Chapter 202 – Identity Exposed
Long Yi and Long Er, not knowing much about cooking, found her instructions seemingly professional. They nodded, took their swords to chop down two branches to make a cross, and skillfully tied the goat to it. Yan Xiaosi, seeing their work, nodded in satisfaction and said, “Now we can take the goat to the bonfire to roast.”
Just as Long Yi and Long Er were about to do as she instructed, Long Yu suddenly spoke up.
“Yan Xiaosi, do you actually know how to roast a whole goat? You’re just blindly directing.”
Hearing Long Yu’s words, Yan Xiaosi’s eyes sparkled.
“Indeed, I don’t know how to roast a whole goat. From General Zhan’s words, does this mean you know how?”
Long Yu sat on a large rock, glanced at Yan Xiaosi, and waved Long Yi and Long Er over.
“Bring the goat here.”
“Yes, master.”
Wondering if the master was really going to roast the goat himself, Long Yi and Long Er were stunned but obediently brought the skinned goat over to Long Yu.
Long Yu extended his hand.
“Give me your sword.”
Realizing the master was serious about doing it himself, Long Yi hesitated for a moment but quickly handed over his precious sword.
Taking Long Yi’s sword, Long Yu swung it a few times, then, with a flick of the blade, thrust it towards the skinned goat. What followed was a blur of sword movements that dazzled Yan Xiaosi.
“At least you should know to use liquor to remove the gamey smell.”
When the swordplay ceased, Yan Xiaosi fixed her gaze and was utterly astonished. In just a short time, the skinned goat had hundreds of precise cuts, each evenly spaced and of almost the same depth.
Such knife skills could rival those of top chefs in five-star hotels.
“What are you standing there for? Bring the liquor.”
At this moment, Yan Xiaosi felt a small measure of respect for Long Yu, deciding not to mind his unpleasant tone.
“Here comes the liquor.”
She picked up the liquor, uncorked it, and handed it to Long Yu. This jar of liquor was originally intended to entertain the craftsmen working on the house, but now it was being used for the goat.
Long Yu took the liquor and tasted it to ensure its potency was suitable for removing the gamey taste. Men generally favor strong drinks.
Yan Xiaosi, fearing he might be tempted to finish the drink, quickly reminded him, “My family is poor, and this is all the liquor we have. Please, General Zhan, be sparing.”
“Stingy,” Long Yu retorted, “I was merely tasting the liquor to see if it could remove the gamey smell.”
Though it sounded like an insult, Long Yi and Long Er detected a hint of indulgence in his tone.
The back and forth between them showed a deepening affection from the general towards Yan Xiaosi, reaching a point of indulgence.
Long Yu evenly sprinkled the liquor over the goat, waited a moment to let it seep into the meat, then instructed Long Yi and Long Er, “Now you can take the goat to roast. As for the mix of oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, chili powder, and Sichuan pepper, apply it when the meat is half-cooked.”
“Yes, master.”
Long Yi and Long Er took the goat to roast over the bonfire.
After specifying when to apply the marinade, Yan Xiaosi thought she would have to do the rest herself. However, to her surprise, Long Yu suddenly approached her, looking down from his height at her head.
Truly, she was too short.
This man was actually as short as a woman.
“Yan Xiaosi, bring the marinade over for me,” Long Yu said, leaving her with those words before turning to walk towards the bonfire.
Yan Xiaosi watched his tall and noble figure, her eyes lighting up with joy as she asked, “General Zhan, does this mean you plan to personally apply the marinade?”
How one applied the marinade was critical to how the final product will taste. Seeing that General Zhan seemed knowledgeable about roasting a whole goat, she was naturally happy if he would personally handle the marinade.
Long Yu glanced back at her.
“I’m worried that whatever you roast will end up poisoning everyone.”
Yan Xiaosi rolled her eyes.
Was that necessary?
Her cooking skills were at least average. Even if the roasted goat didn’t turn out to be delicious, it wouldn’t poison everyone.
Long Yu wore a black robe with wide sleeves, which was quite inconvenient for roasting a goat. Yan Xiaosi brought over the marinade, noticing how he instinctively rolled up his sleeves to his elbows.
“Pass the vegetable oil to me.”
The goat had been roasting for a short while and needed oil brushed on it. He reached out to Yan Xiaosi for the oil jug.
As Yan Xiaosi picked up the jug filled with vegetable oil and was about to hand it to him, her gaze fell on his arm and accidentally saw a scar.
That scar made Yan Xiaosi narrow her eyes.
Long Yu, realizing something, frowned and attempted to withdraw his arm.
Yan Xiaosi was quicker, grabbing his wrist to prevent him from pulling away.
“Long Hao, you are Brother Long Hao, aren’t you?”
Long Yu’s heartbeat skipped.
Hearing Yan Xiaosi’s words, Yan Shuxue and Yan Shuyun looked incredulously towards Long Yu.
Previously, they hadn’t thought that the man before them, General Zhan, and Long Hao were the same person. But after hearing Yan Xiaosi’s words, the sisters closely scrutinized him and indeed found that General Zhan’s physique was very similar to Long Hao’s.
Yan Shuxue asked, “Brother Long Hao, is it really you?”
“You must be Brother Long Hao; I can’t be mistaken,” Yan Xiaosi said with utmost certainty.
First, Long Yu’s reaction confirmed to her that he was Long Hao, and second, the scar on his arm was identical to one Long Hao had.
Previously, when Long Yu was recuperating in the dilapidated temple, she had accidentally seen him changing clothes. That scar, she had seen it clearly.
“Long Yu, since you’ve been recognized, you might as well admit it,” Murong Qinjian said, after which Long Yu removed the mask from his face.
He had been wearing this mask to prevent Yan Xiaosi from recognizing him. Now that he had been identified, there was no longer any need to wear it.
“Yes, it’s me.”
Yan Xiaosi had seen Long Yu’s true face before. When he removed the mask, what appeared before her was indeed that face, more beautiful than a woman’s.
She had thought Murong Qinjian’s looks were handsome enough, but Long Yu revealing his true face astonished Yan Shuxue, Yan Shuyun, and even Tian Dazhuang, leaving them all dumbfounded.
Describing the man before them as “astonishingly handsome” was not an exaggeration.
With delicate features and an extraordinary demeanor, he exuded a noble aura all around.
Yan Shuxue recalled the old Long Hao and could hardly believe that the man before her, radiating nobility, was the same person as the one who had once had a face full of sores.
