CHEF (15)

At noon, everyone savored the stir-fried hazel grouse and braised rabbit meat. Despite the original lack of flavor, Lin, the boss, demonstrated exceptional cooking skills and made the two dishes incredibly flavorful.

One spoonful of food with one bowl of rice was completely satisfying. After the meal, a layer of red soup still remained in the clay pot. Luo Tietou and Zhao Liu swiftly retrieved their buns and dipped them in the soup, finishing every last drop.

"Comfortable, really comfortable!" Luo Tietou lay on the grass, rubbing his belly. If he could accompany Shopkeeper Lin on every future mission, he would gladly do so 365 days a year. That wouldn't be called hard work; that would be called enjoying life.

"One hazel grouse is still a bit small, not enough to eat. How about we hunt a few more later and let Lin continue cooking in the evening?" Zhao Liu suggested in a low voice.

"I think it's a good idea. If we hunt, Shopkeeper Lin will have to cook again even if she doesn't like to prepare the same dishes. Wild game has to be killed and cooked on the spot; that's the best way to enjoy it." Luo Tietou smacked his lips, still savoring the lunch they had just eaten.

The handsome man cast a glance their way but remained silent, evidently giving his approval. After resting for half an hour, the convoy proceeded and arrived at a dense forest.

Hearing the sound of small animals rustling through the grass, Zhao Liu and Luo Tietou readied their bows and arrows, intent on hunting for their evening meal.

The handsome man merely looked back and did not join them. After a while, he began to sense that something was amiss and was about to request the driver to slow down when an arrow struck one of the horses pulling the cart.

The other horses panicked and neighed wildly, but the drivers managed to grab the reins and calm them down. Had the horses not been calmed, the goods would have been damaged.

However, the undamaged goods did not imply that the situation improved. Because over a dozen burly men emerged from the dense forest, each holding a machete, or a bow and arrow, clearly experienced in robbing.

The tall and sturdy man, Junwei, approached Lin Dan's carriage first and whispered in a hushed tone, "Don't resist. Let's go with them first. Zhao Liu and Tietou are still behind us; they'll figure out a way to rescue us."

Lin Dan nodded, tapping her finger joints on the carriage window in understanding.

The group, along with the carriage, was dragged up the mountain by the bandits. A small hideout made of wooden fences enclosing five or six crude houses came into view. It looked shabby, clearly constructed in haste by these bandits.

Although it had yet to become a larger problem, if left unattended for three to five years, it would undoubtedly turn into a local disaster.

Lin Dan's hands were bound with rope as she stumbled forward, counting the number of bandits as she walked. With only five or six crude houses, the hideout could not accommodate many people. In addition to what she had seen along the way, this was only a small group of about twenty to thirty bandits. Some kidnapped women worked with a numb expression on their faces. When they were brought to the largest wooden house, a fierce-looking man immediately approached and asked in a rough voice, "Did you get anything good this time?"

"Damn it, all we got were some pickled vegetables and dried goods, not worth a penny!" one of the bandits spat, then continued, "Fortunately, we kidnapped three young girls. Brothers, we're in for a treat tonight."

Initially disappointed, the bandit leader grinned lasciviously upon seeing Lin Dan and her companions. "Well, well, although your face isn't very fair, your figure is quite something!" he remarked.

Lin Dan, who often travels, boasts a healthy physique. Her waist is tightly bound by cloth, accentuating her full chest and firm buttocks. This contrasts with the current trend of sickly beauty, making her particularly charming. Despite having faced many hardships, she remains calm, while her servants are cursing in anger. However, they are quickly silenced and stepped on.

The handsome man glanced up at the bandit leader, his eyes flashing with a dark light.

Lin Dan cast a comforting glance at everyone and spoke slowly, "The leader may not know that my ancestors were imperial chefs, and I have also learned some culinary skills from my father. If the leader spares my servants, I am willing to stay and cook for my brothers."

Of course, she did not expect these ruthless bandits to release her people. She only said this to divert their attention. For ordinary people, imperial chefs are figures they will never come into contact with in their lifetime. If they accidentally encounter one in reality, wouldn't they be curious? As long as they are curious, Lin Dan can buy more time for everyone, and with time comes the opportunity to escape.

"Are you an imperial chef?" The bandit leader's lecherous expression subsided as he looked at her with surprise.

"My master is an imperial chef, and my father once worked as a chef in the Yongding Marquis's Household," Lin Dan explained.

The family had served both the emperor and the Yongding Marquis, two figures whom nobody else could dream of meeting. The bandit leader's gaze towards Lin Dan began to change. After thinking for a moment, he said, "How do I know if what you're saying is true or false? Coincidentally, we've just stolen two cows in the village. If you kill the cows and make us a satisfying dinner, I'll consider letting your people go."

"Thank you, leader," Lin Dan said cupping her fist. "Killing cows is quite a chore. Please release my two maidservants to help me." If she left Shaoyao and Dujuan behind, she didn't know if the bandits would take advantage of them.

Killing cows was a job that the bandits naturally didn't want to do. Shaoyao and Dujuan were only twelve or thirteen years old, not very tall, and not very threatening. So they were quickly released. The rest of them were tied up and thrown into the firewood room. When the bandits left, Xiaozhu crawled up to the handsome man like a worm and whispered, "Big brother, do you think Zhao Liu and Tietou will find our trail? When will they arrive?"

The man lay quietly on the ground, his eyes half-closed, and his voice low. "We'll wait until nightfall before we make a move."

Xiaozhu was still feeling anxious, looking up at the window and muttering to himself, "I wonder how Boss Lin and the others are doing now."

Lin Dan was doing well, squatting on the ground, carefully sharpening a knife. She occasionally tested the sharpness of the blade with her fingertips, looking very serious.

The two bandits who had been eyeing her saw that she was only busy making a fire, boiling water, and sharpening her knife. She had not said a word to the little girls the whole time and had not looked around surreptitiously. They were now watching her less closely, having relaxed their guard and sitting on the side, chatting away.

The two cows were strong and healthy, and their fur was well taken care of. Obviously, they were stolen from the valley below.

After sharpening her knife, Lin Dan walked around the cows a few times, inspecting them carefully to choose which one to slaughter. The two bandits, seeing that she was finally about to kill the cows, crowded around to watch the spectacle. Slaughtering a cow was a skilled task that even a group of strong men would struggle to do, let alone a woman. The two bandits didn't offer to help. They only stood by and sneered, their eyes full of malice.

But soon, Lin Dan's actions made them feel uneasy. They watched as she chose one of the cows and let two little maids lead the other away, blindfolded with a cloth to prevent it from becoming agitated and going mad. Then, she stabbed the cow in the neck with a knife, cutting off the carotid artery and stepped back to scoop a ladle of water to calmly rinse the bloodstained blade.

Five meters away from her, the strong cow slowly fell to the ground, without even having time to make a sound. A large amount of fresh blood spurted from its neck, quickly staining the ground red.

The two bandits were stunned, but Lin Dan didn't stop there. After draining all the blood, she used boiling water to scald the cowhide, shaved off the hair, and then used a hot iron rod to burn off the remaining stubble. The smell of burnt flesh and hair accompanied by sizzling sounds made their scalp tingle.

After thoroughly cleaning the cowhide, Lin Dan stabbed the knife into the cow's stomach, cut it open with extreme precision, and the internal organs flowed out onto the ground. She sorted them into a bowl, then turned her attention to the joints of the cow's body and skillfully disassembled it.

A cow weighing more than 300 pounds, she handled it in less than an hour, both ruthless and precise.

Watching the whole process, the two bandits no longer dared to underestimate her and stood outside the blood pool, shrinking with fear. They thought to themselves that this woman should continue to be a cook and not be taken to bed, otherwise, one day they wouldn't even know if she had slit their necks.

"Brothers, how many people are in your village?" Lin Dan casually asked, as if in passing, and throw the last piece of beef into the bowl.

"What are you asking for?" The two bandits were on edge, and even more wary of her.

"I need to know how many people there are so I can cook enough food. If I don't have enough, everyone will go hungry," Lin Dan wiped the blood from her face with a handkerchief, her expression calm.

That reason was very convincing. The two bandits counted in their minds and replied, "There are twenty or thirty mouths to feed, so cook a little more."

Lin Dan nodded and didn't ask any more questions. She and the two little girls carried the beef into the kitchen, cut it into two-inch cubes, marinated it with soy sauce, cooking wine, and other seasonings, and then prepared the beef hooves, ribs, bones, and other ingredients for later use.

"Master, how do we escape?" The two little girls couldn't hold back their anxiety and whispered in her ear.

"Let's focus on making this meal first." Lin Dan peeled the garlic seriously, her expression steady.

No matter how panicked the two little girls were, it was useless. They could only resign themselves to washing the vegetables.

An hour later, the beef was marinated, and Lin Dan poured half a jar of vegetable oil into a large wok, heating it to 80% and then slowly poured in the beef. She stir-fried the beef until it was half-cooked and then removed it and set it aside.

She poured out the remaining oil, washed the pot, added new oil, and fried ginger slices and shredded onions until fragrant. She then added the half-cooked beef, soy sauce, star anise, and other ingredients and continued stir-frying for fifteen minutes.

After adding water and bringing the soup to a boil, she removed the excess firewood from the stove and simmered the beef over low heat. When the beef was almost done, she washed the beef tendons, cut them into strips, and fried them in the pot. This was to make another dish of braised beef tendons.

The two little maids were completely amazed. They never expected their master to cook while infiltrating a bandit's den. They didn't know what she was thinking. Was her life more important, or cooking?

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