Inside the county government office.

Lu Lin weighed the silver in his hand and said excitedly, "This roast lamb actually sold."

"I thought I had to eat it myself," Chen Xiaomi muttered.

Chen Xiaomi had already planned ahead. If the whole roasted lamb didn't sell for twenty taels of silver, they would buy it themselves. The purpose of this auction was not to make money from a single lamb, but to use it to establish the reputation of whole roasted lamb.

The current situation is not bad.

This whole roasted lamb was bought by a young master from Kyoto for eighty taels of silver; that should be enough to make the villagers gossip for a while.

Chen Xiaolai looked at Lu Lin and asked curiously, "Brother Lin, how did you come up with the idea of ​​roasting a whole lamb?"

Lu Lin: "..." Because I had eaten it before, I naturally thought of it.

"Recently, I wanted to change my diet, and seeing lamb reminded me of it."

In his previous life, Lu Lin had eaten roasted whole lamb twice when he went out to dine with others. A whole roasted lamb would shrink a lot after roasting, enough for about eight people. Even with a discount, a whole lamb would still cost eight hundred yuan. Eating roasted lamb was quite a luxury.

Roasting a whole lamb is simple if you think about it, but difficult if you don't.

It is said that this is how the roasted whole lamb came about in a previous life. A farmhouse caught fire and burned down the sheep pen, killing all the sheep inside. The burnt sheep gave off a fragrant smell. As a result, the farmer was overjoyed to discover how to roast a whole lamb and no longer felt sorry for the sheep that had been burned to death.

Chen Xiaocai looked at Lu Lin with a strange expression and said, "Thinking of roasting a whole sheep, Brother Lin, you're really extravagant."

Lu Lin glared at Chen Xiaocai, thinking to himself: This little brat Chen Xiaocai is getting a good deal and still acting innocent. "If I weren't extravagant, how would you make more money?"

Chen Xiaocai scratched his head and said, "Brother Lin, you're right."

"If the roasted lamb sells well, the price of lamb will probably go up." In the future, there should be more families in the village raising sheep.

Chen Xiaocai nodded and chimed in, "Brother guessed right. I heard that as soon as the auction ended, some people wanted to raise sheep, and all the lambs in the market were snapped up."

Lu Lin: "..." Such a thing actually happened. It seems that he has inadvertently started a trend again.

Chen Xiaolai gave Lu Lin some money to sell roasted lamb, chatted with him for a while, and then left.

After Chen Xiaocai left, Chen Xiaomi rested her chin on her hand and looked at Lu Lin, asking, "Did you used to go out to eat roast whole lamb often?"

Lu Lin glanced helplessly at Chen Xiaocai and said, "No way! You're overthinking it. A whole roasted lamb can't be eaten if there aren't enough people eating it."

"He's all alone, it's not appropriate for him to eat a whole sheep by himself, is it because he can't afford it?" Chen Xiaocai asked.

Lu Lin: "..." That's part of the reason. "I guess so. If he's incredibly wealthy, it's no big deal for him to eat a whole roasted lamb by himself. He can just eat one leg and throw away three."

Chen Xiaolai patted Lu Lin on the shoulder and said, "We couldn't afford it before, but we can now."

Lu Lin: "..." So, in a way, he has made progress in the courtyard compared to his previous life.

Yuanbao ate a roujiamo (Chinese hamburger) with gusto, then looked at Lu Lin expectantly, "Dad, everyone says roasted whole lamb is delicious."

The reputation of this whole roasted lamb has spread far and wide. Whether they were present or not, everyone who talks about it considers it an unparalleled delicacy.

Lu Lin smiled. Not many people have eaten roasted whole lamb, but everyone says it's delicious, probably because it costs eighty taels of silver. You get what you pay for. In everyone's eyes, it would be unfair if a lamb worth eighty taels of silver wasn't delicious. Lu Lin stroked his chin and said, "It is quite delicious."

Yuanbao grabbed Lu Lin's robe with anticipation and said, "Dad, when are we going to eat roast whole lamb?"

Lu Lin looked at Yuanbao and said helplessly, "Let's talk about it in a few days."

They advertised whole roasted lamb as a rare delicacy, but then they started eating it at home. This inevitably diminished the mystique surrounding whole roasted lamb.

Things are valued for their rarity. To put it bluntly, a whole roasted lamb isn't anything special; it's just a lamb. If it were commonplace, it wouldn't fetch a high price.

Yuanbao said somewhat disappointedly, "Okay."

Lu Lin secretly rolled his eyes, thinking that Yuanbao was just curious and would lose interest after taking a couple of bites of the roasted whole lamb.

"The hot spring resort will open in a few days, and we can sell whole roasted lamb there then," Chen Xiaomi said.

Lu Lin nodded and said, "I can consider it."

During the auction, Lu Lin had been cautious. The hot pot restaurant owner's claim of selling one whole roasted lamb a month referred to his own restaurant; selling it elsewhere wouldn't be a problem.

A few days later.

As Ji Yun'an walked along the road, he turned around and glanced at Wei Qiyu, who was following closely behind him. He said helplessly, "Why are you following me?"

Wei Qiyu said somewhat aggrievedly, "I'm saying, you're practically a Shaxian native yourself. Since a friend has come from afar, shouldn't you show some hospitality and treat me well?"

"Didn't I treat you to a meal a couple of days ago?"

Wei Qiyu said sullenly, "You still have the nerve to say that? It was just one meal."

Ji Yun'an: "..." That's not a small meal. "Even though it's just one meal, you eat a lot!" Wei Qiyu glared at Ji Yun'an, looking slightly exasperated.

Ji Yun'an shrugged. "Your family is so wealthy and powerful, can't you afford to pay for that little bit of food?"

Wei Qiyu suppressed his anger, shook his fan, and said, "I can certainly afford the meal, but aren't there some things that money can't buy?"

Ji Yun'an rubbed his forehead, feeling a bit of a headache. "You can't buy this even if you have money. You won't be able to eat it even if you come with me!"

Wei Qiyu looked at Ji Yun'an, blinked, and said, "That's not necessarily true. I heard that the third young master of the Chen family is an excellent cook, and when you go there now, he should give you special treatment. I heard that the county government is planning to make roast whole lamb today." Wei Qiyu licked his lips; he hadn't even had a chance to taste the lamb from before before it was gone.

These past few days, Wei Qiyu has been craving roasted whole lamb so much that he's almost lost his appetite. He secretly made up his mind that if he had the chance again, he would definitely eat more.

Ji Yun'an looked at Wei Qiyu, feeling somewhat helpless. Had Wei Qiyu already found out everything? "Are you serious? It's just a sheep."

Lu Lin already looked down on him for being a freeloader. If he were to bring another person along to eat and drink for free, Wei Qiyu glared fiercely at Ji Yun'an and cursed, "You bastard, you really don't know the hunger of the starving."

Wei Qiyu thought to himself: With Ji Yun'an and Lu Lin's relationship, they can eat roast whole lamb whenever they want. But it's different for him. If he goes back to the capital, he doesn't know when he will be able to return to this place. It will be extremely difficult for him to eat roast whole lamb next time.

Ji Yun'an sighed, knowing how devoted his classmate was to food.

“I can take you there, but you must be careful. He’s still in the evaluation stage. Bringing along a big burden might cause trouble.”

Wei Qiyu nodded and said, "Don't worry, I know what I'm doing."

Ji Yun'an arrived at Lu Lin's residence. The Lu family members knew Ji Yun'an's identity and did not stop him.

Ji Yun'an led Wei Qiyu into the county government office. Wei Qiyu sniffed and looked around. "What a wonderful smell! I think we've come at the perfect time."

Ji Yun'an: "..."

In the courtyard, Yuanbao was swinging on the swing with great interest.

Chongchong was playing in the sand with a shovel in his hand.

Seeing Ji Yun'an approach, Yuanbao stepped down from the sandbar, glanced at the two of them briefly, showed no interest, composed himself, and continued playing in the sand.

"Brother who climbed over the wall, you've arrived!"

"The brother who climbed over the wall?" Wei Qiyu glanced at Ji Yun'an and asked curiously, "Yun'an, what's this about the brother who climbed over the wall?" Ji Yun'an ignored Wei Qiyu and asked Yuanbao, "Where's your uncle?"

Without hesitation, Yuanbao replied, "Uncle is making a whole roasted lamb!"

Wei Qiyu was secretly delighted, thinking to himself: His intelligence was indeed correct! The county government is indeed making roast whole lamb today. Although hot pot restaurants no longer sell roast whole lamb, the county government still does!

Yuanbao glanced at Wei Qiyu and asked curiously, "Brother Yun'an, who is this uncle?"

Wei Qiyu smiled and said, "I am a friend of your brother Yun'an."

Wei Qiyu took out a rattle drum and handed it to Yuanbao, saying, "It's our first meeting, so here's a gift for you to play with."

Ji Yun'an glanced at Wei Qiyu and thought to himself: This guy Wei Qiyu is really willing to spend a lot of money to eat good food. Yuanbao shook the rattle drum and found it very interesting.

Ji Yun'an glanced at Wei Qiyu and said, "You are really generous!" The rattle drum that Wei Qiyu took out was made of silver and should be worth a lot of silver.

Wei Qiyu waved his hand and said, "It's nothing."

At Wei Qiyu's repeated prompting, Ji Yun'an led Wei Qiyu into the kitchen.

A grill sat in front of Chen Xiaomai, and a whole roasted lamb was placed on it. Wei Qiyu exclaimed excitedly, "A whole roasted lamb!"

Ji Yun'an glanced at Wei Qiyu and said, "Didn't you meet him before?"

Wei Qiyu: "..." So many people had already taken the initiative, and he hadn't had a chance to see properly. Yuanbao pulled Chongchong and moved closer to Chen Xiaomai, sweetly asking, "Uncle, when can we eat?"

Chen Xiaomai smiled and said, "It'll be ready to eat soon."

Chen Xiaomai glanced at Wei Qiyu and asked, "Who is this?"

“He is my classmate and good friend,” Ji Yun’an said.

"Did you go to the exam with them?" Chen Xiaomai asked.

Ji Yun'an nodded and said, "Yes!"

Did he pass the exam?

Ji Yun'an shook his head.

Chen Xiaomai stared at Wei Qiyu for a couple of seconds, then turned her head away.

Wei Qiyu waved his fan and thought to himself: The autumn examinations are over, why bring them up again?

Chen Xiaomai looked at Ji Yun'an, a little embarrassed, "Please sit down, the roast lamb will be ready to eat soon."

Ji Yun'an said with some concern, "Shouldn't we wait for Lord Lu? That seems rather impolite!"

Chen Xiaomai tilted her head and said, "Brother Lin and Big Brother went out to discuss something with someone. Also, he said he wanted to eat something lighter lately and would leave half for them."

Ji Yun'an nodded. After the marriage was settled, Ji Yun'an vaguely felt that Lu Lin and Chen Xiaomi seemed to dislike him. With the two of them not around, Ji Yun'an secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Chen Xiaomai cut up most of a whole roasted lamb and invited Yuanbao and the others to eat.

Wei Qiyu tore a large piece of mutton off the leg of lamb, extremely excited.

Previously, the lamb leg had been divided up among the Gao family members, and Wei Qiyu had only eaten the meat from the ribs. The meat from the ribs was also very delicious, which made Wei Qiyu even more eager for the lamb leg.

Wei Qiyu was munching on his lamb leg when he looked up and saw Yuanbao gnawing on a lamb bone, staring at him curiously. Wei Qiyu felt a little embarrassed, but he was quickly drawn to the roast lamb and ignored him.

The mutton, sprinkled with seasonings, has an indescribably tempting flavor that makes it hard to stop eating.

After eating roasted lamb and drinking lamb offal soup, Wei Qiyu patted his belly with satisfaction and let out a burp.

Wei Qiyu thought to himself: The food in this county government office is truly extraordinary. There are rumors that the prince was so captivated by the food in Sha County that he couldn't move on. The emperor urged him to return home three times, and the prince had no choice but to set off for his residence. Many people in the capital don't really believe this.

The prince of Kyoto was known for being afraid of his wife, so Wei Qiyu believed that the main reason the prince didn't return was because he was afraid of her; the delicious food was just an excuse.

After tasting Chen Xiaomai's cooking, Wei Qiyu felt he could barely believe that the prince was being held back by the delicious food.

After eating his fill, Wei Qiyu became fascinated with the rocking chair in the county government office. He felt that after eating and drinking his fill, lying in the rocking chair and taking a nap was simply blissful!

Ji Yun'an pulled Wei Qiyu away from the county government office.

Wei Qiyu followed slowly behind Ji Yun'an, "Ah, now I know why you wanted to marry a little Shuang'er. Chen Xiaomai's cooking is so good, I want one like that too."

Ji Yun'an rolled his eyes and said, "Keep dreaming."

Wei Qiyu said angrily, "Why are you being so discouraging?"

Ji Yun'an: "..."

Wei Qiyu sighed with regret, saying, "It's a pity that Chen Xiaomai doesn't have an older or younger sister." If she did, he could try to find one!

Even if someone does, they might not be interested in you!

Wei Qiyu said unhappily, "How can you look down on me like that? I am a talented scholar."

Wei Qiyu fanned himself, thinking to himself: A couple of days ago, when he was walking on the road, he seemed to see a few young girls secretly looking at him, mostly because they thought he was very handsome. Wei Qiyu was slightly smug; he was indeed quite popular. However, this was not surprising; in a small place like Shaxian, it was rare to see someone as outstanding as him.

"If you like it so much, just have your dad find a good chef."

Wei Qiyu sighed and said, "Good chefs are hard to find. I only realized after coming to Shaxian that those chefs in the capital are all just seeking fame and fortune."

Ji Yun'an: "..."

Wei Qiyu suddenly remembered something and asked, "When will that hot spring resort open? It'll be a few more days. What's wrong?"

Wei Qiyu said anxiously, "Hurry up and drive! This old man is urging me to go back."

Ji Yun'an smiled helplessly and said, "There are still some things that are not finished, but if you really want to go, I can take you to experience it first." Chen Xiaolai had just mentioned to him that she hoped to find a few people to practice before opening and give some feedback.

Wei Qiyu said excitedly, "Such a good thing has happened."

Ji Yun'an smiled and said, "It's quite a distance to the hot spring resort, so just don't give up halfway there."

Wei Qiyu glared at Ji Yun'an with annoyance, thinking to himself: Ji Yun'an is a real scoundrel, how could he underestimate him like that.

Upon seeing Ji Chengkang, Liu Yun said with some delight, "General, the young master is back."

Ji Chengkang said with some surprise, "He actually came back."

Ji Chengkang thought to himself: Since Ji Yun'an arrived, he has been running to the county government office every day. He rarely stays quietly in the camp!

Ji Chengkang walked into the tent and saw Ji Yun'an drawing intently.

Ji Chengkang glanced at Ji Yun'an and said, "When did you start liking to paint?"

Ji Yun'an said helplessly, "It's not that I like it, it's that Chen Xiaolai needs it. There isn't a proper calligraphy and painting shop in Shaxian. Young Master Chen went to the surrounding towns and found that the paintings were ugly and expensive, so he didn't buy anything and came back."

Two days ago, Chen Ershao met Ji Yun'an and suddenly had a whimsical idea, so he recruited Ji Yun'an to be a conscript.

Ji Yun'an had often eaten and drunk for free at the county government office, and he felt a little embarrassed. Since Chen Xiaolai thought his calligraphy and paintings could be used as a facade, Ji Yun'an didn't stand on ceremony. However, he was too embarrassed to sign his name for this hastily made work.

Ji Yun'an was quite happy that Chen Xiaocai had asked him for help.

Ji Chengkang nodded and said, "Since Chen Xiaolai asked you to do this, then do your best to help if you can."

In recent years, their patrol battalion has been getting goods from the county government at a friendly price, which has allowed them to take advantage of the situation quite a bit. Ji Chengkang felt rather embarrassed.