Pastoral Splendor

His chubby face barely concealed his small eyes, and beads of sweat rolled rapidly down his forehead. A dark puddle had already formed at the shopkeeper's feet. He grumbled inwardly. The owner had specially put up this couplet at the door to attract business, but unexpectedly, a troublesome young man had come along and wouldn't let go of it.

He glanced around and saw an older man sitting next to Xu Yixuan. He wondered if this man was the elder brother of this gentleman. He bowed to Jian Yifei and said, "Sir, please persuade your younger brother to stop making things difficult for our shop."

Jian Yifei didn't even look at him: "Enough with the nonsense, hurry up and get to work."

Miss Xiao's smiling face seemed to be right before his eyes, her lips curved at the corners, two dimples on her cheeks, and her eyes sparkling. Even a casual glance from her made his heart pound. He absolutely had to do what she asked of him; he couldn't let her down. Jian Yifei desperately suppressed the urge to persuade Xu Yixuan to let the shopkeeper go, trying to maintain a cold demeanor. The shopkeeper shuddered; this young master seemed so amiable and honest, so why was his voice so icy?

He rolled shakily into the kitchen, where the manager said to the chefs, "Quickly, think of a recipe for stir-fried minced pork with pickled bamboo shoots. Two young masters want to eat it."

The cook scratched his head: "How do I make this? Pickled bamboo shoots? Never heard of them."

The shopkeeper was sweating profusely. Just thinking about Xu Yixuan's purple-gold crown made him dizzy. The crown had a huge pearl on it, which was obviously very valuable. This man must be a spoiled young master from a wealthy family. He couldn't afford to offend him. "You need to think of a way quickly. As long as we do what he says and use the pickled bamboo shoots to make the dish, that will be enough."

A cook silently bent down to look for something in the cupboard. The shopkeeper's eyes lit up: "Have you come up with a good idea?" This cook was the head chef of Ruyi Restaurant. His dishes were famously excellent in Yuzhou City. The fact that he had started looking for ingredients meant that he must be quite confident.

"What other good ideas could there be? Just a few slices of bamboo shoots, mince the meat, and add plenty of vinegar." The cook picked up his knife and swiftly sliced ​​the bamboo shoots into thin strips. Seeing his confident demeanor, the shopkeeper finally felt relieved and, with his short legs hindered by his large, round belly, rolled back to the counter.

The chef was indeed skilled; from preparing the ingredients to cooking to serving, it took him almost the time it takes to brew a cup of tea. The waiter brought the dish up on a red lacquered tray: "Young master, your stir-fried minced pork with pickled bamboo shoots is here."

Xu Yixuan and Jian Yifei exchanged a glance, somewhat surprised. Remembering Yan Ying's instructions, the two of them picked up their chopsticks in unison, took a bite of pickled bamboo shoots, chewed them a few times, and the waiter looked at them with delight, thinking to himself that this was the best chef in the restaurant, how could he not make it delicious?

Jian Yifei frowned. This was the best restaurant in Yuzhou City? He frowned and shook his head: "Not very good." He originally wanted to shout that the food was terrible, just as Yan Ying had told him to, but the food wasn't exactly bad. Being honest and kind, he couldn't bring himself to say it, so he just said it wasn't very good.

"How can this food be so awful?" Xu Yixuan slammed his hand on the table, glaring angrily at the waiter. "You claim Ruyi Restaurant is the best restaurant in Yuzhou? With this level of quality, you dare to call yourself the best?"

To be honest, Xu Yixuan could only admit that this stir-fried pork with pickled bamboo shoots was barely passable. But he was a man with heavy responsibilities, so how could he speak as honestly as his kind and simple master? He pointed at the bowl of food and said, "Take it out to that little beggar on the street corner! Giving this to me is simply outrageous!"

The waiter was taken aback, staring at Xu Yixuan and trembling uncontrollably: "Young master, isn't this a bit inappropriate?"

"What's not good? Let me tell you, I'm coming back tomorrow, and I want to eat stir-fried pork with pickled bamboo shoots. If your restaurant can't make the stir-fried pork with pickled bamboo shoots that I want, you can forget about ever working in Yuzhou again!" Xu Yixuan crossed his arms, the necklace around his neck flashing, making him look like a complete playboy.

"Who dares to cause trouble on my turf?" A loud shout suddenly came from the doorway. Everyone turned around and saw a young man dressed in silk robes standing there with several guards behind him. This young man had very distinctive features. He looked like he was in his forties when he was only in his twenties. He had a round face with a few sesame seeds on it, and his eyes were particularly small, as if he hadn't woken up yet. You couldn't even see the black pupils of his eyes.

Upon seeing him, the waiter was overjoyed and quickly approached him, bowing respectfully: "Young Master, someone is causing trouble here." He then glanced at Xu Yixuan with a relieved expression, as if to say, "Serves you right for causing trouble; finally, someone has come to deal with you."

This young master is the eldest son of Lin Yingping, the prefect of Yuzhou. His full name is Lin Qinxun. This Ruyi Restaurant is run by Lin Qinxun's father-in-law's family. Because of Zhu Yingping's prestigious reputation, they have basically monopolized all the businesses of the wealthy families in Yuzhou, and the business is naturally booming.

Xu Yixuan glanced at Lin Qinxun at the door, not afraid at all, and patted his dining table: "This is my territory now, who dares to come and cause trouble?"

Lin Qinxun stood at the door, his nose almost deflated with anger. Ever since he came here with his father to take up his post, he had become accustomed to living a life of swaggering around Yuzhou City. Who would dare to treat him like this!

He strode towards Xu Yixuan with his strong legs, pointed at Xu Yixuan and said, "How dare you speak to me like that? You, you, you, who is your father? Quickly state your name!"

"Are you trying to rely on your father's connections?" Xu Yixuan rolled her eyes at him. "And who is your father?"

“You’ll be terrified if I told you my master’s name! He’s just a spoiled rich kid who dares to act so recklessly in Ruyi Restaurant!” A servant stepped forward obsequiously, patting his chest as if Lin Yingping were his own father: “Our master is Lord Lin, the Prefect of Yuzhou!”

No sooner had he said this than Xu Yixuan gestured to one of the guards beside him and said, "Go, take this awful stir-fried pork with pickled bamboo shoots and shove it on that pig's head."

The guard agreed, grabbed the plate, and rushed towards Lin Qinxun. Lin Qinxun, upon hearing Xu Yixuan's words, turned pale with fright, pointed at him, and shouted in a trembling voice, "What are you doing? Is there no law anymore?"

"The law? My word is the law! Who told you to come looking for trouble!" Xu Yixuan impatiently watched Lin Qinxun retreat, and urged the guard, "Hurry up, don't let him get away!"

The guard rushed forward and grabbed Lin Qinxun's clothes. Lin Qinxun was terrified and screamed as he tried to run away, but the guard held on tightly. With a struggle, his round, plump body broke free from the silk robe, revealing a white undergarment embroidered with a pair of mandarin ducks. As he panted heavily, the mandarin ducks flapped their wings as if about to take flight.

It was lunchtime, and the Ruyi Restaurant was already quite full of diners. Hearing the commotion upstairs, everyone stood up and looked up to see Lin Qinxun taking off his clothes in public, revealing an incredibly alluring embroidery on his chest. They couldn't help but burst into laughter: "Look at how big and burly Young Master Zhu is, he's actually quite meticulous, even embroidering mandarin ducks on his chest!"

Lin Qinxun, relying on his father's prestigious reputation, had been running rampant in Yuzhou City, causing much resentment among the people. Now, seeing him suffer a setback, they were all overjoyed, chattering amongst themselves. As they watched the guard pour a dish of food over Lin Qinxun's head, they clapped and cheered, "Just who is this guest in the private room, daring to target Lin Qinxun?"

Lard dripped from his hair, and pickled bamboo shoots rolled merrily down his hair and landed on Lin Qinxun's chubby neck. He felt extremely uncomfortable, his whole body covered in oil. As he watched Xu Yixuan and Jian Yifei slowly stroll out of the private room, he trembled all over, his former arrogance long gone: "Who exactly is your father? Who are you? Who are you? Who is your father?"

"You dare to ask our Prince's name?" The guard stood in front of Xu Yixuan, mimicking the manner of Lin Qinxun's servant, and patted his chest. "Our Prince could easily send Prefect Lin home to raise pigs with just a flick of his hand. You're just his son, what makes you think you can cause trouble?"

"Your Highness?" Lin Qinxun's face changed color upon hearing this, and he glanced at Xu Yixuan sideways: "You dare to impersonate Your Highness's son?"

"What do you mean by impersonation!" The guard glared fiercely at Lin Qinxun: "How dare you doubt the identity of our young master! Be careful, or I'll kick you down the stairs!"

"You underestimate me like that?" Xu Yixuan shouted at the shopkeeper who was leaning over the counter, "Is your Ruyi Restaurant owned by him?"

The shopkeeper stretched out his hand and shook it tremblingly: "No, no!"

"How could it not be? This restaurant is said to be owned by his father-in-law's family, isn't it just taking advantage of their influence?" The diners below shouted, "Young master, Lin Qinxun is really no good person, you must stand up for the people of Yuzhou!"

Seeing so many people supporting him for the first time made Xu Yixuan even happier. He walked up to Lin Qinxun and said, "Lin Qinxun, listen up! Tomorrow I'll come to your Ruyi Restaurant again and order stir-fried pork with pickled bamboo shoots. If you can't make it, I'll tear your restaurant down!"

Lin Qinxun had long lost his arrogance, and only said with a trembling body, "Young Master, you said that the stir-fried minced pork with pickled bamboo shoots in our restaurant is not the kind you want to eat. Then what kind of pickled bamboo shoots are you referring to?"

Xu Yixuan was taken aback. What kind of pickled bamboo shoots? He had never seen them before. Jian Yifei chimed in, "Pickled bamboo shoots are a very delicious dish. Haven't you tried them? Last time, we had pickled bamboo shoots stir-fried by a girl named Xiao Sanhua in Xiaojia Village in the north of the city. We couldn't forget them, so we came here to see if they were sold in Yuzhou City. I didn't expect that your Ruyi Restaurant doesn't even have them!"

"North of the city? Xiaojia Village? A girl named Xiao Sanhua?" The innkeeper pricked up his ears and listened for a moment, then hesitated. This gentleman was being too specific. Could it be...? His eyes darted around when he heard Xu Yixuan shout, "If I don't get to eat this stir-fried minced pork with pickled bamboo shoots when I come tomorrow, your Ruyi Restaurant won't need to open!"

Xu Yixuan spoke with great authority. The pearl on his purple-gold crown and the jade on his necklace made him look even more imposing. The shopkeeper quickly shrank back and heard people whispering beside him: "That young master is wearing a brocade robe with embroidered patterns on it. He is truly wealthy and powerful. I wonder which royal family's heir he is?"

“There’s a big estate over there in the north of the city. I heard it’s a villa of the Prince Yu’s mansion. Could it be…” someone muttered, “I think it probably is.”

Lin Qinxun, supported by a servant, came downstairs just in time to hear those words. His face turned pale instantly. He looked back at Xu Yixuan and saw him looking at him with a mocking expression. His heart pounded. Ignoring the oil still smeared on his head, he ran out with trembling legs.

...