Chapter 199

Han Chunshen insisted on showing off his sewage-handling skills, and Chen Wuji had no choice but to go along.

Shopkeeper Han Chunshen

Information must be gathered from multiple channels; you never know, there might be some extra gains.

Yunan City

Zhang Family, Censor Lord

Lord Zhang

His Majesty the Emperor, Ruan Yuchang

Zhang Mingyuan

After speaking angrily, he glanced at Chen Wuji: "Chen, little friend, I was momentarily indignant; you wouldn't go spreading this, would you?"

His gaze was somewhat frightening; though not sharp, it was deep and profound.

Chen Wuji smiled and shook his head: "Between us it's just idle chat; why would I tell outsiders? Those officials are too far away; even if we called them by name, what difference would it make? Around here, anyone who wanted to inform would probably never make it to the Capital."

As expected of Yunan City, a place of hidden dragons and crouching tigers, it certainly doesn't tolerate idlers.

This Han Chunshen, unsurprisingly, was also a man who did great things in his youth.

Han Chunshen's smile grew warm again: "I couldn't help myself, I showed a lack of respect to these big shots; having said it, I feel guilty, haha."

He chuckled, shifted the topic, and suddenly said, "I heard the new county magistrate of Yunan took office today; he seems to come from a poor background, his family all dead except him—perhaps he's a bit better than Zhu Wei's grandson."

"Yunan truly needs an honest official; if not, the people might rebel. Though the bandits have eased, grain prices in the city remain high—white rice now steadily costs one tael of Silver, literally a matter of life and death."

Chen Wuji nodded solemnly, "If the court doesn't intervene, these grain merchants will surely try to suck even more people's blood steamed buns, and nobody will complain about having too much Silver in hand."

"\"People's blood steamed buns... \" That description is spot on." Han Chunshen smacked his lips, nodded, and said.

Chen Wuji changed the subject and asked, "So, in this game of strategy, did the Emperor win?"

"Seems so, but the Capital is too far from us, and we can't clarify the specifics. However, Zhang Mingyuan is Ruan Yuchang's favorite disciple; even if the Emperor won this round, he probably wouldn't fare well either." Han Chunshen said, "As for Ruan Yuchang, even someone like me, a petty commoner, knows he's a vengeful type who slays officials as easily as chopping vegetables."

"Ruan Yuchang once beat to death a second-rank official right in the imperial hall and still received the Emperor's reward—just how arrogant is he? To strike down an aide in the hall, as far as I know, he's the only one in history."

Chen Wuji secretly clicked his tongue, "He probably just wants to be the Emperor."

"Maybe he really does have that idea." Han Chunshen laughed and shook his head.

"The winds of the court should normally be far from us, yet they somehow blew onto us commoners; in my eyes, whoever dies among them deserves it—none of them are good."

His words seemed to curse the Emperor as well.

Chen Wuji didn't continue the topic, really not knowing what to say.

Who would have thought that the steady, shrewd Shopkeeper Han Chunshen would actually be a hotheaded youth?

As he spoke these words, he was clearly suppressing his anger, yet he couldn't help spitting out some resentful, cynical remarks, almost gritting his teeth in hatred.

As the evening sun spread out like a splendid celestial river, the game was finally all processed.

Chen Wuji transformed into a cook.

The worst outcome of showing off one's cooking skills is that once everyone knows you make excellent food, the former politeness disappears and there's no modesty left.

Han Chunshen, Xiao Yuji, and Chen Clan Interior members all stayed; they very familiarly brewed tea in the courtyard, drank tea and ate cakes, then quietly waited for Chen Wuji's dishes to be served.

Today there was abundant meat and many people, so Chen Wuji first arranged skewers for everyone, letting those idle onlookers get involved, and only then did he start stir-frying.

If they were to eat only stir-fried dishes, he would surely collapse from exhaustion at the stove; even using a big wok, he'd need about ten batches to cook enough food for nearly twenty people.

Aside from the two well-off shopkeepers Han Chunshen and Xiao Yuji, the rest are poor folk with enormous appetites, not the tiny stomachs of later generations.

As the food was nearly done, Chen Bushi and Xiong Paozi, who had been busy with the family's grand sacrifice, came over drawn by the aroma, each carrying two jars of wine.

Some people could be considered generous today.

But Chen Wuji knew they weren't coming for him; they were coming for his food.

"Let's eat!"

Chen Wuji called out, summoning everyone to the table.

Stir-fried deer meat, quick-fried fat intestines, wild boar big bones, braised pork, and exploding stir-fried mixed stew all hit the table at once.

Chen Wuji heard a round of slurping sounds.

This little flavor made his mouth water a bit, even after a busy day.

"\"Dig in, eat quick—what's there to be modest about at a time like this? \" Chen Wuji picked up his chopsticks, took a bite of quick-fried fat intestines; these intestines come from several animals, and he didn't know how the texture would be."

If it tastes good, we can make more of it in the future.

Fat intestines are one of Chen Wuji's great favorites.

"Is Mr. Chen at home?"

At that moment, a low voice suddenly came from outside the door.

Chen Wuji turned his head in surprise, only to see a man in black standing outside the gate.

He was from the Imperial City Department.

"\"You go ahead and eat, don't worry about me! \"" Chen Wuji put down his chopsticks, feeling somewhat doubtful.

Today I didn't even hear the magpies call, yet people keep coming in waves, as if they'd planned it.

Standing in the second courtyard weren't just that Imperial City Department investigator, but also Qin Zan Hong.

This woman was even more arrogant today, her expression cold, her arms crossed holding a knife against her upright chest, as she lifted her head to size up Chen Wuji's house.

"\"Qin Zan Hong, what brings you to my humble abode? \"" Chen Wuji joked with a smile.

Qin Zan Hong gave Chen Wuji a sideways glance, tilted her head, and said, "\"Let's talk outside. \""