Su Rong put down the basket and looked at the pheasants huddled tremblingly inside the fenced yard. Roughly counting, there were about fifty or sixty of them. Each one had colorful and stunning feathers. They were indeed mountain pheasants. It was a shame that they were scared and lost their usual agile charm of running freely in the mountains. They seemed to know that they were going to be eaten and were terrified.
She asked, "How were they caught?"
"A chicken race?" Fen Ling proudly replied, "Sister, these chickens run very fast, and ordinary people can’t catch them. Once they’re exhausted from being chased and have no place to hide, they can naturally be caught."
Su Rong looked at these chickens and felt sudden sympathy for them. They were indeed pitiful, all worn out from running. She decided to have them taken back and fattened up with good rice and vegetables, "Don’t wait until we return to the city. Tomorrow, you should send a carriage to take all of them back to the Shen Residence. Have Shen’s mother send two chickens to each residence: the Eastern Palace, the Duke Residence, the Residence of Princess Qingping, and King Rui’an’s Residence. Oh, and also to the residence of the Crown Prince of Chengguo!"
Fen Ling nodded, "Alright."
Su Rong then looked at two baskets of mushrooms, "We’ll keep one basket for the temple kitchen to prepare for meals, and send the other basket back as well."
"No need to send back, our hidden guards also picked some, there are six or seven baskets. Those will be enough," Fen Ling generously waved his hand, "Our people, they can do anything."
He wanted to say that unlike Second Master Ye’s men, who only know how to safeguard their master and didn’t even think of picking mushrooms together. Apart from good martial arts and hiding techniques, they lacked the ability to perform other tasks and weren’t self-aware.
Ye Guixue coughed lightly, called Yin Yue, and instructed him, "You guys should learn from Fen Ling and his men in the future."
Yin Yue agreed.
Fen Ling chuckled, "Sure."
At dinner time, Fen Ling sent the newly picked mountain treasures to the kitchen and personally supervised the preparation as he insisted the chefs make a variety of delicious dishes from the fresh and tender mountain treasures.
Before the dishes were ready, he heard voices at the temple gate. It sounded very lively. Fen Ling stepped out of the kitchen and out of curiosity, he went to have a look. He was surprised to see He Zheng and Zhou Gu, "Lord Thursday, Captain He, why are you here too?"
Zhou Gu did not answer.
He Zheng said, "We followed the trail and traced it here. Ding Man’s last known location before he was killed was the Buddha Temple."
Fen Ling was astonished, "So, you’re investigating the case and came here?"
"Yes, we came to interrogate the monks in the temple for clues," He Zheng said.
Fen Ling nodded and turned around to report to Su Rong.
Upon hearing that He Zheng and Zhou Gu had traced their investigation to the Buddha Temple, Su Rong wondered at the coincidence. She pondered before asking, "Have they not eaten for a day?"
Fen Ling blinked, "Probably!".
If Lord Zhou and He Zheng had set off for the Buddha Temple mountain to investigate right after they left the capital, then until now, they might not have had time to eat.
Su Rong turned to Ye Guixue and said, "What do you think about inviting Zhou Gu and He Zheng to eat with us?"
Ye Guixue nodded in agreement, "Seeing that we’ve all coincidentally met here, let’s invite them! Conducting an investigation is strenuous work and, even though the monks in the temple would also prepare food for them, it isn’t necessary for the temple to go through such trouble for people we know."
"That’s what I was thinking." Su Rong instructed Fen Ling, "You go invite them. The investigation doesn’t have to be rushed. They can take their time after eating." 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮
Fen Ling nodded and immediately left.
Just as the head monk was inviting He Zheng and Zhou Gu into the temple and had started to ask a few questions to understand the situation, Fen Ling arrived with the invitation. With his stomach already growling from hunger, He Zheng looked at Zhou Gu.
Ziye was quickly said, "Young Master, you and Captain He should go eat! I’ll supervise the situation here first, and then you can replace me after eating."
Zhou Gu didn’t immediately agree but instead asked Fen Ling, "Is this her idea or Second Master Ye’s idea?"
Fen Ling replied, "It was my sister’s suggestion, but with the consent of Second Master Ye."
Zhou Gu nodded, "Then lead the way!"
As a result, Fen Ling led the two of them towards the courtyard where they were staying. As they passed the kitchen, he shouted inside, "Chefs, please prepare a few more dishes."
The head chef glanced out and promptly responded.
Upon entering the courtyard, they saw the pheasants in the fenced yard, which stood out as one of the highlights. He Zheng was surprised, "Why are there so many pheasants? Doesn’t the Buddhist temple promote non-killing?"
"They won’t be killed here. These chickens will be taken away and killed back in the city," Fen Ling said.
He Zheng: "..."
Since everyone had met in the wilderness a short while ago, there were no formalities when they met again this time, and they simply waited for the food to be served.
Zhou Gu washed his hands and freshened up his face, trying to make himself look refreshed before sitting down.
Ye Guixue personally poured two cups of tea and pushed them in front of him and He Zheng. Both men thanked him.
Su Rong was peeling hazelnuts with her hands, applying a gentle pressure with her fingertips to crack open the hard shell of the nuts. She asked the two men, "Would you like to peel some to curb your hunger?"
He Zheng didn’t move, not because he didn’t want to eat, but because he felt he couldn’t peel the nuts. He didn’t know how Su Rong could use her dainty slender fingers to lightly press and crack open the hazelnut shells.
Zhou Gu nodded, picked up a hazelnut, and followed Su Rong’s movements. He peeled a few for himself and popped them into his mouth.
He Zheng, who was Captain of the Imperial Guard, felt slightly embarrassed and turned to Zhou Gu, "Impressive."
Zhou Gu curved his lips, "This requires internal strength. Don’t you have it, Captain He?"
"I do, but I don’t have such control," He Zheng awkwardly asked Su Rong, "Does Lady Su Qi practice martial arts?"
Su Rong nodded, "A little."
He Zheng thought to himself, it’s more than just a little.
The kitchen was efficient, and in a short time, they served the meal. This time, there were obviously more dishes than at lunch. A string of little monks came with food boxes, about seven or eight of them. They piled the bowls and plates onto the long table, which held more than twenty dishes.
Fen Ling pointed to the wild food and said, "These are what my sister and Second Master Ye picked today. Lord Thursday, Captain He, you are in for a treat. Try them."
Zhou Gu nodded.
He Zheng hurriedly said, "Indeed, we are in for a treat."
When he saw the two baskets of wild food earlier, he was only shocked. Who knew that he would be able to taste them! It was truly unexpected.
With Fen Ling there, there was no lull in the conversation at the dining table. Zhou Gu had not had much appetite in the past few days, but he surprisingly ate a lot this time. He Zheng also ate a lot. After eating, they didn’t linger and went back to their investigation.
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