The Female Supporting Role Shows Out

Speaking of the Duke of Weiyuan’s love for alcohol, it was a well-known fact in the entire Great Chu. He could not eat without having wine on the table, and even almost died in the wild as he was drunk on a snowy night. Yet, wine was the first thing he asked for when he woke up. He would probably not realize his folly until the worst has happened. He had won great battles and saved the life of the first emperor three times. Although he was recuperating in the capital and had not been able to return to his post in the southeast station, he was a respectable figure that nobody dared to provoke. He had a golden whip that was given by the last emperor on his deathbed, which had an immense power to punish incapable rulers or bring down treacherous officials.

In order to gain his favor, people had always brought a jar of fine wine whenever they visited. He would speak candidly when he had some good wine but would chase them out immediately if the wine was not to his liking. It seemed easy to curry favor with him, but that was not true. He went on expeditions with his father at the age of eight; murdered for the first time at the age of nine; drank the strongest wine and became dead drunk at night, but had become addicted to alcohol since then. He had been drinking wine for thirty years and had tried a good variety of wines.

He could no longer tolerate wines that were less than average. Since he had tried all sorts of wine, it was difficult to satisfy his appetite for good wines.

In order to please the Duke of Weiyuan, the bearded man had spent lots of money to get some good wine, but his efforts were futile. But he was exhilarated when he met Manager Lin who possessed exceptional culinary skills and got the legendary Thousand-Days Wine by accident. He hurriedly traveled to the capital and arrived in three days. He did not even bother to find an inn to clean himself up and headed straight to the Duke of Weiyuan’s residence.

There were at least dozens or hundreds of people who delivered drinks to the Duke’s residence daily, but the steward would never let them in. He received the wine from the bearded man and sent him away, but the bearded man emphasized that he had brought the Thousand-Days Wine which was an extremely rare wine that must be delivered to the Duke. Although the steward agreed to do so, he merely shoved the wine into the storehouse that was especially used to store wines.

The jar was only as big as one’s palm and was not even fully filled. The steward held the light jar of wine and thought the bearded man to be rude to present something like this. After leaving the storehouse, the steward criticized the bearded man in his mind and forgot about the incident. That jar of wine was quietly placed on the shelf and had remained unknown to people.

On the other hand, Lin Dan's fleet continued to move along the main road, and the three brawny men guarded on the left and right of the fleet to prevent any surprises from happening. After having breakfast, they only thought about lunch, and after having lunch, they waited eagerly for dinner. After dinner, they would ask Manager Lin if there was any supper. They had enjoyed a life of comfort during this period of time. As they had lost more than seven or eight catties of weight in the past few months while completing a dangerous mission, with Manager Lin’s great cooking skills, a healthy pink had gradually regained on their faces.

Four days later, the fleet had arrived at the outskirts of the capital, and it would take half a day to arrive at the West Gate. Lin Dan stopped in a small town and said goodbye to three men. However, they did not bear to part with her and insisted to ensure her safety until she arrived at her destination. The truth was, they were reluctant to part with her good craftsmanship and were finding excuses to stay.

Lin Dan did not know whether to laugh or cry. She let them stay since she was unable to refuse their request.

"Mother, I'm back!" She took the group of people to a small farmhouse. The farmhouse had some vegetable plantations, as well as some chickens and ducks. It was also full of red and white roses, which made the place look warm and welcoming.

"Dan'er, you’re finally back!" The older Lady Qi dashed out of the house with tears in her eyes. She was still able to follow her daughter while she traveled around to learn the art of cooking, but she fell ill afterward and was being sent back to the capital to recuperate. Although the capital was a huge place, it was not difficult to meet people whom she wanted to avoid the most. There was a time where she met the family of her husband’s second brother on the streets. The second brother informed Lady Zhou and Yan Shouye that she was still in the capital, and they hired ruffians to create trouble for her every day. She had almost wanted to take her life by jumping into the well.

She could not understand why these people wanted to push her and her daughter into a dead end when they had already taken away their husband's belongings. However, she knew that the evilness within the hearts of people was unfathomable and that she could only give in and settle here to lead a peaceful life.

"Mother, pack your things up. We will stay here for a few days before returning to the capital." Lin Dan picked up the scoop and served water for everyone.

"Return to the capital again?" Lady Qi was fearful of the idea. She was scared witless by Lady Zhou and Yan Shouye, and she no longer had the courage she did when she was asking them to return the property.

"Of course, we must." Lin Dan said casually, but she was firm. She once swore that she would help the owner of this body to restore the reputation of the Lin family and Lin Baotian, and she would honor her promise. After traveling for ten years, this place had become her home country; the life of the owner of this body was also hers, and her responsibility had also naturally become hers.

“Alright, I’ll pack up now. The chickens and ducks outside have been raised for more than two months. Go catch them if you want to eat it." Lady Qi retreated to her room. Lin Dan rolled up her sleeves and said, "Let’s have Dong’an chicken and Yongzhou pressed duck for lunch today."

Everyone responded enthusiastically before getting busy with the chores.

Lin Dan put the slaughtered chickens and ducks in a bucket and cooked them with boiling water so that it would be easier to remove their feathers. The handsome man stood beside her, lowered his eyes, and asked, "Have you and your mother been traveling around for many years?"

"Yes." Lin Dan put the chicken and duck feathers into a bamboo basket for storage. Chicken feathers can be made into feather dusters, while the fine velvety duck feathers can be made into clothes to keep themselves warm. These were good materials to have.

The man stared at her lady's bun for a long time, and finally could not help but ask, "What about your husband? Why haven’t we seen him with you?"

Lin Dan raised her head in surprise, seemingly unexpected that the man would be curious about her. He seemed to be the kind of person who was extremely reserved and indifferent and did not seem that he would be interested in the private affairs of others. But since she had nothing to hide, she said frankly, “I am not married and have no husband. I wear the hairstyle of a married woman just for convenience since I am out and about most of the time. I only have my mother as my kin, who can she depend on if I get married? Besides, I have been mastering my craft all these years, and have not stayed at the same place for long. No man would have any intention of marrying me even if I want to."

She chuckled and seemed to see the issue with an open mind. "Life is pretty good now. We’ve already gone through the toughest time, what else will I be afraid of in the future? I only need to get a few good apprentices, have them support me when I retire, and I won’t have to be afraid of having nobody to hold a funeral for me." After saying that, Lin Dan seemed to have been reminded of a bad memory, the light in her eyes gradually faded, and she sighed.

The man frowned hard, he seemed to have a lot to say but did not know where to begin. He took over the chickens and ducks and carefully plucked their feathers. He saw that Lin Dan had nothing to do and wanted to start a fire, he said immediately in a deep voice, "Go inside and take a rest, have a good conversation with your mother and leave the rest to us."

Lin Dan looked into the house and noticed that Lady Qi was looking at her eagerly. She smiled and agreed with the man. She realized that despite having a cool appearance, the man was actually a kind and soft-hearted man.

After lunch, Lin Dan sent Lady Qi back to the house to take a rest before carrying a small gift box for the visitation. The handsome man was afraid that she would encounter danger and followed immediately.

Lin Dan turned around when she heard the footsteps and could not help but smile.

The man stared at her bright smile, his eyes flickering.

The two did not speak along the way, but they felt relaxed and at ease without feeling bored or awkward. After taking a few turns, they took the main road and saw that there was a post station beside the road. Outside the station was a straw shed where a busy middle-aged woman was busy walking about. The chattering and clamoring were audible from afar.

Lin Dan approached and said while cupping her hands, "Sister Wang, it’s been a long time. How have you been? Why isn't Aunt Wang here in the store?"

"Who are you?" The middle-aged woman thought for a while and said, "Oh, you’re that little girl who offered us free work! It’s been ten years, you’ve grown up!" She remembered Lin Dan to be a petite and short girl who was very capable of enduring hardships. She could carry beans that were more than a hundred catties on one shoulder, which had left a deep impression on the middle-aged woman.

Lin Dan acknowledged that she was the girl and patiently asked about the old woman. The middle-aged woman rolled her eyes, seemingly very disdainful of her mother-in-law. But she refused to answer no matter what Lin Dan had asked. Lin Dan had no choice but to buy two bowls of tofu balls from her and gave five more coins. She finally found out that the old woman was selling food somewhere about thirty minutes away by foot.

The tofu meatballs tasted the same. She assumed the middle-aged woman had spent ten years to finally master her mother-in-law's cooking skills, but for some reason, she ran a different shop from her mother-in-law.

Lin Dan felt sad for the old woman while she inquired more about her current situation on her way there. She knew that Aunt Wang treated her son and daughter-in-law sincerely, but her daughter-in-law refused to accept her and asked to run a different shop after mastering the dish. Not only did she chase the old woman and her young son away to live alone, but she also took away the store that the family was depending on for a living.

Aunt Wang’s old stall was popular as it was already well-known. Since it was set up next to the post station it was also able to attract a good number of patrons. Even if she opened a new store that serves the same food at the same price, the location was so remote that patrons would naturally choose the stall that they were familiar with. Over time, her daughter-in-law had completely overtaken her stall.

She was already earning a meager income when life took a turn for worse. Her youngest son was disabled after breaking his leg a few years ago without having the money for treatment. When Lin Dan arrived, she saw that Aunt Wang was carrying water, while her son limped forward and wanted to share the heavy load on his shoulder but was stopped by his mother. The two of them quarreled and their eyes were getting red, but it was all an expression of love and cherishing for each other.

Lin Dan could not help but feel sad for them. She walked towards them without saying a word, took the carrying pole, picked up the bucket, and strode into the stall. The handsome man was surprised for a while before stepping forward quickly and helped to lift the heavy bucket. He poured the water into the tank and took the carrying pole again. He said with a low voice, "Where is the water source? You take a rest and leave the rest to me."

"It’s right at the foot of that mountain, just go straight along this path." Lin Dan stayed here for three months where she had to carry a hundred catties of water every day. She naturally knew where the water source was.

The man nodded and left without saying a word. Aunt Wang who was in shock finally came to her senses. She said in surprise, "Are you, Xiao Dan? My good girl, where have you been all these years? I couldn't find you anywhere!"