Wonderful Life After Exchanging Fate

by Usui Takumii

not mine, explore and try blogspot. Waiting for the translator to update.

8. 61 to 70

Chapter 61

At this moment, Shen Feng Ming happened to come out from the back.

The misses instantly regained their spirits. Due to being reserved, they didn't look at him. Just occasionally glancing at him.

The girl in blue was surnamed Cao. She was at a perfect age and looked pretty. Her family was one of the richest in Wuling County and was the cousin relative of Recorder Cao in Lu Prefecture. So she always felt that she was superior.

Seeing Shen Feng Ming, her heart was like it contained jumping deer. She had seen many men, but none of them were as outstanding as him.

Seeing that the other misses were all blushing and none daring to talk to Shen Feng Ming, she suddenly stood up and spoke to Shen Feng Ming, "Gentleman."

Shen Feng Ming looked at her. His eyes were deep.

Seeing him like this, Miss Cao felt as if she was in a vast ocean and forgot to say the words were at the tip of her tongue. Her mind went blank.

"My family has a courtyard in the west of the county city. If Gentleman doesn't mind, you can live there!" After Miss Cao finished speaking, she blushed. She had thought this, but didn't plan to say it so soon.

What she thought was, first ask Shen Feng Ming's surname and the purpose of coming to Wuling County. Maybe she can help. Then after the two get acquainted, she can make this suggestion.

After all, seeing this gentleman's extraordinary aura, he must not be an ordinary person. Him living in a restaurant was simply wrong.

Who would have thought that as soon as she met his gaze, she would lose it and ask this sentence directly.

Miss Ye and the others next to her were stunned. Miss Cao was so bold? They didn't dare to blink their eyes. They were both amazed and curious about how Shen Feng Ming would respond.

If he agrees...the hearts of the misses were churning. They also have other courtyards and it can be used by Shen Feng Ming.

Shen Feng Ming's eyes became cold at once. A trace of scrutiny appeared in his eyes, as if he was looking at a dead object.

This was his usual look when adjudicating cases. With this look, even the old foxes in the court who have been in the officialdom for many years couldn't stand it sometimes. It was as if he had seen everything through and the next moment would be irreversible. How could Miss Cao , a young girl, withstand it?

She bit her lip as her face paled. Her body was on the verge of falling.

"I...you...no." She wanted to explain a bit. She didn't intend to offend him. She wanted to understand him and help him...

But she couldn't even utter a complete sentence. Her eyes immediately turned red.

Although the misses behind her weren't targeted by Shen Feng Ming, they all felt chills. Even their breathing slowed down unconsciously.

The air seemed to condense together.

At this time, a soft voice sounded, "Gentleman Shen, can you help me buy some sugar?"

It was Jiang Yun Zhu. She came in to pick up the order and found Shen Feng Ming confronting some misses. No, correction, the misses were all frightened by him. So she spoke out at once.

In the morning, she decided to ask Shen Feng Ming to help with some work to prevent him from talking about paying back. She did actually ask him to help a few times during the course of the day. Shen Feng Ming complied. So it wasn't too big of a burden for her to ask him to help buy sugar.

Originally, when she was making milk red bean cake, she ran out of sugar. So she was going to buy it!

Like a gust of spring breeze blowing through the vast expanse, the condensed air melted in an instant. Shen Feng Ming turned to Jiang Yun Zhu, "En."

Jiang Yun Zhu gave him a string of money.

Shen Feng Ming took the money and walked out.

The misses next to her let out a sigh of relief with complicated expressions on their faces.

Just when Jiang Yun Zhu was talking to Shen Feng Ming, the two of them stood there like that. The female had full eyebrows and soft eyes. While the male was handsome and cold to the point that people dare not look... Who knew, he just caught the string of money and went to buy sugar. It gave a feel that it was real as well as like a dream.

"You..." Miss Cao stared at Jiang Yun Zhu. Then she suddenly covered her face with a handkerchief and ran away crying.

Jiang Yun Zhu: ...No, she thought she was helping her!

What, did she get it wrong?

"Boss Jiang." Miss Ye knew Jiang Yun Zhu and greeted her.

Jiang Yun Zhu looked at her questioningly. Just now?

"We were the ones who were abrupt." Miss Ye responded. Ain't that right! Miss Cao suddenly uttered those kinds of words. It was quite inappropriate. In the end, she left in shame. She can only blame herself.

Jiang Yun Zhu smiled. As long as there was no problem, it was fine, "I made a snack. Misses, do you want to try it?"

"What snack?" The round-faced girl asked curiously.

"Ginger milk curd."

"From the sound of it, it's made with ginger and milk." The oval-faced girl licked her lips. "Quickly give us a taste."

Earlier, the milk red bean cake was delicious.

Jiang Yun Zhu immediately brought over some ginger milk curd. This thing was actually very easy to make. Through filtering, get fresh ginger juice and heat it slightly. Afterward, heat the milk to a certain temperature, add sugar, and quickly pour the milk into the ginger juice.

The collision of white milk and ginger juice was the origin of the 'collide' in the name.

When milk meets ginger juice, it will coagulate into a milky white solid.

Qishanju were particular about the utensils for holding the food. There was a white porcelain cup in the shape of a persimmon. When one opened the lid, one could see the white jelly inside. It was a pleasing sight to see.

A white porcelain spoon was used to scoop it. It was tender and fragrant.

Once in the mouth, the spiciness of ginger juice blended perfectly with the sweetness. It fully complemented its milky fragrance.

Especially after eating it in the stomach, the body felt warm, as if the cold air of this winter had been dispelled.

"Delicious." The round-faced girl praised.

"It's quite comforting to eat." The oval-faced girl remarked.

"Can the elderly eat this food?" Miss Ye asked.

"Of course." Jiang Yun Zhu said.

Miss Ye's eyes brightened slightly. Her grandmother was getting old and was very afraid of the cold every winter. She felt that if her grandmother ate a bowl of this every day, her health might be much better.

"Ginger juice can drive away the cold. Milk is a nourishing food. The combination of the two is very suitable for people with a cold body or have a cough." Jiang Yun Zhu informed. Tne history seemed to be ginger milk curd was born because an old woman having a cough and her daughter-in-law boiled ginger juice for her. Finding it too spicy to drink, milk was later added inadvertently. This was how this snack was born.

Afterwards, the old woman ate the ginger milk and her cough got better. It goes to show its efficacy.

As soon as she said this, the round-faced girl said, "Since it's good, Boss, give me another bowl then."

It was delicious and good for one's health. Of course, she had to eat more.

"Boss, can you pack two portions for me to take away?" Miss Ye asked.

"Boss, I want two for takeaway." The oval-faced girl followed. Her father had been suffering from a cough. It would be wonderful if it helped with the cough like Jiang Yun Zhu had said.

Jiang Yun Zhu smiled and agreed. It seemed that there was more market for this ginger milk curd than milk red bean cake. Also, Wuling County was rich. After everyone had money, what was more important than a healthy body?

Jiang Yun Zhu decided to add this ginger milk curd to the menu.

Jiang Yun Zhu was standing in the aisle talking to Miss Ye and the others. At the side, Qin Yao heard what they said clearly. Was ginger milk curd that delicious? Why was it not on the menu? Was it specially made for those misses?

Qin Yao wanted to ask, but also didn't want to.

At this moment, Jiang Yun Zhu turned to her and said, "Miss, do you want some ginger milk curd?"

Qin Yao was shocked, Jiang Yun Zhu didn't recognize her, right? Her face was reddish, but she pretended to be calm and steady, "Bring one."

Jiang Yun Zhu went to the back kitchen, brought her a portion of ginger milk, and then left.

Qin Yao took a bite. It tasted unique. At this time, the dishes she ordered were served. Spicy beef tenderloin. This beef tenderloin was too tender and smooth. A hundred times better than their family's chef's.

Stir-fried cabbage. She was used to eating good things, so she immediately noticed the difference in this dish.

She never thought the owner of this restaurant would have such skills. Looking at the layout of this Qishanju, Qin Yao's thoughts fluctuated for a while.

After eating, she left a piece of silver and let without waiting for Li He to come over.

Li He naturally saw her leave. He had visually checked the silver left was more than enough to pay the bill. That's why he didn't stop her. After she left, he took the piece of silver and gave it to Jiang Yun Zhu.

Jiang Yun Zhu didn't mind. She didn't want to deliberately make friends with Qin Yao. Still, because of the fate in her dream, she always saw her a little differently.

In the evening, Qin Yao didn't come. Instead another person came.

The guy ordered a table of dishes when he entered the door, such as Dongpo pork, dry-roasted fish, pot-braised pork with preserved vegetables... the store's special braised hairtail in brown sauce and spicy octopus. Finally, he ordered a milk red bean cake.

Li He was serving him. At the beginning when he listed out the name of the dishes, he felt that a big customer came. The more he listened, the more happy he was. He said, "This guest, how many of you are there?"

"Just me alone. What's wrong?" the man raised his chin and responded.

"I'm afraid you alone can't finish so much by yourself." Li He asked doubtfully.

"Mind your own business. Can't I try everything? I can take away the rest and save it for tomorrow. What, you open a restaurant and are afraid of guests eating too much?" the man squinted and said angrily.

"Of course not. Are you sure you want to order so many dishes?" Li He confirmed again.

"Sure. Make it for me quickly. I'm hungry here!"

Li He took the list and walked back to show Jiang Yun Zhu.

One customer ordered so many dishes! More importantly… Li He pointed out, "Boss, I don't think he looks rich judging by his clothes."

Jiang Yun Zhu looked at the list and found it strange.

She went to the front to have a look and saw a person sitting in the corner of the left wall. The person was dressed in brown clothes, with eyebrows hanging and eyes sideways. From first glance, he wasn't someone easy to get along with.

Could it be that he came to dine and dash? Jiang Yun Zhu returned the list to Li He and stated, "Let him pay first."

"En." Li He agreed and accepted the list. He went up to the person outside, "Customer, our restaurant only makes small profits. You order so many dishes, please pay first!"

The man became angry as soon as he heard this, "Is there such a rule?"

While being on guard against him, Li He said, "We are a small business. Besides, isn't paying first and paying later the same?"

"How can it be the same? What if you don't cook well?"

"If you're afraid that our cooking won't taste good, you can order one dish first."

"One dish! What can I taste?"

Li He smiled and said nothing. There was an academy on this street. The constables from the Yamen often patrolled on this street. So he wasn't afraid of this guest causing trouble.

With him like this, that person felt as if his fist had hit cotton. He didn't know how to continue.

Suddenly, he sat down and said, "Let's try a Dongpo pork first."

Li He went to the back kitchen to tell Jiang Yun Zhu.

"Give him a dish of Dongpo pork." Jiang Yun Zhu said. She wanted to see what he wanted to do.

Dongpo meat was served quickly. Jiang Yun Zhu stood behind the counter, watching him.

The man took a mouthful of Dongpo meat. An intoxicated look appeared on his face. Then he ate up the plate of Dongpo meat. Not even the soup was left.

Then he poured another large cup of hot water and patted his stomach. He stood up to walk out.

"Customer, forty-eight Wwen." Li He immediately stopped him.

The man said, "Deduct from my son or daughter's monthly pay."

That's right, this person is Xie Yong. He only found out in the afternoon that Xie Lian came to work in Qishanju. He had heard of Qishanju's name a long time ago, but he didn't have the money to eat. Now he found an opportunity.

"Who is your son or daughter?" Li He didn't know, so he asked.

"My son's name is Xie Chen. He's a student. My daughter's name is Xie Lian." Xie Yong answered.

Li He turned to look at Jiang Yun Zhu.

Jiang Yun Zhu understood. It turned out to be him! She walked over immediately, "I'm sorry, Xie Lian is on trial. There is no monthly pay. The money for Xie Chen will not be paid to him until the end of the month. So please pay the bill first."

Seeing that she was a female, Xie Yong immediately acted contemptuously and said angrily, "Then put it on the tab first."

"This store does not keep tabs."

"I think you're purposely making it difficult for me. I have already told you to deduct from Xie Chen's pay. And you refuse to let me go. Is this how you do business? Everyone..." He was about to yell.

But Jiang Yun Zhu stated in a cold voice, "Is there a father like you? How about this? I'll call Xie Chen and Xie Lian. If they agree to put the tab in their names, I'll let you go."

Xie Yong's eyes spun twice, "Okay, call them here."

"Wait a bit. Xie Chen should be coming later." Jiang Yun Zhu said. She remembered that Xie Chen said in the morning that he would come to send Xie Lian home in the evening. After finishing speaking, she ignored Xie Yong and went to the back.

Xie Yong stood there. Scoffing, he sat down. It was only right and proper for son to pay his father's debts!

As soon as Jiang Yun Zhu arrived at the back, Mrs. Huang came over and said to her, "Boss, go and see that girl."

Who? Jiang Yun Zhu soon found out that Xie Lian was hiding behind the water tank. Like a dying little animal, she held her head as her body shook constantly.

Jiang Yun Zhu did feel pity for her. She always suspected that Qin Yao would become like that in her dream because of Xie Chen.

Although Qin Yao didn't know her anymore, she remembered how kind she was to her. She didn't want to see her become like that again.

Such a romantic and lively girl. What kind of experience did she have to go through to become that sad and troubled.

It must be a deep pain.

"Don't be afraid. Your elder brother will be here later." Jiang Yun Zhu said softly to Xie Lian.

Hearing Xie Chen, Xie Lian's trembling became less severe.

At 7pm, Xie Chen came to pick up Xie Lian and saw Xie Yong as soon as he entered the door.

The father and son quarreled almost at once.

Xie Lian started to tremble again. Still, she raised her head and looked into the store, eagerly looking for Xie Chen's figure.

Finally, when she saw him, she felt much more at ease.

"Go. Go see your elder brother." Jiang Yun Zhu stretched out her hand. This matter must be resolved.

Xie Lian blinked and looked at her in panic.

Jiang Yun Zhu smiled at her.

Xie Lian stared at her for a while and finally tentatively put her hand into the other party's.

Jiang Yun Zhu held her hand and brought her to the store.

Xie Chen saw Jiang Yun Zhu and Xie Lian, who was behind her. He felt so ashamed , "Miss Jiang, I told him yesterday to let Xie Lian go out to work and he agreed. Unforeseen, he would run to the store and cause trouble for you."

He pulled Xie Lian over. The two bowed to Jiang Yun Zhu together.

Jiang Yun Zhu didn't mind. It was a small matter.

So, what to do now? Xie Yong wanted to put the tab under Xie Chen or Xie Lian's name.

Jiang Yun Zhu turned to Xie Chen. He should know that if he agreed to this kind of thing for the first time, there would be a second time. Then she would have to consider whether to let the siblings stay.

Of course, Xie Chen understood that the man in front of him couldn't be expected to find his conscience. As long as he takes a step back, he will take a step closer and finally push him into the abyss.

"I don't agree." He gritted his teeth.

"What did you say?" Xie Yong made a gesture to hit him.

Xie Chen stared at him with frowning eyebrows. His hands clenched into fists.

Xie Yong didn't dare to make a move. He glared at him angrily and directed to Jiang Yun Zhu, "It's only right and proper for the son to pay the debt of the father!"

If it was an ordinary boss who was afraid of getting into trouble, he will definitely agree to it. Anyway, the money deducted was from Xie Chen.

In the past, there were creditors who came to Xie's house. In the end they all demanded money from Xie Chen. So Xie Chen's hard-earned money was never left.

Xie Chen lowered his eyes. He knew that he and Xie Lian might be driven away and they wouldn't get a penny of wages.

"I don't care what your relationship is. If you eat my food, I will ask you for money." Jiang Yun Zhu stated. She was afraid of trouble, but also not afraid of problems.

Xie Yong's eyes widened, "You! I don't have any money. Even if you ask from me, you won't even get a penny."

Xie Chen looked at Jiang Yun Zhu in surprise.

Jiang Yun Zhu smiled, "Then you want to eat without paying?"

She winked at Li He.

Li He went out immediately and called the constables patrolling the street.

When Xie Yong saw the constables, he panicked. Still, he persisted his way- father's debt should be paid by the son.

This time, without waiting for Xie Chen to say anything, Jiang Yun Zhu stated, " Xie Chen has no pay at all now, how can he pay?"

The constable asked a few simple questions and found out what was going on. Such a trivial matter! If he won't pay, he would be locked up in prison. When the family brings the money over is when he would be released. That's generally how they handle it.

After that, they paid no heed to Xie Yong and directly locked him away.

Xie Chen and Xie Lian were left. Xie Chen looked at Jiang Yun Zhu. His lips moved twice. In the end, he pursed his lips and bowed to her. If the tides change, he will never forget her kindness today!

Chapter 62

Another two days passed. Jiang Yun Zhu's custom-made pan was ready. She got up early in the morning to prepare octopus. She was about to make octopus balls.

Since the weather was cold, the ice lump hadn't melted yet despite being placed in the kitchen last night. She had some difficulty in handling it.

She thought, how about waiting for the ice to melt.

"Let me do it." Shen Feng Ming passed by the kitchen, saw that she was wrestling with a lump of ice, and came in.

"Okay, be careful. Don't splash it on yourself." Jiang Yun Zhu instructed. She no longer refused Shen Feng Ming's help.

Shen Feng Ming agreed, picked up a stick on one side, and knocked a few times to break the ice. Then he took a knife to scoop out the octopuses one by one and put them in the water. He moved quickly and neatly. Those octopuses were all intact. None of them had broken arms or legs.

Jiang Yun Zhu watched from the side, only found it pleasing to the eye. She was thinking that if he learns to cook, he must be at the top level.

After all the octopus were sorted, she started making the batter. The batter of octopus balls was modernly made with eggs and baking powder. The role of baking powder was to let the batter ferment quickly, so that the octopus balls made will be crispy on the outside and soft on the inside.

At this time, there was no baking powder. The method of fermentation used was barely enough. It took time, so it needed to be prepared in advance.

Everything was ready. She washed her hands and said to Shen Feng Ming, "There will be delicious food shortly."

"En." Shen Feng Ming looked at her. The corners of his mouth slightly raised. She often had some new ideas and always had full expectations for life. Being by her side, everyone will be influenced by her unconsciously.

For example, Xue Jing. Every day, he was so energetic every day. He was either cooking or researching new dishes.

For example, Li He and his wife. Their complexion had completely changed from the previous dispirited look.

For example, Xie Lian. The little girl could laugh now.

For example... Shen Feng Ming thought of himself. He didn't want to stay at home before. So he spent most of his time in the Division, investigating and handling cases. As if he was tireless. But now he seemed to know that there wasn't only investigation in life. There were many other things he could do.

At 9am, the batter had fermented enough. Jiang Yun Zhu got to work. First, put a little oil in each semicircular groove, and then pour the batter into it. When the batter encountered the boiling hot oil, it bubbled up immediately.

Pour the minced octopus and other ingredients into the pot. At this time, the batter underneath had mostly formed. Using a bamboo skewer, turn it over. Pour in the batter, and repeat.

Soon, a pan of small balls was made successfully. It was a pity that there were no bonito flakes here. Still, there were enough octopus in it. Plus with Jiang Yun Zhu's secret sweet and spicy sauce, it should be perfect.

"Elder Sister, what is this?" Jiang Lin asked while holding a book. Today was their day off. He and Jiang Wu didn't have to go to school. His task today was to teach Jiang Yun Xue. As he was teaching, he ran out when he smelled the aroma from the kitchen.

"Octopus balls, try them." Jiang Yun Zhu said.

At this time, Jiang Yun Xue and Jiang Wu came over. They eagerly took bamboo sticks, stabbed a ball, and put it in their mouths.

It was so hot. Fresh out of the pan. So it was naturally hot. But none of the three were willing to spit out what was in their mouths.

The burnt and crispy shell turned out to be soft inside after one bite.

The umami flavor of the octopus filled the whole meatballs paired with the unique sweet and spicy sauce! Jiang Lin only regretted that he had eaten breakfast. If he hadn't, he would have eaten two pans of balls in one sitting.

Even so, he couldn't stop eating.

At this moment, Xie Lian and Xie Chen came.

"Try it." Jiang Yun Zhu had taken a ball and ate it. She casually said.

Xie Lian wasn't so timid in front of Jiang Yun Zhu now. She knew that when Jiang Yun Zhu told her to eat, she meant it.

She took a bamboo stick and put a ball into her mouth. In an instant, her eyes lit up. These balls were delicious. Even better than the meatballs that the auntie next door gave her when she was hungry that year.

Xie Chen stabbed a ball with a reddish complexion. It tasted flavorful, crispy and delicious!

Still, he only ate one. Then he talked about his reason for coming today. Since it was a day off, he was here to help Xie Lian with her work.

"No need. She's doing a good job." Jiang Yun Zhu said. Xie Lian was sensible. She rushed to do all kinds of work. She could be called one of the top ten employees.

However, Xie Chen made up his mind to stay in the store and work for Jiang Yun Zhu in order to repay her kindness.

Not only did she let Xie Lian stay in the store, but she gave Xie Lian delicious food. In the past two days, Xie Lian's face had obviously turned brighter and she was much more cheerful. This cannot be bought with money.

Jiang Yun Zhu had no choice but to leave him be.

At this time Li He came. In his hands were two buckets of milk. Since the launch of ginger milk curd that day, it had become unexpectedly popular. Not only do people who come to the store order a portion, some people also come to the store to specially buy this to take away.

So half a bucket of milk per day was naturally not enough.

Li He wandered around the market when he had nothing to do. He had found four families with calves.

"Boss, it should be enough!" Li He put down the two buckets of milk and asked in content. With two buckets of milk, they could make a lot of ginger milk curd and sell it for a lot of money.

Jiang Yun Zhu looked at him apologetically, "Maybe, not enough."

She was going to make milk tea as well.

Li He was stunned for a moment. Then he turned around and walked out again. He didn't believe that in such a big Wuling County, there were only four families that gave birth to calves.

Jiang Yun Zhu started to make milk tea. This was actually simpler. Fry rock sugar and tea leaves in a pan for a while until it smells burnt. Then pour in milk and boil it. A cup of milk tea was ready.

Then add red beans to make red bean milk tea.

If one likes orange flavor, a little orange juice could be added in.

It was a pity that there was no cassava flour. Jiang Yun Zhu felt that using sweet potato flour was lacking. So she didn't make pearls.

So it was a few cups of red bean milk tea and a few cups of orange juice milk tea. After eating octopus balls, a sip of milk tea was silky, fragrant, and sweet but not greasy. Instantly, life felt complete.

It was quiet in the kitchen. Everyone was sipping milk tea, feeling the tranquility and beauty.

When Shen Feng Ming came back, the kitchen had already started preparing lunch.

He didn't mind. He searched for someone with his eyes.

"I left it for you." Jiang Yun Zhu handed him a small portion of octopus ball and a cup of milk tea. In the morning, she said she'll make delicious food. He even helped handle the octopus. She got to let him try it.

Shen Feng Ming accepted it. His eyes were like it contained a scatter of stars.

After all, he was the son of a major household. When Shen Feng Ming ate, he was graceful and calm no matter how fast or slow he was.

"How is it?" Jiang Yun Zhu asked after he finished eating.

"Delicious." Shen Feng Ming replied.

Since he said so, Jiang Yun Zhu felt that the octopus balls and milk tea could be sold.

At noon, these two things were added to the menu.

Miss Ye and her friends were regular customers of Qishanju. Because of her lead, more and more misses from the county came to Qishanju. The turnover in the store had increased a lot because of this. Jiang Yun Zhu didn't expect it when she opened the store.

Today they came again and saw the new items. Naturally they wanted to order one portion.

When the food was served, the misses had a mouthful of octopus balls and a mouthful of milk tea. Immediately, they were overwhelmed by the perfect combination of the two.

"What kind of octopus balls are these? Paired with this sweet and spicy sauce, they are much more delicious than that spicy octopus." The oval-faced miss praised. Spicy octopus was a dish. While these octopus balls were more like snacks. Interesting shapes and fun to eat.

"This milk tea is delicious. I've heard before that Saibei's side uses milk to make tea but it always had a stench taste. How come this Qishanju doesn't have any stench taste when it's made?" the round-faced miss asked. When she got the milk tea, she felt she had discovered it too late.

"Of course it's the owner's skill." Miss Ye cheerfully replied, "Do you think anyone could make such a good thing?"

The oval-faced girl understood what she meant and said with a smile, "Elder Sister Ye is talking about the Cao Family buying milk?"

Speaking of this, the misses became even more energetic.

It turned out that after Miss Ye took ginger milk curd back to her grandmother to eat. The elderly felt comfortable all over and thought of her old friends. People ah, when they got older, they were prone to chills. This kind of good thing, of course, she had to get them to taste it.

She asked Miss Ye to buy some more and send them to some old friends she knew well, including the old Madam of the Cao Family.

After the old Madam of the Cao Family finished eating, she felt better. After finding out it was bought from Qishanju, she ordered the people below to buy it.

At that time, Miss Cao was by her side. When she thought of the grievances she suffered at Qishanju, she hated that store very much and immediately stopped the servants.

She refused to buy it. Old Madam Cao asked her why. Of course, she didn't dare to tell the truth. Instead, she belittled Qishanju.

But old Madam Cao felt that this ginger milk curd was wonderful?

"Grandmother, let's make it ourselves. Isn't it more clean and hygienic than what they make?" Miss Cao said.

That seemed to be the reason. So the Cao Family bought milk.

Did it work?

"I saw the servants of the Cao Family come here to buy ginger milk curd yesterday!" said the oval-faced girl.

The misses looked at each other. They all covered their faces and smiled. That Miss Cao always thought that no one else could do it, and she was the only one who could do it. Now she knows.

"Speaking of which, the owner of this store is quite skilled. Now I wished I could eat at her place every day and don't even want to go home." The round-faced girl sighed.

A few misses deeply understood.

Naturally, Jiang Yun Zhu didn't know about their whispers. But it was true that she made a lot of money today.

At noon, when the number of guests gradually decreased, two people came in from outside. The one in front was Qin Yao, and the one in the back was Lin Yu Bai.

Xie Chen wanted to help Jiang Yun Zhu with something, so Jiang Yun Zhu told him to stand at the counter instead of Jiang Yun Xue.

As soon as Qin Yao came in, she saw the man behind the counter and was stunned for a while before returning to her senses.

Lin Yu Bai was like a thief, looking up, down, left, and right. He was relieved to find that Shen Feng Ming wasn't there.

He didn't want to come to this store at all, but Qin Yao wanted to come. So he had to come.

Otherwise, if she offended someone she shouldn't, it would be too late to regret it.

Xie Chen saw the two of them. He only felt that Qin Yao's face was familiar. After thinking about it carefully, he remembered who she was and nodded and smiled at her.

Qin Yao blushed slightly and quickly sat down on the seat.

Lin Yu Bai sat down too.

The two quickly ordered the dishes. Qin Yao ate absent-mindedly. Lin Yu Bai picked up a piece of sweet and sour pork ribs. Immediately, a light flashed through his beautiful peach eyes. The food in this restaurant was too delicious!

Jiang Yun Zhu came out to pick up an order by chance and saw these two people. Internally she thought, sure enough, these two people knew each other. Then she looked at Xie Chen again and her mind wandered.

From this day on, Qin Yao and Lin Yu Bai became regular customers of Qishanju. The business of Qishanju was booming. Everyone was full of energy every day.

But tone morning, Mrs. Chen hurried in from the outside and said, "Yun Zhu, isn't the next door to us under renovation all the time? I saw they put up a plaque now. They are actually opening a restaurant. What's more... you should go out and see!"

Next door to Qishanju was Manager Meng's store, which Jiang Yun Zhu almost rented before.

Jiang Yun Zhu went out to look and saw that the decoration next door had been basically finished. The windows were replaced with fine white gauze. While the furnishings in the store weren't exactly the same as those of Qishanju, but 80% similar.

Then look at the plaque that was hung up. Good Heaven, 'Xishanju'.

Chapter 63

Jiang Yun Zhu frowned. She didn't object to competition, but this store's behavior was too low. Simply disgusting!

In this era, there was no copyright protection and anti-unfair competition law, otherwise they would definitely go to jail.

"How could they do this!" Li He and the others heard the news and came out to check it out.

"Who is the owner of this store?" Xue Jing was already anxious. Seeing this, he went straight to the door and shouted angrily.

"I'm the owner of this store. What's the matter?" Manager Meng came out triumphantly in a brown pongee robe.

"You decorate it according to our restaurant? And you dare to call it Qishanju!" Xue Jing uttered with red eyes.

"Why can't I dare to call it Qishanju? Have the words Xishanju been contracted by your family? Besides, which eye of yours saw that I decorated it according to your restaurant? Everything in this store is my own idea." Said Manager Meng.

"You!" Xue Jing raised his fist and was about to beat him up. He was clearly being unreasonable.

Manager Meng wasn't afraid at all. He looked at him like that. Come hit. Hit and he'll send him to prison. Let's see what Qishanju would do then!

"Xue Jing." At the critical moment, Jiang Yun Zhu called out to Xue Jing and then signaled Li He to stop him.

Li He was a little more sensible than Xue Jing. So he quickly pulled Xue Jing back.

Manager Meng smiled and said to Jiang Yun Zhu, "Oh, isn't this Boss Jiang? I will open a new store in two days. All drinks and food would be discounted by 50%. You must come over to join me!"

Jiang Yun Zhu looked at him, "Definitely."

Her reaction was beyond Manager Meng's expectations. He thought she would either leave angrily or cry. After all, a girl could only cry when something happens.

"Then I'll wait for you." Manager Meng responded.

Only then did Jiang Yun Zhu turn around and return to Qishanju.

Inside Qishanju, Xue Jing felt aggrieved. He looked at Jiang Yun Zhu, wanting to say something. When he suddenly found her sitting there with her eyes downcast without saying a word, his heart dropped. He was so focused on getting angry, he didn't consider her feelings.

When the store was first renovated, Jiang Yun Zhu didn't have much money. More than half of the items in the store were bought by her from all over the county and then decorated by herself.

Now that something like this has happened, she should be the one who took the hit the hardest!

Thinking of this, Xue Jing's heart was on fire; wishing to kill that Manager Meng.

The others felt similarly. They stood there with their heads down.

At this moment, Jiang Yun Zhu smiled and said, "What are you doing standing there? It will be noon soon. Everyone, let's get busy."

"Boss." Xue Jing and others responded in unison.

"Everyone, let's work harder in the future!" Jiang Yun Zhu stated.

"En." Everyone immediately agreed. They all stifled back that energy. They must not let the neighbor steal their business.

"Then go get busy." Jiang Yun Zhu said.

Everyone dispersed.

What the neighbor did disgusted Jiang Yun Zhu. But if it was just this, Jiang Yun Zhu wouldn't care about it. A fake was always a fake. When the road was bumpy, one would know the horse's power. Jiang Yun Zhu was confident that they would never take away her business.

Just now she lowered her eyes because she was thinking about another thing.

Manager Meng did this because he simply envied Qishanju's booming business. Or there were other reasons?

If Manager Meng had someone behind him, such as Baofulou, then there would be troubles.

After all, Qishanju's foundation was superficial... She remembered Manager Meng said that they would offer a 50% discount for opening!

Who knows if the 50% discount was for one day or for a long time.

It made Jiang Yun Zhu guess that the restaurant next door was opened by Manager Meng and Manager Song from Baofulou.

What's going on? Recently, more and more gentlemen and misses in Wuling County like to go to Qishanju. It seemed that eating there had become a trend. Those remaining people gradually heard about the name of Qishanju. They all wanted to go there to have a look.

There were only so many people eating out in the county. These days, the running water in Baofulou had dropped by 40%. At the sight of this, Manager Song was anxious.

This day, he was pacing around and came to the vicinity of Qishanju. He happened to meet Manager Meng.

Manager Meng's store hadn't been rented out yet. Each day it was vacant, it was a lost of lots of money. At that time, Jiang Yun Zhu wanted to rent his store but didn't. He held a grudge since then. Now seeing that Qishanju's business was so good, he was naturally fuming.

When two people meet in this way, they naturally have a common topic.

Suddenly, Manager Song had an idea. He could rent Manager Meng's store and build another Qishanju! He had to admit that Jiang Yun Zhu was capable. Whether it was the decoration of her store or her method of depositing bank members or the dishes she cooked, they were all refreshing.

But he had an advantage. Baofulou had been open for so many years. His net worth was not Qishanju, which had opened, could compare.

He could drag her to death even if he did.

By then, his Xishanju would be authentic in Wuling County.

Moreover, he had a selfish intention. Baofulou was left to the two brothers by his father. Old Second Song did nothing and could take a large amount of money from him every month. Why? If he took the opportunity to put all the money to the new store and leave an empty shell for Old Second Song, wouldn't he be able to get rid of him in the future?

The more he thought about it, the more he felt that it was a good idea to kill two birds with one stone. Immediately, he told Manager Meng that he wanted to rent the store.

Manager Meng was a sly fox. Hearing what he said, he thought a lot.

Renting a store was naturally a good thing for him. How much money could come from renting out the store in a year? He watched Qishanju's people come and go every day and roughly estimated that it could earn two to three times his annual rent. This was a big piece of fatty meat.

So he suggested forming a partnership with Manager Song. One of them would provide the store, and the other would provide the money and people. When the money is earned, they would share it together.

Manager Song disagreed at first, thinking that he was dreaming a wonderful dream. However, Manager Meng refused to budge.

Later, Manager Song thought it out. In the beginning, this Xishanju would definitely not make money. Wouldn't it be a good thing to have someone help him fill in the hole? When Manager Meng couldn't hold on anymore, he'll kick him away. It was perfect.

What's more, at the beginning, he couldn't show his face.

So the two signed a contract. Manager Meng would step forward to manage Xishanju as the Manager. Manager Song would support him from behind. After the two make money, they'll divide the money three to seven.

The two of them made up their minds to destroy Qishanju and replace it.

Because of the incident next door, Qishanju was a little silent today. Everyone was immersed in their work. They didn't laugh like before.

At night, when everyone was already asleep, Jiang Yun Zhu stood alone in the kitchen, looking at the pots and pans as she thought about something.

"Do you need my help?" Shen Feng Ming came in and asked.

He seemed to have just bathed. There was a touch of water vapor on his skin. Under the warm yellow candlelight, it contained a little bit of luster.

On such a night, he suddenly appeared like this and asked such a question, Jiang Yun Zhu's expression softened unconsciously.

She looked at him. He wanted to help her? On the contrary, with his identity, he could help her solve the current problem with ease. But he couldn't help her all the time.

Jiang Yun Zhu smiled and replied, "Probably don't need."

She already had a plan.

Shen Feng Ming looked at her. His eyes were shining brightly, like a river of stars flowing. It made people want to immerse themselves in it.

The next day before meal time, next door was already bustling with activity. The lion dance team took up half of the street. The activity was much bigger than when Qishanju opened.

In particular, those lion dance teams. They unexpectedly blocked the entrance of Qishanju whether it was intentional or not.

A lot of people came. Some of them came to eat at Qishanju. They noticed that there was a Xishanju opened next door. The decoration was mostly the same as Qishanju. They pointed there. There were those who were attracted by the lion dance team. When they saw the two were very similar stores, they felt that there was some drama to watch and gathered there.

Manager Meng stood in front of the store entrance. His face was full of spring breeze. He would glance at Qishanju from time to time. His eyes were full of complacency.

Inside Qishanju, everyone was fuming.

"Block the door, eh?" Xue Jing brought out a basin of bloody water from the back kitchen and was about to splash it on the lion dance team to vent and remove the bad air.

Li He looked at Jiang Yun Zhu. She needed to come up with a decision on this matter.

"Stop." Jiang Yun Zhu called to halt Xue Jing. There were so many people outside. Him pouring out this basin of blood would disgrace Manager Meng, as well as himself.

"Boss." Xue Jing said anxiously.

Jiang Yun Zhu looked around the store. Anyway, there was no one. "Come out with me," she stated.

After speaking, she went out.

Xue Jing and others followed immediately.

As soon as she came out, Manager Meng saw her. However, he didn't give her a proper gaze.

Jiang Yun Zhu wasn't annoyed. She stood there and watched.

The lion dance team danced for a quarter of an hour. It was mealtime. The streets were full of people. Some people were complaining that the lion dance team blocked the door of Qishanju and they couldn't go in to eat. Some were waiting for Xishanju to open. It was said that it was half price for drinks and food today!

Feeling that it was about time, Manager Meng stretched out his hand. The lion dance team stopped.

There was a ladder next to him. At this time, according to the procedure, he should tear off the red cloth on the store plaque and announce that Xishanju had officially opened for business.

His hand had already grabbed the red silk.

At this moment, a clear voice sounded, "Manager Meng, I want to compete with your cook from Xishanju. I wonder if you dare to accept it."

Though Jiang Yun Zhu's words lightly flowed out, they fell into everyone's ears like thunder. She was throwing down a challenge!

Everyone turned to her and saw a slim figure in a satin dress with a light grass pattern. It seemed to be just a little girl, but the calmness in her eyes and the look on her face made people dare not underestimate her .

Manager Meng was like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. Holding the red silk, he viciously glared at Jiang Yun Zhu. How dare she!

Jiang Yun Zhu looked at him with a smile. She didn't want to, but they were so shameless. After much contemplation, she felt that if her Qishanju wanted to continue opening, it would be best to chop the mess down quickly.

"What? You don't dare?" Xue Jing ruthlessly asked at once. He wanted to yell twice now to express the agitation in his heart. Sure enough, the boss was the boss. It was right to follow her.

As soon as he said this, the crowd immediately exploded.

"Manager Meng, compete!" The spectators didn't mind making the drama bigger.

"Manager Meng, you dare to decorate like the other party and even chose such a name on purpose. You have done everything you should and shouldn't do. Why? Are you scared now?" There were those who couldn't stand Manager Meng and spoke fair words.

"Manager Meng, you don't even dare to compete. I don't think you need to open a restaurant anymore. Close it as soon as possible." Someone sighed.

"That's right. One look and the cooks don't seem very skilled. And you still open a restaurant here."

...

Everyone was being noisy, as if wanting to put Manager Meng on top of the fire.

On a very cold day, Manager Meng broke out in a hot sweat. The beads of sweat flowed down his back. Should he accept Jiang Yun Zhu's challenge? He knew that Jiang Yun Zhu's cooking was delicious. So if he accepted it and they won, it was good. But what if he loses? He didn't need to open this store.

There was a big chance of losing. Honestly, he felt that Baofulou's cook wasn't as good as Jiang Yun Zhu. Otherwise she wouldn't have robbed their guests.

But if he didn't accept, can't his store still open today?

He subconsciously searched the crowd and finally found Manager Song in a corner of the crowd.

What to do? He looked at him questioningly.

Manager Song never expected that a girl like Jiang Yun Zhu would be so bold. Of course he didn't want to accept it, because he had already got people to buy Qishanju's dishes and got his store's cook to taste them and try to imitate the exact same dishes.

After the cook finished eating, he said, "I'm not as good as her."

Then he gave up. This...

His plan was to use money to bring down Qishanju.

But not accepting...

Suddenly, he thought of a person and nodded to Manager Meng.

Manager Meng wondered if he was seeing things. He kept staring at Manager Song.

Manager Song nodded his head twice more before turning around and leaving in disgust. Today's opening! With Jiang Yun Zhu's fuss, there was nothing to see at all.

Instead, it went Jiang Yun Zhu's way.

It didn't matter though. When he picks up that person, he'll win over Jiang Yun Zhu. Everything would be solved naturally.

Manager Meng accepted Jiang Yun Zhu's challenge. But as Manager Song guessed, it took him a long time to accept it. He obviously lacked confidence in himself. So their cooks' skills were probably not very good. Since that was the case, who would go to their place to eat.

Half price? Were they people who sought cheap prices? Alright, some people were. Still, not everyone went to Xishanju, just them. Won't that make them have no face?

The ruckus at Xishanju took up half a day. After the real opening, there were very few people.

The nearby Qishanju was overcrowded. Manager Meng was so angry that his teeth itched. He immediately went to Manager Song to discuss. When he came back, he was full of confidence. When looking at Qishanju, he regained his previous arrogance.

In the afternoon, Jiang Yun Zhu and Manager Meng sat together and formally talked about the cooking competition.

"Boss Jiang, since it's a competition, there must be a prize!" Manager Meng said this as soon as he opened his mouth. Quite an aggressive move.

Jiang Yun Zhu smiled, "What kind of prize does Manager Meng want?"

Manager Meng's eyes spun around her, "If Boss Jiang loses, you will work for me for three years."

As soon as he said this, Xue Jing and the others' eyes burst into flames. How dare he say that.

However, Jiang Yun Zhu didn't respond. She only asked, "If Manager Meng lost?"

"This... I'll give you one hundred liang silver."

"Me working for Manager Meng for three years is only worth a hundred liang silver? It's two months of my Qishanju's turnover. Manager Meng should know that if I work for you, I won't be able to open my Qishanju.

The prizes' difference is too big!

If Manager Meng is me, would you agree? "Jiang Yun Zhu unhurriedly asked as she closed in step by step.

Manager Meng had been in business for so many years. He had seen all kind of people. But facing Jiang Yun Zhu, he always felt suppressed. He didn't know how this feeling came about. Nor could he shake it off and erase it.

"Then what are Boss Jiang's thoughts?" He asked.

"If I lose, I will work for you for one year. If I win, I want this Xishanju." Jiang Yun Zhu said. This way, the conditions were reasonable.

"Impossible!" Manager Meng almost jumped up.

Jiang Yun Zhu responded, "The sum of the house deed and land deed of Xishanju is only worth about five hundred liang. Oh, plus decoration, it could be a little more. But it is only the profit of Qishanju for less than a year. Not much. Still, it's a loss."

Indeed, in terms of money, Jiang Yun Zhu was losing money. However, Manager Meng never thought of selling the store. The stores on this street were all hens that could lay golden eggs. Generally, no one sells them.

"This condition isn't acceptable." Manager Meng stated.

Jiang Yun Zhu stopped talking and sat there, as if other than this condition, there was no discussion.

Manager Meng gritted his teeth. Suddenly, he heard coughing outside. He said, "I'll be right back."

Then he went out.

The one coughing outside was naturally Manager Song.

The two had a verbal war with each other. In the end Manager Song patted his chest and said that he would definitely not lose. If he lost, he would give him money back. Only then, Manager Meng finally agreed.

When Manager Meng came back, he discussed with Jiang Yun Zhu the prize of the competition. Afterward, it was the question of how to compete and who to invite as judges.

The two of them talked for half an hour before everything was finalized. They wrote the contract and signed their fingerprints. The contract would take effect after the competition starts five days later.

The two dispersed. Jiang Yun Zhu led her people back to Qishanju.

At this time, the boiled blood cooled. Xue Jing and the others began to worry. What if Jiang Yun Zhu lost...losing their jobs didn't amount to much. Jiang Yun Zhu was going to work for Manager Meng for a year? Who knew how he would make it difficult for her.

"Boss, this..." This wasn't a joke. Xue Jing wanted to persuade Jiang Yun Zhu not to compete.

The others were similar, full of worries.

"Let's all get to work. I know what I'm doing." Jiang Yun Zhu assured. She self proclaimed that in Lu Prefecture, there was no cook who could compare to her.

Outside Lu Prefecture? Five days wasn't enough to bring over cooks from other places. Besides, even if it was a famous cook from other places, she may not necessarily lose. So they didn't have to worry so much.

Everyone dispersed, not daring to disturb her.

Only Shen Feng Ming was left. He had been watching from the side today.

At this moment, he looked at her, frowning slightly.

Was he worried about her? Jiang Yun Zhu thought to herself. But he was in Qilin Guards. It was dangerous. At the slightest carelessness, life could be lost. Even so, he wasn't seen retreating. He should be able to understand her!

As a cook, if she didn't even dare to compete in this kind of competition, then she would lose that enterprising spirit. Then it was better to close the store and do something else.

Shen Feng Ming's brows slowly relaxed.

Jiang Yun Zhu smiled.

At this side, Manager Meng was chasing after Manager Song to ask about the competition. He promised him that he would win.

"I'm going to invite old Man right now and get him go out to invite that person. If you stop me, I won't be able to make it in time." Manager Song said.

Manager Meng quickly backed away and let him go. Afterward, he asked, "Who do you want to invite?"

Manager Song smiled slightly, "Have you heard of the Marquis Anping in Lu Prefecture? There is a Cook Gao in the Manor. In the early years, my father did him a favor!"

Manager Meng had been to Lu Prefecture a few times. So of course he knew the Marquis Anping Manor. That was a noble household. Let alone Lu Prefecture, the cooks in their Manor were among the best in the Middle South.

If they could invite the cook from that Manor, they would surely win!

Thinking of this, Manager Meng finally smiled. He couldn't wait to start the competition.

Chapter 64

Manager Song returned to his hometown in the countryside, found old Mister Song, and told him about the matter. Old Mister Song shook his head like a rattle. He helped Cook Gao in the early years. This kind of favor was one less when used. If it wasn't necessary, don't go to him.

"Father, our restaurant is now at a time of life and death. You don't know how arrogant the owner of Qishanju is. She directly came to throw down the challenge. Said that if we lose the competition, this restaurant should not be opened.

They're already riding on our necks to poo on..." Manager Song added emphatic words and even blamed Jiang Yun Zhu for all the nasty things he did. Anyway, the old man stayed in the countryside and didn't know the situation.

Sure enough, old Mister Song was furious after hearing this. A girl! Even if you have some skills, how could you look down on others like this?

The two set off immediately and went to Lu Prefecture.

In Marquis Anping Manor. The gatekeeper told Gao Shun that someone wanted to see him. When he saw old Mister Song and Manager Song, it took him a long time to remember who they were.

After hearing their intentions, he only found it troublesome.

At this time, Manager Song took out four hundred liang silver with perfect timing. Only then, he showed a smile. If that was the case, he would make the trip.

But the to and fro would take at least four days. He had to ask the Manor for leave.

Marquis Anping liked to eat his dishes. He got to ask for leave. The housekeeper didn't dare to make decisions without authorization. So he went to ask the master of the house for instructions.

Now there were three masters in charge of the Marquis Anping's Manor, Marquis Anping, Marchioness Anping, and the eldest son, Lin Ting An.

Marquis Anping and Madam went to Jinguang Temple to worship Buddha. It wasn't a big deal. So the housekeeper found Lin Ting An.

At this moment, Lin Ting An was reading a book in the study room. The housekeeper came in. As soon as he explained the matter, he casually replied 'Got it' and the housekeeper withdrew.

After he left, Lin Ting An felt that his eyes were sour. Looking at the sky outside, he realized that he had been reading for two hours without knowing it.

He stood up, walked to the window, and looked into the distance, thinking of many things.

Suddenly, he remembered an ancient book and immediately went to the bookshelf to search for it.

The bookshelf in front didn't have it. The second one. The third one. When he got to the fourth bookshelf, he saw a painting hanging there.

Amidst the bright fireworks, a beautiful woman stood there with her eyes raised. Her eyebrows were full and her figure was graceful. She seemed to be admiring the gorgeous fireworks and seemed to be alone in the world. Everything doesn't enter her eyes. It felt like an illusion, as if it wasn't in the human world.

Lin Ting An reached out and took down the painting. He remembered this painting. It was painted after he returned home on the Lantern Festival. He didn't expect it to hang here.

After taking another look, he rolled up the painting, put it on the bookshelf beside him, and continued to search for the ancient book.

On Jiang Yun Zhu's side. She and Manager Meng had just agreed on the prize of the contest and the rumors were already raging outside.

Everyone was talking about this matter. If Jiang Yun Zhu lost, she would work for Manager Meng for a year? Could Qishanju be opened? Would they not be able to eat Qishanju's food?

If Jiang Yun Zhu wins, she could win a renovated store. It was worth five hundred liang silver. What did five hundred liang silver mean? Many people would never earn it in their entire lives.

This competition was a big gamble. Everyone was guessing who would win. The entire Wuling County seemed to have become lively.

When it was time for dinner, Qishanju was overcrowded again. Everyone wanted to see how Jiang Yun Zhu was doing.

Unfortunately, they didn't see her person.

Jiang Yun Zhu was in the backyard at this time. For this competition, she was going to go all out. So many things needed to be prepared in advance.

Their competition was a best-of-three competition. So she must first consider which three dishes to cook on the day of the competition.

Ordinary dishes were definitely not suitable. It must be spectacular. She could take this opportunity to make a name for Qishanju.

After much deliberation, she finally settled on three dishes. However, it was troublesome to make these three dishes. One of them was currently a long-lost-recipe. Only in later generations, it was restored. To make it now, she needed a reason.

This reminded her of the 'Bright Moon and Clear Spring' she made last time. That time, she borrowed the line of poetry from Gu Yan Zhou's mouth. This time...

She thought of Shen Feng Ming. Last time when she mentioned the pinhole image, he knew all about it. Maybe he knew about the book "Xiyuan Miscellaneous Talk". After all, his father was Academician Shen, talented in ancient and modern. The Shen Family should have this book in their possession.

Jiang Yun Zhu got up, came to Shen Feng Ming's door, and knocked on the door.

Soon, there were footsteps from inside. The door opened and Shen Feng Ming stood there, "Miss Jiang."

"I have something to ask you." Jiang Yun Zhu explained.

"Come in and sit down." Shen Feng Ming said.

Jiang Yun Zhu entered.

Shen Feng Ming's room was very simple. The same bed, the square table, and two chairs when he moved in. At this time, there were a few books, a pile of paper, and an inkstone on the table. It seemed that he was reading and writing now.

Jiang Yun Zhu looked around and felt that he wasn't a person who wanted to relax. That's right, Qilin Guards's work was often like the wind and rain. If he was afraid of suffering and tiredness, he couldn't do it.

However, the furnishings in this room were too crude. Jiang Yun Zhu felt ashamed. Before when she took care of him, she only cooked medicine for him a few times, cooked meals for a few days, took him to buy clothes once, and didn't care about anything else at all.

Just like that, he wanted to repay her?

She felt that she couldn't live up to it.

After the competition is over, let's tidy up his room. Putting aside gorgeous, it got to at least not be so shabby.

Jiang Yun Zhu thought to herself as she sat on the chair at one side and talked about her reason for coming. Five days later, there was a cooking competition. She wanted to research some new dishes. She wanted to ask Shen Feng Ming if there were any books about dishes. She wanted to use them as reference.

"There are 'Food Clinic Records', 'Conscience Fasting Recipes', "Mountain Family Pure Supply"... "Xiyuan Miscellaneous Talks"... "Yunlintang Diet"..." Shen Feng Ming listed one by one. Jiang Yun Zhu's eyes became brighter and brighter. Wait, he knew "Conscience Fasting Recipe"?

This was a long-lost book. In her dream, she searched for it for two-three years but came up empty-handed.

"Gentleman Shen, these books?" Jiang Yun Zhu felt that her breath was burning.

"If Miss Jiang wants to read it, I could write from memory for you." Shen Feng Ming said.

"You remember it all?"

"En."

Jiang Yun Zhu didn't even know what to say.

Her eyes were burning, Shen Feng Ming slightly looked away, picked up a pen, "Which book do Miss Jiang want to read first?"

"Conscience Fasting Recipe." Actually, Jiang Yun Zhu wanted to read 'Mountain Family Pure Supply', but thinking of the importance of the competition, she said, "Xiyuan Miscellaneous talk."

"Okay." Shen Feng Ming began to write.

Jiang Yun Zhu sat next to him and watched. Because she was anxious to read the later content, she got closer and closer to him. So close that shallow breath brushed against his skin. Shen Feng Ming's handwriting, which was always very dignified, suddenly crooked.

In the evening, Jiang Yun Zhu got 'Conscience Fasting Recipe' and 'Xiyuan Miscellaneous Talk'. The latter was fine. The former was a treasure she had found and read for a long time before going to bed.

The next day, she said that she was going to Lu Prefecture to buy some competition materials. Wuling County was too small to find some things at all.

Xue Jing and others wanted to go with her or wanted to go for her.

Of course Jiang Yun Zhu wanted to go in person. She was afraid that the things bought by others wouldn't meet her requirements.

The store was already very busy. Once she left, everyone was even busier. In the end, Shen Feng Ming went with her.

At noon that day, Lin Yu Bai and Qin Yao came to Qishanju for dinner.

With this kind of matter happening in the store, Xie Chen would come to the store to help if he had time in these few days. So today he was standing at the counter.

Qin Yao came in and chatted with Xie Chen seemingly unintentionally. They were all very polite words. Still, she felt very satisfied. She sat down on her seat and prepared to have a big meal.

When the food came, Lin Yu Bai took a bite and frowned slightly. Today's dish wasn't made by Jiang Yun Zhu. Although it was delicious, it was lacking a bit. Ordinary people might not be able to taste it, but he knew.

Qin Yao didn't seem to taste the difference. She happily enjoyed it. But she was a little worried, "I don't know if Qishanju could win the competition in four days."

She no longer cared about the fact that Jiang Yun Zhu didn't sell the paintings before. She was present when Jiang Yun Zhu challenged Boss Meng yesterday. She admired her a lot and didn't want Qishanju to disappear.

"Don't worry, Qishanju would definitely win." Lin Yu Bai stated.

"How do you know? I heard that Boss Meng is going to invite a top cook over." Qin Yao asked.

Lin Yu Bai knew it.

Qin Yao didn't bother with him.

On February 26th, Jiang Yun Zhu came back with a bunch of things. Her face looked a little tired, but she was full of energy.

Tomorrow was the day of the competition.

"How is it?" Mrs. Chen asked anxiously.

"Don't worry, Mother." Jiang Yun Zhu said. Then she began to process the materials until very late.

After a sweet sleep, the streets became lively very early the next day. Everyone wanted to see who would win and lose in today's competition.

As early as two days ago, a high platform was set up between Qishanju and Xishanju with stoves, chopping boards, and other things placed on both sides of the platform. Boss Meng knew that if he wins today, it would be Xishanju's moment of fame. So he was much more active than Jiang Yun Zhu in doing things. He was the one who made this high platform.

Seeing that 9am arrived, the competition was about to start. The edge of the high platform was crowded with people. Suddenly there was a gong sound to clear the way.

Everyone looked back and saw many government servants and a sedan chair behind them.

"It's the magistrate."

"It actually got the magistrate out?"

Everyone was discussing in low voices, looking forward to today's competition even more.

Jiang Yun Zhu was making the final preparations at the Qishanju and found it a little strange.

The county magistrate was here. Don't know if it would affect today's events.

After a while, the sedan chair touched the ground. Magistrate Meng came out of the sedan chair.

Everyone hurriedly bowed to him and he told them to rise and there was no need to bow too much.

He heard that Qishanju and Xishanju would have a cooking competition. He had contemplated it. This was a good thing. It meant that the people in their county were rich and full of talents. Maybe it would be a good story to spread in the future. So he decided to take a look.

There were already ten young people standing on the high platform. These ten young people were all students of Wenyuan Academy and were ten well-known gentlemen in the county. They were invited by Jiang Yun Zhu to be the referee after discussing with Manager Meng.

Now that Magistrate Meng was here, naturally he must be added.

Chapter 65

"Greeting Magistrate." Jiang Yun Zhu bowed to the magistrate. This was the third time she had seen the magistrate. Because of Wei Kang Ping's previous case, she had a good impression of him.

"You don't need to be too polite." Magistrate Meng sized Jiang Yun Zhu up and down. He found her familiar, but it had been several months. So many things happened in the county every day and it all required his attention. He had seen too many people and he couldn't remember who she was for a while.

Anyway, it was his Wuling County's ordinary citizen.

Magistrate Meng didn't think much about it and looked at Jiang Yun Zhu with a gentle expression. He had heard long ago that the owner of Qishanju was a young girl. It looked like it was true.

He didn't have a bad impression of Jiang Yun Zhu. On the contrary, he felt that this was the manifestation of his Wuling County's prosperity. Thinking of how it was due to the prosperity of the Tang Dynasty in the past, there was Lady Gongsun who danced with a sword and boosted the Tang Dynasty's image. After the An Lushan Rebellion, where could such a stunning and beautiful woman be found? Teacher Du Fu could only lament 'red lips and pearl sleeves were lonely'.

"Good." Thinking of this, Magistrate Meng praised before saying, "You do your best. I would be your judge and would never favor anyone."

"Thank you, Magistrate." With his words, Jiang Yun Zhu was relieved.

Over at the side, the ten gentlemen, who were invited to be judges. bowed to Magistrate Meng.

Magistrate Meng knew most of them. When scholars were together, there was a lot to talk about.

Magistrate Meng immediately mentioned Lady Gongsun. When the ten gentlemen heard it and felt it was the case. They immediately praised Magistrate Meng for his good governance of the county and let the people live and work in peace and contentment. Everyone merrily chatted.

After Manager Meng bowed to Magistrate Meng, he stood at the side. He was very anxious. Magistrate Meng was here. Why didn't the cook invited by Manager Song arrive yet? It can't be that something had gone wrong?

There was no major problem. Manager Song knew that Gao Shun liked women. So he invited two of the most popular girls in the county to accompany him last night. As a result, Gao Shun wasn't even awake at 7am. In the end, Manager Song was afraid of delaying the competition and asked the two girls to wake him up.

Gao Shun's good sleep was disturbed and was a little unhappy.

At this time, Manager Song received a letter saying that Magistrate Meng had arrived and politely urged Gao Shun to go quickly.

"It's a little sesame official." Gao Shun didn't care. After drinking another cup of tea, he was late.

He was already a quarter of an hour late. One could imagine how Magistrate Meng and the ten gentlemen felt about him.

"Greeting Magistrate." Due to the thought of being favored by Marquis Anping, Gao Shun was very perfunctory in bowing to Magistrate Meng.

Magistrate Meng was even more displeased, but couldn't really act out on such a trivial matter. So he waved him to stand aside.

At this time, a master of ceremonies came to the stage and signaled everyone to be quiet. Afterward, he talked about the process of today's competition and announced the start of the competition.

Jiang Yun Zhu and Gao Shun started cooking the first dish.

Jiang Yun Zhu recognized Gao Shun as soon as he showed his face. She couldn't help but remark how small this world was. She never thought that Manager Song would invite him here. Gao Shun, the cook of Anping Marquis Manor, specializes in Huaiyang cuisine. He was regarded as the top cook in Mid-South.

In the dream in the Marquis Anping, Jiang Yun Zhu was assigned to the kitchen when she first entered the Manor .

But unlike Jiang Yun Xiu, she felt that being assigned here couldn't be better.

There was no worry about eating and drinking and it was away from the power disputes in the back courtyard. She used to like cooking, but her skills weren't good enough. Now that she had learned the art, she could redeem herself once she saved the money and go out to open a restaurant and take root in the era.

She immediately made a plan for herself and showed great enthusiasm for her work.

When Mrs. Zhou saw her, she was a little confused by her enthusiasm. At the beginning, she was afraid that she would seduce Gao Shun and nit-pick her. Slowly, she discovered that Jiang Yun Zhu liked working in the kitchen and didn't care about Gao Shun or even the young masters in the Manor.

In this way, Mrs. Zhou was willing to give her a chance.

Jiang Yun Zhu worked as a choreman in the kitchen for three months and began to learn cooking skills. But she didn't learn from Gao Shun, but Hunan cuisine from Cook Xu. Marquis Anping Manor was a respectable and distinguished household, So it was impossible for Gao Shun to be the only cook in the Manor. But the dishes he cooks happen to be Marquis Anping's favorite.

In the middle, Gao Shun harassed Jiang Yun Zhu several times, but she blocked them all.

Later, Lin Ting An kicked him out of the Marquis Manor due to his misbehavior. Jiang Yun Zhu never saw him again.

Now seeing him again, Jiang Yun Zhu thought of many things but felt that those matters were far away.

The corners of her mouth slowly rose. Since it was him, she would have a greater chance of winning this competition.

Of course, she would go all out. If there was any carelessness at any time, her boat may capsize in the gutter.

Gao Shun saw Jiang Yun Zhu and his two small eyes were pinned around her. This girl was so pretty!

"Cook Gao, she is very good at cooking." Manager Meng had no choice but to remind Gao Shun.

But Gao Shun didn't care. Just a small county town. What's more, she was a girl. She don't have a famous teacher to guide her. What kind of good food could she cook? It was estimated that those young gentlemen praised her because they saw her good looks.

Thinking of this, he casually picked up a piece of dried tofu and started cooking.

Jiang Yun Zhu also got working. She cutted up the chicken, then added seasonings such as tangerine peel and red rice, stirred it evenly, wrapped it with ?jade buckle paper, and put it aside to marinate.

At this time, she started to cook another dish. Because this dish was too time-consuming, and many ingredients had been prepared in advance, she had to make it first.

So everyone saw her putting abalone, tendons, cuttlefish and other materials into an earthen jar one by one.

"What is she doing? Sea cucumbers, scallops, fish lips...these are all top umami ingredients, is she going to cook them together?" Everyone was surprised.

"Isn't the soup produced going to be the most delicious in the world?" Someone licked their lips and asked.

The people next to him sneered, "If that's the case, why would the imperial cooks cook? Simply put whatever delicious ingredients in and be done with it. Anyway, the palace isn't short of money.

Ain't that right? With such delicious ingredients, you could taste umami with one kind. Mix two or three kinds works. But any more, it's like putting black tea, green tea, white tea, and black tea together. Even when every kind of tea is top quality tea, could the tea brewed like this taste good? "

Brewing Dahongpao and Biluochun and Baihao Yinzhen together? His metaphor was so vivid that everyone couldn't help shivering after hearing it. Was that tea? More like a pan of slop soup.

"What's with Boss Jiang? The Dongpo pork and dry-roasted fish she cooks are delicious. It's fine to use those to participate in the competition." Some people didn't understand.

Someone whispered, "I heard that the cook on the opposite side is the cook of Marquis Anping Manor. Even Marquis Anping likeS to eat his dishes. It is very difficult for Boss Jiang to win this competition. I guess she wants to come up with something new!"

"But new doesn't mean it's delicious. Nor does it mean it could win." Someone lamented, thinking that Jiang Yun Zhu might be too worried about the competition and messed up.

"Ain't that right!" Everyone sighed.

On the opposite side, Gao Shun saw what Jiang Yun Zhu did and directly snorted in amusement. With this, she wanted to compete with him? He could win her with one finger.

While Jiang Yun Zhu saw what Gao Shun was doing at this time and immediately knew what he was going to cook.

Dazhu Gansi was a famous dish in Huaiyang. The Gansi. To make this dish, dry white tofu should first be sliced into thin slices, the thickness was a little thicker than paper. Then it was cut into thin shreds, soaked in water to remove the taste of beans, and put it into chicken soup with ham, shrimp and other things to cook to make the dry shred absorb the umami.

This dish was called chicken soup boiled dry shred. The finished dry shred was soft and white with a delicious taste. It'll make people reminisce about the flavor.

This dish was very particular about knife skills. The main thing was to cut the dried shreds finely and evenly, otherwise the taste would be inconsistent. A poem once described it as 'seasoned dry shred pile into fine strands'. Its fineness was evident.

However, in terms of knife skills, this dish was a little inferior to Wensi Tofu. After all, dried tofu was much easier to cut than soft tofu.

Jiang Yun Zhu knew that Gao Shun mastered Wensi Tofu. However, he made Dazhu Gansi instead of Wensi Tofu today. It showed that he didn't take this competition seriously.

Jiang Yun Zhu smiled, everything went smoother than she thought.

Two quarters of an hour later, Gao Shun's side had entered the finishing stage. The Dazhu Gansi was nearly ready.

On Jiang Yun Zhu's side, she saw that the chicken had mostly finished marinating and she picked up the oil pan.

Soon, the oil pan started to smoke.

At this time, Gao Shun raised his hand to signal that his dish was ready. Everyone looked at it and saw that in the yellowish chicken soup, dry shreds like white jade were piled up together and stood like a tower amidst it. It looked magnificent and elegant.

Gao Shun raised his chin slightly. This was the dish that the Marquis Anping liked to eat. Him letting them eat it today let them benefit.

Looking at Jiang Yun Zhu's side again, the jar filled with countless top-quality ingredients was simmering on the fire. But there was an oil pan on her side? What was she going to make?

At this time, Jiang Yun Zhu brought over the chicken wrapped in jade buckle paper and then did something that surprised everyone.

"What is she doing? I'm not seeing things, right?" Someone exclaimed.

The person being asked had his eyes popped out and hadn't come back to his senses yet. Of course he couldn't answer his question.

"Did she forget?"

"Is this all right?"

"I guess she panicked."

...

Everyone was in an uproar. Mainly, they had never seen such a way of cooking.

What was Jiang Yun Zhu doing? She put the chicken with the paper into the oil pan and deep-fried it.

Paper, into the oil pan? The oil pan was smoking. It was very hot at first glance. Once the paper went in, it will... Dare not imagine it. The result will definitely not be good.

Simply ignite, and explode? When the people standing in the front row thought of this, they all backed away for fear of being hurt.

Or the paper turns black and the chicken is revealed. After, it becomes paper bits fried chicken? Could this dish be eaten!?

There was a lot of discussion among the people.

Today, Qishanju and Xishanju were competing in cooking skills. The restaurants were closed. So everyone in Qishanju was watching Jiang Yun Zhu compete with the other party from the audience.

Seeing this, Mrs. Chen directly grasped Jiang Cheng's hand, so nervous that she couldn't breathe. If Jiang Yun Zhu lost, she would have to work for Manager Meng for a year. That would be bad.

Jiang Cheng returned her grasp, panting heavily. He knew that he had to trust Jiang Yun Zhu. It was just that he was truly worried.

The same goes for Xue Jing and others.

"Woo." There was a low sob. It turned out that Xie Lian couldn't help crying. She liked Qishanju. She liked Jiang Yun Zhu. The days here were the happiest time in her life. She didn't want her to lose or be bullied.

"It's okay." Xie Chen comforted her despite being a little anxious.

"Don't cry. Here." Qin Yao stood not far from them. Seeing this, she took out her handkerchief and handed it to Xie Lian. Then she continued, "Don't worry. She won't work for others. Qishanju will keep opening."

Just now, she had already decided that if Jiang Yun Zhu lost, she would give hundreds of liang silver to Manager Meng and drop it. She didn't want to see a person like her work for people like Manager Meng.

A few hundred liang silver was a lot of money to others, but to her, it was nothing. Because she liked to eat Qishanju food, the money was worth spending.

Xie Lian was comforted by the two and stopped crying.

Qin Yao put the handkerchief in her hand and told her to wipe away her tears.

She shyly accepted, wiped away her tears, and wanted to say something but couldn't say it.

"Thank you Miss Qin." Xie Chen thanked Qin Yao for Xie Lian.

"No need. It's a small matter." Qin Yao hurriedly said. There seemed to be water flowing in her eyes.

With her shy bowed head, Xie Chen suddenly didn't dare to look at her.

Neither of the two continued to look at each other, nor continued to speak. They stood there, but something seemed to be thickening.

Xie Lian looked at Xie Chen, then at Qin Yao, and blinked her beautiful eyes.

Beside him, Lin Yu Bai frowned.

At this time, Jiang Yun Zhu's chicken and paper had been placed in the pan for a while, but what was amazing was that the pan was sizzling. What everyone expected didn't happen. Instead, a scent drifted along with the floating breeze.

"Paper-wrapped chicken! This should be paper-wrapped chicken. I didn't expect it to be this dish." Gu Yan Zhou was standing in the crowd. Suddenly, he murmured as if he recalled something.

The girl on the stage was always beyond his expectations.

Standing next to him were all well-educated students. Hearing what he said, many people immediately remembered that there seemed to be such a dish in history.

According to records, this dish first appeared in the Nanyue Kingdom and was a secret dish of the Nanyue Kingdom.

Later, when Han First Emperor Liu Bang ascended the throne, the Nanyue Kingdom bowed down and paid tribute to the Han Dynasty every year. This paper-wrapped chicken was one of the must-have tributes every year. There was once a poem of praise; 'Nanyue as a vassal and is unified; a golden rooster is wrapped in paper, and the universe is in peace.'

Later, when the Nanyue Kingdom was destroyed, this dish disappeared. Everyone could only imagine the taste and magic of this dish from the few words in the history books. Unexpectedly, today in Wuling County, a girl actually reproduced this dish.

Was this the paper-wrapped chicken that the Han First Emperor praised so much? Jiang Yun Zhu was truly impressive.

But the paper in the pan wasn't black or broken. Also, the air was full of fragrance. Everyone was already leaning to one side. Jiang Yun Zhu truly made paper-wrapped chicken.

Everyone immediately became excited. It was right to come today. They may have witnessed history today?

From one audience to the other, everyone knew the miraculous origin of the paper-wrapped chicken.

On the stage, Magistrate Meng and the ten gentlemen heard those discussions. Magistrate Meng had the background of Jinshi. The ten gentlemen were well-read in poetry and books. They quickly remembered the paper-wrapped chicken and looked at the dish that Jiang Yun Zhu was serving. They couldn't wait.

This was paper-wrapped chicken! The paper-wrapped chicken that the Han First Emperor ate? Then they were lucky today.

Compared to this dish, Gao Shun's Dazhu Gansi didn't seem to stand out.

Gao Shun had never study and didn't know the origin of paper-wrapped chicken. He found Jiang Yun Zhu's chicken recipe was a bit interesting. But when he realized that everyone was looking at the paper-wrapped chicken and no one was paying attention to his Dazhu Gansi, his face immediately turned black.

Was Jiang Yun Zhu making paper-wrapped chicken? She certainly was. This dish was recreated in the Qing Dynasty. It flourished in the Republic Era. It was lost again in modern times. However, this time it wasn't because of the method, but because the jade buckle paper used to wrap the chicken was too rare.

This jade buckle paper was made from the tender bamboo produced in Changting. The production process was cumbersome and complicated. The finished product was as shiny as jade. It was expensive in this era. In modern times, machines have mostly replaced labor. Still, this kind of paper was very expensive. It could only be done manually, which was a bit unsustainable.

So a dish could sometimes show the changes of the times.

Jiang Yun Zhu was making this dish now as the timing was right. The jade buckle paper was readily available. Don't know if her dish would make Lu Prefecture's jade buckle paper expensive.

Thinking about it, Jiang Yun Zhu raised her hand to signal that her paper-wrapped chicken dish was ready.

Immediately, someone came over and brought this dish to Magistrate Meng and the others. They saw a pure white fine porcelain plate, painted with green bamboo patterns, with three flamboyant and phoenix characters "Qishanju" on the corner.

In the middle, there was a roll of something pure and white in color. After the paper-wrapped chicken was deep-fried, the outer paper didn't seem to have changed at all.

Just the appearance, it could be called gourmet food and beautiful utensils.

At this moment, someone took the scissors and cut the paper. Immediately, a gust of hot air burst out along with the fragrance.

The heat dissipated. Everyone looked inside and saw the chicken was as golden as jade.

Everyone was bewitched by the smell. Someone took out the chicken's meat inside and put some on the plate of Magistrate Meng. Then the ten gentlemen's.

A plate of paper-wrapped chicken. Even when Jiang Yun Zhu deliberately made more, each person would only get two to three pieces as eleven people were sharing it.

Of course, this was normal. It was food tasting, not filling the stomach. Two or three pieces was enough to get the taste.

Everyone looked at Magistrate Meng eagerly, waiting for him to eat first.

Magistrate Meng couldn't bear it anymore and took the chopsticks to pick up the chicken. Who would have thought that the chicken would slide away with the slightest inattentiveness at the first try. This goes to show the tenderness of the chicken.

The paper-wrapped chicken used the method of deep-frying through the paper, because there was fear that the chicken would be fried dry and it could also lock in all the flavors inside.

Magistrate Meng picked it up for the second time without changing his face and put the piece of chicken in his mouth.

Flavorful. It was this feeling. The aroma of various seasonings, chicken, and bamboo shoots. All the aromas were mixed together, shocking people's taste buds.

Magistrate Meng slowly tasted the meat in his mouth, trying to distinguish all the aromas one by one and remember it in his heart.

This was probably what people want to do subconsciously when they see beautiful scenery, beautiful things, and eat delicious food.

Seeing that Magistrate Meng had eaten, the others moved their chopsticks one after another.

Then there was only one thought in their minds. It was indeed a dish that Han First Emperor had full praise for. As expected, it was delicious!

Magistrate Meng savored it very slowly. Still, the three pieces of chicken soon entered the stomach. It was the same for the others. They looked at the empty paper bags, wanting more.

Someone suddenly thought, I wonder if that paper could be eaten? It seemed that this paper was made of young bamboo. On top of that, it had been dipped in seasonings and passed through the oil pan... wonder how it would taste.

Of course, this was a private thought. No one would say it out.

Gao Shun's dishes were finished before Jiang Yun Zhu's. In fact, before the attendants shared the chicken, they had already shared the Dazhu Gansi among the magistrate and the others. But everyone was eager to try the paper-wrapped chicken, so no one cared about that dish.

After eating the chicken now, everyone would naturally have to try the Dazhu Gansi. If not, how could the winner be decided?

Gao Shun's skills were excellent. Although he didn't try his best to make this Dazhu Gansi, it had a soft texture and a delicious taste.

It was just that everyone ate the mellow chicken before having this dish. So it wasn't that amazing.

In fact, this was Jiang Yun Zhu's strategy - aim for a head start. When cooking, sometimes the comparison was more than the color and fragrance.

The voting started. According to the process, whichever dish the judges finds delicious, they put the spoon in their hand on the plate in front of that dish.

Magistrate Meng was afraid of affecting everyone's fair judgment, so he told everyone to vote first before he votes. Just to avoid effect of leading.

The first gentleman put the spoon in his hand in front of the paper-wrapped chicken without hesitation.

The same goes for the second gentleman.

Then the third and the fourth. When it was the fifth's turn, he wanted to put the spoon on the plate before the dish of Dazhu Gansi. After all, he accepted the money from Manager Meng.

However, in the end he didn't dare. Everyone, including Magistrate Meng, was watching. He got to have a reason for voting the Dazhu Gansi, right?

He couldn't afford to lose face when the time comes and he can't explain.

The sixth, paper-wrapped chicken. The seventh, paper-wrapped chicken. The eighth, he was very conflicted. Manager Song asked someone to request his help. That someone happened to help his family before. He had already promised to help. Nnow?

He stood there, swaying from side to side. Finally closing his eyes, he put the spoon in front of Dazhu Gansi.

Fine. From now on, he won't owe that person any more favors.

Sure enough after voting, everyone was looking at him. He could only turn his face away, pretending not to see. In fact, he wished there was a crack in the ground for him to slip in.

With him taking the lead, the ninth voted for Dazhu Gansi.

The tenth voted for the paper-wrapped chicken.

Finally it was Magistrate Meng's turn. He smiled, "Personally, I think the paper-wrapped chicken is better. The paper-wrapped chicken in the past symbolized the glory of the Han Dynasty for hundreds of years. Now the paper-wrapped chicken has reappeared, our county will get better and better."

It sure was. There were iron mines in Wuling County. The people's lives would only get better and better.

"What Official say is very true." Everyone responded one after another.

In the first dish competition, Jiang Yun Zhu won.

Jiang Yun Zhu had been standing at the side, watching. She saw the two people who put their spoons at Dazhu Gansi's. She vaguely guessed that these two people might have something to do with Manager Song or Manager Meng.

Can't be helped. Where there were people, there were benefits.

Fortunately, she won.

In the audience, Xue Jing and the others were overjoyed. Jiang Yun Zhu won the first round. The rest became much easier.

In stark contrast to them were Manager Song, Manager Meng and others. They were like mourning. How did they lose?

They all looked at Gao Shun. Was this the top cook of the Marquis Anping Manor? He couldn't compare to a girl in a county town.

When Gao Shun was looked at by them, his already annoyed heart immediately burst into flames. He didn't do his best. What's more, that female! What's with the paper frying and attracting everyone's attention! He lost because he was unprepared.

Next, he'll let everyone see his strength.

The competition for the second round would begin immediately. At this time, more than an hour had passed since the start of the competition. Though it was lunch time, none of the onlookers wanted to leave. Instead, there were more and more people.

Although everyone couldn't eat the dishes prepared by the two cooks on stage, it was good to see and smell them.

Besides, such entertaining competitions don't happen all the time.

For the second dish, Gao Shun directly grabbed a duck, a chicken, and a pigeon. The duck used was an old drake. It had the densest meat. The chicken used was a wild chicken. The pigeon used was a young pigeon.

It was a technical job to remove the bones of the old male duck bit by bit without changing its appearance. However, Gao Shun did it extremely quickly.

Jiang Yun Zhu started to make the second dish. For the second dish, she originally wanted to make Luoyang Yancai, but after seeing Gao Shun's method, she temporarily changed her mind.

She knew that he was going to make three nested ducks. The processed pigeon belly was stuffed with ham, winter bamboo shoots and other things. Then the pigeon was stuffed into the wild chicken's belly and fill the empty space with various ingredients. Then the wild chicken was stuffed into the old male duck belly and other ingredients filled the space.

Finally, put the duck on a bamboo basket in a pan and simmer until cooked.

This dish used three kinds of birds- pigeon, wild chicken, and old duck. As the saying goes, 'It is better to eat one or two birds than half a catty of land animal'. Each of these three kinds of birds was very delicious. When handled properly, it was deliciousness on top of deliciousness.

Some people praised the delicacy of this dish as 'get off the horse when you smell the fragrance, and stop the carriage when you know the taste'. This goes to show its unique taste.

And the Luoyang Yancai that Jiang Yun Zhu was going to make was another type. First of all, this dish was beautiful. After it is made, this dish looks like a white peony floating in a clear pond. People couldn't tell whether it was a dish or a real peony flower was placed on the plate. At the end of winter, it was definitely eye-catching.

Also, this dish had a history. It was said that Empress Zetian once ate it and gave it the name of the dish.

Of course, the taste of this dish was superb. It was mainly hot, sour and delicious with endless taste.

However, comparing this dish with Gao Shun's three nested ducks was like chicken and duck talking to each other.

Jiang Yun Zhu looked at the pan she had put on the fire and smiled. He wanted to compare umami? Alright then, she would compete with him. When it comes to umami, what could beat the stuff in her jar!

That's right, what Jiang Yun Zhu was making in the jar was Buddha jumping over the wall. 'The jar full of meat and fragrance floated around; the Buddha abandoned Zen at the smell and jumped over the wall.' Even the Buddha loves this jar, let alone ordinary people?

So Jiang Yun Zhu stood there without moving.

At Gao Shun's side, he was busying away, while she didn't move at all. Everyone guessed that she might be using the contents of the jar as a second dish to compete with Gao Shun. It was just the jar had been stewed for so long and there was no smell coming out at all. Could it be delicious?

Thinking of someone comparing Jiang Yun Zhu's jar with tea, someone asked, "Who remembers how many ingredients she put in this jar?"

There were so many people and there were all kinds of people. Someone truly did count, "Fifty-eight kinds. All of which are top-notch and delicious ingredients."

After hearing this, everyone fell silent. It was hard for them to imagine how the stew in this jar would turn out.

Gao Shun's three nested ducks were time-consuming. Jiang Yun Zhu's Buddha jumping over the wall was also time-consuming. So after Gao Shun put the three nested ducks to cook, everyone was staring at each other, as if they had nothing to do.

"How about, let's start cooking the third dish first?" the master of ceremonies proposed.

Jiang Yun Zhu was fine with it. However, Gao Shun felt too tired. He tossed around for half the night last night. His energy was currently low.

Manager Meng brought him a chair and he sat there to recuperate.

Jiang Yun Zhu sat down and waited.

On the stage, Magistrate Meng was in good spirits, chatting with all the scholars about various things.

Under the stage, some people felt hungry and wanted to eat. But they were afraid of missing the exciting moment, so they stood there and endured it.

At this time, Gao Shun's three nested ducks began to emit aroma.

"It smells so good! My mouth is watering." Someone smelled the fragrance.

"Ain't that right." Someone echoed.

"This used duck, chicken, and pigeon. Just from the smell, I want to eat it." Someone said.

Some people's mind was on Jiang Yun Zhu's jar. After so long, "Why hasn't there been any smell yet?"

"That can't be. Even if it is stewed into a pan of soft porridge, there should be some smell."

...

Everyone was discussing.

After more than half an hour, Gao Shun stood up. His three nested ducks were mostly done.

Seeing this, Jiang Yun Zhu stood up. Her Buddha jumping over the wall was mostly done too.

Gao Shun opened the pot. Immediately a strong fragrance wafted around.

Jiang Yun Zhu lifted the lid of the jar. A faint scent of wine came out of the jar with an extremely delicious smell. Anyone who smelled this scent felt as if they were drunk.

Chapter 66

"What kind of smell is this?" Someone asked dizzily. There was the aroma of wine and meat. The combination of the two was overwhelming like a forest of meat and a pool of wine.

Smelling it carefully, the wine seemed to be Huadiao. What about the meat? Why was the meat so fragrant?

"Could it be celestial meat?" Some people couldn't help drooling. Their eyes were fixed on Jiang Yun Zhu's jar.

Celestial meat? Was it celestial meat?

It must be. Otherwise why was it so fragrant?

"No, I can't take it anymore. I want to eat." Some impatient people yelled. What to eat though? Go home and eat mantou? They could eat several, but won't feel reconciled! After smelling such a delicious smell, they could only eat mantou.

Some people were envious of the judges on the stage. If they knew earlier, they would also be a judge. Among those people on the stage, some weren't as good as them!

"When is Qishanju open for business?" Suddenly a person shouted loudly. It immediately gained everyone's support.

Yes, when would it open? They couldn't wait to get in and eat.

This competition seemed to be a best-of-three competition. Now that the second dish had been prepared, it was obvious that the food in Jiang Yun Zhu's jar was more fragrant. If she wins this competition, the whole competition would be over.

There was a lot of noise below. Manager Song, Manager Meng, and Gao Shun's expressions were all ugly.

Manager Meng looked at Manager Song with an anxious face. Didn't he say that they would definitely win? What should they do now?

Manager Song didn't bother to hide his identity at this time. In order to win this competition, he spent all his money. If he lost...

He walked to the edge of the stage and tugged on Gao Shun's clothes. That meant, think of a way.

Gao Shun couldn't believe it as well as feeling infuriated. He didn't know what Jiang Yun Zhu was making in that jar, but he knew that he lost this competition. He actually lost at the hands of a woman. If this was reported back to Lu Prefecture, wouldn't he lose all face?

He clenched his fists and first stared at Jiang Yun Zhu closely. Then he looked at the judges.

At this time, the attendants had already begun to divide the dishes among the judges. Gao Shun's dish was finished first. So this time, his dish was also divided first.

Old duck meat, wild chicken meat, and pigeon meat. A little bit of each was distributed among the judges. Then a spoonful of soup was poured on it.

The attendant did it carefully, but unfortunately no one cared at all. Everyone wanted to know what was in Jiang Yun Zhu's jar and why it was so fragrant.

The attendant began to divide the contents of Jiang Yun Zhu's jar. It was a bit difficult to divide, because there were fifty-eight ingredients in this jar. Each ingredient was only a bit, so it wasn't enough for eleven judges to divide. In the end, the attendant closed his eyes and fished from the jar and gave the judges what was given.

Magistrate Meng was first. It was scooped into the small bowl in front of him. Inside was a piece of sea cucumber, a piece of tendon, and a piece of quail egg.

Magistrate Meng licked his lips.

Then it was scooped out for the ten gentlemen. The first one got abalone, fish lip and a piece of flower mushroom.

The young man looked at the contents of the small bowl. It took a lot of effort to hold back to not immediately grab the spoon to eat.

Then the second gentleman, the third, and the fourth... They were served one after another. There were almost no duplicates.

It wasn't until the dishes were all served to the judges that Magistrate Meng smiled and declared, "Everyone, have a taste. See which dish is better."

Was there a need to taste it? It was clear at a glance who would win and who would lose. It was obvious that Jiang Yun Zhu's dish was more delicious.

Still, the procedure must be followed. Everyone agreed and picked up the spoons.

Scoop up a piece of abalone and it was in the mouth. The abalone was already umami, but a few layers of thick taste was added. Still, it didn't damage the taste of the abalone at all. The taste of the abalone had been maximized to the top.

Also, the soft and glutinous taste of abalone was vividly reflected in this dish.

Instead of eating abalone, eat a piece of flower mushroom. Putting the flower mushroom into the mouth, the person who ate it was immediately stunned. Was this flower mushroom? Meaty but not greasy. Soft but not slush. This flower mushroom was even more fragrant and delicious than meat.

There were only two or three pieces of food in each person's bowl. This time, even Magistrate Meng didn't get to taste it carefully. He just put all the food in his mouth and felt that the various flavors were like waves after waves. They crashed into the human taste buds and nerves.

Until there was only a little soup left at the bottom of the bowl in the end.

This soup was different from ordinary broth. It was heavy in color; brown in color, and had a strong taste. Unlike soup, it was more like stew juice.

Usually this kind of juice was undrinkable as the taste was too strong.

But everyone couldn't help but want to try it. They all scooped up some soup and put it in their mouths.

To everyone's surprise, the soup was thick but not greasy. It was delicious.

Everyone immediately drank the soup at the bottom of the bowl. They couldn't get enough of it.

Shouts could be heard from below. "Qishanju open quickly".

They actually wanted to end the competition and have a hearty meal.

However, procedure had to be followed. They rinsed their mouths and began to taste the three nested ducks made by Gao Shun.

The taste was very umami. The meat of the male duck was firm. The meat of the wild chicken was soft and elastic. And the meat of the young pigeon was tender and smooth. The combination of the three was perfect. This three nested duck dish was definitely a rare delicacy.

It was a pity that it encountered Jiang Yun Zhu's... By the way, what's the name of this dish? Magistrate Meng asked Jiang Yun Zhu.

"Buddha jumped over the wall." Jiang Yun Zhu replied.

"A good Buddha jumped over the wall." Magistrate Meng praised. The Buddha smelled it and wanted to jump over the wall to eat it. The name was appropriate!

When the voting started, the ten gentlemen voted first.

The first young man picked up the spoon and was about to move toward the Buddha jumped over the wall when suddenly, Gao Shun said, "Everyone, I'm not bragging. Marquis likes to eat the three nested ducks I made. He said that in middle south, if I'm second, no one dares to be first."

After finishing speaking, he looked at the judges one by one.

The people receiving his gaze were a little shocked and mad. What did he mean?

Gao Shun's meaning was obvious. Marquis Anping said his food was wonderful and they say his food wasn't as good as that of an unknown girl. Was Marquis Anping wrong, or were they wrong?

After the ten gentlemen were upset, they all pondered a lot. When beating the dog, one must check the owner. If Gao Shun lost face today and Marquis Anping was magnanimous, he should know that Gao Shun wasn't skills weren't on par. But if Marquis Anping misunderstood or someone was trying to sow discord in front of him?

These people have a small reputation in Wuling County. How could they compare with Marquis Anping Manor! A little finger from the other party could ruin their family.

Take a step back, even if Marquis Anping didn't care about this matter, Gao Shun would definitely bear a grudge against them. He was like the third-rank official in front of the prime minister's gate. It was heard that he was favored by Marquis Anping. If he retaliates afterwards...

The faces of the ten gentlemen changed.

Gao Shun stood there with his arms folded, carefully observing everyone one by one, as if he wanted to keep their appearance and reactions in mind. Afterward,... it must be nothing good.

The ten gentlemen were enraged, but they didn't dare to show it. They all turned to Magistrate Meng.

Magistrate Meng was furious when he heard Gao Shun threatening everyone. However, he was a little afraid of Marquis Anping. After more than ten years of hard work, he passed the Jinshi examination and got the official position of a county magistrate. What if he lose it because of this trivial matter?

Yes, he knew that a man would rather break than bend and that a gentleman knew what should be done and what should... That was the reasoning, When things happened, there were a few who could stick to it. Otherwise there wouldn't be so many dynasties and so many officials and only a few names would go down in history.

Magistrate Meng didn't speak.

His silence made Gao Shun energetic. He gazed at Jiang Yun Zhu proudly. She was good at cooking, so what? The one who wins in the end had to be him.

Manager Song and Manager Meng thought they were doomed. Unexpectedly, there was such a turnaround. At once, they were overjoyed.

It was almost time to vote, but the stage had suddenly fell silent. The people under the stage became noisy.

"Vote already. I'm starving to death. After voting, Qishanju, open the door quickly! I'm waiting to eat." This was someone clueless.

"Is Marquis Anping's Manor great? He's obviously not as good as the other party." Someone understood Gao Shun's meaning and muttered in a low voice, arguing for Jiang Yun Zhu.

"Of course the Marquis Anping is." Some people sighed, feeling that this competition was meaningless. Like this world, where the rich do whatever they want and the poor, even though their strength surpasses everyone, lose miserably in the end.

...

Everyone was talking about it, but Xue Jing and the others were filled with righteous indignation. What were these people doing? Everyone could see that Jiang Yun Zhu won. Do they insist on favoring Gao Shun? This life can't go on!

Xie Lian nervously held Xie Chen's hand.

Xie Chen's already slightly frowned eyebrows pinched even tighter.

Gu Yan Zhou's face darkened. He was about to say something, when a golden and jade-like voice sounded, "Marquis Anping, is he amazing?"

It was Lin Yu Bai.

He couldn't stand this matter. What's more, he felt that these people on stage were looking for death, no? Therefore, he decided to kindly remind them that it was Marquis Anping's turn to cover the sky with his hands in Lu Prefecture.

As soon as he said this, everyone looked at him. Immediately, everyone felt that their eyes lit up. This young man looked so handsome.

Gao Shun knew Lin Yu Bai. His face immediately changed. If others said that about Marquis Anping, he would naturally have something to say. But Grand Tutor Lin's Lin Family didn't seem to be afraid of Marquis Anping.

"This cook says he's the number one in the mid-south, so he is the number one in the mid-south? His cooking isn't on par. If he becomes the number one because of his words today and words spread around in the future, wouldn't it make people laugh?" Gu Yan Zhou lightly remarked.

Everyone heard this. That's right. If Gao Shun wins today, Wuling County's reputation in the future may stink even with the wind against it.

"A fox is pretending to be a tiger, and a dog is relying on others. Marquis Anping may not know what he is doing at all. Otherwise, Marquis might be the first one not to tolerate him." Xie Chen snorted.

With what he said, Marquis Anping couldn't pull down his face even if he wanted to shield Gao Shun.

Hearing this, Gu Yan Zhou looked at Xie Chen. He knew him. He seemed to be helping out at Qishanju.

Xie Chen remembers Gu Yan Zhou. The day Qishanju opened, he brought people to congratulate. He and Jiang Yun Zhu should have a close relationship.

The two looked at each other and nodded to each other.

As soon as the two of them sang together, everyone's emotions were instantly ignited. Everyone shouted, wanting Gao Shun to step down quickly and let the judges decide Jiang Yun Zhu as the winner and Qishanju open quickly. They want to enjoy a good meal.

Magistrate Meng and others were awakened by Gu Yan Zhou and Xie Chen's words. They don't have to be so afraid of Gao Shun. If they all decide on him to lose, he has to deal with everyone? On the contrary, them being so timid was embarrassing.

Magistrate Meng stood up, stretched out his hand to signal everyone to be quiet, and then took the lead in putting the spoon in his hand on the plate representing Buddha jumped over the wall. He felt that Buddha jumped over the wall was better than the three nested ducks.

Next was the ten gentlemen. This time, all of them voted for Buddha jumped over the wall.

"Qishanju's Buddha jumped over the wall, eleven spoons. Xishanju's three nested ducks, no spoons." The master of ceremonies announced the results of the judges' decision.

In the last round, Gao Shun had two spoons. Somewhat considered having a piece of cloth that is worn around one's loins. In this round, even his final cover up was torn off.

No spoon! Everyone cheered.

The result of this competition had been decided. The master of ceremonies directly announced, "Qishanju wins the second dish competition. Qishanju wins the entire cooking competition!"

"We won! We won! We won!" Mrs. Chen held Jiang Cheng's hand, weeping with joy. Finally won! Her heart almost jumped out now. Fortunately! Fortunately!

"En." Jiang Cheng smiled.

"The boss won! The boss is mighty." Xue Jing shouted at the side.

He was the one who yelled the loudest. Jiang Yun Zhu could hear his voice on the stage. She couldn't help but smile.

Just now, Gao Shun used the Marquis Anping Manor to suppress people. She didn't expect it. As a cook, he didn't even have the courage to admit his failure. It seemed that he was like that.

She wasn't too worried about Magistrate Meng or the ten judges being intimidated by him. She knew exactly what kind of people Marquis Anping and Lin Ting An were. As Xie Chen said, it was impossible for them to stand up for Gao Shun. On the contrary, if they knew about it, they would definitely punish him.

Still, she thanked Gu Yan Zhou and Xie Chen for their help. Oh right, there was that handsome young man.

But these weren't urgent. There was one thing that needed to be dealt with quickly.

Jiang Yun Zhu took out the competition contract she had signed with Manager Meng and directed it to Manager Meng, "Manager Meng, I won. Did you bring the house deed and title deed of Xishanju with you?"

Manager Meng was still in a daze. He couldn't believe it. He lost. Hearing Jiang Yun Zhu's words, he subconsciously looked at Manager Song. This matter had to... There was no shadow of Manager Song.

Manager Song noticed things going downhill just now and slipped away.

Manager Meng only felt that his vision darkened. He thought that he might as well faint.

Hearing Jiang Yun Zhu's words, Magistrate Meng said to Constable Head Hu, "I'll leave the rest to you."

Then he got into the sedan chair and left.

Constable Head Hu naturally knew what Magistrate Meng meant and immediately said to Manager Meng, "Manager Meng, since you bet, be willing to admit defeat. Don't get faint. If you faint, our brothers have to wake you up. On such a cold day, better not freeze."

Who were these constables? They were used to all kinds of rogues. As long as they want to, they would definitely have a way to make one submit.

Manager Meng stopped halfway and he bitterly responded, "Constable Head Hu, my house deed and land deed are all in my hometown. Could you give me a few more days?"

"Don't talk nonsense or I'll send you to prison. When your family get the deed and land deed is when I let you out?" Constable Head Hu said.

Manager Meng quickly waved his hand. The prison! Was that a place for people to stay?

Immediately, two constables followed him home and brought the house deed and land deed of Xishanju.

Manager Meng's wife was crying, beating and rolling around. That was no use.

When the constables was about to leave, she scolded Manager Meng loudly. Saying that he was delusional and insisted on making a lot of money. Now what happened? Even the store had been lost. What to do in the future?

Manager Meng was infuriated. If Manager Song hadn't insisted that they wouldn't lose, he would never have signed the contract.

"You're being used as a knife!" His wife continued berating.

Manager Meng immediately went to find Manager Song. He said that if he lose, he would pay his store money. Now he wants to hide? Not happening.

It was a pity that he didn't see Manager Song at all.

Manager Song was having a hard time right now. Gao Shun lost face this time. When he got off the stage, he vent all his anger on him and he could only bear it.

Now he didn't want to see anyone, especially Manager Meng.

Manager Meng knew that he was avoiding him on purpose. How could he give up so easily?.

The two had a complete quarrel and even became enemies.

The two constables came back quickly and handed over the title deed and land deed of Xishanju to Constable Head Hu. Constable Head Hu turned around and handed the two things to Jiang Yun Zhu.

Jiang Yun Zhu accepted it, "Thank you. If you are not busy, why not come to Qishanju. I would cook some dishes to thank you."

Constable Head Hu was thinking about eating Qishanju's food, otherwise he wouldn't have oppressed Manager Meng like this to sell favor to Jiang Yun Zhu.

Now that Jiang Yun Zhu accepted the favor and invited him to a meal immediately, he was of course happy, "Not busy. Not busy."

Jiang Yun Zhu turned around and declared to everyone, "Qishanju is now open. Everyone is welcome!"

"Hurry up and open the door. I'm waiting to eat your food."

"Boss is skilled. I'm set on your store from now on."

"Boss Jiang, when can I order that paper-wrapped chicken and Buddha jumped over the wall?"

"Yes, that's right." They wanted to eat.

...

At this time, Xue Jing opened the door of Qishanju. Everyone was afraid that there would be no place for them if they were one step behind. So they didn't have the mind to talk to Jiang Yun Zhu and rushed into the store one after another.

After a while, the store was overcrowded.

Li He, Mrs. Chen, Jiang Cheng, and the others all rushed to greet the guests.

The surroundings suddenly became empty. Only Shen Feng Ming was left standing there.

Jiang Yun Zhu met his eyes and said with a smile, "I won."

"I know." Shen Feng Ming said. He had been watching her.

The two looked at each other. For a moment, Jiang Yun Zhu seemed to see a smile in Shen Feng Ming's eyes.

After working for a while, they finally sent all the customers away. Everyone in the store had time to eat and rest.

Everyone slumped on their seats.

Suddenly, Xue Jing asked, "Boss, is the next door yours?"

Everyone became energetic. Although they already know, they wanted to hear Jiang Yun Zhu say it herself.

"Yes!" Jiang Yun Zhu responded with a smile. She won a store for nothing and it was completely renovated. She was in a good mood at the moment.

Everyone was overjoyed.

"Boss, is it connected?" Xue Jing asked. In this way, in terms of scale, Qishanju wasn't inferior to Baofulou. It could be regarded as one of the best restaurants in the county.

This... Jiang Yun Zhu got up and went outside.

Everyone quickly followed. In a short while, they all stood in front of the gate of Xishanju.

"I'll take this plaque down first. It's an eyesore," Xue Jing said. Immediately, he moved up the ladder and threw the original plaque aside.

It looked much better now.

Jiang Yun Zhu stepped inside and carefully inspected the decoration inside.

Not to mention, Manager Song and Manager Meng did a good job on the renovation. They could almost use it at once.

Jiang Yun Zhu stood there, looking at the next door. Connect them? Or do something else.

Chapter 67

In fact, it was more convenient to connect the restaurants. It was the same decoration. As long as the wall is gone, the two could be combined into one. In this way, Qishanju was likely to become one of the best restaurants in the county. It was just that the development was too fast. The manpower couldn't keep up.

Jiang Yun Zhu thought for a long time, but gave up.

A business doesn't only have horizontal development. Yes, horizontal development was the most effective. But in her dream in Marquis Anping Manor, she saw too many matters of 'one building being built tall, one host feasts, one's building collapsed'. It was better not to expand blindly. Best to take root and fight on steadily.

So she decided to develop vertically and open a teahouse next door.

Now there were many young men and women coming to Qishanju. If she opens a teahouse next door, the selling point will be elegant and clean. There was definitely no worry about losing business.

Moreover, the operation of the teahouse was simple- just prepare tea and some dried fruit and snacks. Still, the teahouse makes a lot of money. For example, a pan of Biluochun may only cost 30 wen and it could be sold for 80 wen. Definitely a good business.

Teahouses and restaurants have different operating hours. Teahouses were mainly open in the morning and afternoon, while restaurants were mainly busy at noon and evening. The two could rely on each other and exchange with each other. It could increase the closeness of customers and save money. Manpower, the more Jiang Yun Zhu thought about it, the more she felt that this method was feasible.

If it wasn't that she didn't have the capital, she thought of building an industrial chain that integrates eating, drinking, and entertainment later.

Of course, she was just thinking. Even if the people in Wuling County were rich, they were not enough to support her to build such a huge monster.

If it was changed to Lu Prefecture or the capital...

Forget it. She was thinking too far. Jiang Yun Zhu decided to plan her teahouse first.

Soon, she basically came up with everything.

"Open a teahouse?" Jiang Cheng and the others were a little at a loss when they heard her say that. How did she think of opening a teahouse? Obviously opening a restaurant was easier and more profitable.

Jiang Yun Zhu gave everyone the one, two, three, four reasons for her decision. Xie Chen was the first to react and looked at her with admiration. She was able to recognize herself clearly at such a time, not to advance aggressively, and not to be greedy for merit. Just this alone, not many big figures in the court could not do it. But she did.

Such a girl made people respect and admire. Don't know who will marry her in the future.

He suddenly saw Shen Feng Ming standing behind the crowd. Although he was standing there quietly, no one could ignore him.

Xie Chen suddenly thought of Gu Yan Zhou and pondered about himself. Today in May, success or failure depends on one action!

After hearing so much from Jiang Yun Zhu, the others began to feel that opening a teahouse was a good idea.

"Then it's decided." Jiang Yun Zhu finally said.

Everyone happily agreed. Anyway, whatever Jiang Yun Zhu said, implementing it was the right thing to do.

Jiang Yun Zhu started to make preparations for the teahouse. First, she ordered a plaque. This time she went directly to Shen Feng Ming, "Gentleman Shen, could you write a plaque for me?"

"Okay." Shen Feng Ming spread the paper and looked at her.

Jiang Yun Zhu had already thought up the name of the teahouse, and it was called "Chabuliang".

Shen Feng Ming already knew that she was going to open a teahouse, but when he heard the name, he was a little startled. He thought the name of this teahouse would be similar to Qishanju. Who would have thought that it would be these three words.

Tea not cold. It was said that when people leave, the tea was cold. However Jiang Yun Zhu's teahouse was called 'Chabuliang/tea not cold'. It seemed superficial, but it was actually worth savoring carefully.

Shen Feng Ming quickly wrote these three characters and handed them to Jiang Yun Zhu.

Jiang Yun Zhu took it. No matter how many times she read it, she liked his writing very much. Like the books he gave her silently, she couldn't put it down.

Jiang Yun Zhu got Li He to go to the plaque store, while she went to the county yamen with the title deed and land deed and officially transferred it to her own name.

This matter went smoothly. Shortly later, she got a new house and land deed.

Coming out of the county yamen, Jiang Yun Zhu looked at the red seal on the deeds. What to say. She was overjoyed. This was her first real estate in this era. After all, both the house in Changshi Village and the Qishanju store were rented.

One competition, one property. Jiang Yun Zhu felt that this kind of activity was welcomed a few more times.

Of course, it was just a thought. After all, who could guarantee that they could always win!

Back at Qishanju. The front store wasn't connected but the backyard could.

Jiang Yun Zhu found someone. The next day, those people came and with a few hammers, the wall collapsed. Qishanju and Chabuliang's backyard became one.

Immediately, the whole yard became more open.

Jiang Yun Zhu felt that she might as well get them to demolish the two side rooms in the middle that were a bit of an obstacle. The entire backyard became a large open space in the middle. There were seven main rooms in the back, two sides got two side rooms. Each side room was the layout of one room.

"There is no other bright place like this in the entire county." Xue Jing praised. Compared with this yard, his small yard was almost like a bird's nest. Not a pretty sight to see.

Li He and his wife were very envious. Jiang Yun Zhu had only come to Wuling County for less than a year. Now she had her own house and store. It would be great if they could buy their own house.

Mrs. Chen and Jiang Cheng grinning for a while and were stunned for a while. They couldn't believe that this big courtyard belonged to their family.

Their biggest dream last year was to buy a donkey and then build a more dignified house in the village.

Now that they have a house directly in the county city. What's more, it was excellent. They could wake up with a smile from their dream

"Maternal Grandfather, the yard is spacious enough now. Come and live in the county town." Jiang Yun Zhu said to old Mister Chen.

Old Mister Chen was somewhat tempted. But after hesitating for a while, he spoke, "Forget it. I better live in the countryside. It's quiet and clean."

Jiang Yun Zhu couldn't persuade him, so she could only give up.

"Which room do you want to live in?" Jiang Yun Zhu asked Shen Feng Ming after everyone had dispersed. Speaking of it, she wronged him. In Changshi Village, he lived in a side room with Yang Sheng. When he arrived in the county, he lived in a side room. This time the side house he lived in was demolished. Jiang Yun Zhu decided to raise his treatment no matter what.

Oh right, she needed to make his room better.

Shen Feng Ming casually pointed to a room, "This one then."

That room happened to be next to Jiang Yun Zhu's room.

"Okay." Jiang Yun Zhu responded and pushed open the door of that room.

The room was empty, which was suitable for Jiang Yun Zhu work with.

"What style do you like?" she asked.

"Style?" Shen Feng Ming was puzzled.

"That is, what kind of room do you want to make? Simple and practical, or elegant and quiet? Or something else. Also, what color do you like?" Jiang Yun Zhu turned her head and asked with a smile.

Shen Feng Ming never thought about this kind of problem. For him, as long as it could be lived in, he never cared about this kind of thing.

Looking at him like that, Jiang Yun Zhu probably guessed something, and couldn't help sighing that the life of this conductor Shen was actually quite rough.

She pondered for a while, "How, I'll handle it for you. If you don't like something, tell me."

"Okay." Shen Feng Ming agreed.

The two of them went out together. First, they went to the silk and satin store to buy some cloth to make curtains, tablecloths, etc.

"How about this color?" Jiang Yun Zhu asked while holding a piece of sky blue material.

Shen Feng Ming nodded.

"And this color?" A piece of maroon material.

"I don't like this."

"Alright then, what about this one?" A piece of autumn-scented material.

Shen Feng Ming shook his head.

Jiang Yun Zhu wanted to put it down, but she liked the color of this piece of material. Holding the material, she couldn't help asking, "Is this piece ugly?"

"It's good as long as you think it's good." Shen Feng Ming responded.

Jiang Yun Zhu didn't want to force it, but the words had already been spoken. So she said, "How about I'll get the store to make it and you could see the result then. If you like it, you keep it. If you don't like it, put it in my room. How about that?"

"Okay."

It was settled so straightforwardly.

They browsed around here and there. It simply made the nearby store owner and the server stare blankly. Mamma, where did these two good-looking people come from! Listening to their conversation, it should be a pair of young lovers who were about to get married.

So when Jiang Yun Zhu checked out, the store gave her a pair of pillowcases with apricot white bottom and lotus flowers embroidered on them because she bought a lot. The workmanship was exquisite and looked very good.

Jiang Yun Zhu thought it was a random gift from the store, so she handed it to Shen Feng Ming. It happened that the pillowcase matched the color of his room very well.

Shen Feng Ming took the pillowcase and looked at her back with a complicated expression. Lotus. Because there were many lotus seeds, it symbolizes having many children...

Then the two went to the furniture store and picked out furniture. Then there was the pen and paper store. Jiang Yun Zhu discovered that Shen Feng Ming actually liked reading.

Just like that, the empty room became colorful little by little.

"How is it?" When it was mostly done, Jiang Yun Zhu asked Shen Feng Ming.

Shen Feng Ming looked around, the room was elegant and fresh. She had put her thoughts into every place.

"Thank you, Miss Jiang." Shen Feng Ming's eyes seemed to have soft scatter of moonlight inside.

While helping Shen Feng Ming with the room, Jiang Yun Zhu wasn't idle. The various matters of the teahouse were proceeding in an orderly manner. She estimated that in a few days, her teahouse would be able to open for business.

These days in Qishanju, people have been asking when would the paper-wrapped chicken and Buddha jumped over the wall be sold.

In the end, Jiang Yun Zhu simply made it clear to everyone that these two dishes were too time-consuming and laborious and she wasn't going to sell them.

Everyone felt regretful.

"Boss, why aren't these two dishes for sale?" Xue Jing asked Jiang Yun Zhu privately. Was it time-consuming? He felt it was still okay.

"The cost of these two dishes is too high. Many people couldn't afford them." Jiang Yun Zhu replied. The paper-wrapped chicken was a little better. As for Buddha jumped over the wall, all the materials were top-grade. One jar cost more than a dozen liang silver. It wasn't suitable to sell in the county.

Besides, the ingredients used in these two dishes could only be bought in Lu Prefecture, which was too troublesome.

Xue Jing understood.

"Boss, if we go to Lu Prefecture, would we be able to sell these two dishes?" He laughed.

Jiang Yun Zhu glanced at him. Go to Lu Prefecture to do what?

Of course it was to open a restaurant! Open a large restaurant! Xue Jing smilingly went to work.

To open a teahouse, one must have high-quality tea. In this regard, Jiang Yun Zhu had ordered a batch of good tea. It would be ready for use when the teahouse opens. Second, have delicious desserts and snacks. Jiang Yun Zhu was going to work harder on this.

In the past few days, she had already come up with four or five kinds of snacks, but she always felt that there was something missing.

One day, she was flipping through the 'Conscience Fasting Recipe' that Shen Feng Ming had written silently for her when someone outside asked, "Is there anyone?"

At this time, the restaurant hadn't yet opened, so it probably wasn't a customer.

Jiang Yun Zhu felt the voice sound familiar, so she got up and went to the front to check.

Opening the door, it turned out to be Hu Er.

"Boss Jiang?" Hu Er looked at Jiang Yun Zhu, not daring to recognize her. Mainly, this Qishanju was beyond his imagination. The last time he sold hairtail and octopus to Jiang Yun Zhu, Jiang Yun Zhu told him when he had something fresh, send it directly to Qishanju next time.

When he went back that time, he specifically inquired about Qishanju. Everyone said they hadn't heard of it. He thought Jiang Yun Zhu was coaxing him.

As a result, this time he came back from selling things again, everyone was talking about Qishanju. Talking about how the owner of Qishanju beat the famous cook from Lu Prefecture and how delicious the food of Qishanju was.

He came over today to take a look. This Qishanju, had such a big storefront! As expected, it was amazing!

He regarded the next door as Qishanju as the decorations of the two were the same. Still, he wasn't wrong. Anyway, these two were now owned by Jiang Yun Zhu.

"Come back from the south? What new things did you bring back this time?" Jiang Yun Zhu remembered Hu Er and asked immediately.

Hu Er brought back a lot of things. After he came back, he planned to take these things to the market to sell. It was that after hearing the famous name of Qishanju, he immediately changed his mind and brought things directly to Jiang Yun Zhu.

"Boss Jiang, look for yourself. Say what you want, it's all cheap." Hu Er said, walked to the horse carriage behind, lifted the oilcloth covering the carriage, and pointed out everything to Jiang Yun Zhu .

There were a lot of things. The most eye-catching ones were those hams. The whole pig's hind leg was marinated into a bright red color, which looked rosy and attractive.

Jiang Yun Zhu moved closer, smelled the ham, and pleasantly exclaimed, "It's a three-year-old leg?"

Hu Er gave a thumbs up, "Boss Jiang got a keen eye. I heard that it takes more than three years for this stuff to taste good. So I went to many places to buy these few pieces of high-quality ham."

"It's hard work." Jiang Yun Zhu said.

"It's not hard." Hu Er said with a smile. It was all for living.

In addition to ham, there was bacon, cured fish, sausages, etc. These were meat. As for fruits- in this season, there were already fresh fruits in the south. But Hu Er was alone after all. He couldn't travel day and night. Fearing that those fresh fruits would be spoiled, he bought all kinds of dried fruit back instead of fresh fruit.

And then...Jiang Yun Zhu saw something and her heart skipped a beat. It was... She hurriedly grabbed a handful from the bottom of the carriage and carefully examined it. It was indeed a top-quality meigan cai.

"How many of these things did you bring back?" She hurriedly asked Hu Er.

"Quite a lot?" Hu Er didn't know why Jiang Yun Zhu reacted so strongly. He bought this thing from country folk that sold the ham. At that time, he felt this dried vegetable was cheap and could fill the gaps in the carriage. So he bought as much as he wanted.

Jiang Yun Zhu was relieved. She wanted to open her teahouse and make a good start. Now she had an idea.

Baked stuffed sesame biscuits! Thinking back not long after she arrived in Wuling County, she wanted to make this kind of sesame biscuits after eating the sesame biscuits in the town. Unfortunately, she never had the opportunity and materials. Now she was ready.

The next step was to negotiate the price. Jiang Yun Zhu picked more than half of the things in the carriage. The hairtail and octopus she bought from Hu Er last time have already been used up. She was worried that there were no new dishes in the store. Now she can be at ease.

Since she wanted so much, she was a big customer. And from the look of it she was experienced. Hu Er didn't dare to throw an exaggerated price. He directly offered a very fair price.

"Okay, let's calculate the price according to what you said." Jiang Yun Zhu was still relying on him to go to the south to bring her goods again. Considering that the price he gave wasn't too high, she immediately agreed.

Hu Er was overjoyed and hurried to help her unload the goods.

At this time, Li He and Xue Jing came out to help. They were busy for a while and put away all the things.

Jiang Yun Zhu handed the money to Hu Er and asked, "When are you going to the south again. Could I order another batch of these meigan cai from you?"

Hu Er accepted the money, "Okay. I'll sell the few things left in the carriage and then set off. I estimate it would take two or three days!"

Jiang Yun Zhu calculated the time. It should be around that time. This time, she directly paid Hu Er a deposit, telling him that next time he came back, he must bring her meigan cai and all of them should be this quality.

Hu Er left in satisfaction.

Jiang Yun Zhu went straight to the blacksmith store. She wanted to order an oven. With an oven, she would be able to cook a lot of delicious food in the future.

Six days later, the oven was ready and moved back to the store. The next day was the opening day of Jiang Yun Zhu's teahouse. It was perfect timing.

Let's make a batch of biscuits first. It was a chance to try this oven. Jiang Yun Zhu immediately went into action.

Take flour. First add hot water to turn the flour into wheat ear state. Then add cold water to knead the flour into a smooth dough. This method of heating first and then cooling make the dough more elastic.

At this time, take some lard and knead it into the dough, so that the biscuit crust would be more crispy.

Then put the dough aside and let it rest.

At this time, the stuffing is made. Top quality pork belly is diced. The meigan cai are processed and chopped. Then the two are mixed together and various seasonings are added. The stuffing is ready.

Then work on the flaky pastry dough. After the flaky pastry is done, the dough is mostly ready and could be wrapped.

There's skills needed when it comes to wrapping. Place a ball of flaky pastry in the middle of dough and wrap it. Roll the dough into a rectangular shape, then roll it up, flatten it out, and then wrap it with fillings. This way the biscuit skin would have many layers.

The finished sesame seed biscuit babies were each about the size of a plum and flat. Didn't lool unremarkable.

It didn't matter. Sprinkle a layer of sesame seeds and put them in the oven. Everything would be different.

Knowing that Jiang Yun Zhu was making new food today, everyone would peek at her from time to time despite being busy. They were wondering what delicious food she was cooking.

Soon, a special fragrance came out of the oven. The busy people couldn't help sniffing.

After a while, the scent became stronger. Jiang Wu couldn't help it, put down the book, and ran to Jiang Yun Zhu's side with his two short legs, "Elder Sister, what delicious thing are you making?"

"Baked stuffed sesame biscuits." Jiang Yun Zhu replied.

"Is it a the biscuit made of crab shell?" Jiang Wu asked curiously. There were crabs in the rivers of Wuling County. He had eaten those small river crabs before.

"You'll find out later." Jiang Yun Zhu replied. She checked the oven, felt that it was about time, and opened the oven.

Immediately, a gust of hot air and aroma rushed over.

After the heat dissipates, the contents were taken out of the oven. The plum-sized biscuits were bulging and golden on the surface. Weren't they exactly the same as crab shells in appearance. No wonder they were called crab shell biscuits.

In fact, this biscuit tasted like a baked crab shell. It was extremely crispy.

"Everyone come and taste it." Jiang Yun Zhu called. She wanted to know everyone's reaction to this baked stuffed sesame biscuit.

Everyone had been waiting for her to say this for a long time. After hearing these words, they all rushed over at an incredible speed. Then they looked at each other, feeling a little embarrassed. They seem to be running too fast?!

Soon no one cared about this problem. Everyone held a baked stuffed sesame biscuit.

It was piping hot. The sesame biscuits were fresh out of the oven. Everyone had it hopping between their left hands and their right hands. No one was willing to put down the sesame biscuits.

Quickly take a bite.

"Don't..." Jiang Yun Zhu wanted to remind everyone not to rush. But it was already too late.

Everyone bit down and were all scalded by the hot air from the biscuits. This biscuit was actually empty in the middle!

Everyone gasped. Still, they chewed the biscuits in their mouths.

The pork belly was baked until it was overflowing with fat and the rest was flavorful and delicious. The meigan cai had a special sweet taste. Coupled with the chili flavor in the stuffing, the taste was amazing!

"It's delicious, sister, I want more." Jiang Wu stuffed a sesame biscuits into his mouth and said eagerly with his mouth puffed out.

Others felt the same way. This sesame biscuits was delicious. They wondered how Jiang Yun Zhu made it.

Of course it was delicious. In history, two emperors were conquered by this kind of sesame biscuits. Qianlong even called this kind of sesame biscuits 'Imperial Seal Biscuit'. One, it was like the imperial seal. Two, to show how much Qianlong liked it.

Seeing them like this, Jiang Yun Zhu felt relieved. When the teahouse opens tomorrow, they could sell this kind of baked stuffed sesame biscuits. A mouthful of biscuits and a mouthful of tea. Tao Xing Zhi had once said, "Eat it into your stomach and enjoy boundless blessings together."

***WARNING! CONTENT CONTAINS DETESTABLE ACTION. THOUGH IT IS FICTION BUT IT'S ACTION THAT SHOULDN'T BE ENCOURAGE***

Chapter 68

On March 8, it was an auspicious day to open a business.

On this day, everyone in Qishanju woke up very early and got busy. They helped Jiang Yun Zhu and Xue Jing on making the snacks, reviewed how to make tea, and put melon seeds, peanut preserves and other things on plates... Once everything was ready, it was already bright outside.

"Boss." Xue Jing took the last piece of snacks out of the oven, feeling a little nervous.

Opening a teahouse was like re-beating the drum to start. Don't know if there were any guests today.

Jiang Yun Zhu didn't speak. She was a little uncertain. The restaurant opened at noon, when the students across the street were getting off school. The lion dance team activity would naturally attract customers. However, the teahouse had to open at 9am, when the students were all in class. Normally, the street had nobody.

But everything was prepared, "Let's go."

She took off her apron, adjusted her appearance in front of the water tank, and took the lead to go out.

Opening the entrance of Qishanju, many people were already surrounded outside.

"Boss Jiang, your teahouse is opening today? Congratulations." Seeing Jiang Yun Zhu coming out, Miss Ye got off the carriage and said. As soon as she moved, the curtains of the several carriages behind were all lifted. Inside were the misses who frequently ate at Qishanju.

They all got out of the carriage and congratulated Jiang Yun Zhu on the opening of her new store.

There were so many delicate misses. All were beautiful and well-dressed. They immediately became a beautiful sight on the street.

There was a steady stream of carriages coming from behind.

"You guys are? Many thanks!" Jiang Yun Zhu didn't expect so many misses to come today.

"We made an agreement to come and support you when your new store opened. If anyone doesn't come, we won't allow her to come to your store for eating and drinking tea in the future!" The round-faced Miss Tao said jokingly.

Hearing what she said, Jiang Yun Zhu seemed to understand what was going on and was extremely grateful in her heart.

At this time, all the misses immediately started talking one after another, "No, it's rare that there is a place like Qishanju for us to eat and play. If anyone doesn't come, don't come in the future."

"Boss Jiang, you're opening a teahouse? Would we be able to sit in your teahouse every day in the future?"

"That's great. We can only come to Qishanju at noon and evening and have to leave after eating. We couldn't talk properly. With the teahouse, we could come when we are free. This time we can have fun!"

"Boss Jiang, the new store opens today! What delicious food do you have?"

"Yeah, why is that octopus ball gone? I haven't eaten enough yet."

...

All the misses sang and chirped together. Jiang Yun Zhu experienced the troubles of happiness. When they asked her all at once, she didn't know who to answer first.

"Boss Jiang, congratulations!" Compared with these misses, the words of the gentlemen next to them were relatively simple. It was all words of congratulations.

Jiang Yun Zhu took a rough look and found that out of the ten gentlemen who were judges last time, seven of them came. Many of the rest were regular customers of her store. They came here to congratulate her when they heard that her new store opened today.

Jiang Yun Zhu felt warm in her heart, "Thank you everyone for coming to join us. The new store is opening today. Tea and snacks are all half price."

This was her temporary decision, in order to repay everyone's kindness.

When everyone heard this, they immediately cheered. Half price? Sure enough, it was right to come today.

At this time, the lion dance team began to dance. The sound of gongs, drums and firecrackers rouse the atmosphere to an upsurge.

When it was time for the opening, Jiang Yun Zhu climbed up the ladder, reached out and pulled off the red cloth, revealing the three characters 'Chabuliang'.

"Good!" Everyone cheered. They don't know who wrote these words but it was still amazing when seeing it.

"Tea not cold, 'the heart of a customer is always hot; even when the person left, the tea isn't cold'. A good tea not cold. It sounds pleasant to hear. Boss Jiang, just base on your teahouse's name, we know your heart on how to treat us."

"That's right, tea not cold. I hope we can meet here forever."

"'It's hard to make a bosom friend even after a thousand cups of fine wine; a cup of clear tea could make one intoxicated'. As long as tea isn't cold, we won't disperse."

...

As expected of the educated gentlemen and misses. One person talked about his feelings, and the others followed immediately. Some gentlemen even looked at the young ladies while talking. Don't know if they were talking about this teahouse or talking about people.

No matter which, it was all good. Youths ah!

"Thank you everyone for your kindness." Another burst of firecrackers sounded and Jiang Yun Zhu thanked everyone.

Beside her, Jiang Cheng, Mrs. Chen, Xue Jing, Xie Lian, Xie Chen and others were all present. The new store opened today. Jiang Yun Zhu took the opportunity to distribute benefits to everyone. Everyone was wearing brand new clothes, standing there laughing and talking.

"Congratulations, congratulations." Everyone gave another round of congratulations.

"Everyone, please come in." Jiang Yun Zhu made a gesture of invitation. Everyone rushed into the store immediately. They wanted to see what the store was like and what delicious food it had.

This store was almost a replica of Qishanju. It made people find it close and familiar. Only in the east corner, there were a few more rows of bookshelves and some paper and pens.

"These books, everyone can read at will." Jiang Yun Zhu explained, "There are these pens and papers. If you need them, you can use them as long as you don't take them out of the store or waste them on purpose."

After hearing this, everyone was full of praise. This kind of teahouse was what they wanted. They could have discussions here in the future.

There were those who didn't eat in the morning and were waiting to come to Jiang Yun Zhu's place for tea and snacks. They immediately began to look at the menus hanging on the wall.

Tea, from ordinary green tea to top-quality Biluochun, was available here. Snack seeds and candied fruits were all available here. Of course, the most attractive thing for everyone was the snacks in the store.

They have eaten the milk red bean cake. It was delicious. They all knew what cloud cakes, peanut cakes, osmanthus cakes, etc. were. But what were lotus root cakes, cotton cakes, and mince cakes? By the way, also the baked stuffed sesame biscuits! Biscuits made from crab shells?

Everyone found it novel. They wanted to order a plate to try.

In the end, they chose two dishes with difficulty, ordered a pan of tea, and waited anxiously.

The tea was served quickly. When everyone drank it, no matter whether it was the cheapest tea or the top-grade Biluochun, they were all brewed properly. The fragrance of the tea was overflowing.

Of course, Jiang Yun Zhu had learned how to properly make tea in the past. Not to mention these teas, no matter if it was the rare sparrow tongue and snow-topped greens, she could pull out 100% of their taste.

After only two sips of tea, the snacks were put on the table.

The lotus root cake! Snacks were actually able to be made this thin. It was even thinner than the dragon beard cake. The cake was full of the lotus root fragrance. No wonder it was called the lotus silk cake. Mince cake was filled with various nuts and dried fruits. It was fragrant and soft, but not greasy. Quite yummy.

Osmanthus cake, cotton cake, cloud cake... every kind of cake was delicious, but the most special one was the crab shell cake.

The freshly baked stuffed sesame biscuits were exactly the same as crab shells. One bite down, it was crispy and refreshing.

After eating too many sweet cakes, the umami and spicy sesame biscuits had a special taste.

Almost every table would order a portion of baked stuffed sesame biscuits. Everyone was satisfied with it. Xue Jing and others were happy with being busy.

Unbeknownst to them, someone was looking at this side. He was burning with rage. It was Xie Yong. Last time he wanted to put his bill under the name of Xie Chen or Xie Lian, but Jiang Yun Zhu refused and called the constables.

The constables didn't care so much. They put him in jail and said once the family send the money, they would let him go.

Of course, Xie Chen and Xie Lian wouldn't give the money. So he had been kept in prison.

It had been so many days and he only owed Qishanju 48 wen at that time. Seeing that there was no money to fish, the prison head released him.

Xie Yong was currently disheveled and umkempt. When he left the cell, the first thing he did was to find Xie Chen and Xie Lian to settle accounts. This pair of unfilial siblings had the heart to put him in prison for so many days and ignore him. He insisted on making them look good.

So he came to Qishanju. Just in time to see Xie Chen and Xie Lian standing there in brand new clothes with smiles on their faces.

How could Xie Yong not be burning? He was suffering in prison, while these two were enjoying happiness outside.

He was about to rush into the teahouse and beat them up but when he saw Jiang Yun Zhu, he was a little frightened. So he spat on the ground and wobbled home.

Xie Chen and Xie Lian didn't know that Xie Yong had been released from prison. After the business of the teahouse stabilized, Xie Chen left.

It was already the eighth day of March. The examination would be in May, so he had to quickly prepare for the examination.

Jiang Yun Zhu understood and told him to go back with an eased mind.

In the evening, Qishanju closed. Xie Lian returned home with a food box. The food box contained snacks and dishes that weren't sold out in the store today. Jiang Yun Zhu didn't want to waste it, so she gave her some to bring back.

Xie Lian had already eaten in the store. This box was for Xie Chen. She carried the food box in a merry mood. She couldn't wait to go home and show Xie Chen what was in the food box and let him eat.

She got home. When she opened the door, she found that the door was unlocked. Xie Lian assumed Xie Chen had returned. So she walked in briskly.

The room was very dark. Xie Chen didn't turn on the lights?

Xie Lian lit the lamp and saw a person sitting in the room.

Seeing that person's appearance clearly, Xie Lian's skin suddenly turned cold. Her whole body felt as if she had fallen into an ice cellar. The food box in her hand fell directly downward.

Xie Yong caught the food box and said in a dark voice, "What good stuff you got there? It smells so good."

Opening the food box, he saw a plate of sweet and sour pork ribs, a plate of twice-cooked pork, a bowl of white rice, and even three snacks inside.

Xie Yong became more and more infuriated, "You eat these every day. No wonder, you got all fair and plump. But, have you forgotten that you have a father, who is suffering in prison!"

The last sentence, he hollered it out in rage.

Xie Lian was so frightened that her body trembled like sifting chaff, like leaves falling in the wind.

Xie Yong was very satisfied with her reaction. He took a step back and sat on the stool, "What are you standing there for? Go, get me chopsticks." Eat first. After he was done, he'll properly play with her.

Xie Lian didn't seem to hear what he said.

"Still not going?" Xie Yong raised his eyebrows.

Xie Lian hurried out to get the chopsticks and handed them to him with shaking hands. In the midst, the chopsticks almost fell to the ground.

Xie Yong took it impatiently, "Trash."

He berated and started to gobble up the dishes.

Soon, he cleaned out the two dishes and a bowl of rice.

"Water." He said.

Xie Lian picked up the kettle and poured him a glass of water.

While drinking water and eating snacks, he looked Xie Lian up and down.

Xie Lian wore a new light grass-colored long dress today. The girl had a slender waist and her skin was much fairer than before. Coupled with those big watery eyes, she was very beautiful.

"Just like your lowly mother, only know how to seduce men." Xie Yong scolded. Then he suddenly pulled Xie Lian into his arms and touched her body.

Xie Lian's eyes widened in horror. She wanted to shout, but she couldn't.

Her eyes slowly dimmed. Despair overwhelmed her like a sea.

"Don't shout. That's right. If your elder brother sees it, he won't want you. If others see it, they will call you lowly!" Xie Yong said proudly.

At this time, his hand had reached into Xie Lian's clothes.

At this moment, footsteps came from outside, "Ah Lian?"

It was the voice of Xie Chen.

Xie Lian burst into tears.

Xie Yong cursed in a low voice and reluctantly let go of Xie Lian. He was a little apprehensive toward Xie Chen.

Xie Lian slumped to the ground and curled up into a ball, like a small animal.

When Xie Chen came in, he saw Xie Lian curled up there with tears all over his face. Beside her, Xie Yong was full of anger.

Xie Chen didn't know what almost happened now like the way he didn't know what Xie Yong did to Xie Lian before. He thought that Xie Yong had beat and scolded Xie Lian again. His fist punched toward Xie Yong, "I told you, don't touch Xie Lian."

His fists were precise and ruthless. Xie Yong hadn't had his guard up against his sudden attack. He was hit in the face and fell to the side.

But soon, Xie Yong stood up, "Alright, dare to hit me!"

He picked up the pole next to him.

Seeing this, Xie Chen pursed his lips and picked up the kitchen knife next to him.

His face was extremely ferocious, as if he wanted to go all out against Xie Yong.

Xie Yong looked at the kitchen knife and became timid at first. Then he spoke, "What? You want to chop your father? Try it."

Xie Chen clenched the kitchen knife in his hand, "I said, don't touch Xie Lian."

"You were all born by me. Why can't I touch? Father beats his son, the official won't care about it." Xie Yong said.

"What I owe you, I will pay you back."

Back to the original question again. Xie Yong spat. He must accumulated eight lifetimes of bad luck to give birth to such a rebellious son. Throwing away the pole, he went back to his room to sleep.

Xie Chen put down the kitchen knife. After a while he came back to his senses and went to help Xie Lian, "Did he hit you?"

Xie Lian threw herself into Xie Chen's arms, crying until breathlessness.

Xie Chen roughly checked her body and felt relieved that she didn't seem to be injured.

In the evening, it was time to go to bed. Xie Chen wanted to send Xie Lian back to her room, but Xie Lian held his hand firmly. No matter how much he comforted her, it was useless.

Without a choice, Xie Chen let Xie Lian sleep on the bed. He moved a chair and sat there to accompany her.

In the middle of the night, Xie Lian was awakened by a nightmare, and subconsciously grabbed out. Feeling that Xie Chen was beside her, she felt relieved. But after she laid down and looked at Xie Chen's tired face, she couldn't help but sob again.

She didn't want him to work so hard, but she was so scared!

The next morning, Xie Yong got up early and berated in the yard.

Xie Lian grabbed Xie Chen's arm, shaking with fear.

Xie Chen took her out the door directly.

When the two arrived on the street, Xie Chen looked at the somewhat empty streets and felt that this could no longer go on. Xie Lian cannot be under the same roof as Xie Yong, otherwise she would be afraid and he would not be able to study in peace.

Go rent a house? They had before. But once Xie Yong made trouble, they refused to rent it to him.

Then what else could he do?

Xie Chen looked at the vast sky and said to Xie Lian, "How about we go to the capital early?"

He hadn't collected enough travel expenses, but he could earn money while traveling.

Xie Lian only held his hand tightly. She would go wherever he went, as long as he didn't leave her behind.

Before the teahouse opened, Xie Chen brought Xie Lian over. Both of them weren't in good condition. Xie Chen's eyes were bloodshot, while Xie Lian seemed to have cried as her eyes were a little swollen.

"What happened?" Jiang Yun Zhu asked. She got Li He to bring each of them a glass of milk and some snacks.

Xie Chen opened his mouth, but in the end he didn't say anything about Xie Yong. He had troubled Jiang Yun Zhu last time. He didn't want to trouble her again.

"The examination is coming up in May. I want to take Xie Lian to the capital ahead of schedule." He only said.

"Didn't you say you're leaving in April?" Jiang Yun Zhu was puzzled.

"It's better to go early, otherwise if something happens along the way, it would be troublesome if I got delayed." Xie Chen explained.

Jiang Yun Zhu felt that what he said was reasonable. In ancient times, many scholars fell ill on the way to take the exam. If one leaves early, there's more time and won't have to hurry.

"You could decide for yourself. I'll give your pay and Xie Lian's pay." Jiang Yun Zhu took out the abacus and started counting.

Xie Chen wanted to say that Xie Lian's wages could be forfeited. She was leaving within a month of working. If changed to another workplace, she would definitely not get a penny.

But he knew Jiang Yun Zhu. She would definitely give it if she said so.

In the end, he didn't say anything but silently jotted down this kindness in his heart.

At this time, Jiang Yun Zhu had done the calculations. The two of them got a total of one liang and three coin silver.

"So many?" Xie Chen was surprised.

"That's right. Xie Lian is one of the top ten employees in my store. Of course she should be paid more." Jiang Yun Zhu laughed.

When Xie Lian heard, she looked at Jiang Yun Zhu. Her eyes became bright again. She was the first person to praise her like that. She liked it and was very reluctant to leave here.

Jiang Yun Zhu smiled, took out the silver and handed it to Xie Chen.

"Thank you!" Xie Chen solemnly responded.

"You deserve it." Jiang Yun Zhu only said.

Xie Chen pondered for a while, "I'll settle the teahouse's account for yesterday. Anyway, I won't be able to leave today."

"Go do your stuff. The account, I'll..."

Xie Chen insisted on this.

"Okay." Jiang Yun Zhu said, "Then you guys have this milk and snacks first before going to work."

Xie Chen ate with Xie Lian. Xie Chen helped Jiang Yun Zhu settle the accounts. The teahouse's opening was yesterday. There were a lot of accounts.

Xie Lian went to the kitchen at the back to work. In her free time, she touched everything there with nostalgia, recalling the happy days spent here.

Soon, the teahouse opened and some guests came in.

At 9pm, Xie Chen finished the account and handed the account to Jiang Yun Zhu.

The teahouse opened yesterday and made a total of two liang. It didn't look like much, but it was half price yesterday.

Thinking about it this way, the teahouse seemed very profitable.

Jiang Yun Zhu nodded with a smile. It was as she expected.

At this time, Xie Chen and Xie Lian were leaving. Li He and the others knew that they were leaving, so they came out to see them off. Especially Xie Lian. They know each other for a long time, but they had worked hard together and watched Qishanju get better and better. Now that she is leaving... everyone was very reluctant.

Xie Lian was reluctant to part with them. Everyone bidded farewell.

"Have a safe trip."

"Take care on the road."

"If you have a chance in the future, definitely come back and visit us."

...

Qin Yao and Lin Yu Bai entered the teahouse. When she heard this, she immediately stood there in a daze. Xie Chen wants to leave and bring Xie Lian to the capital?

Xie Chen and Xie Lian had bid farewell to everyone and walked outside. At this time, he saw Qin Yao.

The eyes of the two were glued together.

In the end, Xie Chen took Xie Lian and left without looking back.

Qin Yao stood there, at a loss.

The Qin Family had a rice and grain store in Wuling County, as well as a courtyard. In the courtyard, Qin Yao took out a purse and stood there hesitantly.

Suddenly, she gritted her teeth and walked out holding her purse.

"Ah Yao!" A person stopped her, and it was Lin Yu Bai.

Qin Yao looked up at him.

"Ah Yao, don't go." Lin Yu Bai looked at the purse in her hand and earnestly urged, "Your father won't agree to you two being together."

"How would you know? If he gets a rank..."

"Unless he gets into the top three or that there are vacancies in the court, he is mostly sent outside to be a county magistrate. Your father set his eyes on Subprefectural Magistrate He's son."

"I won't marry him." Qin Yao said angrily.

"Ah Yao, I..." Lin Yu Bai wanted to say something more, but Qin Yao had already left. He chased after her but there was no sign of her.

Qin Yao came to the street where Xie Chen lived and lingered there.

At this time, Xie Yong happened to come out from the house and saw her. He remembered her, a lady from a rich family. It seemed that she was interested in Xie Chen.

Thinking of this, Xie Yong felt resentful. The last time he heard the news, he was very happy for a long time, thinking that if Xie Chen could marry a rich man's daughter, he would be able to live a good life as well.

Judging by Xie Chen's behavior, he won't spend it on him even if he had money.

He looked at Qin Yao again. At the age of fifteen or sixteen, her skin was so tender that water seemed as if it would flow out with a pinch. A thought that shouldn't have flashed through his mind. A good matter was interrupted last night. Now he happened to...

With that in mind, he walked toward Qin Yao.

Qin Yao remembered him, Xie Chen's father.

"Excuse me, is Gentleman Xie at home? I have something to say to him." Qin Yao lowered her head, not daring to look at Xie Yong. Her face blushing.

Xie Yong took in with burning eyes, "He is. I'll take you to see him."

"En." Qin Yao's voice was like a mosquito.

Xie Yong walked in front, she followed behind. The two walked through the street one after the other.

In a house next to the street, Xie Lian was sitting in the courtyard. She happened to see two people passing by outside.

After a while, her mind caught up. She hurried to the door to tell Qin Yao to halt and tell her that Xie Yong wasn't a good person.

But when she opened her mouth, she couldn't make a sound. She was so anxious that she ran over as she slapped the wall, hoping to attract Qin Yao's attention.

Qin Yao was so immersed in her own world that she didn't pay attention to the sound behind her.

At this time, she entered Xie's house.

Xie Yong noticed Xie Lian behind him and sent her a fierce expression.

Xie Lian was immediately frightened and slumped there.

Satisfied, Xie Yong closed the door with his backhand.

Xie Lian leaned against the wall. Her eyes reddened in angst. What should she do?

Yes, go find Xie Chen. Xie Chen went to the academy just now and had told her to wait for him at the neighboring auntie's house first.

She suddenly ran to the academy like crazy.

Soon she arrived at the academy. Looking at the shadowy rooms, she stood there and cried with anxiety. There were so many rooms. Such a big place, where could she find Xie Chen?

"Boss, Xie Lian, she seems to be crying." Li He was working away in the teahouse and suddenly caught sight of Xie Lian on the opposite street. He notified Jiang Yun Zhu.

Jiang Yun Zhu looked outside. It was indeed Xie Lian. What happened to her?

"What happened?" Jiang Yun Zhu went out, walked up to Xie Lian, found that she was indeed crying, and asked gently.

When Xie Lian heard her voice, she grabbed her hand as if she had found a savior and whimpered.

"Where's your elder brother? You want to find your elder brother." Jiang Yun Zhu asked tentatively.

Xie Lian nodded and shook her head again, continuously signaled with her hands.

She was so anxious that she made messy gestures. Jiang Yun Zhu couldn't guess what she wanted to say at all.

Suddenly, she guessed, "You, no, your home?"

Xie Lian nodded, anxious and excited. Suddenly, she let out a hoarse voice, "Save!"

The voice was as harsh and unpleasant as fingernails scratching the ground.

"Save?" Jiang Yun Zhu's heart skipped a beat. Save who?

At this time, Xie Lian suddenly thought of something and took out a handkerchief from her sleeve. The handkerchief was very well made. There was a small Qin character embroidered on the corner. It was given to her by Qin Yao to wipe her tears last time and said that this handkerchief was given to her.

It was the first time she received a gift. She carefully kept it with her.

When Jiang Yun Zhu saw the character Qin on the handkerchief, she immediately thought of a lot. Ever since she saw Qin Yao, she had always had a question in her heart- how could she ed up in that state in her dream? Could it be...

"Your home?" She grabbed Xie Lian's hand and asked anxiously.

Xie Lian nodded immediately.

"Take me there quickly."

Xie Lian ran over there.

Jiang Yun Zhu followed for a few steps, then stopped suddenly, "Wait for me, I'll be right back." Then she turned back to Qishanju. When she reached the backyard, she saw Shen Feng Ming coming out of the room. She grabbed his hand and ran outside.

She thought now that if something happened, it would be difficult with just her and Xie Lian.

Bringing Shen Feng Ming along was faster than calling those constables and it was effective.

Shen Feng Ming was clueless. Still, he quickly returned the grasp of Jiang Yun Zhu's hand.

The two quickly returned to the street.

Xie Lian was a little afraid of Shen Feng Ming, but when she saw him holding Jiang Yun Zhu's hand, she felt much more stable, and hurried home.

***WARNING- SLIGHTLY DISTURBING AND VIOLENT SCENE***

Chapter 69

The three of them arrived at Xie's house very quickly. The gate of Xie's house was closed. Shen Feng Ming kicked it open and the three of them entered the yard.

Trembling all over, Xie Lian pointed at Xie Yong's room. She dared not go there.

Jiang Yun Zhu and Shen Feng Ming walked over. The door of the room was ajar. The two could see what was going on inside.

On a broken bed, there was a woman leaning on her side. Only her lower half of her dress could be seen. There were loud sobs.

There were two people beside the bed, Lin Yu Bai and Xie Yong.

At this time, Xie Yong was holding a belt in his hand. The belt strangled Lin Yu Bai's neck and had him against the bedpost.

Lin Yu Bai held the belt with both hands, trying to break free, but he couldn't. His face had turned from red to purple. He was about to die.

"Save..." Jiang Yun Zhu wanted Shen Feng Ming to save him.

Shen Feng Ming had already jumped into the room. Only a flash of a figure was seen within the room. Jiang Yun Zhu didn't see his movements clearly and watched Xie Yong fly backwards, hit the wall hard, and fell down again.

It was too sudden. Xie Yong was lying on the ground with several broken ribs. Still, he didn't make a sound.

Jiang Yun Zhu hurried into the room and went to check Lin Yu Bai first. He was paralyzed on the ground and panting heavily. Seemed to be fine.

Then she went to see the person on the bed. Qin Yao was lying there with her hands and feet tied. Her mouth was gagged with a rag. Her face was full of tears and paled from crying.

Jiang Yun Zhu first took out the rag from her mouth before untying the ropes on her hands and feet and asked with concern, "Are you okay?"

"Yu Bai?" Qin Yao rushed to the bedside to check on Lin Yu Bai's situation.

"I'm fine." Lin Yu Bai said weakly.

Qin Yao burst into tears.

"Don't cry. I'm fine." Lin Yu Bai pulled the corners of his mouth, trying to show a smile. But because of the pain in his neck, he failed in the end.

"It's okay." Jiang Yun Zhu took out a handkerchief and gave it to Qin Yao. Then she looked at Lin Yu Bai. Why was he here?

It turned out that not long after Qin Yao left the house, Lin Yu Bai went out to look for her. Not long after Xie Lian left, he found Xie's house. Though there was no answer when he knocked on the door, he heard voices inside. So he knocked louder.

This time someone came to open the door for him. It was Xie Yong.

Xie Yong said that he had never seen Qin Yao, but Lin Yu Bai didn't believe it and insisted on going in to check.

Xie Yong's fun was ruined again and became angry from embarrassment. He even wanted to kill Lin Yu Bai.

Jiang Yun Zhu looked at Xie Yong. This person was bad to the bone.

At this moment, Xie Yong came back to his senses. Knowing that the matter had been exposed, he endured the pain and headed out, trying to escape.

Of course Shen Feng Ming wouldn't let him escape. He picked up a chopstick from the table next to him and threw it at Xie Yong.

The chopsticks hit Xie Yong's side and Xie Yong flew straight forward. Its strength was evident.

Xie Yong laid there, out of breath for a long time.

At this time, there were footsteps from outside. Xie Chen came back. When he saw the broken door, his expression immediately changed. Entering the courtyard, he found Xie Lian standing aside tremblingly and Xie Yong lying on the ground. While in the room, Qin Yao was lying on Xie Yong's bed and weeping, Jiang Yun Zhu and Shen Feng Ming were standing next to her, and Lin Yu Bai was sitting on the ground. His neck had a purple strangle mark on it.

His mind went blank. He didn't know what happened.

When Xie Lian saw his arrival, she immediately found her backbone and gestured with shaking hands.

The two siblings have lived together for more than ten years. Xie Chen quickly understood what Xie Lian meant. Xie Yong actually wanted to… toward Qin Yao...

He felt cold all over. His mind was about to explode. Xie Yong, how can he, how dare he! He couldn't imagine that if that kind of thing happened, he...

Suddenly, he entered the kitchen next to him and took out a kitchen knife from it. Years of hatred finally broke out at this moment. He never wanted to see Xie Yong again. He didn't have such a father.

"Don't!" Jiang Yun Zhu hastily shouted. She knew that Xie Chen hated Xie Yong, but it was fine to leave this matter to the officials. It wasn't worth him to get blood on his hands and ruin his future.

When Xie Lian heard this, she quickly hugged Xie Chen.

Xie Chen looked at Xie Yong with a distorted face. After a long time, he threw the kitchen knife aside and went into the room to check the situation of Qin Yao and Lin Yu Bai.

The constables from the yamen came quickly and took Xie Yong away.

This case couldn't be more clear. Xie Yong had ill-intentions toward Qin Yao and wanted to kill Lin Yu Bai. Although he failed, it was a felony. Magistrate Meng sentenced him to 30 years in prison. Xie Yong was thirty-seven years old this year. Thirty years! He may not be able to get out in this lifetime.

It had been two days since this incident. Everyone seemed to have not recovered.

Of course, Xie Chen and Xie Lian didn't successfully leave. These two days, Xie Chen had been taking care of Qin Yao.

As for Lin Yu Bai, he wore a scarf-like thing around his neck and seemed to have returned to his previous appearance.

"Thank you, Boss Jiang and this Gentleman for saving my life." Lin Yu Bai put the two boxes in front of Jiang Yun Zhu, "A small thank you gift to convey it."

"I didn't help much." Jiang Yun Zhu turned to Shen Feng Ming. If he wanted to say thank you, he should thank him.

Shen Feng Ming naturally wouldn't care about such things.

Lin Yu Bai looked at Shen Feng Ming and swallowed. He was always afraid of him before, but he never thought that he would save his life! It could be seen that this person wasn't so cruel and ruthless. Alright then. At least when he was with Jiang Yun Zhu, he was quite easy to get along with.

But those moves of his were so handsome. If he knew earlier, he would practice martial arts.

It was all his father's fault. He insisted on him learning literature. He wasn't that material at all.

The more he thought about it, the hotter Lin Yu Bai's heart burn. He carefully asked Shen Feng Ming, "Gentleman Shen, do you think there's still time for me to practice martial arts?"

Shen Feng Ming sized him up and down.

Lin Yu Bai held back the pressure and stood up straight.

"Your aptitude is too poor. It's hard to succeed." Shen Feng Ming stated. According to his judgment standard, he wasn't qualified to join Qilin Guard's reserve team.

Lin Yu Bai froze on the spot. Had this Chief Shen always spoken so straightforwardly?

Jiang Yun Zhu listened at the side and almost laughed out loud. She covered her mouth with her hands as her eyebrows and eyes curved.

When Shen Feng Ming saw her like this, there was a smile in the corner of his eyes.

Lin Yu Bai looked at Jiang Yun Zhu, then at Shen Feng Ming, and sighed. Why was he always the one who got hurt!

Jiang Yun Zhu was so amused by his reaction that she wanted to laugh even more. She found that Lin Yu Bai was a clown-like person.

Lin Yu Bai didn't want to give up yet. So he decided to find a master and start practicing martial arts when he returned home. After practicing martial arts...he glanced at Shen Feng Ming again. Suddenly, he wanted to join the Qilin Guard. When he saw Qilin Guards in the capital that day, they were so valiant and heroic. In the midst of pride between sky and earth, besides being afraid, he was actually more admirable in his heart!

It was at that time, he felt that they were so far away from him.

Now, he wanted to be that kind of person. Although there were tens of thousands of people, he must stride forward. This was a real man.

His blood couldn't help surge again.

With his reaction, it seemed that he had become Shen Feng Ming's little fanboy. But having said that, Shen Feng Ming's movements were impressive. Jiang Yun Zhu shook her head and didn't dash his dream.

At this time, Xie Chen and Qin Yao walked in from the outside. After this incident, the relationship between the two seemed to be one step closer.

Jiang Yun Zhu didn't dare to imagine what would have happened if she and Shen Feng Ming hadn't gone that day. Lin Yu Bai might die. Don't know if this was consistent with the dream, but Xie Chen would definitely go crazy. Maybe, he would kill Xie Yong. Then... his life would be ruined.

Also, Qin Yao and Xie Lian.

Fortunately, nothing happened.

"Thank you Miss Jiang and Gentleman Shen." Qin Yao bowed to Jiang Yun Zhu. She sincerely thanked them. After finishing speaking, she took out two things from her sleeve and handed them to Jiang Yun Zhu, "This is a piece of my thoughts."

Opening those two things, Jiang Yun Zhu took a rough look. It was a house deed and land deed on Qingfeng Road, Lu Prefecture.

Qin Yao explained, "This is a property under my name. It's suitable for opening a restaurant. If Miss Jiang wants to..."

Good gosh. Qin Yao was the same Qin Yao she knew. In her dream, she was willing to give her anything. She still was now. As soon as she made a move, it was a store in Lu Prefecture? And it was a store that could open a restaurant. So it must be worth a lot.

Jiang Yun Zhu didn't accept. She didn't help her for this.

Qin Yao wanted to give it, but Jiang Yun Zhu didn't want it. The two pushed and shoved for a while. Lin Yu Bai said, "Ah Yao, forget it."

His two boxes of gifts were there and no one cared about them. He felt that Jiang Yun Zhu didn't help them for these.

Qin Yao's heart moved and took back those two things.

"Thank you Miss Jiang, Gentleman Shen." Xie Chen said to the two of them. He had nothing to repay them now, so he could only keep this kindness in his heart.

Xie Yong may have to stay in prison for the rest of his life. Xie Chen was much more relaxed now. However, his brows were furrowed, as if he had something on his mind.

"What are your plans for the future?" Jiang Yun Zhu asked him.

Qin Yao heard it and looked at him.

Xie Chen paused, "I plan to wait until April before leaving for the capital. Boss Jiang, Ah Lian and I..."

"Both come back to work." Jiang Yun Zhu responded. Even when he could only work for 20 days.

"Thank you, Boss Jiang." Xie Chen pursed his lips in thanks.

Jiang Yun Zhu waved her hand. She opened a new teahouse and was currently short of staff. It would be great if they come back.

Xie Chen immediately went back to pick up Xie Lian. Then one of the two went to the kitchen, while the other picked up the account book and started working.

Qin Yao and Lin Yu Bai sat at the side and ordered a pan of tea and two plates of snacks.

"Ah Yao, are you determined to do this?" Lin Yu Bai frowned and asked Qin Yao. He was talking about Xie Chen.

Qin Yao looked at him. She actually had a vague idea of his feelings for her. But they grew up together. When they were together, everyone who saw them said he was prettier than her and they all liked him, including her mother... In fact, she hated him the most when she was a child.

But he was nice to her and would give her whatever she wanted. And even do various things for her.

Gradually growing up, she didn't hate him anymore. But she couldn't like him.

Xie Chen was different. She knew it the first time she saw him.

"Yu Bai..." Qin Yao hesitated to speak.

Lin Yu Bai laughed. He knew the answer. So he hoped that she would always be happy. He didn't want the person he held in his hands to suffer.

"We'll be friends in the future, right?" he asked.

Qin Yao nodded, friends, forever.

"Oh, don't know if he could pass the imperial examination in May. What if he fails the exam?" Lin Yu Bai sighed.

Qin Yao frowned when she heard this.

At this side, Jiang Yun Zhu stood behind the counter and saw the apricot blossoms in the backyard at a glance. Before she knew it, spring had already arrived. No wonder the sales of ginger milk in the store have been declining recently. It seemed that it was time to make some new dishes.

Just as she was thinking, Shen Feng Ming walked over.

He was tall. Standing behind the counter with her, it felt like he enclosed her in this narrow place.

Jiang Yun Zhu leaned against the counter, "Gentleman Shen?"

"I have something to tell you." Shen Feng Ming said.

"What?" Jiang Yun Zhu asked.

Shen Feng Ming looked at Xie Chen over there who was settling accounts, "It's about Xie Lian."

After that incident happened that day, he did a little research on Xie Yong after what happened that day. It seemed that Jiang Yun Zhu and Xie Chen didn't know about it yet.

Xie Lian. Jiang Yun Zhu suddenly remembered that when Xie Lian asked her for help that day, she seemed to have spoken. The situation was urgent. Although she was surprised, she didn't have time to talk about it. So?

"What's the matter?" She turned serious.

Shen Feng Ming used very cryptic words to describe what Xie Yong did to Xie Lian. In fact, he didn't want to spoil her ears with such dirty things, but he felt that he should tell her.

Jiang Yun Zhu was furious when she heard this, this Xie Yong was simply worst than a beast! Letting him go to jail was letting him off lightly.

Her reaction was similar to Shen Feng Ming's expectation. She didn't cover her face and ran away because she heard such a terrible thing or thought he was rude. She was feeling injustice for Xie Lian.

Shen Feng Ming had seen many times worse than this, so he wasn't as angry as Jiang Yun Zhu.

It took a while for Jiang Yun Zhu to calm down. She was a little on the spot. Should she tell Xie Chen about this? He would have an exam in May. If she told him this kind of thing now, he would definitely blame himself, regret that he didn't protect Xie Lian well, and then he would hate Xie Yong.

This would definitely affect his performance in the exam.

But not telling him...

"Do you think we should tell Xie Chen about this?" Jiang Yun Zhu suddenly asked Shen Feng Ming.

"Perhaps, this should be decided by Xie Lian." Shen Feng Ming said.

Jiang Yun Zhu's mind became clear at once. Yes, what right does she have to decide this matter. Leave it to Xie Lian!

"She seemed to be able to speak, but she dare not speak." Jiang Yun Zhu said.

"En."

"Let me find some time to talk to her."

"Do you need help?" Shen Feng Ming asked.

Jiang Yun Zhu looked at Shen Feng Ming in surprise. Could he help? Better not scare the little girl into tears.

Of course Shen Feng Ming could help. The Division had a method that specifically targets people's psychological defenses. Of course, the process must be uncomfortable.

Jiang Yun Zhu shook her head. Forget it, the little girl was pitiful enough.

The two were whispering behind the counter. Lin Yu Bai, Qin Yao, and Xie Chen all saw it. Some were envious, while some were worried. Still, they all looked away tacitly.

Chapter 70

Only then did Jiang Yun Zhu realize that when spring came, people would come to sell wild veg.

"Miss, they are freshly picked wild veg in the morning. If you want them, I can sell it cheaply." Mrs. Zhang showed Jiang Yun Zhu the wild veg in the basket, pleadingly.

She was a villager from Zhangzhuang Village. Two years ago, her husband fell ill and passed away. The rest of the family was old and young. Without a choice, she dug up these wild veg and went to the city to see if anyone wanted them.

Before coming to Qishanju, she had been to many places. But no one bought her wild veg at all.

Wealthy people looked down on wild veg. Ordinary people, if they want to eat them, they could dig them outside the county city. What was the need of buying?

Mrs. Zhang was getting desperate.

The wild veg were fresh and tender; green and glistening. Each one as long as a palm, with crystal dewdrops on them. Jiang Yun Zhu fell in love with it at first sight. After this winter, every day was either cabbage or radish. Finally there were green leafy vegetables.

"What wild veg are there?" She asked.

"I only dug shepherd's purse today, wild river celery, and hogweed. If Miss wants something, tell me which one you want and I'll dig it for you immediately." Mrs. Zhang said hastily.

When she said this, Jiang Yun Zhu remembered a lot of delicious food, "Now do you have golden dock, Chinese toon, willow buds, and Siberian elms?"

"There are golden docks, Chinese toon, and willow buds. Siberian elms will have to wait two days. We do have sophora flowers at the moment."

Sophora flowers worked.

"How much are these?" Jiang Yun Zhu pointed to the wild veg in the basket.

Mrs. Zhang gave a very low price. This basket only cost eight cents.

Jiang Yun Zhu directly gave her ten wen and told her to deliver wild veg tomorrow. That's right, she wanted those Chinese toon and willow buds too.

"Okay, I will definitely come tomorrow. Miss, please don't buy someone else's." Mrs. Zhang hastily responded.

Ten wen was nothing to Jiang Yun Zhu now. But to this woman, it could save lives.

Mrs. Zhang left happily. Li He moved those wild veg into the kitchen.

"Boss, could these vegetables be sold?" Xue Jing picked up a shepherd's purse and asked. The people who came to their store were all gentlemen and misses with some money at home. Could they like this kind of food? Even he wouldn't want to eat. Before when there was no food, he ate this until he was completely sick of it.

As soon as he saw it, he felt sourness churning in his stomach.

Li He, Mrs. Huang, and the others weren't interested in these wild veg. So if they were asked to choose, white rice would go best with meat. Even if they ate it every day, they wouldn't get tired of it.

Jiang Yun Zhu smiled. It was precisely because of the special customer group in their store that this wild vegetable could be sold. Think of the modern times, one couldn't dig it even if they wanted to eat it.

Of course, if she wants to serve them on the table, she has to prepare them.

Just like this hogweed. Chop it up, add the meat stuffing, and mix well. Then roll it up with bean curds, fry it in an oil pan to shape it, take it out, cut it into oblique sections, and deep fry it in an oil pan until the skin is golden.

Put it on a plate and arrange it in a flower-shaped tower. Make a pan of sweet and sour soup here and pour it from above.

The ruddy soup was dotted with flowers. The hogweed was crystal clear green and the bean skin was golden yellow. Then put two flowers carved from white radish on the plate. This dish would immediately become extraordinary.

Both Li He and Mrs. Huang were dumbfounded. Wild veg could end up like this? It contained meat as well as being deep-fried. They could eat a big bowl of wild veg like this.

"This actually spoils the taste of wild veg a bit." Jiang Yun Zhu said. However, many people expressed that they love wild veg, but in fact they were all professing love of what they really fears. Basically, every wild vegetable had a special taste. If it was left uncooked and served on the table, few people would like to eat it. Why else would everyone add it to the normal recipe?

This was already very good. It not only gave the taste of spring, but also took care of the tongue.

Next, Xue Jing watched Jiang Yun Zhu make shepherd's purse tofu soup with high broth and mixed wild river celery into shredded chicken, which had a big spoonful of rich red hot oil dizzled over...

Today, Qishanju had launched four or five kinds of dishes, such as hogweed rolls, shepherd's purse tofu soup, and cold river celery salad.

Most of these gentlemen and misses have heard of these wild veg, but very few of them have eaten them.

In spring, one got to eat wild veg. It was unknown who said this. And everyone immediately decided to try it.

Hogweed rolls. This dish was colorful, like the color of spring. Take a bite. It was crispy and delicious. The sweet and sour soup on the outside blended perfectly with the flavors of bean skin, meat filling, and hogweeds. It was delicious.

The shepherd's purse tofu soup. Clear as the sky. Take a sip. It tasted so flavorful and delicious. It was the taste of spring!

Also the shredded chicken mixed with river celery. It was spicy and crispy. Once one take a bite, they couldn't stop.

So they were surprised to find that wild veg was so delicious. Oh right, take it home and give it to their parents, so that they could try it too.

Today's wild vegetable series received unanimous praise from everyone. The store's turnover had grown a lot. Some people even wrote poems for the wild veg. Li He watched and didn't know whether to admire Jiang Yun Zhu or lament how the wild veg could receive such glory.

After making money, everyone was happy.

Jiang Yun Zhu deliberately kept two bundles of wild river celery and decided to make dumplings for lunch. She called Xie Lian to do it together.

Now there were two kitchens in this backyard. One was bigger, it was used for Qishanju. The other was smaller and was used for making snacks and making tea. At this time, the big kitchen was busy, while the small kitchen was very quiet.

The taste of wild river celery was similar to that of modern celery. But because it grew near water, it was more fragrant, crisp and tender. After being finely chopped, it was mixed with minced meat. It had a special flavor. People who love it would love it to death, and those who hate this taste would throw it away like a shoe.

Jiang Yun Zhu was one of those who liked this kind of taste. So she moved quickly and soon a round dumpling was wrapped and placed there.

Xie Lian's movements weren't slow. Within a short while, she made a dumpling.

"Do you like to eat dumplings?" Jiang Yun Zhu asked her casually.

Xie Lian nodded. She liked it.

"Eat more in a while." Jiang Yun Zhu said.

Xie Lian curved her eyes. She liked Qishanju and Jiang Yun Zhu.

Jiang Yun Zhu felt that the atmosphere was good and spoke, "Actually, you saved Qin Yao, Gentleman Lin, and even your elder brother that day."

When mentioning this matter, Xie Lian froze directly.

Jiang Yun Zhu slowed down her tone, "If you didn't tell me, how could I save them? So the person they should thank is you. I know you are afraid of that person, but that person had already gone to prison. He would never be able to hurt you."

Xie Lian's eyes were red, while her hands were shaking in fist form.

Jiang Yun Zhu felt that it was better not to stimulate her. Still, she had to tell her something, "No matter what happened before, it isn't your fault.

You can speak now. Whether it's your elder brother or me, everyone likes you very much. "

After saying this, Jiang Yun Zhu continued to keep her head down to make dumplings.

Xie Lian looked at her. Could she speak? Wouldn't they hate her?

Xie Lian slowly regained her composure. But she didn't intend to speak. Jiang Yun Zhu knew that this was very difficult for her. What should be said, she had already said. The rest was left to time!

The next day, Mrs. Zhang sent more wild veg, as well as Chinese toon sprouts, golden dock, Sophora flowers, etc.. So a few more dishes were added to the menu of Qishanju. More people came. Everyone wanted to try these tender wild vegetables.

On this day at 13pm, the number of customers in the store gradually decreased,

"Excuse me, are you hiring here? I can do anything. I don't need much money as long as it is enough for our family to eat." A thin man stood at the entrance and asked Li He.

When Li He saw him, he thought of himself. Back then, he was like this too, standing humbly at the door with his wife and mother as they sought for a full meal.

"Wait here, I'll ask the boss." Li He replied.

"Thank you, thank you!" the man said gratefully.

Li He went into the backyard and told Jiang Yun Zhu about the matter.

Jiang Yun Zhu shook her head. She had no plans to hire anyone recently.

Li He went out and told the man about it.

The shine in the man's eyes seemed to disappear at once. He thanked Li He, staggered away, and asked other stores if they were recruiting.

Li He felt uncomfortable seeing it as well as glad that he was lucky enough to stay in Qishanju.

The next day when Chabuliang was open for business, a woman with a child lingered at the entrance for a long time before walking in.

"Server, do you have any leftovers from customer's meals in your store? Can you give a little." The woman lowered her head in shame as she spoke. She wasn't a beggar, but the child was going to starve to death.

Li He looked at the child in her arms. The child seemed to be about one year old with a big head and a small body. At this moment, the child seemed to be crying, but there was no cry. Only a faint hum.

"This kid can't stay like this!" Li He said.

The woman immediately burst into tears. She couldn't help it.

"I'll go ask the boss first." Li He entered the store and told Jiang Yun Zhu about the outside affairs.

"Give them some snacks and milk." Jiang Yun Zhu saw the woman at the door and said.

Li He immediately agreed to go. He specially picked out a plate of easy-to-digest lotus root cake for the woman.

White and sweet lotus root cake and two cups of milk. When the woman saw it, she wanted to kneel down to Li He. Such good stuff, she dare not covet.

"Our boss gave it to you. Not me." Li He told her to get up.

The woman wobbly kowtowed to Jiang Yun Zhu again from a distance.

"Eat quickly!" Li He said.

The woman got up and took the lotus root cake and milk. She didn't dare to eat it by herself. She fed it to the child first. The child drank the milk and stretched his neck forward vigorously, wanting to drink more.

The woman was afraid that he would choke, so she had him drink it slowly.

After finishing a glass of milk, the child's stomach bulged. The child still wanted to drink more.

"Don't overstuff your stomach," Li He said. From the looks of it, he was very hungry. Can't keep eating.

The woman hurriedly took the cup away.

There was a plate of lotus root cake and a glass of milk left. She put the lotus root cake in her old bag and kept it for the child to eat. She couldn't take the milk away, so she drank it.

After thinking for a while, Li He took out a string of money from his sleeve and gave it to her, "That's all I could do for you."

The woman gratefully thanked him. She took the money and left.

Li He brought back the cup and plate. He asked Jiang Yun Zhu, "Boss, more and more people are seeking refuge on the street recently. Should we buy more food?"

Jiang Yun Zhu discovered this problem too, "They are all escaping from Changfeng Manor, right?"

Li He nodded, "According to the previous years, at this time, the land should be getting planted. But I heard that Changfeng Manor hasn't had a single drop of rain..."

In the past two years, Changfeng Manor had suffered from disasters. Waiting for the rain to start farming should be the last hope of many people. But now, seeing that this hope was gone, everyone could only come out to flee the famine.

Moreover, there would definitely be more and more people like this. By then... Li He was worried about Qishanju. So he asked Jiang Yun Zhu if she wanted to buy more food for storage.

Jiang Yun Zhu had already bought three batches of grain when he came. At that time, she almost spent all her money. It should be enough for them to eat for a while. But she didn't want to stand out. So she said, "Can you go to the grain store to look?"

"Okay." Li He went out quickly.

After a while, he ran back with an anxious expression, "Boss, hurry up and buy grain. The price of grain has already started to rise."

When he went to the grain store now, some people in the store were complaining about the price of grain, while some people were snatching grain. The owner of the store said they would stop selling once today's grain was sold out. The price may increase tomorrow!

Raised this fast? Jiang Yun Zhu was surprised. Then she took out ten liang silver and asked Li He to buy grain.

"Boss, don't you want to buy more?" Li He asked.

Ten liang silver grain was enough for ordinary people to eat for a long time. But Qishanju could use up one bag of rice and two bags of flours a day. These grains seem to be insufficient.

"You go first." Jiang Yun Zhu said. He may not be able to buy these ten liang worth! Normally, there was a lot of grain in the grain store. But if everyone buys it, it will be sold out soon.

Li He hurried over. After half an hour, he came back angrily. As Jiang Yun Zhu guessed, he only bought six liang silver worth of grain.

"It's enough for us to eat for a while." Jiang Yun Zhu said.

In the next few days, there were more and more refugees on the streets of Wuling County. At first, everyone was willing to help them. However, the food prices kept rising. Some people said that the price kept rising because of these refugees Seeing the extra money they spent every time on grains, everyone's enthusiastic kindness toward these refugees ran out.

Some people even complained why the officials didn't drive these refugees out.

Something happened this day. It completely intensified the conflict between the two side.

Several refugees robbed a small restaurant. Although the constables quickly arrested the refugees, the people started to be wary of the refugees

The refugees' days became more and more difficult.

On this day, Constable Head Hu came to the door.

"Constable Head Hu, what are you doing here?" Jiang Yun Zhu came out and asked in person.

"It's nothing serious. In the afternoon, the county magistrate invited you to the county yamen. Don't worry, you're not the only one invited. Wuling County'se rich households and managers are all invited by County Magistrate." Constable Head Hu cheerfully spoke.

"What is this for?" Jiang Yun Zhu found it strange.

"I don't know either. You'll find out when you go. Excuse me, I have to go inform another house." Constable Head Hu left quickly.

In the afternoon, Jiang Yun Zhu went to the county yamen, only to see that the place was crowded with people. Who would dare not come when the county magistrate invited them.

Jiang Yun Zhu felt that she was a small character, so she found a place where no one was around and waited.

About a quarter of an hour later, Magistrate Meng arrived.

Everyone bowed Magistrate Meng.

It had only been a month since she saw him. Magistrate Meng seemed to age a few year. His eyes were bloodshot and his expression blared out exhaustion.

He let everyone get up and stated, "I want everyone to see something." After speaking, he led the people out.

Everyone didn't understand his thoughts and could only follow along.

Along the way, someone recognized that this seemed to be the way out of the city.

Sure enough, soon, they arrived at the gate of the city. Someone with sharp eyes found that there seemed to be a lot more soldiers guarding the city gate than before.

When they got out of the city gate, everyone stood there in a daze.

All the refugees, old and young, were all in ragged clothes and with yellow and emaciated faces.

When they saw Magistrate Meng and others, they struggled to get up and begged the masters to give them a way to survive.

"You've seen it yourself." Magistrate Meng gritted his teeth and said. The refugees in the county were actually only a small part.

Everyone looked at each other. There were those who were sympathetic, and those who were indifferent.

Soon, Magistrate Meng explained his purpose for asking everyone to come today. He wanted to open a porridge shed outside the city to serve porridge. However, opening a warehouse for disaster relief needed the approval of the court. But these people were not from his Wuling County. The disaster relief should be from Changfeng Manor for. So he had no reason to open a warehouse.

He wanted all the rich families and managers in the county to donate a little silver or rice to help these common people.

It turned out to be like this. Some people were willing to donate a little, but some felt that Magistrate Meng was meddling.

"Magistrate, isn't the Wuling Mine always short of people?" Someone asked Magistrate Meng. If they were sent there, it would be fine.

Magistrate Meng held back his anger, "Wuling Mine's requirement is strong young people. If these refugees could live, who would want to wait here to die."

No one spoke anymore and started donating money.

Some people donated one liang and some donated five liang. The most donated was twenty liang, but to the disaster refugees, these silvers were unable to fill the tank full.

Magistrate Meng was dissatisfied in his heart, but he didn't dare to show it. He was already doing this under a lot of pressure. If he insisted again, these wealthy households would start to make trouble and he wouldn't be able to be the county magistrate.

"I'll donate two hundred liang." At this moment, someone said.

Everyone looked at him one after another. It was Manager Song of Baofulou.

"Magistrate, I don't have that much money with me. Could you allow me to go back and get it?" Manager Song said.

"Of course." Magistrate Meng's attitude toward him became gentle.

Manager Song looked at Jiang Yun Zhu who was behind the crowd and cheerfully said, "Qishanju and Chabuliang make money every day. I wonder how much Boss Jiang will donate this time?"

As soon as he said this, everyone looked at Jiang Yun Zhu.