Lu Yu thought for a moment, and soon remembered that the empty room next door had indeed housed a middle-aged man named Mu.
He was a strange man.
He would often cry secretly, even wail, in the dead of night.
Young Lu Yu had been somewhat afraid of him.
After all, such scenes were quite frightening for a young child.
“I remember now. The man's name was… Mu Yi? My father saved his life? How does he know about my father?”
Lu Yu asked curiously.
“Yes, his name is Mu Yi. This story is long.”
Ge San Shu took a sip of rice wine and continued, “About eighteen years ago, your father brought you to settle in Qi Xia Town.
It snowed heavily a few days later.
One day, your father opened the door and found a man lying at the doorstep, covered in blood, on the verge of death.
So he brought him home, treated his wounds, and saved his life.
This man was Mu Yi.
Your father had called me over to help at the time, so I know all this.
As soon as Mu Yi woke up, he insisted on going to save his elder brother and his wife, but his injuries were too severe, and he couldn’t walk.
Persuaded by your father, he stayed to recuperate. He stayed for half a year.
For convenience, your father and I built a small house for him next door so he would have a place to live.
When he was healed, he said he had to leave to find his wife and child.
He left for about three months and returned alone.
For the next few years, he would leave whenever he had time to find them, but he always returned alone.
Later, I found out he had searched several states in the vicinity, but still had no news.
He remained quiet for a while, and I thought he had given up.
But then one day, ten years ago, he suddenly said he was going to leave again, that he would go farther this time, and might not come back.
While your father and I felt a little sorry, we didn't stop him.
After all, such a loyal and righteous person is rare.
Moreover, he is skilled in martial arts and can defend himself anywhere he goes.
The reason I said he might know your father’s past is because your father and he were even closer. They often drank and chatted together.
Even though Mu Yi went out and returned, it was because he was mindful of your father’s kindness.
Otherwise, he would never have returned and would have kept searching forever.”
After listening to Ge San Shu’s account, Lu Yu had a better understanding of this Uncle Mu.
He seemed to be a man from the Jianghu with a sorrowful past.
But the name Mu Yi sounded familiar.
Lu Yu was about to ask, but when he turned around, he saw that Ge San Shu had fallen asleep, obviously drunk.
Seeing this, Lu Yu could only carry Ge San Shu back.
Luckily, Ge San Shu's wife had already returned home, so Lu Yu didn’t need to take care of him, and he went back to his own room.
“It seems that Father had quite a few secrets in his earlier life. I wonder what kind of past he had and what my mother was like.”
Although Lu Yu had awakened to his memories from his previous life, his current life’s emotions remained.
Naturally, he was curious about his father’s past and his current mother.
But as far as he could tell, it wouldn't be easy to find clues.
He would just let things take their course.
The next morning, Lu Yu had just woken up when he smelled an aroma.
“It smells so good.”
Lu Yu mumbled.
“Ah, other people wake up and open their eyes first, but you use your nose first. You’re a little gourmand, it seems.”
A clear, girlish voice came, and Lu Yu immediately opened his eyes.
He saw Huang Rong standing by the window, holding an earthenware pot, looking at Lu Yu with a sweet smile.
“Miss Huang? You’re up so early?”
Lu Yu was surprised.
“I owe you a breakfast, so naturally I have to pay it off early. I put a lot of effort into this pot of porridge, try it?”
Huang Rong said with a smile.
“Okay!”
Lu Yu immediately got out of bed and opened the door, inviting Huang Rong and the earthenware pot inside.
“Frog porridge?”
Lu Yu lifted the lid and saw the true nature of the porridge.
“Yes.”
Huang Rong said and immediately served a bowl for Lu Yu.
Seeing this, Lu Yu felt a little dazed, as if he were dreaming.
“What’s wrong?”
Seeing Lu Yu staring at her blankly, Huang Rong’s cheeks flushed slightly.
“No… nothing. Thank you, Miss Huang. I won’t be polite then.”
Lu Yu recovered and said with a smile. Then he took the bowl and drank.
“How is it? Does it taste good?”
Huang Rong asked with anticipation.
“Delicious! The frog meat is tender and smooth, the rice is soft and sticky, and there's a faint fragrance of wine. Is it the aged Daughter’s Red from Tongfu Inn?”
Lu Yu quickly tasted the flavors.
“Not bad! You can even taste that! This is Tong Zhuang Gui’s treasured Daughter’s Red. I saw Bai Zhan Tang drinking it secretly last night, so I also secretly took some to make the frog porridge.”
“Uh…”
Lu Yu silently offered his condolences to Tong Xiang Yu for three seconds.
Both these two employees were not easy to deal with.
“Then guess how I made this porridge?”
Huang Rong looked smug, obviously very satisfied with her cooking method.
“The aroma of the wine, the aroma of the frog, and the aroma of the rice blend together seamlessly, each playing an equal role, bringing out the full flavor of this frog porridge.
The most important thing is to control the heat.
Especially the timing of adding the wine and the frog to the porridge is crucial.
You’re able to combine the two flavors so cleverly. Let me think…”
After pondering for a moment, Lu Yu said, “I got it! You must have fed the frog Daughter’s Red, made it drunk, and then slaughtered it and used its meat to cook the porridge, right?”
Huang Rong was immediately surprised.
“You can even taste that?”
“I was just guessing, but it seems I got it right. Can I have another bowl?”
Lu Yu had already finished the first bowl of frog porridge.
“Of course, this was made for you.”
Huang Rong served another bowl for Lu Yu.
“You haven't eaten yet either, this early in the morning. Sit down and have some with me. Wait, I’ll get you a bowl.”
Before Huang Rong could refuse, Lu Yu had already run to the kitchen.
“This guy is quite smart sometimes, and he’s a little silly sometimes. He’s rather cute.”
Huang Rong said with a smile.
It's nothing for a woman to find a man handsome.
But if she finds a man cute, it often means she has different feelings for him.
Lu Yu came out of the kitchen with a bowl in his hand and a wooden carving in the other.
“Here, I carved this last night. Does it look like you?”
The wooden carving was a lifelike image of Huang Rong, as if alive.
Especially the eyes were incredibly vibrant.
Huang Rong was delighted to see this and quickly took it.
“It does! It's so like me!”
Seeing a miniature version of herself, Huang Rong felt amazed.
“I’m glad you like it.”
Lu Yu said, and also served a bowl of frog porridge for Huang Rong.
“I do!”