Ch 75: Guide to Feeding a Villainous Husband

Qin Xia casually tucked the bamboo tube into his chest pocket, left the room, and went to feed the small creatures he kept at home.

He took a few cold buns from the bamboo basket, crumbled them, and mixed them with leftover fish and meat. These civet cats had grown up eating scraps, and they refused to eat plain food. At first, Qin Xia used to cook plain boiled meat for them, but eventually, he stopped going through the trouble.

There were always quite a few civet cats coming to eat and sleep, turning his courtyard into something like a cat inn. Most of them didn’t have names—some were simply called “Mimi,” others “Zhuozhuo.”

As soon as the food was placed down, several cats hurried over in a flurry. Da Fu, already full from eating at the restaurant, had just taken a drink of water and was now heading indoors to find its straw bed. From the looks of it, the goose was ready for bed.

“You’re really living the good life,” Qin Xia remarked.

The courtyard was empty. Qin Xia lit a lamp in the main hall. Tired from a long day, he sat on the doorstep, brushing his teeth without much care.

“When your little dad comes to take us both to Shengjing, you’ll come too. By then, we’ll buy a big house, dig you a pond with fish, and build a small villa by the shore just for you. How does that sound?”

He rambled on, speaking to the goose, not caring whether it could understand or not.

If anyone else saw this scene, they would surely find it bittersweet.

After finishing, Qin Xia laughed at himself.

He tossed the wash water aside, went back inside, and took off his outer robe, leaving only his inner shirt. Carrying the oil lamp, he sat by the kang, took a deep breath, and finally pulled out the bamboo tube.

It had been two months since the last letter arrived.

The bamboo tube in his palm felt like a piece of precious candy a child had finally earned—too cherished to eat.

Just like licking candy, each lick reduced it; and with the letter, reading one word meant one less word left to savor.

Qin Xia held the tube in his hand until it warmed, then finally took out the letter.

As the delicate and neat ink strokes unfolded with the paper, they leaped into view.

“Initial success, awaiting good news.”

At the bottom, there was another line, written even smaller.

Tiny characters, like a fine line of engraving: “Thinking of you is like flowing water; wishing you constant peace and health.”

Qin Xia silently recited the words, almost able to picture the scene of Yu Jiuque writing them.

After a long while, he finally pulled his gaze away.

He placed a paperweight on the letter, running his fingers over the edges again and again. After smoothing it out completely, he took a small wooden box from the bedside, placing the new letter alongside the previous one.

At night, the box rested by his pillow, exuding a faint orchid fragrance.

…

Shengjing, evening.

Yu Jiuque had the day off and was staying in his house outside the palace.

The residence was the same modest one he had used before leaving the capital.

Even so, it cost several dozen taels of silver a month to maintain a place like this in the inner city.

When the master wasn’t around, only an old couple took care of the house. The doorman was mute, but his hearing was exceptionally sharp. His wife, equally quiet, was responsible for laundry and cooking whenever Yu Jiuque returned.

“My lord, what would you like for dinner tonight?”

Yu Jiuque set down the book he was reading and looked out through the propped-open window at the glowing sunset.

“Just steam some rice. You don’t need to prepare anything else. I’ll cook the rest myself in a bit.”

The old woman wasn’t surprised by this response, thinking that she would head out to buy some vegetables later.

Ever since her master had reappeared after being away for several months, his temperament had changed somewhat. He wasn’t as cold as before, and occasionally, he would even chat with her about trivial matters. Whenever he spent the night outside the palace, his favorite activity was to busy himself in the kitchen.

Seeing that Yu Jiuque had no further instructions, the old woman quietly left without saying more, knowing too much talk could be bothersome.

As dusk settled, Yu Jiuque finally finished the work piled on his desk. He stretched his shoulders and got up, heading to the kitchen alone. Staying in the palace didn’t allow for such luxuries, and it was only when he was outside that he could indulge in his “addiction” to cooking.

He knew well that this process was his way of missing Qin Xia.

The white rice on the stove was already cooked, filling the air with its fragrant aroma. Yu Jiuque picked a green radish from the basket, washed and peeled it, then skillfully sliced it into thin strips. He also sliced some pork and crushed a few cloves of garlic. After sautéing the garlic in oil, he stir-fried a dish of radish and pork.

His knife skills were proficient, but he still lacked a bit of mastery when it came to controlling the heat while cooking.

Each step of the process felt like it was overlapping with another familiar figure in his mind.

There was also a block of tofu, freshly bought before dinner, still firm and fresh. Without rushing, he placed the tofu on the cutting board, slicing it into thick pieces. He cracked two eggs into a bowl, whisked them into a smooth mixture, and dipped the tofu in it before frying.

It was only after the tofu was already in the pan that he remembered he had forgotten to add salt to the egg mixture. He would have to adjust the seasoning later, though it likely wouldn’t taste as flavorful as it should.

This dish, called guota tofu, was something he had seen Qin Xia make several times. Yet, when it came to cooking it himself, he always managed to forget one thing or another.

As expected, the tofu crumbled in several pieces during frying, and two pieces on the hottest part of the pan ended up slightly burnt.

A bit annoyed, Yu Jiuque scraped the tofu into a plate, carefully cleaning the stuck-on bits from the bottom of the pan. He added some more oil to the pan to prepare the sauce. Two spoonfuls of soy sauce, a pinch of salt, a bit of sugar—since returning to Shengjing, he had heard of an expensive condiment called oyster sauce, costing several taels of silver per bottle.

He remembered Qin Xia mentioning this sauce before, so he had asked the old woman to buy it, and had tried adding it to his cooking a few times, though without much success.

This time, he added a bit of oyster sauce to the tofu, treating it like regular soy sauce. When the sauce began to bubble, he stirred the tofu a few times, thickened the mixture with cornstarch, and finally garnished it with chopped scallions.

Though he couldn’t vouch for the taste, at least the dish looked decent.

Feeling a bit more content, Yu Jiuque carried the dishes and rice back to his room, lit a lamp, and quietly ate his dinner alone.

A few days later, Yu Jiuque was assigned a task: to deliver an imperial decree to the residence of Prince Ping.

No one knew of the relationship between him and the former Crown Prince, now the Prince of Ping. Currently, everyone merely regarded him as the new favorite in the eyes of the emperor and Eunuch She, the head of the ceremonial bureau.

To hold the position of suidang in the Department of Ceremonies was already a sign of closeness to the emperor. At his young age, Yu Jiuque could be said to have risen to power swiftly.

(T/N: The role of the Suidang was to oversee and manage the storage and distribution of grain, particularly rice, within the palace.)

Adding to his good looks, many rumors circulated in the palace, though no one dared to confront him directly. After all, his “rise” had been earned through solving a cold case upon his return to the capital, while he was still under the Imperial Stables.

He had led the investigators from the Western Depot to crack a major case. The Western Depot had long been overshadowed by the Eastern Depot, barely recognized by anyone, but suddenly, they came forward to claim a significant victory, eliminating a long-standing nuisance for the emperor, much to His Majesty’s delight.

According to those in the know, Yu Jiuque had personally interrogated the criminal. By the time the body was dragged out, all the bones had been shattered, leaving the person a limp, formless mass on the ground, yet somehow still clinging to life.

Eunuch She believed Yu Jiuque was a talented individual and, seeing the emperor’s admiration for him, followed the principle of “keeping good resources within the family.” He personally requested that Yu Jiuque work under his supervision.

At Prince Ping’s residence, after reading the imperial decree, Yu Jiuque conveyed the emperor’s orders: the prince was assigned to oversee the repair of a royal temple. This was a prestigious and lucrative task, something many other princes had fought for, yet unexpectedly, it fell to the former Crown Prince.

Everyone had assumed he would grow old and die in his confinement.

Yu Jiuque knew this was the emperor’s way of “compensating” his son, likely due to the empress dowager’s influence.

Prince Ping, nearly thirty, carried an air of wisdom beyond his years. His life had been full of ups and downs—crowned the heir apparent of Dayong at the age of three, basking in all its glory, only to fall from grace after ruling as the Eastern Palace’s master for over a decade.

Despite his understanding of destiny, he wasn’t one to resign himself to it.

The young eunuch he had once aided had now risen to the rank of grand eunuch, serving at the emperor’s side. Yu Jiuque, having narrowly escaped death and returning to the capital, had made several critical suggestions that hit the mark as if he had foreseen the future, earning the prince’s increasing trust.

They now held enough evidence to incriminate the second prince, King Kang. All they needed was the right moment to render him ineligible for the throne. The younger princes posed no real threat—either lacking in courage or still too young to make a difference.

As an early autumn breeze stirred, Prince Ping began to cough. A servant behind him quickly draped a cloak over his shoulders.

Prince Ping couldn’t help but reflect: if not for Yu Jiuque’s warning upon his return to the capital, he might never have discovered that someone had been secretly tampering with his food—not by poisoning it outright, but through a subtle mix of incompatible medicines designed to slowly sap his vitality.

When he asked how Yu Jiuque knew, Eunuch Yu shared a story about a case from the Song family in Qinan County.

With this alone, Prince Ping knew that if he ever ascended the throne, the position of head eunuch of the Department of Ceremonies would surely go to Yu Jiuque.

Halfway through the pot of tea, Prince Ping tired of discussing court affairs.

“Tell me more about your restaurant,” he said with a smile, though it was unclear how many times he had asked before.

Yu Jiuque racked his brain for more details to share, down to how many eggs the backyard chickens had laid.

Prince Ping chuckled softly before suddenly saying, “When you bring your Boss Qin here to the capital, I’ll be sure to taste his cooking.”

Yu Jiuque was momentarily taken aback before immediately kneeling.

“Thank you for your grace, Your Highness.”

His heart was filled with longing.

Longing like water.

Longing like the moon.

Longing like a storm.

He awaited that day with all his heart.

Upon leaving Prince Ping’s residence, everyone assumed that Eunuch Yu’s sedan chair would head straight back to the palace. However, no one knew that later that night, dressed in casual attire, Yu Jiuque was already sitting in the pavilion of his garden, quietly sipping tea.

The water reflected the moonlight, and the lively koi fish that swam there during the day had now hidden beneath the leaves, out of sight. Soon, the lotus leaves would wither and yellow, a sight Yu Jiuque briefly glanced at before withdrawing his gaze, his thoughts returning to the small restaurant in Qinan County.

He hadn’t had the chance to witness the blooming of the lotus flowers in front of the restaurant.

…

In mid-July, the hottest days of summer finally came to an end.

Qin Ji Eatery took its ice jelly off the menu, along with several other seasonal summer dishes.

With the cool autumn breeze arriving, there was no longer any worry about the candies from Pinyifang melting. Xing Yiming was eager to keep the momentum going with Qin Xia, and their business was thriving.

Thanks to Qin Xia’s knowledge from his previous life, a few creative ideas were enough to sustain the shop. Hard candy could be turned into lollipops by inserting a bamboo stick into the mold. Adding natural beeswax and cutting it into small pieces, mixed with mint, made for chewable “gum” that could be spit out afterward.

In just a few short months, the two had padded their wallets nicely.

Xing Yiming was now walking with a spring in his step, and amidst the busyness, he would still make sure to request dishes from Qin Xia.

“It’s the season for mushrooms!” he said with excitement.

He added secretly, “Do you know how to cook poisonous mushrooms? I’ve heard that some poisonous ones can be made edible if cooked properly, but none of the chefs around here know how to do it. I’ve been craving them for years.”

Qin Xia couldn’t help but ask, “Why do you think I’d know how to do that?”

Xing Yiming gave him a thumbs up and replied, “I trust you—you seem to be able to do anything.”

Qin Xia laughed, shaking his head, and accepted the compliment. “Some mushrooms do have mild toxins that can be neutralized with the right preparation. If you really want to try them, I’ll set up a mushroom hot pot day at the restaurant.”

Xing Yiming left, satisfied with the promise. After he was gone, Qin Xia overheard the restaurant staff talking about foraging for wild mushrooms in the mountains.

Aunt Xiang, in particular, spoke with fond nostalgia. When she was young, her family lived in a village at the foot of the mountains. After the rains during mushroom season, she could pick a full basket from a single trip up the mountain.

“After I moved to the city with my son, I never had the chance again. Now, if I want to eat those mushrooms, I have to pay for them.”

While there were some mushrooms growing in the forests and fields outside the city, they were nowhere near as abundant as in the mountains.

Hearing this, the rest of the staff listened with wide-eyed curiosity.

Qin Xia, realizing that he hadn’t ventured outside Qinan County since his arrival, decided to organize a trip. He would close both the restaurant and the dining hall for a day, and hire the hunter Yan Wei as a guide.

“Those who don’t want to come can stay behind and watch the place. Whoever wants to go, let’s head to the mountains.”

It was a perfect excuse for a team-building outing.