Upon hearing this, Zheng Yang immediately became enraged. He had already witnessed the miserable state of Li Si and Wang Liangui earlier and knew that begging for mercy was useless. So he assumed a defensive posture and cursed, "If you dare to cripple my hand, I'll fuck you to death!"
Turning to Zheng Ankang with some resentment, he said, "Zheng Ankang, Second Master told you to protect your clansmen, and this is how you protect them?"
Zheng Ankang hesitated for a moment. Although he had surrendered to Chenxi, Zheng Yang was still a member of his clan. He couldn't help but say, "Chief, just send him away."
After a moment's thought, Shenxi realized that Zheng Yang was clearly a vengeful person; it would be too lenient not to kill him.
Moreover, this person is different from Li Si. Li Si is the kind of brainless good-for-nothing, while Zheng Yang is a wolf that bites. He must not be allowed to live.
"Captain of the Guards, have you forgotten what I said?"
Zheng Ankang was speechless. Yes, what the leader wanted were people who would follow her sincerely and obey her absolutely, not people with their own agendas.
Zhao Rong, however, did not listen to Zheng Ankang's words. He was determined to do what Shen Xi had told him to do, and he had already started fighting with Zheng Yang.
Zhao Peng, Zhou Ren, and others stepped forward to help, since Zheng Yang was not Li Si, and it wouldn't be easy for Zhao Rong to catch him.
At this point, no matter how great Zheng Yang's abilities or how cunning he was, it was all useless.
Not long after, screams rang out again. Not only were his hands crippled, but he also had several wounds on his body.
Before Shen Xi could give any further instructions, these men dragged Zheng Yang away from the crowd like a dead dog.
Even so, Zheng Yang still persisted, shouting, "Di Yingxue, aren't you going to plead for me? If you don't, I'll tell you all your shameful secrets!"
The woman holding the infant shuddered, then straightened up without uttering a word.
Seeing that Di Yingxue didn't say a word for him, Zheng Yang's face became even more sinister: "You bitch, you won't plead for me, huh? Looks like I haven't fucked you enough. I'll drag you down with me even if I die. If I tell you everything, let's see how you'll have the face to live?"
Chen Xi roared, "This filthy bastard, how dare you let him speak? Zhao Rong, are you dead?"
Zhao Rong had already grabbed a handful of soil and stuffed it into Zheng Yang's mouth. The soil was quite dry, and it made Zheng Yang cough and unable to speak. Zhao Peng, who was standing next to him, was worried and stuffed another handful of soil into his mouth, saying as he did so, "Your mouth still smells so bad even after all this."
Still not reassured, he tore off Zhao Rong's tattered clothes, crumpled them into a ball, and stuffed them into Zhao Rong's mouth, almost choking him.
To prevent any further accidents, the group quickly dragged him out of the crowd and headed into the darkness.
Shen Xi pursed her lips. She didn't know if Zhao Rong had understood the signal she gave him. If he had, he would never have spared Zheng Yang's life!
After Zheng Yang was dealt with, no one dared to object anymore. Everyone had seen through the situation and realized that this girl was extraordinary; she was not only capable but also ruthless.
With this mindset, Shenxi became much more obedient when giving instructions.
Shenxi first apologized to the old village chief: "Fifth Uncle, I am really sorry. Not only did I get your position as village chief, but this time, your position as head of the Shen family is also gone."
The old village chief, who could only be the fifth uncle, was quite philosophical about it: "Xiaoxi, if you're capable, then this is how you should be. Your fifth uncle is too old to do this anymore."
There will be no more village chiefs or clan leaders in the group; everyone will have to follow Chenxi's orders.
Shenxi temporarily divided the people into several teams according to their general abilities. Those young and strong who she thought were relatively upright, as well as a few recommended by Zheng Ankang, were made into guards to protect her and her three younger siblings. They could only obey her direct orders and did not need to worry about anything else.
As the only doctor, Fang Chenyan was assigned by Shenxi to select some capable people to be in charge of picking and processing medicinal herbs. This was their team's medical team, specifically responsible for the medical services within the team.
"Whoever cooks well, please step forward!"
Shenxi's stomach has been upset from the food she's been eating these past two days. In any case, she doesn't want to make things difficult for herself once she has the opportunity.
A large number of people suddenly stepped forward. In this era, almost every woman knew how to cook.
Shen Xi frowned. So many weren't necessary.
"It's not enough to just know how to cook; you have to know how to make delicious food with the simplest ingredients. Even if it's just grass roots and tree bark, you have to make it taste good."
This statement has stumped many people: no matter how good a cook is, they can't make grass roots and tree bark taste good.
In the end, only one person remained standing there.
"Hmm? What can you do?" Chenxi wondered, is it really possible to make grass roots and tree bark taste good?
Standing there was a girl of about fifteen or sixteen years old. She carefully took out a handful of flour from the small bag she was holding. The flour was a darker color. "This is elm bark flour that my mother makes. I can make it too. It can be used to make dumpling soup, pancakes, or steamed dishes. It tastes very good."
Then she picked up another small bag and carefully took out a handful: "This was also made by my mother. It contains various grass roots and leaves. My mother said that putting these into noodles or dishes can enhance the aroma."
Elm bark noodles? I was lucky enough to have tried them. It is said that during famine years, they were used as "food to save people from hunger". Later, when resources became abundant, some people would try them. I tried them once when I went out. At the time, I was thinking, why can't such a delicious food be more widely available?
So she called the girl over, pinched a small pinch of elm bark powder and put it in her mouth. She frowned and said it was slightly bitter. Even if it were made into noodles, it would still be bitter!
As if sensing Chenxi's thoughts, the girl said, "Don't be fooled by its slightly bitter taste. Once cooked, it won't be bitter at all, and it will even have a fragrant aroma."
"You said your mother made this, where is your mother?"
The girl's eyes reddened, and she lowered her head and whispered, "She's already dead."
Chenxi didn't ask about that matter again, but instead asked something else: "What is that grass root and leaf noodle you made?"
"It is made from powdered ingredients such as Sichuan pepper, cinnamon, star anise, cloves, fennel, cardamom, nutmeg, cinnamon, and dried tangerine peel."
Chenxi suddenly became interested. This, isn't this the five-spice powder or thirteen-spice powder of later generations?
With this, whatever you make will taste so much better!
According to the original owner's memories, this seasoning did not exist in this era. Was it not available in her region, or was it not available at all?
She then asked Zhao Rong, who had returned, and Zheng Ankang, who was standing beside her, but they both shook their heads and didn't know. Shenxi then guessed that this was a personal secret recipe.
This wasn't the time to ask that; she was extremely pleased with the girl: "What's your name?"
"Li Qin".
"Li Qin, besides these, what other dishes can you cook?"
"Reporting to the commander, I can cook most of the dishes. My maternal grandfather was once a royal chef!"
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