Since the Third Young Lady had spoken, Li Yi naturally could not ignore her and shut Chong Chen outside the door.
"Come in."
Li Yi only glanced at Chong Chen and said expressionlessly.
Although he was a magnanimous man and did not mind what Chong Chen had said to him, his expression was naturally not pleasant.
He was having a good meal here, and this shameless outsider had the nerve to come over?
Halfway there, he realized that the dumplings had run out. The dumplings made by four people were only enough for four people and two servant girls. With the addition of one more person, it was not quite enough.
Turning back, he looked at Chong Chen and said calmly, "The dumplings are out. Lord Chen, go and buy some more."
"You …" As a dignified Minister with the backing of the House of Duke, when had he ever been ordered around like this? Anger appeared on Chong Chen's face. He was about to flare up when the Third Young Lady waved her hand and said with a smile, "I'll ask Xiu Er to buy some. She just bought some and knows the place."
"Let me go." Chong Chen shook his head. Third Young Lady had personally made the dumplings. How could the fillings bought by a servant girl compare to the ones he had bought? He was just dissatisfied with the rascal's attitude. After glaring at Li Yi, he strode out.
The Third Young Lady took a few steps forward and looked at the two girls. She said apologetically, "I am a guest and made the decision without permission. I hope Zui Mo and Ruoqing will not take it to heart."
"No, no." Ruoqing shook her head and said with a smile, "It's just an extra pair of chopsticks."
In Li Yi's view, this was not just an extra pair of chopsticks.
Every time Chen Chong, this arrogant fellow, saw him, it was as if he was talking through his nostrils. This made him very uncomfortable. However, in terms of rank, a fifth-rank official was four ranks lower than him. Who gave him this confidence?
If she saw him walking around in front of her, this meal would lose some of its flavor.
However, he did not want to make things difficult for the Third Young Lady, so he shook his head and walked to the kitchen.
Although they were eating dumplings today, they couldn't just eat dumplings. Other than the main course, they had to stir-fry a dozen dishes and make some soup.
Not far from Willow Lane, there was a food market. The people of the capital had seen people buying meat stuffing, but they had never seen a mighty group of more than ten people. The person at the head of the group was dressed in luxurious clothing, and his expression was not angry but dignified. One look and you could tell that he was a high-ranking official. To arrange such a large group to come to the market was just to buy two taels of meat stuffing …
"Heavens, am I seeing things? That person just now seems to be Supervisor Chen!"
"Which Supervisor Chen?"
"There's another Chen informant. The one from Duke Chen's Residence. Yesterday, he brought a few dozen people to kick down the door of Ningyuan Hou's Residence …"
"Impossible, impossible. What kind of status does he have? How could he come here to buy minced meat …"
"How is it impossible? I saw him with my own eyes yesterday!"
As the crowd discussed, the butcher shop assistant was already leaning against a pillar in the shop. He couldn't stop himself from sliding down.
Duke Chen, Supervisor Chen … These words were enough to make a commoner like him, who had never seen the world, go weak in the knees.
Supervisor Chen naturally didn't know and didn't care about the commotion on the street. At this moment, he was sitting around the table in the small courtyard. He asked with concern, "Miaoyu, you've packed so much. Are you tired? Do you want to rest for a while …"
Zeng Zuimo and Wan Ruoqing stood far away on the other side. They withdrew their gazes and looked at each other, seeing the surprise and confusion in each other's eyes.
The person who was at Madame Chen's beck and call, asking about her well-being, was he really the current Supervisor Chen?
However, when they thought about the fact that the one cooking in the kitchen was a third-rank Doctor Jin Ziguang, a fifth-rank Supervisor Chen didn't mean much.
There was another knock on the door. Xiao Cui and Xiao Zhu were busy in the kitchen. Zeng Zuimo walked over and opened the courtyard door.
"Zuimo."
Ceng Shichun walked in with a smile on his face. He saw two figures he had never seen before at the stone table in the courtyard. He was startled and immediately said, "Are there any guests? I'll leave first then. I won't disturb you anymore. I'll come back tomorrow."
He turned around and walked out the door. Only then did a voice come from behind him.
"Wait a moment."
Ceng Shichun turned around with a puzzled expression. "Is there anything else, Zuimo?"
Zeng Zuimo looked at him with a hesitant expression. She quickly lowered her head and said in a small voice, "Since you're here, let's have a meal before you leave."
Ceng Shichun turned around and looked around. When he found that he was the only one here, his body suddenly trembled. He pointed at himself in disbelief and asked, "Me, me?"
"Come in first."
Zeng Zuimo nodded and slowly walked into the courtyard.
"Ah, okay, okay …" Ceng Shichun stood in place for a long time before nodding. There was a trace of joy on his face as he strode in.
The first two times he drank a cup of herbal tea, but this time he could even eat a meal. This speed of progress made him feel as if he was in a dream.
"Assistant Minister Zeng, why are you here?"
An extremely surprised voice rang out in front of him. Ceng Shichun felt that this voice was somewhat familiar. When he looked up, he said in shock, "Official Chen, why are you here?!"
Seeing Chen Chong here, a trace of wariness flashed across his face. Almost subconsciously, he took a step forward and stood in front of Zeng Zuimo.
"What are you doing?" Chen Chong glanced at him in confusion, but the expression on his face quickly turned into one of schadenfreude. "I only bought two ounces of stuffing. If you want to eat, go buy it yourself!"
Ceng Shichun looked back. Seeing that Zeng Zuimo was fine, he finally relaxed. When he turned back, confusion once again appeared on his face.
"What do you mean, Official Chen?"
Chen Chong glanced at him. "What do I mean? If you want to eat, go buy it yourself. There's no extra here!"
He had long been dissatisfied with the fact that an official of the court was ordered to buy meat stuffing. If he could order around a fourth-rank assistant minister of the Ministry of Revenue, he would naturally feel better.
Li Yi poked his head out of the kitchen and saw Ceng Shichun standing in the yard. He knew that there was going to be another eyesore today.
Zeng Zuimo shook her head and said, "I'll have Xiao Cui go buy it."
Ceng Shichun had already understood the ins and outs of the matter. After seeing Li Yi, his worried heart also relaxed. He smiled and said, "Since Official Chen does it himself, I won't break the rules. I'll go out for a bit and be back soon."
Inside the market, the butcher had just walked out of the shadow brought by the official when he saw a customer walk in.
"Sir, what would you like to order?"
"Two ounces of meat stuffing," a middle-aged man in a dark robe said.
The waiter wiped the cloth around his waist and said, "Alright, please wait a moment, sir. I'll cut it up right away!"
"Assistant Minister Zeng, is it really you?"
Hearing the voice behind him, Ceng Shichun turned around and saw the man walking in. He looked left and right and said in surprise, "Censor Qi?"
Since last year, the censors of the Imperial Censorate especially liked to wear casual clothes and wander the streets. It wasn't strange to see an supervising censor in the market.
Censor Qi looked at him in surprise. "Sir Zeng, what are you doing?"
Ceng Shichun smiled and said, "Buying two ounces of meat stuffing to make dumplings."
That Censor Qi's face revealed a look of surprise. He cupped his hands and said, "I really didn't expect that Sir Zeng, as an assistant minister of the Ministry of Revenue, would be so thrifty. You must have come to this kind of place in order to sympathize with the people, investigate the prices of goods, and punish illegal peddlers, right?"
"Ah?" Ceng Shichun's expression froze.
Censor Qi was immediately filled with respect. "When Sir Zeng was in charge of the yamen, he still went deep into the people to understand the people's feelings. He is truly a role model for us officials. I will write a memorial tomorrow …"
"Ministry of Revenue … assistant minister? Punish illegal peddlers? "
The butcher stood in a daze behind the stall. His face was pale and his body trembled. The meat stuffing in his hand fell to the chopping board and he fell to his knees. He shouted, "Sir, you have wronged me. I am only a worker. About the matter of raising the price of meat …"
He pointed a finger at the fat middle-aged man behind him. "… It was all done by my shopkeeper!"
Ceng Shichun cupped his hands at Censor Qi and said, "Sir Qi is too kind. I still have some matters to attend to, so I will take my leave first."
Censor Qi also cupped his hands. "Take care, Sir Zeng."
Ceng Shichun took out a few copper coins and placed them on the chopping board. He picked up the meat stuffing and left without looking at the butcher.
The butcher kneeled on the ground. He could only hear the sound of teeth grinding behind him.
"Wang — Er — Gou!"
He turned around and saw that the shopkeeper had taken a boning knife from the wall and was glaring at him fiercely. "Raising the price of meat — I will chop you up!"
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