Chapter 146: Retrieving Little Munchkins
Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
Before dawn, Little Bruiser lifted the blanket and jumped out of bed.
“Sis, Sis, wake up! It’s dawn!”
“Mom, stop sleeping! You’re taking me to the Capital today!”
“Sis!”
“Mom!”!!
He ran around the two rooms, making Yu Wan speechless.
Yu Wan got up and put on her clothes. After washing up, she went to the chicken coop to collect the eggs. There were three eggs a day. Other than the one left for Little Bruiser, she had saved up the rest. If she could enter the competition tomorrow, these eggs would be useful. She wasn’t bragging, but her eggs were really better than the ones sold on the market.
It was rare for Madam Jiang to wake up so early. When she went to the old residence for breakfast, her eyelids were still closed.
Yu Song put a piece of ginger in her bowl.
Uncle knocked his son’s head with his chopsticks!
Yu Wan took out the ginger and changed it to a piece of fish for her mother.
Madam Jiang ate the fish in a daze.
Madam Jiang didn’t wake up until breakfast. Master Qin’s carriage arrived. Without waiting for Master Qin to greet her, Madam Jiang carried Little Bruiser and sat in the carriage to sleep.
“Who, who is that lady?” Master Qin was a little stunned.
“Lady?” Yu Wan said. “That’s my mother.”
“Ah…” Master Qin was dumbfounded. Such a young woman was already the mother of two children. It was true that she had a woman’s bun, but she looked too young and beautiful.
Yu Wan threatened, “Don’t have any ill intentions. I can sell you the tofu, but you can’t touch my mother.”
“Cough!” Master Qin choked. “What are you thinking about? I already have a family.”
It was just that he had never seen someone so beautiful. In terms of looks, Miss Yu in front of him was also a natural beauty. However, Miss Yu was a junior. In his eyes, she has the beauty of a child. That madam had an indescribable charm. Of course, he could not help but admire it. He’s not that wicked to really do something.
Yu Wan, Madam Jiang, and Little Bruiser boarded the carriage. The few men boarded the other carriage and rushed to the Capital.
When he found out that Madam Jiang and Little Bruiser were visiting Capital, Master Qin enthusiastically arranged for the coachman and attendants to bring them around Capital. Yu Song naturally went too.
Yu Wan, her uncle, and Yu Feng entered the Tianxiang Restaurant on Chang’an Street.
After three rounds of competition yesterday, more than half of the hundred chefs had left. Less than thirty people had entered today’s “duel”.
The chief chefs from yesterday were no longer around. The ones who came to taste the dishes were the imperial chefs of the palace.
There was the Second Prince and the imperial chefs of the palace. It seemed that the Tianxiang Restaurant had really put in a lot of effort to save the reputation that Yan Jiuchao had tarnished. But one would wonder if their chef would really have the last laugh.
In the back room, Master Qin rushed into the room with a solemn expression. “A fierce battle…”
“Why do you say that?” Yu Wan asked.
Master Qin had a headache. “Three people will compete and only one person can enter the competition tomorrow.”
“Why is there only one? Didn’t there always be three in the past?” Yu Feng asked. He had asked Shopkeeper Cui about a lot of general knowledge about the competition yesterday.
Master Qin sighed. “Why else would it be called a fierce battle?”
The rules were set by people. If the organizers wanted to do this, there was nothing Master Qin could do. Master Qin originally thought that with the Yu family’s strength, it would not be a problem for them to squeeze into the top three. However, it was no longer a situation where it’s okay to get into the top three. They had to get first place. Otherwise, they would not be qualified to fight Chef Bao.
Master Qin continued, “Not to mention Madam Du and Chef You, Chef Liu, who was transferred to another group yesterday, can’t be underestimated.”
There were also a few black horses. All of them were not easy to deal with.
Master Qin patted Yu Feng’s shoulder. “Do your best and leave it to fate!”
This wasn’t polite talk. Master Qin was really afraid!
Master Qin, who was quite confident in the Yu family’s culinary skills, suddenly felt a little uncertain after witnessing others’ culinary skills yesterday. As the saying went, there was always someone better than you. The Yu family was powerful, but perhaps they were not unique.
They were brought to an open-air venue. Dozens of temporary stoves were placed together, and all kinds of ingredients were lined up on both sides of the walkway. Yu Wan clearly sensed that the variety of ingredients that could be freely used was not as abundant as yesterday, which meant that their choices would be greatly limited. If they were not careful, the taste would be greatly reduced without the necessary ingredients.
Yu Feng frowned. “Why is this year’s competition so different from the past?”
Yu Wan said calmly, “We have to innovate. Besides, they’re not targeting anyone. The situation is disadvantageous to everyone. If we have to suffer, we’ll suffer together.”
Yu Feng was relieved.
There were still three rounds, and each round was decided by drawing lots. What Yu Wan did not expect was that they would encounter Head Chef Liu, whom Master Qin was extremely afraid of, in the first round.
“Why does it have to be him?” Yu Feng’s expression turned solemn.
“Big Brother, you know him?” Yu Wan asked in confusion.
Uncle was carefully sharpening his knife. Yu Feng whispered to Yu Wan, “He worked together with my father at Tianxiang Restaurant. My father said that his culinary skills are very good.”
On the surface, Uncle was a friendly person, but his culinary skills were so strict that it made one’s hair stand on end. To be able to be called good by him was not ordinary.
Moreover, three years had passed. He had been practicing his culinary skills diligently every day. He must have advanced by leaps and bounds. Otherwise, Master Qin wouldn’t have specially mentioned him.
“I have confidence in Uncle,” Yu Wan said confidently.
Yu Feng was about to retort when Yu Wan tugged at his sleeve. “Look, Madam Du and Chef You are competing with each other.”
Although Madam Du participated in the competition in her own name, she was still from the Tianxiang Restaurant. The two chefs of the Tianxiang Restaurant competing was really an exciting show.
Yan Ruyu was also here. She was here to support Madam Du. Of course, she was also here to see Yu Wan suffer a crushing defeat. Today, the person evaluating the dishes was the imperial chef of the palace. The Second Prince was not stupid enough to play favorites with the people in the palace. Wasn’t he afraid that the Emperor would hear about it and ruin his image that he had painstakingly built for years?
Yan Ruyu pushed open the window and looked down at Yu Wan, who was busy at the stove.
One was high and mighty, while the other was lowly.
Yu Wan was fully focused on the competition. Their ingredients for the next round has been decided. She never expected it to be sea cucumber and oysters. To Yu Wan, sea cucumbers were not edible at all. She liked oysters, but if there was nothing to remove the fishy smell, it would be a nightmare with sea cucumbers.
The Yu family fell silent. The first dish was already so tricky. It was too much.
… .
“Madam, our street is called Chang’an Street. It’s the largest street in the Capital!” After leaving the Tianxiang Restaurant, the attendant, Little Six, led Madam Jiang and her son around the street. The carriage did not move quickly, and Little Six walked on foot, introducing the scenery along the way to Madam Jiang from time to time.
Yu Song sat beside the coachman with a livid face. He stuffed his hands into his sleeves like a standard farmer.
Madam Jiang looked curiously at the endless streets.
Little Bruiser leaned against the window and stuck his head out. “Wow! What a big street!”
It was obvious that he was a little country bumpkin who had entered the city. Everything was new to him, but Little Bruiser had perfectly inherited Madam Jiang and Yu Shaoqing’s looks. He was extremely beautiful, and even the words he said were extremely cute.
Little Six smiled and pointed at an empty platform. “Do you see that platform? Every month, on the 1st and 15th of every month, they will perform a big show.”
“Ah.” Little Bruiser was disappointed. Today wasn’t the first or fifteenth day of the month.
“Candied haw—candied haw—hey—candied haw—” The hawkers who were walking along the streets shouted at the top of their lungs.
“Slurp~” Little Bruiser gulped.
Little Six smiled and asked the carriage to stop. He called the vendor over. Not only were there candied hawthorns on the vendor’s wooden stick, but there were also sugar oranges and honey dates. Every stick was red and shiny, making one drool.
“How did you sell it?” Little Six asked.
The vendor said, “Ten copper coins for candied hawthorn, eleven copper coins for candied oranges, twelve copper coins for candied dates.”
Eggs only cost one copper coin. A stick of candied hawthorn was already the cost of his eggs for many days! Little Bruiser twiddled his fingers.
“Which one do you want to eat?” Little Six asked.
Madam Jiang said, “I brought money. Ah Wan said that I can’t spend your money. I can’t take a single stitch from you.”
Little Six smiled and said, “It’s fine. Master Qin said that he’s the host and asked me to entertain Madam and the two young masters. Madam, try it too.”
“How can I accept this?” Madam Jiang said shyly.
Little Six smiled. “There’s nothing to be embarrassed about…”
Madam Jiang said, “Then we’ll take them all!”
Little Six, who hadn’t finished speaking: “…” Y-you’re making a big leap.
The entire wooden stick was bought. The two of them sat in the carriage and chewed on the candied hawthorn.
Yu Song didn’t eat because he didn’t like this.
The carriage continued to move slowly, and Little Six kept walking beside the window.
“That’s the largest cosmetic store on Chang’an Street. Madam, do you want to take a look?”
Madam Jiang’s face was cold.
“That’s Jewel House. It’s been around for decades.”
She continued to have a cold face.
“What’s that?” Little Bruiser pointed at a noisy restaurant.
Little Six coughed lightly. “Gambling house.”
Madam Jiang’s eyes lit up!
“Aiya, I, I, I… I need to pee!” Little Bruiser suddenly covered his little eggs and said.
Little Six looked around and pointed to a restaurant. “There’s a toilet over there. I’ll bring you there.”
“No need. I’ll bring him there.” Yu Song jumped off the carriage and lifted Little Bruiser down. He held Little Bruiser’s hand and walked in the direction Little Six pointed.
The toilet was at the back of the inn. After circling around the alley, they arrived. Yu Song sent Little Bruiser to the toilet door. “I’ll wait for you at the back door. Don’t run around.”
Little Bruiser patted his chest. “I won’t. Don’t worry, Second Brother!”
Little Bruiser peed and found a basin to wash his hands. Just as he was about to leave, he looked up and saw three familiar figures.
He ran over. “Eh? Little brothers, it’s really you! I haven’t seen you guys in a long time!”
For some reason, the little fellows bumped into each other. They didn’t eat or drink last night. Mrs. Yan was worried that they would starve if this continued, and she was also worried that the Princess Consort and Young Master Yan would blame them for not taking good care of the children. That was why she brought the little fellows out to relax.
This was an inn under Mrs. Yan’s name. The business was neither good nor bad, but thanks to Young Master Yan, there were more customers than before. On the table was sweet red bean soup and soft yam rolls.
“Slurp~” Little Bruiser gulped. “Why aren’t you eating?”
The little fellows were listless.
“I’ll feed you. Sister Zhenzhen likes me to feed her!” Little Bruiser picked up his bowl and scooped a spoonful of red bean soup. Just as he was about to feed his little brothers, Mrs. Yan, who had finished negotiating with the shopkeeper, turned around. She saw that the maidservant beside the child had disappeared, but there was a five or six-year-old girl fighting with her grandson for food. Look at the way that little thing was dressed. He was not a proper child!
Mrs. Yan walked over coldly. “Where did this wild child come from? How could you steal food from others?”
Little Bruiser looked up in a daze. “I didn’t steal it. I wanted to feed it to them.”
“Ha!” Mrs. Yan laughed sarcastically. “You don’t even know how to lie. Where are your elders? Who asked you to come out and steal food! Did you steal anything else?”
Little Bruiser put down his spoon and bowl. “I’m not lying! I didn’t steal it!”
When the two maids who had neglected their duties heard the commotion, they came over trembling.
Mrs. Yan glared at the two of them. “How are you taking care of the Little Masters? It’s lucky I saw it, what if I didn’t? You won’t even know that the Little Masters had been kidnapped! Hurry up and take them away!”
The maidservant and the guard quickly carried the young kids to the room.
Mrs. Yan then ordered the inn’s waiter, “You guys, arrest this little thief!”
Little Bruiser ran away. Mrs. Yan pushed him and he fell. The waiter went to catch Little Bruiser.
“Stop!” Yu Song ran in.
“Second Brother!” Little Bruiser got up and threw himself into Yu Song’s arms.
When Yu Song saw that Little Bruiser’s mouth was bleeding, a hint of coldness flashed across his eyes. “You even bully a child. Is this how you do business?”
Little Bruiser said, “Second Brother, I didn’t steal anything!”
Yu Song said angrily, “You even accused my brother of stealing!”
Mrs. Yan snorted. “If you didn’t steal it, why did you run?”
Yu Song said coldly, “There are so many of you bullying a child. Aren’t you going to let him escape?”
Little Six, who couldn’t wait for the two of them in the carriage, rushed over. When he saw that the situation wasn’t right, he quickly persuaded Yu Song and went forward to negotiate with the inn’s shopkeeper. He roughly revealed Master Qin’s identity. The shopkeeper nodded and whispered something into Mrs. Yan’s ear.
Mrs. Yan snorted in disdain and turned to leave.
Yu Song gritted his teeth. “You’re leaving just like that? We haven’t settled the score for bullying my brother!”
“Little Brother Yu, calm down. This is a shop under the General Manor. We can’t afford to offend them.” Little Six persuaded Yu Song to return to the carriage.
Madam Jiang saw her son’s broken mouth and pinched his chin. “What happened?”
… .
Mrs. Yan was no longer in the mood to stroll around after being bumped by a few cats and dogs. She asked the maidservant and guards to carry the little fellows into the carriage. She went to the room to change her clothes and quickly got into the carriage.
Unexpectedly, just as she lifted the curtain and before she could walk in completely, a hand reached out from behind her, grabbed her hair, and pulled her down from the carriage! She fell to the ground with a thud, her mouth broken!
“Ouch! Who—” She screamed and turned around to see who was so bold as to attack the women of the General Manor in broad daylight. However, before she could see the other party’s appearance clearly, the hand that pulled her down from the carriage grabbed her collar again. She was dragged to an alley like a sack.
Mrs. Yan was so frightened that her face turned pale!
“Who are you? What are you going to do?”
“Let go! Let go of me, do you hear me? I’m going to call for help!”
“I’m the matriarch of the General Manor!”
No matter how Mrs. Yan threatened her, the owner of the fair hand did not stop and dragged her deeper into the alley.
Mrs. Yan was quite frightened. The tough ones were afraid of the unreasonable ones, and the unreasonable ones were afraid of those who didn’t care about their lives. She had already used her identity as the General Manor, but the other party was still indifferent. Could he be an outlaw?
“Let’s talk nicely! How much money do you want?”
He was still unmoved.
Mrs. Yan gritted her teeth and used her trump card. “Do you know who my daughter is? My daughter is Young Master Yan’s fiancée! I’m Young Master Yan’s mother-in-law!”
The person behind her finally reacted. Mrs. Yan felt that the other party’s footsteps had stopped, and her scraped butt was finally not as hot.
She thought that she had successfully intimidated the other party, so she became more confident. “Hurry up and take your dirty hand away! Otherwise, the Young Master Mansion won’t let you off!”
The hand released her.
However, in the next second, that hand pulled her up again, pressed her head down, and slammed her against the wall!
… .
A cool breeze blew.
Madam Jiang walked out of the alley sickly. She held a white handkerchief and coughed.
When passersby saw her, they could not help but make way for her, afraid that they would accidentally knock her down.
Madam Jiang came to the carriage parked by the roadside. She lifted the curtain and carried the three little fellows who had lost a lot of weight.