Upon waking up in the morning, as usual, Li Xin instinctively reached for an empty space. He went on to wash and have breakfast, enjoying everything Christie had prepared, feeling a sense of living an ordinary life.
The dice rolled: Ma Liu is Alain Ducasse.
The dice wobbled, resulting in an invalid verdict.
After breakfast, he washed the dishes, closed the door, called a carriage, and returned to the inn. Before he even reached the stairs, he saw the worried face of Dragon Mother. "Young Master Xin, can that really not be used?"
She looked around and whispered, "It's very expensive."
Li Xin also looked around nervously, "It really can't be used. It's currently classified, can't be disclosed, and anyway, it can't be used. Tell David as well."
"I went to find him last night. That bastard David, he's just a second-hand dealer. He doesn't use it himself," Dragon Mother said through gritted teeth. "I've already taught him a lesson!"
Li Xin looked at Dragon Mother suspiciously, unsure how she had taught him a lesson, wondering if David was okay.
"I was busy all night, Dragon Mother. I'm going to find Ma Liu for so food," Li Xin said, rubbing his stomach.
"Go on, go on, Young Master Xin is truly talented, able to write and wield a knife..."
Li Xin was completely immune to Dragon Mother's praise. When he arrived at the kitchen, Ma Liu was busy preparing vegetables. He would go to the market early in the morning to make selections, choosing the best at low prices. Ever since he mastered a new way of cooking chicken, getting quality goods at the old price had beco increasingly difficult; the market price for chicken had already doubled, and regular citizens were learning this thod.
"Li... Bro." Ma Liu smiled when he saw Li Xin arrive.
"I'm here to lend a hand," Li Xin said with a smile.
Ma Liu waved his hand, looking at how clean Li Xin was dressed now, realizing he was no longer the Li Xin who used to work the kitchen with him.
Li Xin didn't mind at all, rolled up his sleeves, and started handling the chicken. Ma Liu's knife looked very old and worn out, but it was fast and efficient, expertly sharpened.
"Ma Liu, where did you learn your knife skills?" Li Xin asked. Previously, Li Xin had just demonstrated a little, and then Ma Liu took over, handling everything beautifully, even with large orders in Dragon Language, cutting chicken into uniform and attractive pieces while still managing other tasks. No normal person, even without sleep, could finish.
Maybe the diners didn't notice, but with this kind of food, knife skills are crucial. Li Xin had eaten it many tis later but hadn't really paid much attention—it was just a normal dish, not sothing you'd think would belong to a high place like the Gourt Association.
Ma Liu paused, smiled, "Mas...ter."
"With your solid fundantal skills, your master must be incredible. Why are you willing to stay here, never thinking of showing your talents in a bigger place?" Li Xin asked Ma Liu, "I happen to know the head chef at Ivory Bay Restaurant, Mr. Bocuse. I can recomnd you there. Want to try it out?"
Ma Liu's hand suddenly shook, and a piece of chicken fell to the ground, which he picked up regretfully, shaking his head like a rattle drum, "I... I can't."
"Do you know soone nad Alain Ducasse?" Li Xin stared intently at Ma Liu.
The person in Christie's photo looked too much like Ma Liu, differing in build—Alain Ducasse in the photo was sunny and handso, well-built, standing about 1.8 ters tall, while Ma Liu was just over 1.6 ters, with a youthful face, features squeezed together like they hadn't grown properly—he should be older than now, but that doesn't seem right, just looks older than my appearance.
But the similarity in contour, especially the eyes, was identical to Ma Liu. Anyone else might not link it, but Li Xin spent too much ti in the kitchen with Ma Liu, marveling at his knife skills. Every ti Li Xin overslept, he found the kitchen in perfect order, suspecting Ma Liu to be a superman or thinking this was the average skill level of chefs on Dao Yuan Continent.
Bold speculation, cautious verification—how could soone staying at Lirong Inn have such an intense reaction to people from the Gourt Association?
Even though the dice gave an invalid verdict, Li Xin couldn't shake his suspicion.
Ma Liu is indeed Alain Ducasse.
After hearing this na, Ma Liu was stunned. His long-held disguise finally crumbled as he put down his knife, muttering, "Li... Li... Li..."
On hearing this na, Ma Liu seed even more tongue-tied, almost unable to utter Li Xin's na.
"Co on, don't rush, we have enough ti, later I'll help you out, and we can find a place to talk. The events of that ti are significant to my current investigation," Li Xin said, absolutely not believing Ma Liu to be the Inner Demon killer.
Ma Liu looked at the food in the kitchen, sowhat anxious, while Li Xin, with a mix of laughter and frustration, full of questions, said, "Don't worry, I'll handle things with Dragon Mother. It won't take long."
Knowing it was still early, Ma Liu swiftly organized the food, hesitated for a mont, then took out two jars of wine from beneath the kitchen cabinet.
The two of them went to the rooftop, sat on the ground, Ma Liu handed a bottle to Li Xin, then opened one for himself, gulping down two big swallows.
"Ha~~~" Ma Liu took a deep breath, "Li, Li..."
Li Xin wasn't particularly impatient, but if Ma Liu could type, he might have gifted him a typewriter. Still, this matter was too important to let slip away. Ma Liu was indeed a director of the Gourt Association, nearly becoming the sixth elder, a genius gourt Alain Ducasse. Though he admitted it, at this mont, Li Xin found it hard to rge the frail, thin Ma Liu with the energetic young man in the photo.
What had he gone through?
Ma Liu took out a piece of charcoal and, with writing, speaking, and gestures, finally cleared up the story from those years.
His master was Boka, the first elder of the Gourt Association. He was an orphan adopted by Boka; the Hidden Power and culinary skills were also taught by Boka, who was not only his master but a father figure. Under Boka's guidance, perhaps due to his own talent, he grew rapidly in the culinary path. Elder Boka's long-cherished wish was to improve the path of the gourt, but the Gourt's journey is too long and uncertain, closely linked to the growth, dedication, and usage by others.
Li Xin roughly understood what the culinary path was like—a quality support role, but the outco depends on the main character. If sothing happened to the person they supported, they would also face repercussions, though not as severe, resulting in wasted effort. This imbalance in efforts dedicated versus returns was unacceptable for any strong Secret Organization. Boka aid to change this, seeking active rather than passive roles. Alain, as Boka's assistant, followed Boka in various attempts, even involving the corpses of Fallen Creatures, and later human corpses, until one day he discovered his master using living people. At the sa ti, the Gourt Association discovered this matter.
Alain beca the scapegoat, forced to consu a forbidden al—the Gourt's "Gourmand Feast." Though he escaped, it caused severe bodily harm, reducing his size by nearly a quarter, damaging his head and Spiritual Ability, robbing him of vitality and talent. He barely survived, ending up as he is now.
Whether Bocuse is Boka, he didn't know, but surely he was associated with the Gourt Association. Alain no longer wished to participate in any gourt-related matters and just wanted to live until the end of his life.
Alain wrote on the ground, "Alain Ducasse is already dead, I am now just Ma Liu from Lirong Inn."
Li Xin initially wanted to ntion the Inner Demon matter but found it too selfish. No wonder Ma Liu used to space out often, and Dragon Mother ntioned he sotis lost track of ti, likely lingering aftereffects.
"Isn't there any way to heal it?" Li Xin asked.
"I was once a gourt; damage to a Divine Relic is irreversible. Surviving is a blessing from heaven. After all, he was once my master; without him, I'd have perished long ago. Consider it repaying a life. Being an ordinary person is quite good; I'm living happily at Lirong," Ma Liu wrote.
Li Xin nodded, Ma Liu smiled and continued writing: It feels much better to say it out loud, please keep it a secret for .
"Ma Liu, Ma Liu, you little bastard, where did you die off to? Dare to slack off on , I'll break your legs~~~"
A roar shook the entire inn. Ma Liu scrambled to his feet and ran downstairs with a thud, "I'm here, here, here..."
Li Xin followed him downstairs, needing to help Ma Liu prepare lunch. They began bustling around, with Ma Liu acting as if recounting soone else's story, yet still happy despite Dragon Mother's scolding, because he no longer had to fear being used. After Dragon Mother's reprimand, she began harassing Li Xin in various ways. If not for Ma Liu, she might have physically laid hands on him. Li Xin and Ma Liu finished handling the ingredients and then quickly slipped away, as he couldn't be a third wheel.
Dragon Mother will always be Ma Liu's!
Not even Young Master Simmons can change that.
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