26: Chapter 26 has a somewhat ambiguous relationship with Cai Wenjing!
Qingyang County is under the jurisdiction of Ye City and is only dozens of miles away from the capital.
Moreover, because it is the fief of Princess Qingyang, Zhu Yunxi, Qingyang County is quite prosperous. With a population of over two hundred thousand, it is considered a major county.
Although winter was approaching, the weather was clear and very warm today.
There were many pedestrians on the streets.
Zhao Zilong and Cai Wenjing walked side by side on the street, with Zhao Xiaotian following behind them.
Cai Wenjing didn't want to think too much about Zhao Zilong's bet with Ge Hua; she would wait until three days had passed.
She asked Zhao Zilong, "Zhao Zilong, was your decision to burn that notebook today a spontaneous one?"
In Cai Wenjing's view, Zhao Zilong shouldn't have burned that notebook. It would have been a better way to keep Li Kai, Zhang Da, and the others in check.
When you hold leverage over others, they will inevitably be wary of you.
Zhao Zilong said, "It's something I thought through long ago."
"You don't want to offend those people too much?"
Cai Wenjing also understood that there was logic in Zhao Zilong's actions.
Zhao Zilong said, "After all, we'll be working together in the future. It's best if we can let bygones be bygones."
"If that's the case, why did you publicly announce that Li Kai slept with Zhang Da's wife?"
Cai Wenjing felt that since Zhao Zilong didn't want to offend Li Kai and the others, he shouldn't have brought up the matter between Li Kai and Zhang Da's wife. Wouldn't that offend them even more deeply?
Even burning the notebook would be useless then.
Zhao Zilong said, "Li Kai and Zhang Da are sworn brothers with deep feelings; they've always presented a united front against outsiders. My reason for revealing the matter between Li Kai and Zhang Da's wife today was to drive a wedge between them."
"Don't be fooled by the fact that Zhang Da did nothing more after hitting Li Kai today; their relationship will certainly never be the same."
"Although we are on the same side and need unity, if subordinates are too united, it isn't necessarily a good thing sometimes."
Hearing Zhao Zilong's words, Cai Wenjing couldn't help but feel surprised.
She seemed to have heard such words from the Empress's mouth before.
This was the art of imperial balance.
Cai Wenjing looked at Zhao Zilong with a strange expression in her eyes.
Was this really the same Zhao Zilong who used to be cowardly and let others bully him?
How did he seem like a completely different person?
Could it be that he was just biding his time before?
And the reason Zhao Zilong began to change was because he became a Martial Artist?
"Have a candied hawthorn stick."
While Cai Wenjing was lost in thought, Zhao Zilong had already held out a stick of Candied Hawthorns in front of her.
Cai Wenjing had always wanted to eat this, wanting to reminisce about the flavors of her childhood.
However, she was an adult now and felt too embarrassed to buy one.
Now that Zhao Zilong was offering her a stick, she hesitated, not knowing whether to take it or not.
If she took it, would she seem too childish?
She was, after all, the Deputy Director of the Fuzheng Division.
"Sister Wenjing, it's really sweet, really."
Zhao Xiaotian held a stick of Candied Hawthorns in his hand, licking it vigorously with a look of pure enjoyment.
"Okay."
Cai Wenjing finally took the Candied Hawthorns and gave them a light lick.
Zhao Zilong asked, "Is it especially sweet?"
"How do you know?"
Seeing that Zhao Zilong didn't have any Candied Hawthorns in his hand, Cai Wenjing was a bit surprised. How did he know it was especially sweet?
Zhao Zilong said, "I just licked it."
"Zhao Zilong, you... you bastard!"
Cai Wenjing got a bit flustered. She hadn't expected that Zhao Zilong had licked the Candied Hawthorns in her hand.
And she had just licked it too. Didn't that mean, didn't that mean..."
"Just kidding, go ahead and eat. Haha..."
Naturally, Zhao Zilong hadn't licked it; he was just teasing Cai Wenjing.
"You're not lying to me?"
Cai Wenjing was a bit skeptical.
Zhao Zilong said, "I swear I really didn't lick it."
"That's good then. You really scared me just now."
Cai Wenjing breathed a sigh of relief.
Although she greatly appreciated Zhao Zilong now, wanted to put him in an important position, and was willing to be friends with him, she wasn't quite comfortable with a sudden increase in intimacy between them.
She didn't find it repulsive, but she was a bit guarded.
---
The three of them arrived at the wet market. Zhao Xiaotian dove right in, weaving through the crowd.
Zhao Zilong led Cai Wenjing as they wandered past various stalls.
Daye did not restrict commoners from eating beef, though of course, the quantity couldn't be too large.
Zhao Zilong went to a meat stall to buy meat, haggling with the owner.
Cai Wenjing stood to the side watching, unknowingly drawn in by Zhao Zilong's worldly, commoner air.
Cai Wenjing discovered that when she was with Zhao Zilong, she was particularly relaxed, and she smiled much more than usual.
In front of others, she needed to maintain her image as the Deputy Director at all times—stern and solemn—but with Zhao Zilong, there was no need for that at all.
She could even occasionally say a crude word or two.
"This is?"
While Cai Wenjing was slightly dazed watching Zhao Zilong, her expression suddenly jolted.
She was already a Sixth-Rank Martial Artist and had been stuck at this level for over a year, with no signs of a breakthrough.
But just now, she suddenly felt that this bottleneck showed signs of loosening.
"What are you dazing off for? Here, hold this for me. I'm going to see if Xiaotian has finished buying his things."
Zhao Zilong handed the wrapped beef to Cai Wenjing.
Cai Wenjing was still immersed in the sensation of the loosening bottleneck and gave a soft response like a young wife.
Zhao Zilong flashed a smile at Cai Wenjing and went to find Zhao Xiaotian.
"Is it because of Zhao Zilong?"
Coming back to her senses and looking at the beef in her hand, Cai Wenjing couldn't help but mutter.
---
"Wow, it smells so good."
At Zhao Zilong's home, the hotpot was ready. The beef and mutton had just been placed in the pot, and Cai Wenjing's appetite was already fully whetted; she caught the full scent of the meat.
"Dad, how much longer? I can't hold back anymore."
Zhao Xiaotian's chopsticks were already poised at the edge of the pot. He kept swallowing, ready to start at any moment.
Zhao Zilong said, "Count to ten in your head, and then you can eat."
"Oh."
Zhao Xiaotian gave a response and started counting silently, but in Zhao Zilong's view, not even two or three seconds had passed before Zhao Xiaotian moved his chopsticks.
He didn't bother to say anything. It was the same whether it was slightly undercooked or not; it just depended on whether Zhao Xiaotian could handle it.
"Dad, I counted too fast. The meat isn't cooked."
Zhao Xiaotian ate a piece of hand-sliced beef and looked a bit embarrassed.
Zhao Zilong couldn't help but give a doting smile.
"Deputy Director Cai, try it and see how it tastes."
Zhao Zilong placed a piece of beef in Cai Wenjing's bowl.
Cai Wenjing looked up at Zhao Zilong, a faint, inexplicable feeling stirring in her heart.
She nodded slightly, dipped the beef into the dipping sauce Zhao Zilong had prepared, and then put it in her mouth.
Fragrant, incredibly fragrant.
Cai Wenjing swore that she had never eaten anything so delicious in her entire life.
Moreover, it was novel; she had never seen anything like it before.
"How is it?"
Zhao Zilong asked with a look of anticipation.
Cai Wenjing said, "Very fragrant."
As she spoke, she began picking up beef and vegetables herself, eating very happily.
Zhao Xiaotian was even more so, feasting greedily.
Zhao Zilong also took meat and vegetables, filling a whole bowl, mixed them with the dipping sauce, and then began shoveling it down in large mouthfuls, eating even more heartily than Zhao Xiaotian.
The father and son glanced at each other and couldn't help but smile, then ate even more fiercely, as if in a competition.
"Is it more fragrant to eat like that?"
Cai Wenjing asked curiously.
Zhao Xiaotian said, "Sister Wenjing, try it. It's much more fragrant than taking small bites."
"This..."
Cai Wenjing hesitated. Wouldn't this be too unrefined? She was the Deputy Director of the Fuzheng Division and a lady, after all.
"There are no outsiders here, what's there to fear? Give it a try."
As Zhao Zilong spoke, he began piling meat and vegetables into Cai Wenjing's bowl, then poured a whole portion of dipping sauce over it.
"Try it, it's definitely good."
Zhao Zilong gestured.
Cai Wenjing nodded, stirred it a few times, and tried shoveling it in like Zhao Zilong and Zhao Xiaotian.
Sure enough, the taste was completely different from taking small bites; the meaty fragrance completely exploded in her mouth, greatly increasing her appetite.
Cai Wenjing also gradually let her guard down.
However, she was a woman after all and didn't have the appetite of Zhao Zilong and Zhao Xiaotian. After a while, she slowed down and ate in small bites.
Zhao Zilong and Zhao Xiaotian, on the other hand, showed no intention of stopping.
"Sister Wenjing..."
Zhao Xiaotian noticed a small scrap of meat stuck to the corner of Cai Wenjing's mouth and pointed it out.
Cai Wenjing was stunned for a moment. Realizing it, she tried to lick it with her tongue but couldn't reach it after several attempts.
Just as she was about to put down her chopsticks and wipe it away with her hand, Zhao Zilong had already reached out, picked the scrap of meat from the corner of her mouth, and put it into his own mouth under Cai Wenjing's incredulous gaze.