Starting with the flesh-based stimulant

"Wake up, Brother Zhou, something's happened, something's happened!"

Li Ping hurried into the room, lowered his voice, and went to the bedside to wake Zhou He.

Before he could even touch her, he saw Zhou He, fully clothed and lying on the bed, tense up, then immediately sit up, staring at him warily.

"Mr. Li, what is it?"

Zhou He is a light sleeper. With so many things happening lately, how could he dare to actually fall asleep in an unfamiliar place?

He was already awake when Li Ping's footsteps approached.

After straightening his clothes, Zhou He got off the bed and stood in front of Li Ping.

Li Ping's expression was complicated. Seeing that Zhou He was still staring at him, he quickly began to explain:

"I was gambling with some locals at the casino, you know! Ugh, my luck was terrible. I kept betting on big and getting small, and betting on small and getting big. I got so angry that I just bet on both sides, and guess what? The dealer pulled off a triple!"

Zhou He was stunned for a moment.

Is that all?

He looked at Li Ping with a somewhat suspicious expression:

"Mr. Li, is that all?"

Li Ping said "Oh," and continued:

"Of course not. I'm telling you the whole story. That young man who runs the book is quick and sharp-eyed, always looking around like a thief. I think they must have teamed up to cheat me, maybe they used some tricks or something."

Zhou He remained silent, bent down to pick up the black leather bag, and while waiting for him to continue speaking, took out the knife hidden in the bag.

The knife gleamed in the moonlight, making Li Ping momentarily stunned.

"Brother, aren't you in the 'God of Hell' trade? Why does this knife look like something a butcher would use?"

Zhou He ignored him and interrupted him directly:

"Get to the point, stop the nonsense, what exactly happened?"

Li Ping didn't hesitate. After thinking for a moment, he leaned closer to Zhou He and whispered:

"Miss Tian has run away!"

Zhou immediately recalled the arguing sounds he heard before going to bed, and wondered if it was related to this matter.

He frowned slightly, looked at Li Ping, and immediately realized what was going on when he saw the other man's anxious expression.

The two of us came to the Tian family manor in Mubushan for the wedding banquet of the Tian family's young lady.

Now that the main person has run away, it's normal for the chef to be anxious... right?

Zhou He vaguely sensed that the chef Li Ping's nervousness wasn't just because the business was about to fail.

But he didn't press further, only moving a little further away from Li Ping before slowly speaking:

"Mr. Li, this is indeed a rare occurrence. What did the head of the Tian family say?"

"The steward said they're looking for... Oh, you mean the master? I haven't seen Master Tian. I wonder if he's gone to look for someone."

Zhou He recalled the sounds he had heard in the room earlier: a woman crying, an older man trying to comfort her, but the woman started making a scene, which ended with a loud slap.

He shook his head, calming himself down.

I was just an unrelated passerby who came along with the chef to freeload, and this matter had nothing to do with me.

"Mr. Li, shall we go back at dawn, or should we wait?"

"I didn't say that, so I came to discuss it with you."

"It's no use discussing this with me. Everything's in chaos right now, and the Tian family probably can't take care of the two of us. Let's wait until dawn and see how things go."

Li Ping finally understood.

Just as Zhou He said, he was anxious here, but in the end he still had to listen to his master's orders.

Although he was a cook who got ripped off while traveling, he could still manage to clean up the mess once he started cooking.

However, those in this profession who wish to cultivate themselves still need to rely on the influence of their master.

Concern leads to confusion, concern leads to confusion.

Li Ping pondered for a moment, chuckled, scratched his head, and looked at Zhou He:

"Brother Zhou, you speak so convincingly, you really seem like someone who's been to school. I'm not like that, my brain is..."

Zhou ignored him.

All my thoughts were replaying the sounds I had heard earlier.

Even though he had already decided not to interfere.

But I just can't help wanting to know why the bride ran away two nights before the wedding.

In particular, it seemed that only he heard the argument.

Zhou is instinctively sensitive to unusual things.

But now it seems that this curiosity has far outweighed the level of interest.

Shaking his head, Zhou He recalled the words he had previously used to comfort himself, and suddenly asked Li Ping:

"Mr. Li, do you think this cat really has nine lives?"

Li Ping's mouth moves faster than his brain:

"I've heard of it, but I don't know. It's said that no one dares to eat cat meat, but if it's cooked properly and the sourness is reduced, it can actually be considered a delicacy. I've heard that there's a dish on the East China Sea coast where cats and snakes are stewed together in one pot, called something like 'Dragon and Tiger Fight.' Have you ever tried it, Brother Zhou?"

Zhou He only asked a casual question, and Li Ping rattled off a long speech.

Zhou He listened, but said nothing, and slowly recalled:

"Mr. Li, have you never met the head of the Tian family before?"

"No, no, logically speaking, since the host invited me, they should show their face. Although I'm a cook, I'm still a professional. The Tian family is being rather inconsiderate."

"And what about Miss Tian?"

"I've never seen her before. A bride like her should be washing her face and getting her hair done these days. How could she possibly see us men outside? But then again, I did hear someone say that the Miss Tian is no ordinary woman."

Zhou He turned around:

"Oh?"

With some doubts.

Li Ping didn't hide anything and told everyone what was going on:

"I heard it from others. Anyway, you know, we cooks are always going from one shop to another. We've heard quite a few stories about what happens between different shops."

Zhou He didn't interrupt him; he already knew that once Li Ping started talking, he would definitely talk non-stop.

Sure enough, Li Ping became quite animated, speaking fluently and eloquently, much like a storyteller traveling through the streets and alleys:

"The first thing about Miss Tian is her outstanding looks. I heard from the people in Tuozi Township that no other woman in the village can compare to even half a finger of Miss Tian. Unfortunately, when the temple was being repaired at Mubu Mountain last year, I was busy cooking and didn't get to see what Miss Tian really looked like."

"The second thing is about Miss Tian. She's actually in our line of work too. This isn't really true, but there's a rumor that the Goddess of Mubu Mountain took her in as a water spirit... But that doesn't make sense, because if you become a water spirit, you definitely can't get married, don't you think?"

Zhou He nodded; this was the first time he had ever heard of such a thing.

"There's another one. It's said that Miss Tian's husband, who will be the groom in a couple of days, is someone I've never heard of. I don't know which family he's from. Logically speaking, I've met all the young men on Zuolong Road, but I just don't know who is so lucky to be able to marry Miss Tian."

"Hey, you know what, I suddenly remembered that when I was gambling with them earlier, I saw some really good ingredients. Brother Zhou, aren't you craving them now?"

Li Ping spoke, his eyes gleaming.