knife

Chapter 133 Complex Relationship

Li Dachui held a porcelain bowl in one hand and a pair of chopsticks in the other, whisking egg whites with a clattering sound. The hand speed of a peak ninth-grade Xuan Yuan expert was naturally unparalleled; someone like Luo Hua could barely see Li Dachui's hands, only a faint afterimage. In a short while, the small bowl of egg whites turned into a white, foamy mess.

The white paste was mixed again with the previously prepared egg yolk and flour mixture, and then placed in the oven to bake.

Li Dachui was generous in teaching Luo Hua about things like the cooking time and temperature.

After a short while, the oven was opened, and the golden, soft, and crispy sponge cake was officially baked in the small ceramic bowl.

Li Dachui then put the previously prepared cream into an oil paper bag, and with a gentle squeeze, the cream flowed out from the tip of the oil paper bag.

Li Dachui was very skillful; he even used the cream to draw various patterns on the cake.

Finally, sprinkle with crushed nuts and insert diced fruit, and a beautiful dessert is ready.

It looks good and tastes good.

Luo Hua stared at the seven or eight bowls of desserts on the table, then looked up at Li Dachui, completely stunned.

"You have nothing better to do than study this?" she asked, somewhat bewildered.

“These don’t require any research, they can be made with a little effort!” Li Dachui said with a smile. “My family’s cook can do them all now, but his skills are a little worse than mine. Today is just a small demonstration for you two sisters. I have many other dessert recipes here, and I will make them for you one by one when I have time in the future!”

That's really infuriating!

Luo Hua glanced at Xiao Changche beside him and said with a sneer, "Then I'm getting a free ride. I guess it wasn't mainly made for me to eat."

"Let's eat together, let's eat together!" Li Dachui laughed and handed a bowl to Xiao Changche: "You've lost a lot of weight recently, so eating more sweets can help you recover."

Xiao Changche was indifferent to food, but women always have an irresistible attachment to sweets. After just one bite, her eyes widened, and she finished the bowl in a few bites. Luo Hua, on the other hand, held a spoon and ate her food politely and tasted it.

While tidying up the dessert-making utensils on the table, Li Dachui said, "Ningyu, now that we've finished our desserts, we should head out to welcome the imperial envoy. He's the son of the prime minister and a trusted advisor to the emperor. It wouldn't be too much for us to greet him ten miles outside the city."

"A ten-mile welcome outside the city?" Xiao Changche said unhappily, "Is such a grand ceremony necessary? A few years ago when Linghu Ye came to Yuan'an for inspection, I only stood outside the military camp gate to greet him."

"They've come all this way to deliver the imperial decree of your promotion, so it's not unreasonable for us to welcome them!" Li Dachui said with a grin. "Besides, this imperial envoy has a father who is the prime minister, and the Wei family is a prestigious family in the Guanzhong Plain. It won't do us any harm to make friends with them."

"Didn't you say that none of these so-called wealthy and powerful families in the interior are any good? Why are you trying to curry favor with them now?" Xiao Changchedao said.

“They are certainly not good people, but we don’t have the luxury of being indifferent to all bad things right now!” Li Dachui said. “Now we have to drag them into dealing with Linghu Ye and Bei Yuan! Don’t look down on the Qin Dynasty now. Even a starved camel is bigger than a horse. If they let a little bit of something slip through their fingers, it will be enough for us to digest for a long time.”

Xiao Changche looked at Li Dachui and said, "Li Dachui, didn't you say you had a connection inside the pass? Who exactly is this connection? If you don't want to tell me, then forget it."

“What can’t I tell you?” Li Dachui said, “It’s about Ma Dacheng. Ma Dacheng has powerful backers in Chang’an. This person is Zhang Songlin, the Minister of War.”

"Ma Dacheng is your man?" Xiao Changche was taken aback.

Li Dachui waved his hand and said, "You're overthinking it. It's just a cooperative relationship. In the past two years, as the court has become more wary of Linghu Ye and has paid more attention to Yangguan, Ma Dacheng has become much less dependent on us. However, he still has the idea that if Linghu Ye rebels, we can join forces to fight against him, which is why he hasn't cut off our connection."

"Where is Zhang Songlin?"

"Although Zhang Songlin rose to the position of Minister of War, the Zhang family actually came from humble origins and did not have much wealth. Last year, after we made contact with him through Ma Dacheng, we opened up a trade route from outside the Great Wall to Chang'an and Luoyang. Zhang Songlin took a full 60% of the profits from the business on this route, while we only took 40%, barely breaking even."

"You've started making moves inside the Great Wall using Zhang Songlin?"

“Zhang Songlin rose from humble beginnings to become the Minister of War, defeating all the wealthy and powerful families who competed with him. Dealing with someone like that is like trying to get something from a tiger. He’s wary of us too! So all our efforts over the past two years have only resulted in laying some pieces at the bottom.” Li Dachui shook his head and said, “None of them are easy to deal with, but we can’t cut off this connection.”

"Now?" "Now it's naturally different." Li Dachui smiled. "Zhang Qingyun's main responsibility in Zhi Qiu Courtyard now is to open up the situation in Chang'an. The Zhang family can't be considered a wealthy and powerful family, but they are a truly noble family with considerable influence in Chang'an and Luoyang. This Zhang Qingyun, well, she used to be quite talented in Chang'an, and there were quite a few playboys gathered around her."

"A spoiled brat?"

"Don't underestimate these people, they're quite capable." Li Dachui laughed. "If you really make good use of these so-called spoiled brats, their abilities are unmatched by ordinary people."

"That's your business, I can't be bothered with it!" Xiao Changche picked up another bowl of dessert, took a bite, and said, "There's one more thing you didn't tell me. Who was the person who asked you to save Zhang Ruo back then?"

You might not believe me when I tell you!

"I still believe you as long as you speak seriously."

"Wei Zhengdao!"

"What?" Xiao Changche and Luo Hua's eyes widened.

"The person Wei Zhengdao indirectly sought out wasn't me, but my old man. Of course, in the end, this matter will inevitably fall on my shoulders."

"It was Wei Zhengdao who exiled Zhang Ruo to the borderlands, and it was also Wei Zhengdao who wanted to save his life. These people's thoughts are truly unfathomable." Xiao Changche rubbed his temples, feeling his brain wasn't quite working properly; they were all so cunning and sly. It seemed he really wasn't suited to dealing with these people; the battlefield was his forte. From now on, he'd let Li Dachui handle them.

"This time, Ma Dacheng of Yangguan sent his son to personally escort this imperial envoy surnamed Wei over. His purpose must be more than just that, right?" Luo Hua suddenly said from the side.

Li Dachui gave a thumbs up. "Miss Luo is right. Ma Dacheng has been neglecting me a bit these past two years. Now that our strength has been revealed, he's naturally getting restless. Sending his son here is obviously to rekindle our old relationship and strengthen our past bond. I guess this is also Zhang Songlin's idea."

"Aren't Zhang Songlin and Wei Zhengdao part of the same group?"

"They are now roughly a group of people, all wanting to work together to stabilize the crumbling Qin Dynasty. However, they have many disagreements on many details."

Just hearing about it gives me a headache!
Xiao Changche tossed his empty bowl onto the table, stood up, and said, "Let's go. Didn't you say you were going to welcome this imperial envoy from Shili? Let's set off now. We'll bring him in, get the imperial decree, and then I'll go to the military camp. After the two armies are integrated, their teamwork is still far from perfect; they need a lot of practice. As for Wei Yi, you'll be in charge of dealing with him from now on!"

“It’s certainly possible to do business with them, but you’ll still need to attend some important occasions!” Li Dachui said with a smile. “The imperial decree will definitely be based on your wishes.”

"All we want is a title. How it's handled internally is our own business." Xiao Changche put the helmet on his head, took out a mask from his pocket, put it on his face, and turned to walk out.

Wei Yi and Ma Liang rode side by side, and along the way, they had become quite familiar with each other. After all, both had served the emperor, and their skills in winning people over were impeccable. In just a few days, Ma Liang was already calling Wei Yi "elder brother," and through Ma Liang, Wei Yi had learned most of the details about Yangguan. Ma Liang was always open and honest about things that Ma Dacheng was unwilling to talk about.

In the past two years, Yangguan has become a key focus of the imperial court's investment. A significant portion of the supplies sent to the border regions in previous years have remained in Yangguan. The garrison at Yangguan has also expanded from a mere 3,000 troops to 10,000 within two years.

Ma Dacheng's influence has grown considerably.

"Baoping Prefecture is indeed very prosperous compared to other places. It is no less prosperous than some of the wealthy prefectures and counties within the pass!" Looking at the villages on both sides of the road, the plots of land, and the farmers working on them, Wei Yi was deeply moved.

"Baoping Prefecture benefits from the two rivers, its land is fertile and it has no shortage of water. Although its area is not large, it is rich in produce and has a population of hundreds of thousands. The Yan family used to manage it well, but now it all belongs to Xiao Changche. Xiao Changche has never really listened to Commander Linghu, and he is single-mindedly focused on the Northern Expedition. He is not interested in Commander Linghu's ambitions at all, and even dislikes them. So as soon as this place fell into Xiao Changche's hands, Commander Linghu became anxious!"

"He's in a hurry, but we're not!"

The two looked at each other and burst into laughter.

The scouts galloped back and dismounted gracefully in front of the two men, bowing and saying, "Young General, we encountered scouts under Xiao Cheqi ahead. They said that Xiao Cheqi, Li Dachui, and others went ten miles outside Baoping City to welcome the Imperial Envoy."

Wei Yi's eyes lit up, and he laughed, "Everyone says that Xiao Cheqi became famous at a young age and was unruly, but now it seems that he is quite worldly-wise. Brother Ma, we have to hurry. They are giving us face, so we can't put on airs, can we?"

(End of this chapter)