Chapter 97: Chapter 97: She Can Discern the Recipe
"...because Lord Di Bao forced a marriage, Gao Cuilan, the daughter of Gao Taigong, was compelled to sit in the bridal sedan chair. It was meant to be a tragedy, but an onlooker noticed the injustice and intervened heroically. This hero appeared as a rough, burly man. Although his appearance was somewhat robust, he was strikingly brave and quickly drove away the ruffians trying to take Miss Gao. This hero was named Zhu Ganglie..."
After saying this, the storyteller wrote down the name Zhu Ganglie on the board.
The guests upstairs and downstairs burst into laughter at this.
"His surname is actually Zhu? Hahaha."
"The name Zhu Ganglie doesn’t sound like a person’s name, could he be a monster? Earlier, they mentioned strange happenings at Gao Village..."
"No matter what kind of monster he is, he won’t be a match for Sun Wukong."
Mrs. Pei and others sitting in the private room on the third floor couldn’t help but chuckle upon hearing this.
"There is indeed a Zhu surname, but due to frequent ridicule, people later changed it to the similar-sounding surname Zhu. I think this Zhu Ganglie must be a monster in human form, but I just don’t know what kind of monster," Mrs. Pei laughed.
The Second Madam agreed, saying, "Mrs. Pei, you have seen much of the world. Today, you’ve broadened our knowledge again."
It’s no wonder Mrs. Pei favors the Second Madam more, as she’s truly filial and speaks her mind, unlike the Third Madam, who often conceals her true intentions and always seems scheming, which Mrs. Pei finds troubling.
Even the Third Miss joined in, saying, "If a monster turns into a human, it surely intends to do something bad. Let’s hope Sun Wukong can stop it in time."
However, the Second Miss, Pei Lan, said nothing. Earlier, she had excused herself to try and speak with Qu Fulan.
She rarely had the opportunity to meet Qu Fulan in the Pei Mansion. Even if she sent someone to call, they would be stopped by the guards at Lixiang Courtyard, who would want to know the reason and report to Heir Pei for approval.
How could she bring herself to say anything?
She thought about finding her at "Flower Garden Ode" to talk, but was told she wasn’t there.
Pei Lan was quite frustrated. Soon she would have to return, and time was running out for her.
With a mind preoccupied, she had no leisure to listen to the storytelling.
Even the taste of the milk tea in her mouth was now lost to her.
The storyteller, seeing the discussions dying down, resumed his tale.
This is the charm of storytelling. Pausing at a critical moment allows the audience to engage in discussion; when the time is right, the story continues.
"...After arriving at Gao Village, Zhu Ganglie was smitten with Miss Gao Cuilan at first sight, and Miss Gao was equally infatuated with him. As this great hero descended from the heavens to save her, both Gao Cuilan and her mother, Mrs. Gao, grew increasingly fond of him. Besides, he was skilled, hardworking, and remarkably strong, single-handedly worth ten men. However, while he could eat enough for ten, Gao Taigong was both happy and worried upon seeing Zhu Ganglie’s prowess, considering him as a potential son-in-law..."
"On the wedding day, Zhu Ganglie was overjoyed and drank a lot of wine. In his drunken state, he inadvertently revealed his true form in the bridal chamber..."
*
Meanwhile, after leaving "Flower Garden Ode," Qu Fulan asked the guard beside her, "Apart from the restaurant business, I remember the Pei Family also has a bookstore?"
She had a vague impression from looking at the ledgers before.
Shi Yi, the leader of the four major guards and the one most in the know, responded, "Yes, there is one. Would Miss Qu like to visit the bookstore?"
Qu Fulan nodded, seeing Shi Yi’s somewhat peculiar expression, but she didn’t mind. After all, Heir Pei had told her to handle things as she saw fit, so now whatever she said went.
The carriage circled around and finally arrived at Wanfu Road.
This bookstore was different from the restaurant; there was nothing like a bustling business. Currently, on Wanfu Road, as far as the eye could see, there were only two bookstores, separated by some distance, not interfering with each other.
Just now, as the carriage passed by, Qu Fulan noticed that the other bookstore was quite busy. Yet, in front of the Pei Family’s bookstore, there were barely any visitors.
"How could this be?"
In ancient times, bookstores should have been popular. Even in older times before modern networks and short videos became widespread, bookstores were thriving.
Books in ancient times were more expensive, and many scholars couldn’t afford to buy them, so they would borrow and read in the bookstore, resulting in many people coming and going.
How did the Pei Family bookstore become so deserted?
Qu Fulan only asked casually, not expecting to get any useful information from the mouths of the four guards.
The Pei Family bookstore was named: Ten Thousand Books Bookstore.
The store name wasn’t the problem; it must have been the books.
She got off the carriage and went inside.
...
"What was the true form? Quickly, tell us!"
The listeners upstairs and downstairs couldn’t wait any longer and hurriedly pressed for answers.
"Yes, hurry up, don’t keep us in suspense, it’s killing us."
"Come on and say it, you mischievous storyteller. You always stop at critical moments."
In truth, it wasn’t that the storyteller was being tricky; he had just paused to quench his parched throat with tea, not intentionally leaving them hanging.
But the anxious audience was growing restless with every extra moment.
Even Mrs. Pei perked up to listen carefully, guessing that Zhu Ganglie must have transformed from a monster, but not knowing which kind.
"...Everyone only heard a snore, thunderous and strange. Those curious followed the sound, entering the room, only to see a creature with a protruding mouth, large ears, and an ugly face lying on the ground. Dressed in wedding clothes, who else could it be but Zhu Ganglie? The person seeing the groom turned into a monster was so frightened; they turned pale and ran while screaming, ’Oh no! The groom has become a monster!’"
"Woken up by the noise and seeing everyone’s terrified faces, some running, some hiding, he was thoroughly alarmed. He quickly reached up and thought, ’Oh no, this old pig’s turned back to his true form.’"
The whole audience was stunned for a moment, then erupted into fervent laughter.
"Hahahahaha."
Meanwhile, in another private room, Ji Nishang, although having caught "Journey to the West" midway, was surprisingly hooked, showing it was a good tale.
If she could use it for her own purposes, it would be even better.
At the same time, she tasted the food and milk tea, savoring their flavors.
Thinking of the foods she had eaten, from at least fifty different places if not a hundred, she realized upon comparison that none could rival "Flower Garden Ode."
As for milk tea, it was sweet, with a taste of tea and milk, ticking all boxes for appearance, aroma, and flavor.
Before today, she didn’t know milk tea existed. Her aunt also said there was no second place in Capital City that could make it.
Evidently, it was a unique creation of "Flower Garden Ode."
Who was so remarkable to have invented such a singularly unique beverage?
However, after today, it seems this milk tea will no longer be the only exclusive offering of "Flower Garden Ode."
Besides having a talent for business, Ji Nishang had a unique palate; anything she ate or drank, she could discern the original recipe and replicate it with some study.
From beginning to end, Ji Nishang never took off the veiled hat on her head, only lifting a corner when eating, to prevent others from seeing her true face.