The crescent moon was like a hook, and the cold white moonlight was as weak as a firefly. Drops of moonlight fell on the red glazed tiles, making the entire Imperial City seem even more lonely. A flurry of footsteps suddenly rang out on the spacious palace path, startling several birds into flight.
A furry golden figure suddenly appeared on top of the wall. Upon closer inspection, it was a palm-sized golden kitten. It paused slightly at the highest point and used its claws to touch the smooth glazed tiles, as if it was hesitating. The footsteps behind it were getting closer and closer. The kitten pursed its ears and suddenly jumped off the palace wall that was at least three zhang high. The high palace wall was still too high for its small body. When it landed, it stumbled and rolled. It shook its head and quickly got up. In the blink of an eye, it disappeared into the dense grass.
"Look carefully, don't let it run away!" The guard leader's voice was loud and clear, and the rest of the guards responded in unison. They turned the spears in their hands and used the end without the spearhead to stir the grass.
The night was dark, and it was really not easy to find a palm-sized kitten in this hillside full of tall grass and rocks. Not long after, another group of guards came. They were holding sharp forks that were about ten feet long, and they violently pierced them into the depths of the grass.
"Don't, that's the emperor's cat!" The guard leader quickly stopped them.
"What are you afraid of, it's just an animal!" The people who came later shouted, but the movement of the forks did not stop. The sharp tips of the forks drew a shocking cold light under the moonlight.
"Quickly stop!" The guard leader turned the spearhead and firmly blocked the forks that were trying to stab into the grass again. When the other guards saw this, they also placed the spears in their hands horizontally, blocking the forks that were stirring the grass. The atmosphere between the two groups of guards immediately became tense.
In the grass not far away, a pair of amber eyes slightly narrowed, clearly seeing everything that was happening in the dark night. After pausing for a moment, they quietly turned and left.
In the beginning of spring, the capital was warm and cold.
Su Yu was driving the donkey while holding onto the wooden bucket on the donkey cart to prevent too much water from spilling out. This water was the seawater stored at home. If it was spilled, the fish in the bucket would die in an instant.
When they arrived at the place where they set up their stall every day, Su Yu skillfully tied up the donkey, unloaded the wooden bucket and frame from the cart, and quickly set up the chopping board and knives. He also took out a low stool from the corner of the donkey cart, rolled up his sleeves, and casually sat down next to the wooden bucket.
"Brother Xiaoyu, why are you so late today?" It was a little boy of about seven or eight years old. He was wearing an old cotton jacket. Because winter had just passed, there were still two patches of redness on his dark little face. When he smiled, he looked silly. Seeing Su Yu coming, he consciously gave up the spot where he was squatting just now to let him set up his stall. Then he took out a stool from the donkey cart and sat down next to him.
Su Yu smiled and took out a piece of flatbread wrapped in a white cloth and handed it to him. "I saw something good today and lost track of time while haggling with Boss Yu."
This child's name was San Chuan, and he came here every day to sell eggs. Because Su Yu had to go to the docks in the morning to stock up, he was often delayed, so San Chuan helped him reserve a stall in advance.
"What is it?" San Chuan chewed on the flatbread and curiously leaned over to take a look.
Su Yu smiled mysteriously and took out something from the wooden bucket. He covered it with both hands and handed it to San Chuan. Suddenly, he opened his hand and pushed it forward.
"Ah!" San Chuan was so scared that he jumped back and fell to the ground with a plop. He saw that Su Yu was holding something strange in his hand. It was soft and had a strange pink color, which was very scary.
"Hahahaha …" Su Yu looked at San Chuan's appearance and couldn't help but laugh. "Don't be afraid. This is delicious."
"This strange thing can be eaten? What is this? " San Chuan sniffled, got up from the ground, and sat back on the stool. He looked at Su Yu with a face full of disbelief.
"Of course it can be eaten. This is called … squid …" Mentioning this strange yet familiar name, Su Yu was a bit disappointed for a moment. In his previous life, squid was only sold in the southern coastal areas. Here, it was even sold in the temperate coastal areas.
It had already been three months since Su Yu transmigrated to this place. Even now, he still suspected that he was dreaming. Maybe one day he would wake up and return to his original world. He would still be the head chef of Chuanxiang restaurant. Every day, he would happily make his spicy crabs. Before he got off work, he would give leftovers to the stray cats at the back door. At night, he would go home to watch TV and play games … instead of being a poor aristocrat in this inexplicable ancient world.
That's right. Don't look at Su Yu as a fish seller. In ancient times, his identity was a noble. The ancestor of the Su family had followed the Qing Emperor to conquer the world and was given the title of Marquis. Even though the title was passed down to Su Yu's father and he was already a worthless second class general, but a noble was still a noble. A noble without any military exploits could still live well with that salary.
Unfortunately, when Su Yu transmigrated, his father had just passed away. His uncle took advantage of his young age and wanted to take away his title. His aunt controlled the family's finances. Because the family was not good at business these years, they did not have much savings. More than half of it was spent on the funeral. His aunt used this as an excuse to treat him harshly. Not only did he not live the life of a rich playboy, he didn't even have enough to eat!
Without any other choice, Su Yu could only go back to his old business. He pulled the family's only donkey and came out to sell fish.
"Give me a grass carp." Someone came to buy fish. Su Yu threw the squid in his hand back into the bucket. He got up and took out the hedge. He fished out a large and strong grass carp from a large wooden basin filled with fresh water. "Customer, do you think this is okay?"
"Do you know how to kill fish?" This was the person's first time coming here to buy fish. He saw that the fish shop owner was white and clean. He did not look like a fish seller at all. Instead, he looked like a handsome and gentle scholar. He hesitated for a moment.
"Brother Xiaoyu is very good at killing fish!" San Chuan saw that the person wrinkled his nose and said unhappily.
Su Yu smiled and didn't answer. He took out a weighing scale and placed the fainted grass carp on the chopping board. He quickly cut open its belly, chopped off its head, and removed its scales. His movements were as smooth as moving clouds and flowing water. He was even more skilled than the seaside fishermen.
"Good skill!" Holding the fish, the person could not help but praise.
Su Yu took the copper coins and smiled bitterly. He thought about how he had killed fish for five years before he became a chef. He was glad that he did not have to kill fish anymore. He never thought that he would have to start all over again. He lowered his head and looked at his slender hands. Because of the long exposure to salt water and the cold weather, there were several frostbites on his hands. They would never be as white as before. If it were not for the fact that he did not have enough capital, he would have already opened a restaurant. Why would he bother to sell fish here at a low cost and low return? However … Su Yu couldn't help but smile when he turned his head to look at the squids that were squeezed together in the bucket. Now, he had a good opportunity to accumulate capital.
"Little brother, I don't want to scold you, but why did you buy these?" The person who bought the fish had not left yet. He pointed at the squid in the bucket and shook his head. "No one buys these things."
The people of the Da An dynasty liked to eat fresh fish from the rivers, lakes, and seas. Therefore, the business of fishing and selling fish was very prosperous. However, it mainly focused on fish, shrimp, and crabs. Very few people would eat this kind of squid because it was not delicious no matter how it was cooked. The fishermen would usually throw it away or sell it cheaply to feed livestock. When Su Yu heard this, he only smiled kindly and did not say anything.
The capital was divided into east and west sides. The east side was where the rich and powerful lived, while the west side was where the commoners lived. This Xi Ping Street was a medium-sized road in the west side of the city. Because the road was narrow, horse carriages were not often used. Stalls were everywhere. The women of the poor families were not as particular as the rich and powerful women. They carried their own basket and went out to buy vegetables.
Because Su Yu looked fair and clean and spoke in a gentle and refined manner, these grannies and aunties liked to chat with him. In addition, with his beautiful fish killing knife skills, his business was naturally better than other fish stalls. Just after noon, the last fish was sold out.
"Che, if you want to sell a smile, you should go to Chun Yi Restaurant. How much can it be worth on this Xi Ping Street …" Not far away, a tall and burly fish seller coldly said. Although he did not raise his voice, the people around him heard him clearly. Chun Yi Restaurant was a famous brothel in the capital, so it was obvious who he was talking about.
When San Chuan heard this, he wanted to go and argue with the man, but he was pulled back by Su Yu. He did not live near Xi Ping Street, so he could not go head to head with the local ruffians. He could only pretend to helplessly smile at the last customer. Su Yu was born gentle and did not look like a good person. Coupled with his bitter smile, it made the aunties feel sorry for him.
"Yu Laosi, who are you scolding?" After taking the fish that Su Yu had tied with straw, Auntie Zhang, who was almost forty years old, immediately put her hands on her waist and glared at the fish seller.
This Auntie Zhang was famous for her fierce temper, and no one on the street dared to provoke her. Yu Laosi could not help but shrink his head back when he heard this. He also felt that it was embarrassing to be so scared of a woman, so he straightened his neck and said: "I'm scolding whoever took it!" When he said this, he immediately regretted it so much that he wanted to bite his tongue off.
"Good, you dare to scold me, Zhang Cuihua? Why don't you find out what I did when I was young!" Auntie Zhang suddenly became excited. It had been a long time since anyone dared to quarrel with her. This time, she was going to quarrel to her heart's content.
Soon, the street was surrounded by many people who came to watch the show. Yu Laosi was scolded to the point that he could not say anything. He was so angry that he almost fainted. Su Yu's expression did not change as he quietly cleaned up the stall, and quietly drove the donkey cart away.
Turning the corner, there was a store that collected old wood. Su Yu unloaded the large wooden basin and two large wooden barrels from the cart, leaving only the medium-sized barrel that held the squid.
The grizzled bearded old carpenter looked at it for a while and said: "Ten copper coins for one."
"This wooden barrel is ten copper coins, but this wooden basin was dug out from a whole piece of wood. It's at least eighty copper coins." Su Yu said with a frown.
"This is made from two pieces of wood, so it's at most thirty copper coins." The old carpenter frowned.
"Then I won't sell it." Su Yu bent down and made a gesture to take the wooden basin away. This wooden basin was indeed made from good material. If it was not for the lack of money, he would not be willing to sell it.
When the old carpenter saw this, he was unwilling to part with the old material, so he could only relent. After some haggling, the wooden basin was sold for fifty-five copper coins. Su Yu counted the seventy-five copper coins that he just received. Adding the two hundred and thirteen copper coins that he got from selling the squid today, this was all he had now.
Putting away the two and a half copper coins, Su Yu led the donkey back to a house in the corner of Dongcheng. This was a three-sectioned house. The green bricks and gray tiles were already quite old. Only the two stone lions in front of the main entrance still retained some of their former glory.
"Oh, our Second Young Master is back. Where's today's share?" Entering through the side door, he saw a woman with large shoulders and a round waist leaning on a pillar. She stretched out her hand and asked him for money.
"Mother said yesterday that she no longer needs to take the medicine." Su Yu said with a cold expression. He did not bother to look at the woman and went to tie up the donkey. His body was the old Lord's concubine's son, but his wife did not have any children, so she raised him as her legitimate son. Three months ago, his father died. His legitimate mother was angered by his eldest uncle's family and fell ill. In order to provide for his legitimate mother's medicine, Su Yu gave his eldest aunt two saltwater fish every day to pay for the medicine.
When his eldest aunt heard this, her pair of thin eyebrows raised. She sneered and said: "Since your mother doesn't need to take the medicine, I will sell the donkey tomorrow. So you don't go out and make a fool of yourself every day."
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