Men, listen, grab the top of the mountain and stand in the center position

"Are you afraid that the secret recipe will be leaked?"

Ji's mother was a little worried. Her daughter had been talking about opening a shop lately. She didn't know when that would happen, but she seemed to be protecting her craft, like her embroidery skills, from outsiders.

Hearing this, the nanny, who couldn't bear to take her eyes off the beautiful bird, comforted her, "Don't worry, Madam. Shushu asked me to make a cloth bag to put all the herbs and small ingredients for stewing together. I will change it every time I stew. I will try my best to keep an eye on it. When the stew is done, I will put the bag away and throw it away when I get home."

"Hey, before they check, rinse the bag with water a few times. There are about ten different ingredients mixed together, and it's hard to tell them apart after soaking." Wangshu thought this expensive gift might be for the recipe. "If the host asks, just give me a general idea. We also have cold dishes, um... salt-baked chicken and duck with fermented black beans. I'll check and see if there's any other way to make it taste better."

Speaking of books, Wangshu thought of her Qin family's gie gie. Maybe he has some books on this subject.

But the military camp was not peaceful at this time.

Over the past twenty years, Yaocheng has been recuperating, reclaiming wasteland and welcoming refugees. Scattered plots of land outside the city were distributed to the people according to population size, allowing them to cultivate their own land. Families without extra labor could lease their allotted land to others for cultivation. Contracts were signed, with an annual payment of grain or money as payment. The land could not be bought or sold. Disaster victims who arrived in Yaocheng were given land upon arrival and allocated temporary shelter. For the first three months, they could receive daily porridge from the soup kitchen. The government assisted in purchasing grain during the harvest season, but those who had been affected by the disaster a year earlier were required to find their own housing after receiving money and other provisions.

Xia Yiyi was not good at farming, and the harvest failed, leaving her homeless. Taotao was sick and weak, so she had no choice but to sell her body. Ji's mother had a craft, which made it easier to make money than farming. The Qin family had no extra labor and could not afford to farm. For various reasons, these scattered private plots were planted with a variety of crops, adapting to local conditions: rice, wheat, sorghum, and so on.

Military households were the primary labor force for border defense, and the vast expanse of farmland outside the city walls was a crucial source of rations. During the hottest days of summer, teams of soldiers would stand guard at regular intervals over the soon-to-ripen wheat fields to prevent thieves or civilians from stealing them.

Qin Xiuyuan was the leader of a squad of soldiers on the southeast ridge. Each squad consisted of five soldiers, responsible for patrolling a roughly 300-meter area. Four of them stood guard, spaced about 80 meters apart. They were shirtless, their shirts spread out over their heads to shield them from the sun. He carried a knife at his waist, occasionally patrolling the surrounding area.

Directly north of Yaocheng lies Xuanwu City, bordering the Dashi State. Recently, signs of increased fires have been detected from the opposing army. General Qin has begun arranging for his troops to be stationed in Xuanwu in two rotating batches, each for a month. General Qin's eldest son, Qin Wen, and his second son, Qin Wu, were the first to lead reinforcements.

The troops currently remaining within the city, preparing for the second rotation, are those of Qin Shuang, the Third Young Master, and Qin Quan, the Fourth Young Master. In addition to intensive morning and evening drills, elite soldiers have been assigned to patrol military fields. Qin Xiuyuan, having performed exceptionally well in military combat drills last month, was selected and assigned to the Third Vanguard Battalion. This "third" refers to the third of the Third Young Master Qin. Each of the Qin Young Masters is assigned to a different Vanguard Battalion, named after their rank. Qin Shuang, as his name suggests, is a man of both civil and military talents, handsome, gentle and courteous, and a superb rider...

Although besides the eldest son, the third son is the most popular. But if he could follow the eldest son who is the crown prince, it would be even better...

Suddenly, a floating dot appeared on the other side of the hillside. Qin Xiuyuan shouted, "Be alert!" and gestured while gripping the knife handle tightly.

The dot gradually grew larger, and a scholar's hat and a long gown with a lapel swayed unsteadily. It was Ji's father, carrying a cloth bag, coming down the hillside alone.

"Disarm the guard and put on your shirt!" Qin Xiuyuan breathed a sigh of relief and gestured out. He wiped the sweat from his forehead and stepped forward to greet him, "Uncle Ji."

"Xiuyuan, your uncle brought a can of herbal tea. You have been patrolling under the scorching sun recently, so you should drink more tea." Father Ji said as he took out a bowl and prepared to pour it.

Qin Xiuyuan hurriedly stopped him, "Uncle, this is a bit inappropriate." Foreign objects have the risk of being taken orally as medicine, and he is on patrol and cannot afford to be negligent.

Father Ji poured out half a bowl and drank it all by himself. "Uncle, of course you know the rules. I'll drink first, and then I'll tell you something."

"Uncle, please speak."

Father Ji then recounted the whole story of the parrot. "Shushu and Mimi want to continue making some money from food, so they plan to find some recipes in advance, the more the better. She asked me to tell you that if you have any relevant books, she will come to visit you when you are on leave."

Yaocheng Library suffered an unexpected disaster last year when a nearby tavern caught fire, and has never been rebuilt. If you want to read books, the only way now is to borrow them from a scholar's family.

There is actually a book called "Food Arena" that introduces various cooking methods and the appreciation of the finished products... "Uncle, there should be some. Xiuyuan will take care of it in the next two days, and Sister Wangshu will come to consider it the day after tomorrow."

"Okay, Xiuyuan, you might as well introduce some other local chronicles, vernacular novels, and biographies to her. To be honest, uncle and aunt are most afraid of the changing seasons every year, so we should naturally cater to her preferences on weekdays, let her expend some energy, let her eat more and sleep more, and build up her health." Father Ji thought of something and couldn't help laughing, "Shushu recently trained a puppy based on a military book. Hahaha, she must walk the dog every day when she goes out. You can see it the day after tomorrow, she looks pretty good." Father Ji thought of Wangcai's loveless life as a dog, haha, interesting!

"Xiuyuan understands. Xiuyuan will send sister Wangshu home the day after tomorrow, so don't worry, uncle." Xiuyuan told the uncle about buying a maid for the Kitchen God.

Father Ji looked at the young man with admiration, his face showing an unconcealable joy. In the scorching heat of the day, even though his back was sweating, he still laughed heartily, "Uncle, there's nothing to worry about. This is chrysanthemum herbal tea, it can relieve the heat."

He waved his hand, stroked his mustache and left.

Xiuyuan arranged for the other two to drink a few bowls first, and then the other three, including him, waited half an hour before drinking. The chrysanthemum tea must have had a little salt in it, which gave it a slightly odd taste.

"Captain, your future Lord Taishan is very pleased with you!" Li Fugui, one of the soldiers, winked at Qin Xiuyuan. He was from Sichuan, short and sturdy, agile, and extremely hardy in training. He had a dark complexion and looked a bit mature. He spoke frankly: "Is your fiancée feeling better?" As an old clerk in the military camp, Ji's father was well-known for his doting on his daughter. If it weren't for his daughter Lin Daiyu, many envious daughters would have sighed bitterly, "Dote your daughter like Ji Shushi!"

"Yeah, much better," Qin Xiuyuan replied generously. A big part of the reason the elders were so pleased with him was because they loved their daughter so much that they loved everyone in her. He wrung out the towel and continued wiping his face.

Seeing his relaxed expression, Li Fugui was happy for him. His dark skin was stained with sweat and a little bit sunburned, but it didn't stop him from smiling like a black flower. "That's good! I can finally hold my head high. We can have a grand wedding, and we can live happily together. It will just piss off those bastards like Zhao Er to death!"

Although they were in the same barracks, they had their own cliques. Those who didn't fit in were ostracized, with minor criticism ranging from gossip to verbal abuse and fights. Zhao Er was a personal soldier under the eldest son of the Qin family. His sister was also the eldest son's only concubine. He exploited this connection to the eldest son to bully his weaker comrades. Qin Xiuyuan was the most severely marginalized. Initially, the group simply disliked his solitary ways, but when they couldn't defeat him, they simply isolated him.

When the news of Ji Wenshu's daughter being seriously ill spread, rumors started to spread that he was unlucky for his father and wife. His father was killed by him, and his fiancée was now dying and about to have her child... Ji Wenshu was extremely thin at that time, and people with ulterior motives were waiting to see Qin Xiuyuan perform a ghost marriage.

There were many curious people who were hanging around him during that time, saying, "Some people are just born with bad luck!"

"Poor Ji Wenshu, his good daughter has ended up like this!"

"Those who were killed alive are filled with resentment. Every grievance has its perpetrator. Find the person who deserves it at night!"

"Zhao Er, don't act so noble all the time. You don't look like you are from the Daliang Dynasty! You come here specifically to cause trouble to the girls in Yaocheng!"

……

Qin Xiuyuan has always ignored it, and he also stopped and advised Li Fugui and others who stood up for him, "A summer insect cannot talk about ice, and a well frog cannot talk about the sea." It is useless to talk to people who don't understand the truth, and there is no need to waste your efforts.

Only he himself knew that no matter how calm he appeared on the surface, he was actually waiting in his heart for the sound of a huge rock falling to the ground.