Quick Transmigration: Not My Story

Chapter 4 The Cook Mistress（part 3）

Just as Lin Dan had settled Qi Shi, a group of people arrived outside the inn, shouting that they were looking for her. The innkeeper, fearing that these people might cause a disturbance and damage the establishment, desperately tried to prevent them from entering. Unable to get in, they stood outside, crying and wailing, attracting a crowd of onlookers.

Lin Dan opened the window slightly to peer outside and saw that the leader of the group was an elderly woman. She wore a faded garment, and there was no hairpin in her hair, making her appear extremely disheveled. Yan Yikuan stood by her side, supporting her, calling her "mother" in a sorrowful voice, clearly distraught.

It seemed that this was Yan Bo’s wife, Lin Baotian’s teacher, and by rights, Lin Dan should address her as "Shiniang" (a respectful term for a teacher's wife). However, Lin Dan could not bring herself to say it, especially considering the woman’s actions, which were enough to ruin the reputation Lin Dan had struggled to restore for Lin Baotian.

The elderly woman pounded her chest and cried out, "Damn Lin Baotian! It’s bad enough that he bullied us, an orphaned mother and child, but now his daughter is doing the same! His daughter claimed that you would take care of my old husband in his final years, that you were a filial person—ha! Were you not ashamed to say such things? My husband lay on his sickbed for months, and not once did Lin Baotian serve him; he didn’t even offer him a cup of water. I was the one who took care of everything, inside and out. When I asked Lin Baotian to send a letter to my son, he was afraid my son would come back and fight with him for the family property. He promised me he would, but as soon as he left, he burned the letter. This caused my son to miss the chance to see his father for the last time. Tell me, is that not heartless? A son should inherit the family business, but what right did he have to stop it? When my husband died and there was no son to handle the funeral, he used this as leverage to threaten me, demanding all the family’s wealth. If I didn’t give it to him, he wouldn’t allow my husband to be buried. What else could I do? My husband’s coffin is still at home. I can’t let him be left without a proper resting place…"

The elderly woman’s heartbreaking cries moved the onlookers to tears. If this continued, the reputation Lin Dan had just worked so hard to restore for Lin Baotian would be ruined again.

Qi Shi, who had finally managed to fall asleep, woke up in a start, filled with indignation. "She’s lying! She’s making things up! When your teacher fell ill, your father immediately wanted to send a letter to Yan Yikuan, but your teacher’s wife stopped him, saying Yan Yikuan couldn’t be distracted as he was preparing for the imperial examination. She had no idea how quickly your teacher’s condition worsened. Within half a month, he had become delirious and couldn’t care for himself. At that point, when they tried to contact Yan Yikuan, he had already left on a study trip and they didn’t know where he had gone. Your father took care of your teacher, administering medicine and cleaning him up, while also having to support the family. He did all the work, inside and out, while your teacher’s wife avoided it, complaining about the dirt and the hard work.

When your teacher passed away, she claimed that all the money had gone to support their son’s education, and she had nothing left to handle the funeral.

She begged your father to find a solution, and in the end, he gave all his savings and even borrowed fifty taels of interest-bearing money to ensure your teacher could be buried properly. To repay the debt, your father didn’t even rest for a moment. The very next day, he went out to work and earn money. After many twists and turns, he made his way to the capital and has been sending money back every year.

Unfortunately, he didn’t leave any proof, and no matter how many times we explain, we won’t be able to clear his name!"

Qi Shi opened the bundle and took out two memorial tablets, crying, "Your father was a good man, but why do good people never get a good reward?"

She also wanted to go out and argue with the elderly woman, but the woman was after all Lin Baotian's teacher's wife, and had raised him since he was young. With such seniority and kindness, the more she argued, the more it would appear that she lacked respect for her elders and was sharp-tongued, which would only make her seem petty. This is the way of the world — elders can scold and beat their juniors at will, but juniors cannot go against them even slightly. A single word of "filial piety" can crush a person. Moreover, she wasn’t good at arguing, and it was easy for her to be led astray in the conversation, ultimately making things worse for her late husband.

Compared to the group outside, Lin Dan naturally trusted Qi Shi more. Furthermore, in her memory, Lin Baotian had indeed been a good man who had never done anything wrong. Since she bore his daughter’s name, she naturally wanted to find a way to protect his reputation. But arguing was clearly not the best option. No matter how well she could speak, her status as a granddaughter already placed her at a disadvantage. Winning an argument against an elder was not something to be proud of.

"Mother, pack your things, we’re leaving the capital right away." Lin Dan made up her mind, "Give me the memorial tablets, I will return them to them."

Without a second thought, Qi Shi handed the items over. Unknowingly, her daughter had already become her pillar of support.

Lin Dan carefully wrapped the memorial tablets in white silk, cradling them in her arms as she walked downstairs.

"They’ve come out! The Lin family mother and daughter are out!" Someone recognized Lin Dan and Qi Shi, quickly shouting. The already curious onlookers gathered even closer, eager to see what would happen.

"Ah, you’re finally willing to come out!" The elderly woman wiped away her tears and rushed forward, preparing to confront the two, determined to ruin their reputations. She was Lin Baotian’s teacher’s wife, Lin Dan’s teacher’s mother, so whatever she said was justified, and she wasn’t afraid of the mother and daughter turning the tables.

Lin Dan raised the memorial tablet to block, and when the elderly woman reached out to grab her collar, Lin Dan took the opportunity to press the tablet into her hands, then knelt down and kowtowed three times. She slowly said, "Shiniang, my mother and I are leaving the capital. Please take care. This is my teacher’s memorial tablet; you should take it back. We no longer have the right to honor him."

The elderly woman, filled with hatred for Lin Baotian’s family, wasn’t interested in listening to her. Without thinking, she threw the items to the ground with force.

Qi Shi gasped and hurried to pick them up, but she was too late. The tablet bounced off the ground and the loosely wrapped white silk unfolded, revealing the carved characters. The crowd craned their necks to look and saw that this was indeed Yan Bo’s memorial tablet. The base was scorched and blackened, but it didn’t appear dirty; instead, it gave off a layer of glossy sheen, indicating it was regularly honored with incense and cleaned with silk cloth.

However, such a well-maintained memorial tablet was now cracked after being thrown on the ground. It truly was a disgrace!

Someone nearby immediately scolded, "How can you even smash the memorial tablet of your ancestors? Aren’t you afraid of being struck by lightning?"

The elderly woman froze upon seeing the tablet, and Yan Yikuan was also caught off guard. Qi Shi, however, was the first to pick up the tablet, wiping it frantically with a cloth. When her fingers touched the c***k, they trembled, showing how unsettled she was.

Lin Dan, who had remained expressionless, finally shed a tear. She gently took the tablet, carefully wiped it with her sleeve, and reverently placed it on the steps. She then pulled her mother to kowtow three times, before stumbling away.

Both their foreheads bled, leaving two bright red stains on the steps, which looked shocking to the onlookers. They didn’t say a word, but their actions spoke louder than a thousand accusations. The bystanders, who had been ready to help the elderly woman punish Lin Dan and her mother, fell silent, no longer expressing their intentions. The truth about who was loyal and who was treacherous was clear from just this one memorial tablet.

"Old... old man!" The elderly woman slowly regained her senses, and with weak legs, she collapsed onto the ground. Yan Yikuan didn’t know whether to kneel or stand, his face a mix of red and white, making for quite a spectacle.

No one noticed the old steward of the Duke of Yongding's residence standing at the edge of the crowd, nor the young master sitting in a teahouse across the street, watching the scene unfold with perfect clarity. He sighed as he watched Lin Dan and her mother walk away, then handed several silver notes to his attendant, instructing him to chase after them.

Lin Dan naturally refused the young master’s help. Her intuition told her that the only way to live in peace was to keep as far away from the young master and Yan Langqing as possible.

When the attendant returned with the silver notes untouched, the young master was filled with mixed emotions. He had thought he understood Lin Dan, but only now did he realize just how stubborn and fiery she was. Even though the path ahead was fraught with thorns, she still walked barefoot through it.

When the young master returned home, the old steward was reporting everything to the old duke. "When I arrived, that Zhou woman was making a scene, attracting a crowd. She kept pouring filth on Chef Lin’s head, scaring Lin Dan and Qi Shi so much that they didn’t dare to appear. Seeing how outrageous their words were, I was about to stop them when Lin Dan and Qi Shi had no choice but to come out. They didn’t say anything in their defense, returned the memorial tablet to them, kowtowed three times to both Zhou and the tablet, and left. That Zhou woman, knowing full well that it was Yan Yu’s memorial tablet, still raised it and smashed it to the ground, causing a large crack..."

In fact, Zhou didn’t know it was Yan Bo’s memorial tablet. She had been shouting angrily, and since Lin Dan deliberately slowed her speech and lowered her voice, it would have been difficult for her to discern. Unfortunately, the others paid special attention to Lin Dan’s words, so they all recognized the white silk-wrapped item as Yan Bo’s memorial tablet, and thus assumed Zhou knew.

Upon hearing this, the old duke sighed. "To smash even the memorial tablet of the deceased, that proves Zhou was speaking nonsense before! She has no feelings for Yan Yu. How could she have cared for him when he was ill, especially considering her unfilial son? Without Baotian, how would the Yan family be where it is today? In the end, it’s all about money. These people are blinded by greed and have lost all sense of conscience."

The old steward agreed, "Exactly! If they didn’t smear Chef Lin’s name, how could they claim the golden knife, the recipe book, and the restaurant? Chef Lin worked so hard to establish the reputation of the Yan family’s cuisine, and they want to take advantage of it. They think everyone else is a fool and can’t see through their schemes! No matter how they slander Chef Lin for being unkind, disloyal, or unfilial, just this memorial tablet is enough to shut them up! If they really did something as heinous as betraying their master, would Chef Lin dare to keep his teacher’s memorial tablet in her home? Yet Zhou and Yan Yikuan were terrified when they saw it, which shows how much guilt they have."

"The person Baotian was, I know best. He would never do those evil deeds. Inheriting the culinary tradition is not about inheriting wealth. When it’s given to you, it’s yours to use, but first, you must have the skill. Becoming a successor to the imperial chef is no easy feat; whether or not you have the real skills shows as soon as you step up to the stove. Unless Yan Yu was senile, he would never pass the mantle to someone as incompetent as Yan Yikuan. That would be ruining his own reputation!" The old duke grew angrier as he spoke.

"Exactly! The Yan family just saw that Chef Lin was dead and couldn’t stand up to them, so they took advantage. Poor Lin Dan and Qi Shi could not defend themselves and had to leave in shame." The old steward shook his head and sighed.

"You go find them and bring them back. An orphaned mother and daughter have it hard," the old duke finally said, waving his hand.

The old steward hurried off, and only then did the old duke notice his son standing at the door. With a frown, he said, "Send Yan Langqing away. We won’t keep such morally corrupt people in our house. There are plenty of skilled chefs available to hire; we don’t need her."

The young master nodded, cupped his hands, and silently left.

Little did Yan Langqing, who had been eager to stay at the Duke’s residence and showcase her talents, know that

her grandmother and father’s row had not only failed to restore the Yan family's reputation, but had also ruined her prospects.