"What's wrong?" Meng Chijian noticed her looking at him.
"The steamed buns are so dry." A-Mian scratched her face sheepishly. "Let's go buy some drinks."
Now that Wangwang was alright, she had already lost in thought and was ready to have a good time in the city.
They went to buy two bowls of herbal tea. The method was not complicated. Ah Mian saw the vendor put the dried perilla leaves into boiling water, wait for them to steep and then pour them into the bowl. Just one bowl cost fifteen coins!
If she were in Qingshan Village or a small town, she wouldn't be able to afford it. For some reason, it seems that she has never had such a moment in her life, where she doesn't have to focus on working to earn money or using her brain to study, but instead leisurely wanders around in unfamiliar and novel places, which makes her feel great.
On the way to see the clock tower, Meng Chijian bought a snack called "oyster omelet".
"Coming to Zhoucheng and not trying oyster omelets is a wasted trip! They taste amazing, I guarantee you'll want more after you try them!" The cheerful, plump woman ran a shop in Zhoucheng thanks to her oyster omelets. "Please come in, ladies and gentlemen, there are still seats available!"
Amian felt that she was very approachable, like a talkative but always kind-hearted neighbor aunt, making people unconsciously believe what she said.
As the two entered the small shop, Meng Chijian silently assessed the cleanliness of the restaurant. Customers came and went in an endless stream, and the wooden tables were still clean and greasy to the touch; the stove was also neat and tidy, without any water stains.
The thin man was taciturn. He washed and chopped the chives and green garlic, mixed them with a little salt and sweet potato starch, and poured them into a porcelain basin. He then added a large bowl of water and stirred it into a thick soup. The thin man's apron was also very clean, showing no signs of the slovenliness he usually displayed from his daily work.
Taking the opportunity, Meng Chijian instructed the boy who was looking around: "See? If you want to open a shop in the future, you must be a clean and tidy young lady."
Ah Mian rested her arms on the table and nodded absentmindedly.
After preparing the ingredients, the skinny husband went into the kitchen in the backyard, and now she could no longer see him.
Before long, the plump woman brought out a steaming plate of oyster omelets. Just by looking at the dish, you could roughly guess how it was made, though perhaps some "secret recipe" was added. The aroma of the fried oyster omelets was irresistible. They were topped with oyster meat and pork, sprinkled with pepper and some mysterious sauce, and garnished with plenty of cilantro on both sides.
There are also three small dishes on the wooden tray: one with sauce, one with vinegar, and one with chopped chili peppers.
"The egg is tender and the powder is smooth, it's really good!" A diner nearby couldn't help but exclaim.
Ah Mian picked up the wooden chopsticks and tasted it. "The flavor is so unique, and even with all this meat, it doesn't feel greasy at all. Instead, it's very refreshing... Ouch—it's too spicy with this chili sauce! You should try it!"
“Hmm,” Meng Chijian tried all three dipping sauces, “this sauce is the best. You can eat the coriander; it helps to relieve the spiciness.”
The two finished the plate in one go. The only thing Ah Mian didn't like was that there was too much coriander. She had a neutral reaction to the taste; she could eat it but didn't like it, feeling like she was eating grass.
After eating, we walked towards the tallest building in the city. The clock tower had several floors, and the higher we went, the smaller the buildings became, and the stairs became narrower and narrower.
At the top, there was only enough room for one person to pass at a time. Ah Mian walked ahead excitedly, with Meng Chijian following behind. After climbing the stairs for quite some time, they finally reached the top.
Ah Mian poked her head out and exclaimed, "Wow!"
"What is that?! That's...that's..."
Looking down from the clock tower, one sees a dense cluster of small houses. Ah Mian had never looked down from such a height before, and she felt deeply awestruck. The city was so vast and prosperous, and how insignificant humans were within it!
But if you look further into the distance, you'll see an endless expanse of water shimmering in the setting sun, a sight that is simply mesmerizing—
"It's the sea."
"Is this the ocean?!"
Amian leaned forward, trying to get closer, but Meng Chijian quickly grabbed her arm. "Be careful!"
"That's the sea! It's so beautiful, it's like a dream! Am I really dreaming? But why does it feel so real?"
Ah Mian stared blankly at the sea as the sun set and the sea gradually darkened. After watching for a while, Meng Chijian felt that there was nothing interesting about the sea anymore, and it was more interesting to watch Ah Mian's sudden outbursts.
Moreover, she was completely unaware that he was kissing A-Mian at that moment.
Even after dark, A-Mian didn't want to leave, wanting to see what the moon looked like when it rose over the sea.
Sure enough, the scene was even more captivating. Ah Mian was deeply moved, with a thousand words stuck in her chest. This scene would appear in her dreams for many years to come, making her feel the supreme grandeur of heaven and earth, an unforgettable experience.
"It looks pretty good." Faced with this scene, Meng Chijian said dryly.
Ah Mian cleared her throat twice and composed a poem:
There is a big moon over the sea.
The light made my whole body tremble.
I wonder what the celestial beings in the heavens are like.
These are our mooncakes!
Meng Chijian felt that A Mian had developed some literary talent, and told her to quickly memorize the poem and then paste it on the wall when she got back.
After playing like this for a long time, Ah Mian finally had enough of the wonders, and Meng Chijian then led her back to the inn.
The inn was still noisy, and so we returned to the human world.
Officer Chen was also there, questioning the waiter on the first floor.
Wangwang's neck wound had been bandaged. She had spent the whole day at the yamen, but she was still in high spirits. "You two are finally back. This afternoon, I thought that since I am also a member of the academy and know the situation, and Constable Chen is investigating Ji Hengzhi's case, I could repay his life-saving grace, so I volunteered to help him."
Amian's cheeks were flushed: "We went to the clock tower and saw the sea. Today is the happiest and most unforgettable day of my life."
"Oh dear, I'd like to go tomorrow too..." Wangwang said sadly, "But I'm afraid my feet won't be able to walk up."
Constable Chen took a sip of tea and said, "Perfect timing. Actually, there's nothing much to see at the bell tower; it's all the same. Why don't you take me to ask a few more scholars from your academy? There are many suspicious points in Ji Hengzhi's case, and we still have no clue..."
Wangwang turned its back to him and simply rolled its eyes wide.
"I'm tired, let's talk about it tomorrow!"
As she spoke, she pulled Ah Mian upstairs, muttering to her, "Investigate, investigate, what's the point of investigating? It's a thankless, unpaid job that's so busy. Ji Hengzhi himself said he was smuggled in from behind. Ah Mian, you weren't here, you have no idea how lively it was this afternoon—"
Officer Chen wanted to investigate the case, but Ji Hengzhi hadn't figured out the culprit, so naturally he could only start by examining Ji Hengzhi's interpersonal relationships.
You wouldn't believe it until you looked it up, and what you found was quite shocking.
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