The Three Spirit Stones

After the great victory in Sandu Valley, all the soldiers of Qinfeng Road received generous rewards. Important officials such as Cao Wei were promoted to higher positions, so everyone was happy.

The biggest contributor behind this, Cheng Acai, also received a reward.

...two durians!

Acai finally ate the durian she had been longing for!

In fact, she knew nothing about this war. She stayed in school teaching every day. Cheng Yu didn't want to talk to her about these things. He just hoped that she could be simply happy!

Just like now, eating a durian brings an unprecedented sense of happiness,

Cheng Yu sat beside her, watching her eat with a smile on her face.

She is happy and he is happy too!

"Mmm~ It's so delicious! So fragrant..."

"...Husband, you should try it too,"

She is a durian lover and eats it often in modern times.

It has been four years since she came to Northern Song Dynasty, and she has never even smelled the smell of durian. To her, durian is the taste of home.

These two durians were bought by Cheng Yu from sea merchants. Ah Cai has a picky taste, so Cheng Yu often needs to find some dried seafood to satisfy her cravings, otherwise she would easily lose her temper. Whenever Cheng Yu has time, he will go to purchase them himself.

There were originally a bunch of these durians, picked from Annan.

This merchant was very smart. He thought that someone would buy such exotic fruits when they were shipped to Bian Jing, so he used saltpeter to make ice to preserve the fruits. The fruits were still raw when they were picked, but they were all ripe and rotten when they were shipped to the capital. He had no choice but to throw them all away.

The smell of durian is very strong. Cheng Yu smelled the scent and came over, and actually found two that were just ripe and not rotten. He brought them back to Acai, and she was very happy!

After eating her fill of durian, she looked at the remaining ones contentedly and said, "It would be better to take these back to mother and Yuechan, otherwise they will go bad if left here any longer."

Cheng Yu hesitated for a moment.

Not everyone can accept durian, but it would be a pity to let it go bad when it is so rare. Maybe they would like it?

He nodded, found a box to put the things in, and took Acai back to Cheng Mansion. As soon as they arrived at the door, a eunuch came to announce that Cheng Yu was allowed to enter the palace. He let Acai go in by herself and left.

Cheng Yu and A Cai lived near the school for convenience, but they had to go home to visit their mother every two or three days. Today, her son was going home, so Mrs. Cheng specially asked someone to prepare a table of dishes.

While waiting in the side hall, a servant came to report that the emperor had suddenly summoned the marquis to the palace, and only the young lady came back.

As she was talking, Ah Cai came in holding a box. When she saw Mrs. Cheng, she immediately said excitedly, "Mom, I brought you something delicious."

In fact, as soon as she came in, everyone smelled a strong smell of cat feces. Just when they were wondering if Cheng Fugui, the dead cat, had defecated here,

As soon as she opened the box, a strong smell of cat feces hit Mrs. Cheng in the face.

“…Ugh~~,”

"Don't come over here, take this thing away,"

"Mom, this is delicious and good for your skin,"

"Ugh~~,"

"Mom, don't go. Just try it. It's really delicious..."

"Why don't you come over~~,"

The maids outside heard Madam Cheng screaming and collapsing, and then saw her covering her mouth and nose as she ran out of the side hall. The young lady chased after her with a yellow thing in her hand and wanted to feed her.

……

Cao Wei went home early today because he had to go back to Qinzhou soon.

Although Li Lizun was badly defeated this time, many tribes in He, Tao, Lanzhou, Anjiang, Miaodun, Miaochuan and other places were still within his sphere of influence. He had to return to the northwest to continue his attack.

The government, thinking of his hard work, allowed him to spend a few days with his family before he left.

As soon as he entered the hall, he discovered a strange scene.

All the sons, daughters and daughters-in-law covered their mouths and noses and huddled in a corner by the wall, staring at the dining table as if they had seen a ghost.

He followed their gaze and saw Ah Cai holding a yellow object and trying to force it into his wife's mouth.

"Aunt, just try it, it's delicious. Trust me, I never lie..."

"...Ugh, no, no, ugh~~,"

Mrs. Cao covered her mouth and nose and retched while blocking her hands. When she saw her husband coming back, she pointed at him and said, "Your uncle is back, your uncle is back, let him have a taste first, let him have a taste first, I still have to go to the temple to burn incense."

After saying that, he took advantage of the moment when she was distracted to break free from her hand and hurriedly ran out. The others also covered their noses and ran out.

It is true that I would rather die than let my fellow Taoist die!

Ah Cai saw Cao Wei and shouted excitedly,

"Uncle, when did you come back?"

She didn't know about war yet.

When Cao Wei saw Ah Cai, he felt a little terrified. He recalled the bloody scene in Sandu Valley that day.

The cruelty of cold weapon warfare cannot be compared with that of hot weapon warfare. Even an old general like Cao Wei, whose will is as firm as a rock, needed a few days to recover.

Hearing Ah Cai calling him, Cao Wei forced a smile and said, "Ah Cai, why are you here?"

"I brought you a delicious fruit. Take a bite. It's really delicious."

……

A moment after Madam Cao and the others ran out, the servants of the Cao Mansion also saw their general hurriedly walk out of the dining room, grinning and muttering as he walked.

"Oh my! This is really life-threatening!"

"It stinks like cat shit, who can eat it?"

Then I saw Lady Zuo holding a yellow object and chasing after him, shouting at his back,

"Uncle, don't leave. It's really delicious."

"Eat it while it's fresh, or it will go bad if you keep it any longer."

Lady Hua Ning Zuo, the number one female bastard in the capital, has committed another bizarre crime...

Forcing people to eat cat shit, and they want to eat fresh cat shit,

Even General Cao Wei, who defeated Tubo, could not escape her clutches and was almost forced to eat cat shit.

This matter spread quickly. In the study of Kou's house, Li Di said to Kou Zhun, "Ping Zhong,"

This is Kou Zhun's handwriting.

"There are too many mysteries surrounding this Cheng Acai. Why do I feel like the Emperor and Cao Wei are a little... a little afraid of her? This doesn't make sense."

Kou Zhun nodded and said, "It is indeed unreasonable. She is just a woman. Although her father is the benefactor of the Marquis of Loyalty and Bravery, there are many cases of people repaying kindness with enmity in the world. How can a little girl with no support from her mother's family be so arrogant?"

"Look at this,"

Kou Zhun handed a piece of paper to Li Di. After reading it, Li Di said, "Did the secret guards find out?"

"Um,"

"Sun Bin and Tang Youfu were two unknown craftsmen in the gunpowder factory in Bianjing. The Marquis of Loyalty and Bravery selected them to work in his workshop to make that kind of explosives. He also sent people to pick up their families."

"It is rumored that there is a great master behind Cheng's Industry. The reason why the Cheng family can make so many unique things is because of the guidance of this master behind the scenes."

Li Di was stunned for a moment, then he showed a strange expression and said, "I have also heard this rumor... You don't think this expert is Cheng Acai, do you?"

Then, Kou Zhun's expression became strange. He said, "...this girl has nothing to do with the master, but if it's not her, who else could it be?"

"Could it be the Loyal and Brave Marquis himself? I think this guy is quite unfathomable."

"It shouldn't be. He has no need to hide his ability in this area. He is very skilled in martial arts and is not afraid of anyone plotting against him. He is protecting that person, otherwise he would not use the families of Sun Tang and others as hostages."

Li Di nodded, frowned and said, "Pingzhong, it seems that Cheng Yu and the government have reached some kind of agreement? The government owns 60% of the shares of his sugar factory."

"I also know about this, so the emperor has been protecting him intentionally or unintentionally in many things. There is Wang Qinruo, and now there is Cheng Yu. Sigh! The emperor has these two jesters around him..."

After saying this, Kou Zhun shook his head helplessly.

But Li Di said, "I don't think this is a bad thing. We should judge by deeds rather than intentions. Whether Cheng Yu is a traitor or a jester, at least it seems that what he has done is beneficial to the Song Dynasty. Moreover, he is a loner and is not part of Wang Qinruo's party. So what's the problem?"

"Retro,"

This is Li Di's handwriting.

"There is a saying that even the greatest traitors appear loyal. For now, everything Cheng Yu does is beneficial to the country and the people, but think carefully, what does he control?"

Upon hearing this, Li Di's face changed and he murmured, "...Sugar, soap, smelters, foundries, and the powerful explosives."

Kou Zhun shook his head and said, "Not only that, but he also had the trust of the government and tens of thousands of cargo transport teams working for him. He helped Cao Wei fight against Tubo. Look how easily he won the battle! What if he helped the enemy fight against the Song Dynasty one day? The Song Dynasty would also lose completely... In just four years, he went from an unknown prince to a jester who could control the fate of the country."

"You say, ... can this kind of people be compared to Wang Qinruo and his party?"

Hearing this, Li Di felt a chill down his spine!

"...Pingzhong, why don't we immediately submit a petition to the government to explain the pros and cons, and at least take control of the explosives from him."

Kou Zhun shook his head again and said, "It's useless. First, the government trusts him immensely. Second, he has already handed over the formula of explosives to the government, and Sun and Tang are also under the management of the Ministry of War."

Li Di continued, "But the fate of his family is in his hands... Pingzhong, it seems that Cheng Yu is the truly dangerous person."

Kou Zhun nodded and said, "From his ability, it is true. But as you said just now, we should judge by deeds rather than intentions. At least for now, what he has done for the Song Dynasty is beneficial rather than harmful. However, we should be on guard against others."

"Yes, just in case, we really need to find out who the master behind him is."