Chapter 43: A Stroll Through Chang'an

Wang Mingyuan was also quite tempted.

The prosperity of Chang'an, of which he had caught only a fleeting glimpse upon entering the city, was something he could not pretend not to yearn for.

Moreover, since Chen Si was offering this out of pure kindness, it would be improper to refuse.

He nodded and smiled with a chuckle, "Then I must trouble Brother Chen. However..."

He paused, looking slightly embarrassed. "My eldest brother is also in Chang'an, and he... he surely hasn't had the chance to properly explore this city either. I was wondering... would it be all right if we brought him along?"

"Your eldest brother?"

Chen Si's eyes lit up.

"You mean that... that elder brother of yours with the extraordinary strength? Of course we can! The more, the merrier!

It will also give me a chance to witness the demeanor of the elder brother of someone as remarkable as you, Brother Mingyuan!

It's settled then! Tomorrow morning, sharp at the hour of Chen, let's meet at the gates of the prefectural academy!"

By the time Wang Mingyuan returned to the small courtyard in Wutong Lane that evening, the sky had already grown dim.

The familiar aroma of meat soup drifted from the kitchen. Wang Da Niu was squatting in front of the stove, adding firewood, the flickering flames casting a glow upon his soot-smudged face.

Whenever he finished his work these past few days, his elder brother would occasionally bring back some bones or meat, preparing various delicacies for him in different ways each day.

"Eldest Brother," Wang Mingyuan said as he put down his book box.

"You're back? Dinner will be ready in a moment."

Wang Da Niu looked up and grinned, revealing a flash of white teeth.

"Mm."

Wang Mingyuan walked over to the stove and looked at the bubbling porridge and soup in the pot.

"Eldest Brother, I have tomorrow off. I happened to hear you say the butcher shop isn't too busy these few days—does that mean you don't have to go there tomorrow?"

Wang Da Niu poked the firewood with a stick, turned his head, and asked, "What's wrong? Have you run out of paper and ink? Shall I accompany you to buy some tomorrow?"

Wang Mingyuan gathered his thoughts. "No, it's just that a classmate at the prefectural academy named Chen Si is a very kind person.

He mentioned that since tomorrow is a rest day, he'd like to show me around Chang'an City. I... I was hoping you could come with us, Eldest Brother."

Wang Da Niu stopped adding firewood, the smile on his face freezing for a moment. Then he lowered his head, his voice sounding a bit muffled.

"What... what would I go for? A rough-hewn fellow like me going to places where scholars stroll around would only embarrass you... Besides, I wouldn't understand a word of what you gentlemen talk about..."

"Eldest Brother!"

Wang Mingyuan interrupted him, his tone earnest.

"Brother Chen is not that kind of person!

When he heard that you were here too, he specifically said he wanted to meet you!

And how could you embarrass me? You are my eldest brother!

Chang'an City is so vast, and I would feel quite uneasy going out to explore all by myself.

Just think of it as accompanying me, all right?"

Wang Da Niu raised his head and looked into his younger brother's clear, bright eyes, which were filled with anticipation.

The trace of awkwardness and inferiority in his heart softened little by little under the warmth of those words.

He rubbed his large, charcoal-dusted hands together and muttered hesitantly,

"Well... all right then. I... I'll go tell the shopkeeper later that I won't be going to the butcher shop tomorrow. However..."

He hesitated for a moment. "Looking like this... perhaps I should smarten myself up a bit early tomorrow morning?"

Wang Mingyuan looked at his brother's coarse cloth garments stained with grease and pig bristles, as well as the messy stubble on his chin, and could not help laughing.

"All right! Make sure you spruce yourself up and look sharp, Eldest Brother!"

Early the next morning, as the sky was just turning pale.

Wang Da Niu had risen even earlier and was now squatting beside a basin of water in the courtyard.

Using ice-cold water and holding a razor, he clumsily shaved his beard while looking into a bronze mirror.

This was the scene that greeted Wang Mingyuan when he pushed open the door and stepped outside.

His elder brother's fan-like hand was gripping the tiny razor with a stiffness that rivaled Huniu doing embroidery, and there were even a few streaks of unwashed blood on his cheek.

The originally unruly hair had been smoothed down somewhat with water, and he was wearing his finest dark-cyan coarse cloth jacket.

"That's enough, Eldest Brother, you look quite sharp!" Wang Mingyuan walked over, holding back a smile.

Wang Da Niu touched his clean-shaven chin, peered into the water basin once more, and chuckled, "Is... is it an improvement compared to before?"

Studying his elder brother closely after the shave, Wang Mingyuan realized that he still shared seventy to eighty percent of his facial features with him.

It was just that his brother's face was far more resolute and weathered, features previously masked by the dense growth of facial hair. Now, with the beard shaved off and viewed through the aesthetic lens of his past life, his brother could well be considered a "muscular hunk."

The brothers tidied themselves up, locked the courtyard gate, and headed toward the prefectural academy against the crisp, cool morning air.

Wang Da Niu walked with a light step, though he would occasionally tug self-consciously at the hem of his garment.

At the exact hour of Chen, in front of the vermilion gates of the prefectural academy.

Chen Si was already waiting there. Today, he had changed into a sapphire-blue padded silk jacket and wore a square scholar's cap, making him look exceptionally spirited. Behind him stood a pageboy of about fifteen or sixteen dressed in a clean grey cloth tunic.

"Brother Mingyuan!"

Chen Si waved with a smile when he caught sight of them from afar.

When his gaze fell upon the tower-like figure of the man beside Wang Mingyuan, a flash of astonishment crossed his eyes, which was immediately replaced by an even brighter smile as he strode forward to welcome them.

"This must be Brother Mingyuan's elder brother, I presume? I have heard so much about you! I am Chen Si, courtesy name Ziji."

Chen Si bowed with cupped hands, his manner natural and warm without a trace of arrogance.

Where had Wang Da Niu ever witnessed such a spectacle—a scholar bowing to him?

Flustered and with his dark face flushed red, he hurriedly tried to imitate the gesture, returning the bow clumsily with cupped hands while speaking in a voice as loud as a thunderclap: "Wang... Wang Mingxin! Pleased to meet... meet you, Master Chen!"

(From now on, in formal occasions, I will use modified names like Wang Mingxin for the family members, while retaining their previous names for daily life. This provides a better sense of immersion.)

His booming voice and exaggerated movements caused several passing scholars to turn their heads and stare.

This only made Wang Da Niu even more constrained, his limbs stiffening.

Chen Si, however, did not mind in the slightest and instead burst into hearty laughter:

"What a magnificent spirit, Brother Wang! With a build and a voice like yours, you are undoubtedly a man who stands tall between heaven and earth!

You are far superior to weak scholars like us who cannot even truss a chicken!

Come, let's go. Mingyuan has taken such good care of me usually, so today I will act as the host and show you both the magnificent sights of Chang'an!"

He familiarly clapped Wang Da Niu on the arm, and that warm friendliness instantly melted away Wang Da Niu's reticence.

Wang Da Niu scratched his head and chuckled along, the lingering trace of anxiety in his heart vanishing into thin air.

"Brother Chen, who is this?" Wang Mingyuan asked, looking at the pageboy.

"Ah, this is the pageboy from my household, named Shunzi. With a large crowd today, I brought him along to run errands and carry things."

Shunzi nimbly stepped forward and bowed: "This humble servant Shunzi pays respects to Young Master Wang and Elder Brother Wang."

As the group chatted and laughed, led by Chen Si—a true "veteran of Chang'an"—they merged into the gradually bustling morning crowds.

Instead of taking them down the wide main thoroughfares, Chen Si plunged directly into a dense, spiderweb-like network of narrow alleys nearby.

"Brother Mingyuan, Brother Wang, the truly exquisite flavors of Chang'an are not found on those flashy, ostentatious avenues; they are hidden away in these nooks and crannies! Let us go and sample some delicacies first!"

Chen Si introduced the plan with great enthusiasm.

The alleys were narrow enough for only two or three people to walk abreast, and the bluestone pavement had been polished smooth and glossy by the footsteps of passing years.

Lining both sides were low storefronts whose wooden shutters had just been removed, revealing a dazzling array of goods within.

Various breakfast stalls had long since been set up: freshly baked, crispy sesame flatbreads; plump steamed buns radiating wisps of steam; sweet and greasy fried pastries; all kinds of vegetable turnovers and meat pies; alongside the rich aroma of simmering meat drifting from who-knows-where...

A myriad of scents blended together, stirring one's appetite intensely.

"Hey, friend~~ Hu-bread! Freshly baked! Plenty of sesame seeds!"

A Hu merchant with a high nose and deep-set eyes shouted in halting official speech from behind his stall.

The charcoal fire inside the oven blazed fiercely as golden flatbreads adhered to the oven walls, sizzling and bubbling with oil while the sesame seeds popped audibly under the heat, their fragrance incessantly drilling into one's nostrils.

Familiar with the routine, Chen Si pulled out some coins and bought several, shoving one each into the hands of Wang Mingyuan and Wang Da Niu:

"Have a taste! Their flatbreads are an absolute marvel in Chang'an—crispy on the outside, tender on the inside, and wonderfully fragrant!"

Wang Da Niu cautiously took the flatbread, which was about the size of his palm. Though it was scorching hot to the touch, he paid it no mind.

He took a careful bite.

The crispy outer crust flaked away in a shower of crumbs, revealing a soft, tender dough center blended with the nutty aroma of toasted sesame seeds and the sweet scent of wheat, offering a wonderfully chewy texture.

His eyes lit up, and he devoured one in just a few bites. Though still craving more, he restrained himself from showing it in front of outsiders and remarked, "Truly fragrant! Much better than the flatbreads back in our town!"

If Chen Si hadn't been standing right there, he would have bought several more to satisfy his cravings, even if they were more expensive than those in his hometown.

In truth, the source of Gouwa's gluttony likely came from him, though as an adult, the elder brother knew better how to exercise restraint.

"Isn't it?" Chen Si smiled triumphantly. "Come, there's more ahead!"

They squeezed through the crowd to yet another stall selling *biluo*.

This was a pan-fried pastry shaped like a small pouch, stuffed to the brim with minced mutton, scallions, ginger, and various spices.

Pan-fried until both sides were golden and glistening with oil.

Chen Si bought several more portions.

When Wang Da Niu bit into one, the scalding hot meat juices nearly burned his tongue, and the rich aroma of meat mixed with spices burst forth in his mouth. He gasped repeatedly from the heat, yet could not bear to stop.

"Eat slowly, Eldest Brother, it's hot!" Wang Mingyuan reminded him with a smile.

"Delicious! Truly delicious!"

Wang Da Niu mumbled indistinctly, making short work of the first one before immediately picking up a second. Unable to restrain himself any longer, he turned to Wang Mingyuan and said,

"Huniu would certainly love this! And Gouwa too! When we head back later, we must buy plenty to take with us! I just wonder if they'll keep during the journey."

"Alright! I've noted it down!"

Wang Mingyuan responded with a smile.

Watching his elder brother eating with grease smeared all over his mouth, looking as happy as a child, he felt a warm glow in his own heart as well.

They ate as they walked along the way.

Acting like a culinary guide, Chen Si had them taste whatever caught their eye—jinggao (his absolute favorite, which simply had to make an appearance regardless of the era), persimmon cakes, salt-and-pepper pastries, and thick meat pies spiked with peppercorns and spices... buying a little of everything novel they encountered to sample.