"Lady Wangyou of Tiewangang? Your humble servant knows her!"
Li Banfeng knew Madame had fought battles on the Suihuang Plains, and Tiewangang bordered the plains. Lately, Madame had regained much of her memory, so perhaps she really had crossed paths with Lady Wangyou.
As it turned out, Li Banfeng's guess was right. Lady Wangyou had not only crossed paths with Madame, but their relationship was fairly deep.
"Back when I was at war with the Inner States, Tiewangang rallied support far and wide to ensure supplies to the front line never ran dry. For that kindness alone, your humble servant could never forget her!"
Li Banfeng told the gramophone about Pan Dehai wanting to form an alliance with Lady Wangyou. "My precious wife, why not seize the opportunity to pay Lady Wangyou a visit?"
Madame pondered for a long while before replying, "Husband, going to see her does no harm. But you know what kind of character Pan Dehai is. If Lady Wangyou doesn't wish to ally with him, what should we do?"
Li Banfeng said, "Rest assured, my wife. There will be no forcing anything. If Lady Wangyou refuses, we'll just treat it as taking you to catch up with an old sister."
Delighted, Madame said, "Then your humble servant will wait for you in the main room."
Li Banfeng went to Tiewangang. Finding Lady Wangyou was not difficult at all; unlike other local spirits, she did not hide in the shadows, but lived right out in the open.
Tiewangang was a city, not quite as large as Green Water City, but slightly bigger than Haichiling.
Haichiling was divided into three ridges: the First Ridge was a city, the Second Ridge a town, and the Third Ridge a village.
Tiewangang was divided into two mounds: the First Mound served as the outer city, and the Second Mound as the inner city.
When Li Banfeng arrived at the First Mound, he checked his pocket watch: twelve-thirty in the afternoon, right at lunchtime.
He wanted to find an eatery. The main street of the First Mound stretched for over ten li, lined with more than a hundred restaurants large and small.
With so many restaurants, were there really that many customers?
Surprisingly, yes. Many large establishments were packed to capacity. Li Banfeng checked several places in succession, but not a single table was free.
Judging from the bustling restaurants, Tiewangang had a large population, and the people lived quite comfortably.
Li Banfeng turned into an alley and found a small eatery. This shop was quiet: inside the room of less than twenty square meters sat two rows of tables, completely empty of diners.
"Are you still open?" Li Banfeng asked.
The owner was a man in his fifties, sitting behind the counter. He stared at Li Banfeng for a moment. "You here to eat?"
"Yeah."
The proprietor pulled out a chair. "Have a seat."
Li Banfeng sat down and waited for a menu.
The proprietor brought over a bowl of braised meat and a bowl of rice. "Eat as you see fit. If you like it, pay whatever you think is fair; if it's no good, just pretend you never came."
Anyone else might have been scared off—who ran a business like this?
Li Banfeng didn't press with questions. He picked up a piece of meat with his chopsticks and took a bite. Rich gravy seeped along the grain of the meat, filling his mouth and nose with a decadent aroma.
The fat was silky and fragrant, the lean meat tender and firm. Li Banfeng chewed that bite for a long time, reluctant to swallow.
This man's cooking was superb.
Li Banfeng polished off the entire bowl of braised meat, mixed the leftover broth into his rice, and cleared every last grain.
Estimating the fair price of the meal, he laid down two bills.
He stood up to leave, but the proprietor stopped him. "Sir, give me an honest word—was the meat good?"
Li Banfeng nodded. "Delicious."
"That's enough then." The proprietor shoved the money back into Li Banfeng's hands. "I'm quitting this business. The shop closes tomorrow. This meal is on me. Safe travels."
Li Banfeng frowned. "Why quit the business?"
The proprietor lowered his head and cleared the bowls and chopsticks. "Because I'm not worthy of being a cook."
"You're not worthy? Then who is?"
"Who is worthy depends on what Lady Wangyou says. Those who are worthy all live in the Second Mound." The proprietor gathered the tableware and gave Li Banfeng a self-deprecating smile. "I've been in business here for thirty years. Every time I went to see Lady Wangyou, I brought this bowl of braised meat. In these thirty years, I've gone hundreds of times, doing everything I could to make it better each time. But every single time, she said the same thing: I'm not worthy. Since I'm not fit to be a cook, why keep running a shop? My business ends here."
"Does she look down on home-style dishes like this?"
"Who knows?" The proprietor dropped the dishes into the washbasin and sat down behind the counter, expressionless.
Li Banfeng reached the doorway and turned back. "What do you plan to do next?"
The proprietor shook his head. "There is no next. I'm going to die today."
Li Banfeng studied the man for a moment. This didn't sound like petulant venting.
The proprietor looked calm. "I meant what I said. Truly, I'm just going to go die. I've slaved away my entire life at this craft; living on is just exhausting and futile."
Li Banfeng paused in the doorway and asked, "Got any meat left?"
The proprietor froze. "You want some more?"
"Pack it in a container and take it to the Second Mound. I'll go with you. I want to ask Lady Wangyou myself just what kind of person is worthy of being a cook."
The proprietor thought Li Banfeng had lost his mind.
Li Banfeng simply played along. "Just treat me as crazy. You're a man on his way to die anyway—what do you have to lose by taking a stroll with a madman to clear your head?"
The proprietor thought about it and realized he had a point. He ladled meat and broth into an iron bowl that came with a lid, secured the lid tightly, and set off with Li Banfeng for the Second Mound.
Along the way, the two chatted. Li Banfeng learned that the proprietor was named Yue Laotang. He had spent more than half his life in the First Mound without ever earning the chance to do business in the Second Mound.
Tiewangang was in the Rear Three-Tenths. The land itself wasn't unique, but the people were. The folks here considered it the highest honor to live in the Second Mound, though plenty of people, like him, remained stuck in the First Mound their entire lives.
The Second Mound sat on slightly higher terrain and was considerably smaller than the First Mound. Yet in such a small place, there were even more eateries than in the First Mound. Along the entire main street, aside from one theater and two teahouse bordellos, every establishment was a restaurant.
However, these eateries weren't high-end. There were very few large establishments, a sea of small diners, and plenty of vendors pushing carts and hawking food along the street.
Li Banfeng had initially assumed Lady Wangyou turned her nose up at ordinary home cooking from modest joints, but that didn't appear to be the case.
Cradling the iron bowl, Yue Laotang arrived at Sea Bowl Street and turned into Vinegar Saucer Lane. This entire alley belonged to Lady Wangyou alone.
Passing through the front gate into the courtyard, the yard was not particularly wide, but it was remarkably deep—easily fifty meters from the entrance to the house.
The courtyard was packed with people, each holding an iron bowl of identical size and design.
Yue Laotang explained, "These bowls are gifts from Lady Wangyou. Everyone here is a cook from the First Mound, presenting their dishes to her. If Lady Wangyou is pleased with what she eats, they're allowed to move to the Second Mound to do business."
Before long, a dozen people stepped out of the house into the courtyard, men and women, old and young.
Yue Laotang recognized them. "Those are all disciples of Lady Wangyou."
The disciples set up two rows of tables in the courtyard, and many cooks placed their iron bowls on them.
Not daring to cut in line, Yue Laotang set his iron bowl on the very last table.
A disciple called out, "Uncover the bowls!"
The cooks lifted the lids one after another. Li Banfeng looked over and saw dumplings, noodle soups, roast chicken, sweet rice balls, and even one bowl of jellied tofu, flanked by savory gravy, white sugar, and chili oil.
Yue Laotang huffed softly. "That tofu peddler is too crafty. Letting Lady Wangyou season the gravy herself means the taste will never be far off!"
"The gravy isn't the point." Li Banfeng stared at the bowl of jellied tofu for a long time. He refused to believe tofu could possibly taste better than that braised meat!
Moments later, Lady Wangyou emerged from the house.
In Li Banfeng's experience, Food Cultivators were mostly on the portly side. Fatty had only grown emaciated because of the gut silkworm; every other Food Cultivator he had known was hefty.
To his surprise, Lady Wangyou was an exception. She was not thin, but her figure was well-proportioned. She looked to be in her early thirties and possessed quite pretty features.
Yet her attire was gaudy in the extreme. In her hair stuck a golden hairpin hung with two massive gold rings that chimed loudly with every step, as if deliberately advertising the sheer weight of gold she carried.
The powder on her face was thick and greasy, her brows and eyes heavily made up, and her lips painted a vivid crimson. She wore a green gauze blouse loosely fastened, through which a bright red camisole peeked out.
Below, she wore a red gauze skirt dazzlingly bright, paired with green embroidered shoes—committing utterly to a clash of red and green from head to toe.
Lady Wangyou entered the courtyard, walked to the tables, and first tasted a dumpling.
She seemed quite pleased with it. "Progress. Next month, make two jin of wontons and come back."
The dumpling vendor beamed and agreed eagerly. Li Banfeng asked, "Does that count as passing?"
Yue Laotang shook his head repeatedly. "Far from it. If he'd passed, he would have passed today. Making him come back next month means he probably won't make the cut."
Lady Wangyou ate a few more dumplings, handed the rest to her disciples, and walked up to the next cook. In two bites, she devoured half a roast chicken, licked her fingers, and remarked, "A bit lacking in heat control. Wait in the kitchen for now."
Li Banfeng asked Yue Laotang, "Does waiting in the kitchen mean he passed?"
Yue Laotang nodded emphatically. "At least there's hope in that. I've never even had the chance to step into the kitchen."
Lady Wangyou tasted her way down the line. Some were told to return tomorrow, while others were dismissed on the spot. Only the tofu cook was accepted then and there.
"Move to the Second Mound tomorrow and settle down," Lady Wangyou said.
The tofu vendor rubbed his hands together. "I haven't saved enough to relocate yet. If you'll just let me push my cart to sell tofu in the Second Mound tomorrow, I'll be more than satisfied."
Lady Wangyou kept tasting until she reached Yue Laotang. Her brow furrowed. "You again?"
Yue Laotang hung his head. "I just wanted to—"
"Didn't I tell you? You're not worthy."
Li Banfeng spoke up. "Then tell me, who is?"
Lady Wangyou turned her gaze toward Li Banfeng. Until he spoke, she had not noticed his presence at all.
"Impressive skill!" Lady Wangyou praised. "You've eaten his braised meat?"
Li Banfeng nodded. "I have. And I think he's worthy of being a cook."
Lady Wangyou smiled faintly. "Very well. I wouldn't want to misjudge either. Go wait in the kitchen as well."
Yue Laotang was overjoyed and followed Li Banfeng into the kitchen, where the roast chicken cook was also waiting.
Lady Wangyou had her disciples prepare ingredients and cookware: a small bag of flour, a piece of pork, two eggs, a head of Chinese cabbage, and various condiments for each of them, instructing them to make a bowl of noodles.
Noodles tested a cook's fundamental skills. The roast chicken vendor quickly turned out a bowl of fried-sauce noodles. Lady Wangyou ate half the bowl and nodded. "Move your roast chicken shop to the Second Mound tomorrow."
"That's all it takes to relocate?" Li Banfeng was deeply skeptical.
Lady Wangyou told a disciple to ladle the rest of the noodles for Li Banfeng. He ate them.
The flavor was decent, but hardly extraordinary. Li Banfeng set down his chopsticks. "And that passes?"
Lady Wangyou nodded, looking at Yue Laotang. "If his bowl of noodles reaches this caliber, he passes too."
Yue Laotang made a bowl of noodle soup. Li Banfeng took a bite, turned back to Yue Laotang, and frowned. "Did you do that on purpose?"
The noodles fell far short.
They were nowhere near delicious—barely edible enough to stave off hunger.
Yue Laotang rubbed his hands. "I'm... not good at making noodles."
Lady Wangyou smiled. "Yet your shop sells noodles."
Yue Laotang kept his head lowered. "I'm good at braising meat."
"Yet your shop doesn't sell braised meat," Lady Wangyou retorted.
"I sell it too, just... not often..." Yue Laotang's voice dwindled to a murmur.
"Fine." Lady Wangyou waved her hand, ordering someone to bring over a cut of beef and place it before Yue Laotang. "Braise it. I'll wait."
Yue Laotang hung his head. "I'm afraid... that wouldn't be appropriate."
Li Banfeng asked him, "Why wouldn't it be appropriate?"
Yue Laotang fell silent, so Lady Wangyou answered for him: "Because braising a pot of meat takes him three days and three nights! Selecting ingredients and spices takes a full day, simmering the meat and broth takes another day, and steeping it to soak in the flavor takes yet another. Do you call that cooking? You're practically concocting elixirs! When I wake up in the morning and visit the First Mound, I love eating that bowl of jellied tofu—silky, fragrant, so delightful it brightens the entire day. Eat it today, and you're craving it again tomorrow. That is a real cook. That is the kind of person worthy of the Second Mound! You poured your entire life's blood into that one pot of meat, yielding one small pot every three days, only to bring it here to vie for validation while no one else ever gets to taste it. Why would I invite you to the Second Mound? What would customers eat at your shop? Choke down those noodles of yours?"
Yue Laotang hung his head, clutched his iron bowl, and left.
Li Banfeng watched Lady Wangyou, gaining some insight into this local spirit's temperament.
Lady Wangyou dismissed her disciples, leaving only herself and Li Banfeng in the kitchen.
"Friend, since you came looking for me, state your name first."
Li Qi gave his name. Lady Wangyou's face lit up with delight. "I've heard quite a bit about you, especially what happened on the Suihuang Plains. That battle was treacherous. If the Suihuang Plains had fallen, Tiewangang would never have held out either, and those bastards wouldn't have left a single one of us an intact corpse. What business brings you to me?"
Li Banfeng momentarily didn't know how to begin. In front of such a bold, straightforward woman, mentioning Pan Dehai's name felt rather unseemly.
"My wife is an old friend of yours. She wanted to come catch up."
As he spoke, Li Banfeng covertly pricked his fingertip and let blood drip onto the floor.
A faint halo passed under Lady Wangyou's feet, so dim that she noticed nothing. Knowing Madame was waiting in the main room, Li Banfeng used the Connected Bridal Chamber technique to swap his wife out from the companion dwelling.
Lady Wangyou was startled by the woman who suddenly appeared before her. After studying her closely for a moment, she asked, "This is your wife? Do I know her?"
Li Banfeng was stunned for a moment as well. The woman before them was indeed his wife, which he naturally recognized, but her makeup was a rare sight.
Her hair was styled into an ornate coiffure bound with cyan silk ribbons and adorned with kingfisher-feather hair ornaments. A neat row of short bangs rested on her forehead.
Her eyes were shaded in rouge and lined with sharp black strokes; her slender, willow-leaf brows and upturned eye corners radiated allure. Lotus-pink rouge blushed her cheeks, and thick vermilion paint coated her lips. Madame stood before Lady Wangyou in the full guise of an opera qingyi.
"Sister, do you truly not recognize me?"
The moment Madame spoke, Lady Wangyou recognized the voice.
"Yuxian! Is it really you?" Overjoyed, Lady Wangyou took Madame by the hand and led her to the main hall.
She sent her disciples away and cooked personally for Madame. Nimble and swift, Lady Wangyou whipped up a table of wine and dishes in the blink of an eye.
The two sisters ate and chatted. Frank and direct by nature, Lady Wangyou asked point-blank, "During the war back then, word was you were captured alive by the Inner States. How did you escape?"
Madame shook her head. "How could I have had the ability to escape on my own? The Dragon Princess rescued me."
At the mention of the Dragon Princess, Lady Wangyou grew excited. "The Dragon Princess intervened even back then? I didn't know at the time. I thought the battle was lost for sure! People urged me to flee, but my territory is right here—how could I just abandon it? I was prepared to fight to the death right here. Only later did I learn the tide was gradually turning."
Li Banfeng was thoroughly confused.
Madame was captured alive by the Inner States and rescued by the Dragon Princess?
Wasn't Madame the Dragon Princess herself?
Li Banfeng asked Lady Wangyou, "Where did the Dragon Princess come from?"
Lady Wangyou chuckled. "You'll have to ask your wife that. All I know is that the Dragon Princess won countless victories on the Suihuang Plains. With her around, the fighting went smoother and smoother, but right up until the war ended, I never once laid eyes on her. Yuxian, where did you go after the war?"
"I escorted the Dragon Princess home." Madame took a sip of wine.
Lady Wangyou looked astonished. "You took her back to Dragon King Mountain?"
Madame nodded.
"What does Dragon King Mountain look like?"
Madame thought carefully. "It's enormous—larger than all of Puluo Province. I met some people there, all formidable figures. The Dragon Princess told me every single one of them was a better fighter than she was."
"So many people more powerful than the Dragon Princess?" Lady Wangyou was even more astounded. "No wonder folks say that whenever people from the Inner States hear the name Dragon King Mountain, their guts turn to water."
Li Banfeng listened in silence as the two sisters chatted. After speaking of Dragon King Mountain, Madame steered the conversation toward Pan Dehai. "Looking at how things are heading lately, another war is likely brewing. Old Pan has some ties with my husband. He hopes to form an alliance with you so both of you can look out for each other."
He had expected Lady Wangyou to refuse flat out, but after pondering for a moment, she actually agreed.
"I don't think much of Pan Dehai as a person, but I trust you. The covenant deed must state clearly: if I run into real trouble, he has to step in."
With the alliance settled, this meant Li Banfeng could learn the technique of gathering popular aura from Pan Dehai.
Madame was delighted for Li Banfeng, yet little joy showed on his face.
His mind was still occupied with other matters.
The two talked late into the night until Madame rose to take her leave. Lady Wangyou was reluctant to see her go. "Sister, who knows when I'll see you again?"
Madame smiled. "Sister has so many good foods and drinks here; even if you don't invite me, I'll come on my own. I only ask that you don't breathe a word about this to anyone."
Lady Wangyou nodded. "Rest assured, little sister. As far as I'm concerned, you were never here."
Back in the companion dwelling, Li Banfeng asked Madame, "Is there really a Dragon Princess?"
Madame shook her head with a smile. "Didn't your humble servant tell you before? I am the Dragon Princess."
Li Banfeng was puzzled. "Then what was that about the Dragon Princess rescuing you?"
Madame took Li Banfeng's hand and caressed his cheek. "That depends on whether my husband disdains your humble servant or not."
Li Banfeng looked at her in bewilderment. "Why would I disdain you?"
Madame gave a bitter smile. "Do you not look down on opera singers?"
Li Banfeng replied, "You don't disdain a lunatic, so why would I look down on an opera singer?"
Madame cupped Li Banfeng's cheeks with both hands, her eyes brimming with tender affection. "You don't look down on me, my husband, but others did. Coming to Tiewangang reminded me of many things. Back when we fought on the Suihuang Plains, so many people looked down on me because I was an actress. If I hadn't won a few battles, they would never have acknowledged me as their general. But war is never smooth sailing. Whenever things went wrong, they directed all their anger at me. In one battle, I was captured alive. I was certain no one would come to save me, and if I died in the enemy camp, the Suihuang Plains would be finished.
"Later, someone rescued me. When I returned to the military camp, I lied and told them the Dragon Princess of Dragon King Mountain had saved me. The moment they heard 'Dragon King Mountain,' they bowed in reverence. From then on, every time I won a battle, I claimed the Dragon Maiden was secretly aiding me.
"After that, the war went smoother and smoother—so much so that by the time it ended, few remembered Huang Yuxian, but plenty remembered the Dragon Princess."
As she spoke, a smile remained on Madame's face, yet it could not hide the deep bitterness underneath.
Li Banfeng took a sugar cube and placed it in her mouth. Madame's bitterness faded slightly.
"Who was it that rescued you from the enemy camp back then?"
Madame looked toward the second room. "The master of the red lotus—the Heavenly Maiden."
Back then, the Heavenly Maiden had already treated Madame as an ally.
"My wife, is there truly a place called Dragon King Mountain?"
"That I do not know," Madame shook her head. "I heard the Heavenly Maiden came from Dragon King Mountain, and there are similar legends in the Inner States."
After resting a night in the companion dwelling, Li Banfeng left Tiewangang. Passing through the First Mound, he saw Yue Laotang.
The man hadn't gone off to die; he was still braising meat in his little shop. The meat was ready in half a day, so it seemed he had made some progress.
Arriving at Haichiling, Pan Dehai was overjoyed and immediately took Li Banfeng to the Third Ridge to teach him the technique of gathering popular aura on the spot.
Li Banfeng asked, "How quickly can I learn this method?"
Pan Dehai made an estimate. "An ordinary person might need three to five years. But brother, you are a man of virtue—half a month should suffice!"
Virtue had nothing to do with it; it all depended on how Old Pan taught.
Li Banfeng was indeed in a bit of a hurry. He wanted to ask the Luo sisters where the legend of Dragon King Mountain truly originated.
***
The Shang State, Chaoge, the Second Ring.
Luo Yanjun had assumed human form and was singing the Qinshu narrative *The Legend of the White Snake* in a teahouse. Beside her sat her river snail shell, disguised to resemble a pagoda so that ordinary folk could hardly tell what it was.
After two performances, the teahouse closed for the night. One customer lingered, hoping for a private word with Luo Yanjun.
Luo Yanjun moved the shell backstage and invited the guest into her private room.
The guest lowered his voice. "The Ministry of Works discovered that the sacrificial altar is missing a substantial amount of stone. The schedule has to be delayed again. Lord Qiao suffered a bout of fury, and his illness worsened."
Luo Yanjun drew a letter from her sleeve and handed it to the guest. "Deliver this letter to Lord Xie. Pick the right moment, and by no means let Lord Qiao see it."
The guest took the letter and left the teahouse.
The Second Ring, Qiao Yi's residence.
Having eaten half a bowl of thin congee, Qiao Yi had just fallen asleep.
Xie Gong produced a letter and showed it to Zhu Jin.
Having read the letter, Zhu Jin's brows twitched with surprise.
Xie Gong glanced toward the candlestick beside the bed. Zhu Jin caught his drift and hastily burned the letter.
Qiao Yi remained in a stupor all night, while Zhu Jin did not sleep a wink.
When dawn broke, Zhu Jin woke Xie Gong and gave him a slight nod.
Chapter 715