Yamafu Military Affairs

Chapter 309 Doubt

The mist is hazy and the moon is shining brightly.

It was just nightfall, and a waning moon was hanging in the sky, facing east.

Perhaps it was because there was a real dragon living in Lin'an, the stars and the moon above the city were exceptionally bright tonight, and the continuous drizzle of the past had finally stopped, replaced by a clear night sky.

Luo Fu was sitting in the courtyard arranged by the Governor's Mansion, with a chessboard of extraordinary craftsmanship in front of him. He looked like he was thinking deeply.

Dongqiangdongqiang, didi lala~
The noisy gongs, drums and suonas outside kept blaring, causing him to frown. He looked up at the servant beside him and said, "It's already night, but the streets are still so noisy. Aren't they afraid of being punished by the government?"

"You just arrived in Lin'an, so you may not know that the one celebrating outside is Jun Rongzhi from the Wild Hunting Bureau. I heard that it's because the newly promoted Level 2 hunter in Lin'an Prefecture, Hu Tou Shen, just captured a Level 2 top-grade giant spider, and Liu Sicheng was so excited that he ordered Jun Rongzhi and the hunting guards to carry the trophy in a parade through the streets!"

The servants in Taihe Tower were all smart people, and seeing that Luofu was confused, they did not waste his time talking and explained the matter clearly in a few words.

"Oh? But the tiger-headed god with unrivaled arrows?"

Luo Fu was a little surprised, then he turned his hand over and gathered his sleeves, and like a magic trick, he put away the ornament lying quietly on the back of his hand.

It was a transparent black cicada shell with a pair of thorny claws, two compound eyes, and a long crack on its back. It looked soft and smooth, like ancient jade.

"The distinguished guests who are personally welcomed by the Grand Commander are different. Any ornaments on hand are priceless treasures. I don't know what this master's temper is like. If I serve him carefully for a few more days, I should be able to receive some rewards, right?"

The servant, who had been focusing on the cicada shell, was thinking randomly in his mind and had not noticed that Luo Fu had stood up.

"Come on, take me, a foreigner, with you to join in the fun."

"Okay, please."

The two of them left the courtyard, walked through the main building of Taihe Tower in front of the hall, and walked forward along the wide Imperial Winery Street.

Several large red flags fluttered in the light of bright lanterns. Amid the bustling crowd, there was a group of elite hunter guards in bright clothes and armor, maintaining order.

The musicians of Junrongzhi (the government's military music group) were beating drums and gongs with all their might, and the suona and suona lyrics were rising one after another, and the noise could be heard from miles away.

Qin Huai was holding a large ox horn bow, sitting on horseback, wearing a hunting officer's uniform and a large white felt hat. He was specially dressed up by Liu Gengyang's officials to look very majestic.

"Look! That's the legendary Tiger-Headed God with unparalleled archery skills!"

A dandy man in brocade clothes and a flowery hat recognized Qin Huai at a glance on the stand along the street of the restaurant.

"I heard that this hunting officer is over thirty years old and still unmarried. If you ladies are interested in him, you should act quickly."

There was a busybody in the place surrounded by willows and smoke, joking with a pretty girl in his arms.

"I'm afraid my sisters don't have this blessing. Who in Lin'an doesn't know about the love affairs of Tiger God who spends a lot of money? Shi Xiaoxiao from Chaoyun Pavilion has received countless red silks to wrap her head. I'm afraid she has already secretly arranged to marry this hunting official and entrust her life to him."

There were many well-informed people in the brothels and brothels of the Imperial Winery. Seeing that Qin Huai was in the limelight, they inevitably spread some unfounded gossip.

"This giant spider has eight legs that can support the sky. It can produce at least ten thousand pounds of good meat. The Wild Hunting Bureau is acting like this. Could it be that they want to release some of it for auction to benefit the major wine warehouses?"

Some people with a keen sense of smell sensed the business opportunity and immediately decided to go home to gather people and mobilize funds, waiting for the opportunity to act.

"I don't know if this spider meat is for sale, but now that I've come across it, there's no reason to return empty-handed."

No one knows better than the contestants from the eighteen regions of Kyushu how precious the second-class ingredients are, so even though Qin Huai hunted spider meat, which is not common in many cuisines, they still have great enthusiasm and want to buy some for later use.

There are so many different things.

"What a great prey."

Luo Fu looked at Qinhuai in the distance, and with a quick sniff, he sensed the cheering water element fluctuations in the air.

It is the passive skill unique to Tianwu's inheritance - the sense of water control.

The servant thought Luo Fu was talking about the hideous spider head, and quickly responded, "Yes, yes, it's true. A spider this big would take hundreds of people to eat."

"How many days are left for the Spiritual Chef Competition?"

Luo Fu suddenly asked.

"The race will be finished on May 9th, so there is still exactly half a month left."

"Fifteen days? That's enough."

No longer paying attention to the servant beside him, Luo Fu stared at Qin Huai in the distance, with a faint smile on the corner of his mouth.

On the rooftop of Taihe Tower in the distance, the siblings Ao Ling and Ao Tao were also sitting in Qiantang Pavilion, looking out at the hunting officials and common people who were parading busily in the streets.

"Little sister, is that the tiger-headed god who helped you escape danger earlier, Qin Huai Qin Hunter?"

Ao Tao looked at Qin Huai, who stood out among the crowd, and couldn't help feeling curious.

"It was him, no doubt. But my sister never expected that after not seeing him for a few days, Hunter Qin would hunt down that extremely ferocious Tea Spider."

Ao Ling withdrew her gaze from the pit on the spider's head. The surprise and confusion in her beautiful eyes were very real.

"Perhaps because they were hastily attacked last time, the hunter's weapons were not good enough, and there were no traps or strong reinforcements to help, so they retreated temporarily?"

Ao Tao had lived for more than four hundred years and was well versed in human affairs. He immediately guessed that there must be a reason why Qin Huai failed to kill the [Tea Spider] the last time he encountered it.

Hearing this, and thinking back to the horrific wound on the giant spider's head, which certainly didn't look like the damage caused by an ordinary arrow, Ao Ling finally smiled and said, "Brother, are you worried that my sister will feel resentful because of Officer Qin's actions?"

"My sister is smart and generous, why would she mind such a small matter?"

Seeing that Ao Ling didn't take it to heart, Ao Tao smiled and changed the subject to continue chatting.

"Today, I went to the hunting shed with Liu Sicheng to exchange for some delicacies. Together with the fresh water that Tuo Mo bought from Lin'an Prefecture these days, the delicacies needed for the Zou Jiao Feast should be complete, right?"

"There are still two flavors missing, one bitter and fresh, and one spicy and fresh."

Ao Ling shook his head and was about to say something else.

dong dong dong~
Three crisp knocks on the door echoed in Qiantang Pavilion.

"what's up?"

Ao Tao turned his head and looked, his eyes fixed on the person who came.

A middle-aged scholar in blue clothes, black boots, and a turban, dressed as an aide, bowed at the door and said in a neither humble nor arrogant manner: "Liu Sicheng asked the Palace Master to go to the bureau to talk, saying that the Tiger-Headed God has some personal matters to discuss."

"It's late, and my sister hasn't married yet, I'm afraid."

"Brother, I think Officer Qin Lie called you for something important. I already have some ideas in my mind. It doesn't matter if it's early or late."

Ao Ling nodded slightly and waved to Ao Tao.

The night wind was a little chilly. She took the silk wrapping from the clothes hanger, went downstairs and got into the sedan chair. She headed towards the Wild Hunting Bureau under the protection of Tuo Mo and her trusted sailors.
-
"These two carps, one big and one small, one green and one red, were born to be my [Carp in Arms] dish."

Cha Xiaodao straightened his waist, picked up the straw rope, and two carps, one big and one small, fell into the water tank of the Wild Hunting Bureau.

"Aru, you are lucky this time." Looking at the more than two-foot-long [Red Flame Carp] in the big tank and the only half-foot [Ice Green Carp] in the small tank, Cha Xiaodao couldn't suppress the smile on his face.

[Ice Green Carp]: One of the tens of millions of delicious species in the mountains and seas, its scales, bones and flesh are crystal clear and rich in water essence.

Evaluation: Huangding grade, can be used as a supplementary ingredient for most [real taste] level dishes.

[Red Flame Carp]: One of the tens of millions of delicious species in the Mountains and Seas. Its flesh and blood are rich in fire essence and flame energy. Because it is born in water, the combination of water and fire makes its meat a precious one.

Evaluation: Huangding is of top quality and can be used as the main ingredient in a small number of "real taste" dishes.

Special ingredients. After consumption, there is a certain chance that the ability to manipulate temperature and flame will be slightly increased.

The two carps were suddenly brought to an unfamiliar environment and a very cramped water tank. They immediately struggled hard, swinging their heads back and forth, making the tank bang loudly, and their bulging eyes looked very creepy.

"Be quiet, Grandpa, I'm not in a hurry to eat you."

Cha Xiaodao reached into the water with the back of a kitchen knife and knocked on the fish heads a few times, hoping to get them to behave themselves, but it had little effect.

"Let me do it."

Not long after returning to Lin'an, Ding Ru, who looked exhausted, rolled up his sleeves. Without any movement, he simply stretched out his hand and made a flick of the head, and flicked it hard on the fish's heads. The two active carps became dizzy and sank to the bottom and became quiet.

"This fish is so fat, it will taste great if braised."

Qin Huai chatted with him, and for some reason he felt hungry again.

"Old Qin, what did Zhen Shaoqing say? You can't finish this pile of spider meat even if you eat it for three days and three nights, right?"

Cha Xiaodao pursed his lips at Qin Huai and looked at the pile of white spider meat in the yard, which looked like a small mountain.

"Zhen Shaoqing only uses half of them when cooking, and I have the remaining four to use as I please."

Qin Huai patted the borrowed [Top-quality Fresh Cage] at his feet, in which the four unprocessed spider legs were stored.

"We'll eat one, send one to the White Tiger Guard, sell one for pocket money, and use one as a favor."

"No wonder you asked the two of us to come over here at night, Lao Qin. You don't want to do it yourself, right?"

Cha Xiaodao chuckled, understanding what Qin Huai meant, and immediately took out his food stuff from his personal space.

"You two are not the only ones here tonight. I have invited two distinguished guests."

Qin Huai kept the topic in suspense, picked up the long chopsticks, and roughly divided the snow-white spider meat into four piles.

"By the way, why don't you see Fatty? Isn't he always with you?"

Cha Xiaodao looked around and found that there was no one else in the yard except the three of them.

"I went to the Governor's Mansion. If you calculate the time, I will be back soon."

Qin Huai took out his ancestral three-piece set, a copper pot of boiling water and sesame paste, pulled over a round table, and cut large chunks of spider meat into thin slices on the chopping board.

"Old Qin, you are a good cook, why do you prefer hot pot, which is a simple cooking method?"

Looking at the hundreds of seasonings Qin Huai placed on the table, Cha Xiaodao brought out a teppanyaki table, and the kitchen knife flashed countless cold lights as he chatted while cutting the side dishes.

"Maybe Mr. Qin pays attention to the original taste of the ingredients, so he returns to the original simplicity?"

Ding Ru glanced at the clear boiling water in the copper pot, and kept using the slender fish-cutting knife in his hand.

"It saves trouble and is convenient. Besides, I have this."

Qin Huai took out the [Universal Seasoning Jar] from his personal space and waved it towards the two of them: "It would be a waste if we don't use it. Let's try to arrange and combine it to see if we can find some more complex flavors."

While the three of them were chatting, Liu Gengyang walked in with Shaohua, a young official wearing a red-embroidered white robe, muttering, "Brother, don't say you won't help me. You've been in Lin'an for quite some time, and you've seen my brother Qin. You know his reputation and ability. You can do whatever you want. As long as the dishes you make are acceptable, it won't be difficult to get some spider meat to use as a cooking ingredient."

"Shaohua will always remember Brother Liu's kindness in supporting me."

Shaohua came in, greeted the three people, and then turned his attention to the four piles of white meat.

"Shao Xiaolang, nice to see you again. How are you these days?"

Qin Huai picked up the teapot, poured a cup of tea, and motioned for him to sit down first.

"Thank you for your concern, Officer Hunter. I am currently learning some skills from a master chef in the Governor's Mansion. Everything is going well."

Shaohua's speech was obviously much more mature, his movements were neat, his gaze was proud, and there was a rare youthful spirit in his words and actions.

If he was a young dragon lurking in the abyss when we first met, now he is a golden scale in the pond that has encountered storms.

"I'm ashamed to say that we invited Shao Xiaolang to dinner tonight, but we couldn't find a cook, so we had to cook for ourselves."

Qin Huai and Shaohua exchanged a few more pleasantries before getting down to business.

"Since Officer Qin Lie has such intention, Shaohua should do some work."

After saying that, he walked towards the stove that the Wild Hunting Bureau had prepared earlier, and took out the necessary kitchen utensils and seasonings from the [Fresh Cage] behind him.

After a while, the clanging of weapons and the sound of powerful footsteps could be heard outside.

Ao Ling transformed into a water mirror and checked her makeup before getting off the sedan chair and walking towards the man who was studying the seasoning in the yard with the jade box.

The water element fluctuations around the two people intertwined and merged at an extremely subtle level.

Hearing the footsteps, Qin Huai raised his head, feeling that Ao Xiaoniang was a little different today.

Ao Ling's feeling became even stronger. Behind her, the shadow of an old man dressed in Warring States clothing suddenly solidified, and he looked at Qin Huai with incredible eyes.

"A heavenly feast, absolutely a heavenly feast."

Hearing Yu Shixian's repeated confirmation, Ao Ling frowned slightly. She was a true dragon and could sense much more from Qin Huai than Taihe Gong.

Apart from the unique smell left by [Heavenly Feast], she always felt that the man in front of her was inexplicably familiar. If it weren't for Qin Huai's face, she would have suspected that the person sitting in front of her was not the hunting official Tiger-headed God, but the mysterious Luofu Mountain man.

No, it can’t be said that they are similar, they are exactly the same!
Ao Ling unconsciously moved closer to Qin Huai and sniffed carefully.

It's definitely correct. Even if they are not the same person, they are definitely twins, enough to be confused with the real thing!

But they are totally different.
Looking at the two people with completely different facial features, Ao Ling couldn't figure out the meaning for a moment.

"Ahem. Haven't seen you for a few days. How is Miss Ao these days?"

Qin Huai coughed lightly twice, took a step to the side, stood up, kept a somewhat intimate distance, and bowed.

"Everything is fine, you are too polite, Hunter."

Ao Ling returned the salute, put aside her doubts for the time being, handed the jade box in her hand to Tuo Mo, and then sat down at the side of the round table with Qin Huai.

(End of this chapter)