Chapter 21: The Jade Dish Cracks, the Fragrance of Rouge Wafts

  Li Qiantang smiled slightly: "It's a little demon that has just been cultivated by the shadow, with weak power. It only wants to absorb some yang energy to add some Taoism. If it can't be seen, it will only feel like it has stumbled and fallen. After returning home, it will have a high fever and talk nonsense, and then fall seriously ill."

  "So that's how it is..." I asked: "Young master sneaking out at midnight, isn't it to slay demons and exorcise evil for the people of Purple Jade Hairpin Street? It makes one admire him even more."

  Li Qiting smiled and said, "It's a coincidence that I saved Miss Mei. I heard that the demon world has a new leader, and the original leader, the nine-tailed fox family, was captured by the underworld. Many old members are not convinced and want to absorb enough yin energy in this Xuan Yin land to rescue the nine-tailed fox family. That's why Purple Jade Street is bound to be unstable, so my father and uncle sent me here to patrol and see if there are any demons causing trouble, which is how I met Miss Mei."

  "It turned out that it was a blessing in disguise for me to meet someone who could help." I quickly said some polite words.

  "A noble person..." Li Kaitang seemed a bit disheartened, but quickly put on a smile: "It doesn't matter, since Miss Mei doesn't remember me, it's also good to get reacquainted. Now that Miss Mei has taken on the important role of Dragon God Envoy, I am willing to assist her in ensuring the peace and stability of this region. If there is anything I can do for you, please don't hesitate to command me."

  "Gongzi, you're too serious! Meicai is just a little girl, how dare she? Thank you, Gongzi!" I smiled and said: "Longshen also told me to ask around about some strange things. Meicai often runs errands, and grew up on Ziyu Street, so everyone in the neighborhood knows her. With many mouths talking, it's easy to hear what every household had for lunch the day before, and gathering news isn't difficult either."

  Li Qiting nodded and smiled: "In the future, I will also rely on Miss Mei to investigate all kinds of strange things."

  As we approached home, I invited Li Gongzi in: "I have no way to repay the kindness of saving me, please come to my house and have some refreshments."

  Li Qiting hesitated for a moment, then shook his head: "There's still plenty of time ahead, and I have to make my rounds, so it wouldn't be convenient to linger. I'll definitely come visit another day."

  Li Kaitang and I exchanged greetings before parting ways.

  Back in the room, I still had some doubts in my mind. Why did everyone suddenly seem to know me? Was it really like what Guapian said, that I had forgotten past events?

  But Li Kaitang also makes sense, re-recognizing a game is also good. This mysterious yin is about to be greatly chaotic, I'd better be more clever. There's a terrible disease called control desire (online gaming)

  After the fire, the Smoke and Rain Pavilion was properly tidied up for some days, but when it reopened, due to its notorious reputation, business became dull, and even the expensive pastries were in short supply. I suddenly found myself with nothing to do, which made me feel quite uncomfortable.

  I got up early that day and went downstairs, first smelling a pungent aroma. I rushed into the kitchen to take a look, and couldn't help but feel overjoyed. Today, Father was personally cooking in the kitchen, making Sichuan pepper sprout five-spice pork fried noodles.

  In the spring, there are many edible things, such as elm seeds, Allium ursinum buds, locust flowers, shepherd's purse, and wild garlic. They all have a fresh flavor, and Sichuan pepper buds can only be tasted in the spring of each year.

  The pepper tree grows easily in front of the house and behind the room, and on spring days it is lush and full of greenery. In a corner of my family's courtyard, I don't know what year or month it emerged from, without anyone taking care of it, but it still thrives.

  Pick the tender flower pepper buds, wash them clean with water, chop into small pieces. Use water to open and mix well the good yellow sauce. Choose a piece of fresh pork with a balanced fat and lean ratio, or cured meat that has been cooked through is even better. Finely chop it into small cubes. Chop scallions, ginger, garlic, and flower pepper buds into fine pieces. Heat the wok over high heat, add white pork oil, stir-fry the scallions, ginger, garlic, and flower pepper buds until fragrant. Add the meat cubes and stir-fry until they change color. Quickly stir-fry in the yellow sauce, adding a few grains of red chili peppers for extra flavor. The savory aroma fills the air, and since it's already salty, no additional salt is needed. Serve immediately.

  Sift the new wheat flour again, add water and mix well, let it rest for a while, knead into long strips, roll out into thin sheets, cut into small finger-sized pieces, brush with sesame oil, pull into thin strips and put into boiling water pot, cook until done, rinse with cold water several times, then become smooth, shiny and elastic noodles.

  When having fried sauce noodles with Sichuan pepper sprouts, it's great to have some bitter vegetables, bean sprouts, and cabbage as side dishes. Add a little vinegar and garlic, the noodles coated with the sauce are delicious, the diced meat is fatty but not greasy, the lean meat is elastic, and the fatty meat melts in your mouth. The unique aroma of Sichuan pepper sprouts is so enticing that you can't help but have another bowl after finishing one.

  "I hastily asked: 'Dad, is this the breakfast for today? First give Meicai a bowl.' I also wanted to use chopsticks to dip a little bit of fried sauce to satisfy my craving."

  "Hey," Father made a gesture to hit my fingers with chopsticks: "You child, just woke up and so hungry? This is not for you to eat, Mr. Mo said that in the spring, it's easy to get irritable and have internal heat, thinking of having some fresh breakfast, Father specially made it, pork is expensive these days, your mother can't afford to buy it for us to eat. So, still follow the old rules."

  The girl came in from behind the curtain of the front hall, laughing and scolding: "I didn't know that I had wronged you two parents and daughter. Since pork is precious, why eat it? Fish and shrimp are fresh and fat on spring days, just buy some to satisfy your cravings."

  My family's business relies on the support of the Smoke and Rain Pavilion, and it can be said to be thriving. However, in the early years when my mother and father got married, our home was so poor that it was empty and bare, with only a few pots and pans making noise. My father worked hard from being an apprentice to becoming the owner of a small shop, so my mother has always been frugal. If my father or I craved something delicious, we would secretly eat something good behind her back. If we got caught by my mother for being greedy, it wouldn't be a pleasant experience.

  Dad loves me the most, as soon as I hear the three words "old rules", I understand in my heart, Dad must have left a bowl for me.

  "I quickly said, 'Since the mother has spoken, the plum blossoms are waiting for the miscellaneous fish pot to be served.' Because the noodles cooked in water often become soft and mushy after a while, I hurriedly packed up the dishes and noodles and fried sauce in the food box and sent them to Mr. Mo's account room in the Smoke Rain Pavilion."

  Mr. Mo got up early and was practicing Tai Chi on the bluestone path in front of the accounting house, with birds chirping and flowers fragrant on a spring day, surrounded by lush greenery, feeling very refreshing.

  Mr. Mo, although a bit deaf, has clear eyes and a straight back, is very robust, handles accounts and manages the miscellaneous items of the Smoke and Rain Pavilion with ease, and is indeed a shrewd businessman.

  I placed the food box on the stone table, put the noodles in a Qinghua porcelain bowl, arranged various toppings, took out Mr. Mo's usual ebony-inlaid silver chopsticks, sank my breath, and shouted loudly: "Mr. Mo, come quickly to eat your noodles! If you wait too long, it won't be good!"

  Mr. Mo went "hmm..." and withdrew his fist, sitting down on the stone stool to breathe in and out and collect his energy. Only then did he pick up his chopsticks, put them in his mouth, nod slightly, and say: "This is exactly the flavor."

  I saw the treasures rescued from the fire neatly arranged in the accounting room, not yet fully put away. I asked, "Mr. Mo, was the loss at the Smoke and Rain Pavilion severe?"

  Mr. Mo sighed: "It's all in vain to say, the loss is heavy! It's really one wave after another, and the rumor of the ghost has spread far and wide, and even the maids and servants are talking about it, as if they had seen it with their own eyes, saying that the faceless female ghost set off the ghost fire, wanting to make the people of the Smoke and Rain Pavilion her substitute!"

  "So, about the recent business..."

  "It seems that business is not going well, with losses and troubles, and our regular customers only care about saving their own skin, they've all gone to support the thriving business next door. Nowadays, the sound of customers has dropped dramatically, no one has come for several days... Oh heavens, it's as if I'm not meant to make a living..." Mr. Mo sighed, and continued slurping down his noodles. The Bodhi flower falls.

  Mantang Hong is an old opponent of Yan Yu Ge, the madam from that side has never gotten along with Mr. Mo, and Mr. Mo's chest tightness and shortness of breath are also unavoidable.

  "Mr. Mo! Mr. Mo!" A young servant came running from afar, shouting loudly.

  Mr. Mo frowned: "So early in the morning, you don't even let people have a peaceful breakfast! What are you shouting about? Aren't you also seeing ghosts or something?"

  "It's not a ghost..." The little servant ran over, panting and said: "It's... it's the guest who has come to bestow kindness!"

  "What?" Mr. Mo suddenly stood up: "You're talking about a ghost? A ghost in broad daylight?"

  "It's true!" The young servant nodded like a chicken pecking at rice: "It's still the generous patron who took action!" As he spoke, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a shiny silver ingot.

  "Ah..." Mr. Mo was shocked and pale, put down the bowl, turned around to leave, but then came back, pulled a few mouthfuls of noodles, and said vaguely: "Hurry up and bring the way, I want to go and welcome that good guest who brings charcoal in the snow!"

  "Yes, yes, yes..." The young servant hastily led Mr. Mo to the flower hall, I took a look and saw that there was excitement to be seen, didn't even bother to put away the food box, and followed with my slippers to see which good guest it was.

  In the flower hall, it was already crowded with sisters who were eager to show off their beauty. After being quiet for so long, they would even make a fuss over a rare guest, and each of them had an expectant look on her face, as if she hoped to be chosen by Mr. Mo in front of everyone, which would bring great honor to herself. Therefore, each of them wore gold and silver ornaments, painted their eyebrows and eyes, and tried their best to look beautiful and charming.

  I followed Mr. Mo through the crowded and airless layers of sisters and maids, and saw a young man in his early twenties sitting in the center of the flower hall, wearing a spring day green satin long gown with an eight-treasure waistband, black boots on his feet, and holding an ivory folding fan in his hand. He was elegant and refined, with an extraordinary bearing that set him apart from the ordinary lavish guests.

  Beside the young master stood a small boy wearing a brown robe, with clear eyebrows and eyes, and an air of cleverness about him. He had a bulging leather pouch on his back, which seemed to be full of provisions.

  Suddenly, I smelled a strange fragrance at the tip of my nose. Although this flower hall was usually lit with incense and naturally filled with fragrance that refreshed one's mind, today for some reason, the fragrance actually overpowered the scent of the dragon brain incense in several censers, which was something I had never smelled before.