I'll Do It

"Chrysanthemums fall, scattered across the ground."

Chen Zhuo fell silent for a long moment before lifting his head and looking straight at the other man.

Then he gave his shoulder a sudden jerk, slipping free of the other man's talons.

"Chief Instructor, how's your chrysanthemum?"

Huang Yuan'er's expression shifted. "You dare turn against me?"

Chen Zhuo shook his head and said solemnly, "Though I'm only a lowly White-Uniform Runner, I still work for the Yamen. Chief Instructor, you work for the Yamen too, as does Registrar Wang."

"Since we're all working for the Yamen, what exactly am I supposed to be turning against?"

At these words,

Huang Yuan'er said nothing for a moment.

He merely narrowed his eyes and scrutinized Chen Zhuo from head to toe, as though trying to see right through him.

"Fine. I understand."

After a long pause, a smile suddenly appeared on Huang Yuan'er's taut face.

He neither flushed with anger nor roared in fury.

He merely tossed out a few words that meant little, then turned and left.

His tall, slender figure gradually warped before slowly disappearing into the heat haze over the Drill Ground.

Watching the other man walk away, Chen Zhuo's calves trembled three times. He nearly stumbled and fell.

"Damn legs, why can't you hold it together?"

Chen Zhuo gasped for breath. He couldn't tell whether it was the heat or his nerves. Sweat rolled from his forehead like drops of jade, pounding onto his shoulders.

It felt as though a stone were pressing down on his heart, making it hard to breathe.

The situation was even worse than he had imagined.

As a mere White-Uniform Runner, confronting one of Skin-Peeler Wang's men head-on hadn't been a wise move.

But Huang Yuan'er's appearance was a warning from Skin-Peeler Wang.

"Drag it out? Don't even think about it! Either lie facedown on a bed, or go lie facedown at the Mass Grave outside the city!"

Either way, he'd end up lying down. But Chen Zhuo wanted to stand.

"Looks like I need to pick up the pace and switch to a different track."

The Yamen's Three Squads each had their own duties.

Too many cooks spoiled the broth.

Where there were three squads, there were factions.

The Black-Uniform Squad had always been Skin-Peeler Wang's private domain, but the other two squads were a different matter.

What Chen Zhuo needed to do was set the tigers against the wolves.

Even if they couldn't devour Skin-Peeler Wang, that would still buy him time.

The Swift Squad!

He casually wiped his forehead with his palm, steadied himself, then strode away from the Drill Ground with firm steps.

"Here, get all these household registers and documents sorted. If there's even one mistake, you'll answer for it!"

"Magistrate Liu is going out. Put down what you're doing and wait on standby!"

"We've got a new batch of Water-Fire Staffs. Go haul them in and clean them up properly!"

The work that afternoon was especially grueling.

Even after drinking Blood-Strengthening Soup and embarking on the martial path, Chen Zhuo was still worn out.

His energy and vitality were almost completely spent.

By the time he showed up at the kitchen right on schedule to help with the cooking, his legs were already trembling.

The other side had served him an appetizer even sooner than he'd expected.

"What are you standing around for? Hurry up and prep the ingredients. If you delay the officials' meal, you'll be in for it."

The sun was about to set, and the day's work should have been winding down, but the county office kitchen was still bustling with activity.

"Chop, chop, chop."

Everyone in the kitchen was busy chopping vegetables or preparing seasonings. Only Chen Zhuo squatted on the ground, washing vegetables and meat nonstop.

He was only a kitchen hand; he had no right to work at the chopping board or the stove.

Yan Ming, the head chef, was in the middle of a fit.

He wasn't targeting anyone in particular; he was yelling at everyone.

It was the kitchen's busiest time of day, yet two master chefs who usually handled the chopping had suddenly gone missing.

Losing people without warning was practically a disaster for a kitchen.

"Any word about those two sisters?" Yan Ming asked loudly.

"No. We haven't seen them since this morning. We even went to their home around noon, but the doors were shut tight, and no one answered when we knocked."

Dunzi replied in the brief lull between chopping.

"Forget them. The rest of you make do for now."

Yan Ming set down the half-chopped vegetables and hurried to the stove, vigorously stir-frying the food in the wok.

Dunzi immediately took over from Yan Ming. He was about to bring the knife down when his face suddenly fell, and he hesitated.

"What's wrong? Get chopping!"

Yan Ming barked.

"I... I don't know how to cut this."

Dunzi was so anxious he was on the verge of tears.

"You little—"

Yan Ming was furious enough to curse, but he swallowed the words and could only sigh in frustration.

The Yamen kitchen had four woks in total.

He was in charge of the smallest one and absolutely couldn't leave it.

If anything went wrong with that wok, Magistrate Liu would never forgive him.

He didn't dare slack off with the slightly larger wok either.

Why had the Chief Clerk and the Dianshi both ordered the same dish?

And that dish was especially demanding when it came to knife skills.

It was one thing to compete with each other on ordinary matters, but now they had to compete over food, too.

Sigh. They were both people he couldn't afford to offend.

What a miserable life.

The more Yan Ming thought about it, the angrier he got. Stir-frying as he worked, he cursed, "Useless wretches."

Seeing Dunzi on the verge of tears, Chen Zhuo had an idea.

He finished chopping the vegetables in his hands, put down his knife, and walked over without hesitation.

After glancing at the chopping board, Chen Zhuo moved Dunzi aside and stepped into his place.

"I'll do it."

Before anyone could react, he picked up the cleaver and got to work.

"Chop, chop, chop."

The cleaver struck the chopping board in a rapid, steady rhythm.

"Aren't you the kitchen hand?"

Dunzi's face reddened. He was about to lose his temper, but Yan Ming stopped him with a shout.

"Let him chop!"

Dunzi froze.

When he finally came to his senses, his gaze was suddenly fixed on the vegetables on the chopping board.

In an instant, his eyes seemed to clear.

"Those knife skills..."

Chen Zhuo's unusual behavior caught everyone's attention.

They all looked over at once, their faces full of disbelief.

The ham, chicken breast, and winter bamboo shoots on the chopping board had all been cut into even, fine strips.

Every piece was nearly identical in length and thickness.

A kitchen hand had turned into a master chef with a cleaver?

"Mind your own work. Don't just stand there staring at someone else."

As the head chef, Yan Ming had the sharpest eye. At a glance, he could tell that Chen Zhuo's knife skills were superb—better even than those of the Qiu Sisters.

At last, he could breathe easy.

Before long, dishes began leaving the kitchen one after another.

Apart from the other dishes, the two servings of Three-Shreds Dish were sent to the rooms of the Chief Clerk and the Dianshi.

"You clean up. Make sure you scrub everything thoroughly."

Night fell, and the kitchen fires went out.

At Yan Ming's instruction, Dunzi hadn't even eaten yet. With a face full of misery, he picked up a broom and began sweeping the entire kitchen.

"Come over here. Eat in my room."

Chen Zhuo had just picked up a bowl of salted-vegetable soup. He hadn't even swallowed his steamed bun when he suddenly heard Yan Ming's voice.

"Me?"

Chen Zhuo pointed at himself.

"Follow me."

Yan Ming said no more. He picked up the three-tiered food box someone had brought in and turned to leave.

Chen Zhuo hesitated briefly, but still followed.

They left the kitchen and didn't go far. After only two turns, they reached Yan Ming's room.

Neither of them went inside. At Yan Ming's gesture, they sat on the stone stools outside.

There was a private courtyard outside the room. It had been neglected, though, and looked disheveled.

Even so, it was far better than the room Chen Zhuo lived in.

Eight men shared one room, and they all did heavy labor. When they took off their shoes, even dogs would shake their heads at the smell.

"When will I have a room of my own, with a little courtyard?"

Chen Zhuo looked around, secretly longing for the day.

But Yan Ming's next words quickly brought him back to reality.

"Tell me, how did you get those astonishing knife skills?"