Five Years After My Death, the Mad Emperor Still Summons My Spirit

Li Yun was only distracted for a moment when Du Xuan turned his head. His gaze quickly fell upon the wall nearby, where the names of the dishes were hanging.

The handwriting on those wooden plaques gave him a long-lost sense of familiarity.

It wasn’t just that he recognized Ming Lingyi’s old handwriting. He could also see traces of his own calligraphic style within hers.

Li Yun’s mood suddenly lifted.

It was as if, in this handwriting, he could find a fleeting moment from the past.

After Li Yun finished his lunch, Ming’s Restaurant was still very lively.

He summoned Liu Ye, whispered a few instructions, and Liu Ye quickly stood up and headed for the back kitchen.

Shi Mingyue had been keeping an eye on the activity at Li Yun’s table. She’d noticed the pair were clearly a master and servant, and had seen the servant use a silver needle to test for poison. It left her with a poor impression of them both.

Seeing Liu Ye walk towards the back kitchen, Shi Mingyue stood up, quickly followed, and blocked his way.

"Sir, the back kitchen is for staff only," Shi Mingyue said.

She was petite, but her presence was formidable, exuding a wild, untamable pride.

Stopped in his tracks, Liu Ye almost subconsciously blurted out, "How audacious!" When had Mr. Liu ever been shown such disrespect?

But the person before him belonged to his Empress. He gave a dry laugh. "You misunderstand, miss. I just want to ask the boss to pack up an order for us to take away."

Shi Mingyue: "Pack up what?"

"One of everything on the menu." Liu Ye knew his master wanted to pack it to bring back for the Little Prince. He wanted to speak to the Empress personally; after all, he wasn’t just there to place a to-go order.

’With so many people in the restaurant, wasn’t the whole reason his master came out today to exchange a few words with the Empress?’

’And yet, he’d been stopped by this tactless little brat.’

Shi Mingyue said, "We’re only serving the lunch menu now. Also, the Southern Fragrant Pepper Bone is sold out, and so is the braised meat. As you must have seen, sir, our customers love the food my lady makes, so it sells out fast."

Shi Mingyue’s last sentence was a pointed remark at Liu Ye. She was the type who would even come to blows with her master’s own family, so one could imagine her fiery temper, which likely rivaled Xiao Chun’s.

Ming Lingyi was her savior. For people of the martial world, the most important thing was righteousness. Her lady had saved her life, a debt as great as that to one’s own parents, which she could never repay. Now that she had encountered scoundrels, she naturally had to step forward; it was her bounden duty.

Liu Ye: "..."

’His brow twitched. Whether it was Yu Yi and Yanxia by the Empress’s side in the past, or Xiao Chun and Shi Mingyue with Ming Lingyi now, every last one of them seemed like someone you shouldn’t provoke.’

’Why do all the maids Ming Lingyi keeps around have such terrible tempers!’

"Is it all gone?" Liu Ye didn’t believe it. "Could you ask Boss Ming to make an exception for us? Maybe there are still some ingredients left."

"Why should we make an exception for you? No way. My lady prepares a limited amount of food each day and never makes exceptions," Shi Mingyue said.

Liu Ye: "..."

Chief Steward Liu hadn’t been thwarted like this in a long time, and he was so furious he felt like smoke was about to billow from his ears.

Liu Ye returned to his seat dejectedly.

"Is everything taken care of?" Li Yun asked.

Ashamed, Liu Ye replied, "Master, the attendant at this restaurant said they’ve already sold out..."

Li Yun raised an eyebrow. "No matter."

Getting takeout lunch for Li Yan was just an excuse. Li Yan was currently confined to the Eastern Palace to reflect on his misdeeds, but it wasn’t as if the Imperial Chefs in the palace couldn’t serve the little master.

Li Yun just wanted to find a chance to exchange a few words with Ming Lingyi, but who would have thought the opportunity would be shut down before it even had a chance to arise.

Ming Lingyi had already finished her work in the back kitchen. When Xiao Chun came in, she saw her lady plating food and putting it into a food container on the side.

"My Lady? What are you doing? I already went to Granny Wang’s next door. The tailor shop didn’t seem to be open today, so I don’t know where Granny Wang went..." Xiao Chun said.

’She just assumed her lady was doing another good deed by sending food to Granny Wang next door.’

Ming Lingyi said, "It’s not for Granny Wang."

’Since Granny Wang wasn’t home, there was no reason to have Xiao Chun deliver this food container next door.’

"Then who is it for?"

"Isn’t there a young master with a servant out there?" Ming Lingyi said. "Take this to him."

Xiao Chun exclaimed, "Huh?" her tone full of confusion. "Why? My Lady, you didn’t see that young master’s servant. He took out a silver needle to test for poison earlier. I was so mad I could have died! I mean, we’re running a business here, are we that stupid? Poisoning a customer’s food? They’re just too much!"

Ming Lingyi didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. "What if I told you that you could get a tael of gold for taking this meal over?"

Hearing this, Xiao Chun’s expression changed immediately. "Really?"

Ming Lingyi nodded.

"Then... then I’ll go!"

Ming Lingyi laughed out loud.

In fact, when Li Yun had come by yesterday and Little Bun never appeared, Ming Lingyi had already guessed that Li Yun must have discovered Li Yan.

’After all, Little Bun is only five. How could he possibly outwit a devious, black-hearted old bastard like Li Yun?’

She had long ago promised Little Bun that every ten-day holiday, she, his mother, would personally cook a sumptuous meal for him.

So, this food container was, of course, for Li Yun to take back to the palace for Li Yan.

When Li Yun received the food container from Xiao Chun, he signaled Liu Ye to give her a reward.

’For a reward from the Emperor, a single tael of gold was considered a paltry sum.’

When Xiao Chun saw the golden ingot, her eyes nearly lit up. Almost in an instant, she decided to temporarily forgive the two people before her for their rudeness in using a silver needle to test for poison earlier.

’For the sake of gold, what couldn’t be forgiven?’

"Miss Xiao Chun, I wonder if we could trouble your shop’s owner to come out for a word?" Liu Ye took the opportunity to ask with a smile.

The brilliant smile vanished from Xiao Chun’s face, and a wary look appeared on her chubby face. "What are you trying to do? My lady was kind enough to save a meal for you. Don’t you get any funny ideas."

’Xiao Chun guessed her lady must have overheard this doughy, pale-faced man talking to Ming Yue earlier, which was why she went out of her way to prepare an extra meal.’

’Sigh. Her lady was just too soft-hearted.’

Liu Ye said, "We just want to thank your owner in person. Your restaurant’s food is truly excellent."

Xiao Chun’s feelings were practically written all over her face. Hearing Liu Ye acknowledge her lady’s skill, she couldn’t help but feel a little smug.

"Of course it is. But even if you’re sucking up now, my lady doesn’t have time." Xiao Chun was certain this young master harbored ulterior motives to get close to her lady, and she would never allow it!

Seeing that this chubby girl was impervious to persuasion, Li Yun’s face darkened.

’How audacious! Does she have a death wish?’

"Xiao Chun."

Just as Li Yun’s patience was wearing thin, Ming Lingyi suddenly emerged from the kitchen.