Abandoned Woman Busy Farming

Chapter 2178: Chapter 2176: Strange and Peculiar Foods

”Master, we’ve received a message from the subordinates. They say the second young master has secretly entered Chengshui Country, but they don’t know where he is now,” Jianqi said in a very low voice.

Bai Ruozhu was just thinking about her second brother, and unexpectedly, he really came, but she wasn’t the least bit surprised; instead, she was shocked.

”What is he doing here?” She hadn’t told her family that she was going to Chengshui Country, only that she was searching for a master who could lift the curse on her. Could it be that the family wrote to her second brother, and that’s why he came looking for her?

Her second brother had official duties and shouldn’t be running around randomly. Could it be that he received a secret order from the Emperor?

Bai Ruozhu opened the door, called Jianqi inside, and asked in a low voice, ”Any more specific information?”

”That’s all we found. The second young master seems to be on a secret mission, and the subordinates were made to pose as him and the second young lady returning to the Capital City. If it weren’t for the dark guard beside the second young master, we wouldn’t have received such a message.” Jianqi frowned as he spoke, ”It’s a pity that the dark guard was sent back to the Capital City, and the second young master left secretly with only a few people.”

”Did he bring the second sister-in-law?” Bai Ruozhu asked.

”Yes.”

Bai Ruozhu frowned. She was a bit puzzled. What on earth was her second brother doing?

She wanted to ask Zhou Shibin to find out about her second brother, but she was afraid he was doing something in secret and that she might inadvertently cause him trouble and put him in danger.

Besides, she wasn’t very reassured about Zhou Shibin as a temporary ally. If he captured her second brother to use as leverage, wouldn’t that implicate her second brother and the others?

”Master, you don’t have to worry too much. The second young master is no longer the same as before,” Jianqi gently reminded.

Bai Ruozhu was stunned for a moment. Yes, her second brother was no longer the weak scholar he used to be, but he was still her dear brother. Even if she knew he was powerful, could she not worry at all?

”Let’s take it one step at a time. If he’s heading to the Capital City, we’ll surely meet him there.” Bai Ruozhu thought for a while but decided not to let anyone investigate further. She even instructed Jianqi and Yizi not to speak of this matter.

They stayed in a peaceful residence for two days and felt much better, then set off on their journey again.

”We’ll meet in the Capital City. Find me at the Feiluan Pavilion when you arrive there,” Zhou Shibin also intended to set off but wouldn’t be traveling with Bai Ruozhu and the others.

”Alright.”

Bai Ruozhu agreed and then took Dengdeng and Yizi onto the horse carriage, continuing on their way.

Now she had more to think about—finding Achun, finding her second brother, and rescuing Tang Feng.

She truly had a destiny to worry.

After a peaceful journey, eight days later, Bai Ruozhu and her party finally entered the capital of Chengshui.

”This place is really different from Danliang,” Yizi said, full of curiosity seeing the small bridges and flowing water in the city and the sharp little boats in the river.

”It’s somewhat like Jiangnan, too. You’re just not used to traveling much,” Bai Ruozhu said with a smile.

Yizi blushed, ”My master always takes me to the Northwest and other places, rarely to the south. There are rivers where I’m from, but not as many as here.”

”You’ll see something even more unusual later.”

The horse carriage entered the market, and as the crowd grew, Bai Ruozhu had to get off and walk, instructing Thunder to take the carriage to find an inn and then come to find them.

Little Dengdeng was also full of curiosity, asking in a childish voice, ”Dad, what are they selling over there?”

Now that Bai Ruozhu was disguised as a middle-aged merchant, Little Dengdeng naturally called her ”Dad.” Initially, he used to call her wrongly, but he became very comfortable with it later on, with a hint of cheerfulness.

At moments like this, Bai Ruozhu often thought the child must miss his father, longing for a father’s companionship.

Everyone looked in the direction Dengdeng pointed and saw someone selling something dark, which smelled quite fragrant.

”Let’s take a look.” Yizi and Dengdeng, holding hands, walked over, followed by Jianqi and Muyu, protecting them.

”Hey, don’t look...” Bai Ruozhu guessed what it was from the smell and tried to stop them, but it was too late.

When Yizi saw clearly what was being sold, she covered her mouth and ran to the side, retching at the base of a tree.

Little Dengdeng, being a boy, was better, though, and asked the vendor with a puzzled face, ”Uncle, are these all bugs?”

”These are called silkworm pupae, very delicious and nutritious,” the vendor said with a smile. ”You seem to come from the Northern side, don’t you? It’s normal not to be used to it initially, but you get used to it once you try it. They may not look good, but the taste is excellent.”

He was enthusiastic and even wanted to scoop some for free for Dengdeng to try. Dengdeng quickly dodged and ran away; his mother had told him not to eat random things outside.

The vendor served one silkworm pupa and could only turn to Muyu and Jianqi. Jianqi promptly dodged and also ran away.

”Little brother, try it, it’s free. This is our local specialty. It’d be a pity not to try it once you’re here,” the vendor warmly said.

Muyu wanted to run, but the vendor grabbed his arm, and he couldn’t harm a civilian, so he looked at Bai Ruozhu with a bitter face, asking for help.

”Xiaomu, just try it. Why not see the world while accompanying the master?” Bai Ruozhu said with a smile, ”Silkworm pupae are crispy and tasty; you just have to close your eyes and eat.”

Muyu almost cried; Madam, are you doing this on purpose? Aren’t you my real master?

Bai Ruozhu looked calm and amiable, like a kind middle-aged merchant, but inside, she was laughing uproariously.

In the end, Muyu had no choice and, closing his eyes, ate one, biting it with a crunch, and his face of suffering slowly eased.

”Hey, it is actually quite tasty,” he said happily. ”Why don’t you all try it too?”

Yizi, who had just finished retching, felt nauseated again when she saw Muyu actually eat it, and started retching once more.

”Little brother knows the goods, how about buying some?” said the vendor, who then began packing for Muyu.

”A little, just a little,” Muyu called out but ended up buying a bag.

Bai Ruozhu twitched her mouth; she underestimated Muyu.

However, silkworm pupae were indeed delicious and high in protein; it just depended on whether the eater could accept it.

On the road afterward, everyone deliberately kept their distance from Muyu because the vendor said they should be eaten hot, and they weren’t as tasty cold. Muyu, unfazed by others’ gazes, took the bag of silkworm pupae in his hand and ate them fragrantly as he walked.

Yizi was so scared her legs went weak, repeatedly avoiding the other side.

But later on, after seeing more strange things on the road, everyone became much more composed.

”Dad, there are so many curious things in Chengshui Country. I wonder if there’s any good business to be done,” Yizi said loudly in the market, pretending to be an innocent girl as Bai Ruozhu instructed.

Bai Ruozhu nodded with a smile, ”There are commercial opportunities, but finding the most suitable one requires a few days of careful observation. It’s best to find someone who understands the local market to ask.”

As she finished speaking, she indeed noticed someone focus their attention on them.

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I wonder if anyone finds this disgusting. Honestly, I can’t eat it now either. I tried it as a child when we used to raise silkworms for fun, fried. It really did taste good, but now I wouldn’t dare to eat it again.