I Can Devour Spirits-Chapter 56: Shen Yanliu

The three took their seats in order.

County Magistrate Shen Yanliu sat at the main seat, his wife Ma Chunmin sat opposite him, and Duan Rong sat across!

Once they were seated, Duan Rong dared to openly observe both of them.

Shen Yanliu, nearing forty, had a thin face, a goatee, dressed in a loose gray robe, with a square kerchief on his head.

His energy was restrained, eyes contained a keen light, and his temples gently bulged. Sitting there, he resembled a full tiger resting quietly, exuding an aura of authority without needing anger.

Shen Yanliu was an Outer Disciple of the Taiyi Sect, with a martial arts cultivation reaching the Second Level of the True Qi Realm, which made him a towering figure in Xianggu County!

Meeting Shen Yanliu today, Duan Rong felt like he had encountered a towering mountain!

At this moment, Duan Rong seemed naturally insignificant.

But perhaps, one day, he might overcome the mountain before him?

Ma Chunmin appeared younger than Shen Yanliu, probably in her early thirties, voluptuous and beautiful, with a face like a bright moon, her eyes exceptionally lively, occasionally flashing a cold light.

During the meal, Duan Rong sat on only half of the chair, not daring to eat too much, taking small bites, his heart tense, unable to savor the food, swallowing tastelessly for fear of losing his manners!

"Child, is the food not to your taste, eating so little?"

"It’s to my taste! To my taste!" Duan Rong quickly replied.

Ma Chunmin picked a lion’s head meatball from the plate and placed it in Duan Rong’s bowl, saying, "Here, this braised lion’s head, I made it myself! Try it!"

When Ma Chunmin passed the dish over, Duan Rong lifted his body, leaned forward, and only sat back once Ma Chunmin’s chopsticks withdrew.

Seeing Ma Chunmin place the lion’s head in Duan Rong’s bowl, Shen Yanliu hesitated a moment too late to signal her to stop, then he said hesitantly, "Tonight, the lion’s head seems a bit salty?"

Upon hearing this, Ma Chunmin jokingly scolded, "Salty? Just your picky mouth?"

She tasted it with her chopsticks, to find it indeed a bit salty.

She was quite skilled at this dish, familiar with the salt and seasoning amounts, so how could she have added too much?

Could it be she added salt twice?

Ma Chunmin immediately felt a bit embarrassed.

Seeing Ma Chunmin’s expression, Duan Rong realized the lion’s head was undoubtedly salty, but he took a large bite anyway, saying, "The County Magistrate and madam possess such noble character, naturally preferring a mild taste. But for us escorts traveling far and wide and practicing martial arts, we usually prefer high oil and high salt. This lion’s head tastes perfectly seasoned to me!"

Hearing this, Ma Chunmin laughed and said, "This child truly knows how to speak."

What was an awkward situation was smoothly resolved by Duan Rong’s words.

At this moment, Shen Yanliu also gave Duan Rong a deep look.

Then, Duan Rong suddenly noticed behind Shen Yanliu, on the wall of the hall, hung a painting.

It was precisely the Lady Painting by Fan Yunlin, which he sold to Ancient Moon Studio for eight hundred taels.

The position of the wormhole and the small stain at the bottom right were identical, definitely the original piece.

Did this painting end up in Shen Yanliu’s hands, or was he himself the hidden owner of Ancient Moon Studio?

Less than a month had passed since Duan Rong sold the painting to Ancient Moon Studio; if it had simply been passed on or gifted to Shen Yanliu, the timing would seem a bit too quick.

The greater possibility was the latter. 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

Probably the hidden owner of Ancient Moon Studio was indeed the County Magistrate Shen Yanliu of Xianggu County.

Duan Rong thought in this manner, but maintained a composed face, simply eating slowly, drinking wine, occasionally making some slick and amusing remarks.

Seeing they were nearly done eating, Shen Yanliu told the servant who was refilling wine and clearing the table, "Go invite the young lady out to toast Master Duan!"

Hearing this, Duan Rong almost choked on his drink, quickly saying, "I am a humble countryside man, how dare I trouble the young lady to toast me, this would be too overwhelming! County Magistrate, please don’t!"

"If Master Duan hadn’t intervened, my daughter would have nearly caused a disaster, she deserves a toast!" Shen Yanliu spoke with a firm resolve.

The servant had already left by then.

Duan Rong was instantly uneasy, heart racing like a startled deer!

When he truly meets the young lady, what if something happens?

Shortly after, the servant returned to the hall, but Shen Mizi did not come, instead arriving was Shen Mizi’s maid Qiu Hen.

Shen Yanliu saw Qiu Hen standing behind the servant with a troubled expression, and sternly asked, "Qiu Hen, where is the young lady?"

"Returning to the master... the young lady... she... she... went to find Xia Shuangshuang from the Yunshui Bank!"

Xia Shuangshuang is the shopkeeper of the Xianggu branch of Yunshui Bank—the daughter of the County Magistrate of Xianggu, Xia Zhongyang, who has always been close with Shen Mizi.

Upon hearing this, Shen Yanliu’s face immediately soured, he turned to glance at Ma Chunmin, and said, "You’ve spoiled her! This girl is getting more and more disrespectful!"

Ma Chunmin, hearing this, merely let out a soft, cold snort, her eyes steadily fixed on Qiu Hen.

Ma Chunmin is Shen Yanliu’s second wife, and Shen Mizi is not her biological daughter, but the daughter of Shen Yanliu and his former wife.

When Ma Chunmin married Shen Yanliu, Shen Mizi was already three years old.

She hadn’t been married long before she discovered that Shen Yanliu’s late wife’s name contained the character "Mizi."

Shen Yanliu named his daughter "Mizi," which shows his nostalgia for his late wife.

To say Ma Chunmin wasn’t jealous would be a lie.

Yet, over the years, she treated Shen Mizi as her own, giving her all the maternal care she deserved, though Shen Mizi had a cold temperament, she still accommodated her in every way.

Only in this way has the family remained stable over the years, and on this point, Shen Yanliu inwardly is very grateful to her.

But Ma Chunmin knows Shen Mizi very well. As soon as she heard that Shen Mizi, taking advantage of their banquet for Duan Rong, had left Yunshui Bank to find Xia Shuangshuang.

She immediately detected something amiss from this incident.

"Perhaps the situation isn’t as straightforward as Qiu Hen described..." Ma Chunmin’s eyes flashed a hint of coldness.

The matter of Shen Mizi fighting on the street and nearly causing a fatal incident, which was fortunately averted due to Escort Master Duan’s intervention, she had heard all of this from Qiu Hen.

Qiu Hen was one of the witnesses of the event, her words naturally held credibility.

Thus, after hearing Qiu Hen’s account, she decided to set up a banquet and invite Duan Rong!

Then she had Shen Yanliu instruct Qin Shuban to send an invitation to Yuan Shun Escort Agency!

However, at this moment Ma Chunmin feels there might be more behind this incident.

Her eyes flashed with a cold light as she reassessed Duan Rong from head to toe.

Duan Rong was sitting there, and upon hearing that Shen Mizi had gone out, he immediately relaxed, paying little heed to Ma Chunmin’s intriguing gaze.

A woman so beautiful and kind, always serving him food, how could she have any ill intentions?

Though Shen Mizi did not appear to toast, the servant attending the banquet kept refilling Duan Rong’s drink non-stop!

This wine shone with an amber-colored cold light; he didn’t know what kind of fine brew it was, so fragrant and rich, Duan Rong inadvertently indulged!

As the banquet ended, Duan Rong was feeling slightly tipsy, he said some polite words as he bid farewell to Shen Yanliu and Ma Chunmin, Ma Chunmin covered her mouth with laughter as she looked at him!

Shen Yanliu had the attending servant bring a lantern to escort Duan Rong out of the backyard.

In the flower hall of the backyard, as soon as Duan Rong left, Ma Chunmin smiled at Shen Yanliu, and said, "That kid is quite clever, speaks very considerately. You should find a way to get him into the government office as a constable!"

"How do you always manage to get so carried away with the wind and rain, speaking of such sudden matters?" Shen Yanliu always felt Ma Chunmin’s thoughts were too capricious.

"What? Can’t the government office have someone I can command?"

"If you need something, you can find Qin Shuban, isn’t that quite alright?"

"Qin Shuban is certainly reliable for tasks, but he’s a bit unfamiliar..." Ma Chunmin said with flickering eyes, "Is it possible or not, just give me a straight answer!"

"He’s from Yuan Shun Escort Agency, how can I freely poach someone from Ruan Fengshan?"

Ma Chunmin heard this, snorted coldly, and said, "No matter what the matter is, you always have a reason!"

After speaking, she twisted her waist and walked out of the flower hall.

Shen Yanliu watched Ma Chunmin’s sulking demeanor, and could only shake his head helplessly.

Meanwhile, as Duan Rong reached the shadow wall between the front and backyard, he turned his head and said, "Little brother, no need to escort, I can walk on my own!"

"Then Escort Master Duan, be careful of your footing, here’s a lantern to light your way!" the servant said, handing over the lantern he held.

Duan Rong took the lantern, waved his hand, and turned past the shadow wall!