Chapter 392: Chapter 392. Growing Appet.i.te
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
“I want to change my reward. Help me find Qiu Yongkang.”
Su Qing raised her conditions to the system, and the system was silent for a long time before answering,
“I can’t satisfy the host’s request.”
“Why?”
Su Qing frowned and asked the system. This guy had been getting more and more out of hand recently. Last time, when she asked the system to make a key to open Ji Shuisheng’s box, it said its level was not high enough. Now, she was asking it to find a person, and it was making excuses?
“Because the system doesn’t have this function.”
The system didn’t dare to tell the truth. It was afraid that Su Qing would settle the score later, so it only dared to say it didn’t have this function.
“What use do 1 have for you?”
Su Qing scolded it angrily. The system was so sullen that it did not dare to say anything.
Su Qing changed the reward since the system couldn’t help her find Qiu Yongkang.
“In exchange for black gunpowder, it must be enough to equip a battalion.”
Now, she was unsure if Qiu Yongkang had already joined Wan Shengchang. Mo City would soon see a large army at the border if he had already submitted to him. The current military strength of Mo City was not enough to block the iron hooves of the army, so they had to make preparations early.
There were only a few hundred soldiers in Mo City. Even if they could fight against ten soldiers alone, they could not stop thousands of soldiers. Therefore, Su Qing planned to make grenades and use modern weapons to block the siege of the Wan family army. That would require a lot of gunpowder, so she asked for a reward for gunpowder.
“…Couldn’t give that much, only 50 catties of gunpowder.”
The system was shocked by Su Qing. His host’s appet.i.te was getting bigger and bigger. She wanted to equip herself with a battalion?
“That works too.”
Su Qing calculated that 50 catties of gunpowder could be used to make a lot of grenades. It was still acceptable.
After receiving the black gunpowder from the system, Su Qing stored it in the system warehouse.
She asked the soldiers to bring the twelve dishes she had made into the Third Prince’s palace. When she entered, she realized that the atmosphere was a little off. Ji Shuisheng’s face was dark, and the Third Prince’s eyes were pleading. It seemed that the negotiations had just broken down?
“Try my cooking.”
Su Qing didn’t care about the relationship between the two of them. She didn’t need to ask to know that Yeluchun hadn’t given up on Xiaoying. Ji Shuisheng was adamant about not agreeing, so the negotiations fell apart.
Yeluchun mustered up the courage to ask Shuisheng about Xiaoying’s situation. In the end, he did not tell him and warned him not to have any ideas about Xiaoying.
Just as he was feeling awkward, Su Qing entered the room, which was equivalent to helping him out. When he saw the 12 dishes that looked, smelled, and tasted good, Yeluchun praised them,
“It smells quite fragrant. I didn’t expect Miss Su to have such culinary skills.”
“Unfortunately, there’s no Drunken Overlord.”
The Third Prince felt a little regretful. Fine wine and delicacies were ahead of him. Unfortunately, the Drunken Overlord had long been sold out. He was used to drinking fine wine and jade wine. If he were to go back and drink the wine of the past, it would be as tasteless as drinking plain water.
Ji Shuisheng was angry that the Third Prince was still thinking about Xiaoying and gave him a cold face.
Who’s drinking with you, kid?
Delicious food made people feel good. The Third Prince’s eyes lit up when he tasted Su Qing’s cooking.
“Why isn’t our roasted mutton as delicious as Miss Su’s? The delicacies of the Central Plains are profound, but they are better than our monotonous diet.” “It’s a pity that there are dishes but no wine. It would be great if there were the Drunken Overlord.”
The Third Prince was still thinking about the Drunken Overlord. If he didn’t drink, he would eat faster. Zhong Yong and Ji Shuisheng were in a bad mood and didn’t eat much. However, the Third Prince ate a lot. He ate until his stomach was round before reluctantly putting down his chopsticks.
“Drink some milk tea to relieve the boredom.”
The Third Prince made Su Qing milk tea to thank her for making a table of delicacies that satisfied his taste buds. As for his future brother-in-law? He did not care about his att.i.tude because he was in a bad mood. He believed that he could break through metal and stone if he were sincere. He could move Ji Shuisheng to betroth his sister to her.
“w.a.n.gye, the emperor has asked you to enter the palace to discuss something.” A soldier reported from outside the door before the Third Prince’s milk tea was ready.
“Alright, 1’11 go now.”
His father had called him into the palace so late at night, so Yeluchun did not dare to delay. He cupped his fists and apologized to Su Qing and Ji Shuisheng, “Both of you, I’m truly sorry. Imperial Father has summoned me into the palace.”
“It’s fine.”
Ji Shuisheng waved his hand.
“Business is more important.”
Yeluchun hurried to the palace. Su Qing and Ji Shuisheng wanted to walk after dinner, so they couldn’t rely on the Third Prince.
Zhong Yong followed them like a shadow. Since he learned that Qiu Yongkang was the murderer who killed his mother, he was filled with grief and anger. His personality had also become silent.
The three of them wandered on the streets of Ta City. It snowed most of the time in winter. The north wind was as cold and fierce as a knife when it was not snowing. Especially at night, it was even colder. Very few people came out to walk. They all hid in the yurts and did not come out.
This year’s Ta City was colder than most years, but it was the year with the fewest people freezing to death.
With coal, every household would have smoke rising from their chimneys. Some herdsmen feared the sheep would freeze to death, so they even lit stoves in the sheep pen. The mortality rate of the sheep was significantly reduced, and the exchange of sheep for coal formed a virtuous cycle.
Su Qing looked at the smoke rising from the yurts. The money earned also improved the lives of the herdsmen. It was the best of both worlds.
“Su Qing, I don’t think Yongkang came to Ta City. It’s so cold in Ta City. He will freeze to death if he doesn’t have a place to stay.”
Ji Shuisheng was wearing a sheepskin coat with a cotton jacket made by his G.o.dmother inside. Two layers of cotton were enough to make him feel cold. Qiu Yongkang only wore an ordinary cotton jacket when he left. Without a sheepskin coat, he could not withstand the cold.
“We’ll stay for the night and await news from the Third Prince. If there’s still no news tomorrow morning, we’ll return.”
Su Qing didn’t jump to conclusions. She had chased him to Jin City and didn’t see Qiu Yongkang. He might not have gone south.
While Su Qing and Ji Shuisheng were searching for Qiu Yongkang on the streets of Ta City, the Third Prince entered the palace to meet his father.
When Yeluchun entered the inner hall, he saw his father sitting behind a desk. There were more than ten portraits on the desk. His father and mother talked and laughed while looking at one of the portraits.
Yeluchun frowned. He already knew what those portraits were? He felt a wave of frustration in his heart and wanted to turn around and leave.
“My son, you’re here. Come and take a look. Your mother and 1 both think that the princess of Hasar has an outstanding temperament and looks, and she’s very compatible with you.”
The old Emperor raised his head and saw his son. He smiled and called him over to look at the portrait.
“Imperial Father, your son’s heart is now focused on the country, and 1 don’t want to have any personal relationships.”
Yeluchun was not interested in the princess of Haza at all. He did not even want to look at her. He stood in front of the desk and bowed to the Emperor.
“Start a family first, then start a career. State affairs are important, but marriage is even more important. If you can’t find a good wife, how will you govern the country in the future?”
The Emperor didn’t listen to his son’s refusal. He had already used this refusal three times. This time, he had to force him to decide no matter what.
“That’s right, Chun’er. Mother is still waiting to hold a golden grandson. Listen to your Imperial Father and choose Princess Yunduo. Mother thinks that she’s not bad. She has a gentle and generous personality and is beautiful.”
Consort Li also went with the Emperor to persuade his son. After all, he had long pa.s.sed the age of marriage. At his age, the First Prince and the Second Prince already had many wives and concubines, and their children would run all over the place.
His parents took turns to force him to get married. Yeluchun frowned.. How could he find an excuse to reject this marriage?