Becoming a literary master starting from the story of Minglan

Chapter 186 Rumors (Part )

……

The peaceful city of Bianliang.

In a bustling street, Minglan took Aunt Wei's arm and led her around, letting her experience the prosperity of the capital city.

The purpose of this trip was to see as much as possible, so Sheng Changquan and his companions did not travel by carriage, but instead relied solely on their own two legs to explore the area.

However, since Minglan is not yet married, she still wears a veil to cover her face, in order to show the proper etiquette of an official's daughter.

As for the others, such as Aunt Wei and Xiao Tao, they are not needed.

Of course, Sheng Changquan has even less need for it.

There were only four of them on this trip: Sheng Changquan, Minglan, Aunt Wei, and Xiaotao.

"Auntie, look!"

"That's Fanlou, the most famous restaurant in Bianliang!"

Minglan pointed to the Fanlou, which was said to be the tallest building in Biancheng, and introduced it happily.

Fanlou was indeed quite remarkable in its construction. It consisted of five three-story buildings built on a solid and high platform, connected by flying bridges and railings, facing each other, making it a magnificent and spectacular sight.

It is decorated with beautiful carvings, shaped like jade or tree rings, antique yet peaceful and comfortable. It would be fitting to call it a "heavenly palace"!
"Oh? Fanlou?"

Hearing Minglan's explanation, Aunt Wei couldn't help but become interested.

"Is this Fanlou?"

However, looking at the magnificent building with its soaring eaves and listening to the deafening sounds of music and drums coming from upstairs, Aunt Wei couldn't help but frown.

She asked with some displeasure, "I've heard that Fanlou is a notorious den of iniquity in Bianliang, known for its ability to corrupt one's will and undermine one's perseverance. Is that true?"

As she spoke, Aunt Wei turned her head with concern to Sheng Changquan and asked, "Brother Quan, have you been to this place before?"

"Cough cough!"

Sheng Changquan was startled by Aunt Wei's appearance and quickly explained, "Auntie, I've never been here before!"

"I don't really know what's inside!"

In fact, what Sheng Changquan said was true; he really had never been to Fanlou before.

Fanlou, though called a restaurant, also has its share of entertainment. To name a few, Wei, the head of the entertainment guild sitting next to Gu Tingye at the polo match that day, was the leader of the entertainment guild in Fanlou.

"Whee!"

Seeing Sheng Changquan's disheveled appearance, Minglan secretly laughed.

"Auntie, don't worry, what my brother said is true!"

Minglan noticed that Aunt Wei still seemed worried, so she quickly and gently shook her arm, assuring Sheng Changquan, "My brother never eats out, and even when he has social engagements, he never stays out overnight. He always returns home on time every day!"

"Auntie, don't worry!"

Minglan reiterated that sentence.

"Oh, all right!"

With Minglan's repeated assurances, Aunt Wei was finally relieved.

"Brother Quan, you're still young. You mustn't let the seductive tricks here bewitch your mind and ruin your talent for studying!"

Aunt Wei was still a little worried, so she kept turning her head to give Sheng Changquan these warnings.

"Yes, Auntie, I'll remember!"

Sheng Changquan was not interested in these matters for the time being, so he naturally went along with their suggestions.

"Oh, Auntie!"

At this moment, Minglan suddenly grabbed Aunt Wei and said in a coquettish tone, "Actually, I really want to go in!"

Before Aunt Wei could speak, Minglan quickly explained, "Aunt, you don't know, but Fanlou is most famous for its food! The cooking here is really good, with a flavor you can't find anywhere else!"

The little foodie Minglan licked her lips under her veil, seemingly eager to try something.

"Uh-huh!"

"The young lady is right. Their pastry cakes, three-happiness meatballs, and steamed fish are all delicious!"

Xiao Tao stood behind Minglan, desperately trying to prove her daughter's worth.

In fact, all the delicacies from Fanlou that Xiaotao and the others ate were gifts from Qi Heng.

"hehe!"

Seeing this, Aunt Wei laughed out loud: "Alright, Ming'er, so you brought me here to stroll around, but really it was just to satisfy my cravings!"

"Aunt~"

Minglan felt a little embarrassed by what was said, but it was indeed what she wanted to do: to personally visit Fanlou and taste the most authentic local cuisine.

"This... Brother Quan, what do you think?"

Aunt Wei doted on Minglan, and seeing this, she was naturally happy to fulfill Minglan's wish. So, she turned her attention to Sheng Changquan, hoping that he could come up with a solution.

"Alright, let's go sit at the inn next door for a while!"

Sheng Changquan looked around, then pointed to an inn next to Fanlou and said, "After I order a table at Fanlou, I'll bring the dishes to this inn, and we can eat there, how about that?"

Because Fanlou is, after all, a place with entertainment, it is not suitable for women like Minglan to go in. That is why Sheng Changquan said that.

However, Sheng Changquan was unaware that the inn next door was actually owned by the same person as Fanlou.

Fanlou only provides food, drink, and entertainment, but does not include accommodation. Therefore, the owner of Fanlou built an inn next door to retain customers. Sharing food is one of their features.

Otherwise, unless someone is powerful or influential, Fanlou would rarely allow anyone to take their dishes out of the restaurant. After all, what if someone tries to decipher their recipes?

Of course, this inn is an exception; the people of Fanlou are happy to let guests who simply enjoy the food sit in the inn and have a meal.

"it is good!"

The foodie duo naturally had no objection to this.

……

"Fengle Inn".

After Sheng Changquan and his companions went inside, they discovered that the inn was called Fengle.

"Little Second!"

"coming!"

After finding a clean spot further inside, Sheng Changquan led the group to sit down and then asked, "Waiter, what are your specialty dishes? Bring us a few!"

Since he was going to "borrow" their place, Sheng Changquan felt embarrassed not to order any dishes.

"Ha! Sir, is this your first time here?"

"Huh? How do you know?"

As Sheng Changquan spoke, he also turned to look at Aunt Wei, indicating that he had indeed never been here before.

Aunt Wei nodded in agreement to this.

"Ha ha!"

The innkeeper's waiter, with bright eyes, said cheerfully, "Sir, you may not know this, but you can order food directly from Fanlou Restaurant here!"

"Our inn is actually owned by the same person as Fanlou!"

(End of this chapter)