bookcurios Chapter 21: The Big Fool Li
Chapter 21: The Big Fool Li
At dawn the next day, Jiang Lili was awakened by the little girl sent by Guan Yue.
Guan Yue has a carefree personality, but is very attentive to her sisters. Knowing that Jiang Lili doesn't know how to tie her hair, she specially sent a dexterous little girl to do it.
The little girl combed Jiang Lili's hair into a double spiral bun that didn't get in the way. With Jiang Lili's apricot-yellow dress, she looked lively and playful. She couldn't help but sigh, "The girl is worthy of being from the capital. She is the most beautiful girl I have ever seen."
Jiang Lili's temples blushed when the little girl praised her. She pinched the little girl's cheeks and ran out to find Guan Yue for breakfast.
However, as soon as he arrived at the door of the gathering hall, he ran into Xin Che who was walking out of the hall.
Xin Che reached out to support the staggering Jiang Lili, "You want to go out?"
He glanced at the bag on Jiang Lili's shoulder, his pair of phoenix eyes looking clear.
Jiang Lili felt a little guilty. After all, she had told Xin Che yesterday to keep her safe, but she turned around and left Xin Che behind and went into the city by herself.
"Yes, I'm going to Linzhou City." Jiang Lili quickly added: "Do you want to go into the city with me?"
Xin Che shook his head, and said in a very understanding tone: "I am a serious criminal that the capital is keeping an eye on. It would be redundant to bring me along."
There was an inexplicable pity in these words.
Cheng Jiayu, who was standing beside him, was a little dumbfounded when he heard Xin Che say this. Is this still his master? Why does he look a bit like an abandoned big dog?
And why do I feel like the master's words sound a bit like green tea?
It was Guan Yue who told him the word "green tea". He understood that green tea has such another usage. The village chief's choice of words and sentences was really wonderful.
Jiang Lili didn't dare to look Xin Che in the eye. She glanced at Guan Yue and Jia Yu who were standing aside and eating melons. She pointed at Jia Yu and said, "Don't worry. Young Master Jia Yu is also very skilled."
Cheng Jiayu, who was eating melons in the front row, wished he could become invisible.
Sure enough, he heard Xin Che's voice, which had turned eight degrees colder: "Yeah, so you don't need me anymore."
Xin Che added: "Be careful on the road."
After saying that, he glanced at Jiayu and turned away.
Cheng Jiayu felt a sharp look from his master and groaned inwardly, wondering why the Crown Prince's wife kept setting traps for him.
After breakfast, Jiang Lili and her group set off.
The person who led the way was a girl named Taozhi. Guan Yue said that this girl had a good memory and could remember many complicated routes.
The four of them set off on horseback, Guan Yue and Jiayu rode together, Jiang Lili and Taozhi rode on one horse. Fortunately, none of them were too heavy, so it didn't slow down their speed much.
It was more than two hundred miles from the mountain stronghold to Linzhou City. Jiang Lili and his party set out at dawn, and it was already sunset when they approached Linzhou City.
Taozhi was very familiar with the shortcut from the mountain village to Linzhou City. Jiang Lili and his group took the shortcut and did not pass through the villages near Linzhou City, so there were few people on the road.
The territory of the Dasheng Dynasty was divided into states, counties, and districts, which are roughly equivalent to modern provinces, cities, and counties, and Linzhou City was equivalent to the provincial capital of the entire Linzhou.
However, the counties around Linzhou City are too desolate, with only sparsely scattered villages of different sizes, so the county divisions cannot be seen.
The situation improved slightly as we got closer to Linzhou City, and the population became more densely populated.
Jiang Lili and his group arrived at the gate of Linzhou City, where soldiers were checking people coming and going.
"What's your name and where are you from?"
The soldiers guarding the city checked very carefully, which made Jiang Lili, Taozhi and his group a little panicked.
Taozhi frowned and said, "Usually I can get through by just giving money, why are they checking me so carefully today?"
This was Master Jiang Lili, who was sitting on the ground. Hearing Taozhi's words, he said with a smile, "You may not know yet. This is what Master Li asked for. He said he wanted to improve public order."
Then it was the turn of an uncle to queue up to enter the city. He was pulling a donkey cart with a large box on it. It looked like it was loaded with goods. The uncle smiled and said to the guards guarding the city: "Sir, I am delivering food. This is my badge to enter the city."
After saying that, he took out the badge from his waist.
The city entry badge is an essential token for peddlers who travel back and forth between Linzhou City for a long time.
When the guards saw the words "Fengdeng Restaurant" engraved on the waist badge, their faces immediately fell: "Fengdeng Restaurant? You can't enter!"
"Why? I usually deliver goods to Fengdeng Restaurant well every time."
It was obviously the first time that the uncle was stopped, and he was anxious and confused.
The soldiers guarding the city were tough: "You can't come in. There may be something wrong with your food. I will report to the higher-ups. You wait here first."
The uncle was at a loss as he pulled the donkey cart: "Sir, how long do we have to wait? These dishes are all fresh, and the restaurant is in a hurry to get them!"
"I told you to wait, so just wait. Don't waste your time talking to me. Get out of here. Don't block the road. Next one!"
The delivery man who was being pressed pulled the donkey cart forward with a helpless look on his face, sighing.
"I've been delivering goods to Fengdeng Restaurant for three years, and this is the first time I've been stopped. What should I do? This truckload of vegetables will end up in my hands, and I'm afraid that our future cooperation with Fengdeng Restaurant will be ruined."
Jiang Lili witnessed this and was a little confused: "Why does it feel like this is targeting Fengdeng Restaurant?"
"Girl, you're right."
The old man who was talking to Jiang Lili said, "Second Master Li said he wanted to rectify public order, but he was actually targeting Dasha Li... No, what about the first master Li?"
"This Fengdeng Restaurant is a shop left by Mr. Li's mother's family. It has always had poor business and is on the verge of bankruptcy."
"As a result, Mr. Li launched a new set of dishes yesterday, called Fengdeng Hot Pot."
After hearing this, Jiang Lili and Guan Yue exchanged glances. Wow, this time traveler does a pretty good job in catering.
"This Fengdeng hotpot is not only affordable, but also spicy and fragrant, very appealing, and after eating it, it feels like all the moisture in the body has been expelled."
The old man couldn't help swallowing his saliva when he said this: "The aroma of this small hot pot can be smelled even when passing by Fengdeng Restaurant. It's so delicious that it makes people drool!"
"The business of Fengdeng Restaurant has exploded overnight. We are now transporting food ingredients to the city. But Mr. Li is now choking us. We can't get the food ingredients in. Something bad is going to happen tonight."
Jiang Lili felt that this old man knew a lot, so she asked curiously, "Then, old man, why don't you go into the city and chat with us here?"
The old man looked calm and composed: "Oh, I am the newly hired manager of Fengdeng Restaurant, and I am also stuck at the city gate."
Jiang Lili: “…”
This old man has a bit of black humor.
The old man stroked his beard and said, "I can't get into the city, so I'm standing at the city gate to promote Fengdeng Restaurant's hotpot."
Jiang Lili gave a thumbs up, saying that he was indeed a capable person in charge with excellent business skills.
"Master, since you are the newly hired manager of Fengdeng Restaurant, do you know the full name of Mr. Li?"