Border Cook

Chapter 685: Ability to Murder
The meat slices are delicious, the fish balls are delicious, the lotus root slices are delicious, the radish slices are delicious, the spinach is delicious, the white tofu is delicious...

All delicious!
After Mao Sanli finished his bowl of rice, he quickly added another bowl of rice and started eating like crazy. He was even thinking about asking the inn for a bowl of cooked white noodles without soup, so that he could eat it with the soup base of the spicy hot pot later.

After all, such a delicious spicy hotpot cannot be wasted even a little bit!

Mao Sanli was enjoying his meal here very much, but Yin Lingyou in the room was feeling a little restless.

According to the time, Mao Sanli had been in the toilet for more than a quarter of an hour...

Even the strongest man can't stand the shock. Although diarrhea may not seem like a big deal, if it's really severe, it can easily lead to something serious.

Yin Lingyou was a little worried that Mao Sanli might lose his strength and faint in the toilet.

After pacing around the room again, Yin Lingyou finally couldn't stand it anymore and simply pushed the door open to look for Mao Sanli.

There was only one outhouse in this courtyard, and Yin Lingyou had been there before, so he was familiar with the place.

When they arrived at the toilet, Yin Lingyou called out, "Sanli, Sanli, are you okay?"

But the only answer he got was silence.

Yin Lingyou's heart suddenly skipped a beat.

Oh no, could he really have fainted?
Without caring about privacy or shame, Yin Lingyou rushed in, only to find that the toilet was empty, without a single person in sight.

Yin Lingyou was stunned for a long time before he realized something.

This Mao Sanli has really grown in ability!
Yin Lingyou stamped his feet, rushed out of the toilet angrily, and walked quickly towards the yard where Xia Mingyue and the others were.

When we got there, we saw Mao Sanli eating happily, and his originally pale face had become rosy, just like a normal person.

Sure enough, this was caused by taking a pill that caused him to turn pale and sweat. The effect only lasted for half an incense stick, but it was enough to fool him.

This pill was developed by him, but he was actually fooled by it. It really is true that the saying goes, the falcon gets pecked in the eye by the eagle!
Damn it!
Yin Lingyou was so angry that he rushed to Mao Sanli and shouted, "You bastard!"

"Master!" Mao Sanli was so shocked that the chopsticks in his hand fell on the table. He did not even bother to wipe the greasy soup on his mouth. He stood up hurriedly and looked at Yin Lingyou with a guilty face, "Master, I was wrong..."

"What's wrong?" Yin Lingyou's voice became a little louder.

"I..." Mao Sanli rubbed his hands nervously. He didn't dare to look Yin Lingyou in the eye. He only dared to stare at his toes. He felt extremely embarrassed. "I shouldn't..."

I took some pills to trick my master into having a stomachache, but in fact I came here to eat and drink to my heart's content.

"You shouldn't!" Yin Lingyou reached out and gave Mao Sanli a slap on the face. "You are a disciple. You can't say that you share the hardships with your master. You should at least share the happiness with him!"

"Tell me, how dare you come here to eat and drink by yourself without asking Master to come along?"

Mao Sanli, "..."

Well, it turns out that what Master cares about most is eating.

"Yes, yes, I was wrong." Mao Sanli hurriedly followed Yin Lingyou's words and said, "I shouldn't have come here alone without telling Master. Master, please sit down. I'll serve you a bowl of rice..."

"It is indeed wrong!" Yin Lingyou emphasized this matter again, and looked at Xia Mingyue and others with an embarrassed smile, "Look at my disciple, I can't say anything!"

"Since we set out, I have been saying that we are all family, like family, and there is nothing we can't get through. But Sanli is always thinking about this and that, afraid of this and that, and won't agree to anything I say, and even asked me to stay away from you all the time."

"I didn't agree with his idea, but seeing his sincere face, I couldn't refuse, so I had to listen to him and hide aside all day long. What was the result?"

"This kid is so good. He let me stay in the house, but he ran out to eat and drink with you guys. This is a clear way to cheat the master!"

Mao Sanli, "..."

Suddenly I felt a little pain in my waist, as if something was on my back?
Master, oh master, you can’t betray your disciple like this!

But if you think about it carefully, it's not entirely a bad thing. The master was able to completely break the window paper through this incident, and in the future he can come out openly to eat and drink with Madam Xia and her group, and then he, the disciple, will naturally be able to benefit from it.

All in all, it’s not a loss!
Mao Sanli believed that there would be benefits in the future, so he didn't care too much about it at the moment. He just nodded and admitted his mistakes, "It's all my fault..."

Xia Mingyue and the others had a clear mind, seeing the whole thing clearly, but they did not break the window paper. They just agreed vaguely with a few words and then enjoyed the delicious spicy hotpot.

Wu Jin in the yard stared at the farce, a dull "hum" came out of his mouth and nostrils, his eyes rolled up to the sky, and he even grinned and bared his teeth at Yin Lingyou.

But soon, Wu Jin closed his mouth again.

Well, well, even though Yin Lingyou stole his meatballs, it also tore his clothes, so it was fair!
Let’s turn the page!
Wu Jin lowered his head and continued to gnaw on the boiled chicken that Xia Mingyue had specially made for him today.

The whole chicken is cooked in a pot until it is 90% done. When it is chopped into pieces, there is still a trace of blood in the bones and at the junction of the bones and meat. It is most tender and easy to remove from the bones. Even without any seasoning, it is still extremely delicious.

good to eat!

Wu Jin was filled with emotion.

Yin Lingyou and Mao Sanli shouted it several times in their hearts.

This spicy hotpot is so delicious, especially after they have been through so many days of miserable life where they could only smell the food but not eat it. It is so satisfying to eat such delicious spicy hotpot at this time.

The kind that makes people excited and cry.

The hard times are finally over!

In the following days, because they had gone too far, Yin Lingyou and Mao Sanli were thick-skinned enough to resume their usual life of eating and drinking with Xia Mingyue and others.

It was mid-March, spring was in the air, the weather was warm, everything was reviving, plants were growing luxuriantly, and many wild animals that had been hiding for the entire winter began to come out to roam and look for food. The river water had thawed, and even the fish were much more active than usual.

Pick delicious mountain delicacies when you encounter mountains, catch fresh fish when you encounter rivers, and hunt rabbits, pheasants, etc. when you encounter forests...

These things that were accidentally obtained along the way all became delicious dishes.

Or roast, steam, fry or stew...

The rich aroma and wonderful taste add a lot of beauty and fun to the journey, and turn the originally boring journey into a pleasant trip of sightseeing.

Seeing that they had already traveled more than half of the thousand-mile journey, Xia Mingyue felt more and more eager to return home. But at this moment, the weather turned bad and it began to rain.

The spring rain was as fine as cow hair, but it continued to fall day and night, making the solid official road muddy and difficult for vehicles and horses to travel, and it also brought a chilly chill, forcing the people who had already worn padded jackets to change into cotton coats and wrap themselves in cloaks.

Seeing that the weather was bad and it was inconvenient to travel, Xia Mingyue simply put aside her anxiety and temporarily settled in an inn nearby.

This posthouse is located at the junction of three prefectures and two roads in the surrounding area. It is a must-pass place for several official roads. Therefore, the place is very spacious, often renovated, and more clean and comfortable than ordinary posthouses.

The postmaster of the post station had long heard that Xia Mingyue was conferred the title of the Lord of Anle Township. He also knew that her husband, Marquis Dingyuan, and her younger brother, General Shenhu, were both highly regarded by the emperor and had unlimited prospects. It could be said that their status was very noble. In addition, knowing that Fan Jinglan was traveling with them, he treated Xia Mingyue and her group with great respect and caution.

Not only did they clean up the best rooms in the inn, they also invited excellent chefs from the surrounding areas to cook meals specifically for them.

Local chefs only know how to cook local specialties.

Hand-pulled mutton, spicy mutton offal, sauerkraut noodles, hot noodles with oil fragrance, wolfberry sprouts, crispy buns...

There are many varieties and each one is delicious, adding a rich fragrance to the incessant and irritating spring rain and relieving people's boredom.

The only bad thing is that although the food is delicious, people cannot eat it all day long. There must always be free time.

When she had some free time, Xia Mingyue's mind began to wander far away, and she couldn't help but look westward.

At this time, there was also drizzling rain in the capital of Jinwei State.

The drizzle was so fine that it took a long time for the tiles on the eaves to drip a drop of water, but it brought a lot of chill, forcing Lu Qiyan, Xia Yunji and others to wear thick cotton-padded clothes.

They were still living in the villa next to the palace, waiting and resting, and their days were quite peaceful.

But the palace next door was very lively.

First, Li Yanyang returned to the throne of the king, forced himself to hold on, summoned civil and military officials, and attended a morning court session.

At the morning court session, Li Yanyang denounced Li Junhao's treason, but also felt sorry for Li Junhao's suicide. At the same time, he ordered everyone to be loyal to the country and the king and not to have any other thoughts, so as to prevent others from taking advantage of the situation and bringing disaster to the Jinwei Kingdom.

In addition, Li Yanyang admired Li Juncheng's ability to adapt to changing circumstances, his courage and strategy, his loyalty to the country, and his benevolence and filial piety, and made him the crown prince of Jin Weiguo.

Just two or three days after Li Juncheng was appointed crown prince, Li Yanyang fell ill again and was bedridden.

Before the peace talks, Li Yanyang fell ill due to worry about the war and vomiting blood. He was then imprisoned and treated harshly by Li Junhao for several days. It can be said that his internal energy was almost exhausted and he was in a terminal state.

The king is seriously ill, which is the most likely thing to cause unrest for the entire Jinwei Kingdom.

But now Li Junhao is dead, and the position of crown prince has been filled by Li Juncheng. When Li Yanyang was seriously ill, Li Juncheng acted as regent, and his behavior and handling of government affairs were no different from those of the king.

It can be said that even if Li Yanyang died suddenly, Li Juncheng would be able to succeed to the throne quickly without causing too much disturbance.

But even though the development trajectory of everything had almost been determined, when the spring rain that had lasted for several days stopped a few nights later and the sound of the national funeral bell was heard in the palace, everyone was shocked.

After all, he was the king whom I had followed for many years, and his sudden death made me feel sad and grief-stricken.

When they were ordered to go to the palace to mourn, all the civil and military officials looked sad, their eyes were red, and they even sighed one after another.

The sky above the entire palace was covered with a thick layer of sadness.

As generals of the Great Zhou who assisted the Crown Prince Li Juncheng of Jinwei State in rescuing the late King Li Yanyang, Lu Qiyan and Xia Yunji also went to pay their respects on behalf of the Great Zhou State. However, because of this relationship, they only went through the motions and did not stay long, returning to the royal villa.

"Brother-in-law, how long are we going to stay here?" Xia Yunji asked.

"It's not certain yet." Lu Qiyan looked up at the sky, which had stopped raining but was still a little gray. "Based on the current situation, we probably have to wait until the crown prince ascends the throne."

Do we have to wait until Li Juncheng succeeds to the throne?

Xia Yunji's face wrinkled into a bun, "Does that mean it will take nearly a month?"

The court etiquette of Jinwei Kingdom was not as complicated as that of Dazhou Kingdom, and the mourning ceremony did not seem to last as long as that of Dazhou Kingdom. In addition, the situation of Jinwei Kingdom was unstable at this time, so Li Juncheng would succeed to the throne faster than the normal succession of a king in the past.

But even so, it would take at least twenty days at most, or even a month if it was slow.

The time Xia Yunji estimated was about the same.

Lu Qiyan also made a rough estimate and nodded, "About the same."

"This is too long..." Xia Yunji's face had more wrinkles, almost like a bitter gourd.

"Fortunately, it is still shorter than expected." Lu Qiyan said, "Although it may seem disrespectful to the deceased, Jin Weiguo's passing at this time has already pushed many things forward and saved a lot of trouble."

"That's true." Xia Yunji scratched his ear.

If Li Yanyang had not died of illness, Li Juncheng would have remained on the throne of crown prince for a long time. Although Li Junhao was nominally dead, he must have been dissatisfied in his heart and would have felt that Li Junhao still had the possibility of making a comeback, so he would have stirred up trouble everywhere.

Although judging from Jin Weiguo's current condition, Li Junhao is no longer able to change his fate, it is still enough to give Li Juncheng a headache for a long time and will also increase a lot of uncertainty.

But at this time, Li Yanyang passed away...

and many more!

Xia Yunji widened his eyes and tilted his head to look at Lu Qiyan, "Brother-in-law, I remember when His Royal Highness the Crown Prince rescued the King from the cold palace, the imperial physician came to see him and said that although the King was extremely weak, he was fine and just needed to be carefully nursed back to health for a period of time. Why is he suddenly..."

"Could it be..." A very bold idea popped up in Xia Yunji's mind, and his eyes opened wider because of this bold idea.

"Shh!" Lu Qiyan put his finger to his lips, signaling Xia Yunji to be quiet, and whispered even more, "Just know the truth about this matter, there's no need to make it public."

Xia Yunji covered his mouth and nodded vigorously, "I understand, I understand."

But then he frowned again, "But isn't this Crown Prince a little too bold?"

After all, Li Junhao merely placed Li Yanyang under house arrest, but he was branded as a traitor and a traitor, which led to many people attacking him.

Now Li Juncheng dared to murder...

(End of this chapter)