[Wow… this tastes awful.]
Yan Changye paused, his chopsticks stopping midair.
Without changing his expression, he picked up a steamed bun.
The kitchen had no idea what the new Young Madam preferred, so they had prepared both Chinese and Western breakfasts.
There were meat-filled buns and vegetable buns.
The chef was an experienced master who finely minced the fillings and seasoned them well.
The bun in Liu Xiyin’s hand was filled with meat.
The one Yan Changye picked up was the same.
He couldn’t taste anything wrong with it.
Liu Xiyin, however, had been caught completely off guard.
She had forgotten.
The salt of this era tasted bitter.
Those who had grown up with it probably wouldn’t notice.
But Liu Xiyin certainly did.
How could someone raised on refined salt possibly get used to this?
When she had first been reborn in the countryside, she had secretly refined her own salt.
After returning to the Liu family, she had deliberately avoided the heroine by pretending to be timid and asking Madam Liu to arrange a small private kitchen for her, where she cooked her own meals.
Now that she was at the Yan Residence, she had no opportunity to cook.
One bite was enough.
It felt as though every spoonful of salt contained half a spoonful of dirt.
Even the fragrant meat filling had turned bitter and gamey.
[Too bitter… It’s way too bitter.]
[Why couldn’t the author just make the salt normal? This isn’t even the real Republican Era. Was it really necessary to recreate something like this?]
[Every time I want to eat decent salt, I have to sneak around. My life is so miserable.]
[Of course, the salt isn’t at fault. It’s because of underdeveloped technology… the era… the ruling class.]
[Salt and iron have always been state monopolies. Private citizens aren’t allowed to refine salt. I wonder if the great villain would secretly cover for me. A great warlord is basically a local emperor—he should have the authority to produce salt.]
The little bride knows how to refine salt?
Yan Changye’s fingertips tightened almost imperceptibly as he listened carefully.
The previous night, he had thoroughly reviewed Liu Xiyin’s file.
Shortly after birth, she had been separated from the Liu family and raised by a farming couple.
After they adopted her, the family’s life had steadily improved.
The villagers all said that good people received good fortune.
More people believed that the little bride herself carried extraordinary luck, bringing prosperity to the farming family.
But if she truly came from the future…
If she could build that miniature recorder…
If she could even refine salt…
Then perhaps the farmers’ improved life had been more than simple good luck.
Yan Changye decided another, much more thorough investigation was necessary.
Just then, Liu Xiyin’s eyes suddenly reddened.
She took another bite of the bun.
Yan Changye: ?
Didn’t she just say it tasted terrible?
[So many people in this era don’t even have enough to eat, yet I’m complaining about a meat bun tasting bad. I’m such a terrible person.]
Yan Changye: “…”
Liu Xiyin hadn’t eaten for an entire day.
Remembering the hardships of this era, she no longer cared about the taste and ate with surprising enthusiasm.
As a result…
Yan Changye never found the opportunity to ask about her salt-refining methods.
Forget it.
If she ever discovered that he could hear her thoughts, she would probably never dare think freely again.
She was already extremely wary of him.
Once that happened…
He would never learn anything from her inner thoughts again.
It was best to pretend nothing had happened.
With that decision made, Yan Changye said nothing more.
After breakfast, it was already half past eight.
The servants brought tea for rinsing the mouth and warm water for washing hands.
Liu Xiyin experienced firsthand just how meticulous wealthy households truly were.
It seemed the great villain hadn’t skipped bathing the previous night because he was unhygienic.
He had simply never intended to sleep.
His only goal had been interrogating her as a suspected spy.
Realizing that, Liu Xiyin finally relaxed.
If she had to live with him until she managed to escape…
And he really had poor hygiene…
She would lose her mind.
After washing their hands and rinsing their mouths, the car bound for the Marshal’s Mansion was prepared.
[Today the great villain will encounter an explosion on Heping South Street. A timed bomb has been attached beneath his car, and another one hundred and eighty pounds of explosives have been buried near Xinmao Department Store. Whoever planned this really wants to blow him into pieces.]
[But he’s protected by villain plot armor. Not only does he leap out of the car in time, he only loses one leg. He even meets the future Ninth Concubine there, and that’s where their unforgettable romance begins.]
[Although the author never explained why the Ninth Concubine happened to be there, being saved and then repaying the favor with lifelong devotion—it’s such a classic meeting.]
“…”
Yan Changye suddenly had the overwhelming urge to open her skull and pour out whatever was inside.
A timed bomb beneath his car…
And another bomb on Heping South Street?
One hundred and eighty pounds of explosives near the busiest department store in the city?
If that exploded…
The casualties would never be limited to him alone.
[The great villain survives because he’s protected by plot armor. I’m only cannon fodder—I don’t have any! Neither do the ordinary people near Xinmao Department Store!]
[If I leave with him, I’ll get blown into meat filling before anything else happens.]
[Thirty-two civilians die or are injured around Xinmao Department Store.]
[How can I warn him without sounding suspicious and getting arrested as a spy?]
As a genius blessed with a photographic memory, Liu Xiyin had immediately summarized the novel’s key events after discovering she’d become the Liu family’s real daughter.
She remembered every important storyline involving the great villain and the main protagonists.
But in the original novel…
Yan Changye had been heading to the docks today to receive one of his sworn brothers.
She had never been involved.
How had things changed so drastically?
Because she had produced the miniature recorder, she had been treated as a spy and brought back to the Yan Residence.
The storyline had shifted.
Was it now her turn to die?
Just as she’d escaped one deadly pit…
Another one had opened beneath her feet.
Liu Xiyin refused to die.
[Maybe I should pretend to trip and fall flat on my face while leaving the house. Then I can secretly check underneath the car.]
[After acting frightened, I can delay the trip to serve tea and somehow persuade him to investigate Heping South Street.]
During the month she’d spent preparing for marriage in Ancheng, Liu Xiyin had already familiarized herself with the city’s layout.
The Marshal’s Mansion stood at the far end of Heping South Street.
That street connected with several major roads.
Anyone heading for the docks would also pass through it.
So if there was a bomb beneath the car…
There was very likely another bomb waiting on Heping South Street.
Liu Xiyin secretly glanced at Yan Changye, whose expression had grown noticeably darker.
[He already suspected I was a spy last night. I absolutely can’t tell him directly, or I’ll lose more than just my dignity.]
She made up her mind.
She would simply fall flat on her face.
That would make her look foolish.
It would also give Yan Changye another reason to dislike her.
When the Ninth Concubine eventually appeared…
Maybe remembering how embarrassing she’d been would make him even more willing to divorce her.
Hehe.
Walking toward the entrance, Yan Changye looked at the steadily falling snow.
His face remained calm, revealing nothing.
He simply said,
“The snow is getting heavier.”
“Go back and put on another cloak.”
The Yan Residence was heated, so the warmth indoors had hidden just how cold it was outside.
But beyond the doors lay a world of snow and ice.
Dressed as she was, Liu Xiyin would freeze.
Perfect, perfect.
An extra layer means my fall won’t hurt as much.
“Yes, Young Marshal.”
Liu Xiyin performed a proper lady’s curtsy before trotting off to change.
Fearing that Marshal Yan might cause more trouble, the Liu family had prepared an abundant dowry for her.
Everything the Marshal’s Mansion had sent as the betrothal gifts had accompanied her as well.
Among them were many beautiful winter outfits.
Since Yan Changye had ordered everything moved to the Yan Residence overnight…
She could finally choose something warm.
After Liu Xiyin disappeared upstairs, Yan Changye beckoned his adjutant closer and quietly gave him several instructions.