Chapter 12, The Twelfth Inn: The Man Who Stopped the Carriage
After finishing her meal, Yunyin went to check on the land Zhang Lin had cultivated. The second acre was half-turned over. She looked Zhang Lin over and said, "I don't think this land is particularly fertile. How did you fertilize your land before?"
After recalling for a moment, Zhang Lin said, "I used chicken manure and chopped wheat and rice straw to compost together."
"Don't worry, my wife. After I finish clearing the land, I'll go and compost it. We don't have chicken manure, but there's plenty of bird droppings in the mountains, which can also be used for composting."
Yunyin remembered the composting method she had seen in a planting book, and she nodded and said, "I have a method here, you can try it too. Pile up more fertilizer, the soil here probably needs a lot of fertilizer to grow well."
Yunyin explained it to him carefully. In fact, the method of composting this kind of farmyard manure is mostly the same as the method Zhang Lin and the others used before. However, the wheat straw needs to be chopped up and watered to keep it moist, so that it will decompose more easily.
In addition to these, you can also dig up decaying leaves from the mountains, leftover kitchen waste, etc., and put them in with wood ash to compost.
Cover it with a straw mat to prevent moisture from evaporating too quickly. You will also need to add water from time to time to maintain humidity. This way, the compost will be high-quality fertilizer.
Yunyin emphasized some key points to her, such as temperature, humidity, and ventilation, and her lips were dry by the time she finished explaining everything.
She took a sip of water to moisten her throat and said, "Try it first, and if you still have problems, come back to me."
Zhang Lin scratched his head, picked up his hoe, and continued working. It's unclear whether he remembered anything.
Yunyin returned to the food stall, intending to continue waiting for the caravan to arrive.
But as darkness fell, Yunyin still hadn't seen the next caravan. She packed up her things, leaving the less portable items on the stall and asking Zhang Lin to look after them.
She thought that if no one came by tomorrow morning, she would go to the county town to buy the iron pot.
The next morning, Yunyin struggled to get out of bed. The sky was just beginning to lighten, and the moon was still faintly visible. After stretching her muscles, she took her things to the stall. Zhang Lin had already gotten up by then.
Looking at the still deserted official road, Zhang Lin said with a mournful face, "Wife, what should we do? If no one comes today, should we set up our stall somewhere else?"
Yunyin put down what she was holding. "I haven't kneaded the dough yet, so I'll close for a day. I'll go to the county to buy an iron pot and inquire about the situation there."
“There are bandits on the official road. The county government may have issued a notice. I’ll go take a look. You continue clearing land and composting today.”
After explaining everything, Yunyin went back to the hut, packed her things, and went to town to find Luo Man.
At this time, the town was still as usual. People were still working and setting up stalls as usual. No one mentioned the bandits.
When Yunyin found Luo Man, she was calculating her earnings over the past few days. When she saw Yunyin, her eyes lit up and she said, "Why are you here, sister? Why wasn't that Zhang kid here today?"
These past few days, whenever Yunyin arranged for Zhang Lin to come to town to buy bones, she would always ask him to bring a basket of elm seeds and toon leaves for Luo Man. Today, because she was planning to go to the county, she took over bringing things for Luo Man instead.
Yunyin smiled shyly and said, "I came here to ask Sister Aman for a favor. I wonder if it's convenient for me?"
Luo Man stopped smiling, put down the abacus, and led Yunyin back to the backyard, asking, "What trouble have you encountered, sister?"
Yunyin put down her basket and said, "Sister Aman, I wonder if you need a carriage today? If it's convenient, could you lend me a carriage and a driver? I plan to go to the county town."
Luo Man patted her chest and said, "I thought it was something serious, but it turns out it's just something as small as borrowing a car."
She turned around and called out, "Zhao Qian, come here."
Zhao Qian, who was sweeping in the backyard, heard him being called and quickly ran over, saying, "What does the master want with me?"
Luo Man said, "Go and hitch up the carriage and take Lady Yun to the county town."
After Zhao Qian left, Yunyin smiled and said, "I'm really sorry to have troubled Sister Aman."
Luo Man shook her head and said, "It's nothing, you're too kind, sister."
"I haven't thanked you yet. The snacks you taught me before were indeed very popular with those scholars."
"I had these dishes made at restaurants in the county, and business has improved a lot since then."
Yunyin said in surprise, "So Sister Aman also has a restaurant in the county town, that's amazing."
Luo Man waved her hand and said, "It's not as amazing as you say. It's just enough to make a living. If you want to talk about the most famous restaurant in the county, it's Manxiangju, which is run by people from Mianzhou."
I've heard it's a famous restaurant in Mianzhou, with branches in many counties under Mianzhou's jurisdiction. Their Eight Treasure Chicken is especially famous; if Lady Yun goes, she must try it.
Yunyin smiled and nodded, saying, "Thank you for the recommendation, Sister Aman. I will definitely try it."
She really wanted to try the cooking at the restaurants in Long'an County. She had already tried the signature stewed mutton at Luo Niangzi's restaurant, and it was truly exceptional. No wonder it had been able to establish itself in both the town and the county.
Before leaving, Yunyin asked Luoman, "Sister Aman, do you know if there are any bandits in the area recently?"
Luo Man asked in surprise, "Where did you hear that, sister? I haven't heard any news about it, and there aren't any rumors in the county."
She thought for a moment and said, "But it's been a long time since I last went to the county, so there might be some news I don't know. Did you go to the county this time to inquire about this matter?"
Yunyin shook her head and said, "That's just one reason. The main reason is that I plan to buy an iron pot so that it will be more convenient to cook."
"Buying an iron pot? You really need to go to the blacksmith's shop in the county. Since our family mainly makes stews, we don't really need an iron pot, so we didn't buy one. Iron pots are quite expensive; one costs at least two strings of cash."
Yunyin had guessed that the iron pot would be expensive, but she didn't expect it to cost two strings of cash. She took a deep breath, realizing that buying the iron pot would reduce her savings by more than half.
However, she couldn't not buy it. Yunyin was used to using an iron wok for stir-frying and stewing, and she wasn't used to cooking with a large pot. So even though it was expensive, she planned to buy one.
Yunyin said, "Since Sister Aman hasn't heard about the bandits either, I'll go to the county to check the situation. If I find any news, I'll let you know. But Sister Aman, please be careful if you go out recently. Better safe than sorry."
Luo Man nodded and said, "I know, don't worry. I don't plan to go out anytime soon, not even to the county. If you get any news, please let me know."
Yunyin agreed, bid farewell to Luoman, boarded the carriage, and slowly headed towards the county town. Zhao Qian drove the carriage smoothly, at a moderate speed, so she hardly felt any bumps, and they arrived in the county town safely.
She admired Zhao Qian's driving skills, wondering if she could have Zhang Lin learn to drive one in the future, or perhaps she could learn herself. Just as she was thinking this and about to get off the carriage to see what was going on in Long'an County, a delighted voice rang out from outside the carriage.
"Is this Madam Luo? You've finally come to the county town." The man continued in a fawning voice, "Since Madam Luo has come to the county town, why didn't you tell me? I would have treated you to a meal."
Yunyin was still confused when Zhao Qian, who had gone to negotiate with someone to stop the car, ran back and said, "Young Master Song, you've mistaken me for someone else. The person sitting in the car isn't our master."
The man shoved Zhao Qian aside and said, "Get out of the way. I'm talking to Madam Luo. What business is it of yours?"
Yunyin flung open the car curtain and jumped out, saying, "He's right, you've definitely got the wrong person."
Yunyin looked up at the man who had stopped the carriage. He wore a jade crown and a long robe with a round neck and wide sleeves, exuding a scholarly air. He looked dashing and debonair, but his actions were just like those of a spoiled brat.
The woman who came out looked beautiful, but she wasn't the one he wanted to see. The woman, who had just been all smiles, immediately turned grim and said, "Who are you? Why are you using Lady Luo's carriage? Where is Lady Luo?"
Yunyin didn't intend to pay attention to her. She told Zhao Qian and was about to leave when the man stopped her, saying, "I'm talking to you, why aren't you paying attention to me? I just want to know how Lady Luo is doing these days."
“She hasn’t come to the county town for almost a month. Is there something I did wrong that’s causing her to avoid me? If it weren’t for my studies and my family not allowing me to leave the town, I would have gone to find Madam Luo in town long ago.”
Yunyin didn't want to listen to this strange man's nonsense, nor did she want to know about his relationship with Lady Luo. She interrupted the man, saying, "I really don't know. I have something to do, so I'll take my leave now."
Yunyin avoided him, glanced in the direction she was heading towards the city, when the man caught up with her and said, "How could you not know? If you weren't familiar with Madam Luo, why would she lend you her carriage?"
"Tell me what you need to do. I know this county very well; there's nothing I don't know about it."
Yunyin sized him up for a moment and said, "I haven't asked your name yet, young master."
The man patted his clothes, raised his head and said, "My name is Song Shi, and I am currently studying at the county school. May I ask your name, young lady?"
Yunyin gave a fake laugh and said, "My surname is Yun, you can just call me Lady Yun."
Yunyin didn't intend to get to know him much, so she didn't tell him her name. She just thought he must be from an official family based on his attire, so she wanted to find out some information from him.
She coughed lightly and said, "I don't know how to get to the blacksmith's shop. Could you please give me directions?"
Song Shi pursed his lips and said, "I thought you were going to do something important, but it turns out you just want to go to the blacksmith's shop. Well, I happen to have some free time today, so I'll take you there. If you can tell me about Madam Luo's recent situation, that would be even better."
As Yunyin and Song Shi walked forward together, an urgent call came from the side, "My lord, my lord, wait a moment!"
Yunyin looked over and saw a young man squeezing his way from the other end. She raised her chin and asked Song Shi, "Is he looking for you?"
Song Shi didn't look in that direction, but led Yun Yin in another direction, saying as they walked, "Don't worry about it, let's go."
Yunyin didn't want to meddle in other people's business, so she followed Song Shi's pace. Before she had gone a few steps, the young man caught up with her and said, "Young master, we should go home. Otherwise, if the mistress finds out, she will definitely not forgive me."
Song Shi said impatiently, "Are you my page or my mother's son? I'm already annoyed enough with going to school during the day. I can't even enjoy my days off. If you still consider me your master, then shut up and follow me."
Yunyin paid no attention to the argument between the master and servant. Her attention was focused on the familiar figure in the distance. She murmured to herself, "Why is he here?"
A note from the author:
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