Several soldiers returned to the camp arm in arm, all with satisfied smiles on their faces.
"Lei Zheng!" Liu Yun shouted fiercely.
Lei Zheng looked at the fierce-looking Liu Yun and couldn't help but feel intimidated.
Lei Zheng's expression changed instantly, revealing a fawning smile. He fawned over Liu Yun and asked, "Mr. Liu, what are you doing here?"
"Don't give me that grin. It's your turn to be on duty today, where have you been?" Liu Yun asked with a dark face.
Lei Zheng scratched his head, somewhat embarrassed, and said, "I switched shifts with someone."
"Who did you switch shifts with?"
"Zhang Lin."
Liu Yun's face darkened. "What a coincidence! Several of you switched shifts with him. Is he several of you? You're a veteran, stealing drinks from new recruits and bullying them. Aren't you ashamed?" Lei Zheng scratched his head and said sheepishly, "Mr. Liu, I'll return that drink to him."
Zhang Lin hid the liquor well, but he was no match for Lei Zheng. Lei Zheng was a seasoned veteran; he couldn't hide anything that had been added to the dormitory from him.
Lei Zheng couldn't resist and stole a drink from Zhang Lin's wine. Actually, he felt quite embarrassed. Lei Zheng planned to buy more wine and return it to Zhang Lin after his military pay came in. However, before his pay came in, the matter was exposed, and Lei Zheng was also very embarrassed. "Where did you guys run off to?"
Lei Zheng said with a hint of flattery, "Mr. Liu, the magistrate's brother-in-law's hot pot restaurant opened today. The taste is absolutely amazing. If you go there now, you might be able to get some."
Liu Yun said with a stern face, "Go away, go away! All you do is eat and not do any real work. If you do this again, you'll get a beating."
Lei Zheng smiled and said, "Mr. Liu, please don't be angry! I'll go on patrol right away."
Lei Zheng walked a distance away, then said very seriously, "Mr. Liu, that spicy hot pot tastes really good! A big bowl costs only a few coins. You really should try it; it would be a shame not to."
"Get out of here!" Liu Yun snapped angrily.
Lei Zheng gave a dry laugh and said, "Alright, alright, I'll get going now."
Liu Yun looked at Lei Zheng and shook her head helplessly.
Ji Chengkang came out and said, "It seems that Lu Lin's new mala tang restaurant is really good!"
Liu Yun frowned and said, "One or two of them, they're practically bewitched."
I got a few recipes from Lu Lin, and the food in the military camp has improved a lot, but it still seems not enough. We need to find a way to improve the food in the military camp, otherwise these bastards will all run to Lu Lin's side and cause a lot of trouble.
Inside the room.
Chen Xiaomai poured out a bag of copper coins, and Yuanbao and Chen Xiaomai lay on the table counting the coins.
Today is the opening day of the mala tang (spicy hot pot) shop, and Chen Xiaomai went to work as a helper. Seeing how hard Chen Xiaomai worked, Chen Xiaocai gave Chen Xiaomai two hundred copper coins as a reward for her hard work.
Because Chen Xiaomai had some mental issues, Lu Lin was worried that she would be cheated, so he didn't usually give her money. When she suddenly received a huge sum of two hundred coins, Chen Xiaomai was overjoyed.
Yuanbao looked at Chen Xiaomai and said, "Brother, you really know how to make money!"
Chen Xiaomai said with some pride, "Of course."
In fact, if Chen Xiaomai needed money, Chen Xiaomi would certainly give it to her, but this is different from earning money through labor.
Yuanbao looked at Ji Yun'an and said, "Little brother who climbs over walls, have you ever earned money on your own?"
Ji Yun'an: "..." Making money? With his background, as long as he studies the Four Books and Five Classics well, he can inherit the family business in the future. He doesn't need to worry about making money at all.
Yuanbao looked at Ji Yun'an and said earnestly, "Father said that a good child should learn to be self-reliant and become a useful person to the country."
Ji Yun'an: "..." In this brat's eyes, is he just a glutton who only knows how to eat?
Chen Xiaomai looked at Ji Yun'an and said, "Don't be discouraged if you haven't earned any money yet. Second Brother is short of a waiter and he's too busy to handle everything. Do you want to come with me?"
Ji Yun'an: "..." In this brat's eyes, he's such a useless person, only good for serving dishes. He's a prominent figure in Kyoto, after all.
"Are you going or not?" Chen Xiaomai asked.
“Go.” Ji Yun’an hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth and said.
Chen Xiaomai clapped her hands and said, "Very good, very good. You still have ambition. Don't worry, you'll be protected if you follow me."
Ji Yun'an scratched his head, feeling that staying in this county government office would inevitably lead to some strange occurrences. He wondered what his uncle would think if he knew he was serving Chen Xiaomai dishes.
Liu Yun entered Ji Chengkang's tent, stood there for a while, and hesitated to speak.
Ji Chengkang glanced at Liu Yun, who had a strange expression, and asked, "Why did you come here? Did you go to the mala tang restaurant to check on things?"
Mala Tang (a type of spicy hot pot) restaurants have been incredibly popular in the military camp lately. If it weren't for the strict enforcement in the camp, everyone would probably be flocking to these restaurants.
Even so, on days off, the soldiers in the barracks would flock to the spicy hot pot restaurants in the city.
It is said that in order to cope with such a large flow of customers, Chen Xiaocai had to convert a shop next door into a mala tang (spicy hot pot) shop.
Liu Yun said with a strange expression, "General, the young general is serving dishes at a mala tang restaurant."
Ji Chengkang raised his head, glanced at Liu Yun, and said, "If that's the case, we won't have enough money."
Liu Yun shook his head and said, "No, the young general said that he wants to be self-reliant and can't be outdone by Shuang'er."
Ji Chengkang smiled and said, "He's grown up now, let him be."
Ji Chengkang guessed that Lu Lin wouldn't let Ji Yun'an do this job forever. After a while, when the shop's business stabilized, he would find someone else to take over. His nephew was ambitious, so it would be good for him to get some experience.
Liu Yun hesitated for a moment, then said, "General, that spicy hot pot tastes really good! And it's not expensive either. You can try it when you have time. That shop is very popular. Many adults in the village bring their children there too."
Ji Chengkang glanced at Liu Yun and thought to himself: Liu Yun had previously said that the soldiers in the camp were obsessed with their appetites and did not do their jobs properly. But this guy went to try it for a while and came back to join those scoundrels in the camp. It's as if he was drugged.
"Is it really that delicious?" Ji Chengkang asked.
Liu Yun nodded and said, "Yes, I don't know how this broth is made, it's incredibly delicious."
Ji Chengkang gave a wry smile. When Ji Yun'an came back before, he seemed to have mentioned that Lu Lin spent all his time in the kitchen researching delicious food. If word got out, his prestige would be completely ruined. "It's probably the magistrate's secret recipe."
Liu Yun stroked his chin and said, "How come our county magistrate has so many ideas in his head?"
Lu Lin was startled when he heard that Chen Xiaomai had dragged Ji Yun'an to work.
The Ji family is a family of military generals. Ji Yun'an can be considered a spoiled brat. As long as a spoiled brat like this just loafs around all day and doesn't do anything wrong, that's good enough.
Chen Xiaomai actually dragged Ji Yun'an to serve dishes; isn't that a waste of talent?
Lu Lin immediately found Ji Yun'an and said that it was inappropriate for him to be a waiter in his current position. Ji Yun'an replied that one must endure hardship to rise above others, and he could no longer freeload.
Lu Lin was greatly pleased to hear this, saying that it would be a waste of Ji Yun'an's talent to work as a waiter; he should use his skills to copy books, as copying books would be more lucrative. Ji Yun'an agreed, thinking that this was indeed true. Compared to waiting tables, copying books was more promising, and it would also allow him to review and learn new things.
Ji Yun'an agreed, and focused intently on copying the book. Ji Yun'an's handwriting was quite beautiful.
After a few days of booming business, the mala tang restaurant became a bit quiet. Chen Xiaocai hired a few more helpers and no longer needed Chen Xiaomai, so he sent her back.
Chen Xiaomai lay on the table, looking at Ji Yun'an across from her, and asked, "Brother Ji, can you tell a story?"
Ji Yun'an asked, puzzled, "Tell a story."
Chen Xiaomai nodded and said, "Yes! Brother Lin has read a lot of storybooks."
Ji Yun'an blushed and his mind went astray. In the capital, besides the books required for the imperial examinations, the most popular books were erotic novels.
"My uncle won't let me see those things."
Chen Xiaomai looked at Ji Yun'an with some confusion and said, "Why? Brother Lin has seen a lot of them, and he even told me about them."
Ji Yun'an frowned, thinking to himself: The county magistrate is unconventional in his actions, but it seems inappropriate for him to speak to a child like Xiaomai.
Chen Xiaomai looked at Ji Yun'an and said, "I'll tell you a story."
Ji Yun'an frowned, nodded reluctantly, and said, "Okay!"
Chen Xiaomai happily told Ji Yun'an the story of Sun Wukong's havoc in the Heavenly Palace. Although Chen Xiaomai was a bit silly, she actually had a good memory. In the past, when she was bored, Chen Xiaomai would pester Lu Lin to tell her stories, and she wouldn't give up until she told him. Lu Lin didn't have much knowledge, and after telling a few stories, he couldn't tell any more. Fortunately, Chen Xiaomai wasn't picky, and she would still enjoy listening to the same story several times.
Chen Xiaomai looked at Ji Yun'an and said, "Have you ever heard this story before?" Ji Yun'an shook his head. Although Chen Xiaomai's storytelling was somewhat disorganized and unexpectedly exciting, Ji Yun'an had never heard it before.
Chen Xiaomai looked at Ji Yun'an and said with some disdain, "You really are quite ignorant."
Ji Yun'an: "..." Okay, he was indeed a bit short-sighted. "He's far inferior to Brother Lin."
"The magistrate is a man of great learning, far beyond my reach."
Ji Yun'an found Lu Lin and asked him about the story.
Lu Lin found another use for Ji Yun'an. Lu Lin asked Ji Yun'an to compile the stories Chen Xiaomai told into a book for future use, and Ji Yun'an nodded in agreement.
Ji Yun'an was amazed by the story of Journey to the West that Lu Lin told him. Ji Yun'an had never heard such a wonderful story before and couldn't help but admire Lu Lin greatly.
Looking at the kid's amazed expression, Lu Lin couldn't help but think to himself: "A country bumpkin is a country bumpkin. He's never even heard of the story of Journey to the West."
Ji Yun'an was deeply attracted by Lu Lin's stories, and every day when he saw Lu Lin alone, he would pester Lu Lin to tell him stories.
Every summer, some TV stations would tirelessly rebroadcast the story of Journey to the West. Lu Lin remembered it most clearly, but some things were still a bit blurry, so Lu Lin added some other ghost stories he had heard.
Lu Lin was a little afraid of Ji Yun'an. Chen Xiaomai saw Ji Yun'an pestering Lu Lin to tell stories, so she happily followed Ji Yun'an.
If Chen Xiaomai were the only one who wanted to hear the story, Lu Lin could easily coax her away. However, with Ji Yun'an joining the group, Lu Lin felt a little embarrassed to send her away.
Ji Yun'an was completely absorbed in the stories Lu Lin was telling. Seeing Ji Yun'an's state, Lu Lin was secretly worried. Ji Yun'an came from a family that should have led him to a career in government. If he became so engrossed in all sorts of stories, he might go astray.
Ji Yun'an listened to the story from Lu Lin and wrote it all down.
After writing it down, Ji Yun'an went to Lu Lin and recounted the story he had written.
Lu Lin discovered that Ji Yun'an was indeed a young master from a wealthy family; his writing was excellent, and the story was recorded completely. Despite his stumbling and halting manner, Ji Yun'an had managed to record the entire story.
Chen Xiaomai had been listening to stories with Ji Yun'an for a while, and since she had heard them several times, she started to doze off when she heard familiar stories. Seeing this, Lu Lin asked Chen Xiaomai to tell Ji Yun'an the stories she remembered.
Chen Xiaomai likes listening to stories, but not telling them. However, Chen Xiaomai's storytelling ability is passable.
At the end of March, the silkworm eggs that Lu Lin bought hatched, and plump, long, worm-like silkworms emerged.
Chen Xiaomai's attention immediately shifted from the story to the silkworms.
Lu Lin didn't buy many silkworm eggs in the first batch. He didn't plan to sell these eggs after they hatched; they were intended for breeding. After hatching, the silkworm eggs were covered in fat, long worms crawling everywhere.
Lu Lin has a phobia of trypophobia, and after going there once, he didn't want to go again.
Chen Xiaomi was quite interested in the silkworms in the silkworm house and would go to check on them every now and then.
The Qin family father and son, along with several servants, were all very interested in the silkworms that had hatched.
“The silkworms at home are growing very fast!” Lu Lin said.
Lu Lin hadn't been to the silkworm house for a few days. When he went to check on them a few days later, he found that the silkworms had grown much stronger.
Chen Xiaomi nodded. "They're growing quite well. Some villagers asked me if I could lead them to raise them together, but I'm thinking I should wait and see."
Lu Lin nodded and said, "The mulberry trees haven't grown up yet, so we can't raise many for now. Let's talk about it next year."
Qin Lang and a woman from Sha County hit it off. The woman was very interested in silkworms, so Qin Lang secretly gave her a few to raise. "I send her mulberry leaves every few days," Chen Xiaomi said.
Lu Lin: "...He hadn't really noticed before, but Qin Lang is quite good at charming people! Qin Lang should settle down." Back in Lin Town, quite a few people had proposed marriage to Qin Lang, but he didn't seem to like any of them. Unexpectedly, he's fallen for someone in Sha County. "What kind of woman is she?" Chen Xiaomi tilted her head and said, "I don't know, but someone who catches Qin Lang's eye must be a very capable woman."
“There was a guy in our dorm who gave his girlfriend a rabbit. Later, he cheated on her, and she cooked the rabbit,” Lu Lin said.
Chen Xiaomi: "Why are you suddenly bringing this up..."
Lu Lin rubbed his chin and said, "I don't know either, it just suddenly occurred to me."
Chen Xiaomi: "..."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com