Xie Zheng’s face darkened as he threw on his outer robe and grabbed his crutch. The moment he stepped outside, he saw Fan Changyu climbing down from the attic stairs with an oil lamp in one hand and a thoroughly bedraggled gyrfalcon in the other.

Seeing him, she looked slightly surprised.

“Oh, did I wake you?”

The moment the hawk spotted its owner, it immediately let out a pitiful cry again. Only this time it did not dare scream hysterically. Its voice was weak and miserable like a chick’s, the feathers atop its head sticking up in disarray, no longer sleek and glossy as before.

After a brief silence, Xie Zheng asked slowly,

“This is…”

Fan Changyu shook the hawk she held by the legs and grinned broadly.

“I saw this gyrfalcon flying around nearby several times already. Since I happened to buy an old hen today, I figured I’d try setting a trap. Didn’t expect I’d actually catch it!”

Ordinary hawks could at most snatch little chicks away, but this gyrfalcon was enormous. Its wingspan stretched nearly a meter wide, and its strength was astonishing. While struggling on the rooftop it had even smashed a large hole into the roof tiles. Had Fan Changyu not rushed up in time after hearing the noise, it might truly have broken free.

Only after receiving several slaps from her had it finally behaved.

She said cheerfully, “Tomorrow I’ll take it to the market and see how many taels I can sell it for.”

The hawk continued staring at its master pitifully with its little bean-like eyes.

Xie Zheng could hardly bear to look at the stupid bird. Keeping a cold expression, he lied without blinking:

“Nobody in the market buys living birds of prey. Their meat is tough and sour if killed for food, ordinary families can’t afford to raise them, and unless trained by a falconer, wild hawks remain savage and easily injure people.”

“Oh…”

Fan Changyu’s excitement instantly deflated.

She scratched her head.

“But this one injured its leg in the trap, and it hurt its wings struggling against the rafters too. If I release it back into the wild now, it probably won’t survive the winter.”

Right on cue, the gyrfalcon let out another weak and pathetic cry.

Xie Zheng: “…”

“I know a little about falconry,” he finally said. “I could try training it. A properly trained hawk can sell for dozens, even over a hundred taels.”

“Huh?”

Fan Changyu looked shocked.

But once she heard the hawk might eventually be worth dozens—or even over a hundred—taels, she brightened immediately. Suddenly even repairing tomorrow’s damaged roof no longer seemed like a big problem.

“Then we’ll keep it here for now!”

She promptly dug out a chicken cage and stuffed the gyrfalcon inside before bringing over medicine and bandages.

The hawk shrank miserably into the corner of the cage while Fan Changyu grabbed one leg to apply medicine and wrap bandages around it. Terror filled its little eyes, yet it did not dare struggle at all.

Watching the bird’s foot become wrapped into something resembling a rice dumpling, Xie Zheng’s eyelids twitched twice.

After finishing, Fan Changyu squatted beside the cage and gazed at the hawk with unmistakable affection—the kind reserved for over a hundred taels of silver.

“Tomorrow morning after I slaughter the pigs, I’ll give you some fresh offal.”

The pork had to be sold, but the offal could be used however she pleased.

The pig slaughtered today already had all its innards turned into braised delicacies.

Before returning to her room, Fan Changyu paused thoughtfully.

The main hall was too cold. She and Changning slept on a heated kang bed and did not need charcoal braziers, but fearing Yan Zheng’s injuries and weak health could not handle the cold, she had specifically placed a brazier in his room.

And this hawk was worth over a hundred taels.

It absolutely could not freeze to death.

Thus she immediately changed direction, carried the chicken cage to Xie Zheng’s room, and knocked.

Without caring about the expression on the man’s face, she set the cage in a corner.

“It’s too cold at night. Don’t let this gyrfalcon freeze. I’ll keep it in your room for now.”

Xie Zheng swept a gloomy glance toward the hawk.

“…Fine.”

Once the door shut, the hawk’s tiny bean eyes met its master’s long, sinister phoenix eyes.

Dragging its injured leg and drooping its half-molted wings, it trembled miserably.

—

The next morning, Fan Changyu truly slaughtered a pig and brought half a chopped pig lung to feed the hawk.

Today seemed especially cold.

Snow nearly buried the threshold itself. The moment the door opened, icy air blasted inward hard enough to make one shiver. Looking outside, rows of icicles hung beneath the eaves.

Fan Changyu’s hands were red from the cold. After placing the bowl of pig lung into the cage, she rubbed her hands together and said to the man sitting by the bed:

“Today’s Major Cold. Freezing outside. Wear more layers once you get up. I made mao xue wang—it’ll warm you up.”

Xie Zheng nodded, though in truth he had no thick winter clothes left to wear.

Not long after, Fan Changyu returned carrying one of her father’s padded winter coats.

Once Xie Zheng put it on, his figure became somewhat bulky, though thankfully his height kept him looking handsome regardless.

And the coat truly was warm. No matter how the cold wind blew, his body remained heated.

However, together with the coat came a dark blue ribbon.

Xie Zheng recognized it immediately.

Last time, Fan Changyu had angrily tied it into her own hair.

His brows furrowed slightly.

—

When Fan Changyu emerged from the kitchen carrying a large steaming bowl, she saw he had already washed up and gotten dressed.

“Up already? Perfect timing. Come eat.”

The soup bowl in her hands gleamed bright red on the surface, carrying an aggressively spicy fragrance throughout the room.

She noticed he had not used the ribbon she brought, but said nothing.

She only remembered how particular he was about cleanliness. Winter bathing was inconvenient, yet he still wiped himself down with hot water every few days. He washed his hair ribbons frequently too, sometimes drying them beside the firepit.

That was why she had bought another ribbon for him to alternate with.

She was not that petty.

The bowl was too full and scalding hot fresh off the stove. After setting it down, she immediately grabbed her burning fingers and pinched her earlobes.

“Ahh, so hot!”

Little Changning hurried over.

“Ningniang blow on it! Then it won’t hurt!”

Trying not to laugh, Fan Changyu held out her fingers obediently. Changning puffed up her cheeks and blew several serious breaths before finally stopping.

When Fan Changyu looked up again, she found Xie Zheng staring at her with a strange expression.

She wiped her face reflexively, thinking perhaps she had soot on it somewhere.

“Something on my face?”

He withdrew his gaze.

“No.”

Fan Changyu eyed him suspiciously before handing him chopsticks.

“Try the blood curd! It’s best freshly cooked right in the pot, but there wasn’t time today.”

The top of the bowl was covered in Sichuan peppercorns and dried chilies splashed with hot oil. Beneath lay chunks of pig blood, braised intestines, tripe, and lung from last night’s leftovers.

It was only missing a layer of crisp bean sprouts at the bottom.

Fan Changyu scooped a piece of pig blood into Changning’s bowl. The little girl hissed from the spice, yet after swallowing one piece still stared longingly at the bowl.

“More!”

Fan Changyu laughed and gave her two more pieces.

This was Xie Zheng’s first time seeing such a chaotic stew-like dish.

And the soup clearly was not meant to be drunk.

More importantly—

the Fan family had no habit of using serving chopsticks.

Separate stir-fried dishes were manageable enough; everyone could eat from their own side.

But a communal stew?

There was practically nowhere untouched.

While he hesitated, the two sisters had already nearly finished half their rice.

Seeing him only eating plain rice, Fan Changyu looked puzzled.

“You can’t eat spicy food?”

“…Not exactly.”

In the end, he abandoned that lingering obsession with dining cleanliness and reluctantly picked up a dark-red cube of pig blood.

The first sensation upon tasting it was numbing heat.

Then rich fragrance.

The blood curd barely required chewing. It melted the moment he pressed lightly with his tongue.

Unexpectedly delicious.

One after another he sampled the braised offal within. The combination of braising spices and spicy broth blended perfectly, making it impossible to slow down his chopsticks.

By the end of the meal, Xie Zheng had almost forgotten he once had food-related cleanliness issues.

And just as Fan Changyu promised, warmth spread rapidly through his body from the spice until he no longer felt the bitter cold outdoors at all.

He asked, “Is this a local dish?”

“Sort of,” Fan Changyu replied. “It’s one of the signature dishes at Yixiang Tower. The lady owner there knows all kinds of recipes!”

For a fleeting moment, Xie Zheng considered introducing the dish into military camps.

Then immediately dismissed the idea.

Army meals only needed to fill stomachs. They could never afford something this refined—not to mention the expense of spices like chili and Sichuan pepper.

After clearing the dishes, Fan Changyu carried the gyrfalcon’s cage beside the firepit before preparing to leave.

Before heading out, she reminded him:

“There’s still half a pig lung in the kitchen. Chop it up later and feed the hawk again.”

Scratching her head awkwardly, she added,

“And if you’ve got spare time… maybe try training it?”

Xie Zheng’s lazy glance toward her felt almost murderous.

“…Fine.”

Inside the cage, the gyrfalcon tucked its neck in and trembled like an oversized quail.

Satisfied, Fan Changyu pushed her cart toward the butcher street.

Heavy snow blanketed the roads today. Even at this hour, only a few pedestrians traveled outside.

The butcher street itself was equally deserted.

After opening her shop and clearing snow from beneath the eaves, she suddenly noticed the brick stove she had built outside had been smashed apart.

She was so angry she nearly laughed.

Her braised meat business had only been open a few days, yet someone was already jealous enough to destroy her things?

After the incidents with Fan Da and the gambling den, she had developed a reputation for being fierce and hot-tempered.

And sometimes having a vicious reputation came with advantages.

Fan Changyu immediately threw down her broom, planted her hands on her hips, and bellowed:

“Which turtle-born bastard smashed your granny’s stove? Too cowardly to speak face-to-face so you sneak around doing dirty tricks instead? Were your ancestors all bastard turtles too?”

Having trained in martial arts since childhood, her voice carried with enough force to echo through the entire street.

The neighboring butchers stayed silent.

Only Butcher Guo immediately shouted back when her gaze swept toward him:

“What are you looking at me for? I’m not the one who smashed it!”

Fan Changyu actually did not suspect him.

Because aside from obvious schadenfreude, his face lacked even the slightest hint of guilty panic.

One butcher’s wife beside her suddenly seemed to realize something.

“Oh no, Changyu—your shop was closed for a whole month before, right? Did you forget to pay protection fees?”

It was Fan Changyu’s first time hearing such a thing.

“Protection fees?”

The butcher’s wife sighed.

“When you run a business, besides paying taxes to the officials every month, you also have to give a little money to the gang leader controlling this street. Your shop’s been doing too well lately. Those people probably heard about it. If you ask me… they’ll probably come looking for you soon.”

Now understanding the situation, Fan Changyu immediately figured things out.

The thugs smashed her stove last night as a warning.

Today they would definitely come collect money.

After thanking the butcher’s wife, she calmly arranged the fresh pork and braised meat onto the counter, then placed a long staff behind the door.

As she sold meat, she quietly waited for the troublemakers to arrive.

At three quarters past chen hour, a gang of street hooligans swaggered into the butcher district, shoving people aside arrogantly as they came.

Pedestrians scattered at the sight of them.

Hearing the commotion from inside her shop, Fan Changyu glanced outside—

Oh.

Old acquaintances.