A Reunion with Ru Yu Yan
Yu Ru Yan smiled. "It"s good that you understand. What you have to do is recommend Rou"er to His Majesty. I haven"t been to Ice Moon Empire much in the past few years, but I am very familiar with Rou"er"s situation. I can guarantee, that if she is here to help manage His Majesty’s affairs, in some time, the empire"s situation will change completely. Who says that women are lesser than men?
"If we have talent like Rou"er, we can"t let her go. This is a good chance. Actually, perhaps Rou Rou gave Nian Bing this letter for this reason. That girl is very bright. Since she didn"t want to marry the Ice Moon prince, naturally, she would need to find a route of retreat. They are not a prosperous family, consisting only of father and daughter. So it shouldn"t be too hard to decide. I will go there personally. Nian Bing, relax. Auntie will deal with this."
Nian Bing did not understand government business, but he was smart. From Yu Ru Yan and her husband"s discourse, he grasped the main idea. He could not help but secretly praise Auntie Yu Ru Yan"s foresight. Luo Rou"s wise girl moniker was not so easily garnered. If she were a man, she might have been much more important to the Ice Moon Empire. If Duke Lan Yu brought her to the Proud Orchid Empire, changing the current state of the Proud Orchid Empire might not be impossible as long as she was not judged for her gender. After all, the most important thing to the empire was talent.
"Auntie, then I must ask this of you," Nian Bing responded respectfully.
Yu Ru Yan shook out her long, dark green hair. "Nian Bing, you have come from far away to deliver your friend"s letter. You should rest here. Oh, that"s right, you haven"t told me, who is your magic teacher?"
Nian Bing said, "My teacher is the Ice Moon Empire Mage a.s.sociation"s Magister Long Zhi."
Duke Lan Yu said, "So it was Long Zhi! I know of him. He is extremely adept at magic. It"s just a pity the Ice G.o.d"s PaG.o.da is in Ice Moon; they don"t put too much importance on the Mage a.s.sociation. Since you are his disciple, your magic must be strong. Nian Bing, do you have any family in Ice Moon Empire?"
Nian Bing"s heart shook. He shook his head. "I don"t have any family anymore."
Duke Lan Yu smiled. "Since you no longer have any ties there, and you have a past with Ru Yan, you should stay in Proud Orchid City. Our Mage a.s.sociation needs people. I recently had a chat with the empire"s mage a.s.sociation to see if we can form a team of mages, like the Flame Lion Cavalry."
Nian Bing replied, "Lord Duke, I"m afraid that it won"t be that easy. From what I know, the mages of the Flame Lion Cavalry all specialize in fire magic. Moreover, for mages to join a cavalry, they need to train in order to cooperate perfectly. Otherwise, it would be easy to accidentally injure others. I respect Auntie Yu very much, but I still have many things to do, so I cannot stay."
Duke Lan Yu was not to put upon by Nian Bing"s refusal. "Then don"t worry about it. But, from now on you will encounter hardships in your journey outside. If you feel that the Ice Moon Empire Mage a.s.sociation can’t hold you anymore, then I welcome you to join Proud Orchid City anytime. You have come from afar. Stay several days, and let us do the honor of being your host.”
Nian BIng shook his head. I still have a friend waiting on me. I might not be able to stay long here in Proud Orchid. Lord Duke, Aunt Yu, I have a request that I hope you can grant."
Yu Ru Yan smiled softly. "Feel free to say it. Auntie will do her best to accommodate you."
Emotion welled up in Nian Bing"s eyes. He gazed deeply into Yu Ru Yan"s eyes. "Auntie, I have always regarded you as a mother in my heart. Even if that was the first time we met, you gave me, a total stranger, the precious Heavenly Flower Tile. During my magic cultivation, the Heavenly Flower Tile"s warmth pulled me back from a crisis. You could say that you are my benefactor who saved my life. I hope that you can give me the chance to repay you.
"One day. Please, give me one day to prepare. After one day, I hope to make a meal for you, how bout dat?"
Duke Lan Yu and Yu Ru Yan went blank. She thought she had misheard. "Make a meal? Nian BIng, Auntie doesn"t understand what you mean."
Nian Bing smiled confidently. "Auntie, tomorrow you will understand. I will come back tomorrow. Can I enter by showing the Heavenly Flower Tile?"
Yu Ru Yan nodded. "Of course you can. But aren"t you a mage? How can you be a chef?"
Nian Bing smiled. "Auntie, I was always a chef! Didn"t you remember the elderly man I was with when we first met? He is my culinary teacher. For me, cooking and magic are equally important. Lord Duke, Auntie Yu, I will now take my leave." He paid the two his respects before showing himself out.
As he looked at Nian Bing"s retreating figure, Duke Lan Yu frowned slightly. "Ru Yan, what do you think of that young man? You are sure he is that child from then?"
Yu Ru Yan nodded. "I can"t be wrong. Not only does he have the Heavenly Flower Tile, he also spoke of things that happened when we met. The biggest thing was that the emotion in his eyes was similar to the emotion in that child"s eyes. It hasn"t changed at all, but now that child is all grown up. He is much wiser than he was before. Big Brother Yu, I feel that he is not ordinary at all. In the future, he will have many accomplishments. I just don"t understand, why would he want to become a chef?"
Lan Yu smiled. "Ru Yan, do not look down on any profession, even one like a chef. We just need to wait and see what kind of surprise he has in store for us. Based on his confidence, it is obvious he has great faith in his cooking skills. If he really is such a talent, I hope that you can use his feelings for you to make him stay. Right now, the thing our empire lacks most is talent!"
A crease appeared in between her brows. "Big Brother Yu, how could you make me take advantage of such pure feelings? Of course it would be good if he wanted to stay, but we can"t force him to against his will, okay?"
He broke out into laughter. "That"s my bad, I spoke too much. We will do as you say. But I can tell that he isn"t so simple. Especially his eyes: they were filled with intelligence!"
After leaving the duke"s mansion, Nian Bing did not return the hotel. Instead, he went to a nearby magic item store and sold all nine of his magic scrolls. If he hadn"t met Yu Ru Yan, he might only have sold three or four, but it was different now. He always hoped that he could make some of his dishes for her to try. Thus, he needed more funds to buy all sorts of valuable ingredients.
Out of the nine magic scrolls, Nian Bing had to set off one at the scene. The remaining eight were sold for 250 gold coins each. After all, a protective magic scroll that didn"t need manual activation was desired by all, particularly n.o.bles. So despite the fact they were only rank 4 scrolls, they were sold for a high price.
After leaving the magic item shop, he asked around for the busiest area in Proud Orchid City. Nian Bing used the bulk of the two hundred purple-gold coins he got from selling the scrolls to buy all sorts of ingredients, as well as seasonings and medicinal cooking ingredients. This was why he needed a day to prepare.
The most important part of the cooking process was the seasoning. Seasoning could not only make delicious dishes taste even better, but they could also bring out the innate flavor of the ingredients if used properly. The best seasoning required many kinds of flavors mixed together. Since the secret amalgamation that Zha Ji taught him had to be kept a secret, Nian Bing had to do the mixing himself.
Once he returned to the hotel, Nian Bing carefully pushed open the door to the room. Salamandhys was still going strong with the snoring. Not only were dragons the strongest creatures on the continent, but they were also the best at sleeping. Sighing, Nian Bing secretly prayed that Salamandhys would sleep until after he made Auntie Yu Ru Yan"s meal.
He took out sacks of seasoning from his s.p.a.ce ring, then also took out the bottles he had bought one by one. He first made sure they were well-marked, then started to adeptly mix ingredients together. For Nian Bing, there were two things he could wholly devote himself to. One was magic cultivation. The other was culinary arts.
Making food for Salamandhys could be said to be a kind of torture. He derived no happiness from it. In those sorts of circ.u.mstances, thought Nian Bing still could cook delicious food, the quality was a lot worse than he would have wanted it. Since he had left the Peach Blossom Forest, Nian Bing had never made something like the perfect dish he wanted to make now.
So focused on mixing his seasonings, he didn"t notice that behind him, Salamandhys cracked an eye open to watch him (still snoring). Saliva dripped out of the corner of a grotesque smile.
Nian Bing took two hours to mix the seasonings to his satisfaction. He took a second to look at the close to thirty bottles of seasoning that he used, then put them all back into his s.p.a.ce ring. He then firmly grasped the positions of the bottles he wanted inside the s.p.a.ce ring, as well as the markings on them. He then nodded in satisfaction.
He then filled a basin with clean water. He bought a clean towel from the hotel, and then took out his four divine knives and carefully wiped them clean. Tomorrow, he did not want there to be a single flaw in the meal he would make a meal for Yu Ru Yan. After all of this, he sat cross-legged on the bed. The last thing he did was rub the toasty Heavenly Flower Tile before entering meditation.
After evolving, the magic elements that the Ice and Fire Source absorbed did not need careful management. Just by relying on the harmonization of ice and fire, he could absorb the two types of magic element much faster than ever before. He sent his spiritual force outwards; very soon, Nian Bing, who emptied his mind, sank into a much deeper meditative state. Bit by bit, particle by particle, his magic was advancing.
He meditated from the afternoon to the morning of the next day. The minute the rays of the sun filtered into the room, his eyes opened. Unbeknownst to him, one of Nian Bing"s bright blue eyes had turned a scorching red, while the other had turned as clear and deep blue as the sky. With just a thought, he mobilized the magic in through his body. The vigor of magic was very soothing.
After a good stretch, he turned to look at Salamandhys. Salamandhys still sound asleep. Everything was going just as well as he imagined.
He lightly got off the bed. Despite the crudeness of the inn, it still had a washroom. Nian Bing took a bath, dispelling the last of his jitters. He then took out the clothes Xue Jing had given him back then from his s.p.a.ce ring.
The white long robe had a dragon embroidered it with silver thread. It wasn"t that heavily decorated, but it added the finishing touches to the ensemble. It was sumptuous without losing to elegance. The set came with a simple white belt with a milky-white stone at the center. Caressing the white clothes, he could not help of think of when he chased away Xue Jing. Jing"er, are you do welling now? I hope that you won"t blame me. I had no other option. You have a bad temper, but it doesn"t change that you are a nice girl. I hope that you can find your other half and live happily.
The silver dragon clothes that he changed into, complimented his aristocratic features well. The white clothes outlined his slender form while setting off his golden hair. His sea blue eyes held a unfathomable depth. Breathing in deeply, Nian Bing set off at a fast pace away from the inn.
Just as Nian Bing exited the inn, Salamandhys who was lying in the room suddenly sat up. "Boy, you actually want to go make good food for someone else without calling me. Hmmph, I will also have my fill. Nian Bing, oh Nian Bing. Did you think that my brand was only to sense your position? Hehe…"
As he walked on the main road, Nian Bing felt more and more uncomfortable because of all the scrutiny he was getting from the people pa.s.sing by. The gazes of the young girls made him feel particularly apprehensive. Was the Profound Orchid Empire so open-minded? It seemed it would be better if he had wore simple clothes! Now that he was in this situation, there was nothing he could do. He simply sped up until he reached the duke"s mansion.
After showing his Heavenly Flower Tile, the Silver Feather Cavalrymen quickly let him in through the entrance. He followed a servant back to Duke Lan Yu"s study. On a normal day, when Duke Lan Yu was not at court, he would be in study managing his affairs.
At the entrance of the study, he heard people talking.
"Lord Duke, this is the news our sisters retrieved after nearly half a year. Do you have any instructions?"
Duke Lan Yu said, "En, I have caused you much trouble. You don"t have to go back there. I have something else I need you to do, so rest in the mansion first."
After this brief exchange, the servant who had led Nian Bing in announced loudly, "Lord Duke, Sir Nian Bing has arrived."
"Oh, let him in."
When he heard the voice speaking before, Nian Bing realized that the girl"s voice was very familiar. He must have heard it somewhere before, but it wasn"t Yu Ru Yan"s voice. The servant motioned him in with these doubts in Nian Bing"s heart. He pushed open the door only to see Duke Lan Yu sitting behind his desk like was yesterday, Yu Ru yan standing next to him and smiling, and two girls standing solemnly in front of the desk. When they heard him enter, the two girls subconsciously turned around.
Nian Bing"s jaw dropped in shock. "Ah! Why are you here?"
The surprise was mirrored. "Why are you here?"