Song Liyun walked slowly down the road, the warm breeze ruffling her hair.
Inside and outside the town, scattered apricot and pear blossoms have already bloomed, a patchwork of pink and white, dotting the green fields like a casual oil painting.
The air is filled with a faint fragrance, and in just a little while, the trees will be laden with fruit.
Song Liyun sighed.
This was the harmonious life she had always dreamed of, but there were always disharmonious things popping up, making her feel bad.
After experiencing something like this, any normal person would be in a bad mood.
Song Liyun doesn't consider herself to be a kind person.
But I have never seen such a public execution. Human life is really nothing but grass in the hands of those in power.
Song Liyun's fearlessness of bloodshed does not mean she enjoys this kind of life.
Rather than fighting and killing, she preferred to stay at Baolin Residence, cooking with Aunt Yun, making some strange and unusual things, and watching the family's joyful and surprised expressions.
The town was littered with blood, but inside Baolinju, the aroma of spicy food filled the air.
Xiao An is making his spicy rabbit meat again.
When Song Liyun entered the courtyard, she saw a man dressed in ordinary military uniform squatting under the eaves of the front yard, examining several cardboard boxes that were drying in the sun.
It was afternoon, and the spring sunlight was already weak. The faint afterglow slanted into the courtyard, giving the earnest and serious-looking soldier a gentle atmosphere.
The cold resolute and the warm warmth blended together strangely, just like the feeling Song Liyun had when she first saw Luo Baihu in his inner room.
When serious, he is like a majestic mountain; when smiling, he is like the warm summer sun. These are two very conflicting qualities, yet they both appear in one person.
Song Liyun was somewhat stunned!
Upon seeing her master return, Zhao Tingduo stood up and discreetly brushed the dust off her hands.
However, his gaze lingered on the cardboard box, still somewhat unsatisfied.
Song Liyun blinked: This person is up to something!
She stepped forward and bowed to Zhao Tingduo: "Thank you for giving me a ride today, young man. May I ask your name?"
Being overly polite is never a bad thing; if you want to strike up a conversation, you always need to find something to talk about.
Zhao Tingduo's lips twitched slightly, and she returned the greeting with a faint smile: "Miss Song, you are too polite. My surname is Zhao, and everyone usually calls me A Shi. I was presumptuous at noon. Actually, you don't need to ride a horse to get here."
He only saw Song Liyun running in the town, and didn't know where the Song family lived, so he brought his men on horseback.
Unexpectedly, Baolin Residence was only a mile outside the town. The horse arrived before it even sped up, making him seem like he was being nosy.
"Don't be presumptuous, I've never ridden a horse before, so I'm just taking advantage of this opportunity today!" Song Liyun chuckled, and this interruption instantly lightened her depressed mood after leaving the town.
Seeing Song Liyun smiling, Zhao Tingduo also smiled.
The girl in front of him always managed to defuse awkward situations easily, making him feel happy.
Just then, the chubby, dark-skinned boy Abu rushed out of the kitchen with snot and tears streaming down his face, shouting at Zhao Tingduo, "Brother Shi, that little brat is burning chili peppers in there, is this food still edible?"
Song Liyun turned around in surprise: "What are you doing here?"
Why can't I?
Abu widened his eyes, trying to show off his strength, but unfortunately, he was covered in chili pepper smoke and tears, making him look quite comical.
Song Liyun chuckled: "Yes, of course it can!"
Hearing the voices in the courtyard, Han Ming and Song Zhenping, who were in the front wing, came out to explain why the two of them were at Baolin Residence.
It turned out that before returning to the garrison, Luo Baihu felt that Baolinju needed more guards, so this man who called himself Zhao Ashi and Abu volunteered to stay.
Song Liyun expressed her gratitude again and then invited the two of them to have dinner together.
There was a commotion today, and no one got to eat lunch.
After calming down a bit, Yunniangzi prepared a table full of delicious dishes, and Xiao An also added his specialty, spicy rabbit.
The group was starving and didn't care about being polite; they wolfed down their food, just wanting to fill their stomachs.
The Song family members were used to spicy food, and when they ate the rabbit meat, they felt that it was very fragrant.
Abu and Zhao Tingduo were in a difficult situation.
Abu gasped for breath, his large, dark face drenched in sweat.
As he poured cold water into his mouth, he looked at Xiao An and said, "Little one, how did you make such delicious rabbit meat? Teach me!"
Xiao An pouted her lips, which were red from the spiciness, rolled her eyes, and snorted, "I won't teach!"
He also resented Abu for calling him a little kid and saying that he couldn't eat food with chili peppers.
Abu regretted what he had said and bent down to appease him, saying, "Little An, I was wrong. Please be magnanimous and don't hold it against me, okay?"
"You cook so deliciously, Abu-ge will never be able to eat it again, he'll be drooling in his dreams. Tell me, what do you want in exchange, Abu-ge will agree to anything!"
His hoarse voice hadn't completely changed yet, and when he spoke to Xiao An in that strained tone, it made the hairs on Song Liyun's arms stand on end.
Song Liyun glanced at Zhao Ashi, whose face was flushed, and saw that he had the same expectant expression, which made her laugh.
After Song Zhenping explained that the garrison had left Abu and the others to protect Baolin Residence, Song Liyun greeted the two men again.
They knew the burly, dark-skinned boy was named Zhao Bu, and the handsome young soldier was named Zhao Shi.
Because his home was near the grasslands, he had a lot of contact with the Di people, so he was used to calling himself Abu or Ashi.
When Song Liyun heard the handsome young soldier's name be A Shi, she instantly felt that the name was incredibly prescient.
People call him A Shi, which sounds somewhat honest and simple. His eyebrows and eyes are like works of art carved from stone.
Seeing Song Liyun smiling at him, Zhao Tingduo put down his chopsticks somewhat awkwardly and said, "I'm sorry to have made you laugh, Miss Song. My brother just loves food; he likes all sorts of strange and unusual things."
Song Liyun raised an eyebrow; she felt that this soldier was not honest.
They clearly like to eat it themselves, but they blame it on Abu.
Abu asked Xiao An to teach him how to cook. He could teach him the method, but he didn't want to reveal the seasoning, which was a secret recipe of the Song family: "If Abu likes it, bring some seasoning! You can put some in any dish."
Upon hearing that he was offered seasoning, Abu was overjoyed and said, "Thank you, Miss Song. Is it alright to put it on the barbecue?"
"Barbecued meat? Ah! That's the perfect match! Add some cumin powder, sprinkle it on while grilling, and it'll be so flavorful! It's a pity that cumin powder is hard to find." Song Liyun's eyes lit up when she heard about barbecued meat.
The cumin powder from Tianxianglou came through special channels. She searched all over Qili County but couldn't find it. She finally managed to buy a small packet in Pingyang Prefecture after spending one tael of silver.
The waiter told me that cumin comes from wild fennel seeds that grow only on the Dilu grasslands. Herdsmen have to collect each seed and grind them into powder. It can be used to remove the muttony smell when roasting lamb, and it is rarely available in Wuchao.
When Zhao Tingduo heard Song Liyun say that cumin powder was hard to find, she immediately smiled and said, "Our home is near the grasslands, so it's easy for us to buy cumin powder. If Miss Song needs any, we can go back and have someone send some over."
Song Liyun quickly shook her head: "You are all soldiers of the garrison, and there are military regulations that prevent you from taking leave casually."
Although soldiers in the garrison can take leave, it depends on their rank. The two men in front of us are dressed as ordinary soldiers, so it would be very difficult for them to ask for leave.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com