Oedo Jikenchô Bimi De Sôrô

Storyline

During the late Edo period when the Tenpo Reforms are in force, public discontent is growing over the collusive relationships between merchants and government officials. Kakie Shinpeita (Kitamura Kazuki) is a samurai who possesses a highly sensitive palate and remarkable knowledge of food. His family publishes a tabloid-style newspaper in block print that covers local happenings. However, Shinpeita is only interested in food and how to prepare it. He scours Edo looking for food stories to report as he uses his sense of taste and knowledge to help the Kitamachi magistrate Toyama Kinshiro (Nakamura Hashinosuke) to solve baffling cases that occur in the capital. On this day, Shinpeita drowns his troubles in drink with Oroku (Wakamura Mayumi), the female proprietress of a tavern he frequents. The newspaper he wrote cannot sell at all due to the great popularity of a rival newspaper which had an article about the uproar over a cat and its owner. Then the shipping agent Kawachiya Uhei (Nishida Ken) who is known as a wealthy merchant, arrives and tells Shinpeita, "I'll pay money. I want you to write a faked newspaper for a new brew of sake that I'm going to start selling." Although newspaper sales have been poor and Shinpeita is strapped for cash, he rejects this offer because of his integrity. One day, a Fukagawa geisha is murdered by someone. The constable Takahashi (Watanabe Kunito) is unable to detect clues on the criminal and calls Shinpeita to the crime scene in order to find leads. Shinpeita focuses on the fallen wooden box of food beside the dead body. He suddenly picks up a fish cake and starts to eat it. Much to the amazement of Takahashi and the others, Shinpeita surmises from the delicate taste and the way the food has been beautifully arrange inside the box that this is the work of a skilled chef. Figuring out the criminal through his sense of smell, Shinpeita assists in the search, which is also the request of Toyama. At this time, sales of the new sake brew is booming at Kawachiya. In fact, Ichisuke (Nakamura Masatoshi) is the one behind Kawachiya. Wise and skilled with the sword, he is Kawachiya's right-hand man. With Ichisuke, Kawachiya has grown into a wealthy merchant who is known throughout Edo and has influence on the nerve centre of the Shogunate government. Feeling a sense of danger in Kawachiya's movements, Toyama gives Takahashi a secret order and makes him monitor Ichisuke. Meanwhile, Shinpeita gets hold of information about a quarrel in the dialect of Iwaki Province between the Fukagawa geisha and a young man right before she was killed. Shinpeita finally comes to the chef Kichiza (Kawano Naoki), a native of Iwaki Province who works for Oroku ... ... Then one day, Shinpeita learns that his father, who disappeared years ago, has resurfaced and is involved in a major crime.