After Feng Shuo exchanged glances with Jiang Yanyi, he quickly lowered the carriage curtain.

His carriage was low-key, parked in an inconspicuous spot, and few people noticed it.

Jiang Yanyi knew it wasn’t the time to ask why Feng Shuo was there.

After he lowered the curtain, she led Aunt Guo and a waiter toward the An family’s carriage, calling to the servants to assist Madam An into the building.

She turned and instructed the waiter, “Quickly go fetch a doctor!”

Madam An, feeling embarrassed, saw Jiang Yanyi approaching and tried to maintain her composure, lowering the handkerchief she held to her mouth. “Thank you for your kindness, there’s no need to bother.”

With a broken front tooth, Madam An spoke in a way that let air escape.

This fall not only broke her tooth, but it seemed she had also injured her nose; most of the blood on her handkerchief came from a nosebleed.

Madam An felt her entire face was numb. When she hit her front tooth, she also injured her tongue, making it difficult to speak.

Tears were welling in her eyes; if it weren’t for the situation, she would have likely cried out in pain.

If she had fallen inside Jiang Yanyi’s establishment, she could have blamed it on the antique soup restaurant.

But this happened on the street, falling from her own carriage—she couldn’t even pin the blame on Jiang Yanyi’s restaurant, even if she wanted to.

She was in such a disheveled state entering the restaurant, and if the guests attending the banquet saw her, she would lose all face.

Madam An knew too well how those noblewomen acted; they would undoubtedly laugh at her behind her back.

Therefore, when Jiang Yanyi suggested letting her rest in the restaurant and calling a doctor, she refused without thinking.

Madam An was helped onto another carriage by the An family servants and returned home with Old Madam An, leaving Young Madam An to entertain the guests in the restaurant.

Jiang Yanyi brought Young Madam An inside, and the news of Madam An’s fall was kept under wraps.

Aside from those who had witnessed the incident, the guests dining inside were unaware of Madam An’s embarrassing situation.

Young Madam An dabbed at the corners of her eyes with a handkerchief, forcing a smile as she said to Jiang Yanyi, “Thank you for your effort in today’s banquet. I appreciate it and will settle the bill for the additional dishes you provided as well.”

Although she spoke softly, her words were clear and organized.

Jiang Yanyi thought Young Madam An didn’t seem as incompetent as the previous women had claimed.

She politely replied, “It’s nothing, Madam. It’s thanks to your family’s support that our small establishment is doing well.”

After Young Madam An returned to the banquet hall to attend to the female guests, Jiang Yanyi returned to the counter with a belly full of questions.

Chu Shubao was cracking sunflower seeds and nudged Jiang Yanyi with her elbow, “I just heard something. Do you know how the An family’s birthday banquet got messed up?”

Jiang Yanyi leaned in closer, “I’m listening; go on.”

With a gossipy expression, Chu Shubao said, “Madam An wanted to support her niece from her family to become a concubine for her son. Young Madam An, who seems soft-spoken, refused to agree on this matter, while Old Madam An was protective of her granddaughter-in-law. I don’t know if Madam An was really ill or just pretending, but she made Young Madam An serve her for over half a month.”

“Later, when Old Madam An was about to celebrate her birthday, seeing that Madam An was unwell, she let her granddaughter-in-law manage the kitchen. If Young Madam An successfully organized the birthday banquet, she would gain the power to manage the household. But just the night before Old Madam An’s birthday, a rat got into the An family kitchen and ruined all the prepared dishes and meat, forcing the family to hire an outside restaurant for the banquet.”

Jiang Yanyi commented, “Could that rat have been released by Madam An?”

Chu Shubao had a smirk of schadenfreude on her face, “Most likely it was her. No wonder she broke her tooth in front of Old Madam An’s carriage; karma really does come around!”

Chu Jiabao chimed in, “What a pity she claims to be devoted to Buddha but is willing to sabotage her mother-in-law’s birthday!”

She glanced over at Young Madam An at the banquet table and shook her head, “Look at her; with a soft personality, I bet she suffers a lot at home.”

Jiang Yanyi also looked over briefly before withdrawing her gaze, “This Young Madam An managed to handle the birthday banquet for the first time; she doesn’t seem foolish. But in family matters, if she doesn’t assert herself, no one can help her.”

There are several well-known restaurants in Xizhou, and large banquets must be booked in advance so the restaurants can purchase ingredients and prepare dishes accordingly.

Ruyi Lou had just opened, and although it had a previous customer base, it lacked reputation in hosting banquets.

Young Madam An likely chose them because she knew the antique soup could be prepared simply and would be ready as soon as the guests arrived, avoiding long waits.

With such judgment and decision-making abilities, if Young Madam An were a bit more assertive, there would be no room for her mother-in-law to create trouble.

Madam An must have accompanied her here because she thought Ruyi Lou lacked reputation and assumed Young Madam An would embarrass herself.

If things escalated and Old Madam An lost face, she might not favor this granddaughter-in-law anymore.

At that point, if an unfilial label was placed on her, Young Madam An might even be divorced.

If an outsider could see through all this, Young Madam An likely understood her mother-in-law’s intentions as well.

Chu Shubao sighed, “If Young Madam An had married into an ordinary family, her life might be a bit easier.”

The difference in social standing sometimes brought not only differences in demeanor and cultivation but also disparities in thought processes and methods of dealing with situations.

Young Madam An was directly elevated to her position; in a wealthy family, her previous ways of dealing with matters naturally wouldn’t work.

Always being agreeable would only make her seem like a soft persimmon; to maintain authority, she would need to assert her own personality.

While the sisters were talking, Aunt Guo approached, “Two young ladies on the third floor want to buy some rouge.”

Hearing there was business to attend to, the Chu sisters couldn’t sit still any longer and immediately rushed upstairs.

Jiang Yanyi chuckled and shook her head. As she was getting bored by the charcoal stove, she thought about bringing her cats over tomorrow when she suddenly noticed a tall figure appearing at the counter.

Looking at Feng Shuo’s expressionless handsome face, Jiang Yanyi finally remembered that she had forgotten someone again.

She awkwardly laughed a couple of times, saying, “I thought you were just passing by.”

Feng Shuo stared at her without saying a word.

Just as Jiang Yanyi was starting to feel anxious, he finally spoke, “I need a private room.”

The waiter, thinking a new customer had arrived, hurried over to lead Feng Shuo away.

Jiang Yanyi sat at the counter for a while before going upstairs.

When she entered the room, she saw the waiter had already brought a pot to Feng Shuo, which was filled with red soup, and all the ingredients were on the table—mostly meat, along with two plates of bean sprouts and tofu that the restaurant was offering for free during its grand opening.

“Why do you have the time to come by today?” Jiang Yanyi asked as she pulled out a chair and sat across from Feng Shuo.

Feng Shuo was currently boiling a slice of thinly cut marbled pork in the spicy broth, using chopsticks to maneuver the beautifully marbled slices back and forth in the bubbling soup, where the surface occasionally had peppercorns and prickly ash floating up due to the boiling water.

On the corner of the table, there was a porcelain vase holding a branch of winter plum blossoms yet to bloom, and due to the rising steam from the pot, little droplets of water condensed on the flower branch.

Feng Shuo placed the cooked marbled pork into Jiang Yanyi’s bowl without directly answering her question, “I heard someone came to cause trouble?”

Upon hearing this, Jiang Yanyi understood.

He had come specifically because he heard someone was causing a scene in her restaurant.

The slight dissatisfaction Jiang Yanyi had about him hiding the fact that the Marquis of Xing’an wanted him to marry his daughter faded away.

She picked up the marbled pork and said, “The troublemaker has already been driven away, thanks to the help from the Marquis of Xing’an’s daughter.”

The marbled pork, commonly known as old meat slices, absorbed the fragrance of the secret broth when cooked, resulting in a tender texture paired with the rich flavor of the meat itself, making it utterly delicious.

For Jiang Yanyi, the only downside was that the prickly ash wasn’t spicy enough, which made the red broth not authentic enough.

Upon hearing the words “Marquis of Xing’an’s daughter,” Feng Shuo frowned, “The troublemaker is also from the Marquis of Xing’an’s household. Are they trying to stage a show?”

Jiang Yanyi, who was distracted by the delicious marbled pork, said, “I think the Marquis of Xing’an’s daughter has quite a straightforward personality.”

Feng Shuo shot her a glance, “No one would write their thoughts on their face.”

Jiang Yanyi replied coolly, “Your Highness, why haven’t you mentioned that the Marquis of Xing’an wants to become your father-in-law?”

Feng Shuo caught the hint of jealousy in her words and replied, “He is already my sworn father.”

He recognized the Marquis of Xing’an’s daughter as his sworn sister, thus raising the Marquis’s status.

Jiang Yanyi initially wasn’t jealous, but upon hearing this, she couldn’t help but laugh lightly, “In a roundabout way, the Marquis of Xing’an still has the upper hand in terms of status over you.”

She fished out the cooked marbled pork, realizing she didn’t have any dipping sauce, so she went to dip it in Feng Shuo’s sauce.

After Feng Shuo had just cooked a piece for her, seeing Jiang Yanyi place the meat slice in her own bowl, he naturally assumed she was helping him cook and couldn’t help but smirk as he picked up his chopsticks, ready to enjoy.

But then he saw Jiang Yanyi dipping the meat slice into sauce before bringing it to her mouth.

Feng Shuo: “… Is it good?”

Jiang Yanyi, not understanding his reaction, nodded, “It’s delicious.”

The corner of his mouth slowly fell, and he eventually went back to cooking the meat himself.

Jiang Yanyi didn’t quite understand why he seemed fine one moment but then looked like someone owed him money the next.

After eating a bit of meat to fill her stomach, she remembered to ask about something serious, “Did Madam An really fall from the cart by herself?”

It was a bit too coincidental since Feng Shuo had been outside at that time.

Feng Shuo focused on cooking the meat and replied, “How would I know?”

It was indeed his doing, but he didn’t want Jiang Yanyi to know.

After Madam An left Ruyilou, she was still complaining.

Old Lady An was hard of hearing, and Madam An disdainfully told her maid that Jiang Yanyi’s Ruyilou was no different from a brothel, which Feng Shuo happened to overhear, leading him to teach her a lesson.

Jiang Yanyi replied in surprise, “Then this truly is karma.”

Feng Shuo asked, “What happened?”

Jiang Yanyi then told him about Madam An mistreating her daughter-in-law and shared the entanglement between An Yongyuan and the male and female protagonists from the original story.

On the night she completely opened up to Feng Shuo, she had briefly told him about the general direction of the dynasty and the main characters in the original story.

However, the present reality had already deviated from the original plot, so much of it could only serve as reference and prediction.

“I was thinking, if Madam An remains well, perhaps General An can always be of use to you,” Jiang Yanyi said.

Feng Shuo seemed to be pondering something and asked, “Yanyi, do you think there could be another person like you who came from another world?”

Jiang Yanyi paused with the chopsticks in her hand. “Why do you suddenly ask this?”

Feng Shuo replied, “A month ago, Madam An accidentally fell into a lake, and it was Lu Linyuan who rescued her.”

In the original plot Jiang Yanyi mentioned, Lu Linyuan had no interaction with Madam An.

Previously, Lu Linyuan, like Jiang Yanyi, seemed to be able to foresee certain events, which had already raised Feng Shuo’s suspicions.

Now, with the incident involving Madam An, his doubts grew even stronger.

Jiang Yanyi quietly ate the tofu she had just fished out from the pot.

A month ago was just a few days before the Turkic prince escaped from prison.

Since Madam An was still alive, the plot of An Yongyuan imprisoning Jiang Yuxi was thus eliminated?

If Lu Linyuan was hiding to protect Jiang Yuxi, it would make sense.

But if Lu Linyuan was also from another world, why would he go to such lengths for Jiang Yuxi?

Moreover, the original story didn’t mention how Madam An died, so how could Lu Linyuan coincidentally save her?

After thinking about Lu Linyuan’s attitude when they first met, Jiang Yanyi hesitated and said, “Lu Linyuan probably isn’t someone like me who came from another world, but I can give him a try.”

Feng Shuo immediately shot her a stern look and said two words, “No way.”

Jiang Yanyi looked at his suddenly sour expression and laughed, “Are you worried I might have something going on with him?”

Feng Shuo glanced at her and placed a soft-cooked chicken foot in her bowl, saying, “No way means no way.”