Saying there's no share for Lu Cong, that's definitely not possible.
As long as Lin Jikai cooks, this kid will definitely show up by noon.
Usually, it's fine to save him a portion if he cooks a lot.
Today, it's just a pound of noodles. Lin Jikai intentionally only ate half in the morning, so of course, he wouldn't give Lu Cong half a bowl.
"Either go find something to eat yourself, or watch me eat."
With that said, Lin Jikai ignored Lu Cong, picked up his chopsticks, and started eating noodles.
After a few bites, seeing Lu Cong actually brought a chair and sat down by himself, eagerly watching, a look of speechlessness appeared on Lin Jikai's face.
The eating speed suddenly increased.
In just a few mouthfuls, he finished a pound of noodles, then drank every drop of the noodle soup in the bowl.
Only when he saw the disappointed expression on Lu Cong's face did Lin Jikai put down the bowl and burped.
To be honest, he was full, but the taste was lacking.
If it weren't for the aroma of the chicken soup between his teeth, Lin Jikai would have wanted to argue with Lu Cong.
"If you have nothing to do, go out and stroll around, or go gamble or visit a brothel. A dignified demon catcher, begging for food all day, how disgraceful."
"Hey, boss, if you become the head chef at Ruyi Tower, you won't have to deal with other cooks." Lu Cong said with a silly smile.
"Get lost, don't disturb my nap."
After sending Lu Cong away, Lin Jikai lay back on the recliner, preparing to take a nap.
But just as he closed his eyes, Song Er hurriedly walked in.
"Chief Lin, there's a fight at the vegetable market. I happened to pass by, do you want to go take a look together?"
Lin Jikai still didn't bother to open his eyes.
"Has anyone died?"
"No, but I heard there was bloodshed."
"What's going on?"
"The vegetable seller tampered with the weights, the buyers felt cheated, brought their own scales, and caught them on the spot."
Lin Jikai sighed and turned over.
"If no one has died, don't bother me."
"Alright, I'll come back if someone dies."
"Even if someone dies, don't come to me."
Despite saying that, Lin Jikai still reluctantly got up from the recliner with an impatient look on his face.
Following Song Er, he arrived at the vegetable market.
It was already crowded with people, with a small open space in the middle left for the two men who were beaten up to display their skills.
Lin Jikai watched with interest for a while.
Although in his eyes, the fight between the vegetable sellers and buyers was just a messy brawl, or a wrestling match.
But such excitement was rare.
Without using knives, the only weapons the two sides had were the vegetable baskets in their hands and a frozen cucumber.
Lin Jikai estimated that they wouldn't be able to kill each other even if they fought all day, so he decided to just enjoy the show.
After watching for a while, the two sides seemed tired from fighting.
They sat down on the ground, one holding half a cucumber, the other holding a basket with only a handle left, cursing each other loudly.
Seeing that the fun was over, Lin Jikai pushed through the crowd and walked away.
"Everyone disperse."
"Chief Lin, this guy selling vegetables shortchanged the weight, and when we confronted him, he dared to curse at us."
"If the weight was short, just make up for it, what's the need for violence?"
"Alright, everyone go back home, causing trouble for no reason every day."
After sending away the fighting parties and the onlookers, Song Er cleverly called a few henchmen to clean up the mess at the vegetable market.
After this incident, Lin Jikai no longer felt sleepy at all.
Yawning, he thought about finding a teahouse to sit for a while.
Seeing Lin Jikai looking idle, Song Er quickly suggested, "Chief Lin, how about going to the gambling den for a few rounds?"
"Gamble? No thanks." Lin Jikai shook his head. "If I win, you guys let me win, and if I lose, you dare not take my money and will find ways to return it to me. What's the point of gambling then?"
"How about a table at Ruyi Tower? I heard the head chef there has new dishes."
"I'm not one to be flattered like that, I just finished eating."
Seeing through his thoughts, Song Er didn't mind.
"Then how about a visit to Minghua Tower? Today, there's a talented singer from Liangcheng staying at Minghua Tower, I heard the performance is exceptional."
"Song Er, when have you ever seen me go to Minghua Tower?"
As he was speaking halfway, Lin Jikai suddenly frowned.
After a moment of contemplation, he chuckled, "Forget it, today is an exception, let's go to Minghua Tower."
Following Song Er, they arrived at Minghua Tower.
As soon as they entered the gate, the old madam hurriedly came out.
"Oh, isn't this Chief Lin? What an honored guest!"
"Girls, Chief Lin is here, quickly escort him to the private room upstairs. Yinyin and Yanyan, the two of you take good care of Chief Lin!"
Even though Lin Jikai was not one to frequent brothels, he often heard about the fame of Yinyin and Yanyan, the two leading ladies of Minghua Tower.
Even Young Master Zhou Qian, who had once offered a high price to spend a night with the two beauties, was never successful.
The courtesans belonged to the highest bidder.
But Yinyin and Yanyan were true professionals, also the signature ladies under the old madam, maintaining the reputation of the establishment.
They rarely came out to entertain guests, let alone have intimate encounters.
"Understood, Mother."
With a response from upstairs, the two girls in white skirts slowly descended the stairs, each linking an arm with Lin Jikai.
Yinyin and Yanyan truly lived up to the reputation of Minghua Tower, with exquisite beauty and graceful demeanor.
In this vulgar brothel, these two ladies stood out by wearing plain skirts and light makeup.
They exuded a natural fragrance.
The beauty loves the luxurious silk, not the heavy musk, naturally fragrant.
Using this phrase to describe the two ladies was most fitting.
Lin Jikai was escorted like this, heading to the private room on the second floor.
Tea and snacks were already prepared. After Lin Jikai sat down, he glanced at the stage on the first floor, then turned to look at Song Er.
"When will the Liangcheng singer perform?"
Before Song Er could answer, Yinyin giggled, "I thought Chief Lin had a heart of stone and didn't appreciate beauty, turns out you just don't fancy us sisters."
The words were spoken with a hint of jealousy and a touch of grievance in her tone, evoking pity rather than resentment.
Combined with a self-pitying expression.
"Amazing." Lin Jikai exclaimed.
Yinyin seemed to know that Lin Jikai saw through her act, as she chuckled and fed him a pastry.
"Probably in the evening when there are more guests," Song Er guessed, "I just heard about it, was planning to come and see today."
"When don't you come to see?" Lin Jikai mocked.
Song Er awkwardly chuckled a few times.
In the yamen, he and Young Master Zhou were the most frequent visitors to Minghua Tower.
After sitting in the private room for two hours, as the sky outside darkened, the first floor of Minghua Tower also became lively.
Lin Jikai's gaze occasionally swept over the main hall on the first floor.
But suddenly, he saw a familiar figure.
It was a fat-headed, big-eared bald monk in a monk's robe.
"Huh? Master Xingchi?"
Lin Jikai found it somewhat absurd. Master Xingchi was a high monk from Liangcheng's Daliang Temple, how did he end up wandering in Qingyang County?
But before Lin Jikai could go down to greet him, the music started playing on the stage downstairs.
Song Er was quite excited, staring at the first floor.
"The Liangcheng singer is about to perform."
(End of Chapter)