Chapter 136

Pei Liu saw Gu Ran walk out, and quickly stood up. He wanted to chase after him, but after taking two steps, he stepped back and slowly sat down.

Is that pushing too far?

These days, he has been slowly changing his attitude towards Er Niang, intending to make her accept him subtly, so that when he tells her that he is a man, she will not be angry or ashamed and reject him.

Don't rush things.

After calming himself down, Pei Liu counted the silver ingots that were laid out by himself.

Outside the accounting office, Gu Ran took a deep breath to calm himself down, and then thought about it and realized that something was wrong.

Whether in her first or second life, she can be sure that her sexual orientation is very normal.

In her first life, she had never reached the stage of discussing marriage, and she had had a boyfriend. In her second life, in such a relaxed world of cultivating immortals, where finding a partner could be male or female, or male-male or female-female, she would appreciate beautiful women, but what could make her drool was still a handsome man.

Therefore, she is very confident in her own cognition.

But now, she is actually attracted to the beautiful Liu Niang?

There is absolutely nothing wrong with her, so the only one with the problem could be Liu Niang.

Gu Ran stroked his chin, huh!

Come to think of it, she had always speculated that the current Liu Niang was the assassin who replaced the original Pei Liu Niang as the number one thief. Because she had always been law-abiding, she had never thought of forcing her to admit that she was the fake Pei Liu Niang.

It was probably empathy that was at work, because this Gu Ran of hers was also fake, and she had replaced the original owner's identity, so naturally she wouldn't admit that she was a fake in front of outsiders.

He also felt that in the Great Sheng Dynasty, life was not easy for women from other families, so he assumed that Liu Niang was Pei Liu Niang and let her go.

I originally thought that when Liu Niang found her elder sister, she might confess the truth to me, but now...

What if her idea was wrong, and Liu Niang was not Liu Niang, the one who could make her fall in love with her was, perhaps, Liu Niang was actually Liu Lang?

Gu Ran deduced that the fake Pei Liuniang was a fake Pei Liulang and was able to find various clues, which made him more suspicious.

First of all, she met Liu Niang when she was on the road of exile. She was only about thirteen at that time, and even thinner than her, but she could break Feng Duojin's neck so easily, and she was not scared or afraid afterwards, but remained calm and composed. Although it is possible that she is a lady, normally speaking, the probability of someone with such explosive power being a man is higher.

Secondly, ever since she grew taller, Liu Niang has always preferred to wear men's clothes. It would be fine if it was for the convenience of walking outside, but when it was time to change back into women's skirts, she never changed into red clothes. Originally, it was thought that her tall figure made Liu Niang feel uncomfortable, and she didn't want to stand out among a group of women. But, if she liked to wear men's clothes all the time and was unwilling to change back into women's clothes, was it because she was a men's man herself, for no other reason?

By the way, such a tall stature is extremely rare even for women in the Great Sheng Dynasty, which is also a suspicious point.

Finally, she has no breasts.

That’s right, uh, this is what makes her most suspicious.

Princess Taiping didn't mean that she couldn't have one, but Liu Niang had grown up with her since she was a child, and her figure was slender when she was growing up. She was also kind enough to make some breast-enhancing and whitening foods for her, but Liu Niang just couldn't grow those two lumps of flesh.

I used to think that Liu Niang used all the nutrients she ate to grow taller, but what if it’s not a question of nutrition, but that Liu Niang is Liu Lang and no matter how much she grows, she won’t be able to grow breasts?

Thinking back to when she first met her, she had big hands and feet. Maybe she was the prototype of the young man's body?

Plus, now, she actually has feelings for her? This is a bit ridiculous.

Under normal circumstances, she would be attracted to him.

If Liu Niang was Liu Lang, it would be understandable that she was attracted to such a handsome man.

Gu Ran breathed a sigh of relief.

Fortunately, when I think about the fact that Liu Lang is a gentleman, so gentle and delicate, my emotional fluctuations are normal, and there is no need to be shocked and scared like before.

Then I thought of what Xu San said, Liu Niang, no, Liu Lang, is interested in me?

Thinking about Liu Lang's subtle and subtle provocations during this period, she couldn't help biting her lip, feeling embarrassed and annoyed.

"Second mother?"

Gu Ran was feeling somewhat distracted when he heard Liu Lang calling him from behind. He turned around and saw Pei Liu coming out.

Perhaps it was what Xu San said that made her automatically add a layer of filter. What Gu Ran saw at this moment was a handsome young man with stones as white as jade and pines as green as emerald green.

The warm autumn sun shone lazily on him, as if he had a circle of soft light. Just one look at him was enough to make people dazzled, especially the look he gave her, which was gentle and had a soft smile in it, which made her heart skip a beat.

They have been living together for more than three years. How could she always think that Liu Niang was Liu Niang?

This is clearly a very handsome man.

"Liu... Liu Niang, what's the matter?" She almost called the wrong name. No, no, she had to be patient before Liu Niang revealed her home address.

"I've already counted the money I earned from Fusheng Trading Company today. Would you like to count it again?"

"OK!"

Knowing that Liu Niang was Liu Lang, Gu Ran's previous worry that he might be crooked disappeared. He met his gaze with a smile and nodded, then went back to the accounting office.

After counting the silver ingots one by one and reconciling the account with Lu Bo, she and Pei Liu put all the silver ingots back into the box and then packed them into the bag.

"It's getting late. We have to go back to the village."

"good."

Now that the three female cats have given birth to their kittens, there are twelve more furry balls in the small house. In order to take good care of these great-great-great-great-grandchildren, most of the time recently, after going to Dunzi Island to deal with the affairs of the orange grove, I have to hurry back to Xiaxi Village.

Fortunately, it is early winter now and the weather is gradually getting cooler. It is not as hot as in the dog days of summer. Even living in a small house is quite livable.

When they returned to the cottage, Gu Ran divided the money he earned with Pei Liu 50-50 as usual. Pei Liu only took two ingots totaling 40 silver coins for his daily expenses, and gave the rest of the profit to Gu Ran.

Gu Ran glanced at Pei Liu, bit her lip, and couldn't help but curl up the corners of her mouth.

In the past, I thought Liu Niang was just Liu Niang, so I naturally thought it was nothing to help her keep the gold and silver, and I had space to hide it secretly. But now I know that Liu Niang is Liu Lang, and think about all the gold and silver wealth he has saved in the past few years, all in my hands!

In addition to trust, perhaps, there is also that, the one Xu San mentioned?

Gu Ran couldn't help but smile again. In fact, she had already taken control of the financial power very early on. Thinking of this, she felt very happy.

"Sixth Lady, it's a rare occasion that we made a fortune today. How about we have a bigger dinner?"

"good."

Pei Liu, unaware that his identity had been revealed, put down the fur ball in his hand and stood up. "What do you want to eat? I'll go to the barn and get it."

"We're having rice-roasted rabbit tonight."

"Okay, I'll get it."

Pei Liu walked up the stairs next to the kitchen and entered the small warehouse.

As the end of the year is approaching, many families have started to stock up on food or make bacon, smoked meat, and dried fruits and jams to prepare for the winter while the weather is suitable in October and November.

Their warehouse was also filled with stored food supplies. The refrigerated stone cabinets were filled with fresh and raw meat. The cupboards were not only filled with jars of sauces and spices, but also with freshly picked fruits such as tangerines, pears, and grapefruits. The baskets below were filled with fresh seasonal vegetables, cabbage, garland chrysanthemums, Persian cabbage, etc.

On the side by the window, there are dry goods.

Below were dry biscuits, dried vegetables, rice noodles, etc., and hanging on the poles above were dried fish, bacon, smoked duck, etc. The rice-roasted rabbit he was looking for was also hanging among them.

Pei Liu hesitated for a moment, but did not immediately go to get a rice-roasted rabbit. Instead, he walked to the other end of the cupboard and chose the compartment where the lucky oranges brought back from Dunzi Island were placed. He quickly moved the oranges aside and then looked at the back of the cupboard.

The back panel is intact.

Pei Liu stared for a long time before returning the tangerines and other fruits to their original places. He then walked to the window, took down a plump rice-roasted rabbit, and went downstairs.

In the kitchen downstairs, Gu Ran had already cooked the rice and was preparing the ingredients for the rice-braised rabbit.

She had already prepared the rice-roasted rabbit before, but because it was difficult to handle and required at least one hour of slow smoking over firewood, she made a few more in her free time.

The cooking method is also very sophisticated. After the wild rabbit is cleaned, it is put into the pot and blanched, then the water is drained. Then the prepared sauce is slowly and evenly spread on the rabbit meat. After marinating for a quarter of an hour to half an hour, the next step is the key.

Put three ounces of lard, one and a half pounds of rice, and three ounces of rock tea into an iron pot, stir them evenly while heating, then place a rack made of fresh bamboo strips on it, spread the marinated whole rabbit flat on the rack, cover the pot, and light a fire with firewood.

The fire is low and simmered. Through this kind of thermal effect, most of the moisture contained in the rabbit meat is slowly dried out. Secondly, the aroma of the rice roasted in the pot, along with the aroma of tea, penetrates into the rabbit meat and removes the fishy smell of the rabbit meat itself. This not only ensures that the rabbit meat is delicate, crispy and tender, but also tastes more delicious.

The smoked rabbit made by "burning rice" in this way is brown-red and shiny. The less moisture it has after drying, the more brown-black its color becomes, and the easier it is to store. As long as it is hung in a ventilated place, it can be stored for up to three months when the weather is hot. If it is made in early winter now, it can be stored even longer. It will not deteriorate even if it is left for half a year, and can be used for cooking at any time.

To cook rice-braised rabbit, just cut the whole rabbit into pieces, sauté it with ginger slices and scallions, and then add a little green sauce and rice wine.

In order to match the dry and fragrant rice-roasted rabbit, Gu Ran also fried a dish of stir-fried Chinese spinach and heated up a pot of simple pork ribs and lotus root soup. In this way, there was both soup and meat, which took good care of his spleen and stomach.

After finishing the meal, Pei Liu, who was in charge of clearing the dishes, looked at Gu Ran with a smile and couldn't help asking, "I heard from Manager Xu today that you were looking for someone?"

Gu Ran was just about to hug a furry ball to help digest his food, but when he heard Pei Liu's question, he couldn't help but look at him.

Why did he ask Manager Xu about this? Or did Manager Xu tell him when he asked about his sister's whereabouts?

"That's right."

"Who is it?"

"Yes, an old friend."

Pei Liu lowered his eyelids and asked again, "Is this old friend important to you?"

"important."

Of course it is important. In fact, even if she can't find Ling'er, it doesn't matter to her. She is mainly looking for the place where Ling'er has stayed and the mountain where the village is. So by looking for Ling'er, she can find out where the village is.

But she couldn't directly tell Manager Xu that she was looking for that village, as that would seem strange. So she might as well start by looking for someone, so it became important to find out the news about Ling'er.

But why did Liu Lang suddenly ask this?

Little did he know that when Pei Liu heard Gu Ran say that old friends were important, he had already curled his lips slightly.

"I see. I'll help you look for it too."

Gu Ran could tell from Pei Liu's expression and behavior that he seemed to be in a good mood. He felt a little strange, but did not think much about it. When he returned to his room and lay down, the person who usually did not think much about it raised his pillow and thought about the days he had spent with Pei Liu over the years.

So, what did he think?

You don't have to keep pretending to be Pei Liuniang, right?

If she and he were not sisters, then they would be a single man and a single woman. He was interested in her and obviously wanted to seduce her. When was he going to reveal the truth to her?

So she kept silent and continued to wait?

But, what if Xu San was wrong?

Is there any way to force him to confirm it?