Fang Er and Xiao Qing, carrying three dishes, emerged from the kitchen just as Cheng Chumuo and Yuchi Baolin entered.
"Hey, I say, you two, are your noses like dogs'? As soon as I finished cooking, you showed up."
Fang Er teased them, showing no politeness.
Cheng Chumuo and Yuchi Baolin were stunned by Fang Er.
The usually elegant Young Master Fang was now covered in the smell of cooking smoke. His white shirt sleeve was splashed with oil stains. What was going on? The young master of the Fang family was actually doing the work of a cook?
"Brother Fang, they say a true gentleman stays away from the kitchen. But looking at you, could it be that you can cook yourself?"
Having visited a few times, Xiao Qing knew the unusual relationship between them and her young master. Before Fang Er could speak, she said, "My young master is not an ordinary person. His cooking is delicious. If you keep talking like this, Xiao Qing won't give you chopsticks later, and you'll be starving! Hmph!"
"Haha, did you hear that? Be careful, you might not get any food later!"
Fang Er was amused. He handed the dishes in his hands to the waiting maidservant and then went to sit in the courtyard.
The maidservants took the dishes, placed them on the table, and arranged them.
Several dishes were already on the table. With the three newly cooked dishes, there were a total of seven or eight plates.
Tiger Zi, with keen eyesight, brought out the wine and poured it for the three of them.
Fang Er picked up his chopsticks and distributed them to Cheng Chumuo and Yuchi Baolin. "Come, try them. If you want to eat my dishes, you need fate. Since you've met, let's all see how good my skills as a cook are."
The two of them weren't embarrassed, knowing Fang Er was joking. They picked up their chopsticks, took a bite of the food, and put it into their mouths.
Their expressions changed instantly.
Cheng Chumuo was alright. He had eaten Xiao Qing's cooking before and knew that the Fang family's food was delicious, so he had some psychological preparation.
But Yuchi Baolin hadn't eaten it before. He felt that everything he had eaten in the past dozen years was pig slop. Looking at the dishes in front of him, they were all appealing in color, aroma, and taste. That piece of red, fatty meat had melted in his mouth, completely lacking the usual fishy smell of pork. Moreover, the salty aroma was accompanied by a hint of sweetness. The texture was exquisite!
"Delicious! Brother Fang, your culinary skills are truly amazing!"
Yuchi Baolin put down his chopsticks and exclaimed.
"Hahahaha, convinced, aren't you? What 'gentleman stays away from the kitchen'? It's just an excuse for a bunch of lazy people who don't want to cook. When it comes to cooking, men are more talented than women! Come, come, let's drink!"
Fang Er said with a laugh, raising his wine cup.
The three of them ate and drank.
Cheng Jin and Yuchi Baolin were eating with their mouths full of oil.
Of course, Fang Er didn't forget Xiao Qing. The girl was in the kitchen with two other maidservants, wolfing down the food without any regard for feminine demeanor.
"Sister Qing, did the young master really make these dishes?"
Tong Yan, her chest ample and her secret hidden, wiped the oil from her mouth and asked incredulously.
"Of course. I saw the young master making them myself. The young master said that these dishes will be introduced in our restaurant in the future. He asked me to learn first. Once I learn, I'll teach the cooks at the restaurant. Coupled with the wine our young master made, the business will surely be booming!"
Xiao Qing said with great pride.
"I really envy you, Sister Qing. The young master treats you so well. Perhaps he'll make you a concubine in the future."
Another young maidservant said enviously from the side.
"Eat your food. It's so delicious, can't it shut your mouth?"
Xiao Qing gave the maidservant a sidelong glance. Then, while eating, she thought of the young master's actions over the past few days and couldn't help but laugh out loud.
Seeing her laugh inexplicably with a happy smile on her face, the two maidservants on the side started teasing her again.
"Tiger Zi, go find a good restaurant outside and have them send over several tables of good food. Don't be afraid of spending money. Also, bring out our wine for these brothers. We have plenty!"
Fang Er instructed Tiger Zi. How could the three of them eat and drink while the twenty housekeepers were just there?
"Brother Fang, there's no need for such trouble. Just have Brother Hu Zi lead them out to eat."
Cheng Chumuo said from the side.
"Once they enter my Fang family, they are family. There's no reason to eat outside. Tiger Zi, hurry up."
Fang Er refused his kind offer.
Tiger Zi responded and went out.
Then Fang Er continued to talk about his plan.
He planned to have Uncle Zhang and Tiger Zi take the housekeepers of both families to Jiangnan together.
They would take three thousand taels of silver for travel expenses, and the remaining six mirrors.
Upon arriving in Jiangnan, Cheng Chumuo's cousin would publicly auction off the mirrors. Jiangnan was prosperous with many wealthy merchants. After the auction, they would immediately find grain merchants to purchase grain, and then transport the grain by boat through the Grand Canal from Jiangnan to Luoyang, and then transfer it to ox carts to be brought back to Chang'an.
He also arranged for Zhu Zi to buy a manor outside Chang'an City, specifically to the east of Chang'an City. Yes, Fang Er was still worried about that old man Jieli. He had no intention of returning to Gaoling. His uncle was too disgusting.
That fellow came from the northwest.
Therefore, the east side was safer. Moreover, his current Fang mansion was in the east of Chang'an City, no more than a mile from Chunming Gate. Outside Chunming Gate was the Longshou Canal.
Being close to the water source made it convenient for whatever he did there in the future.
Cheng Chumuo and Yuchi Baolin nodded repeatedly as they listened.
"By the way, Brother Fang, you're only a year older than me. Haven't you thought about seeking an official position?"
Cheng Chumuo asked curiously after hearing Fang Er's plan.
Normally, if an ordinary person had established such connections with the Cheng and Yuchi families, even if he couldn't become a civil official, it would be easy to secure a military post. However, Fang Er had never mentioned any such plans.
"Seek an official position? I'm living such a comfortable life day by day. Why should I be managed by others? I'm just destined to be lazy; I can't be an official!"
Fang Er finished speaking, drank the wine in his hand, then half-reclined on his chair and looked at the two of them, continuing, "Look, I'm just lying here, not worried about money. With the support of you two, as long as I don't do anything illegal, who in Chang'an City can bully me?"
"Hahahaha, Brother Fang is right! As long as we don't mess around, if anyone dares to cause trouble in Chang'an City, see if my brother's steel mace doesn't beat the shit out of them!"
Yuchi Baolin was already a bit drunk. After hearing Fang Er's words, he directly took off the steel mace at his waist and threw it on the table.
With a "clang" sound, the table directly got a small dent.
Fang Er's eyes widened. Was this thing that heavy?
He reached out to test it, "Damn it!"
He couldn't even lift it with one hand!
"Hahahaha, Brother Fang, this mace was passed down to me by my father. It weighs a full thirty-six catties!"
Yuchi Baolin said proudly.
Fang Er tried with both hands, and it was true, it weighed over thirty catties.