Chapter 210 There's a Wonton Shop by the Clouds
Night falls.
Jiaxingyuan was completely silent.
A warm, slightly fragrant breeze swirls up fallen petals and leaves, scattering them across the empty courtyard.
Red lanterns, specially arranged to welcome the Mid-Autumn Festival, are hung under the eaves of the two wooden buildings.
The reddish light cast a hazy outline on the wooden building.
It is now close to 9 PM.
The croaking of frogs was loud and clear, echoing throughout the garden.
But Xiao Wan'er, who was in the upstairs room, seemed not to hear, and continued to write something at her desk.
Two oil lamps illuminated the nanmu wood table.
Two stacks of account books on the left.
On the right is a geomantic map of Shuzhou Prefecture.
In between writing and pausing, she would flip through an account book or find a certain location on a feng shui map and record it.
Juanjuan's small handwriting followed line after line.
The sentences vary in length, but they are not fragmented.
The inscription reads, "Academies need quiet places, the north of the city is best," "Medical skills are paramount, teaching and testing go hand in hand," and "Money should not be spent extravagantly, but should be acquired gradually," among other things.
Some of the words were Chen Yi's original instructions, while others were inspired by Chen Yi and written by her own understanding.
Before long, Xiao Wan'er had filled three pages of Yunsong paper with her writing.
But she didn't feel tired at all; in fact, there was a hint of joy in her eyes.
Immersed in it, I also enjoyed it.
Cui'er and Juan'er exchanged a glance and quietly left the room in tacit agreement.
One person went to cook the white fungus soup, and the other went to boil water to pour into the bathtub.
Most people felt sorry for Xiao Wan'er.
Once the two had finished preparing, the sound of the night watchman's drum rang out outside Jiaxing Garden—the second watch of the night was halfway through.
Cui'er, carrying a bowl of white fungus soup, knocked on the door. "Miss, please rest for a while."
Xiao Wan'er lifted her head from the fur collar of her cloak, her face still somewhat dazed.
That stunningly beautiful face also had a touch of naivety.
She was clearly still thinking about the medical academy.
After seeing the bowl of white fungus soup clearly, Xiao Wan'er came to her senses, put down her fine wolf-hair brush, and asked, "What time is it?"
It's almost midnight.
"Oh, is it so late?"
Juan'er, who was holding Xiao Wan'er's bathrobe, smiled and said, "Miss, you're too focused."
“If it weren’t so late at night, and if you had to deliver holiday gifts to the masters and ladies of the various mansions the next morning, Cui’er and I wouldn’t have had the heart to disturb you.”
Upon hearing this, Xiao Wan'er glanced at the several pages of Yun Song paper filled with writing on the table, hesitated before putting them away, and nodded, saying, "It is indeed time to rest. We can continue tomorrow night."
These days, her schedule is packed.
There's hardly any free time from morning till night; I can only think about and write when I get back to my room after the guests at Jiaxingyuan have left.
After all, she had already obtained the old master's approval and consulted Chen Yi so much. If she didn't put her heart into it or messed it up, she would inevitably feel guilty.
Cui'er couldn't help but complain, "Those people are really something. They clearly want their young master and daughter to become the second son-in-law's apprentices, but instead of going to the second son-in-law, they come to Miss to mediate."
Juan'er nodded and chimed in, "They see that Miss is kind-hearted, so they all want to try and persuade her. I reckon most of them are thinking that if they succeed, they'll make a fortune."
Xiao Wan'er smiled gently, "It's not that complicated. Most of them are women, so it would be inconvenient for them to go directly to their brother-in-law."
"But you have already politely refused, yet they still won't leave."
"Both sides are guests, and..."
Xiao Wan'er paused, looked towards Chunhe Garden, and said with a smile:
"Moreover, my brother-in-law also has visitors today, two outstanding individuals from the Provincial Administration Commission. It's important to have business to attend to."
Cui'er and Juan'er opened their mouths, wanting to say that their second son-in-law and his family had nothing important to do; they spent the whole afternoon talking about whether there would be a courtesan at the Mid-Autumn Festival poetry gathering.
But seeing Xiao Wan'er's expression, they all kept their words to themselves.
Xiao Wan'er didn't think much of it. After speaking, she drank a few mouthfuls of the white fungus soup and immediately felt warmer. She then took a bath, changed her clothes, and put on a pink gauze nightgown before lying down on the bed.
Before going to bed, she reminded me, "After you deliver the holiday gifts tomorrow, remember to remind me to go to Chunhe Garden."
"I have a few more questions to ask my brother-in-law."
Cui'er and Juan'er readily agreed. Seeing her close her eyes, they tidied up the table and quietly left the room.
Hearing the commotion, Shen Huatang, who was not far from the door, only glanced back before continuing to guard outside the wooden building.
Faintly, you could still hear a few muttered words.
"The son-in-law and the others were clearly discussing the courtesan."
"It's not his second son-in-law, it's his elder brother, the top scholar of this year's imperial examination, who keeps spouting nonsense about listening to spring rain all night in a small building."
"That's right, but the Second Miss led her people to ransack Chunyu Tower, so they can't go there now."
"I couldn't resist those vixens going to the poetry gatherings at the academy..."
When Shen Huatang heard this, she knew they were talking about Chen Yi, and she couldn't help but glance at Chunhe Garden.
She listened intently for a moment, but could only hear a faint sound of wind, so she didn't pay much attention to it.
If possible, she would much rather her second son-in-law be a womanizer than...
For these.
Chen Yi was unaware of this.
He was secretly practicing martial arts in the bamboo forest.
Since Xie Tingyun returned to Tianshan and tricked his junior brothers and sisters into coming down the mountain to become guards of Baicaotang, Chen Yi was finally able to focus on cultivating his techniques.
Two days.
To be precise, it lasted two nights.
Although it was a short period, he had already mastered both the Collapsing Mountain Fist and the Hundred Flowers Palm to the peak of proficiency.
Both sets of movement techniques had already reached their limit long ago.
Only the Falling Dragon Spear Technique and the Embroidered Spring Knife Technique are still lacking in refinement.
Especially the Falling Dragon Spear Technique.
Not only has he not fully grasped the profound mysteries of the Great Completion Spear Dao, but he has also only reached the proficient level in the four new spear techniques that appeared after advancing to the Heavenly Rank. It will take him some time to master them.
But I'd rather not say it.
The Heavenly Rank Dragon Falling Spear Technique is indeed much stronger than the Earthly Rank technique.
Especially when combined with the essence of the Great Perfection of Spear Technique, the power of the spear technique is greatly increased.
The newly emerged four spear techniques need no further explanation; they were originally prepared to integrate the essence of heaven and earth, and their power is terrifying.
Even the power of the eight spear techniques he had previously practiced, such as Dragon Head Raising and Illuminating Green Mountains, had been greatly enhanced.
However, Chen Yi was still quite self-aware of his own abilities.
Although his martial arts—body, fist, footwork, spear, and sword—are all at the advanced level, and his martial arts skills are all above the Earth Rank, and he has mastered most of them, his shortcomings in cultivation are too obvious.
He had just broken through to the upper level of the sixth rank last night.
All things considered, he could at most fight Liu Lang, and might even be able to defeat him.
If he were to fight or engage in a life-or-death struggle with a martial artist at the fifth or third rank, he would have to resort to some underhanded tactics.
Examples include Qingfengzui and Shenxianzui.
It's not exactly honorable, but it will keep his life safe.
"I need to elevate at least one skill to the perfect level before I can have any ability to protect myself."
"Sudden enlightenment, sudden enlightenment... either the way of fists or the way of spears."
"His swordsmanship and footwork are also quite good."
As midnight approached, Chen Yi's anticipated enlightenment failed to materialize, so he had no choice but to end his night of cultivation.
After cleaning up the bamboo grove, he returned to his room, wiped himself down, changed into clean clothes, and sat cross-legged on the bed.
However, he did not begin practicing the Four Symbols Technique. Instead, he emptied his mind and calmly looked out the window.
Look at the twinkling stars in the distance, watch the falling leaves dance nearby, and see the large golden characters drifting by in front of you—
[Daily Intelligence - Low-Grade Mystic: At 6:45 AM, at the wonton shop on Kangning Street, a hidden guard collects a secret letter. A small amount of good fortune may be obtained.]
“Xuanxia.”
Chen Yi slightly curled his lips. After all, he had eaten the finest delicacies before, so he looked down on this Xuan-level opportunity to some extent.
But after carefully reading the intelligence report, he couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.
"Kangning Street, a wonton shop? How come I don't know there's a wonton shop on that street?"
"It's still the place where the hidden guards collect secret letters."
Chen Yi had been in Shuzhou for a long time, and he might not be familiar with other places, but he could still remember what was on the streets and what wasn't, especially Kangning Street and the West Market, which he frequented the most.
"Could it be that the owner of the tailor shop has changed careers?"
He muttered a few words.
Chen Yi stopped thinking about it.
Since he's going to teach calligraphy at Guiyun Academy tomorrow, it wouldn't hurt to check out that wonton shop.
Afterwards, he closed his eyes and began practicing the Four Symbols Technique.
My mind gradually sank into nothingness.
In the depths of my mind, a thought vaguely surfaced.
"Even the perfect state of martial arts and physical enlightenment is fine, I'm really not picky..."
...
Whether you're picky or not.
The next morning, Chen Yi slowly finished his practice as usual.
He got up and stretched, looked around, smacked his lips, and said, "My wish has failed, so I'll have to use the second plan."
What plan?
Of course, one should accumulate opportunities gradually, and choose a path to break through to the perfect realm whenever one reaches a thousand.
After washing up and getting dressed, I went downstairs to the living room.
Chen Yi glanced at the breakfast on the table and exclaimed, "Are there mooncakes today?"
Xiaodie nodded, but her eyes were fixed on the mooncakes, clearly looking quite tempted.
"The kitchen specially made some mooncakes. This morning, we only gave each household a few to try. Tomorrow night, after the eldest young lady leads the women of the mansion to set up an incense table to worship the moon, more will be distributed."
"In addition to mooncakes, there are also salted duck, braised duck and osmanthus wine."
Chen Yi nodded and said with a smile, "You seem to know quite a lot about this."
At this time of year, according to ancient customs, men do not worship the moon, and women do not worship the stove god.
Therefore, during the Mid-Autumn Festival, moon worship is traditionally performed by female family members who set up incense tables to pray for peace and good fortune.
As the eldest daughter of the main branch, Xiao Wan'er naturally had no choice but to take the lead.
I imagine the manor will be quite lively tomorrow.
Firstly, there are many guests bringing gifts for the festival, and secondly, there are many formalities to follow. It's estimated that it will be around 3 PM before we can go out to enjoy the moon and have some fun.
Xiaodie, however, didn't think about all that; all she could see were mooncakes.
Seeing this, Chen Yi invited Xiao Wuge and Xiao Die to sit down and eat.
He casually picked up a piece, took a bite, and was immediately stunned.
He chewed a couple of times, then looked at Xiaodie, who was taking small bites of mooncake beside him, and asked, "What kind of filling is this?"
"Salt and pepper sesame seed cake filling, son-in-law, eat up, eat up, it's so delicious."
fragrant?
Chen Yi finished the mooncake in his hand with a blank expression.
Even though he had seen many strange and unusual mooncake fillings in his previous life, this was the first time he had ever tasted a mooncake full of Sichuan peppercorn powder.
The filling for the salt and pepper sesame cakes... well, it's definitely numbing.
"Actually, I still prefer mooncakes with five-nut filling."
Thinking that he was going to check out the wonton shop on Kangning Street this morning, Chen Yi resolutely refused to touch a second mooncake.
After quickly eating a couple of mouthfuls of porridge, he left Chunhe Garden with the gifts he had prepared for Mr. Yue Ming and the others.
He turned his head slightly and saw Xiao Wan'er leading Shen Huatang and others out of Jiaxing Garden, carrying large and small bags, just like him.
Chen Yi gave a strange bow and asked, "Big sister, are you going to deliver holiday gifts so early?"
Xiao Wan'er nodded, noticing the several packages in his hands, knowing he was going to Guiyun Academy today, and smiled as she gave him some instructions:
"It's inconvenient for my brother-in-law to carry all these gifts alone. I'll have a carriage prepared in the front yard to take you there later."
Chen Yi naturally declined, saying, "There's not much stuff, just consider it exercise."
Xiao Wan'er hummed in agreement and stopped trying to persuade her, indicating that they should talk as they walked.
She got up at 1:15 AM and by now, more than half an hour later, she had delivered the festival gifts to the houses in the backyard.
After chatting for a while, Xiao Wan'er said with a slightly strange expression, "The second branch of the family will be leaving the manor today."
Chen Yi paused, turned his head to look at her, knowing she was somewhat reluctant, and after thinking for a moment, said:
"The old master and madam must have made this decision after careful consideration."
"If we can keep the second branch of the family here, I think the old master will not disregard our past relationship."
With Xiao Dongchen's death, it was inevitable that the second branch of the family would be implicated.
Not to mention that Xiao Wang and others controlled the punishment hall and coveted the eldest son's family.
Even if the second wife's family is of one mind with the first wife's family, some necessary measures must be taken to guard against them.
In this situation, no family leader would be so soft-hearted.
Moreover, the Marquis of Dingyuan was facing internal and external troubles from the Xiao family.
Upon hearing this, Xiao Wan'er nodded and said softly, "I know that Grandpa and Second Sister wouldn't make baseless accusations."
"So when I heard the news this morning, I did not go to Sifangzhai to see him off."
She was well aware of all this, but as time passed and the relationship cooled, she couldn't help feeling sad.
Chen Yi understood and chuckled, "It's better not to see you off, so people won't think we're here to laugh at us."
How could that be?
"My second grandfather and sister-in-law are alright."
Seeing that she didn't want to think the worst of people, Chen Yi stopped talking and after a few words, asked about the Medical Academy.
Xiao Wan'er immediately suppressed her sadness, her eyes bright and radiant.
"Grandpa has agreed and even said he would give me a sum of money."
"I've done the math, and we don't need too much upfront."
"As long as the academy is located within the fiefdom of the manor, it will only take about five thousand taels of silver to build it."
"Good idea."
"Right? And then there's..."
Xiao Wan'er did indeed put a lot of effort into the Medical Academy.
The academy was located within the Xiao family's fiefdom, which not only saved money on purchasing land deeds but also allowed them to find people there to help build the academy.
Compared to finding places and people within the city, the cost can be reduced by more than half.
Another approach is to combine teaching and testing, which is largely based on the method of doctors mentoring apprentices in pharmacies.
It makes sense.
After listening, Chen Yi couldn't help but praise, "Now I'm starting to look forward to the day that medical academy is completed."
Xiao Wan'er blushed slightly and lowered her head, saying, "Most of the content in the charter was said by you."
“I’m just talking, but you’re different. You’re the founder of the first medical academy in Shuzhou and even the Great Wei Dynasty.”
"Perhaps my elder sister will still be the dean of that medical academy."
"Oh, please stop talking..."
"I can afford to spend some money, but I can't be the dean."
"Why not, Dean Xiao Wan'er?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Chen Yi laughed and ran off, leaving Xiao Wan'er blushing with embarrassment at the word "Dean" and glaring at his retreating figure.
"My brother-in-law is always causing trouble."
"How could I possibly become the dean of the Medical Academy?"
Shen Huatang, who was standing nearby, saw all of this and couldn't help but show a troubled expression on her face.
"Miss, actually..."
"What?"
"Actually, the second son-in-law is right. You are suitable to be the dean."
"Hua Tang, how come you're just like him?"
"..."
Shen Huatang did her best.
She practically bit the word "two" to pieces, but Xiao Wan'er remained unmoved.
It's unclear whether she was thinking of "Dean" or "Chen Yi" at that moment.
Chen Yi, on the other hand, didn't have so many complicated thoughts and came to the front yard in a good mood.
Looking around, he noticed that in addition to the armored soldiers at the entrance, there were also several men dressed in black, which made him take a second look.
People from the punishment hall?
Chen Yi knew that Xiao Xuanshuo was temporarily in charge of the punishment hall.
He just didn't expect that Xiao Xuanshuo would bring the people from the Punishment Hall to guard the courtyard together with the armored guards.
Is this an attempt to use the punishment hall as a covert operation?
Chen Yi was careful to avoid being caught by the Punishment Hall when he sneaked away in the future.
He then greeted a few soldiers he was somewhat familiar with and left the Marquis's residence.
He walked east along Chuanxi Street, then turned north onto Zhennan Street, and soon arrived at Kangning Street.
It was already dawn, and the streets were bustling with people.
It was as if everyone had suddenly found some free time.
Chen Yi squeezed through the crowd, walking towards Guiyun Academy while looking at the shops on both sides of the street, searching for the wonton shop.
We searched for a long time but couldn't find it.
Just as he was wondering, he saw a plaque not far from the entrance of Guiyun Academy that read "There is a wonton shop by the clouds".
Chen Yi glanced at the shop sign, then at the deserted shop entrance, and a smile crept onto his face:
"Yunbian Wonton Shop... Interesting."
I wonder which hidden guard was so talented to come up with such a name for a shop that is so out of step with the ways of modern merchants.
Is this a case of trying to sell at a loss?
Unaware of the situation, Chen Yi carried several bags of holiday gifts and entered the store.
Just as he was about to call the waiter for the wontons, he saw a familiar figure sitting in the corner.
It was none other than his student, Ma Guan.
After thinking for a moment, he walked over and sat down opposite the man, smiling as he asked, "Heming, are the wontons delicious?"
Ma Guan was taken aback. Forgetting about eating anymore, he quickly stood up and bowed, saying, "This student greets Mr. Qingzhou."
Chen Yi waved his hand, gesturing for him to sit down: "This is not an academy, no need for formalities."
Ma Guan sat down awkwardly, remembering his question, and hesitated before replying:
"High price, low quality."
"oh?"
"It's like...it's like a shady business..."
Seeing Ma Guan's flushed face, Chen Yi couldn't help but chuckle. He didn't ask any more questions and instead called to the waiter, "Give me a bowl of wontons, let me try them out."
He didn't know whether the shop was a shady operation or not.
But he knew that the people in this shop all had very distinctive appearances.
The two waiters, though they looked burly, were actually women.
Behind the counter was a simply dressed woman with sallow skin, who had been staring at him ever since he entered.
At first glance, Chen Yi didn't recognize the woman's identity.
But upon closer inspection, his smile couldn't help but become a little brighter.
—The dignified White Tiger Guard Silver Flag Officer, the female tiger Lou Yuxue, instead of hiding in the brothel, actually ran a wonton shop on Kangning Street.
She could drive, but why did she dress up so ugly?
Tsk, what's so special about that?
To imitate Xi Shi (a legendary beauty) in a bad way?
Lou Yuxue was unaware of Chen Yi's thoughts. After observing him for a moment, she recognized his identity.
—Chen Yi, also known as Chen Qingzhou, is the son-in-law of the Xiao family, nicknamed "Young Bird" within the Hidden Guard.
Why is he here?
Want some wontons?
I've never heard of him not being able to get food at the Xiao family's house.
Lou Yuxue pondered for a moment, and taking advantage of the moment when the strong woman went to the kitchen, she stepped out from behind the counter and came to Chen Yi and the other woman's side, greeting them warmly:
"Esteemed guests, our shop has just opened, and the wontons are free to eat, no money required."
Upon hearing this, before Chen Yi could say anything, Ma Guan finished his wontons with two chopsticks, swallowed them with difficulty, and stammered while holding up his bowl:
"Boss lady, the wontons taste really good, delicious, I'll have another bowl."
Chen Yi: "..."
What did he just say?
(End of this chapter)
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