tofu hot pot and reprocessing it twice. After several attempts, she found the most suitable formula, greatly improving the tofu hot pot's flavor.

Finding the shop owner's character to be good, Lin Wanan passed on the formula she had devised in her spare time to him.

Unexpectedly, this shop has remained open from that time until now, and its formula has hardly changed at all.

What surprised her even more was that the shop's name had actually been changed to Young Lady Saito.

Saito Asako was the alias Lin Wan'er used when she lived in Kyoto back then.

As she tasted the tofu soup in the bowl, which was almost no different from what it had been back then, Lin Wan'er couldn't help but sigh inwardly: "Time flies, years pass like shuttles—thinking back, it's been over a hundred years since I left Kyoto..."