Green Mountain
Chapter 141 - 102, Division Head

Chapter 141: 102, Division Head

A whole family gathered around a small Eight Immortals table, each person with a small porcelain bowl in one hand and chopsticks pinched in the other, bustling with noise and laughter.

Not far away, the apricot tree was decorated with red ribbons, with the words peace, joy, health, longevity gently swaying in the breeze.

"Is this the Eight Immortals Crossing the Sea?"

"Yes!"

"I’ve never seen some of these ingredients before," She Dengke said to Chen Ji, "Why aren’t you eating? Don’t let Liu Quxing eat it all by himself."

Liu Quxing rolled his eyes: "Haven’t you been eating? Why do you say I’m the one who’s going to finish it all?"

Chen Ji explained with a smile, "I’m not used to Eight Immortals Crossing the Sea; I’d rather eat something else."

Liu Quxing curled his lip: "No taste for good food. The ingredients for the Eight Immortals Crossing the Sea are transported by the Cao Guild from the sea, and even the Yingxian Building can’t get fresh ingredients every day. Wanting to taste it is also a matter of luck."

Chen Ji just smiled without arguing.

The so-called Eight Immortals Crossing the Sea is a dish made from shark fin, sea cucumber, abalone, fish bones, fish maw, shrimp, asparagus, and ham.

For the people of Luocheng in this era, some may never see these ingredients in their lifetime, but Chen Ji had eaten them many times before, so he only served himself a small bowl and left the rest for others to try.

All of a sudden, Liu Quxing asked, "Hey, what does the sea look like?"

Bai Li raised her hand: "I know, my dad said that the sea is boundless, the water in the sea is all blue, and there are particularly beautiful shells and starfish that the waves push onto the beach. Large ship owners along the coast will also go out to whale, and it is said that this big fish called a whale can be as large as a building."

Liu Quxing’s eyes widened: "That’s got to be an exaggeration, can a fish really grow that big?"

Bai Li felt indignant: "Who’s exaggerating? That’s exactly what my dad said!"

Liang Gou’er, holding a jar of high-grade Shaoxing wine, asked, "Has the Prince ever been to the sea?"

Bai Li hesitated: "...No, but our Ning Dynasty has fleets that go to sea, they’ve seen it themselves."

The Princely Heir suggested excitedly, "How about we make a pact to go see the sea together one day? I’ve heard that it only takes three months of travel to reach the coast, then we can buy a boat from the ship owners, go out to sea to fish, and cook the Eight Immortals Crossing the Sea right on the ship to eat!"

Everyone exchanged glances, their eyes shining brighter and brighter.

She Dengke couldn’t help but ask, "Can we really go to the sea?"

Old Yao put down his chopsticks and spoke leisurely, "What’s so difficult about seeing the sea? Go smash the signboard of Luocheng City Government today, and next month when you’re exiled to Lingnan, you can see the sea every day."

The Princely Heir: "..."

Bai Li: "..."

Chen Ji said sentimentally, "Master, you really know how to ruin the mood."

The Princely Heir changed the subject and curiously looked at Chen Ji, "By the way, Chen Ji, where did you go last night after not returning all night? If you have any difficulties, you must tell us. Friends would go through fire and water for each other! "

Chen Ji was silent.

Everyone knew he was unwilling to return to Chen Mansion, and as a mere Medical Hall apprentice, he had nowhere else to go, truly unable to explain his whereabouts.

He couldn’t tell the Princely Heir that he was in fact part of the Eunuch Party, the group the Princely Heir despised the most; nor could he tell the others that he had actually spent the previous night clearing the Princely Heir and the Commandery Princess of suspicion.

There are no real secrets in this world; the secrets you tell others will always unwittingly leak out.

In the silence,

Liu Quxing muttered, "He didn’t go gambling again, did he? I see the red in his eyes, he definitely didn’t sleep all night."

She Dengke stomped on Liu Quxing’s instep under the table, and Liu Quxing raised his voice, "Why are you stepping on me? I was just speaking off the cuff, I believe Chen Ji isn’t that kind of person!"

At that moment, Bai Li remembered something mysterious about Chen Ji and promptly said, "Let’s not ask anymore. Everyone has their secrets, if he needs help, he’ll definitely ask us. Maybe Chen Ji has a girl he likes, and yesterday he just got a promise of profit-sharing, to go tell the good news to her right? Isn’t that right, Chen Ji?"

Liu Quxing heard the gossip and immediately perked up, "Really?"

Chen Ji explained with a smile, "I face patients every day in the Medical Hall, where would I find a girl to like?"

Liu Quxing asked, "Then has your family ever arranged a marriage for you?"

Chen Ji shook his head too: "I haven’t heard anything about it."

Liu Quxing cheerfully said, "I have."

She Dengke exasperated, "Who asked you?!"

Liu Quxing continued unabated, "My mother mentioned a match to me, the other party’s father is a Scholar who currently manages lawsuits at the government office, and both families are well matched. It’s agreed that once I become an Imperial Physician and enter officialdom... starting from the ninth rank will be enough."

While he spoke, his eyes kept drifting to Old Yao.

Old Yao glanced at him, "What are you implying?"

Liu Quxing hastily said, "No, nothing."

Then a ’meow’ sounded from the eaves of the house.

Chen Ji looked up but saw Wu Yun landing as a matter of course from the eaves, jumping into... Old Yao’s arms.

Old Yao lifted the bowl of Eight Immortals Crossing the Sea and brought it to Wu Yun’s mouth, "Eat."

Liu Quxing was stunned: "Master, you’re feeding that expensive dish to a cat?"

Old Yao gave him a sidelong glance, "He’s much more precious than you are."

After saying that, Old Yao turned to Liang Gou’er, "We had an agreement, you can stay here as long as you teach my apprentice knife skills, let’s start, no laziness."

Liang Gou’er reluctantly put down his wine jug: "Alright! Princely Heir, Liu Quxing, She Dengke, come practice knife skills!"

Chen Ji watched as the Princely Heir and the others took up horse stances in the courtyard. Liang Gou’er, however, pulled Liang Mao’er aside to whisper privately, and Wu Yun, no longer interested in the Eight Immortals Across the Sea, just sat obediently on Liang Mao’er’s shoulder, ears erect.