My eunuch godfather

Chapter 39 Coming to the Door

Li Cheng's private residence in Zhengdongfang.

Tonight, Li Cheng invited several food connoisseurs over to test the skills of his newly hired culinary team.

The new culinary team was hired by Li Cheng at great expense, traveling a long distance from Huai'an.

The head chef is in charge of the red pot, second pot, and third pot; the head chef is in charge of the first and second pots; and there are also cold dishes, steamed pots, and water dishes.

There are also large and small counters for making noodles and other pastries, with everything you could want.

The reason for doing this was not because Li Cheng loved Huaiyang cuisine, but because he wanted to entertain the Wanli Emperor.

According to regulations, the emperors' meals should be the responsibility of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices.

The food at the Guanglu Temple was terrible; it didn't have any delicacies or local specialties, and mainly consisted of the most common northern ingredients.

The cooking techniques mainly involve stewing and boiling, with little frying, stir-frying, roasting, or deep-frying, much like the large pot dishes served in canteens in later generations.

So much so that even among ordinary people in the capital, the food served by the Guanglu Temple was considered a luxury.

Along with the articles from the Hanlin Academy, the weapons from the Arsenal, and the prescriptions from the Imperial Medical Academy, they were known as the four great jokes of the capital.

The emperors initially had the Imperial Kitchen oversee the process, but the ingredients and cooks were still provided by the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, and the taste remained unsatisfactory.

Finally, they switched to private kitchens, with the Grand Master of Ceremonies, the Secretary of the Imperial Household Department, and the attendants taking turns to be fed by their own private chefs.

Lu Shou, also known as Lu Chan'er, who held the seal of the Directorate of Ceremonial and concurrently served as the Director of the Eastern Depot, was able to gain the trust of the Wanli Emperor.

It is said that to a large extent, it was because the Lu family's chefs were very skilled and best suited Emperor Wanli's taste.

Li Cheng is now only one step away from becoming the Directorate of Ceremonial, and he has begun to make preparations in this regard.

Boom!Boom!Boom!

Someone knocked on the door of the Li residence.

The gatekeeper opened the door a crack and saw a handsome young man smiling as he introduced himself:

"I am Zhang Kun, the supervisor of the river works camp. I and Admiral Li are both adopted sons of Minister Zhang. Please help me inform him."

Please wait a moment.

Seeing Zhang Kun's distinguished attire and the large entourage following behind him, the gatekeepers respectfully greeted him.

"What do you think of the cooking time for this braised fish... River Workers' Camp? Zhang Kun!?"

Li Cheng, who was enjoying his meal, heard the servants whispering and instantly lost his smile, his brows furrowing.

Seeing that his master's mood had soured, the servant hurriedly asked, "Should I send him away?"

"No, I'll go see him."

Li Cheng shook his head at the servants, stood up, and instructed the diners, "You may continue."

Upon arriving at the hanging flower gate, Li Cheng ordered his servants to open it, but immediately regretted it.

Zhang Kun led more than twenty strong men in armor, carrying a coffin, and filed in.

"Sixty-sixth brother, you brought so many heavily armored soldiers to my house late at night. Isn't that against the law?"

Li Cheng feigned composure, secretly gesturing to his servants behind his back, and questioned them in a deep voice.

"Fourth Brother, you may not know this, but Commander Xu of the Embroidered Uniform Guard has arranged for the river works battalion's guards to assist the patrol battalion in their defenses."

Zhang Kun gripped the hilt of his goose-feather saber, took a few steps closer to Li Cheng, and explained with a smile:

"My brothers are all from the auxiliary police battalion. They just happened to be going the same way as me, so I thought I'd come over and ask for a bowl of hot soup."

"I see,"

Seeing servants rushing over out of the corner of his eye, Li Cheng calmed down considerably and pointed to the coffin, asking Zhang Kun:

"What does this mean?"

"Oh, this is Clerk Lu from the River Works Bureau. He tragically drowned while working at the construction site today."

Zhang Kun's smile faded, he sighed, and said to Li Cheng in a sorrowful tone:

"Thirty-fifth Brother just happened to come over and said that this Clerk Lu is the son of a servant in Fourth Brother's household."

When the younger brother found out, he thought he had to deliver it personally to give his fourth brother an explanation.

Upon hearing the names of Lu Sili and Zhang Guotai, Li Cheng immediately understood. His forehead veins bulged, and he sneered at Zhang Kun:

"Just give his family an explanation. What's the point of sending him to my house?!"

"This is Fourth Brother's adopted son, isn't he?"

Zhang Kun feigned surprise and pleaded with Li Cheng, "I implore Fourth Brother to make proper arrangements!"

Pointing at the servants who emerged from behind Li Cheng, he provoked them, saying:

"If things aren't handled properly, those of you working at Fourth Brother's residence will surely be disheartened!"

"...Go and fetch Old Lu."

Li Cheng never expected Zhang Kun to be so audacious, first killing Lu Sili and then bringing a coffin to his door to cause trouble, catching him completely off guard.

He secretly wished he could order his servants to kill Zhang Kun, but he could only give the order to them:

"Bring some hot soup to all you brave warriors."

"Fourth Brother, you may not know this,"

Zhang Kun pointed to the twenty-odd strong men behind him and introduced them to Li Cheng with a smile:

"My brothers all followed me south to recruit workers, and they encountered many dangers along the way."

First, in Renqiu County of Hejian Prefecture, we encountered more than two hundred bandits. We fought side by side and defeated them.

Later, when I arrived in Linqing Prefecture in Shandong, the younger brother of a eunuch in charge of the estate of the Prince of Lu insisted that I smuggle goods for him.

The servants brought over hot soup, but none of the strong men behind Zhang Kun touched it.

Zhang Kun patted his chest and continued to speak to Li Cheng:

"I'm sure Fourth Brother knows by now that I'm a reckless person, too impatient, and can't stand that guy's temper!"

Taking advantage of the riots caused by the refugees, I led my brothers over there and killed that guy and all his men!

Thanks to his godfather's help afterward, the best antiques and jewelry his younger brother had stolen were selected and sent to the palace.

That's how they managed to cover up the mess their little brother made..."

The twenty-odd strong men standing behind Zhang Kun all gripped the hilts of their knives and stared intently at him.

Judging from their expressions, they would immediately draw their swords and attack Li Cheng at the first command from Zhang Kun!

This is a threat, an undisguised threat.

Li Cheng didn't reply, his eyes fixed coldly on Zhang Kun as the other continued his threat:

"Fourth Brother, all of my brothers are now counting on the River Works Battalion to get promoted and make a fortune!"

There are also the more than 5,000 old and young men in the river work camp, who rely on the river work camp to eat their fill and support their families!

"If anything goes wrong, and over five thousand people start a riot right under His Majesty's nose, that would be terrible!"

At this point, Zhang Kun beckoned, and Xu Xin came over carrying a lacquer box, which he placed on the coffin lid.

Zhang Kun opened the lacquer box, revealing dozens of ingots of silver inside, and respectfully said to Li Cheng:

"I appreciate your kindness in helping me, Fourth Brother! Here is 250 taels of silver, please accept it."

Just as Li Cheng was about to utter some harsh words, unfortunately, Lu Sili's father had already been brought over by the servants.

"My son!"

Old Lu had already learned of his son's death on the way, and now that he saw the coffin with his own eyes, he rushed over and wept bitterly.

"It's getting late. Fourth Brother still has to deal with the funeral arrangements for Clerk Lu. I'll take my leave now."

Zhang Kun bowed to Li Cheng, then turned and led more than twenty strong men out the door.

Li Cheng stood there, clenching his fists, staring intently in the direction Zhang Kun had left.

The other servants dared not speak and stood by waiting, while only Old Lu's mournful cries echoed in the courtyard.

"Sir,"

Old Lu, his voice hoarse from crying and his tears dried up, threw himself at Li Cheng's feet and pleaded:

"My son can swim, how could he have drowned? You must avenge my son..."

"Drag him away and strangle him!"

Li Cheng, in a fit of impotent rage, seeing how oblivious this fellow was, sternly ordered his servants:

"It is said that he, a white-haired man, outlived his black-haired son, and died of grief!"

Old Lu was covered in the mouth by the servants who rushed over, dragged to a corner of the side courtyard, and strangled to death with his belt.

At this moment, Li Cheng, having calmed down, realized he had overreacted and felt quite annoyed. He tried to make amends:

"Give them a proper burial, and continue to pay their monthly allowance as usual."