After leaving the capital, Lin Dan and Qi were temporarily settled in a nearby town. During this period, the old marquis sent several groups of people to look for them, but she politely declined them all.

That day she sent another group of people away. Qi finally couldn't hold back any longer and said hesitantly, "Dan'er, it's not a bad idea to go back to the Marquis' Mansion. We are an orphan and a widow, so we need someone to take care of us. We can't abandon your father's house and restaurant. With the support of the old Marquis, we can sue the authorities and ask your second and third uncles to return all their things."

Lin Dan waved her hand, her tone solemn: "Mother, you think too simply. Now we have nothing but 120 taels of silver? We don't have any house deeds or land deeds, what can we use to sue the officials? The old marquis is kind-hearted and said that we are guests of the marquis' mansion, but don't you understand what our status is? We are just slightly better than slaves who have signed a contract to sell themselves. Now the eldest lady is at the critical moment of being made a concubine. You know how strict the Yongding Marquis' mansion is. Uncle is still in jail for riding a horse and injuring someone. The old marquis didn't care no matter how much the lady cried, so how could he care about our case that is bound to lose? The old marquis is willing to let us go back because he is kind-hearted and remembers the old friendship. We can't push it too far and squander that little friendship."

Lin Dan sighed and continued, "Besides, as long as we are still in the same territory as the Yan family, they will definitely find ways to discredit my father in order to appear legitimate. Second uncle and third uncle will also secretly take action to prevent us from taking back the property. What else do we have except a little money? The Marquis can support us for a while, but can he support us for a lifetime? Staying in the capital means endless troubles, so it is better to leave and start over. Mother, don't you think this makes sense?"

All of Qi's reluctance disappeared after hearing her daughter's persuasion, and she could only nod with tears in her eyes.

Lin Dan rented a small courtyard to live in temporarily. He would go out for a walk when he had free time. His young face always showed a solemn expression. That day, she walked quite far and unknowingly got on the official road and arrived at a post station. There were noises coming from the post station, as well as the neighing of horses, which made it seem very lively; there was a thatched hut outside the post station, and an old woman was busy serving dishes inside and outside.

I don’t know what was on the plate, but I could smell a strong aroma from far away. Lin Dan was attracted by the fragrance and walked over quickly. The merchants in the post station also ran out to check.

"Auntie, your tofu balls are so delicious. How much is a bowl?" a traveling merchant asked loudly.

"Two copper coins a bowl." The old woman replied with a smile.

"Okay, give me a bowl." The peddler immediately sat down in the straw shed, staring at the oil pan.

When Lin Dan walked forward, the tofu balls had already been fried and were being taken out by the old woman and placed aside to drain the oil. After the oil was drained, they were poured into another pot and a ladle of bone broth was scooped to continue cooking. The sweetness of the soup is combined with the caramelized aroma of frying. After boiling, sprinkle a handful of chopped green onions and the dish is ready. The golden and crispy tofu balls roll in the milky and rich soup, occasionally dotted with green onion leaves, which is very beautiful. The aroma of beans, bones, onions and a little bit of pepper mixed together to form a very wonderful taste.

Lin Dan took two quick steps into the straw shed and saw that the peddler couldn't wait any longer. He picked up a hot tofu ball and put it in his mouth. He chewed it while breathing out air. At the end, he gave a thumbs up and said, "Auntie, your cooking skills are simply amazing! I have traveled all over the country and have never eaten tofu balls that are more delicious than these."

Lin Dan immediately ordered a bowl, let it cool down, took a small sip, and a look of amazement immediately appeared on his face. After biting through the crispy outer layer, the tofu inside is very soft and tender, mixed with some minced meat and mashed yam. It melts in your mouth and is extremely delicious. What's even more amazing is that there is a cavity in the innermost layer of the meatballs, which is filled with thick soup. It seems that it is the bone soup that seeps in along the gaps, or it seems that it is the secretion of the minced meat and pureed yam after heating. When you roll it up with the tip of your tongue and taste it carefully, you will find that the soup has the freshness of bone marrow, the saltiness of minced meat, and the sweetness of pureed yam. All the flavors are perfectly blended together, making you unable to stop.

Lin Dan ate very carefully and finally drank up all the soup before he sighed with great satisfaction. The peddler ate three large bowls of food in a row and was now ordering his fourth. His companions were also attracted by the delicious aroma and filled the small thatched hut.

Lin Dan didn't leave after finishing his tofu balls. Seeing that more and more diners were coming, he took the initiative to help the old woman burn firewood, fetch water, and serve and wash dishes. The old woman could not refuse but had to go with her. When she finished work in the evening, she took out twenty copper coins to give to her as her wages.

"Auntie, I don't want your wages," Lin Dan returned the copper coins and said sincerely, "I can come to help you work every day, just ask you to teach me how to make this tofu meatballs."

"You want to learn cooking from me? What's the problem with that..." Before the old woman could finish her words, a young woman walked into the hut and said sarcastically, "Where did you come from, you wild girl, and you want to take advantage of my family. If I teach you, will my mother still be able to do business? Get out of here quickly, or I'll beat you with a broom!" As she spoke, she opened the cabinet and put all the copper coins that the old woman had earned with great difficulty into her own pocket, her eyes full of greed.

"Didn't you come here to learn cooking from me? I didn't say I wouldn't teach you." The old woman frowned.

"I'm your daughter-in-law, a member of our family. Who does she think she is?" The woman pointed at Lin Dan with her hands on her hips.

Lin Dan quickly explained: "Don't be upset, Auntie. I come to work for your family every day without getting paid. After I learn this dish, I will move far away and will never open a shop here. There are only my mother and I in my family. We are weak and powerless. If you see me opening a shop nearby one day, you can beat me up or destroy it as you like."

The woman had already recognized Lin Dan's accent and thought that she was doing her labor for free without any wages. She also thought that her family was large and well-established, so she was not afraid of being fooled by a girl from another place. So she agreed, but her face was still not good, as if she was giving alms.

The old woman then went to pull Lin Dan, and after sending her out of the straw hut, she quietly stuffed a purse into her hand and whispered, "Good girl, this is today's wages, take it secretly and don't tell anyone."

Just as Lin Dan was about to stuff the purse back into the house, the old woman hurried into the straw hut. Soon, she heard the woman's scolding from inside, as if she was dissatisfied with the old woman for earning less money today than yesterday. This person is not here to learn how to cook, but to become an ancestor.

Lin Dan shook her head, feeling very unhappy.

…………

That night, Lin Dan was still hiding in the backyard practicing her knife skills. Her scarred fingertips would always feel a tingling sensation when they touched food or the blade, causing her to frown frequently. After cutting a cucumber, she picked up the unevenly thick and thin cucumber shreds, looked at them, and finally sighed helplessly.

"Dan'er," Qi, who had been hiding in the corner and observing for a long time, walked out slowly and said softly, "Cooking is a happy thing. Don't let yourself be burdened. Let's not cut this dish. Let's take a break first, okay? It's not your fault that you lost to Yan Langqing. Everyone has a bad performance sometimes."

Lin Dan was stunned for a moment and realized that Qi must have misunderstood her. She thought that her loss to Yan Langqing had left her with a psychological trauma and she would never be able to pick up a kitchen knife again. But Lin Dan knew that was not the case. She could still practice her sword skills again, it just took time.

"Mom, I'm fine, don't worry." She didn't explain too much, but said firmly, "One day I will earn back everything we lost. The Yan family's cooking is amazing, so I will learn to cook other dishes. The world is so big, there will always be a place for us."

"Oh, okay, okay, it's good that you can figure it out. Stop cutting vegetables and go to bed." Qi touched her daughter's head, looking relieved. My daughter has become more and more taciturn recently, but also more and more strong and courageous, as if she is not afraid of wind and rain.

"Okay, you should go to bed early too." Lin Dan sent Qi back to her room, but he stood in the corridor for a long time without moving. On this desolate night, she unconsciously fell into memories, but these memories did not belong to her, but came from the "Lin Dan" who had gone to an unknown place.

The other party left behind a deep regret and unwillingness, but also left behind an emotion deeply hidden in the heart. She was originally a cute little girl who loved to play and make noises, but she definitely didn't like smoke and fire. Lin Baotian asked her to learn cooking several times, but she refused every time with tears and shouts. But one day, she accidentally bumped into the eldest daughter of the Marquis's Mansion and was almost beaten with a stick. It was the young Marquis who happened to pass by and saved her. The young marquis' gentle smile became her obsession from then on.

She asked the young marquis what he liked, and the young marquis joked, "I love to eat." So the next day she took off her beautiful clothes, put on a gray apron, walked into the kitchen, and learned for seven years. She never liked cooking, she just wanted the young marquis to look at her more.

Lin Dan couldn't agree with her behavior. It was the saddest thing to rely on another person for her life. If that person leaves or despises you, all that's left for you is the abyss beneath your feet.

What Lin Dan has to do now is to find his own way. No matter if he falls or gets hurt, or even if he has to crawl, he will eventually reach the end. The original owner was a cook, so she continued to be a cook. There were endless delicious foods in the world, and she had no worries about having no place to learn or no teacher to learn from.

…………

From that day on, Lin Dan followed the old woman to learn how to make tofu balls. The old woman had three sons. The eldest son was idle, the second son died of illness when he was young, and the third son was born in her old age. He is only seven years old now and is still hungry. In order to support her two sons, the old woman got up early and worked late to sell tofu balls, and her life was really hard. Fortunately, she has excellent skills and doesn't have to worry about her livelihood.

The eldest daughter-in-law said that she wanted to learn cooking from the old woman, but she was always lazy and slack, so all the dirty work in the store fell to Lin Dan. She was the one who got up early to cook beans, peel bean skins, and make tofu. She also had to carry more than 100 kilograms of water back and forth, which almost bent her waist. But she never complained. As long as she could learn something, she was not afraid of any hardship or fatigue.