Chapter 65 Catching a Thief: "You can't catch a wolf without risking your cub"...

Just as Mrs. Hu finished taking the eggs from the henhouse, she saw her son, who, whenever he was home, would sleep until noon, getting ready to leave. She couldn't help but ask, "Youfu, where are you going so early in the morning?"

Lin Youfu quickly replied, "I'll go work at the tavern."

Mrs. Hu asked with some confusion, "Didn't you say that Master Zhu told you to rest at home these past few days?"

Lin Youfu had already prepared his explanation: "I've been at home for two days. Today I'm going to town to see if there's any work I can do at the taverns. I can't just not go because my master says I don't need to. I have to serve my master well so he'll teach me the real skills. Once I've learned how to brew wine, I'll take my mother to the biggest jewelry store in town to buy her a silver bracelet!"

Mrs. Hu's wrinkles crinkled into a wide smile as she quickly took another hot steamed bun from the pot and stuffed it into her son's hand: "I don't care about your bracelet, I just hope you can learn some skills so you can make a living in town someday. Take this bun and eat it on the way, don't go to work on an empty stomach."

Lin Youmin, who was fast asleep inside, was awakened by the voices outside. He shuffled out of the inner room in his slippers and overheard Lin Youfu's words. His face immediately showed a mocking expression, and he said sarcastically, "Oh, has the sun risen in the west? When did you become so ambitious, big brother? I, as your younger brother, can't fall behind."

Madam Hu's face darkened, and she grabbed a fire poker from behind the door, threatening to hit him: "You idiot! Talking back to your brother first thing in the morning? Go wash your face and look at yourself!"

Lin Youfu was preoccupied with Liu Xu's prescription and didn't intend to argue with Lin Youmin. He glared at him fiercely and left.

Lin Youmin narrowed his eyes as he watched Lin Youfu leave, a sense of unease creeping into his heart: his elder brother hadn't uttered a single word in response today; normally, if he had said that, his brother would have definitely scolded him before leaving. Watching Lin Youfu walk further and further away, he grabbed two steamed buns from the pot and ran outside.

Seeing her second son running out, Madam Hu was filled with worry. If her eldest son was prone to cheating and shirking, then her second son's problem was truly fatal. She chased after Lin Youmin for a couple of steps, but couldn't catch up. She could only shout loudly behind him, "Where are you going again? Don't go to the gambling den! If you lose money again, the family really won't have any money left!"

Thinking he would soon obtain Lin Yao's secret recipe, Lin Youfu walked briskly and arrived at Fuman Inn in no time. He knocked on Liu Xu's door and said, "Come on, I'll take you to get a good meal."

The two of them enjoyed a hearty meal at the Ziwei Restaurant. After they were full, Lin Youfu watched Liu Xu let out a satisfied burp before saying, "Brother, were you satisfied with the meal? Now, shouldn't you give me the recipe?"

Liu Xu wiped his mouth, and the smile on his face gradually became meaningful: "Brother Fu, I will naturally give you the prescription, but I asked the broker about the price of houses in town yesterday, and the price is really frighteningly high. The one hundred taels you mentioned yesterday is not enough. I want one hundred and fifty taels."

"Brother, you..." Lin Youfu cursed Liu Xu for being greedy in his heart, but he hadn't gotten the recipe yet. Thinking that he still had 150 taels left, he gritted his teeth and agreed: "Okay! 150 taels it is! Brother, you can't go back on your word."

Liu Xu raised an eyebrow, then patted Lin Youfu on the shoulder: "Brother Fu is indeed straightforward!"

While the two were haggling over the price, Lin Youmin was hiding in a corner outside the restaurant, staring intently at the two inside. Watching his elder brother and Liu Xu's intimate conversation, his suspicions deepened: his elder brother usually looked down on Liu Xu, someone who made a living by following Lin Yao, so why was he suddenly acting like a brother to him?

Liu Xu brought Lin Youfu to the clinic and said, "If you want to talk about A Yao's secret recipe, it must be her five-spice powder. It smells amazing. With that stuff, everything tastes much better than what you eat at other restaurants."

Upon hearing this, Lin Youfu's eyes lit up: "Great! Ah Xu, tell me how to do it quickly."

Liu Xu sighed: "It's a pity, I'm not A Yao's apprentice, she never properly taught me."

Lin Youfu, who was still basking in the joy of his impending riches, raised his voice involuntarily upon hearing what he said: "Lin Yao didn't teach you? Then you say you have Lin Yao's secret recipe? Aren't you obviously lying to me?!"

Liu Xu hurriedly said, "Although A Yao didn't teach me properly, they didn't guard against me when they were doing it, so I learned it all." As he spoke, he beckoned to the medicine boy, "Give me one ounce of star anise, three ounces of fennel, and one mace each of Sichuan pepper, licorice, and gardenia."

Back at the inn, Liu Xu borrowed the kitchen to make spices. Lin Youfu stood by, watching his every move intently, afraid of missing a single detail.

Liu Xu rolled up his sleeves and first crushed the gardenia fruit into powder, his movements as practiced as if he had done it a thousand times. Then he added different amounts of fennel, Sichuan pepper, licorice, and star anise in turn.

After grinding it into powder, Lin Youfu leaned over and smelled it: "Something's not right about the smell?"

Liu Xu looked up: "How did you know?"

Lin Youfu almost let slip that his family had stolen seasonings, and vaguely replied, "That little girl is also a member of the Lin family, so what's so strange about me knowing that?"

Liu Xu looked knowing: "Don't worry, I'll try it out by making a dish." He started a fire and made a plate of braised pork ribs.

As soon as the dishes were served, Lin Youfu couldn't wait to eat a piece of pork rib. However, even someone as fond of meat as him spat it out the moment it entered his mouth, finding it so disgusting. Lin Youfu's eyes widened in anger: "Pah! Pah! Pah! What is this rubbish! It's bitter and astringent, and has a weird taste. Are you sure this was made with Lin Yao's five-spice powder?"

Liu Xu looked surprised, picked up a piece of pork rib and put it in his mouth. After tasting it, he immediately spat the meat on the ground, his face full of disbelief: "Impossible! I clearly followed the steps in my memory, how could this happen? I must have remembered one of the medicinal herbs wrong. Alas! It's a pity that I no longer work in the restaurant and can no longer touch that seasoning. If I could eat dishes made with that seasoning again, I would definitely remember which medicinal herb it was."

Hearing this, Lin Youfu's emotions gradually calmed down: "Really?"

Liu Xu nodded heavily, his eyes filled with urgency: "Absolutely true! As long as I can get back to those seasonings, I'm sure I can recreate the recipe. After all, I've been working with A Yao for more than half a year, so I have the skills."

Lin Youfu listened with some skepticism: "Alright, I'll go get you some. You can't make the same mistake again tomorrow."

Liu Xu readily agreed. The plan was already one-third complete. As Lin Yao instructed, all he needed to do next was keep making mistakes and keep consuming the seasonings stolen by the Lin family's eldest branch until they were all gone, forcing them to continue stealing seasonings. Then his mission would be accomplished.

However, none of Lin Yao and the others had anticipated that things would proceed so smoothly.

Lin Youfu left the inn and was strolling aimlessly down the street, cursing, when he was startled by Lin Youmin, who suddenly appeared. "Brother, are you planning to make a fortune behind our backs?" Lin Youmin said.

Lin Youfu avoided eye contact: "I don't know what you're talking about. I still have to go to work at the tavern."

Lin Youmin scoffed, "Stop pretending. The tavern is about to close. I've followed you all the way here. You want Liu Xu to sell you the recipe for the five-spice powder so you can sell it to Manager Li? Do you think Dad will break your legs if he finds out about this?"

When Lin Youfu heard his younger brother mention their father, his legs suddenly went weak. Although his father usually treated him well, this matter concerned the entire family's livelihood, and he wasn't sure if his father would really give him a good beating.

He immediately put on the act of a good older brother: "Amin, it was my fault for doing this. I originally thought I would talk to Liu Xu first and then tell our parents, so that they wouldn't be disappointed. Look at me now, I still haven't gotten the secret recipe. Lin Yao didn't teach the recipe to Liu Xu. Liu Xu learned it all by himself. But he tried to make it today, and the taste was a complete waste of the meat."

Seeing his earnestness and noticing his distressed expression when he left the restaurant, Lin Youmin believed him somewhat. He said, "Don't tell our parents. We're getting old; we need to plan for ourselves. We can sell the recipe ourselves, split the profits fifty-fifty, buy a small house in town, and get married. Wouldn't that be better than staying on those few plots of land in the village?"

Lin Youfu nodded hurriedly: "You're absolutely right! But that Liu Xu is very greedy. He asked for two hundred taels right off the bat. Last time when Father went there, he said the secret recipe was worth three hundred taels. I'm afraid my brother and I will only get fifty taels each." He was unwilling to split it equally with Lin Youmin, so after weighing the options, he decided to use Liu Xu as a scapegoat.

Upon hearing this, Lin Youmin immediately flew into a rage: "You bastard! You actually asked for so much!" His eyes suddenly turned sinister. "Big brother, just get the secret recipe and leave the rest to me."

Seeing his brother's expression, Lin Youfu vaguely knew what he was going to do, but after a brief struggle, he chose to ignore it and said, "Fine!"

Night falls.

Lin Youfu and Lin Youmin arrived at the Lin family's old house in the dark. Lin Youfu was sturdy and stood with his legs apart. Lin Youmin stepped on him and climbed up the wall of Lin Yao's house, easily vaulting over.

Lin Youmin went straight into the kitchen, opened the cabinet, took out a jar of five-spice powder, and skillfully scooped up a spoonful of powder to put into his small jar. Suddenly, the spoon touched a hard object. He brushed aside the powder and, by the moonlight, saw that it was a silver hairpin! He quickly dug the hairpin out, blew off the powder clinging to it, and put it in his pocket. He dug around in the jar again and found a silver bracelet and a longevity lock!

Lin Youmin collected all the silver ornaments he found, secretly overjoyed: "I'm rich! I'm going to be rich!"

He deftly filled the jar with five-spice powder and climbed up the fence of Lin Yao's donkey pen.

Just as I climbed over the wall, the light of a torch suddenly illuminated the night sky.

Liu Dazhuang stood outside the wall, shovel in hand, and shouted, "Thief! The Lin family has been robbed!"

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Author's Note: Hey! A loud bang echoed in the sky, and Da Zhuang made his grand entrance, sporting dazzling sunglasses!