Chapter 127 Chapter 127 Member of the Ministry of Justice.
No matter how tempting you are, you don't have to act like this.
Li Wensu secretly complained in his heart, but he only glanced at Chen Yan's actions out of the corner of his eye. Seeing Chen Yan's eyes full of tenderness, holding the small bowl and tasting it carefully spoonful by spoonful, his Adam's apple rolled unconsciously.
Is it really...that delicious?
Li Wensu, a touch of curiosity piqued, turned his gaze once again to the bowl of soup, examining it carefully. The ingredients within were clearly arranged. The golden-sweet mackerel sat at the top, smothered in broth. The brown sea cucumbers were plump and succulent, evidently soaking up the broth. The gleaming pigeon eggs were round and pearly, and there were also glistening dried scallops and tender fish maw.
Each ingredient is coated with an oily sheen, looking extremely plump and tempting.
But for Li Wensu, who was born in a yamen, the ingredients here were common and did not arouse his appetite much.
When he thought of this, he couldn't help but wonder, could it be that Chen Yan, who was beside him, came from a poor family and therefore couldn't resist the temptation of these luxurious ingredients?
After a moment's thought, Li Wensu burst out laughing again. While these ingredients were top-grade, which of the previous dishes wasn't top-grade? Even a seemingly ordinary goose breast tasted incredibly wonderful. One couldn't tell how many precious ingredients had been used to simmer it, leaving only the goose breast on display.
In comparison, this Fu Shou Quan dish seems too straightforward and exaggerated, making people look down on it.
Li Wensu glanced at Chen Yan again, and was even more amazed to see that he was drinking contentedly and looked carefree.
Without giving it any more thought, he scooped up a spoonful and put it into his mouth. The moment it entered his mouth, the overwhelming aroma made Li Wensu's eyelids jump, and he immediately showed a look of surprise. Then the golden soup was mellow and sticky. The extremely delicious taste was like a lightning bolt that hit the top of his head and instantly broke through the gate of his taste buds.
Li Wensu's fingers trembled, and he nearly dropped the spoon. He bit down on the soft flesh with all his strength, suppressing the urge to cry out in surprise.
The people sitting far away might not have noticed, but another Jinshi sitting below did. He glanced at Li Wensu, whose body was tense, pupils trembling, and who was stunned for a long time before starting to sweep frantically, and question marks almost appeared in his eyes.
"Brother Li! Brother Li...?" The man called out twice, suspecting that there was a love potion in the soup, otherwise how could Li Wensu be addicted to it?
He knew he shouldn't try it, but he couldn't help it! Soon the man reached out and scooped up a spoonful to taste it... taste it... taste it...
Just like Calabash Brothers saving his grandfather, the scholars fell into the trap full of temptation one after another and became addicted to it.
Chen Yan looked down in confusion, seeing that everyone was busy eating and didn't pay any attention to the words of the officials. He frowned unconsciously: This is outrageous, outrageous!
The sage seated at the head also noticed this scene and nodded silently. Compared to the other Jinshi who were unaware of Shen Yan, he knew him very well and had a great admiration for him: willing to sacrifice his future for his parents' misfortune and single-mindedly seek the truth was filial piety; after discovering the truth, he did not seek immediate revenge out of selfish motives, but instead calmly dug out more information and reported all the private information of Shen Yan and his accomplices to the court for punishment. This was loyalty.
Now he has become the provincial champion in one fell swoop, and was then selected by himself as the top scorer. He is talented and outstanding.
Looking at her performance just now, she was even more dignified and polite, which made the saint more and more satisfied.
He had already had something in mind, and now he had finalized his plan. After the Qionglin Banquet was over, when the Jinshi scholars gathered the next day, he saw a eunuch come out holding an imperial edict: "The Emperor, by the Mandate of Heaven, proclaims that I, while ruling the country, eagerly seek talents to assist in my administration... The first newly-appointed Jinshi, Chen Yan, is a man of profound learning and upright character, having spent considerable time in the Dali Temple. He is hereby appointed Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Justice; the second, Li Wensu..."
Even in such a serious situation, some people couldn't help but exclaim. The Deputy Director of the Ministry of Justice was a seventh-rank official, which was not a particularly high salary.
The problem is that the Deputy Director of the Ministry of Justice is a Beijing official, while almost all of the previous top scorers were sent to serve as local officials. After accumulating a certain amount of governing experience, they were transferred back to the capital to serve.
And Chen Yan actually skipped this step! ?
Everyone was immersed in shock. They only stood up after the eunuch announced everyone's arrangements. Countless eyes were on Shen Yan's back.
Li Wensu was the first to come to his senses. He took two steps at a time and walked to Chen Yan. After a long while, he managed to utter a sentence: "You - really used to be a clerk in the Dali Temple!?"
Chen Yan was startled for a moment, then nodded calmly: "Yes."
As soon as the words fell, there was an uproar around.
Many people present had heard of this rumor, but most people did not take it seriously.
Until now, the few people who studied at the Imperial College finally felt proud and said, "We told you long ago, but you just didn't believe us!"
The others: “…”
Who can believe it? Who can believe it?
A top scholar, instead of studying hard, went to work as a clerk in the Dali Temple? If this were put into a storyteller's play, he would be ridiculed to death! ?
After a while, someone spoke weakly, "I remember you said that Mr. Shen just returned to study at the Imperial College at the beginning of this year?"
Several people said in unison: "Yes."
Everyone around was silent. Does that mean Mr. Shen just re-studied for half a year and directly became the provincial champion, and then the top scholar?
Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha.
The few people whose self-esteem was bruised no longer wanted to talk: Damn it! How can the differences between people be so huge!
But after a while, everyone regained their spirits. A few familiar people exchanged glances, knowing each other's thoughts. When Chen Yan became the provincial governor, everyone started to ask about him.
They didn't find out much else, but they all knew one thing: Chen Yan's parents died young and he was still unmarried! Yes, this dignified top scholar was still unmarried!
The crowd rushed forward like wolves and tigers, smiling, "Mr. Chen, let's go drink together to celebrate today?"
"Why don't you come to my house and sit down?"
"My wife is very good at cooking. Why don't you come to my house and chat?"
"Chen Lang, my sister really admires your talent—" Before the man could finish his words, he was pushed aside by others.
But before that person could say anything, someone else spoke up boldly: "Shen Lang is unmarried, do you have anyone you like? My family has some connections, and I can introduce you to someone or two."
Everyone's eyes were fixed on Shen Yan. Shen Yan was startled at first, then a faint blush appeared on his cheeks. He bowed and said, "I already have someone I like."
Most of the people present were immediately disappointed, but some people still wanted to see her and asked, "May I ask which family this daughter is from?"
When Chen Yan heard this question, his eyebrows danced with joy, and he was very proud: "Although you have never seen her, you must know her."
As soon as these words were spoken, the students present immediately thought of several very talented and famous ladies in Bianjing City, but no matter how hard they thought, they still couldn't figure out who they were.
Chen Yan said proudly: "The longevity soup you drank at the Qionglin banquet yesterday was made by her."
????? ?????
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone's minds went blank for a moment.
Chen Yan left quickly and decisively, but many people behind him were still in shock for a long time.
"The blessing and longevity yesterday?"
"Hiss—Mr. Shen's sweetheart is a cook?"
Someone was silent for a moment, then whispered, "The chef who can preside over the Qionglin Banquet must be someone from the palace, right?"
"No, no, no, no." Someone in the know quickly retorted, "In addition to the chefs from the Imperial Kitchen, there were also chefs from the catering industry participating in the Qionglin Banquet."
At this point, the insider had a strange expression on his face: "But... most of the chefs who can participate are probably a bit old, right?"
The room was silent for a while. Someone pondered for a long time before whispering, "Maybe it's because the dowry is generous?"
Nowadays, lavish dowries are a trend, and it is common for women with generous dowries to divorce and remarry. Some even marry better than their first marriage.
Officials needed money to socialize with each other, so marrying merchant daughters was common.
Among the people present, there were many who came from poor families and had to marry rich women in order to continue their studies. They couldn't help but nod secretly when they heard this.
But Li Wensu frowned as he listened: "Don't talk nonsense, I just saw Mr. Shen's expression, it doesn't seem like he wants to marry a merchant's daughter for money, it's more like... like he is showing off that he can marry this lady."
Everyone was stunned, and after thinking about it, they felt that it seemed to make some sense.
"Besides," Li Wensu paused, and continued, "If Mr. Shen is really the kind of person who covets dowries, wouldn't it be better for him to marry a daughter of an official family with a noble family but a small dowry, and then marry two or three daughters from merchant families with generous dowries? This way, he would have both respectability and money. If others tell others about it, not only will no one criticize him, but people will even envy him for the harmonious relationship between his wives and concubines and his good housekeeping."
Another point is that Li Wensu recalled the longevity soup and couldn't help swallowing his saliva.
As he was speaking, a Jinshi who knew Chen Yan's past said, "Mr. Li is right."
Then, the scholar said to those who had just been gossiping recklessly, "Stop talking nonsense! I think the person Mr. Shen is talking about is Miss Lin from Linzhiji!"
"That's right."
"Chef Lin is also the chef invited to the Qionglin Banquet, right? His shop has been closed for several days."
The person next to him was also a student of the Imperial Academy. He nodded repeatedly: "I told you long ago that Mr. Shen was interested in Miss Lin! Every time I go to Linzhiji to buy food, I can see Mr. Shen sitting there!"
"I heard that Miss Lin would even leave some food for Mr. Shen! A lot of that food is not available in the shop!"
"Yes, yes, yes. I'm so envious."
"It's no use for us to envy him. Tao Xiaolang hasn't been able to get it many times."
A group of Jinshi graduates from the Imperial College were chattering and laughing, attracting the attention of others and questions from others.
"Mrs. Lin? Is she very young?"
"Do you also recognize this Cook Lin?"
"Tell me, what else do you know?"
"What else do we know..." Someone whispered meaningfully, "My home is near Mr. Shen's. If I remember correctly, they just found a top-notch matchmaker two days ago!"
Regardless of whether they were interested just now, everyone was immediately excited. However, Li Wensu still had a question. Unable to conceal his surprise, he asked in surprise, "Wait a minute? You mean Mr. Shen was just showing off for a while, but he didn't even let the matchmaker come to the door?"
There was a moment of silence in the room, and after a moment someone couldn't help but sigh: "Mr. Shen is really... innocent?"
"What do you think, Mr. Shen will do it?"
"No...still a young girl, right?"
“Hahahahahahaha!”
"Hey, hey, hey, stop talking nonsense!"
Everyone couldn't help laughing, and the room was suddenly filled with a happy atmosphere.
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