In a private room on the second floor sat a gentleman in blue robes. Though curtains blocked the view and his features couldn’t be clearly seen, one could generally tell this gentleman was young, barely in his twenties, yet possessed an elegant bearing and noble demeanor. From a distance, he appeared like a misty and distant ink painting. Two plainly dressed, lightly made-up young maidservants attended him, while a young man who looked quite young but extremely alert waited outside the door, his sharp gaze scanning the idle bystanders around.

The moment the storyteller finished speaking, the man inside paused slightly with his palm. The two young maidservants gestured with their hands and covered their mouths to stifle their laughter. After quite a while, one of them finally approached hesitantly, asking coquettishly, “Young Master, is what he said really true?”

The man had graceful long eyebrows and a slightly pale complexion, yet this could hardly conceal his elegant and handsome aura. Lifting his head, he asked in return, “Do you believe it?”

“Of course I don’t believe it!” the little maidservant said with pouted lips. “If you said Young Master could fight eight hundred or a thousand people by yourself, I’d still believe it. But saying one person could fight a hundred thousand people without getting a drop of blood on themselves—isn’t that just deceiving people?”

The man’s expression stiffened, and he nearly spit out a mouthful of tea. Just as he was about to speak, suddenly the shop assistant outside called, “This young master, your dishes are ready.”

A delicate aroma immediately wafted over. The shop assistant smiled as he arranged the food on the mahogany dining table, then brought over a bowl, saying, “This is a rich soup that nourishes the lungs and replenishes energy. Our head chef just saw Young Master’s gait when you entered and felt that your steps seemed weak and your blood and energy insufficient, so he prepared this bowl of soup. Young Master, please try it.”

The young man who had followed the shop assistant in frowned and said sternly, “We didn’t order this. Take it away.”

The shop assistant was startled and hurriedly explained, “This, this is complimentary from our establishment, no charge.”

The young man was about to say more, but the gentleman waved his hand and smiled at the shop assistant, “Thank you for the establishment’s thoughtfulness. Little brother, please convey my thanks to your head chef.” As he spoke, he glanced at the maidservant beside him, and the little maid understood, taking out a silver ingot to tip the shop assistant.

Upon seeing such a large piece of silver, the shop assistant was immediately stunned. This ingot of silver would be enough for him to work here for half a year. His face immediately lit up with joy as he departed with countless thanks.

“Young Master, this fellow seems suspicious, doesn’t he?” The young man grabbed the bowl of soup, brought it to his nose to smell, then took out a silver needle from his sleeve, apparently intending to test for poison.

“Lian Zhou,” the man said in a deep voice, “having come this far, who would know who I am? There’s no need for such caution. Give it to me.”

The young man hesitated, quite reluctant.

“Give it to me.”

The man repeated, and the young man had no choice but to release his grip, passing the bowl of soup over.

Indeed, these four travelers were none other than Great Qin’s War God Qin Zhiyan, who had departed Xianyang that day. Perhaps because his heart had found peace, his condition had surprisingly not worsened. Although his poisoning episodes had increased from once daily to two or three times due to the arrow wound from Qin Zhiye, the severity had remained constant. Thus, what should have been a body lasting only eight to ten days had somehow sustained him as he slowly made his way to Great Qin’s border—over a month with no major problems.

Qing’er, Bi’er, Lian Zhou and the others were naturally delighted. When Grand Tutor Zhong received their letters, he was greatly encouraged and strongly urged Qin Zhiyan to return to the capital to continue treatment. But only Qin Zhiyan knew that perhaps the moment he returned to Xianyang, this frail body would journey to the netherworld. Better to continue like this, living one day at a time, going wherever fate led.

The moment he lifted the lid, Qin Zhiyan’s eyes flashed with bewilderment. His brow gradually furrowed as he slowly brought his nose closer, sniffing gently. Then even his palms began to tremble slightly.

“Young Master?” Bi’er, being the most observant, noticed Qin Zhiyan’s expression was wrong and couldn’t help asking softly. Sharp-eyed Qing’er beside her suddenly pointed at the soup bowl in Qin Zhiyan’s hands and exclaimed, “Oh! It’s snow pear soup!”

Qin Zhiyan slowly lifted the bowl, took a sip, then tasted it carefully. After what seemed like a very long time, he finally raised his head and said in a deep voice, “Lian Zhou, go to the kitchen and have the cook who made this soup come here.”

“Ah?” Lian Zhou was startled, his eyes widening.

“Never mind,” Qin Zhiyan stood up. Though his steps weren’t particularly hurried, they were much faster than usual. Walking while speaking, he said, “I’ll go see for myself.”

“Young Master! Young Master!” The three were startled and hurriedly followed behind, chasing after him.

This seemed to be the first time in Qin Zhiyan’s life that he had entered a kitchen. With smoke, fire, and chaotic fumes everywhere, he immediately began coughing upon entering. Lian Zhou caught up from behind, calling loudly, “Young Master, you should go back. Let me help you find them.”

Qin Zhiyan didn’t answer, merely pushed away his hand and continued walking inward. After just two steps, someone suddenly collided with him, bumping into his body with a thud. His body was indeed very weak now; even such a light collision nearly knocked him down, his body swaying precariously.

“How do you walk!” Lian Zhou was furious, stepping forward to argue with that person.

Qin Zhiyan grabbed his hand and stepped forward, saying, “Little brother, may I ask where the master who made soup for me earlier can be found?”

Seeing it was them, the shop assistant was slightly startled, asking, “This young master, is there something you need?”

Qin Zhiyan smiled, “The soup tasted very good. I’d like to thank him in person.”

Remembering this young master’s generous tipping, the shop assistant immediately said happily, “Young Master, please follow me.”

After many twists and turns, they finally reached the kitchen. Cloud-Like Tower truly deserved to be Pengyang City’s largest tavern—the kitchen was enormous, with four rows of stoves, flames roaring, and chefs shouting everywhere.

“There, there, right over there!” the shop assistant pointed ahead and called loudly.

Qin Zhiyan looked with furrowed brow and saw a slender figure wearing gray-white robes, very thin-backed, bent over and apparently stir-frying, with thick smoke rolling about, making it impossible to see clearly.

Just as the shop assistant was about to call out, Qin Zhiyan stopped him. His steps immediately became heavy as he walked over step by step, very slowly, even somewhat cautiously. A row of food-carrying assistants suddenly passed by. With too much smoke here to see clearly who was blocking the way ahead, one roughly pushed Qin Zhiyan, saying gruffly, “Excuse me, excuse me!”

Qin Zhiyan stumbled, nearly falling to the ground. Lian Zhou flew into a rage and was about to intervene, but Bi’er grabbed his arm. The little maidservant seemed to understand something, slowly shaking her head and pursing her lips in silence.

The kitchen was very hot, with loud shouting everywhere. Qin Zhiyan finally struggled to reach that person’s side. After thinking for a long while, he slowly reached out his hand, patted the person’s shoulder, and carefully called, “Yima’er?”

“Hmm?” A clear voice suddenly rang out. A pretty, delicate-featured woman abruptly turned around, her forehead covered with perspiration, her skin fair, her eyebrows curved—she was indescribably refined and lovely. Frowning, she asked, “This young master, is there something you need?”

The entire kitchen suddenly became quiet. Qin Zhiyan was slightly dazed, his heart filled with indescribable feelings. He merely smiled bitterly and said, “Thank you for the soup, miss. I came to express my gratitude.”

Hearing this, the woman smiled brilliantly, saying, “Oh, so it’s you. Earlier my father came in and instructed me to make it. My father is the tavern’s owner.”

Qin Zhiyan politely thanked her, “In that case, many thanks to the establishment’s owner.”

“No need to thank me, it was nothing,” the woman smiled and said. “Your health isn’t good, and there’s too much dust and smoke here. Let’s go out to talk.”

Qin Zhiyan returned to the private room with little enthusiasm. Lian Zhou and the others understood his mood and didn’t speak much either. The originally fragrant cloud lark meat suddenly lost much of its appeal. After a while, the kitchen lady entered, carrying a pot of rich soup and smiling as she said, “Pardon the intrusion, Young Master.”

Qin Zhiyan smiled gently, saying, “Miss, please sit.”

Earlier in the kitchen, she hadn’t been able to see how extraordinarily elegant this gentleman was, but now she could see he was incomparably handsome with a noble bearing. The kitchen lady became slightly flustered, her smile turning shy as she said, “My surname is Cheng, with the given name Xiao. Just call me by my name—no more of this ‘miss, miss’ business.”

Qin Zhiyan smiled and nodded, saying, “Miss Cheng.”

Cheng Xiao smiled with pursed lips, placing the copper pot on the table. “I made this specially for you to drink tonight. This is a double-layer pot—half is soup, half is charcoal fire, separated by two layers of partitions with water between the layers. There absolutely won’t be any charcoal taste, and it can maintain temperature. Drink it while hot—it’s best for your lungs and throat.”

Qin Zhiyan smiled, saying, “Miss, you’ve been so thoughtful.”

“Not at all. Within the four seas, all are brothers,” Cheng Xiao laughed cheerfully. “Young Master, where are you from? Where are you headed? You don’t seem like a local person.”

Qin Zhiyan said, “We came from the capital.”

“Xianyang?” Cheng Xiao was startled, her eyes immediately becoming fervent as she exclaimed loudly, “Then you must have seen the Longevity Prince!”

Now it was Qin Zhiyan’s turn to be stunned. Lian Zhou’s eyes narrowed, and he nearly drew his blade. Qin Zhiyan asked, “Miss, do you know the Longevity Prince?”

“How could I have such fortune?” Miss Cheng shook her head, her cheeks involuntarily turning red as she pointed to the storyteller outside. “It’s just from listening to them every day. After hearing so much, I remembered it all. I heard the Longevity Prince has left the capital now, but no one knows where he went. I really want to meet him.”

Clever Qing’er beside them smiled and asked, “Miss Cheng, why do you want to meet the Longevity Prince?”

Cheng Xiao’s fair cheeks turned bright red as she said, “It’s just, just that I want to see him. I heard the Longevity Prince nearly risked his life for a woman at White Deer Plains, and later when he held power over the realm and seemed about to become emperor, he gave all his authority to his younger brother. Such a godlike figure—naturally, naturally I want to meet him.”