Duke of Zhenguan

The two arrived at Lin's Noodle Shop. Looking at the empty shop, Cheng Chun nodded in satisfaction.

"Brother, this is the place!"

"Won't it taste bad if there's no one here?" Cheng Churou hesitated.

Seeing customers at the door, Lin Chuan quickly came out from behind the counter. Upon closer inspection, he discovered that they were two girls dressed as men.

The taller girl was also holding a valuable-looking horizontal sword.

Although she was dressed in men's clothing and had her head wrapped in a turban, it was clear from her appearance and figure that she was a pretty young lady, and a lady from a wealthy family.

For a customer like this, price is definitely not an issue, Lin Chuan quickly replied:

"Sir, if you don't like it, you don't have to pay!"

"What arrogance!"

Cheng Churou glanced at Lin Chuan and muttered irritably.

Cheng Chun glanced around the noodle shop, then suddenly tugged at Cheng Churou's sleeve and pointed to the wooden sign hanging on the wall, gesturing for Cheng Churou to look.

Cheng Churou glanced at it, and her beautiful phoenix eyes widened instantly:

"Fifty coins for a bowl of noodles?"

Just as Lin Chuan was about to explain, Cheng Churou suddenly slammed the sword in her hand on the table and said to Lin Chuan in a sweet voice:

"Two bowls, please. I want to see what price is fifty coins a bowl! If it's not good, I really won't pay!"

"Please wait a moment, sirs!"

Lin Chuan remained noncommittal, smiled and said something before turning and going to the kitchen.

A moment later, he placed two steaming bowls of noodles on a tray in front of the two of them, and said with a smile:

"Please enjoy your meal, esteemed guests!"

Fragrant!

Just by smelling it, a peculiar fragrance wafted straight to Cheng Chun and Cheng Churou's nose and mouth.

Seeing the maidservant beside her already swallowing silently, Cheng Churou smiled and waved her hand:

"We're not at home, sit down and eat!"

Cheng Chun had been with Cheng Churou since she was a child. Whenever Cheng Churou called her, she would obediently sit down, say "Thank you, Madam," and then pick up her chopsticks to put noodles into her mouth.

Cheng Churou, who had learned etiquette from her mother since childhood, was more refined. She picked up a little noodle, blew on it, and then put it in her mouth.

"Madam, it's delicious!"

"tasty!"

The two spoke almost simultaneously.

Cheng Churou picked up her chopsticks and tapped the maid's head in an annoyed tone:

"Call him Dalang!"

"yes!"

Cheng Chun gave an awkward reply, then began eating his noodles in silence. After a while, he whispered to Cheng Churou:

"Madam, the soup is delicious too!"

Then Cheng Churou tapped him on the head with chopsticks.

Cheng Churou picked up the noodles and examined them carefully, then said softly:

"This soup dumpling is different from what we usually eat..."

"Yes, there's not a single bit of bran!" Cheng Chun nodded in agreement.

Cheng Churou glanced at Lin Chuan behind the counter and muttered:

"Fifty coins for a bowl is really not expensive!"

Before they knew it, the bowls in front of the master and servant were empty, and Cheng Chun's bowl was completely empty of soup.

Subtly sticking out her belly, Cheng Churou stretched out her foot and kicked Cheng Chun, whispering:

"Go pay!"

"oh!"

Cheng Chun responded, took out a purse from his pocket, counted out one hundred coins, quickly walked to the counter, placed the money on it, and said with his head down:

"Shopkeeper, one hundred coins, you count them!"

Lin Chuan glanced at it and said with a smile:

"Welcome to visit again next time!"

Cheng Chunwei nodded almost imperceptibly, then turned and strode quickly toward Cheng Churou.

A moment later, the master and servant walked out of Lin's Noodle Shop. Cheng Churou turned around, glanced at the signboard above her head, and smiled at Cheng Chun, saying:

"Father always raves about how delicious the food is in the palace. I must bring him here to try it next time!"

After the two young women dressed as men left, the noodle shop didn't get a single new customer until evening; everyone who came in turned around and left as soon as they heard the prices.

Seeing that there was still more than half of the soup left in the pot, Li frowned and asked Lin Chuan softly:

"Brother, are you still selling it at such a high price tomorrow?"

"Mother, don't worry, there will always be guests!" Lin Chuan comforted her with a smile.

As the mother and son were talking, Tian Hu led them into the noodle shop and bowed respectfully to Lin Chuan from afar.

"Young Master Lin!"

"Brother Tian!"

Lin Chuan quickly went to greet him.

"I heard that Lin Langjun's noodle shop opened today, so I came here to show my support!" Tian Hu said with a smile.

After Tian Hu finished speaking, the two men behind him quickly stepped forward and handed the box they were holding to Lin Chuan.

"Brother Tian's presence is an honor to our humble shop..." Lin Chuan politely declined.

"On such a joyous occasion, there's no reason to arrive empty-handed..."

After some back and forth, Lin Chuan finally accepted the gift. He then gestured for Tian Hu and his two men to sit down, personally cooked three bowls of noodles, and served them to the three of them, saying with a smile:

"That's all the stuff the shop has, it's a bit rudimentary..."

As the head of the guards of Qunfang Pavilion, Tian Hu usually ate a lot of delicious food, but when Lin Chuan placed the bowl of noodles in front of him, he still subconsciously swallowed.

After taking a few bites, Tian Hu recalled his wife's instructions before he left and couldn't help but admire her sharp eye.

This Lin Chuan is indeed no ordinary person; he can make ordinary noodles so delicious.

Among the people Tian Hu brought was his cousin, who had just turned twenty this year. While wolfing down his food, he mumbled to Tian Hu:

"Brother, this soup dumpling is better than the ones in our building!"

"Even if it's delicious, it can't shut you up!" Tian Hu roared irritably.

Just as the three were eating their noodles, four idle men walked into the noodle shop.

The leader of the idlers, with his shirt open, revealing dark chest hair and tattoos, shouted at Lin Chuan:

"Shopkeeper, are these noodles made of gold or silver? Fifty coins a bowl!"

The troublemaker has finally arrived!

Lin Chuan waited all day but no one came to cause trouble. He thought he had been too naive, but unexpectedly, they still came.

He strode quickly toward the four idlers and said with a smile:

"You flatter me, gentlemen. These noodles are naturally made with white flour. Please have a seat, and I would like to invite you to try them."

The leader of the idlers glanced sideways at Lin Chuan and said with a sneer:

"Ha, you think you can pay for my meal with my brothers? Hurry up and make two bowls for each of us. If the noodles are good, I won't shortchange you! If they're not, I'll smash your shop!"

"Please have a seat!"

Lin Chuan smiled and nodded.

Upon arriving in the kitchen, seeing Li's worried expression, he smiled and said:

"Mother, it's alright, let's cook some noodles first!"

Running a shop inevitably involves various troubles. These idlers coming to cause trouble are either there to collect protection money or because competitors have hired people to cause trouble. Lin Chuan had anticipated this.

Lin Jiu, Lin Shier, and Wang Tiechui have been staying at the store all day to deal with this situation.

Before long, Lin Chuan brought the steaming hot noodles to the four idle men, two bowls for each of them.

The group of idlers exchanged glances, then picked up their chopsticks, took a bite, and put it in their mouths.

According to their usual practice, at this point they should slam their chopsticks on the table and loudly question: "This food is so disgusting that even pigs wouldn't eat it. How dare you serve it to me?"

But these idlers, who had been living hand to mouth for over twenty years without ever having eaten anything decent, found the noodles so delicious that all four of them took a second bite without even realizing it.

Then came the third bite.

He finished the first bowl in a flash, then picked up the second bowl and continued eating.

Before long, the two bowls of noodles were gone, and even the soup was completely gone.

Looking at the rough porcelain bowl in front of them, which was completely empty of soup, the three underlings looked awkwardly at their leader, their meaning clear: the food was all gone, and they couldn't bring themselves to say it wasn't good. What should they do?