“Master Zheng, have some pears. These were freshly picked from the village and sent over—they’re really sweet.”
“Look, I even washed them clean.”
Zheng Kui glanced sideways at the old man, who was fawningly offering up a round, brown-skinned pear.
He didn’t reach out to take it but sneered instead.
“Old Wang, you’re wandering around here without setting up your stall today? That’s not like you.”
“Master Zheng, don’t say that. We’ve been old acquaintances for years. Bringing you a couple of pears is just the right thing to do.”
Zheng Kui snorted coldly.
“Acquaintances? I owed you barely a couple of copper coins before, and you kept pestering me for them. I’m not about to eat your pears.”
“Please, please eat them. They’re meant especially for you, Master Zheng.”
“Cut the crap. What do you want from me?”
Seeing that Zheng Kui wouldn’t take the pear, the old man put it back and pressed his thin eyebrows together, wearing a pitiful look.
“There’s a new stall opened over at Sifang Street, right? The newcomer doesn’t know the rules and, riding high on good business, actually stirred up trouble with Wu San Ye. A few days ago, Wu San Ye came to my stall and went on a rampage, shouting insults and smashing things. I could tolerate the temper, but how could he mistake me for some enemy?”
Zheng Kui sneered.
“Do you think I’m stupid? Playing the innocent act. I’m not here to listen to your nonsense. I’m busy, so I’m off.”
Old Wang quickly grabbed Zheng Kui’s arm, dropping the pitiful act.
“Wait, wait, Master Zheng, don’t go. I’m telling you, I’m telling you!”
He then recounted the whole story of how he had tried to learn cooking from Cao Wen.
Zheng Kui was no stranger to dirty schemes like this.
“Why bring me into your petty squabbles? You’re just a small-time stall owner from the village. You’ve been at the market for years—can’t you just chase him off yourself?”
Old Wang replied, “I’m just a small-time businessman. That young man is strong; I can’t handle him alone. You need someone special for that. After years in the market’s tea business, I figured I’d ask for help from someone like Master Zheng.”
Zheng Kui flicked his coat corner.
Although his status wasn’t what it used to be back in the Qian Family’s heyday, flattery still felt good.
Besides, he’d recently gotten involved in a small gambling den with some others and was finally making some progress.
He’d almost forgotten the disgrace of his earlier days, like a drowning dog.
“Such a small matter and you want me to step in?”
Old Wang was quick to slip a pouch into Zheng Kui’s hand.
“Thank you for your trouble, Master Zheng. If you don’t intervene, I’ll truly be bullied.”
Zheng Kui jingled the pouch.
“Oh? Even you, so stingy, are going all out? Looks like this grudge runs deep.”
A sharp gleam flashed in Old Wang’s eyes.
“Just get that kid kicked out of the market, and don’t let him come back to do business.”
Money always talks, especially a fat bribe.
Zheng Kui stuffed the pouch into his pocket.
He’d been busy with his own affairs lately and hadn’t been out much. He’d heard that a small stir-fry stall on Sifang Street was attracting quite a crowd.
He never had time to try it until now.
Turns out this visit would be more of a challenge than a simple meal.
But with the old man’s generous payment, he was happy to take the job.
“All right, it’s a small matter. I’ll bring a couple of brothers along and handle it.”
Old Wang’s face lit up.
“Great! Great!”
“If it’s just some talking, that’s best. If the kid isn’t afraid, we’ll loosen him up a bit. After it’s done, I’ll take you and the others out to eat tonight.”
Zheng Kui brought out two burly men.
Their limbs were thick and muscular, but their eyes looked dull and a little slow-witted.
He sighed.
These two were not very sharp but necessary for breaking things up.
He didn’t want to bring idiots, but when it came to smashing and bashing, strong limbs were essential.
“Brother Zheng, don’t worry, we’ve got this all figured out.”
Zheng Kui nodded and put on an air of authority.
When they arrived at Sifang Street, he let the two men go ahead to deal with the small stall.
It wouldn’t take much—some complaint about flies in the wine, worms in the food, then flipping tables and breaking bowls.
If the stall owner was uncooperative, they’d teach him a lesson to make him comply.
When Zheng Kui got there, he saw what a booming business looked like—people packed in three layers deep.
Even the stall owner’s own helpers couldn’t be seen.
The smell from afar was mouthwatering, no wonder Old Wang coveted the cooking skills.
He jumped on his toes, trying to peek inside but to no avail.
The two men quickly pushed through the crowd and squeezed their way in.
This made Zheng Kui all the more curious about the food being served—so much so that even the servants of wealthy families were lined up.
Even Wu San Ye of the silk and satin guild had humbled himself to eat here.
“Make way, make way! Young master’s coming through!”
Zheng Kui, who had been ready to enjoy the scene from outside, pushed aside a few people like a rascal to finally get inside.
“I want to see for myself…”
Before he could finish, he locked eyes with a stunning woman holding a tray.
“?”
“Ha! What a coincidence! Isn’t this my cousin’s wife? You’re here eating at a stall too?”
Zheng Kui laughed and forced a smile at the cold-faced Xu Duoyan.
“Cao Wen’s here too, right?”
Xu Duoyan raised an eyebrow.
“What are you doing here?”
“Just looking for some excitement.”
Zheng Kui silently backed away a bit, his gaze wary.
A familiar figure by the stove suddenly gave him a bad feeling.
He stiffened his neck, turned, and sucked in a cold breath before quickly looking back.
Damn it, just bad luck!
He must’ve forgotten to check the almanac before leaving home today to get caught up in this mess with this troublesome couple!
The silver hidden in his chest pocket suddenly felt like a hot coal.
Zheng Kui wanted to leave, but with his two idiots still inside, he forced himself to stay calm.
“My cousin’s doing well from a young age. Look, it’s only been a few days since I last saw him and he’s already running a business. Truly impressive.”
Zheng Kui praised Xu Duoyan, but his gaze shifted to the two men who had already secured seats under the canopy.
He swallowed and widened his eyes slightly, signaling the two men to leave quickly.
The two exchanged glances, reading Zheng Kui’s meaning.
“Brother Zheng wants us to act fast, right?”
“But the dishes aren’t even served yet. How do we find a reason to cause trouble?”
The two whispered back and forth but couldn’t decide, looking again at Zheng Kui.
Seeing their eyes nearly rolling, Zheng Kui sighed.
The man took a breath.
“Brother Zheng’s dropped enough hints—let’s do it! Get it over with and then we can go eat!”
With that, one of the men flicked a few flies into a nearby table’s dishes, then stood and smashed the plates in one go.
“There are flies in the food! This isn’t clean!”
From a distance, Zheng Kui watched his two idiots foolishly standing and making trouble, feeling as if he had stepped into an ice-cold pool in the dead of winter.
He nearly choked.
He just wanted to make some easy money, not get beaten up again while looking for Cao Wen!
Amid the noisy crowd, Zheng Kui tried to slip away low to the ground but suddenly felt a grip on his wrist.
“Brother Zheng! Long time no see! Why are you leaving without a word?”
“Please, I beg you, don’t talk to me like that.”
Seeing Xu Duoyan’s fake smile, Zheng Kui nearly wet himself.
He tried to break free, but the two troublemakers thought he was already in a fight and, as if on cue, flipped another table, shouting angrily, “What kind of business are you running?”
Cao Yang, carrying dishes, was startled by the sudden outburst.
He’d never seen such a scene and hesitated to intervene.
Before he could act, a strong hand moved faster than him.
“Ahhhhh!”
A sharp scream pierced the air.
Cao Wen, who normally seemed approachable and easygoing when tossing woks and cooking, suddenly showed a terrifying side.
Veins bulging in his arm, he grabbed one of the rioters and slammed him to the ground in a matter of seconds.
The other man, seeing his comrade helplessly beaten like a trained fighter with no counterattack, panicked.
Embarrassed, he shouted in fury and swung a punch at Cao Wen, but was swiftly knocked down by a sweeping leg.
Cao Wen dragged the two men together, tossing them around lightly like frying woks.
The crowd was so intimidated no one dared throw a single punch.
The men quickly begged for mercy.
“Stop, stop hitting us!”
“You want to flip my stall over with just two words? Do you think I’m only good at cooking? Don’t you know your two bones can’t take my blows?”
The two men looked at Cao Wen’s young face, realizing they had underestimated him.
Their eyes spun with stars as they stammered out, “It’s a misunderstanding, a complete misunderstanding!”
Cao Wen sized up their muscular arms and knew they were trained fighters, clearly here to cause trouble.
“Who sent you?”
The two men huddled together, unwilling to speak.
“It was him, right?”
Xu Duoyan dragged Zheng Kui over. The three met, and the two men cried out, “Brother Zheng, Brother Zheng, save us!”
Zheng Kui looked up at Cao Wen, smiling as if he were about to cry.
“Awen, I swear it wasn’t me who sent them.”
Cao Wen kicked Zheng Kui as a greeting.
“Then why are these guys screaming for your help?”
Zheng Kui winced.
“Old Wang—that old bastard who learned cooking from you guys—he paid these thugs to come mess with you. I didn’t know you had a stall here. If I had, I’d have hidden instead of stirring trouble!”
Hearing this, Cao Wen and Xu Duoyan, despite their good temper, were annoyed by the stall owner’s antics.
They had repeatedly ignored him but never expected the man to become addicted to his one-man show.
The men who smashed his stall were outsiders, yet he hired people to smash theirs.
Truly interesting.
They had clearly counted on him being soft and afraid of trouble.
Cao Wen’s gaze turned cold as he grabbed Zheng Kui.
“Awen, let’s talk this through properly. Don’t like this, don’t like this!”
Cao Wen dragged Zheng Kui to Old Wang’s stall in the middle of Sifang Street and dropped him on the ground.
Old Wang hadn’t expected Cao Wen to be so tough.
He subdued the man in seconds, thinking this time he’d come to beat him up.
He was trembling so much his legs wouldn’t obey.
“We’re all out here to make a living, each minding our own business. But some keep stirring up trouble again and again. People say a thing happens no more than three times. I’ve let it slide before, which made bullies think I was easy to push around. But I’m no soft target. Let me be clear: if anyone causes trouble again, it’ll be like this table.”
With that, Cao Wen smashed Old Wang’s table into splinters with a single kick.
Wood chips scattered everywhere.
Though Cao Wen didn’t name names, everyone knew who was responsible. Old Wang’s face turned white with fear.
“I don’t lay hands on the weak or old, but if anyone pulls shady tricks on this street again, don’t blame me for being merciless.”
The other stall owners swallowed hard, clearly intimidated by Cao Wen.
Zheng Kui, still lying on the ground pretending to be dead, chimed in, “Yeah, we’re all here to do business. Harmony brings wealth, harmony brings wealth!”
The watching crowd cheered and applauded.
From a distance, Cao Yang’s heart pounded wildly.
He looked at Cao Wen, goosebumps rising all over him, gripping his fists tightly in admiration.
He glanced at Xu Duoyan beside him.
Xu Duoyan’s brow lifted slightly, a faint smile playing at the corner of her lips.