Chapter 8 You should keep your cake for yourself.
As Achan saw the two off at the door, she turned around and saw the owner of the bookstore next door happily carrying two oil paper packages into the shop.
Upon seeing Achan, he greeted her warmly: "Miss Ji."
"What delicious food did you buy, Mr. Xu?" Ah Chan asked with a smile.
Ah Chan and Boss Xu only met briefly this morning, but Ji Chan was quite impressed with him.
When she first moved here, Mr. Xu saw that she was all alone and didn't know anything, so he was afraid that something might happen to her. He took her to the street to buy a lot of daily necessities.
The rice, flour, charcoal, and firewood stored at home were all purchased by Boss Xu with Ji Chan.
Ji Chan offered him a tael of silver as a thank you gift, but he refused to accept it. In the end, she treated him to mutton buns sold by Aunt Huang on the street, and only then were they all happy.
From this, Achan knew that this Mr. Xu was a very nice person and also a good eater.
"Old Hu set up a stall on the street to sell smoked chicken. His smoked chicken skills are superb. Today I was lucky and managed to snag two."
As he spoke, he also lifted the oil paper package in his hand.
Although they were far apart, the aroma of chicken still reached Achan's nose. She turned around, closed the door, and said to Boss Xu, "Boss Xu, please watch the door for me. I'm going to buy some too."
"Go quickly, go quickly."
Watching Ah Chan lift her skirt and walk briskly towards the street, Boss Xu said to the waiter who came out, "Miss Ji seems much happier than before."
The young waiter also peeked over and muttered, "The two guards from the Mingjing Division who brought Miss Ji back just now looked quite fierce. I wonder what Miss Ji's identity is?"
Ah Chan had no idea what Boss Xu and his young apprentice were curious about. When she arrived at the street, a large crowd had already gathered in front of Old Man Hu's stall.
Some people complained that the smoked chicken was too expensive, but they still refused to leave. Others simply bought a bowl of vegetarian noodles from the nearby stall, enjoying the aroma of the smoked chicken as they ate.
Ah Chan waited in line for almost an hour before finally buying half a smoked chicken.
Old Hu's smoked chicken smelled really good, but it was too expensive; half a chicken cost her thirty coins.
For the first time, Achan felt a strong urge to make money. As a fox demon, she should at least be able to afford chicken.
Since Old Man Hu said that the smoked chicken would taste better after it cooled down, Achan didn't rush to eat it. She was going to the Zhao residence tomorrow, so she had to finish making the sachets today.
She placed all her spices on the newly purchased table, along with some tools. She went over and tidied things up, taking out the spices she would need for the day.
Spices can be made into many different forms such as incense sticks, incense coils, and incense balls, but sachets are the easiest to make.
However, the most difficult part of learning incense is the preparation of incense formulas. Fortunately, Mr. Kobayashi only needed one insect repellent incense, and the ingredients were common and easy to prepare.
Achan took seven kinds of spices, including mugwort, mint, and dried tangerine peel, ground them into powder in turn, mixed them together in equal proportions, put them into a cotton bag, and then put them into a sachet she bought from outside.
These spices are all mosquito repellents, and their smells are slightly pungent. When mixed together, although the aroma is strong, it is not pungent, and most people should be able to accept it.
The sachets were finished. Achan looked at the sky and realized that it was already past Shenshi (3-5 PM). It was dark outside and the wind had picked up.
She only then realized she was hungry. She had bought half a smoked chicken earlier, and she could make some pancakes for dinner.
Ah Chan thought it was easy, but unfortunately she underestimated her own skills.
Making pancakes requires kneading the dough. If the dough is too thin, add water; if there's too much water, add more flour. By the time she finally finished kneading the dough, the small dough ball she had estimated would be enough for one person for two meals had turned into a large dough ball that could last for at least two days.
It's okay, she thought with a wry smile, she could have hand-pulled noodles tomorrow.
It was half an hour later when she carried out the kitchen with six freshly baked flatbreads, each as big as her face.
She lit the oil lamp and placed the flatbread and shredded smoked chicken side by side on the table. The aroma of the chicken filled the air. Before Achan could reach out, there was a knock on the door.
"Who is it?" She walked to the door but did not remove the latch.
"Open the door." The person outside neither gave his name nor identified himself, and his attitude was very unfriendly, but Achan recognized his voice.
After removing the latch, Achan opened the door, and standing outside was none other than the Mingjing Division Commander, whom she hadn't seen for several days.
She had considered during the day that her words might attract this official, but she never expected him to be so impolite as to come to her house at such a time.
"Please come in, sir." After silently cursing in her heart, Achan still respectfully invited the person in.
Bai Xiuming stepped over the threshold into the empty room, his gaze sweeping around before finally settling on the two plates on the table.
Seeing the other person staring at her dinner, Achan asked reluctantly, "Sir, have you never had an evening meal? Would you like to eat with me?"
Bai Xiuming stared blankly at the pancakes on the plate, which were of varying sizes and thicknesses, some of them burnt on one side, and then looked away.
"Looks like he's not going to eat," Ah Chan thought to herself, then moved the only stool in the room over: "Please sit down, sir."
Bai Xiuming didn't sit down, but looked at her with a scrutinizing gaze for a moment before speaking: "Did you tell Feng Yang about the Snow Needle Serpent?"
Achan readily admitted, "It was I who told you. I happened to have a memory of such a strange snake, so I told Lord Feng."
"Feng Yang is very grateful to you."
"I'm glad I could help Lord Feng," Achan said modestly.
The next moment, the other person's tone changed, and they asked in a sinister tone, "Are you doing this to help him?"
Achan wanted to answer yes, but given that she had suffered a terrible loss at the hands of this person, she chose to remain silent.
The wick of the oil lamp on the table crackled as it burned, casting a dim, yellowish light on Bai Xiuming. His shadow resembled a ferocious beast, baring its fangs and claws, ready to devour its prey.
Achan remained silent, and he too remained silent, seemingly waiting for her reply.
Left with no other choice, Achan had to admit, "I helped Lord Feng because I wanted to use his identity to help me fend off Xue Mingtang. Lord Feng should know that he wants to kill me and he still hasn't given up."
Bai Xiuming then asked, "Why are you in the West Market?"
“I bought spices.” She pointed to a wooden post placed in the corner, piled with spices and sachets she had made, and explained, “I had studied perfumery before and thought I could use it to make a living, so I went there to buy some spices. Who knew that I would run into the Mingjing Division arresting people.”
"What a coincidence?"
That tone clearly showed that he didn't believe her.
Ah Chan finally realized that this person had come all this way because he suspected that she was related to that strange snake.
She was helpless. She had already experienced the temper of this man before. He was completely unyielding and only believed in his own judgment.
Instead of trying to reason with him, we should try some other methods.
“It is a coincidence, but there is actually another reason why I helped Lord Feng.” Achan’s beautiful eyes fell on Bai Xiuming.
Bai Xiuming turned his head to look at her, as if waiting to hear her sophistry.
"I guess Lord Feng will tell you what happened today, and you might come looking for me."
"Then?"
"Then I'll have a chance to curry favor with the adults."
"Trying to please me?" Bai Xiuming found it somewhat absurd. "What do you plan to use to please me?"
Their eyes met. Bai Xiuming's gaze was deep and unfathomable, as if he could see right through A Chan's heart. She avoided his gaze, and in a moment of quick thinking, pointed to the table, her tone somewhat uncertain: "That?"
Thirty coins was more than enough to show his sincerity. That fragrant smoked chicken would have been enough to please her with just half a chicken, but Bai Xiuming's eyes were drawn to the plate of flatbread.
He fell silent. Countless people in the capital wanted to curry favor with him, some offering rare and exotic beasts, others gold and jewels, and even stunning beauties were not uncommon. This was the first time he'd encountered such an unconventional method of flattery—a scheme to win him over with terrible cooking skills.
"...You should keep your cake for yourself."
"Huh?" Achan asked, bewildered.
Bai Xiuming ignored her and continued, "Don't leave the capital recently. We'll need your cooperation in the investigation if necessary."
"Don't worry, my lord." Where else could she go if she left the capital?
“If I find out that you are involved in this case…” Bai Xiuming said, word by word, “your maternal grandfather’s family will not be simply exiled. I would not mind bringing them back and interrogating them again.”
Achan was startled. Ji Chan only knew that her maternal grandparents' family had gotten into big trouble and had been exiled overnight, but she didn't know the specifics of what had happened.
Judging from Bai Xiuming's words, it seems to be related to this case. Since it involves a strange snake, this case is unlikely to be simple.
Moreover, so much time has passed since Ji Chan's maternal grandparents were exiled, yet the case is still under investigation.
"You jest, sir. I was really just passing by."
"That would be best."
After Bai Xiuming finished speaking, he was about to leave when he heard a sweet voice behind him: "This is the second time we've met, and I still don't know your name, sir."
Bai Xiuming: "You don't need to know."
"I can at least know what your surname is, right?" Achan persisted in asking.
"..."
"Am I not even worthy to know your surname, sir?" Her voice was tinged with a faint sob.
"Affected," Bai Xiuming thought to himself, but before stepping over the threshold, he still uttered a single word: "Bai."
After closing the door, Achan breathed a sigh of relief, finally getting rid of the plague.
Why is your surname Bai? Your heart is so black.
When you help someone, even if you don't repay them, you at least remember their kindness. But when it comes to this person, they immediately suspect her.
Bai Xiuming walked into the deep night, the cold wind lifting the hem of his robe.
Not far from where they had walked, Feng Yang, who had been waiting outside, stepped forward and said, "My lord, the people monitoring the Zhao and Xue families have been arranged."
"Send two more people to keep an eye on her and see if the Lin family has contacted her at all."
"yes."
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