CHAPTER 639: 339

Han Hu immediately agreed.

"From Fuzhe County to Lizhou, we at the Escort Agency are accustomed to traveling there," he said.

Meng Yuhuai then continued, "The journey isn’t far, just six or seven days, and along the way, there are inns we’re familiar with, so food and lodging should not be too much of a worry. The only concern is the area near Chiyun Mountain, where there are no villages before it and no stores behind it, and we will inevitably have to spend a night in the wilderness. I presume if those two intend to make their move, it will most likely be then. You should coordinate with Li Yingchun to slow down the pace. After you leave, I will send Shi Qingquan with reinforcements the next day."

"Alright," Han Hu nodded with a smile, then dismissively waved his hand, "Actually, this journey to Lizhou was supposed to be a dummy run, there’s nothing valuable in the box at all, where’s the need for such trouble? Li Yingchun and I..."

"Are you being foolish?" Meng Yuhuai cut him off without waiting for him to finish, sweeping his face, "The terrain around Chiyun Mountain is complex, if those two have accomplices, how could you and Li Yingchun handle it alone? The most crucial thing this time is to ferret out the person who is directing them. I’m sending Shi Qingquan and others for reinforcements to ensure there’s absolutely no risk. You better be more careful, stop being so cavalier..."

"I know, I know." Han Hu turned his head and secretly made a scared face, but when he turned back, he seemed like a different person, a sharp gleam crossing his eyes.

"I can’t guarantee other things, but escorting is seriously the thing I’ve done best since I was young. Brother Yuhuai, rest assured, I put my word here, with me present, they won’t escape!"

Meng Yuhuai’s expression then cleared slightly as he looked out the window and exhaled deeply from his chest.

"This task should originally have been mine to run, but because there are too many miscellaneous matters in the Escort Agency that I can’t step away from, I had no choice but to trouble you to make the trip. Thank you for your efforts."

"If you say such things, aren’t we family?" Han Hu grinned as he stood up, "Now that the Escort Agency is in your hands, just focus on how to make more money, and leave the errand running to me!"

After saying this, he walked towards the door, dropping a phrase "Brother Yuhuai, rest early," he flashed out of the room.

...

Meng Yuhuai concentrated all his thoughts on the Escort Agency, seldom coming home for two or three days. Meanwhile, Hua Xiaomai was also not idle.

Little Walnut was now nearing three months old, growing fat, white, and tender. Perhaps inheriting from his father, he was also a bit larger than other children in the village. Everyone in the village who saw him would praise him, and Meng’s mother especially liked to take him out and joyfully conveyed the myriad compliments to Xiaomai after returning home, sharing in great detail the experiences of child-rearing she had heard.

"When Yuhuai was young, we had no extra money, and his father and I knew nothing, we just ate whatever was available. Now that our family is better off, naturally we should take more careful care of him," she said.

She hugged Little Walnut and was reluctant to let go, looking pleased as she spoke to Hua Xiaomai: "Right now he only needs breast milk, but after he turns four months old, he can start eating some soft food. Back then, Yuhuai only had rice soup, whereas now, Little Walnut has you as a cook, mother, and it’s your turn to shine. When you have time, think it over—the better he grows, the less there is to worry about later, right?"

This matter was something Xiaomai had heard about in the era she previously lived in, and alongside daily nagging from Chun Xi and La Mei, she had long been considering it. Now with Meng’s mother’s directive, she naturally did not dare to delay. Whenever she had free time, she would delve into the kitchen, mashing vegetable puree, egg yolk paste, and rice porridge, sometimes sneaking some to Little Walnut when Meng’s mother was not around to give him a taste, thankfully giving him some additional nourishment.

One afternoon, after putting Little Walnut down for a nap, Hua Xiaomai was in the kitchen trying to refine rice porridge, when Pan Ping’an cheerfully showed up.

Ever since Xiaomai had handed Zhenwei Garden over to him to manage, she rarely bothered with it, simply waiting to collect the money each month. Seeing him show up unexpectedly today and in such a happy mood, curiosity aroused in her heart. She came out of the kitchen smiling, calling out, "Uncle Ping’an, what brings you by today?" as she offered to make tea for him.

"No need for tea, I’ll be leaving after our talk, it’s busy over there."

Pan Ping’an happily picked a small stool and sat down in the front yard: "Actually, there’s nothing incredibly significant, but recently we secured two large orders, and I wanted to discuss it with you. You know, our Zhenwei Garden now has quite a reputation in Tong’an Prefecture, especially in the Provincial City, where four or five out of ten restaurants buy their sauces from us. This word of mouth is truly effective, guess what?"

He deliberately played coy, and Hua Xiaomai couldn’t help but smile, playing along, "I really can’t guess, is it some good news?"

"Exactly!" Pan Ping’an slapped his thigh, "Just this morning, two foreigners came to our Zhenwei Garden. From their attire, it was clear they were either rich or noble. They introduced themselves as having come to our Provincial City for business and having tasted the dishes made with our Zhenwei Garden’s sauces, found the flavors to be excellent. They followed the taste and found us to discuss transporting a large batch of sauces to sell in their hometown!"

Hua Xiaomai had thought he was going to mention some extraordinary business, but it turned out to be this, and she couldn’t help but laugh, "This isn’t the first time, right? Last year, didn’t some merchants come knocking, buying a batch of sauces?"

"What’s that compared to this?" Pan Ping’an looked a bit disdainful as he said, "Guess how much we’ll make from this deal?"(To be continued. If you enjoy this work, you are welcome to visit Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendation tickets, monthly tickets, and your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please go to m.qidian.com to read.)