He was thinking a lot, but his face remained calm.

Lin Fei followed Liu Yuan, walked to the counter, and looked at Wen Mingtang, who after greeting them, lowered her head to do things again.

Although she was working behind the counter, she was not like the previous chefs who cooked the dishes as if they were on a battlefield. Her countertop was very clean and neatly arranged. The pot with water boiling over low heat, the wrapped noodles, the prepared minced meat, and the small bowl of water to help knead the wrappers were all neatly placed on the countertop. It looked inexplicably comfortable.

When the wrapping was almost done, Wen Mingtang stopped. After putting the chaoshou into the pot, she began to prepare the sauce for the chaoshou for the two of them.

Put the sauce, vinegar, salt, and pepper into the bowl, then scoop out a small spoonful of chicken soup, spread the sauce evenly, pick up the cooked chaoshou, and put them into the bowl. Wen Mingtang asked the two of them: “Do you want chili oil?”

Liu Yuan was about to answer, but the moment he opened his mouth, he remembered that Shang Feng was still there, so he quickly closed his mouth, and then heard his own Shang Feng say: “I eat spicy food.”

Wen Mingtang nodded and looked at Liu Yuan: “Does Liu Sicheng also want it spicy?”

She remembered that when Liu Yuan ate jiānbāo today, he chose the milder sauce but not the spicy one.

Liu Yuan gestured with a finger, saying, “Just a tiny bit.”

Wen Mingtang smiled and nodded, poured spicy oil on the two bowls of chaoshou, sprinkled a small handful of chopped green onions, then pushed them in front of the two of them and said: “Mix well and eat!”

Liu Yuan responded hurriedly, took away the bowl of hongyou chaoshou, walked with Lin Fei to the table closest to the countertop, and sat down.

After mixing it briefly, he couldn’t wait to pick up one and put it into his mouth. The skin of the chaoshou was neither thick nor thin, just the right amount. The moment he took a bite, the fresh pork meat burst out with juices. He didn’t know if it was an illusion, but he always felt that the meat filling seemed to be slightly elastic. The moment it entered the mouth, the smooth skin soaked in sauce was mixed with the slightly elastic texture. The meat filling was tender and delicious, slightly spicy and fragrant.

Liu Yuan’s acceptance of spicy food was obviously not high, but even though it was not high, he still enjoyed it. He ate a few hongyou chaoshou, and his lips turned red, and he secreted saliva “hissing” while holding something in his hand. He refused to stop at all and continued to stuff one after another into his mouth.

On the other hand, Lin Fei’s reaction was somewhat unexpected to Wen Mingtang. His bowl had an ordinary level of spiciness. Among the people who were eating, Tangyuan, and a few others, only she and Ji Cai could tolerate it. Even so, their lips turned slightly red from the spiciness after eating.

Although chili peppers were now available in the country, there were not many dishes available. People don’t eat much of it normally, so they can’t accept spicy food all at once. After all, accepting this was a gradual process.

Unexpectedly, Lin Shaoqing could eat without changing his expression. Wen Mingtang was quite surprised and couldn’t help but look at him twice. She didn’t notice that her move had another meaning in the eyes of Ji Caimai, who was eating and picking his teeth.

After Liu Yuan and Lin Fei finished eating and left, Ji Caimai walked up to Wen Mingtang, who was about to clean up the table with Ah Bing and Tangyuan. He lightly knocked on the table and said, “Master Wen, please take a step to speak.”

Wen Mingtang nodded and followed Ji Cai to the side. Then, she saw Ji Cai looking at her with a serious expression as he spoke, “Master Wen, I may be meddling a bit too much, but if it weren’t for valuing talents, I wouldn’t bother with these trivial matters!”

Wen Mingtang nodded, looked up at Ji Caimai, and asked, “What does Ji Caimai want to say?”

Looking at the girl’s clear and innocent eyes, Ji Cai sighed and said, “Young Master Lin’s appearance is undoubtedly appealing to most young ladies. But he’s a person who looks kind but has a cold heart. Moreover, his background is a barrier that can’t be overcome! The cook’s wife who was driven away earlier is the best example. Master Wen, do you understand?”

After hearing this, Wen Mingtang finally understood and hurriedly waved her hand and said: “Ji Caimai you misunderstood, I don’t have any thoughts about Lin Shaoqing.”

Ji Cai gave her a knowing look and said, “I saw you looking at him just now. Young ladies your age are often drawn to handsome and lively young men like him.”

Exactly, how else would there be such talk of young admirers if not for that?

Wen Mingtang couldn’t laugh or cry when she heard this, so she had to explain: “I just was surprised to see that Lin Shaoqing could eat spicy food so well,” she explained, “His bowl of spicy oil was about the same as ours, but he ate it without changing his expression. I couldn’t help but be curious.”

Ji Cai finally understood and, feeling a bit embarrassed about his earlier assumptions, he touched his nose. Then he cleared his throat and said, “So, that’s the reason… Young Master Lin’s ability to eat spicy food is because his mother lived in the Sichuan region before marrying Duke Jingyun. People there have a fondness for spicy flavors, and it seems that this habit was brought into the Duke’s household. It’s not surprising that Young Master Lin can handle spicy food.”

Wen Mingtang suddenly realized.

Although it was a mistake, Wen Mingtang’s answer made Ji Caimai completely relieved.

That’s good! It was not easy to find a public chef that everyone likes, but if she is taken away, it will be a waste.

…

…

After eating the hongyou chaoshou, Liu Yuan took the list of medicinal materials handed over by Lin Fei. After glancing at the strange names of medicinal materials, Liu Yuan saw his Shang Feng casually pull out a book from the bookshelf behind him.

Looking at the name on the cover of the book, Liu Yuan was silent: …it was a medical book!

Since Lin Fie became the Shaoqing of Dali Temple, his research became more and more extensive. He even read medical books. No wonder he understood these! He glanced at the names of the medicinal materials in his hand, still hesitating, but saw Lin Fei raise his head and glance at him.

Liu Yuan was excited and quickly left the room with the list of medicinal materials. It was getting too late and many pharmacies were closed, so they could only wait until tomorrow to check again.

Early the next morning, Liu Yuan came to the public kitchen. After eating a bowl of hongyou chaoshou, he left Dali Temple.

In the early morning, Wen Mingtang went to the prison to deliver the morning food, and after cooking the morning food for several regular customers of the public kitchen, she took Ah Bing and Tangyuan with her and started clearing the table.

It was almost time to clear up. Master Sun, who was making lunch, walked into the public kitchen. When he saw a few of them, he said hello with a smile: “Master Wen!”

Wen Mingtang nodded to him and called out. “Master Sun,” then she pointed to the empty countertop and said, “Today’s breakfast is all gone, otherwise I’d treat Master Sun to a bowl of hongyou chaoshou.”

Master Sun muttered, “It’s alright,” but his expression became even more grim.

He and Wang Junshan were scolded one after another by Ji Caimai for wasting food. The little girl named Wen said that all the food for the court had been eaten. He was sure that she was stabbing him intentionally!

Sure enough, dogs that bite don’t bark! She may look like an ordinary young girl on the surface, but she’s no pushover! Well, her father was once a prominent figure, holding the position of a high official. How could he have raised a docile rabbit? More like a cunning fox!

With a sigh in his heart, Master Sun narrowed his eyes slightly. He received a reply to his post with Wang Junshan, and he will go over to see that person soon. When the time comes…ha!

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