Tokyo: Rabbit Officer and Her Evil Partner-Chapter 753 - 460: The Law of Deliciousness Conservation

Chapter 753: Chapter 460: The Law of Deliciousness Conservation

Fushimi Rokukyo was focused; this moral coercion was a tactic he used to love, but now Taira Sakurako had learned and used it against him, making him feel like he was constipated.

"Let’s talk about it later," he evaded vaguely.

After lunch, it was customary for Minamoto Tamako and Taira Sakurako to clear and wash the dishes. Taira Sakurako had holiday homework to do, so today Minamoto Tamako was left to clear and wash the dishes alone.

Fushimi Roku had already cooked the meal; he couldn’t be expected to wash the dishes too, right? He believed household chores should be shared equally so no one took advantage of the other.

Having finished her bowl of salad, Minamoto Tamako felt as if she hadn’t eaten at all. Her stomach felt empty, with no sense of fullness.

She left the room with a frown, intending to soak the rice cooker bowl in water, only to find there was still a clump of rice left inside.

Originally, Fushimi Roku had prepared a portion for her, but she hadn’t eaten it today, so there was leftover rice.

Hmm, sneaking a bite shouldn’t be a big deal, right?

Minamoto Tamako stared at the rice in the cooker, her face unusually serious, thinking that normal people need to consume enough carbohydrates every day. Just eating greens isn’t enough, one ought to eat some rice, right?

Feeling like a thief with a guilty conscience, she glanced into the living room. Taira Sakurako was leaning over the coffee table doing her homework, while Fushimi Roku was curled up on the sofa watching TV.

Hmm, should be no problem.

Minamoto Tamako scooped a clump of rice with the rice spoon, took a secretive bite; initially, it was delightful, with the rice tasting especially sweet. The sensation of chewing food felt better than usual.

But upon the second bite, the rice felt a bit dry, and there was little flavor in her mouth. It would’ve been better with some accompaniment...

Her eyes unintentionally fell on the tomato scrambled eggs.

Eating tomatoes should be fine, right?

Logically, tomatoes are vegetables, low in calories, very healthy, providing vitamins and dietary fiber—an ideal food for dieting.

Minamoto Tamako’s resolve wavered a bit; she deceived herself into thinking that the tomatoes might not even have oil since the salad oil was all absorbed by the scrambled eggs, and the sugar and ketchup could be ignored.

Just one bite.

She quietly picked up some tomatoes with her chopsticks, mixed them with the rice; the sweet and sour taste was very appetizing.

Yummy!

She ate more and more happily, then thought that steamed fish had few calories, and even though hot oil was poured over it, the oil didn’t penetrate the meat; dunking it was still edible, hence she began eating the fish...

About ten minutes later, Minamoto Tamako was half-full when she suddenly came to her senses, her brain reoccupying the high ground and regaining control from her stomach.

She hurriedly put down her bowl and chopsticks, took two steps back, eyes wide open, thinking about what she had done.

She had promised to lose weight, how could she sneak a snack?

A strong sense of guilt emerged, and Minamoto Tamako for the first time felt the hardship of dieting. She swallowed her saliva, quickly wiped her mouth, dumped the remaining food into the trash, cleaned everything thoroughly, changed her clothes immediately, and went downstairs planning to go running to burn off the calories she had just secretly consumed.

Fushimi Roku watched this unfold, finding it amusing but dared not laugh openly for fear that Minamoto Tamako might get upset again.

Although it looked cute, Minamoto Tamako was genuinely troubled. Only she knew how distressing the situation was.

He pondered whether to make some light meals for dinner, like winter melon soup, raw boiled beef, or stir-fried water spinach... but then thought again, stir-fried water spinach tasted best with lard, and raw boiled beef required dipping sauces to taste good. The only truly healthy option seemed to be winter melon soup.

But you can’t just eat winter melon soup for every meal?

Fushimi Roku began to feel troubled as well, realizing that eating was indeed an art. So he went ahead and maxed out his cooking skillset, and suddenly enlightened; he planned to make some molecular cuisine to give Minamoto Tamako a Michelin restaurant-style experience.

There were actually quite a few delicious and healthy dishes, they just happened to be very labor-intensive.

He mentally reviewed the recipe and realized the kitchen was missing some equipment. Not wanting to go out shopping, he switched channels on the TV using the remote control, opting to watch shopping channels directly.

Television shopping was the precursor to online shopping and a favorite among many housewives. Some merchants would insert brief product demonstrations into morning shows or late-night slots, allowing viewers to order over the phone, with the merchant handling delivery.

Some late-night variety shows featured "product specials," where hosts demonstrated kitchenware, beauty devices, and other products, guiding viewers to call the number on the screen to order. Professional logistics companies worked with TV shopping companies to achieve "next-day delivery" or even "same-day delivery" in Tokyo.

It has to be said, living in a big city does have its benefits.

Fushimi Roku dialed the number with just a small movement, purchasing an oven, fryer, non-stick pan, dryer, centrifuge, and more. As he bought, he felt more and more addicted, even buying items that seemed unnecessary.

Having recently gotten some extra cash from the Kujo Family, he felt if he didn’t spend it, it would be wasted, and who would know the joy of online shopping unless they tried?

Fushimi Roku kept switching channels, looking around, and purchased whatever he liked by dialing in. The delivery personnel would bring the items to the doorstep within a few days.

Suddenly, a channel flashed by, with a line of dialogue only partially audible: "Yakai Mutsumi’s verdict was obviously..."

Fushimi Roku paused for a moment, switched the channel back, and found it was Asahi TV Station’s "Super Morning," where two hosts were discussing a recent husband-killing case in Tokyo.

The Yakai Mutsumi murder case.

Fushimi Roku watched for a bit and learned from the hosts and guests’ discussion that the case had already been a subject of public debate for some time.

On the day of the crime, an obscure tabloid reported the case with a sensational headline aimed at catching attention, reading: "Gamester Wife Murdered Husband to Seize Fortune," full of sensationalism.

Because of the economic bubble, the public became very sensitive to money issues, and the publication saw a spike in sales after releasing the report.

Neither Fushimi Roku nor Minamoto Tamako had the habit of reading newspapers, so they were unaware of the incident. Until the situation gradually developed and a judge pronounced a suspended sentence at trial, causing an uproar in public opinion, with media talking about it incessantly.

It wasn’t the bizarre nature of the murder they were discussing, since no one even attended the trial, but rather, it was focused on the clash between male and female rights.

The program hosts encouraged viewers to call in; the vast majority of male viewers felt that the judge, being a feminist woman, unjustly protected a female gambler who killed her husband for money and let her evade legal punishment.

Fushimi Roku initially thought this type of comment was foolish, until a female viewer called in to loudly refute, claiming all men were no good. She argued that the case was about male oppression of women, saying Kuroda Kotaro deserved to die, Yakai Mutsumi did nothing wrong in pursuing her own happiness, and even praised Yakai Mutsumi as a courageous pioneer... It was evident that this caller was also a housewife and shared a deep dissatisfaction with her own husband, thus venting on the program.

This truly stirred things up.

Fushimi Roku got to watch a live battleground, with fierce conflicts; both sides of the call argued fiercely, forcing the hosts to interrupt the connection multiple times.

He recalled that the 1990s marked Japan’s third wave of feminism, with scholars like Ueno Chizuko advocating for Japan to sign the "Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women", which was originally a good thing, promoting gender equality and liberating women as a shared responsibility.

But over time, the situation gradually changed, as Japan being a country where the sex industry is legal, the ideologies born from such soil... were hard to evaluate.

Fushimi Roku watched for an hour or two, enjoying it quite a lot, with his only regret being that the Japanese vocabulary for insults was rather limited.

When Minamoto Tamako returned home from her run, and the sound of shoe-changing was heard at the door, Fushimi Roku swiftly switched the TV channel back to shopping.

Hmm, better not let Minamoto Tamako find out.