Chapter 228 Feast for the Entire Village

Cheng Wanwan took the imperial official robes and went into the inner room to change.

This garment has three layers: an inner white silk undergarment, a light blue inner garment, and a dark blue outer garment. The garment is embroidered with subtle patterns and has a substantial feel, giving it a commanding presence.

Wearing that heavy Ruren crown completely changed her aura.

She pushed open the door and walked out of the inner room, causing everyone gathered in the main room to hold their breath.

Sunlight spread out from behind Cheng Wanwan, like ink wash painting. The crown on her head shone brightly, and the dark embroidery on her official robes reflected the light, making her seem as if she were standing in the light, like a bright pearl, like a noble lady of high status.

"Greetings, Madam Sui!"

Someone shouted first and knelt down.

Everyone in the house and the courtyard knelt down.

"Greetings, Madam Sui! Congratulations, Madam Sui!"

Everyone, including the young and the old, including her four sons.

Even Zhang's wife and Zhang the scoundrel knelt on the ground, their heads bowed low, not daring to utter a sound.

Cheng Wanwan quickly took off her cap; she didn't want to be the one who didn't fit in in the village. She was about to tell everyone to get up.

Cheng Zhao suddenly knelt down and stepped forward, raising a lacquer tray with both hands.

Inside the vermilion lacquer plate was a locust, its body entirely jade-colored, carved with astonishing skill, making the locust seem almost alive.

"The method of locust eradication was proposed by Lady Sui, and this jade locust should belong to Lady Sui." Cheng Zhao bowed his head and said respectfully, "Please accept the imperial jade locust, Lady Sui."

Shen Zheng thought to himself, "This is bad."

If he had known, he wouldn't have let his father take the imperial writing implements back with him; he should have presented them to Aunt Zhao instead… because it was Aunt Zhao who reminded him of the stone roller that gave him the idea…

Cheng Wanwan sighed, placed the Ruren crown on the table, and bent down to help Cheng Zhao up: "I am your second aunt. How can you keep calling me Ruren like that? And this jade stalk, it originally belonged to you. Keep it safe."

She looked at the villagers kneeling on the ground and said gently, "Mother, Village Head Aunt, Granny Zhu, Mudfish Mother... please get up quickly. We are all fellow villagers. Calling me 'Sui Ruren' makes us seem too distant. From now on, I will still be Dashan Mother. Don't be too reserved when you see me. Just be like before."

She stepped forward and helped the elderly people to their feet.

The young women and wives followed suit, but their eyes were still filled with awe as they looked at her.

She looked down at her clothes and said with a smile, "I'll go in and change first."

She turned and went inside, and the villagers breathed a sigh of relief. It has to be said that Da Shan Niang looked really imposing in that dress; they didn't dare to stare at her for too long.

Not to mention the villagers, even He Xiao and Master Yu, who had seen the world, were shocked.

Zhao Chengshi, a village woman, wore this dark blue court robe without any sense of incongruity, as if it were tailor-made for her.

Coarse cloth clothes didn't suit her; she seemed born to wear fine silks and satins...

Cheng Wanwan changed into an earth-yellow linen dress and came out, immediately feeling much lighter.

Old Mrs. Zhao was counting the imperial gifts in the main room. In addition to the lady's dress and lady's hat, there were ten bolts of silk, a pair of hairpins, bracelets, earrings, and thumb rings, as well as a pair of vases, screens, and jade ornaments. These items were spread out on the table and attracted a lot of attention.

"Dashan, Ergou, Sanniu, are you all stunned?" Old Mrs. Zhao said. "Quickly put all these things inside the house and make sure they are not stolen."

“This is a gift from the Emperor. Even if it were left at the door, no one would dare to steal it.” Shen Zheng snorted. “The court records the whereabouts of all gifts from the Emperor. Anyone who dares to steal and resell it is committing a capital crime and will be beheaded in public.”

No one in the village dared to doubt Shen Zheng's words. In the first place, no one dared to have such thoughts, and even if they did, they wouldn't dare to think about it now.

"We have a big celebration in our family today, and we should be hosting a feast for the whole village, but we didn't make any preparations beforehand, so we can't manage it right now," Cheng Wanwan said apologetically with a smile. "How about we have dumplings instead? White flour dumplings with pork filling, all you can eat, okay?"

The village head's wife disagreed: "There are over a thousand people in the village. If each person only eats one dumpling, they'll go broke. Forget it, let's just have everyone drink some water and consider it sharing in the joy."

“Our Lady of the Mountain is now a ninth-rank lady. I heard from the messenger that she receives a monthly stipend. It wouldn’t hurt to treat everyone to some dumplings, would it?” Granny Zhang said with a smile. “If you’re not going to eat, then go home. I’m going to have a few bites to share in the good fortune.”

Although Grandma Zhao was reluctant to part with the food, she knew very well that this was a blessing from her ancestors, and the dumplings had to be served.

The old lady immediately waved her hand and said, "Men, go back and move the tables and chairs. Women, put down the children and come help roll out the dough and make dumplings. Let's try to make these dumplings before sunset."

The whole village cheered and went home to get their things.

Cheng Wanwan took the money and asked Zhao Dashan and Zhao Ergou to drive a horse-drawn cart to town to buy half a pig. The flour was three large bags left over from making steamed buns last time, several hundred catties of flour, enough to make a dumpling feast for more than a thousand people.

The courtyard was filled with tables, and on each table, two women were kneading or rolling out dough. The flour was white and fine, a kind of fine flour that the villagers had never seen before, and it had a strong wheat aroma that made their mouths water.

Half an hour later, Zhao Dashan and Zhao Ergou carried half a carcass of pork down from the carriage. The pork was oily and shiny, making everyone's mouths water.

This is real pork, half a carcass, mixed with some wild vegetables. How delicious these dumplings would be!

The whole village worked even harder.

After wrapping some of the dumplings, we started cooking them.

The stove used was a newly built stove from the soap workshop. There were four large earthen stoves in total. The pot was placed on it, and the water was boiled over a strong fire. Soon it was bubbling and gurgling. Then, white flour and pork dumplings were put in, and the aroma of the dough and pork filled the courtyard.

Whether adults or children, everyone started swallowing hard.

As the sun gradually veered westward, the orange glow of the setting sun cast a warm halo over the courtyard.

Everyone brought their own bowls from home. If there weren't enough tables, they ate standing up. If there wasn't enough room in the yard, they stood outside.

"Delicious, so delicious! This is the first time I've ever had such delicious dumplings!" Old Mrs. Zhu exclaimed, tears streaming down her face. "Before, when I made dumplings, just a little meaty smell was enough, and the children always said they weren't full. But today, these dumplings are all meat. One bite and I feel full... It's such a waste for an old woman like me, with one foot in the grave, to eat this good stuff..."

"Grandma, don't say that!" Zhu Huzi came over and fed Grandma Zhu a dumpling. "Master Yu said I'm very good at studying. When I've made something of myself in my studies, I'll also get you a title of Lady!"

Old Mrs. Zhu gently stroked her grandson's hair, her face full of a gratified smile. She was old, and Hu Zi was too young. She didn't know if she would live to see the day when Hu Zi became successful.

"Auntie Dashan is so generous. These pork dumplings are full of meat, even better than what we eat at home during the New Year."

"Let's eat our fill and get back to work. We've been delayed a lot by the Cao family today, so we have to make up for it before dark."

"That's right, I've finished eating, I'm going to get back to work!"

"I'm going too!"

A group of men quickly ate over twenty large dumplings in one go, then rolled up their sleeves and went to work at the soap workshop.

Cao Yingying had little appetite and ate three or four dumplings before stopping. She walked up to Cheng Wanwan, hesitant to speak.