Chapter 54: Willpower
"This is impossible!"

Wen Shizhang refused immediately.

The young master was actually asked to gamble his life. There was no way he would agree to such a thing!
There is only one ending for Chang Lin, and that is death.

The only thing he wanted to do before he died was to kill Xu Qing.

Otherwise, he would not be able to rest in peace even if he died.

Chang Lin turned a deaf ear to Wen Shizhang's words. He just stared at Xu Qing, waiting for his reply.

Xu Qing didn't want to pay any attention to him at all.

This madman!

Who in their right mind would gamble their life?
Moreover, Xu Qing's purpose of coming here has been achieved. The criminals have surrendered, the governor is intact, and Sichuan has been preserved from falling into the hands of the dark culinary world. Moreover, after the truth is revealed, Wan Ziliang, who was wrongfully imprisoned, will also be released.

He has accomplished everything he could do perfectly.

What happened after that had nothing to do with him.

Looking at Xu Qing's calm and indifferent eyes, Chang Lin suddenly laughed and said, "You are afraid, you are afraid of losing to me!"

Upon hearing this, Wen Shizhang quickly looked at Xu Qing and said, "Young sir, don't listen to his nonsense. Chang Lin is a lunatic. He actually gambled his life for a cooking duel! You are still so young and have a bright future. Your future achievements will surely surpass his by a hundred or a thousand times. There is no need to compete with such a desperate man for a moment of pride."

Yes, how could he possibly bet his life with Chang Lin? He is not a madman.

Xu Qing's reason kept speaking in his mind over and over again, but there was another extremely clear voice that gradually overwhelmed his reason.

Chang Lin said I was scared? That's ridiculous. How could I lose to him?
But the two had never competed before, so no one knew the final outcome. Even if Xu Qing was so confident, he could not completely convince himself.

If he did not agree to the competition and Chang Lin died, he would never know the final outcome of the competition in his life.

Can he really win?

Can he really defeat Chang Lin, who uses all means and dark tricks?

If he missed this competition, this problem would become an eternal knot, weighing on his mind all the time.

Once he began to doubt himself, his heart could no longer be as pure and unobstructed as before.

Xu Qing took a deep breath. He knew very well that it was crazy to gamble his life for a cooking showdown!
If Master Abe were present, he would definitely try his best to dissuade him.

But at this moment, he wanted to be a madman.

He did it not for Chang Lin, nor for Wen Shizhang, but just for himself.

In order to continuously improve his cooking skills to a higher level, he will not back down no matter what obstacles are waiting for him ahead.

And Chang Lin was just the first thing that could be called an obstacle he encountered on his way forward.

"I promise you."

Xu Qing looked at Chang Lin and said.

An ecstatic look instantly appeared on Chang Lin's face. The intense joy made his face distorted, like a devil.

Wen Shizhang was stunned. Did Xu Qing not hear anything he just said?
Wen Shizhang said in annoyance: "Young Master..."

"Master Wen, you don't have to say anything more. And please rest assured, Master Wen, I will definitely not lose this competition."

Wen Shizhang looked at Xu Qing, then at Chang Lin, and could only sigh helplessly.

Both parties in the duel have agreed, so what's the point of him objecting?

"Then the competition will be held in three days."

Xu Qing wrote a letter about what happened recently that night and asked Lao Zhao to send it to Master Abei. Lao Zhao was shocked when he heard that Xu Qing was going to have a life-and-death duel with Chang Lin. Lao Zhao knew that the matter was urgent, so he personally rode his horse to Juxialou overnight.

Master Abei had previously told Xu Qing in a letter not to worry, to protect himself first, and to be patient until he had a thorough understanding of the situation in the Governor's Mansion.

Unexpectedly, just a day or two later, things took a turn for the worse.

Master Abei must have been speechless with surprise after reading the letter.

Xu Qing couldn't help laughing out loud when he thought of Master Abei's expression.

The next morning, before daybreak, the sound of noisy horse hooves could be heard outside the Governor's Mansion.

Xu Qing had just gotten up and went out. When he heard the sound, he looked towards the door curiously.

Then I saw Master Abei striding in. Her clothes were covered with frost and dew condensed from the starry night, and her face was colder and paler than the frost. She looked like she had just crawled out of an ice cave, with a chilly air.

Xu Qing had never seen Master Abei show such an expression.

In his impression, Master Abei was always very gentle, as if she could be gentle even when facing the worst situation.

At this moment, the gentle Master Abei had a rare cold face, with a fierce aura. This made Xu Qing shudder all over, he shrank his neck, and subconsciously wanted to avoid her.

Master Abei had sharp eyes. As soon as she raised her eyes, she saw Xu Qing who was trying to hide somewhere else. She immediately quickened her pace and rushed towards him aggressively.

Xu Qing froze in place, his legs and feet suddenly felt weak, and he didn't dare to dodge.

Master Abe walked up to him, raised his hand, and slapped him hard.

Xu Qing was stunned for a moment.

Master Abei's eyes quickly turned red, and tears instantly fell. She pulled Xu Qing's clothes uncontrollably and yelled at him: "Ah Qing, are you crazy? This is a life-and-death duel, how could you agree to it! How dare you! Don't you know that if you lose you will... you will..."

Master Abe couldn't utter that heavy word.

She couldn't understand why Xu Qing agreed to have this duel!
This matter obviously does him no good at all!
He was not forced, but stepped into the trap voluntarily.

Why? Why does Xu Qing not care about his own life?
Xu Qing looked at Master Abei who was crying bitterly, and felt a deep sense of guilt in his heart.

He stood there at a loss, not knowing what to do.

In addition to guilt, he also felt a strong sense of warmth and comfort in his heart.

The only person who would cry for his death in his past and present life was probably Master Abe.

Oh, and there are also Ke Ling and Amu.

For the first time, Xu Qing began to reflect on whether the decision he made was too irresponsible.

His life does not belong to him alone.

There are others who will worry about him, feel sad for him, and cry for him.

His figure has been embedded in the lives of others and has become a part of their lives.

However, no matter how guilty he felt, Xu Qing did not regret it.

Even if I could do it again, even if I knew that Master Abe would be so angry and hurt.

Xu Qing would still make the same decision.

On the difficult road of cooking, all others can do is to give him help, but how he will proceed in the end still depends on himself.

This is the path he chose. Even if it is full of thorns and bumps, he wants to keep going. He wants to see what the scenery will be like at the end of this road.

(End of this chapter)