From a country cook to a master chef

May of the 29th year of the Dawu calendar.

As dawn broke, the morning light began to appear.

Lin Jue led more than ten light cavalrymen to Yucheng.

Compared to other fifth-rank officials and city garrison commanders, officials like him who only have a dozen or so guards accompanying them when they go out are now extremely rare.

Perhaps because it had just been recaptured, no officials, large or small, came to greet him at the gate of Yucheng.

Along the way, most of the houses in the city were closed, and it was rare to see anyone walking on the streets.

Could it be because the one being ridden wasn't a horse, but something that "grows fast"?

Lin Jue secretly mocked himself, but he was not too disheartened by the silence and desolation of Yucheng.

When Yucheng fell, the fact that the Zhanbo people did not carry out a large-scale massacre was, in a sense, a great relief.

The people here have long suffered from war and have lost all hope; those who remain in the city are mostly the elderly, the weak, the sick, and the disabled.

Most of the other capable people have already gone north to seek a living elsewhere.

The morning sunlight was exceptionally bright, but Lin Jue could not see a trace of life in the city.

The roadsides were covered in crimson snow, and every now and then you could see a few still-cold corpses that hadn't been cleaned.

Looking at Lin Jue, who was deep in thought, the young captain behind him gently reminded him, "Sir, the Yucheng government office is just ahead, but it has now been converted into a general's residence, and the barracks are next door."

"You come with me to the barracks. The rest of you go to the general's residence to rest and await my orders."

Lin Jue did not want to disturb the soldiers and civilians of Yucheng with a big fuss, so he only took the young captain with him and rode towards the barracks.

Although the Zhanbo army had withdrawn, he had a vague feeling that things were far more complicated than they appeared.

It was like the calm before a storm.

As the current garrison commander of Yucheng, he must quickly ascertain the deployment of troops and soldiers in the city in order to prepare a response.

After riding westward along Chang'an Road for half an incense stick's time, the two arrived at the Yucheng military camp, where they happened to meet the local general training soldiers on the drill ground.

Therefore, Lin Jue did not choose to enter the camp directly, but instead stood in an inconspicuous position to observe carefully.

Because they were wearing heavy armor, the patrolling guards ignored them, only glancing at them briefly before walking straight past them.

Seeing this, Lin Jue couldn't help but ask curiously, "Do you know us?"

"I don't know him."

"Since you don't know us, aren't you going to check our identities? Aren't you afraid we're spies from Zhanbo?"

Upon hearing this, the patrol captain scrutinized Lin Jue again, shaking his head repeatedly. "You don't look like Zhanbo people, and you're wearing heavy armor. Why should we question you?"

Lin Jue was surprised by the patrolling soldier's words. Just as he was about to say something, he heard several shrill screams suddenly ring out from the training ground.

Upon hearing the commotion, several soldiers immediately headed towards the drill ground and stood aside to watch the excitement.

Lin Jue frowned and went closer to take a look. It turned out that a deputy general was sparring with several soldiers.

What appeared to be a friendly sparring match was actually the deputy general using the soldiers for his own amusement, and he was extremely ruthless, knocking all five men to the ground in just a few moves.

When Lin Jue saw the deputy general's face clearly, he was startled.

He never expected that this deputy general of Yucheng, who possessed the strength of the early stage of the Divine Power Realm, would actually be Li Xuantong, the young master of the Qingshan Martial Arts School.

Lin Jue still clearly remembers the scene when he and Liu Ruyan robbed the supplies of Qingshan Martial Arts School.

At that time, he was just a novice martial artist who had just embarked on the path of martial arts, while Li Xuantong was already a genuine intermediate martial arts master.

Unexpectedly, two years later, he has now advanced to become a martial artist at the Divine Power Realm and has even taken up the position of deputy general of Yucheng.

Seeing the several useless people lying on the ground, Li Xuantong was furious. Just as he was about to kick one of them, Lin Jue appeared in time and blocked his way.

"Brother Li, your strength is close to the mid-stage of the Divine Power Realm, yet you're bullying some Hundred-Rank Martial Masters here. Don't you think that's going too far?"

"Hmph, who are you? How dare you meddle in my business! Men, seize these two trespassers!"

Li Xuantong snorted coldly. Seeing that the newcomer was an unfamiliar face, he immediately ordered his men to seize him.

Lin Jue did not answer, but silently showed a token.

"Are you the new garrison commander of Yucheng?"

Upon seeing the token in Lin Jue's hand, Li Xuantong couldn't help but swallow hard and rub his eyes vigorously.

"As you can see, how could this token be fake?" Lin Jue said nonchalantly. After speaking, he ignored the stunned crowd and sat down in a grand chair, putting on airs of a bureaucrat.

"Li Xuantong, the military officer and patrol inspector of Yucheng, pays his respects to Your Excellency. I was unaware of Your Excellency's arrival and have offended you in any way. Please forgive me." Li Xuantong was also flexible and knew the identity of the person in front of him. He immediately adopted a respectful subordinate posture.

Seeing this, Lin Jue sneered inwardly.

It seems that no matter when or where, one may be respected even without power or influence, but to have influence, one absolutely needs power and influence.

Seeing that the suddenly appointed official in front of him was ignoring him for a long time, Li Xuantong secretly began to sized him up.

But it's okay if you don't look, because you'll be shocked when you do.

The more Li Xuantong looked at the person in front of him, the more he felt that he had seen him somewhere before, but he just couldn't remember where. He was very confused.

Seeing that the time was almost right, Lin Jue looked at him and said with a soft smile, "Brother Li, do you still remember the Four Symbols Martial Arts School from back then?"

"..."

Upon hearing this, Li Xuantong's expression changed in a series of fascinating changes.

At first, he was slightly taken aback, then seemed to suddenly realize something, but was still somewhat disbelieving, then his face was full of surprise, and finally he was shocked.

"You were the last disciple Liu Yue accepted back then!"

You are Lin Jue!

You're still alive!

As Li Xuantong uttered these three sentences, his body trembled uncontrollably.

Unexpectedly, that unremarkable disciple of the Four Symbols Martial Arts School has now transformed into the garrison commander of Yucheng.

Looking at the dazed and disoriented Li Xuantong, Lin Jue leaned back in his armchair and smiled slightly, saying, "You don't need to worry that I will take revenge on you. There is no deep hatred between us."

Now that I have just taken office, we must work together closely and unitedly to defend against external enemies.

Hearing Lin Jue say this, Li Xuantong's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settled down. Standing there, he replied twice, "I dare not accept such praise."

After a moment of silence, he asked with feigned concern and curiosity, "Lin Jue, no, Lord Lin, have you already advanced to the Divine Illumination Realm?"

"no."

……

After Lin Jue took office, he still appointed Li Xuantong to be in charge of training soldiers. After failing to break through to the Divine Illumination Realm, he brought "Grows Fast" to the old site of the Four Symbols Martial Arts School.

It took three days to successfully help "Grow Fast" devour the beast spirit.

Just as Pan Ren said, consuming this beast spirit can indeed give your pet intelligence.

Because of the Spirit Seal, Lin Jue could clearly sense the astonishing changes happening to "Grows Fast".

Now, "Grows Fast" is like a loyal bodyguard who is always by his side. No matter where he goes, Lin Jue doesn't have to worry about any danger.

Anything that could threaten him would be eliminated by "Grow Fast" in advance, including those he perceived as having malicious intentions.

However, there is still something about "Grows Fast" that Lin Jue finds unpleasant: it is currently very resistant to Lin Jue sitting on its back.

This left Lin Jue feeling both helpless and amused.

After that, Lin Jue spent his days practicing the Six Harmonies Great Wilderness Hand in his mansion, while Li Xuantong continued to be in charge of everything at the Yucheng military camp.

During a break from his cultivation that day, Lin Jue, having nothing else to do, suddenly decided to walk alone towards Jiming Lane in Xiayuanfang.

Unexpectedly, something ridiculous happened there. With his current martial arts skills, he almost had his money bag stolen in the blink of an eye.

He chased the thief all the way from Xiayuanfang to Yaoshifang, and then all the way to Jing'anfang. The thief was so fast that even he had a hard time keeping up.

However, thanks to his familiarity with the terrain of Yucheng, Lin Jue was able to catch the fleeing thief.

Suddenly, a voice called out behind him.

"It's Master Lin! It's been years, and you're even more dashing than before."

Upon hearing this, Lin Jue was slightly startled. Was there really anyone in the world who would call him "Master"?

At that very moment, he suddenly realized that the voice sounded somewhat familiar. He turned around and froze on the spot.