The aroma of cooking filled the house: I sent my eldest brother to become the Grand Secretary.

A tea shop on the way back to the capital

Dressed in casual black clothes, Ji Lingfeng had removed his armor, making him appear less fierce and more noble.

Her jet-black hair was held up with a black jade hairpin.

He picked up the hot water that the shopkeeper had just brought, his slender fingers holding up the somewhat rough teacup. Looking closely, you could see the calluses on his hands, which made people feel exceptionally safe.

"The carriage that just passed us seemed to belong to the Grand Tutor's mansion."

Hefei took a bite of his dry rations and remembered the carriage he had just seen.

"With the New Year just around the corner, why is the Grand Tutor's carriage here?"

He Yu was somewhat puzzled.

"I heard that Grand Tutor Zhou took on a disciple this year, apparently from Xin'an County."

"Xin'an County?" He Yu's interest was piqued by the words "Xin'an County".

He glanced at his master and continued to ask.

Do you know what that apprentice's name is?

Hefei thought for a moment, "It seems to be called Shen..."

"Shen Chen?"

"Yes, yes, his name is Shen Chen!"

"How did you know that, kid?" He Fei asked He Yu, puzzled.

"I remember when you and your master had that accident, you seemed to hide in Xin'an County. Do you know him?"

He Yu stared at his master, and seeing that he didn't react, he briefly described what had happened to his brothers.

"I never expected that Shen Chen would be the master's savior."

He Yu nodded. "However, Master and this Shen Chen are truly not meant to be."

"I waited in Xin'an County for several days, hoping to thank him in person, but I never got to see him."

"Who knew we'd just miss each other again this time."

He Yu suddenly felt a cool breeze, which made his neck feel a little cold.

"Crane Feather!"

"The horse hasn't eaten yet, go feed it." Ji Lingfeng's cool voice came from over.

He then explained why he felt a chill down his back.

He knew he shouldn't have said anything.

Ji Lingfeng listened to their conversation and seemed to be deep in thought.

Was it really Shen Chen who saved him that day?

After seeing Shen Yu'an and the others off, Shen Cao finally had some free time.

The weather is getting colder and colder. This morning when she woke up, she found that the yard was covered in ice.

Three days ago, she received a letter from her older brother saying that he was already on his way home.

Mr. and Mrs. Shen were very happy to hear this, as they had thought that Shen Chen would not be coming back for the Chinese New Year this year.

Now that it's confirmed Shen Chen will be home for the Chinese New Year, Shen's mother has been overjoyed these past few days.

Today is a rare good day, and with the Lunar New Year approaching, the restaurants aren't particularly busy.

While her father was looking after the business, she thoroughly cleaned Shen Chen's room.

Take out all the bedding in the house and air it out.

When Shen Cao went to sleep at night, she felt extremely comfortable smelling the sunshine on her bedding.

It's getting cold; it gets completely dark not long after 3 PM.

There were only a few pedestrians hurrying by on the street.

It's getting dark earlier these days, so she told Grandma Zhang and Li Xiaoyu to go home after they finished their work at noon.

With the Lunar New Year just around the corner, the two of them should start making preparations.

Shen Cao looked at the sky and was about to close the door early when suddenly someone drove a carriage to stop in front of Shen Family Restaurant.

"Miss Shen, don't rush to close the door." The man lifted the carriage curtain and stepped down.

Shen Cao finally got a good look at the man's face. "Manager Ma, what brings you here?"

"I've come to bring you money."

It turned out that after Manager Ma brought the first batch of sauce back, it sold out very quickly.

The meat sauce was in such high demand that it couldn't keep up with demand.

Shen Cao didn't have time to do it.

She simply signed a new agreement with Manager Ma, whereby she would provide the raw materials and the production method, and Manager Ma would be fully responsible for the sale of the meat sauce.

The two split the profits 40/60, with her receiving 40% and Manager Ma receiving 60%.

Originally, Manager Ma wanted to split the profits 50/50 with her, but she thought she would only contribute some sauces and seasonings, and Manager Ma would take care of the rest.

I felt a little embarrassed to take half.

If it weren't for Manager Ma's arrival, she would have almost forgotten that she still had a sauce business.

Welcoming Manager Ma into Shen's Restaurant, and seeing that he looked travel-worn, I asked, "Manager Ma, you haven't eaten yet, have you? I'll go and cook you a bowl of wontons."

"You should try my cooking too."

Shopkeeper Ma said with a smile, "Miss Shen's cooking skills are naturally excellent. It was a bumpy journey, but we managed to arrive before dark."

"I am indeed a bit hungry right now, so I'll trouble you, Miss Shen."

Manager Ma visited Shen's Restaurant twice, each time coming and going in a hurry, returning the same day.

This was the first time he had ever sat down properly to eat here.

He looked at the eatery, which was not much smaller than his own shop, and saw that the tables, chairs and benches were all wiped clean.

The overall layout was similar to his own shop, but he didn't know if it was just his imagination, but he always felt that Shen's Restaurant looked more cozy.

He seemed to relax noticeably as soon as he entered the room.

"The wontons are here, Manager Ma, please have a taste." Shen Cao placed the wontons on the table, pulled out a chair, and sat down next to Manager Ma.

Mr. Shen also came over and chatted with Manager Ma.

"Brother Shen, you are a blessed man. Your children are capable and filial."

When Mr. Shen heard Manager Ma praising his son and daughter, he couldn't stop smiling. "Yes, I am a blessed man."

"Brother Ma, how many children do you have?"

“Two sons,” Manager Ma said, holding up two fingers.

When he mentioned his son, Manager Ma smiled.

"My son isn't academically inclined, but he's hardworking and obedient."

"My eldest and second eldest sons are now working for me, and business has improved significantly since the store started selling meat sauce."

Shen Cao could tell from Brother Ma's clothes that his business was much better than before.

She still remembered the first time she met Manager Ma; he was dressed in cotton and linen, but now he had changed into clothes made of fine cotton.

The hats were even made of silk.

After finishing his wontons, Manager Ma seemed a little unsatisfied. "Miss Shen, your cooking skills are truly amazing."

"If it weren't for the distance, I would have offered you a large sum of money to come to my inn."

"Manager Ma is too kind."

After they had eaten and drunk their fill, Manager Ma carefully took out an account book and a purse from his pocket.

"This is the money I've earned selling meat sauce over the past few months."

He handed the ledger to Shen Cao.

Shen Cao took the ledger, and what she saw shocked her.

This little bit of meat sauce has made so much money in less than three months.

"I adjusted the meat sauce according to the proportion of meat, because some poor families can't afford sauce with too much meat."

"This sauce is not only bought by passersby, but I also sell it to customers who come to our restaurant to eat."

"Many people become our regular customers after just one taste."

"I must say, Miss Shen's sauce is indeed delicious."

"I've calculated it; I've earned about 150 taels of silver in these three months."

"This is Miss Shen's share of the profits." Manager Ma handed over sixty taels of silver.