The True Dragon Emerges!

Braised Lion's Head, Steamed Deer Tail, Soft Fried Pork Tenderloin, Stir-fried Shrimp, Braised Pork, Jarred Meat, Crystal Pork Knuckle, Five-Spice Mutton, Poached Meatballs...

Zhang Chen ate until his mouth gleamed with grease. The fragrant dishes made him look like a starving ghost reborn into the world. How long had it been since he had properly eaten a meal? Let alone food of such exceptional quality.

Though this was the old society, without all manner of seasonings, the culinary arts of this world were by no means inferior to those of later generations.

Truly top-tier chefs never relied on chicken essence or MSG. Instead, they used aged stock simmered from chickens, ducks, and all kinds of ingredients. The flavor of old stock surpassed every seasoning. So-called seasonings were merely processed products formulated in imitation of old stock's taste—how could processed goods compare to genuine old stock?

It was like artificial meat and real meat. Could they possibly taste exactly the same?

Watching Zhang Chen devour the food ravenously, the young girl's eyes filled with a trace of heartache. She continuously placed Crystal Pork Knuckle and Jarred Meat into his bowl. "You, honestly... why did you run away from home back then? Even if they bullied you, if you'd just endured it for three or five years, you wouldn't have lacked food or clothing. Why suffer the hardship of making your own way out here? I know you were wronged, but being wronged is still better than starving alone in this remote backwater."

Zhang Chen, who was wolfing down food and gnawing on a pork knuckle, suddenly froze. What the hell? Ran away from home? When had he ever run away from home?

Just as he was about to ask, the girl continued, "Father still thinks of you. When he heard I was coming to see you this time, he specifically sent you a thousand taels of silver. You need to understand Father's difficulties too. Although he is the head of the family, First Wife's family is an official household, and Father has to watch First Wife's expression as well. Even our father has to swallow his anger before her. When you and Mother were driven from the estate and left to wander, Father's heart ached terribly. Yet he could only watch helplessly, powerless to do anything. Father asked me to tell you that these past few years, he has secretly arranged many opportunities for you. You need only study hard. Once you achieve something in your studies, you will surely accomplish great things in the future. And give me another two years. Once I have thoroughly established my footing in the Prince's estate, Father will no longer have to look at that woman's face."

At that very moment, Zhang Chen, still gnawing on Crystal Pork Knuckle, began to panic. Wasn't his cheap father already dead? He still thought of him? He had even sent him a thousand taels of silver? Back then, he and his father had been exiled here together. In his memories, he had no impression of a mother whatsoever. How had he and his mother supposedly been driven from home and wandered here?

As Zhang Chen gnawed on the Crystal Pork Knuckle, he discreetly studied the sweet-looking woman before him. Her deep dimples, her clear black-and-white eyes like rippling water—she bore no resemblance whatsoever to the eldest sister in his memories.

I'm screwed! She must have mistaken me for someone else! Zhang Chen's gnawing paused slightly as his gaze swept over the dishes he had already ravaged by more than half. A thought flashed through his mind. Is it still too late to spit it out?

Countless thoughts churned through Zhang Chen's mind as he faced the sweet-looking woman. His hand stopped mid-bite, and he looked at her across from him, cautiously asking, "Um... Miss, are you truly certain I'm your younger brother? Could you have mistaken me for someone else?"

At Zhang Chen's words, the woman's eyes immediately reddened. Tears as large as beans pattered down her cheeks. "I know you still bear resentment in your heart—resentment toward our family, toward Father, toward First Wife. You have always been stubborn and unwilling to acknowledge us. But I am your own elder sister. Do you not even wish to acknowledge me?"

Zhang Chen looked at her grief-stricken face, at the tears falling in an endless stream like pearls from a broken string, and felt a headache coming on. Yet he was certain of one thing: this woman had definitely mistaken him for somebody else.

What was he supposed to do?

Zhang Chen was completely at a loss.

He had already eaten more than half the dishes, and they had already acknowledged half their kinship. If he told her she had mistaken him for someone else... Zhang Chen glanced at the imposing man standing by the doorway, his eyelids twitching in fright. Then he looked at the woman opposite him, weeping like rain on pear blossoms. Helplessly, he took another bite of Crystal Pork Knuckle to conceal his guilty conscience and said vaguely, "Fine, fine, don't cry. I was only asking. It has been so many years since we last met; we both look somewhat unfamiliar now. What if we really had mistaken each other? Wouldn't that be awkward?"

"Nonsense! You are my younger brother. Even if you turned to ash, I would recognize you. How could I possibly mistake you? Even if I mistook myself, I would never mistake you." Tears filled the girl's eyes as she seized Zhang Chen's sleeve, her voice full of fragility. "Little brother, don't blame your sister, all right? It was all Sister's fault back then. I abandoned you and went to the Prince's estate, leaving you to drift here without anyone to care for you. But you must understand Sister's intentions too. Why did I go to the Prince's estate if not to seek a sliver of hope for us women, to carve out a future path? If I died in the Prince's estate, then so be it. But if I did not die, I would surely secure a future for you and shatter those fences and shackles."

Looking at the woman before him, Zhang Chen was speechless for a moment. He dearly wanted to say, "You don't need to turn to ash—you've already mistaken me for someone else right now."

But he had eaten the meal and changed into the clothes. What could he do now?

Still, a question lingered in his heart. Whose elder sister is this? How did I get to benefit from her?

After all, he had eaten her food and accepted her favors. Seeing the woman cry like rain-washed pear blossoms, Zhang Chen could only comfort her. "Don't cry. I was merely asking, afraid that you might have mistaken me for someone else. If you had mistaken the person and later took your anger out on me, wouldn't that be bad?"

"Nonsense. You are my own younger brother. How could I mistake you? Even if I have mistaken you, then I accept it!" the girl declared solemnly through her tears.

Both her hands clutched Zhang Chen's robe hem tightly, as if afraid he would run away. Yet as she tugged at him, a horrifying, savage crimson mark was revealed on her wrist, pale as congealed fat. The mark was bright red, the blood already scabbed over, and it looked deeply frightening.

Zhang Chen set down the Crystal Pork Knuckle in his hand and looked at the woman's wrist. Noticing his gaze, she hurriedly released him and tucked both hands back into her sleeves.

Zhang Chen stared at her as countless thoughts spun through his mind. Meeting his gaze, the woman looked uneasy, like a startled deer. The rosy color had vanished from her face, leaving it utterly pale.

Zhang Chen studied the woman's cheek. Only upon close inspection could he see a faint palm print there, though she had concealed it with powder, making it nearly invisible to the naked eye. Had they not been so close, Zhang Chen would not have noticed anything amiss.

"Pacifying Border King is old now. He lacks strength in some areas and enjoys tormenting people for amusement."

After a long while, the woman lowered her head and said quietly to Zhang Chen, her voice low. "But don't worry. I can endure it. So long as I don't die, I will eventually outlast it."

Perhaps because Zhang Chen had noticed something unusual, the woman felt that all her dignity as an elder sister had been stripped away before him. She abruptly stood, somewhat flustered. "I'm leaving first. The Prince's estate has strict rules on entry and exit times. Once I have made Prince happy, I'll come see you again."

With that, she turned and left. Like a startled rabbit, her legs went weak and she stumbled—but quickly steadied herself before fleeing through the door in panic.

Watching her departing figure, Zhang Chen's heart stirred. He rushed into the house, came back out carrying a small chest, and called out when he saw the carriage about to disappear into the distance, "Wait!"

The carriage stopped. The woman lifted the curtain, revealing her somewhat pale face as she forced a smile. "What is it, little brother?"

Carrying the chest to the carriage, Zhang Chen placed it inside. "Take this money."

"There are a thousand taels from Father and another five hundred taels of my private savings in here. It is only a small token of our feelings. Could it be that you truly refuse to acknowledge us?" The woman's eyes reddened again, thinking Zhang Chen simply did not wish to recognize them.

"You need money more than I do in the Prince's estate." Zhang Chen's voice brooked no objection. "With this silver, your life will be a little easier. If your life is easier, mine will be better in the future too. I have no expenses out here. In my hands, this silver is nothing but stone; only in your hands can it bring the greatest benefit. If you refuse to take it, then don't come see me again!"

The woman was choked speechless. Then she reached out to stroke Zhang Chen's head. After taking a breath, she said, "Little brother has grown up! Study with peace of mind. One day, I will surely secure a future for you."

"Madam, it's time!" the sturdy coachman called from the side.

The girl gazed at Zhang Chen with reluctant eyes. In the end, her thousand unspoken words became one earnest instruction: "Study hard. I will come see you again." Then, tears in her eyes, she lowered the curtain, and the carriage swayed away into the distance.

Just then, a figure approached from afar, strolling unsteadily with a white fox in his arms. He passed the carriage shoulder to shoulder, and seeing its lavish splendor, the bookworm Zhang Chen said in surprise, "Who would have thought someone of such stature would come to this poor backwater? What a rare and distinguished guest."

He looked at the luxurious carriage, then lowered his head to look at his own tattered clothes. A strange complexity appeared in the bookworm Zhang Chen's eyes. He spotted Zhang Chen standing at the gate, and then the bookworm Zhang Chen, holding Fox Spirit in his arms, strutted past him with his head held high. A trace of contempt flashed in his eyes as he muttered, "Brute! Rustic peasant!" Then he passed by and continued swaying into the distance. He did not go home, however, but headed toward the village, for some unknown purpose.

Hearing the bookworm Zhang Chen's insult, Zhang Chen did not retaliate. Instead, his gaze grew subtly strange as a thought surfaced in his mind. He looked at the bookworm Zhang Chen's retreating back, then at his own house and Zhang Chen's house standing side by side at the village entrance. Since they had originally been one household, they had been built together and looked like a single residence, standing alone at the edge of the village.

Because Zhang Chen's cheap father had been an exile and an outsider who could not integrate into the village, he could only build a house at the village entrance, some distance from the village itself.

Thinking about how his own name and the bookworm Zhang Chen's name sounded nearly identical, and how their houses stood next to one another, Zhang Chen's expression became extraordinarily vivid.

He suddenly recalled that the bookworm Zhang Chen had come to the village with his mother, hadn't he?

With that, given Zhang Chen's intelligence, a guess had already formed in his mind. Could that woman be the bookworm Zhang Chen's elder sister? Did the bookworm's elder sister mistake me for him?

Zhang Chen looked at the bookworm Zhang Chen's somewhat dark complexion, along with his haggard, paranoid appearance after being frightened by ghosts at night, like some suspicious drug addict. He looked thoroughly wretched.

If that's the case, then I can enjoy all this with a clear conscience. That damned bookworm Zhang Chen bullied me when I was young, seized my family's property, and even incited Fox Spirit to steal my rice, flour, grain, and oil. He truly deserves to die! Zhang Chen suddenly felt entirely justified in enjoying these supplies, without the slightest psychological burden.

As for those eighteen hundred taels of silver, Zhang Chen did not regret returning them to her. That was hard-earned money the woman had traded her flesh for. He could not take it!

Looking at the unfinished dishes on the ground, Zhang Chen stepped forward and carefully packed them away. He decided to bring them to Little Sister and Little Brother later so they could have a taste. His poor younger brother and sister had likely never enjoyed such fine food before.

"These bolts of cloth are fine stuff. I can make a few outfits for Little Sister and Stepmother, and I can keep the remaining brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones for myself. Although I still can't read for now, I can start practicing writing—get used to the stroke order, so I can learn faster when the time comes. I need to move these things quickly. I absolutely can't let Fox Spirit see them. If Fox Spirit spots them and tries to snatch them away, that'll be a huge headache."

Zhang Chen moved swiftly, placing the Food Box and bolts of cloth onto the cart before covering them with worn-out Rice Straw. Then he wobbled his way toward the neighboring village.

One had to know that wealth stirred men's hearts. His own Stepmother and the other two were three lone women without a man in the house, so Zhang Chen did not dare flaunt money and valuables through the streets. If it brought trouble upon them, that would be far from good.

Yet Zhang Chen had only just stepped out of the courtyard when the gyrfalcon in the sky let out a sharp, urgent cry, panic evident in its voice. Then it beat its wings and swooped down. It had actually fled from the mountains, and after finding Zhang Chen, its master, it plunged straight into his arms in utter terror.

"What happened? What could have scared the gyrfalcon into such a state?" Zhang Chen looked at the panicked bird, his eyes full of astonishment.

'Roar~'

At that moment, an unseen roar echoed across the heavens and reached Zhang Chen's ears. It gave him such a fright that he hurriedly followed the sound with his gaze, only for his pupils to contract the next instant.

A dragon!

A real dragon!

A real dragon had appeared in the sky!

Zhang Chen could not possibly be mistaken. The divine dragon soared through the heavens, weaving amid clouds and mist, startling the mountain birds into fleeing back to their nests while the fierce beasts on the ground all cowered low.

The sky had been clear for miles, yet in the blink of an eye, Torrential Rain poured down as though buckets had been overturned. Lightning flashed and thunder roared in a tangled chorus, while the true dragon darted through the thunderbolts, majestic beyond measure.

PS: What skill do you all want the dragon to drop?

This isn't filler, okay? You guys should be able to guess it by now, right? This dragon and the one in the tomb???

A notice: starting tomorrow, there'll be four updates a day. Please keep reading, bosses.

Thanks to boss "Windfire Love" for the 200-point coin tip.

Thanks to boss "Cloud Smoke That Cannot Be Kept" for the 100-point coin tip.