Sheep Offal Soup

"Did your mother eat cornmeal cakes yesterday?"

Dong Ying froze for a moment, then said, "My family often eats cornmeal cakes."

"Your mother probably has a habit. When the cornmeal cakes go hard, she often soaks them in water, right?"

"Exactly." Dong Ying's expression turned grave.

Li Qingxian said, "I just performed a Fate Reading. The cornmeal cakes you ate were contaminated with some mold bugs. Then your mother was careless last night and left half a cornmeal cake soaking all night. She couldn't bear to throw it away, so she ate it today."

Dong Ying's expression changed drastically. "Before I left this morning, my mother said her stomach felt a little uncomfortable."

"Then that's it. Unless something unexpected happens, your mother is likely already vomiting and having diarrhea, looking for a doctor. Hurry over and use your True Essence to assist the doctor in treating her, or the consequences will be unimaginable," Li Qingxian said.

Dong Ying took off running, his left hand protecting his saber. As he ran, he looked back and said, "If you can save my mother, you'll be the great benefactor of me, Dong Ying. I'll owe you my life. If you're lying, get lost to the docks!"

"Go to Life-Preserving Hall!" Li Qingxian shouted.

Dong Ying ran on in silence.

"Qingxian, what happened?" Zheng Hui came over with several people.

"Nothing," Li Qingxian said.

"What exactly happened?" Yu Ping asked.

"You'll know tonight." Li Qingxian smiled.

"So mysterious. Come on, let's get some mutton soup!" Yu Ping turned and left.

Zheng Hui and Han Anbo looked curiously at Li Qingxian. Seeing that he would not explain, they let it go.

Li Qingxian pondered as he walked.

It seemed that before reaching Entry Rank, he should avoid using the Qi-Gazing Technique whenever possible—especially on High Rank cultivators. Using it once made him dizzy; using it twice might make him pass out cold.

The Qi-Gazing Technique truly was formidable, but what did that withered tree mean?

It seemed related to the Fate Arts. He seemed to have learned about it before, but unfortunately, the important memories were still hazy.

After walking for a while, Yu Ping forcefully sniffed the air.

"We're here!"

The three followed the sound and saw Yu Ping, who had been walking ahead, looking as though his soul had left his body. He took three steps as two and turned into an alley only about ten feet wide.

The three exchanged smiles and followed him inside.

The mottled brick walls on either side were covered in glistening green moss, while the broken pale-gray flagstone road stretched all the way to Happiness Street.

Beyond the alley entrance, people flowed back and forth. Countless voices merged into a buzzing hum that grew louder and louder.

More and more fragrance flowed through the air, growing richer and thicker.

Stepping around filthy little puddles, the three emerged from the alley.

All the varied sights of common life and the breath of worldly bustle surged forward, wrapping them tightly within.

Yu Ping quickened his pace again, while the other three strolled unhurriedly along the rutted dirt road.

Sizzle... Fried cakes hit the oil, sending up a faint haze that burrowed into their noses, greasy and fragrant.

Gurgle, gurgle... Beneath the rolling steam, sauce-red braised meat rose and sank.

"Coming out of the pot..." The lid was lifted, and thick white mist dispersed, revealing golden-yellow steamed cornbread.

Li Qingxian looked at the familiar scene and listened to the clamor, joy rising in him like someone who had survived a great calamity.

In the corner of his eye, a fair, plump figure was waving hard.

Li Qingxian looked over and saw Yu Ping frantically waving with his left hand while pointing at the tables and chairs below with his right. Baring his teeth and glaring, he shouted loudly.

"Hurry up, I saved us seats..."

The three quickened their steps.

A white vertical banner stained with grease trembled gently in the wind, and the filthy words "Zhang's" were clearly visible.

Six tables and rows of long benches stood outside the shop, while a black plaque with golden lettering reading Zhang's hung above the entrance.

Li Qingxian craned his neck to look inside. The shop was actually packed full, and even two tables outside were occupied.

"Master Zheng is here! Have a seat. Lamb offal or lamb meat?" Old Zhang, so busy his feet barely touched the ground, came over. He looked warmly at Zheng Hui while pulling the towel from his shoulder to wipe the soup-spattered table.

People nearby looked over. Seeing their brocade uniforms and sabers, some shrank their necks, some swallowed nervously, while others kept eating with blank expressions.

Zheng Hui waved a broad hand. "We're all friends, no need to stand on ceremony. Go about your work, don't mind us. The usual: four bowls of lamb offal soup, three hard white-flour buns, two chopped portions."

Han Anbo added, "And four cups of water to rinse our mouths after the meal."

"Right away!" Old Zhang said as he turned and left.

With a rosy face, Zheng Hui said, "Old Zhang's a righteous fellow. I only helped him drive off a few punks, but he's remembered it all these years. He's this welcoming every time, making me embarrassed to come too often."

"Captain Zheng has no family ties with Old Zhang, yet he was willing to help. Captain Zheng is the more righteous one," Han Anbo said.

"No, no..." Zheng Hui spoke modestly, but his smile nearly split his face.

Yu Ping curled his lip. "Captain Zheng, I even saved you a seat. Why not reward me with a bowl of lamb soup? Every time we come, you only treat us to lamb offal soup. Do you still want the face of a Tenth Rank expert?"

"Old Zhang's lamb offal soup is his finest dish." Zheng Hui could not be bothered to look at Yu Ping. He stood and fetched chili oil and pepper powder from another table.

Li Qingxian glanced at the prices posted on the wall. Lamb offal soup cost five coins, while lamb soup cost fifteen.

Deputy Captain Han Anbo came over carrying rough pottery plates. Li Qingxian suddenly rose in realization and hurriedly took them. "Thank you for the trouble, Deputy Captain Han."

"It's nothing. Whoever carries them carries them." Han Anbo smiled as he handed out the plates.

Li Qingxian followed along, distributing bamboo chopsticks and wooden soup spoons.

"You didn't order my white-flour buns again!" Yu Ping sighed.

Zheng Hui pushed over the chili oil and pepper powder. "Who told you to be so picky? You insist that white-flour buns only go with lamb soup, saying they don't taste right with lamb offal. Serves you right!"

"That's just how it is! Everyone talks about lamb soup with soaked buns—who's ever heard of lamb offal with soaked buns? Make it up to me with a salted duck egg." Yu Ping looked at Zheng Hui eagerly.

"In your dreams."

"Just one!" Yu Ping pulled his gaze away from the salted duck eggs piled on rice husks and looked pitifully at Zheng Hui. "Brother, not even one? I haven't had one in over half a year. I guarantee today's salted duck eggs are especially good. Crack one open and it'll spray oil all over your face."

"Were the salted duck eggs from the fifteenth last month eaten by dogs?" Zheng Hui shot Yu Ping a sidelong glance.

"Woof woof!" Yu Ping's face remained perfectly calm.

Li Qingxian laughed.

Zheng Hui was so annoyed he laughed. "If you were my son, I'd beat you three times a day! Wait until you slim down before eating one."

Yu Ping sighed.

Zheng Hui suddenly glanced at Li Qingxian, then looked toward the small pile of salted duck eggs. Turning to Yu Ping, he said, "Go pick out four salted duck eggs. If they don't spray oil all over your face, you pay!"

"Brother Zheng is righteous!" Yu Ping was overjoyed. He clasped his fist, darted over to carefully select the salted duck eggs, then brought them back cupped cautiously in his hands and handed one to each of the others.

"They're guaranteed to sizzle with oil!"

"Four bowls of lamb offal soup, three white-flour buns, two chopped portions and one whole portion, coming up..."

The four were lightly tapping their eggshells when Old Zhang, around sixty years old, came over with a middle-aged man who resembled him around the eyes and brows. Each carried a tray, and they carefully set down the lamb offal soup and the white-flour buns placed in bowls.

"Thank you." As Li Qingxian spoke, he gently pushed the lamb offal soup in front of himself, then quickly pulled his hand away from the scalding bowl.

In the large rough white porcelain bowl, the soup was milky white. Strips of lamb lung, liver, heart, tripe, and other offal heaped above the rim. Sprinkles of scallion rested atop the little mountain of offal, while heat rolled and rose.

With a gentle inhale, the delicious fragrance carried an extremely faint gamy and rank smell. With another breath, the scent of scallions dispersed the gaminess and odor, leaving behind an intense meaty aroma.

They truly had given a generous portion of lamb offal.

Li Qingxian glanced at the lamb offal soup on the other tables. None of them had bowls as loaded with meat as these four.

"Master Zheng, please enjoy." Father and son stood nearby.

"Go do your work. Don't mind us." Zheng Hui waved his broad hand.

"All right, enjoy your meal. If you need anything, just say so." Old Zhang left as he spoke.

Zheng Hui held a white-flour bun in his left hand and pinched its edge between the index finger and thumb of his right. With a squeeze and a pull, he tore off thumb-sized pieces and dropped them into the lamb offal soup one after another, smooth and swift.

Han Anbo poured half a bowl of chopped white-flour bun into his lamb offal soup, set the remaining half aside, lowered his head, and began eating.

"What a waste of heaven's gifts..."

Yu Ping muttered softly. He first poured in some white pepper powder, then scooped a spoonful of chili into his bowl. Taking a deep breath over it, he stirred with his chopsticks and said, "Brother Han, lamb offal soup needs pepper and chili to remove the odor and enhance the fragrance. Eat it like that, and you won't taste much of anything."

Han Anbo smiled and continued eating his lamb offal soup with soaked buns, adding neither pepper powder nor chili oil.

Following the way he had eaten it before, Li Qingxian poured the whole bowl of chopped white-flour bun into the lamb offal soup, sprinkled on pepper, then scooped half a spoonful of chili oil, preparing to add it to the soup.

"Your illness has only just healed. Wait a few days before eating spicy food," Han Anbo said, looking up.

"Right. Don't eat spicy food these next few days, and use less pepper powder too," Zheng Hui said.

"All right."

Li Qingxian smiled and put back the chili oil. He broke open his peeled salted duck egg, and oil sizzled out, bright yellow and gleaming.

He bit into the yolk. It was soft and delicate, brimming with salty fragrance.

"The rich eat as the rich do, and the poor eat as the poor do. Lamb offal with soaked buns is still a way to eat..." Zheng Hui grumbled as he skillfully tore apart the hard white-flour bun.

The other three exchanged looks and sped up their eating.

After only a few bites, Yu Ping suddenly looked around in all directions, then stood up, squeezed into the crowd, and disappeared.

"Like a monkey. Qingxian, don't you go learning from him." Zheng Hui shook his head and continued tearing his white-flour bun.

Li Qingxian lowered his head and blew over the scorching surface of the soup. He carefully took a sip. The pepper powder masked the miscellaneous flavors, the meat fragrance was rich, and the lamb offal was cooked to perfection—what should be chewy was chewy, and what should be tender was tender.

Just as the white-flour bun in Zheng Hui's hand had dwindled to half a palm's size, Yu Ping returned carrying a bamboo steamer.

"Move aside, don't bump into it..." Yu Ping went around the people blocking his path, sat on the long bench, and set down the steamer and a paper-wrapped soft cake.

Nine steaming shaomai were lined up in the steamer.

The three stopped eating and stared at Yu Ping in unison.

"What are you looking at me for? Eat your lamb offal with soaked buns." Yu Ping slowly dragged the steamer toward himself until it reached the edge of the table.

The three said nothing, only stared at him.

"I don't have any buns, so of course I can't get full."

The three still said nothing.

Yu Ping gritted his teeth, sighed, and said, "One each. No more than that!"

As he spoke, he reluctantly picked up his chopsticks. One hand guarded the steamer while the other placed a shaomai onto each of their plates.

After eating one, Zheng Hui smacked his lips. "Tsk, beef and radish filling. A great tonic."

Yu Ping lowered his head.

Li Qingxian and Han Anbo ate while laughing.

After finishing one shaomai, Li Qingxian continued eating his lamb offal.

Yu Ping ate two shaomai in succession, then suddenly picked up another and placed it on Li Qingxian's plate. Under the astonished gazes of the three, Yu Ping hesitated for a moment, then placed another one there.

"No more than that." Looking as though life was worse than death, Yu Ping lowered his head and slurped down lamb offal soup.

Zheng Hui and Han Anbo's gazes softened.

Li Qingxian looked at the shaomai beneath the morning light. It shone as brightly as that orange had. Smiling happily, he picked up the shaomai, put it in his mouth, and chewed in big bites.

After finishing the shaomai, he drank more lamb soup.

Meat warmed the stomach; soup warmed the heart.

Yu Ping raised his head and looked at Zheng Hui. "Did it spray oil?"

Zheng Hui helplessly glanced at the eggshell by the bowl. "It did."

Yu Ping let out a breath.

Han Anbo pushed the remaining half bowl of chopped white-flour bun in front of Yu Ping.

"Thanks!" Yu Ping beamed. Carrying his bowl over to Old Zhang, he shouted as he walked, "Old Zhang, add half a bowl of lamb soup—lamb soup, no lamb meat."

"Coming right up!"

Before long, Yu Ping returned holding his lamb soup, happily eating plain lamb soup with soaked buns.

"Now this is the right flavor!"

After Han Anbo finished eating, he swept his eyes over the surroundings, his gaze pausing briefly on several people carrying weapons.

The sun slowly rose, and Happiness Street grew more and more crowded.

After the four finished eating, their whole bodies were warm, with fine beads of sweat on their foreheads.

"That hit the spot!" Zheng Hui chuckled as he took out a handful of rusty copper coins from a leather pouch, counted them, and picked out the payment. Old Zhang declined several times, but only accepted when he truly could not refuse.

After the four had taken only a few steps, someone behind them shouted, "Old Zhang, add more lamb meat. Don't be so stingy."

"All right, soldier!"

Zheng Hui suddenly stopped and turned to look at the person ordering lamb soup, his brow furrowing.

Li Qingxian was immediately curious. Zheng Hui was famed for his good temper, so why had his expression suddenly darkened?

Li Qingxian looked over. The man had removed his saber and placed it on the table. One foot rested on the long bench as he sat with the commanding ease of a great general.

Smiling, he sprinkled pepper powder over his lamb soup. Beneath the steam, thick slices of lamb meat were piled solidly into a small mountain.

There was far more than the lamb meat or lamb offal on the other tables.

Looking him over from head to toe, Li Qingxian saw that the man's features were ordinary. He wore what looked like a Military and Horse Bureau officer's uniform, and on his chest, like Zheng Hui, was a white horse rank badge marking him as Subordinate Tenth Rank.

Could it be that Captain Zheng had a grudge against this man?

As Li Qingxian was thinking, Zheng Hui turned away with a grim face and walked forward.

"Full and fed. Time to patrol the streets."

Li Qingxian did not ask further and followed behind.

The four headed outward along Happiness Street, like a giant whale charging into a school of fish, everyone around them sliding aside to either side.

As he walked, Zheng Hui said, "After we finish inspecting Wanping Street, we'll follow the old rules and split into two groups. Meet at the Wanping Memorial Arch at the end. The earlier we finish, the earlier we get back to the yamen. Anbo, partner with Yu Ping. I'll take Qingxian. Once his health improves, we'll switch back."

"Yes," Han Anbo answered.

"Thank you, Captain Zheng," Li Qingxian said.

"What's there to thank me for? As long as you don't cause trouble for me, that's better than anything. Still, you're more well-behaved than usual today. Did that illness muddle your brain, or did you finally see the light?" Zheng Hui shouted as he walked.

The bustle of the street muffled Zheng Hui's voice.

Li Qingxian said, "I'm not sure either. I just feel like I should live differently, that I can't keep muddling through as I did before. But as for exactly how, I can't say."

Zheng Hui's eyes lit up. He turned and fiercely slapped Li Qingxian on the shoulder. "Good! Lord Li's spirit in heaven will surely be gratified!"

"Well done, Little Li!" Han Anbo said with a cheerful smile.