From a country cook to a master chef

The black bear's eyes lost their light and it became completely still.

Seeing this, the group breathed a sigh of relief, but none of them dared to step forward to check.

Old Liu's legs gave way and he sat down on the snow, his eyes filled with gratitude as he looked at Lin Jue. "Let's split this meat equally!"

"good!"

Zhang Lao Er swallowed hard: "By the way, I gave my share of bear paw to Lin Jue. If it weren't for him this time, Lao Liu would probably have been killed by that beast."

Liu Laohei is his brother-in-law. If something really happens to him, he won't be able to explain it to his wife when he gets back home.

Liu Laohei sat on the ground and nodded. After calming himself down, he got up and quickly walked to Lin Jue, then suddenly knelt down.

"Hey, hey, no, this won't do!" Lin Jue exclaimed in shock, quickly pulling the kneeling black man down with a wry smile. "We're all poor people, and we came here together to hunt black bears. If you're in trouble, I can't just stand by and watch you die."

"Brother Lin, I really... really have to thank you this time. I have elderly parents and young children to support. If I were to leave, I don't know how they would survive."

Liu Laohei, in his fifties, wiped away a couple of tears. "I was out of my mind before, brother. I apologize to you and to everyone. If Brother Lin doesn't mind, please accept my bear paw!"

"Oh, this..."

Since the black man had already put it that way, Lin Jue couldn't refuse and had no choice but to accept.

After waiting patiently for half an hour, the group picked up stones and threw them at the bear. Seeing that it didn't move, they were relieved and dragged it down the mountain together.

"Brother Lin, from now on, as long as you don't mind, I, Old Zhang, will deliver all my firewood to the tavern at a low price."

"We're really lucky to have met Brother Lin."

"When I have the means, I'll definitely eat at Brother Lin's restaurant every day."

On the way back to Yucheng, the group worked together to push the rickshaw pulled by Hei Xiazi, chatting and laughing, and occasionally giving Lin Jue a thumbs up.

In that critical moment, they all only thought about getting away from the danger, but only Lin Jue dared to risk his life to save Liu Laohei. Such a heroic deed amazed everyone.

Lin Jue remained silent, following quietly to the side. Because he had saved Liu Laohei, none of the others allowed him to push the cart.

Back at the pork shop on Jing'an Street in Yucheng, Fatty Zheng and his apprentice worked together to quickly butcher the entire black bear.

"Brother Lin, I'll have someone deliver your portion to the restaurant. It's lunchtime now, let's eat first!"

"it is good."

They left Qinghe Tavern at around 10 a.m., and ate a few cabbage buns when they passed by Qingfeng Steamed Bun Shop. After spending half a day tinkering around Dinghu Mountain and expending a lot of energy, Lin Jue and the others were starving.

"Hey guys, let's grab a couple of drinks."

Fatty Zheng invited everyone into the house, and then instructed his wife, Wu, to take a piece of bear liver and stir-fry it over a high flame as a side dish with drinks.

"Everyone, quickly find a seat. We are just ordinary people, and this is all we have. It's just simple food with some homemade rice wine, which is enough to fill our stomachs."

Inside the house, where a fire was burning, a large pot of cabbage and meat was placed on the octagonal table, along with a large steamer of white rice, all steaming hot.

Zheng Pangzi's fifteen-year-old daughter first brought over five sets of bowls and chopsticks, then took another bowl to the back of the cabinet and filled each of the five people's bowls with rice wine.

After Ms. Wu brought over the dipping sauce and stir-fried bear heart and liver, she took her daughter to the kitchen for dinner.

Lin Jue was somewhat surprised: "The table is so big, it's not crowded at all. Let them sit and eat together. It tastes better when there are more people."

"Eat! Everyone, pick up your chopsticks and don't be shy. Make yourself at home here." Fatty Zheng picked up a big mouthful of boiled pork and said casually, "It's the same for a woman like me no matter where I eat. I'm sorry to have made Brother Lin laugh."

As soon as he finished speaking, the only sounds in the room were the five grown men wolfing down their food and the clinking of bowls and chopsticks.

Lin Jue was the fastest. After finishing his meal, he took his bowl and chopsticks to the kitchen, but Zheng Pangzi's daughter, Zhongdao, came out and took them. Even so, Zheng Pangzi still scolded him with dissatisfaction: "Don't you have any sense? Once you find a suitable family, you should hurry up and get married."

Lin Jue was speechless. He should have known better than to go through all that trouble and just put it on the table.

After greeting the men, he left the butcher shop and headed straight for the blacksmith shop, which was just across the street.

Not long ago, in order to practice the Zhao Family Blood Saber as soon as possible, he asked the blacksmith Lu in Chui Liu Lane of Jing'anfang to forge a tiger-head saber, and agreed to pick it up in twenty days.

The Lu family shop occupies a large area, with a black tile roof. The snow on the roof has all melted, which is quite different from the surrounding houses covered with thick snow. Several iron nails are stuck in the mud walls, and some forged ironware hangs on them.

At the entrance of the shop stood a dark furnace, next to which a dirty apprentice was working the bellows with great effort.

Inside the shop, the iron blocks in the furnace were glowing red-hot under the raging fire, and the heat waves filled the entire room. Lu the blacksmith was shirtless, his bronze skin covered in sweat, and his hammer rose and fell, striking the iron blocks on the anvil and creating dazzling sparks.

On the counter on one side of the shop, there were all kinds of ironware, including farm tools such as hoes, plows, and sickles, kitchen utensils such as scissors, iron pots, and kitchen knives, as well as common weapons such as broadswords and longswords. There were also ironware that ordinary people could use, such as door knockers, door bolts, and hammers.

When Lu the blacksmith saw Lin Jue arrive, he turned around and took out a large, imposing sword: "Manager Lin, you've come at the right time. The tiger-head sword you ordered last time is just finished. Take a look and see if it suits your taste."

The Zhao Family Blood Saber requires extremely high blade hardness; high hardness ensures the blade remains sharp and is less prone to chipping or breaking during chopping.

Lin Jue had long awaited the Zhao Family Blood Saber. With the treasured saber and the Pine Crane Long Fist, his combat power would be significantly enhanced. He quickly stepped forward to take the long saber from the blacksmith Lu's hand to examine it.

The blade is long and slender, with smooth and clean lines.

The blade gleamed coldly, like a pool of autumn water; its edge was so sharp it could cut a hair in two.

The hilt is wrapped in ebony, and the guard is shaped like a tiger's head. The three-foot-seven-inch blade emerges from the tiger's mouth, exuding a powerful and domineering aura.

"Manager Lin, how's this knife?"

"Hmm, not bad!"

Lin Jue nodded, very satisfied with the tiger-headed knife in his hand, and readily handed over the remaining unpaid silver.

Just as he was about to leave, he glanced at the various ironwares beside him and suddenly remembered that the tavern seemed to be missing two pots. He smiled and said, "Master Lu, how much are these iron pots?"

Lu the blacksmith wiped the sweat from his forehead. "The large one is 120 coins, the small one is 50 coins. If you want it, I'll deliver it to your residence."

"I want both the big one and the small one."

Lin Jue nodded, his gaze falling on a frying pan in the corner behind Blacksmith Lu. "Master Lu, could I take a look at that pan?"

"You like this?"

Blacksmith Lu picked up the rusty frying pan from the ground and shook his head, saying, "Manager Lin, you don't know this, but I acquired this pan by chance ten years ago. No matter what I do, I can't remove the rust from it, and it just won't melt."

"If Manager Lin likes it, please feel free to take it. Since you've been so supportive of my business, I'll just consider it a free gift."

Lin Jue was slightly taken aback, then tossed out ten copper coins. "Then I, Lin Jue, will accept them without hesitation. Consider these ten coins as my treat for you to a drink."

Lu the blacksmith accepted the money with a smile, and with a simple and honest expression, he saw Shopkeeper Lin out of the shop, reminding him to be careful on the road.

"Take care, Manager Lin. I'll deliver those two pots to your residence later."

"Master Lu, please wait."

Lin Jue clasped his hands in farewell and hurriedly ran towards Qinghe Tavern in Jing'anfang with his frying pan in hand.

Damn, we've struck gold this time!