Why do I have so many masters?-Chapter 376 - 61: Misery (1/2)

The next day, Wang Anfeng woke up early.

He had prepared some food in the pot, where the water bubbled like fish eyes, rising and bursting, sending steam upward, making the rather dry room much more humid. Together with the morning sunlight and the cat lying on the roof, it created a comfortably lazy atmosphere.

Wang Anfeng sat at the table, which held some yellowed books. He was currently holding one and concentrating on it. These were the items he had retrieved from the secret chamber before he left the Tan Residence yesterday. The first time he left, he was somewhat bewildered and had not brought them with him.

As he had thought, these scrolls did not contain any rare martial arts manuals.

However, in terms of value, they were more important than those famous martial arts secrets known throughout Jianghu.

The scrolls detailed the background and contact methods of many martial artists related to the Tan Residence and its subordinate organizations in Xi Dingzhou, covering almost all the cities in the area.

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They even included small gangs or businesses seen as rivals by others, which appeared to fiercely compete with each other but were actually part of the Tan family’s holdings, merely putting on a show for the public.

Beyond that, they involved the secrets of dozens of martial artists from Jianghu.

Wang Anfeng turned the final page and discovered a slightly yellowed letter. He took it carefully, noting its brittleness due to age. The forceful strokes of the writing nearly pierced through the paper.

Tan Tianxiong here.

Wang Anfeng’s expression changed slightly, becoming a bit more solemn. He knew somewhat of the old man’s life story—how a scholar who failed the imperial exam and had no strength to truss a chicken rose to a premier position in Jianghu through cunning, schemes, and even luck.

Had he specifically written this letter?

Could it contain something extremely important?

Wang Anfeng was slightly absent-minded as his gaze swept across the letter.

"Tan Tianxiong here."

"Today, my Yurou wishes to attend private school, huh, but that old fool dared to say, ’A woman without talent is a virtue?’"

"He truly deserves a good thrashing."

"My Yurou, unparalleled in beauty in this world, deserves everything. It made Yurou drop her pearls, if it had been twenty years earlier, that old fool and his rotten school would have already joined King Yan in the underworld!"

"...Yurou is already four years old... She’s becoming more and more like her grandmother..."

"In a few years, some rascal will steal my granddaughter’s heart. Ah, really, I want to chop that little rascal into pieces in advance, but by that time, I will probably still pretend to be a kind elder and drink with him..."

"Heh..."

"If he dares to bully Yurou..."

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Contrary to what Wang Anfeng had expected, the content of the letter was not about Jianghu affairs in Xi Dingzhou but merely an old man’s indulgence in his granddaughter and his deep resentment towards a future inevitable young man, full of idle chatter. Unfortunately, the letter seemed to have gotten wet unintentionally, blurring many of the words.

Wang Anfeng smiled, carefully folded the letter, and put it back in its original place.

The letter was at least twelve years old and still in good condition, indicating the degree of the owner’s care.

Unfortunately, the old man passed away prematurely...

Otherwise, if the old man who wrote the letter, who would have been willing to split the school in half for his granddaughter shedding tears, were still alive, Yurou probably would not have suffered so much pain and pressure...

He let out an almost imperceptible sigh.

There was a knock at the door, and Wang Anfeng composed himself, regaining a calm demeanor as he looked up and spoke softly:

"Gongsun Jing, is it?"

"Come in. The door’s unlocked..."

"Yes, Young Master."

The voice of Gongsun Jing, the Gang Leader of the Giant Whale Gang dressed in casual clothes, came from outside. He entered, carrying a rosewood food box in one hand and pushing open the wooden door with the other, saying:

"Young Master, you haven’t had breakfast yet, have you? I had the kitchen prepare some..."

His gaze swept across the room, over the yellowed books on the table, Wang Anfeng sitting at the table with a slightly curious expression, and not far away, the pot releasing wafts of fragrance.

Gongsun Jing’s expression stiffened slightly.

His eyes widened slightly.

Again, late?

By then, Wang Anfeng had already stood up, placing the book on top, and said to Gongsun Jing:

"I haven’t eaten yet, but everything is ready... Your timing is just right."

"Would you like to join me?"

Gongsun Jing opened his mouth, his gaze moving from the stove, wrestling with the memory of a meal cooked by General himself during a mission years ago, mingled with the taste of pickles, which resurfaced in his mind after more than twenty years.

The Young Master was raised by General himself.

So, his cooking skills...

Gongsun Jing’s face was somewhat pale with terror in his heart, yet he displayed a fearless and bold smile, saying,

"If that’s the case, then I shall respectfully comply with your command."

Wang Anfeng glanced over Gongsun Jing’s slightly pale face, feeling slightly perplexed, but merely said,

"Then please sit down for a moment, I’ll go get the meal."

"Yes, Young Master."

Gongsun Jing watched Wang Anfeng leave the room to fetch a bowl, his smile gradually fading from his face.

Regret churned in his heart like chewing on ten jin of coptis, continuously rolling over, making him feel foolish for his decision to come today, yet what could he do now that he had agreed? The other party was the Young Master, and even if Purgatory lay ahead, he had no choice but to pinch his nose and accept it.

Resigned, Gongsun Jing slumped over the table, his eyes half-closed.

The memory of tastes tugged at his recollections, growing clearer by the moment, so vivid as if he had never forgotten any of it.

Snow swirled around, the field chilly and vast.

Dressed in thick leather, resembling an ordinary herdsman, a mighty figure swung a bronze spoon as if it were a battle sabre, loudly declaring,

"Today I will cook for you all, to reward you."

"Later, no one is allowed to leave anything behind, eat it all up!"

At that time, everyone howled tragically, frightening a nearby pack of wolves into trembling; then, under the metallic threats of the General’s furious spoon, they all swallowed down the stuff, which was worse than pig feed. Back then, Gongsun Jing was still young and actually believed the General’s nonsense, even trying a piece of pickled vegetable.

The so-called ’Great Marshal’s secret recipe, the tastiest in the world.’

Recalling that indescribably intense flavor, Gongsun Jing’s lips twitched slightly, his stomach churned, and his complexion grew paler.

A bowl of white rice was placed in front of him, interrupting his memories and bringing him back to reality.

Wang Anfeng sat across from him, pursed his lips, pretending to be indifferent, and casually asked,

"By the way, Gongsun, what did you bring to eat today?"

"Oh, I only brought some local meals from Xi Dingzhou and a couple of lighter dishes to accompany the rice, and the top layer has a bowl of plain porridge..."

Gongsun Jing replied subconsciously, feeling as though it might have been his imagination, but the eyes of the Young Master across from him seemed to brighten slightly.

Wang Anfeng cleared his throat and said,

"Then simply bring them out to accompany the meal..."

Shortly after, the table was laden with five dishes of various small dishes. Gongsun Jing breathed a sigh of relief, figuring that even if the meal cooked by the Young Master was unpalatable, it should be edible with the small dishes. Thinking this, he lifted his chopsticks and took a bite of the rice, his eyes brightening slightly.

"This…"

far exceeded his expectations, making him almost believe there was something wrong with his taste buds until the second bite confirmed that the flavor was not a figment of his imagination. He sighed deeply with relief.

Perhaps because he had held no expectations initially, this taste seemed even better than those offered in grand restaurants.

Gongsun Jing couldn’t help but speed up his chopsticks, the small dishes were only meant for breakfast and were not abundant. In front of two Middle Third Rank Martial Artists, they were quickly finished. Wang Anfeng gulped down a couple of bites of white rice and then suddenly said,

"I have some pickled vegetables here that can go with the rice..."

"Gongsun, would you like to try it?"

At this point, Gongsun Jing was completely off guard, feeling the young man before him had exceptional culinary skill, starkly different from the General. Upon hearing this, he nodded, feeling not dread but anticipation.

Wondering how delicious it could be...

After Wang Anfeng brought it over, he did not examine it closely but grabbed a large pair of chopsticks full and swallowed it with the rice, biting down hard.

The next moment...

Military Family’s top spy, Gang Leader of the Giant Whale Gang, loyal Colonel from the Divine Martial Mansion, Gongsun Jing’s body trembled violently, his eyes widened, nearly bursting into tears.

The intense and familiar flavor lingered on his palate, colliding with his memories like three thousand frenzied bulls, rampaging through his mind. Gongsun Jing swayed, almost experiencing the sensation of his soul leaving his body.

He seemed to hallucinate, seeing the tall figure of General Li, face bold and intrepid, saying,

"This thing, it’s the Great Marshal’s secret recipe, the tastiest in the world..."

"Come on, Ah Jing, have a piece..."

His mouth unwittingly clenched as he stared blankly at the young man across from him, a factor he had unconsciously neglected all this while suddenly becoming clear in his mind.

The Young Master before him, his surname was Wang.

PS: Today’s first update presented...

About the letter from Tan Tianxiong, I think people change. If one were to look into the past, not many were crazy from the start, nor were many cold-hearted at the beginning. It’s just that back then, he was really doting on his granddaughter, a truly indulgent grandfather...