The Fortunate Lady and Her Mountain Man

Chapter 245: Chapter 245: Question After Question

Granny Cao’s eye twitched.

She had lived for over half a century and was a pretty good judge of character.

This young woman before her, Ji Huan, wasn’t bluffing. She truly intended to go to Yeyang County, and she wasn’t the least bit intimidated or afraid of seeing the magistrate.

The relatives she had dragged along for backup were also stunned. They all turned to look at Granny Cao, their expressions clear. ’This isn’t what we agreed to when we came! Are we really going to court?’

Granny Cao knew she had to keep her own people calm. She cleared her throat and said to Ji Huan, "You’re not from the Hu Family, are you? This is a matter between our Cao Family and the Hu Family. You’re just a little girl, an outsider. It would be best if you didn’t get involved."

Ji Huan didn’t argue. "It’s true that your business with the Hu Family is none of my concern. But you just mentioned the Golden Partners, so I have to ask about that. In fact, even if you hadn’t come to Dafeng Village, I was planning to visit Cao Family Village to find you."

Granny Cao’s heart skipped a beat. She sensed something was off about Ji Huan’s words and said cautiously, "My family doesn’t know you. You have nothing to say to us."

"How can you say that? You’ve ruined the Hu Family’s business. I couldn’t just stand by and watch an injustice."

"We didn’t ruin it! They promised to give it up themselves! And they went back on their word, turning around and teaching it to a bunch of other families!"

She said it with such a mix of self-righteousness and grievance.

Ji Huan shook her head and smiled. "The Hu Family promised you they would stop running their stall, but they never promised not to teach anyone else. Besides, they weren’t the ones who taught it—I was. And as far as I know, the Hu Family only agreed to stop selling. They never gave you the recipe for the Golden Partners. Did you ask for my opinion before you came storming over here to hold them accountable? What? Did no one tell you that the Golden Partners recipe is mine?"

At this... Granny Cao and Mrs. Wang exchanged a glance.

Before the two families had their falling out, the Cao Family had learned about this from Cao Yunyun.

But they hadn’t paid it any mind, mainly because they didn’t take Ji Huan seriously.

They figured that as a young woman, even if she suffered a loss, she wouldn’t dare make a scene. And if she did, she would go after the Hu Family, not them.

Granny Cao narrowed her eyes. "Just because you say it’s yours, that makes it yours?"

Ji Huan pointed to the crowd at the entrance. "Everyone in our village knows. If you don’t believe me, why don’t you ask them?"

There had long been speculation that Ji Huan had given the Hu Family the recipe for the Golden Partners, and most people were convinced it was true.

Now that Ji Huan had admitted it herself, the crowd wasn’t surprised and began to speak up to corroborate her claim.

Seeing that everyone was saying the same thing, Mrs. Wang grew anxious and argued, "So what if the Hu Family’s recipe is from Ji Huan? What does that have to do with us? We didn’t learn it from the Hu Family!"

Granny Cao’s expression shifted again and again.

"All you older sisters and young wives here are used to cooking. Come and be the judge. For any given dish, doesn’t everyone cook it the same way? Just because one family makes it well, does that mean no one else is allowed to? If you ask me, you’re being far too unreasonable, little girl."

Look at that. Last time, she claimed Cao Yunyun had learned it by being observant and quick-handed. Now that the tide was turning, she had changed her story.

"So, are you saying your hot and spicy soup is different from the one I taught the Hu Family? That you figured it out yourselves?"

Mrs. Wang cut in, "Of course!"

Ji Huan nodded. "In that case, I’d like to ask, what spices are in the soup base? Of course, it’s a secret recipe, so you don’t have to list them all. Just a few will do."

In truth, if the Cao Family didn’t have a guilty conscience, they could have simply refused to answer. After all, why would anyone reveal their own secret recipe?

But Mrs. Wang seemed to think that whoever spoke first owned it, so she nudged Cao Yunyun.

Ever since Ji Huan had appeared, Cao Yunyun’s gaze had been fixed on her.

"Star anise, clove, sand ginger, tsaoko fruit, and..."

As if to prove herself, she rattled off a whole string of them.

Seeing that she was about to recite the entire list, Ji Huan called out for her to stop.

"You have a good memory. Then let me ask you this: what is the purpose of each of those spices?"

Cao Yunyun froze.

’Their purpose? What purpose could they have, other than for flavoring?’

Mrs. Wang had just been feeling a sense of vindication, but when she saw her sister-in-law suddenly go quiet, she poked her and urged, "Hurry up and say it! Tell her what they’re all for."

Cao Yunyun bit her lip and looked toward Hu Liang, but he had never told her any of this.

Hu Liang had once felt guilty toward Cao Yunyun, but that guilt had long been worn away by her and her family. So when he met her gaze, his expression remained completely unchanged.

Cao Yunyun’s heart sank. She turned her gaze back to Ji Huan, and now, in addition to competitiveness, there was a flicker of hatred.

"For flavoring and adding aroma."

She had tried making it at home. The hot and spicy soup made without the spice mix was nowhere near as fragrant, so the spices’ purpose must have been to add aroma.

Ji Huan wagged a finger at her.

"That answer is far too general. It’s like saying salt is salty and sugar is sweet. Who doesn’t know that? A three-year-old knows that. Do you have anything more specific?"

Faint snickers could be heard from the crowd. Cao Yunyun’s face flushed red. "I... I..."

"Since you can’t seem to say it, allow me to give you the correct answer." Ji Huan cut off her stammering attempt to defend herself.

"Besides adding aroma, star anise also removes fishy or gamey odors and stimulates the appetite. Sand ginger is often used to get rid of unwanted smells from the raw ingredients, and tsaoko fruit’s main purpose is also odor removal... In short, for aroma, spice, and freshness, each has its purpose. It’s not just about adding fragrance."

Ji Huan winked at Cao Yunyun. "What, Miss Cao, you don’t even know this? So do you usually just throw a random jumble of them into the pot? Aren’t you afraid your customers will get sick?"

As soon as she finished speaking, someone in the crowd remarked in surprise, "We’ve never even heard of cooking with those... what’d you call ’em, spices. She doesn’t even know what they do, yet she dares to claim she came up with the recipe herself."

The other villagers now also sensed something was fishy. This was clearly a stolen recipe.

Mocked in front of so many people, Cao Yunyun unconsciously wrung the corners of her clothes.

Granny Cao knew her daughter’s capabilities better than anyone. She was no match for the sharp-tongued Ji Huan.

Granny Cao stepped in front of Cao Yunyun to face Ji Huan directly. "We never said we figured it out ourselves. Those were your words."

"Then how did you learn it? Surely your ancestors didn’t teach you in a dream, right? Ma’am, to be honest, I don’t think your ancestors would have been familiar with these things."

The crowd’s laughter grew louder.

Having lived to her age, to be so thoroughly humiliated by a mere slip of a girl, Granny Cao was gasping for breath in anger. The words tumbled out of her mouth.

"I already told you! Our Yunyun went to help the Hu Family. She’s diligent, quick-handed, and has a sharp mind—she learned it just by watching! I’ll say it again: whoever learns it, owns it! What are you going to do about it? You want to gouge out her eyes and scoop out her brain?"

Ji Huan raised her hands and gestured downward. "Calm down, calm down. Since you agree that it was stolen from the Hu Family, this makes things much simpler."

Granny Cao froze. "When did I admit to stealing it from the Hu Family? My Yunyun learned it by watching! It’s not stealing!"

A chorus of hisses and boos came from the entrance. "Have you no shame! It’s stealing, plain and simple, and you won’t even admit it!"

Granny Cao gritted her teeth and glared at Ji Huan, her face ashen.

Ji Huan smiled, not pressing the point.

"Whether it was stolen or learned openly, you still learned it from the Hu Family. You can’t deny that, can you?"

"I..."

Before she could finish, Ji Huan turned to the crowd. "Did everyone hear that clearly? Why did the Hu Family take the initiative to break off the engagement? Because someone was harboring ill intentions. They sent their daughter over, supposedly to help, but what was the real reason?"

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