Records of the Cattle and Horses of Chang'an

Cui Bianxu and the other two sat at the same table. After Wang Lei had eaten three braised pork and scallion buns, he felt that he had not taken enough. However, he was still very restrained and finished the rest. Seeing that the other two were still eating, he wiped his mouth and carefully took out three yellow triangular talismans from his pocket. "Shaoqing, Lu Zhubu, don't say I'm not generous. These are talismans to ward off evil spirits that my wife specially asked for. Here, let's each have one."

As a scholar, Lu Xingzhou did not believe in Buddhism or Taoism, but only in saints. He did not want to take it, but Cui Bianxu took it directly, so he had no choice but to take it and prepare to put it in his purse.

Who would have thought that Cui Bianxu would take the talisman and open it directly. A long strip of talisman paper unfolded. Cui Bianxu glanced at it briefly and threw it aside. He asked in a strange tone, "How much money did your wife pay for this thing?"

Wang Leisheng didn't notice his expression. His eyes were fixed on the seal. He picked it up distressedly and examined it from left to right. He was relieved when he was sure it was not stained with any dirt. He said dissatisfiedly, "Shaoqing, what are you doing? Such a good thing, why are you ruining it like this?"

He carefully fiddled with the talisman, trying to restore it, but he simply didn't know how to fold it back to its original shape. His two thick black eyebrows twisted together like two charcoal-roasted caterpillars. "That Taoist priest said that we come into contact with things with strong yin energy every day. Carrying this talisman with us can protect us from being invaded by evil spirits!"

Lu Xingzhou also took out his own, carefully opened it and examined it for a while. However, he had always scoffed at these things, as he couldn't see the clue at all. He asked, "Sir, is there any problem with this talisman?"

In his opinion, these Taoist things were just weird and mysterious, so Cui Bianxu threw them away directly. He wondered if these things were some kind of evil magic that could harm people.

Cui Bianxu stuffed the last braised pork and scallion bun into his mouth, bit off half of it, chewed it, and swallowed it. Then he glanced disdainfully at the man who was still studying the triangle restoration technique and said, "I'm just curious, how much silver was cheated out of Madam Wang?"

"what?"

Wang Lei raised his head abruptly. "Shaoqing, are you saying that my wife... was deceived? What's wrong with this talisman?"

"Well, Wang Sizhi, would you like me to send someone to report to the Chang'an County Government for you?"

Cui Bianxu definitely had no good intentions in saying this. Don't be fooled by his pretentious face, as you might think he was serious.

Lu Xingzhou was relieved to hear that it wasn't some evil or harmful thing. He took the talisman and asked, "How did Cui Shaoqing know that there was something wrong with this talisman?"

Could it be that Cui Shaoqing believed in the Dao? Then wouldn't he have to learn a thing too? After all, his immediate superior was Cui Shaoqing, and currying favor with his superior was a basic etiquette in the officialdom. Thinking of this, his expression grew serious.

Cui Bianxu raised his hand and tapped the talisman paper, his disdain evident in his words: "It's fine if there's no seal, but what kind of talisman would have a fingerprint on it?"

It's not a government signature, it's just a fingerprint.

The two of them looked in the direction he pointed and found that it was true!

To be honest, talismans like these that are carried on the body are basically folded into triangles. Ordinary people would not open them to take a look. Even if they opened them, they really couldn't understand the Taoist talismans with their flying dragons and phoenixes!

Wang Lei's teeth chattered in anger. This was such a disgrace! It was fine if he engaged in feudal superstition, it was fine if he was deceived, but he even flaunted it in front of his superiors and colleagues. However, he still had his own persistence. Seeing Cui Bianxu's excited expression, ready to ask someone to help him report to the Chang'an County Government, he instantly calmed down. "Shaoqing, this is just something the women in the harem like. How much silver can it cost?"

There is no need to report to the police, it is too embarrassing. It is equivalent to a court staff member going to the police station to report a case and saying that he has been defrauded.

His Wang family came from a merchant family, and money was something outside of his body. It didn't matter if he was cheated of some insignificant money, but he had to keep the little bit of face of his Wang family!

There really weren’t enough braised pork and scallion buns. Not only did the people in the front want more after eating too much, but even those who were a few steps late and lined up at the back didn’t get a turn!

Those who didn't get any, watching others enjoying the delicious food, couldn't help but imagine how delicious the braised pork and scallion buns they had never tasted would be. How fertile is one's imagination? The more they thought about it, the more they felt they had lost out. Before leaving, they came up to Jiang Shangxian one by one and asked if he would still have the braised pork and scallion buns tomorrow morning.

Jiang Shangxian could only shake her head regretfully. She had already decided to have shredded chicken noodles and twice-cooked pork noodles tomorrow morning.

After everyone in the cafeteria had left, Jiang Shangxian rubbed her stiff face and quickly walked to the back of the kitchen before breathing heavily. Jiang's mother thought she was feeling unwell and quickly chased after her: "What's wrong? Weren't you fine just now? Are you tired? If you are, why don't you ask Cui Shaoqing's guards to call Erlang and Zhenying over to help?"

After taking a deep breath, Jiang Shangxian still felt a foul odor in her nose, making her feel uncomfortable all over, especially the area at the back of her head on the left side. Maybe it was a nerve? It was throbbing, making her feel uneasy.

"Mother, didn't you smell it just now? Cui Shaoqing and the others, as well as those people from the Dali Temple, all had a smell on them."

Seeing that she was fine, Jiang's mother let go of her hand and walked back. "What kind of smell could there be? In our place, even if there is a smell, it's a sweet one. My nose is filled with the smell of those braised pork and scallion buns! You too, a bunch of men working all day, how can you not smell a little? You're the only one who has too much to do. Okay, go home tonight and ask your grandmother to sew you a thicker face towel."

"Forget it, it's so weird to be seen."

Jiang Shangxian grumbled, standing at the back and refusing to move forward. No one was wearing a mask at the time, and she was the only one covering her face. What would people think? Oh, I'm serving the people, and you, the people, are showing off. Isn't that disheartening?

But thinking about washing the dishes, she quickly said to Jiang's mother's back, "Mother, tell them to call someone to wash the dishes. Cui Shaoqing just said that someone will come to help!"

Being a cook means being a cook, washing dishes is impossible.

She squatted behind the kitchen, pulling out the weeds growing in the cracks between the bricks, waiting for the smell to dissipate. In fact, she had smelled that odor since she entered the Dali Temple in the morning, but Jiang's mother didn't react at all, so she didn't say anything. Dali Temple, this place can't be fragrant, right?

She hadn't figured out what it tasted like at first, but when the cafeteria opened for dinner, she immediately figured it out. She almost couldn't control the expression on her face, and she forced herself to smile even more flatteringly than usual.

It was probably because she had too little experience. She remembered that the last time she went to the Dali Temple to report a case, she also smelled a strange smell, but she didn't think much about it at the time. After all, she often smelled bad odors in Yong'anfang - feces, urine and kitchen waste.

The smell is much stronger now than last time. Last night, it seemed like there was wind, which made the smell a little weaker. Today's smell...

It can be described as unscrupulous.