This made Li Shimin anxious, and he wanted to trade one for one with me.

Liu Linfu hesitated for a moment, then reached out and took the flatbread.

He had no choice but to eat the cake.

After all, it is His Majesty's decree; if we do not eat, we will be disobeying the imperial order.

"Is there something wrong with this?" Liu Linfu became wary, put the flatbread in his mouth, and prepared to take a small bite.

"slow!"

Cheng Jun suddenly stopped him and said, "Minister Liu, His Majesty said to appreciate the bitterness before appreciating the sweetness. If you eat this cake first, you will be going against the meaning of 'appreciating the bitterness'."

Liu Linfu raised an eyebrow and said, "You just said that His Majesty wanted all the officials to eat cakes so that they could taste bitterness and appreciate sweetness. But now you say that eating these cakes first goes against the meaning of 'tasting bitterness.' Don't you think what you're saying is contradictory?"

Cheng Jun said solemnly, "Then I will tell Minister Liu the truth. The reason why His Majesty felt bitter when eating this flatbread was because I rolled the flatbread on the ground, and it got dirty. That's why His Majesty said it tasted bitter."

"..."

Liu Linfu stared at him blankly, his mind filled with doubt. This boy was clearly mocking the emperor, so why did His Majesty not only not execute him, but also bestow a title upon him?

"Minister Liu, do you want me to take this piece of cake from your hand, roll it on the ground a few times, and then you can eat it?"

Liu Linfu snapped out of his daze and frowned, asking, "Isn't there any other way?"

"Of course."

Cheng Jun turned to Du Jingjian and asked, "Brother Jingjian, do you have any bitter herbs at home?"

"Have!"

"Bring some over for me."

"I'm going right now!"

Soon, Du Jingjian came out with a bunch of washed romaine lettuce.

Romaine lettuce was introduced to China during the Northern and Southern Dynasties. Because of its slightly bitter taste, it was called bitter vegetable by the people.

Cheng Jun tore off a leaf and handed it to him, saying solemnly, "Minister Liu, please bear with the hardship first."

Looking at the water droplets on the lettuce, the leaves were fresh and green, clearly picked not long ago. He put it in his mouth and chewed it a few times, and a bitter taste immediately filled his mouth, causing him to frown.

Cheng Jun said, "Please, Vice Minister Liu, try the flatbread again. His Majesty said it is sweet, delicious, and very tasty."

Liu Linfu endured the bitter taste and immediately took a big bite of the flatbread.

quack!

"what--"

There seemed to be something hard inside the flatbread. When he bit down on it, Liu Linfu felt a sharp pain in his mouth, cried out in pain, and couldn't help but spit it out.

"puff!"

His already slightly loose teeth fell out of his mouth when he bit down, along with a small pebble.

"Pebble?"

Liu Linfu's eyes widened in shock and anger. He covered his cheek and asked, "Why are there pebbles in the cake?"

Cheng Jun explained, "It must have fallen in."

"You fart!"

Liu Linfu cursed and immediately tore open the flatbread in his hand, revealing six pebbles inside. He said excitedly, "Explain this to me, what's going on here?"

Cheng Jun asked in confusion, "Minister Liu, I didn't make the flatbread, why are you blaming me?"

Liu Linfu said sternly, "Then I will hold the Du family accountable!"

Cheng Jun pondered and said, "Isn't it normal for a few pebbles to be in a commoner's cake? ...Does Minister Liu rarely eat commoners' food? No wonder, this is because wild boars can't eat fine bran and domestic pigs can't eat coarse grains."

Liu Linfu flew into a rage and said, "Try swearing again!"

Cheng Jun solemnly said, "I was using a metaphor, I didn't say that Vice Minister Liu was a pig. I'm just wondering, His Majesty didn't say anything after eating it, so why is there so much trouble after you finished eating?"

"Do you have a problem with His Majesty? Minister Liu, I think you are being quite disrespectful."

This kid did it on purpose... Liu Linfu was so angry that he was breathing rapidly. Suddenly, he felt something flowing out of his mouth. He raised the back of his hand to wipe it and saw that the back of his hand was covered in blood. He instantly felt dizzy.

Amidst the astonished gazes of the crowd, he rolled his eyes and collapsed to the ground.

There was no poison in it... Cheng Jun stared blankly at it, then looked at Lin Lingshi and asked, "What's going on?"

Lin Lingshi panicked and hurriedly said, "Vice Minister Liu is afraid of blood..."

"Then what are we waiting for? Quickly send him to the Imperial Medical Bureau!"

Cheng Jun was genuinely surprised to learn that Liu Linfu suffered from hemophobia.

In an instant, Lin Lingshi summoned several money-collecting clerks, who then used an oxcart to pull Liu Linfu toward the Imperial Medical Bureau in the capital.

Cheng Jun glanced at the more than six hundred money-catching clerks gathered outside Du Jingjian's house, and said with a stern face, "Does any of you want to eat pancakes?"

"..."

Who would dare eat this pancake? More than 600 money-catching clerks watched in terror. Liu Linfu had only broken his teeth and hadn't swallowed it yet. If he were to swallow these pebbles, he would suffer for the next few days!

Cheng Jun waved his hand and said, "Those who don't want to eat pancakes, hurry up and leave!"

"This humble servant takes his leave!"

As Cheng Jun's voice fell, the money collectors bowed and got into the carriages, donkey carts, and oxcarts they had come in by. Those on horseback immediately mounted their horses and rode away.

In the blink of an eye, the area outside Du Jingjian's house was empty.

Cheng Jun glanced at the eight clerks from the Chang'an County government office and the twenty judges from the Dali Temple, then took out a flatbread and asked, "Are you staying here to eat a few bites?"

"This humble servant takes his leave!"

The eight county clerks and twenty judges from the Court of Judicial Review all changed their expressions, bowed, and quickly ran away.

The area outside Du Jingjian's house is now completely quiet.

Watching their retreating figures, Yuchi Baolin smiled broadly and said, "Brother Chuxia, you really have a way with things!"

Du Jingjian also had a smile on his face, feeling that Cheng Jun was extremely reliable.

Cheng Jun shook his head and said, "I never expected that old bastard Liu Linfu to be all show and no substance."

He had prepared several sets of words in his mind, which he was confident would make Liu Linfu so sick he couldn't defecate for days.

"Ignore them."

Cheng Jun glanced at the sky; it was almost noon. He turned to Du Jingjian with a smile and said, "Brother Jingjian, how's the food? Is it time to eat?"

"Ok, Ok!"

Du Jingjian quickly replied, "My mother has prepared all the food."

Mother Du also said with a smile, "Cheng Sanlang, Yuchi Dalang, please come inside."

Cheng Jun smiled and led Yu Chi Baolin into the Du family mansion. They arrived at the main hall and soon saw a pot of stewed mutton, as well as sashimi and other prepared ingredients, which were placed on the table.

Du Jingjian took out four wine bowls, placed them on the table, picked up the wine he had bought, filled each bowl, then raised the bowls and solemnly said to Cheng Jun:

"Brother Chuxia, I owe you a debt of gratitude today. Otherwise, I would probably be in the Chang'an County jail today. I'd like to offer you a bowl of rice!"

Madam Du also raised her wine bowl, looking at Cheng Jun with gratitude. Seeing Cheng Jun's curious gaze, she said, "When I was young, I had a good capacity for alcohol. Today, thanks to Cheng Sanlang, otherwise my son would probably be in jail!"

"Aunt Du, you're too kind. Brother Jingjian and I are like brothers. If I don't help him, I'll be too ashamed to face anyone."

Cheng Jun raised his wine bowl, took a sip, then refilled it. He looked at Yuchi Baolin and said, "Brother Baolin, you've done so much today, I'd like to offer you a bowl of wine!"

Du Jingjian and his mother also picked up their wine bowls and looked at him.

Yuchi Baolin laughed heartily, "How could I not do as Brother Chuxia instructed? Come and drink with me!"

"Cheng Sanlang, Yuchi Dalang, please try my cooking."

Du's mother pointed to the food on the table and said.

Cheng Jun picked up his chopsticks, put some food into his bowl, took a bite, and his eyes lit up as he exclaimed, "Delicious!"

Yu Chi Baolin picked up his chopsticks and took a bite, exclaiming in surprise, "The taste is no worse than that of Le Yun Lou!"

Leyunlou is a restaurant in the Sanqu region, famous not only for its women but also for its food and drinks.

Mrs. Du beamed with joy, "If you like it, eat as much as you like!"

Du Jingjian glanced at the calligraphy on the incense table not far away and asked curiously, "Brother Chuxia, is this really a piece of calligraphy bestowed by His Majesty?"

While wolfing down his food, Yuchi Baolin mumbled, "If it weren't for His Majesty's bestowal of the title, wouldn't Brother Chuxia be accused of falsely conveying the imperial edict? That's a capital offense."

Du Jingjian understood and said with emotion, "Brother Chuxia went to the palace to meet the Emperor for my sake. I have no way to repay you. If you ever need my help in the future, please don't hesitate to ask. I will go through fire and water for you!"

Cheng Jun laughed and said, "Our friendship is a gentleman's friendship. If I were to ask you to go through fire and water, what kind of person would I, Cheng Jun, be?"

Upon hearing this, Du Jingjian was even more moved, and his eyes reddened.

Yuchi Baolin suddenly asked, "Brother Jingjian, which government office are you currently working as an intern in?"