Smack!
Under the astonished gazes of Gu Yanxi and Gu Yu, Gu Guosheng struck Niu Qi with a rod. “This one is for the General! Of all things to become, why did you choose to be an assassin? Do you accept this?”
Smack!
Another strike landed. “This one is for my daughter! Though you ultimately failed in your assassination attempt, if she hadn’t been capable, her hands would have been ruined!”
Smack!
“The third strike is to warn you! I ask you now—will you continue being an assassin in the future?”
Gu Guosheng frowned deeply. He never expected that the General, such an upright man, would have his son turn to assassination after his passing.
When Niu Qi was young, he’d affectionately called him “Uncle Gu” all the time.
Moreover, this child had always loved martial arts since childhood. When the General was unavailable, Gu Guosheng had personally taught him.
He had practically watched this boy grow up.
Niu Qi hung his head in shame. “Uncle Gu, I’ll never dare again.”
Seeing that Niu Qi still understood reason, Gu Guosheng felt relieved.
Truthfully, he shouldn’t be the one to discipline this child, but he couldn’t stand by and watch the General’s son go astray!
He turned to his daughter. “A-Yan, for your father’s sake, could you forgive Little Niu?”
Gu Yanxi waved at her younger brother. “Let him go.”
Now free, Niu Qi approached Gu Yanxi with a face full of remorse, clasping his hands in apology. “Miss Gu, I’m truly sorry about today’s incident. The owner of Caiyun Guan offered a high price.”
He had regretted taking the job immediately, but he didn’t have a single copper coin to his name, and ordinary work couldn’t feed him.
His big appetite had even made his adoptive mother drive him out.
“It’s that Li Si again!” Gu Yu clenched his fists.
Gu Yanxi also frowned deeply, feeling disgusted at the thought of that man with his rough, fleshy face.
This Li Si was truly everywhere!
After understanding the whole story, Gu Guosheng was furious. Caiyun Guan—first harming his son, now hiring someone to maim his daughter. This debt would be repaid someday!
But for now, he needed to arrange things for Little Niu.
He cleared his throat lightly. “Little Niu, where are you living now?”
Niu Qi lowered his head. “The broken temple in the suburbs.”
The broken temple?
Gu Guosheng’s brows furrowed deeply.
He remembered there was only one broken temple outside Jingdu city—so dilapidated it didn’t even have a roof, offering no shelter from wind or rain.
Only those near death would go there.
He couldn’t bear to imagine what kind of life Niu Qi had been living.
“Since you have nowhere to stay, you can remain here.”
Niu Qi was stunned. “Uncle Gu…”
“Father, he eats so much! How can we afford to feed him?” Gu Yu was the first to object.
He had seen with his own eyes—Niu Qi’s appetite was bigger than an ox’s, capable of downing ten portions of Tieban Tudou without blinking.
But Gu Guosheng completely ignored him, so he turned to his older sister. “Sister, please talk some sense into Father!”
Gu Yanxi glanced at Niu Qi, understanding his difficulties.
Her father had an unusual relationship with Niu Qi, and she happened to need help with her business.
She spoke calmly, “You can stay, but not for free. You’ll have to earn your keep, or our family can’t afford to feed a big eater like you.”
Niu Qi understood—this meant room and board were provided!
He sprang to his feet, eyes shining. “I can do that!”
Seeing that his sister had agreed to let Niu Qi stay, Gu Yu reluctantly accepted the situation.
But thinking of what happened today, he waved his fist at Niu Qi, “From now on, you’ll listen to me when working! Don’t you dare harm my sister, or I’ll fight you to the death!”
Finally.
To prevent suspicious people from tracing Niu Qi, Gu Guosheng instructed him to keep using his current name until The Great General’s reputation was restored, after which he could revert to his original surname.
“Noodles are ready! Noodles are ready!”
Zhao Shi carried out three bowls of noodles, each topped with a fried egg, some leafy greens, and a spoonful of Gu Yanxi’s secret sesame oil that was irresistibly fragrant.
Though Niu Qi had eaten ten portions of Tieban Tudou earlier and wasn’t originally hungry, the aroma of the noodles instantly made his stomach feel empty again.
He picked up the bowl and slurped down the noodles in just a few mouthfuls.
Worried he wasn’t full, Zhao Shi went back to the kitchen to cook more noodles.
Just as Gu Yanxi finished her noodles and set down her chopsticks, her younger brother pulled her under the eaves.
“Sis, what kind of bewitching potion did he give Dad? Dad keeps defending him, and Mom keeps cooking noodles for him, afraid he might go hungry. He’s already eaten three whole bowls—won’t he choke?”
“Stop complaining.” Gu Yanxi flicked her brother’s forehead. “If you usually listened more to Mom and Dad, they’d treat you just as well.”
“Come help me quickly.”
“Sis, what delicious food are you making now?”
Gu Yu sprang up eagerly and followed his sister to the kitchen.
When his sister took charge, it was always something super tasty!
He needed to behave well so he could eat more later!
Gu Yanxi took out the chicken feet she had bought, poured them into a large basin to wash, and prepared to make—Pao Jiao Chicken Feet.
Zhao Shi came to wash dishes and happened to see this.
She picked up the basin, ready to discard the contents, “Chicken feet trample around in the dirt. Look, there’s still filth stuck on them. They’re too smelly—you can’t eat these.”
“Mom!” Gu Yanxi hurried over to stop her. “Don’t judge by their appearance. Once prepared, they become an incredibly delicious treat.”
“Yanxi, even though we’re poor, we shouldn’t shortchange ourselves. If you want meat, just say so. I’ll buy some. These chicken feet hardly have any meat on them…”
“Mom~” Gu Yanxi guided Zhao Shi to sit aside and patiently explained, “Don’t you trust your daughter?”
Under her daughter’s dual tactics of coaxing and acting cute, Zhao Shi had no choice but to let her do as she pleased.
Soon after.
Niu Qi entered.
“Is there anything I can help with?”
Seeing free labor arrive, Gu Yanxi picked up a chicken foot, demonstrating as she explained, “See this thick skin? Scald it with boiling water to soften it, then peel it off. Look, like this… After cleaning, trim the nails off each one.”
Niu Qi learned quickly and worked deftly, handling each chicken foot meticulously.
Gu Yanxi was very pleased with this.
Although Niu Qi ate quite a bit, he showed some talent in food preparation.
Her impression of him improved significantly.
The three of them worked for over an hour before all the chicken feet were cleaned.
“Niu Qi, chop firewood.”
“Gu Yu, tend the fire.”
Gu Yanxi poured the chicken feet into a large pot, added ginger slices and scallion segments, along with star anise, bay leaves, and other spices, and boiled them over high heat.
Once cooked, she fished them out and rinsed them in well water.
Chilling the chicken feet in well water would make them more springy and chewy.
Next was preparing the pickled pepper brine.
Gu Yanxi called out to Niu Qi in the yard, “Niu Qi, scoop some pickled peppers from the Sauerkraut Jar, and ladle two spoonfuls of the pickling liquid. Make sure the chopsticks are completely dry—no water droplets at all.”
These pickled peppers had been prepared by her some time ago and were now ready to eat.
Into the brine, she added salt, sugar, sliced garlic, Sichuan peppercorns, chopped bird’s eye chilies, and cooled boiled water.
Side vegetables could also be added to the chicken feet—Gu Yanxi felt the marinated vegetables were even more delicious than the chicken feet themselves!
After searching around, Gu Yanxi found carrots, onions, celery, and green and red peppers at home. She chopped them all up and added them to the mix.
Then, she poured the chicken feet into the pickled pepper brine and lowered the container into the well to chill. By evening, they would be perfectly ready to eat.
Evening.
Gu Yanxi simply stir-fried two side dishes and cooked some vegetable congee.
Then came the main event—she brought out the Pao Jiao Chicken Feet!
As soon as the Pao Jiao Chicken Feet were placed on the table, their tangy, aromatic scent instantly filled the air, and everyone’s eyes were fixed on the dish.
“This… Yanxi, is this really edible?”
Gu Guosheng stared at the chicken feet, not daring to pick up his chopsticks.
Although the dish smelled delicious, the taste…
Back when the family was poor, they had once bought chicken feet to eat. The flavor… was so awful that he still remembered it vividly!
“Yanxi, maybe we shouldn’t eat this after all…” Zhao Shi also hesitated to pick up her chopsticks. She had experienced the “power” of chicken feet before—stinky, tough, and with hardly any meat, they were nearly impossible to swallow.
Gu Yu, however, stared at the chicken feet with gleaming eyes. “I’ve been craving this all afternoon!”
He immediately picked one up with his chopsticks and put it in his mouth.
The flavors were complex—sour, spicy, and refreshing—and unlike anything he had ever tasted before! It was somewhat like eating pickled vegetables, but not purely sour like them.
“Delicious!”
Gu Yu was an expert at gnawing on bones. In just a few bites, he finished one chicken foot and reached for a second with his chopsticks.
Seeing how much he was enjoying it, Niu Qi also picked one up.
Once he started eating, he couldn’t stop.
The way he was frantically gnawing on the bones made it clear the flavor was anything but bad.
“Mom, Dad, stop hesitating! This is seriously delicious. I think it’s even better than Tieban Tudou and Liangmian!”
Gu Yu hissed and puffed, his mouth nearly numb from the spiciness, but the chicken feet seemed to have some kind of magical hold on him—he simply couldn’t stop eating.
“R-really? Is it really that good?” Zhao Shi could hardly believe it.