Bai Zhu reached for the multi-tiered shelf, picked up a Chengni inkstone from the pile of blue, purple, and turquoise inkstones, and looked at Zhang Wulin over there.

Liu Yuan glanced at the Chengni inkstone that Bai Zhu was holding up and subconsciously picked up the one that Zhang Wulin had left on the cruise ship that day to compare it.

The pattern of the round moon and clouds was almost identical, the only difference being that the one Bai Zhu was holding was a blue Chengni inkstone.

Zhang Wulin glanced at the crab-shell-green Chengni inkstone in Bai Zhu’s hand, lowered his eyelids slightly, and said, “The craftsman made a mistake during firing, confusing the blueprints we gave him. So I used this one for my own purposes and showed it to others.” He paused, and before the two could speak, Zhang Wulin continued, “As you know, Chengni inkstones are quite valuable. The customers who buy inkstones from me are very discerning and wouldn’t want an inkstone that has been admired and used by others. A new inkstone shouldn’t be used casually, so I could only bring this one for my own use.”

Liu Yuan glanced at the Chengni inkstone in his hand, which clearly showed signs of use, and exchanged a glance with Bai Zhu. When they first saw this Chengni inkstone and realized it was an old one, they were prepared to confront Zhang Wulin. Zhang Wulin’s explanation seemed to make sense.

Glancing at Zhang Wulin, whose eyes were lowered, Liu Yuan’s gaze fell behind him: there was the desk Zhang Wulin, the owner of the stationery shop, used daily, complete with teacups, food boxes, and other necessities.

He glanced at the jade ornaments on the desk, then paused deliberately on Zhang Wulin’s writing implements and handwriting before asking, “How’s your calligraphy and painting?” He then glanced at Zhang Wulin’s dark brocade robe.

Although Zhang Wulin, the owner of the stationery shop, didn’t appear crude, he was certainly not the epitome of refinement. The jade thumb rings on his fingers made him seem no different from any other merchant.

His handwriting on his accounting papers was also mediocre. While the stationery in his shop was all of high quality, the writing implements on his desk were all ordinary.

These facts are enough to prove that although Zhang Wulin was engaged in this seemingly refined business, he was not truly passionate about it; he was merely an outsider who sought to make money.

This… didn’t quite make sense.

Liu Yuan looked around before turning to Bai Zhu. Bai Zhu had also noticed the issue. After Zhang Wulin finished answering, “Your calligraphy and paintings are rather ordinary. You lack a bit of natural talent,” Bai Zhu pointed at the writing brushes, ink, and other stationery scattered across Zhang Wulin’s desk and said, “Yet you don’t seem particularly particular about the tools you use.”

Zhang Wulin paused slightly, thought for a moment, and shook his head, saying, “With mediocre talent, I won’t waste precious items.”

Whether he was particular or not was easily discovered by the people of the Dali Temple; there was no point in hiding it. But why were these two asking such questions?

Upon hearing this answer, Bai Zhu exchanged a glance with Liu Yuan, paused, and then continued to ask Zhang Wulin, “Do you know Hu Siming and Liu Sanqing?”

Zhang Wulin hesitated slightly before replying, “I don’t know Hu Siming. As for Liu Sanqing, I know he’s in the jade gambling business, but I’m not familiar with him.”

Liu Sanqing was a merchant, and those who could board the merchant guild’s cruise ship were naturally well-known within the guild. Liu Sanqing’s trade was also unusual, not commonly seen in Chang’an, so many merchants in the guild knew him.

As for Hu Siming… Zhang Wulin, a merchant with one or two servants at home, didn’t need to do things like buying groceries and cooking himself, so it wasn’t surprising that he didn’t know him.

Zhang Wulin’s answers to the questions were as frank as Liu Sanqing’s, but… as soon as the two left the stationery shop, Liu Yuan immediately called out to Bai Zhu, saying, “Zhang Wulin is lying!”

Bai Zhu nodded; he had also noticed the problem and thus said, “The most precious Chengni inkstones are those with vermilion red and eel yellow hues. Even if the pattern was accidentally burned too dark, Zhang Wulin claims he ‘wouldn’t waste precious items. ‘If that’s the case, even if he kept one for himself, he should have kept the crab-shell green one, not the more precious vermilion red Chengni inkstone.”

Therefore, Zhang Wulin lied.

Why lie about something like this? Was there anything special about this vermilion-red, round-moon-shaped inkstone? The two were puzzled. All the evidence in this case was currently fragmented and chaotic, seemingly all unrelated trifles that couldn’t be connected at all.

After finishing their evening meal, Bai Zhu and Liu Yuan didn’t leave. They made a special trip to the prison to ask Hu Siming.

Hu Siming was still clueless, and the two of them sighed in exasperation.

After leaving the prison, the two walked and talked. As they passed the public kitchen courtyard, a rich and peculiar aroma wafted out from it.

They stopped in their tracks. Liu Yuan was the first to react. He subconsciously looked up at the moon, which had already climbed to the treetops, and then turned to Bai Zhu, saying, “The public kitchen is actually cooking for private guests?” His tone was filled with barely suppressed surprise.

Bai Zhu sniffed, inhaling the lingering aroma, and nodded, “They’re definitely cooking for themselves.”

Liu Yuan clicked his tongue twice, then, realizing what was happening, winked at Bai Zhu with a smile. “I didn’t expect Tangyuan and Ah Bing to have learned to cook for themselves. I wonder what they’re making that smells so good…” Before he could finish, he suddenly fell silent, realizing something was amiss.

Tangyuan and Ah Bing were indeed diligent and eager to learn; even when Master Wen was occasionally absent, their cooking was quite good.

However, they were still just “apprentices,” far from being fully trained. They could only cook the dishes Master Wen had taught them and were far from being able to develop new dishes on their own.

This rich and unique aroma was unlike anything they had smelled before; it was clearly a new dish.

“Master Wen is back?”

“Master Wen is back?”

Two voices rang out almost simultaneously.

Liu Yuan and Bai Zhu looked at each other and, after realizing what was happening, immediately walked towards the public kitchen courtyard.

At that moment, Tangyuan and Ah Bing in the kitchen also exclaimed, “Wow!” in unison.

Not long ago, Chef Wen took the leftover eggplant and some minced meat from dinner and said she would make a dish with both meat and vegetables to make up for the dinner.

These two ingredients were as common as could be. Although Chef Wen was highly skilled and often turned the most ordinary ingredients into exceptional dishes, no matter how good she was, could a dish made from these two ingredients really surpass a meat dish and make up for the disappointment of the two of them having missed out on the Yútóu Dòufu Bāo at dinner today?

The moment the thick clay pot lid was lifted, the rich and salty aroma locked in the clay pot immediately spread in all directions.

The neatly cut eggplant strips lay in the casserole, each one soaked in the rich broth, glistening with oil and the flesh tinged with a deep brown from the sauce. The broth, thick and viscous, bubbled gently around the eggplant. Wen Mingtang sprinkled on some bright green scallions, adding a touch of color to the dish, before wrapping the casserole in a thick cloth and placing it before the two of them. Smiling, he said, “Try this Yúxiāng Qiézi Bāo. See if it’s inferior to those heavy meat dishes?”

(End of Chapter)

---