Why am I, a cook, always involved in cases?

At this moment, it finally worked.

On the tip of the silver hairpin, there was a piece of food that looked like fish.

Recalling the hairpin that Hu Lan'er once wore, it could actually be split into two halves, one end was as sharp as a needle, which could be used as a barbecue skewer.

Lin Zhiruo watched the oil droplets dripping and couldn't help swallowing.

(Some salt would be even better, and if you can be more extravagant, some sauce would be perfect.)

When the whole piece of meat was roasted until golden brown, Lin Zhiruo blew on it and started to enjoy it.

Although there are more bones, you can't be picky at this time.

The meat tastes a bit like chicken, but because it is roasted with fish oil, it has some of the freshness of seafood.

This creature stores a large amount of fat before hibernating, and Lin Zhiruo's lips are covered with crystal-clear oil.

Just as she was enjoying her meal, there seemed to be a noise outside.

But Lin Zhiruo wanted to finish roasting the remaining meat before the fire went out, so she cut off another piece, put it on the skewer and continued roasting.

"Oh, it would be nice if there was some salt."

Lin Zhiruo whispered to herself, and suddenly, a man appeared silently in front of her.

"......What are you doing?"

"I'm grilling something. Any seasoning?"

This question sounds a bit ridiculous.

“How could that be possible!”

The man looked around and said "Ugh!" while covering his mouth and nose, as if trying to hold back vomiting.

Lin Zhiruo wondered, "Who is this?" and when she looked carefully, she found that it was the guard from before.

Why is he here?

“What are you eating?”

“It’s delicious.”

Lin Zhiruo found the guard's words very interesting.

Then she quickly stuffed the roasted meat into her mouth.

“I heard this is a torture chamber?”

“For others, this might be hell.”

But to Lin Zhiruo, this place is like a treasure house, but others are unwilling to set foot there.

In this small space, there are hundreds of poisonous substances.

One of them had been chopped off, its head and body separated.

Others crawled slowly through the cold room.

For Lin Zhiruo, who is proficient in cooking, these things can take her life in the blink of an eye.

The same is true for other poisonous creatures, they all move very slowly.

In fact, if these poisonous creatures are locked together, they will only kill each other.

The greedy frog ate the poisonous insect and died of poisoning.

Lin Zhiruo used a silver hairpin as a needle and the jade hairpin given by Quan Wushuang as a knife to deal with the poisonous ones first.

It is difficult to catch poisonous species during this season, and most of the species in the box are harmless.

Insects and frogs are mostly poisonous.

Lin Zhiruo also wanted to test their toxicity, but now was not the time.

After dealing with the poisonous ones, they dealt with the undercooked ones, leaving only the harmless ones.

Poisonous creatures don't want to hurt people, and it's freezing cold, so they move slowly.

Even so, Lin Zhiruo didn't want the small room to be filled with poison, so she sat on the box and scattered ashes around.

Lin Zhiruo is used to carrying spices with her.

In fact, tobacco leaves would be better, but Lin Zhiruo used strong-smelling spices instead, burned them into ashes and scattered them around the box.

The fire was taken from the torch.

The guard looked at her in disbelief.

“What’s the point of me coming here…”

"By the way, what can I do for you?"

Lin Zhiruo asked, and the guard said gloomily:

"The Imperial Kitchen Lady... and that child sent me here. You're imprisoned here, and we're not being punished. The child said he'd rescue you, and gave me this."

The guard produced a jade ornament.

As a reward, this is quite generous.

“Speaking of which…”

The guard turned pale and said that if he were in a place like this, he would have gone crazy long ago.

"I don't want to stay here any longer. The Imperial Kitchen Lady asked me to escape, so I came to rescue you. And it seems like something dangerous is about to happen."

The male guard said this, his arms bulging, as if he wanted to take the opportunity to steal something.

Looking outside, I saw a man lying unconscious on the ground.

It seems that this person did a good thing.

"You should also run away quickly. The beacon fire has been lit."

"war?"

"Yes, this is a signal that the capital is sending troops to attack, so there is chaos outside."

The guard said that was why he was able to come in so easily.

“Thank you, brother.”

Lin Zhiruo thanked him sincerely.

If I continue to be imprisoned here, the consequences will be disastrous.

"You're welcome. I'm leaving now. Also, be careful of the underground stairs going the other way.

There are all sorts of dangerous things going on down there, and people are constantly coming and going. If you're trying to escape, avoid that place and go to the stables and steal a horse.

"Dangerous business?"

"I heard they were making gunpowder. The smell was terrible, you could tell right away."

Lin Zhiruo's eyes lit up.

"Thank you. I'll go check it out."

"Hey! Don't you understand what I'm saying?"

Lin Zhiruo ignored the man's shouting and walked straight underground.

Lin Zhiruo walked down the underground stairs step by step.

Along the cold stone wall, she could feel the sound of labor coming from deep inside.

Lin Zhiruo quietly sneaked into the depths of the inner room.

Dozens of filthy men worked with their upper bodies naked.

A peculiar stench hit my face, more pungent than the smell of burning sulfur or fermenting feces.