Chef Li was feeling unwell and pushed himself to finish dinner in the Firehouse Camp; it was the limit of his endurance.

After instructing the other cooks on the dishes he planned for the private kitchen, he returned to rest.

Jiang Yanyi saw that it was almost time and began preparing hot and sour noodles.

To make it easier to cook later, she decided to prepare the noodles first.

She also needed to fry some peanuts and yellow soybeans, so that when it was time, she would only need to prepare the broth and add the seasonings.

During dinner, Chef Li had let slip that Jiang Yanyi was now a formal cook in the camp, no longer just an assistant.

The people in the Firehouse Camp treated Jiang Yanyi even more kindly.

When they saw her preparing food, many rushed to help her with the fire.

Whenever she needed any ingredients, she no longer had to run around; she just had to say a word, and someone would immediately hand them to her.

Jiang Yanyi recalled how she used to handle everything herself, and now seeing the friendly faces around her, all calling her “Chef Jiang,” she couldn’t help but chuckle.

Sure enough, the higher one stands, the more good people surround them.

She was closest to Qiu Kui in the Firehead Camp, so she asked Qiu Kui to stay and help her with the fire.

A sharp-featured woman chimed in, “Chef Jiang, let me help you with the fire. This girl is a bit clumsy; if she doesn’t manage the fire well, your dishes will be ruined!”

Jiang Yanyi smiled and replied, “I think she’s doing a good job. You all have worked hard today; why don’t you head back and rest early?”

Her polite tone effectively silenced the woman’s remarks.

Seeing they could not get close to Jiang Yanyi, the group of women reluctantly gave up.

When Jiang Yanyi turned around, she noticed Qiu Kui was looking at her.

“What’s the matter?” Jiang Yanyi asked with a smile.

Qiu Kui seemed like she wanted to say something but shook her head after glancing around, then lowered her gaze to the fire.

A tall, thin soldier approached, looking like a bamboo pole, and handed Jiang Yanyi a small basket of unpeeled chestnuts. “Chef Jiang, here are the chestnuts you asked for.”

“Thank you,” Jiang Yanyi said, accepting the basket and handing a few chestnuts to the soldier. “Take a few to taste.”

The soldier repeatedly declined, “How could I accept this?”

Jiang Yanyi insisted, “Just take them; they’re nothing special. I’ll need your help more in the future.”

The soldier finally accepted them gratefully.

Jiang Yanyi had bought these chestnuts from Zhao Toudou.

Although Chunxiang’s previous taunts had been inexplicable, they had sparked an idea in her.

Winning people’s hearts often just takes a few small favors.

Sometimes, when it’s so easy to build goodwill, why not do so?

She planned to make candied chestnuts and share some with the women in the barracks while keeping the rest for herself.

She had been craving the dish ever since she prepared the chestnut chicken.

Once the soldier left, Jiang Yanyi selected a few chestnuts, carefully cut a small slit in their shells, and showed Qiu Kui how to bury them in the hot ashes. “Keep an eye on the fire; don’t let it get too close. They’ll be ready to eat soon.”

Qiu Kui nodded vigorously, her eyes sparkling as she watched the chestnuts being buried. “I’ve had roasted chestnuts before.”

Jiang Yanyi asked with a smile, “Did you want to say something to me earlier?”

She had noticed a change in Qiu Kui lately; although she had become a bit quieter, the other women in the barracks had called her foolish, and it seemed that Qiu Kui was intentionally acting silly in front of them.

When Qiu Kui heard the question, she glanced around to ensure no one was listening and then said, “Chunxiang took the red-braised meat that the General rewarded you.”

Jiang Yanyi was taken aback. “What?”

Qiu Kui explained, “I heard from the people in the Firehouse Camp that you made the lion’s head very well, and the General rewarded you with a bowl of red-braised meat. But later, it was Chunxiang who brought back the meat and shared it with Xinghua and the others. I saw her leave with the flag officer.”

With Qiu Kui’s words, Jiang Yanyi finally understood.

So that’s why Chunxiang looked so guilty around her; she had used Jiang Yanyi’s reward to curry favor with others, which was quite shameless.

While Jiang Yanyi felt displeased with Chunxiang’s actions, she couldn’t help but feel that it was a bit uncharacteristic for Chunxiang to be so anxious over just a bowl of red-braised meat.

Before she could think too much, customers arrived for the hot and sour noodles, prompting Jiang Yanyi to rush back to the stove.

The noodles had already been prepared, so she just needed to make the broth and season it, which was far more efficient than the previous night.

In no time, eight bowls of hot and sour noodles were ready.

“Enjoy your meal, gentlemen!” Jiang Yanyi placed the bowls of noodles on the tables of the soldiers.

Except for the two sentries who had come for noodles the previous night and seemed unfazed, the other six soldiers stared at Jiang Yanyi, as if under a spell, their eyes wide and unblinking.

One tray could only hold four bowls of noodles, so Qiu Kui carried another tray, trying to mimic Jiang Yanyi.

However, since the bowls were too hot, she accidentally spilled some soup.

Jiang Yanyi quickly helped Qiu Kui place the bowls on the table.

Though Qiu Kui felt a bit anxious, the soldiers, being rough men, didn’t seem to mind such small mishaps.

However, the soldiers’ gaze made Jiang Yanyi feel awkward.

After placing the last bowl of noodles on the table, she picked up the coins the soldiers had left and hurried back to the barracks with Qiu Kui.

The soldiers continued to stretch their necks, peering into the barracks until Jiang Yanyi was out of sight, their expressions dazed.

One of the sentries tapped the table, feeling quite pleased with himself. “See? I told you I wasn’t lying.”

The other soldiers returned to their stupor, occasionally glancing back into the tent. “When did such a beauty come to the camp?”

The two sentries felt a sense of achievement as they listened to their companions’ compliments.

However, when they caught a whiff of the familiar aroma, they had no time to chat; they eagerly began to dig into their noodles.

One of them recalled that Chi Qing had also planned to come for noodles.

Fearing that the secret kitchen would be reported to the General, he said while eating, “We need to give a heads-up to Chef Li when we see him. Let him know that Master Chi might be dropping by, so he should prepare something nice to welcome him…”

Meanwhile, after Jiang Yanyi returned to the barracks with Qiu Kui, the latter looked at her with a guilty expression and said, “I’m so clumsy; I messed things up again.”

“It’s alright. The soldiers didn’t say anything about it, right?” Jiang Yanyi comforted her. “Did you burn yourself?”

Qiu Kui shook her head and licked her thumb, which had gotten sauce on it. “Your noodles are so delicious! I’d be willing to lick the bottom of the bowl!”

Jiang Yanyi found her reaction both amusing and endearing.

At just sixteen or seventeen years old, she was still a high school student in her previous life, yet here she had endured so many hardships.

“Since you want to eat, I’ll make you a bowl,” Jiang Yanyi offered.

She had already prepared extra noodles, so it wouldn’t take much to make another bowl for Qiu Kui.

Upon hearing this, Qiu Kui’s eyes lit up, and she quickly took out four copper coins from her sleeve to hand to Jiang Yanyi.

She had seen the soldiers pay earlier; one bowl cost four coins.

“You keep the money,” Jiang Yanyi said, genuinely surprised by Qiu Kui’s insistence on paying.

There was no way she would accept her money.

But Qiu Kui shook her head stubbornly. “If you don’t take it, I won’t eat.”

Seeing her like this, Jiang Yanyi had to say, “You helped me with the fire today. That’s enough to cover the cost of one bowl of hot and sour noodles.”

Qiu Kui’s smile returned, and she hurried back to help Jiang Yanyi with the fire.

What she didn’t tell Jiang Yanyi was that she had overheard Xinghua mocking her in the evening and had run to tell Xinghua and the others that the red-braised meat originally belonged to Jiang Yanyi, but they had smashed the rice bowl in anger, leaving her hungry until now.

The hot and sour noodles were quickly done.

Qiu Kui had never tasted anything so delicious; they were sour, spicy, and made her tongue tingle, yet they were incredibly satisfying.

She was so engrossed in eating that she could hardly speak, slurping the noodles loudly.

Seeing Qiu Kui enjoying her food, Jiang Yanyi felt her own mood lift.

She returned to the chopping board, washed the chestnuts, cut small slits in their shells, and placed them on a plate.

Making candied chestnuts requires medium heat, precise timing, and skill, as the sugar can easily burn.

She dug out the chestnuts she had buried earlier; they were perfectly roasted, the shells split open to reveal the bright yellow flesh inside.

Jiang Yanyi tried one and found it delicious on its own, the sweet and soft texture reminding her of the taste from her memories.

Just as Qiu Kui set her bowl down, she was drawn over by the sweet aroma of the chestnuts.

“They’re ready; try one!” Jiang Yanyi said, having eaten just one, leaving the rest for Qiu Kui.

After tasting one, Qiu Kui’s eyes widened in excitement. “So good!”

She carefully saved the remaining chestnuts and sat behind the fire pit to help Jiang Yanyi with the fire.

Jiang Yanyi thought Qiu Kui was just trying not to waste time and teased her, “The fire is going strong; you can eat them, it’s fine.”

Qiu Kui touched the chestnuts tucked in her sleeve and shook her head. “I’ll eat one today and save the others for tomorrow. That way, I can enjoy them for many days.”

Jiang Yanyi felt a softness in her heart at those words. “There will be more later; roasted chestnuts can spoil if left out for too long.”

Hearing this, Qiu Kui took out the charcoal-roasted chestnuts and began to eat, saving one for Jiang Yanyi with every one she ate.

Even though Jiang Yanyi insisted she didn’t want any, Qiu Kui still counted them out to save.

Seeing how stubborn she was, Jiang Yanyi decided to let her be.

Candied chestnuts were considered a delicate treat in this era; the cost of coarse salt and sugar alone was equivalent to half a basket of chestnuts, which made Jiang Yanyi wince at the thought.

As the iron pot heated up, she poured in the coarse salt and chestnuts, stirring them together.

This step required significant effort, as she had to keep stirring until the chestnuts popped open.

This body was too weak, and after a while of stirring, Jiang Yanyi felt her arm start to ache.

Reluctantly, she called Qiu Kui over to take her place.

Upon hearing that they were making candied chestnuts, Qiu Kui put in extra effort, ensuring that all the chestnuts popped without a single one burning.

Jiang Yanyi praised her, and Qiu Kui’s smile nearly reached her ears.

When Jiang Yanyi poured the sugar into the pot, it was the easiest step to burn the pan.

Although Qiu Kui was working hard, she was still inexperienced, and several chestnuts began to burn.

Jiang Yanyi quickly stepped in to take over for her.

After working together for quite a while, they finally managed to produce a shiny pot of candied chestnuts.

Jiang Yanyi tasted one, and it turned out perfectly—more fragrant and sweet than the charcoal-roasted ones.

At that moment, the tall, thin soldier who had helped Jiang Yanyi with the chestnuts rushed in, saying, “Chef Jiang, you need to prepare some good dishes quickly!”

At this time, there were hardly any customers left in the secret kitchen; after other cooks finished their tasks, they had long since left, leaving only a few on-duty soldiers to clean up.

Seeing the soldier in such a hurry, Jiang Yanyi asked, “Aren’t the dishes in the secret kitchen all pre-ordered a day in advance?”

The soldier hesitated, saying, “Just now, a few soldiers who came for noodles said that Master Chi, who’s close to the General, might come to the secret kitchen tonight!”

Jiang Yanyi certainly knew that Chef Li was running this secret kitchen on the sly.

With a high-ranking official coming, how could a newcomer like her handle it?

Her first thought was to quickly turn off the lights and leave.

But before she could act on that impulse, she heard someone approaching outside. The on-duty soldier was warmly greeting, “Master Chi, what would you like for a late-night snack?”

The visitor didn’t respond, but Jiang Yanyi could hear his steady, unhurried footsteps, exuding an air of authority.

So this is the aura of a big shot?

Jiang Yanyi’s heart raced inexplicably.

As the only cook left in the Firehouse Camp, she had no choice but to brace herself and step out to greet him. “I apologize for not welcoming you properly, Master Chi.”