“Miss Xia…”

Du Jinghua was about to speak when Jin Yuntian interrupted him: "Mr. Du, didn't you hear what Miss Xia said? Hmm?"

Du Jinghua detected a hint of impatience and anger in that "hmm," which startled him, so he quickly said, "I heard you, I heard you. We're leaving now. We just came to offer our congratulations, we're leaving now."

Du Jinghua put down the jewelry box and quickly left with Madam Du.

"Take your things with you." They were all old items that Du Lanlan had used, so Xia Chunmei didn't care about them.

Fearing that Jin Yuntian would be angry, Du Jinghua turned around and quickly carried him away.

Du Jinghua finally breathed a sigh of relief after getting into the carriage.

"This little bitch dares to act so high and mighty!" Madam Du was furious. This was the first time she had ever lost face like this, especially since it happened in the home of the lowest class of people she looked down upon!

Du Jinghua lowered his voice: "Keep your voice down, can't you see Grandpa Jin is here?"

Isn't Du Jinghua angry?

Of course I'm angry!

He shared similar thoughts with Madam Du, feeling that as a prominent figure in the county and the father of Du Bin, Xia Chunmei should treat him with courtesy and politely invite him in to sit at the same table with Jin Yuntian.

The idea was wonderful, but the reality was harsh.

"Could it be that they think the gift is too light?" Du Jinghua looked at the wooden box in his hand.

Madam Du said irritably, "How could that be? The things inside are worth over a hundred taels of silver. Has a village girl like her ever seen that much money? What Master Jin gave us were just a few boxes of clothes. How much are they worth?"

"I bet your precious son whispered something in her ear, that's why she's acting so arrogant. You still want your precious son to marry her? If a woman like that enters the Du family, won't she be riding roughshod over us? Where will you, as her father, put your face then?"

Upon hearing Mrs. Du's words, Du Jinghua also felt that Du Bin must have sabotaged things, and he was furious.

"That wretched child! He has no sense of family whatsoever! Just wait until I get back, I'll teach him a lesson!"

Hearing this, Madam Du was secretly delighted; she would never let Du Bin get away with it!

*

Xia Chunmei was also staying at Xia Huohua's house. The house was already small, and now with more people, it felt even more crowded.

It was already past 9 AM, so Xia Hongfen, Aunt Lihua, Chen Jinlian, and Xia Mingshi hurried off to prepare the meal.

They had anticipated that there would be about four tables today, so Xia Chunmei and Xia Hongfen started preparing many things yesterday.

Apart from a few new dishes, Xia Hongfen will be in charge of cooking the remaining fish dishes.

Xia Chunmei then greeted the guests.

Around noon, Xia Chunmei finally went into the kitchen and made boiled sliced ​​pork, braised pheasant with shiitake mushrooms and wood ear fungus, steamed pork ribs with rice flour, and tofu balls.

Seeing the table full of dishes, Xia Xintian felt a pang of heartache and said, "Chunmei, you're being too wasteful. Just order a few dishes; we're not strangers."

Xia Qiang said, "That's right, how much money must all this meat have cost? You're so honest, you can't be so wasteful in the future, we can't live like this."

Xia Chunmei knew that her two uncles meant well, so she smiled and said, "Actually, it didn't cost much. I caught the fish myself, sprouted the bean sprouts myself, and caught the pheasant in the mountains. None of these cost money. The tofu and pork were also inexpensive. My sisters and I have always been grateful for everyone's care, so please don't be shy."

"Chunmei, you can actually sprout beans!" Wang Dagui exclaimed in shock. "If you take this to the market, you can sell it for three coins for two pounds, and plenty of people will want it."

It's not that bean sprouts are particularly precious, but rather that there are too few vegetables available to eat in winter these days.

Sprouting beans is a skill; there are people who know how, but very few.

In this era, people tend to keep their technical skills hidden, unlike in modern times when many things can be found in detail on Baidu.

"Then I'll sprout more bean sprouts another day and take them to the market to try."

Xia Chunmei sprouted bean sprouts mainly to sell to guests at banquets.

Liu Changgui has already figured out how to make sauerkraut fish, and the taste is not bad, so Xia Chunmei is going to innovate and add a dish of boiled pork slices.

For rural families, boiled sliced ​​pork is a delicious and inexpensive meat dish.

Because the boiled pork uses lean meat, which was cheap at the time, one pound of lean meat paired with one pound of bean sprouts could make three bowls of boiled pork slices. The cost was low, but the taste was good and the portion was generous. Having this dish at a banquet was quite respectable for a farming family.

If this works out, she can make a living by selling bean sprouts when she gets pregnant and can't go out to work.

"It's so delicious!"

"Chunmei's cooking skills are as good as ever."

"This lean meat is not dry at all, it tastes even better than fatty meat, and the bean sprouts are also delicious. Chunmei is really amazing."

"The spare ribs are good too."

"The pickled fish is delicious too, Hongfen, you've mastered it now, haven't you?"

"Her skills are now on par with Chunmei's."

...

Everyone started eating, praising Xia Chunmei and Xia Hongfen as they ate.

Hearing everyone's praise, Xia Hongfen, the Xiao family, and her two brothers-in-laws not only felt honored, but also gained more confidence in hosting banquets themselves in the future.

Xu Qingfeng said with a smile, "Miss Xia's cooking skills are indeed excellent, no less than those of the chefs at Juxianglou. Our young master is usually a picky eater, but he ate two bowls of rice this time."

"Sister, your cooking is amazing, it's delicious," Jin Wenyuan said earnestly.

Xia Chunmei was initially worried that her humble abode was too simple and that these people, who were used to being well-fed and clothed, would feel uncomfortable and unable to eat in the countryside. However, she was surprised to find that little Jin Wenyuan ate with great relish and showed no sign of dislike.

The guards of the Jin family also had their mouths full of oil.

Jin Yuntian glanced at his son, wondering if he should buy the recipes for Xia Chunmei's dishes.

However, with so many people around, she has to tell them separately about buying groceries, so as not to let people know that Xia Chunmei is making money and attract envy.