Mysteries of the Great Zhou Dynasty

Chapter 4
When everyone heard this, they started talking about it.

"Ah... there is such a thing?" The thin diner looked surprised.

"Haven't you heard? This rumor has been around for a while!" the fat foodie said, sounding very knowledgeable. "My brother-in-law works in the county. I heard the case was a serious one back then! They later tore down the shop and rebuilt it, but it never lasted long... Maybe it really is a curse!"

"That's not right. This Zhenbaozhai has only been open for a little over a year. What does it have to do with this female ghost? If you want revenge, you should find the murderer from back then!"

"She's already a female ghost, how can she tell them apart so clearly?"

"Oh, that's so scary..."

"Everyone, please be patient, be patient. Those are all nonsense!" Manager Gao was so anxious that he was sweating profusely, but he had no idea what to do. No one paid any attention to him.

"Curse? Revenge?" Rong Wanyin naturally would not believe such words. She picked up the millet porridge, smelled it, raised the small porcelain spoon, looked at it carefully against the light, and couldn't help blurting out, "Hey, what is this? This is not blood!" The sudden different voice made everyone look sideways.

"You little yellow-haired girl, what nonsense are you talking about?" The scarred man glared at Rong Wanyin, pointing the tip of the knife at her. "Did you accept any bribes from the store? Are you making excuses for them?"

"This is definitely not blood!" Rong Wanyin looked calm and fearless. She put her nose close to the bowl, sniffed it again, and said confidently while holding the bowl.

-----

The nose left the bowl, and the bowl of millet porridge was put down. The young man watching the excitement in the box on the second floor already understood everything.

The young man was dressed like a scholar, fair-skinned and looked a little frail. One could tell at a glance that he was a rich young man who couldn't carry anything with his shoulders or hands, let alone be proficient in martial arts.

The young man was wearing a moon-white brocade robe, with delicate cloud patterns faintly visible at the collar and cuffs; a black silk ribbon was tied around his waist, with a warm jade pendant hanging from it.

He only had an old jade flute on his waist. There was a red pattern the size of a red bean on the jade flute, which was exactly the same as the pattern on Rong Wanyin's compass!
The young man sat in the box, from where he could see the entire scene downstairs.

Behind the young man were two guards. The tall guard had an upright posture and always looked smiling. He smiled before he even opened his mouth to speak.

The other guard of medium build was calm and composed. He stood quietly to one side without saying a word.

"Sir, that scarred man is determined to blackmail someone. This girl might be in big trouble. Should I go down and lend her a hand?" The tall guard clasped his fists and asked for instructions. He couldn't stand such shameless people the most.

The young man raised his hand slightly, the corner of his mouth slightly raised, stopping his movement, and his other hand stroked the "red beans" on the jade flute: "No hurry, this girl is quite interesting."

The boy had had extraordinary eyesight since he was young. When the girl just came in, he saw the compass in her hand and a spot of scarlet on the compass. It was too far away to see clearly, so he wanted to find a chance to confirm it.

The two guards looked at each other in confusion. Normally, the master was not such a cold person, but they did not dare to ask. They could only pay more attention. If the scarred man made a move, they would take action immediately.

The atmosphere on the first floor was tense. Rong Wanyin, seemingly oblivious to the scarred man's threat, remained calm and composed. She walked directly to a table, brought over a bowl of porridge and a spoon, and with a determined, clear gaze, began her inspection. She first examined the porridge carefully, then sniffed the spoon gently, holding it up to the light for a thorough inspection. Her movements were smooth and confident, clearly indicating a clue in her mind. Ignoring the scarred man, Rong Wanyin held up the bowl of porridge and said, "Everyone, smell this porridge. There's no smell of blood at all!"

Everyone followed his instructions upon hearing this. There was indeed no smell of blood, but there was a different, indescribable smell.

Rong Wanyin put down the porridge, picked up the porcelain spoon, and wiped it with an unused wet handkerchief. Immediately, the snow-white handkerchief was stained with yellow. Rong Wanyin held up the handkerchief and spoon, showing them to everyone: "Everyone, look carefully. This unused porcelain spoon is even more yellow than the used one. This spoon is made of Hutian kiln beige glaze porcelain, which is originally beige, so if you don't look closely, you can't see it at all."

Everyone raised their spoons to check.

“There’s something on the spoon!”

"What is this?"

"I don't know, it smells a bit strange..."

"It seems like, somewhere I've smelled it before... Ah, it seems to be turmeric!" A young woman couldn't help but shout out. Seeing everyone looking at her, her face instantly flushed and her voice became quieter. "Before, my husband fell and the doctor prescribed this medicine for him."

Everyone looked at each other in confusion, "But why is turmeric on the spoon? Turmeric is not unused, it is yellow, why does it turn red when added to porridge?" someone raised the question.

At this moment, the shopkeeper had someone serve another bowl of porridge from the pot. As soon as the turmeric was added, the porridge slowly turned red. Everyone exclaimed in surprise, their faces pale. The shopkeeper turned his angry eyes to the chef in the kitchen, "What the hell is going on?"

The chef looked panicked and quickly waved his hands, saying, "Boss, this porridge is the same as usual. I really didn't add anything extra. I absolutely didn't lie. If I did anything wrong, I will be struck by lightning."

The chef didn't look like he was lying.

Rong Wanyin stood aside, her brows furrowed, at a loss for what to do for a moment.

Seeing this, the scarred man urged proudly, "Look, turmeric doesn't even turn the porridge red. Tell me, if this isn't a curse, what is? Humph, I think your Zhenbaozhai is really evil."

Shopkeeper Gao quickly came out to smooth things over, hoping to smooth things over. With a smile on his face, he said, "Dear guests, we are sorry for what happened today. All guests here will enjoy free meals today."

When everyone heard this, their expressions eased slightly. But the scarred man refused to give in. "Hmph, this won't do. I'll give everyone a free meal and fifty taels as compensation, and we'll let this go."

Rong Wanyin's face turned pale with anger. How could such a shameless person exist? Yet, she felt helpless. She bit her lip, her eyes filled with anger. Meanwhile, the scarred man was smug, his arms folded across his chest, his mouth wide open. The scar on his face looked even more hideous under the light, as if to announce his dominance to everyone.

Anyone with a discerning eye could see that this scarred man wasn't just trying to extort money; he was definitely being orchestrated by someone to deliberately bring down Zhenbaozhai. Fifty taels per person was a significant sum. It wasn't that he couldn't afford to pay, but if he did, the charges would be proven, and the restaurant would be closed. Rong Wanyin was furious at the thought of never being able to eat Hulu Chicken again, but she couldn't think of a solution.

The two sides were at a stalemate.

(End of this chapter)