Chapter 82 Lotus Seed Pastry Pastry, Egg Yolk Pastry...

The coffin was lowered into the ground.

Bury in soil.

Finally, the sound of firecrackers drowned out the crying.

Some people were heartbroken and wept, saying, "Oh, such a good person, how could he be gone?"

Some people also sighed that Uncle Cao was lucky, "To live to this age and see his children get married is a perfect life."

And then there are the innocent children who do whatever the adults tell them.

As the crowd gradually dispersed, Qiao Mancang wanted to go over and talk to his son and daughter-in-law, but Lin Shi pulled him away, saying, "Let's go back and wait, let the young couple take their time."

The two walked along a country path, their feet treading on lush green grass, surrounded by vibrant life. Qiao Mancang glanced back and said, "How about we head back to the city first?"

“Jiaxing said they’d all go back together today.” Lin took Qiao Mancang’s hand. “Everyone has to go through this. I want to go before you, otherwise, leaving me alone, life will be too hard.”

"Okay, okay, let's not talk about this." Qiao Mancang was somewhat reluctant to discuss this.

"Okay, let's not talk about this. We'll all be fine." Lin and Qiao Mancang didn't go back to the Cao family. Instead, they sat down under a shady tree on the way and waited until Qiao Jiaxing and his wife arrived before going back together.

After Cao Yuan returned home, she said goodbye to her brothers. Cao Ping didn't see anyone; only Cao Hao was there.

"Go back." Cao Hao looked at his sister, his heart filled with mixed emotions. As she was about to leave, he added, "If anything happens in the future, remember to come back and let me know."

Cao Yuan nodded gently. Her older brother had said it, and that was that; she wouldn't take it to heart.

After leaving the Cao family, Qiao Mancang went to find a donkey cart, while the three members of the Lin family waited at the main road at the village entrance.

Cao Ping arrived first, panting and covered in sweat. "Why are you in such a hurry? Here you go!"

As Cao Yuan hesitated over the bundle her third brother handed her, he shoved it directly into Qiao Jiaxing's hands. "I just grabbed some food for you to eat on the way. Qiao Jiaxing, my father loves my little sister the most. I may be old, but I have a son. If you bully my little sister, our family won't let you get away with it."

After saying that, he looked at Cao Yuan, but the words stuck in his throat. He turned his head away, said "Live a good life," and then left.

Qiao Jiaxing opened the bundle and looked inside. There were steamed buns, flatbread, braised meat, and a silver ring wrapped in white paper.

Before Cao Yuan got married, Cao Ping and his brother gave her a token amount of money as a dowry.

This silver ring was given to me by Cao Ping today.

"Yuan'er, look." Qiao Jiaxing handed it over.

Cao Yuan was stunned. She didn't understand why her third brother had given her this. Usually, her third brother was the most stingy when it came to money. They lived under the same roof, but they weren't particularly close.

"Take it," Lin said. "People have many sides. This is his sentiment, or maybe he misses your father."

With their father gone, the elder brother took on his responsibilities. Lin, having been through similar experiences, understood Cao Ping's thoughts better. Seeing Qiao Mancang bring over a donkey cart, she invited them to get on.

The family of four went to the city. By the time they arrived home, it was already getting dark. The rest of the Qiao family had already eaten, but Qiao Mianmian had heated up their food in a pot.

"You haven't eaten yet, have you? I've heated up some food for you." Qiao Mianmian said, heading to serve the dishes, but Lin Shi said she wasn't hungry.

"I've been eating the food the Cao family gave me along the way, and I'm quite full now. It's getting late, so let's go and rest." Lin yawned. The others stopped eating, and Qiao Mianmian put out the fire in the stove.

When Lin got up the next day, there was already steam in the kitchen. She went in and saw Cao Yuan starting a fire to cook rice. "Why are you up so early?" It wasn't even dawn yet.

Cao Yuan didn't say she couldn't sleep. "Jiaxing said everyone should go to the food stall early in the morning. I figured it was about time, so I got up to cook. Mother, you go and rest. I can still make breakfast."

She paused for a moment, then added, "Please let me do it. Doing some work will make the days pass faster. If I'm just sitting there doing nothing, it will be harder to get through."

The morning breeze was still cool. Lin patted Cao Yuan and said softly, "Then I'll trouble you. Let's do it together, mother and daughter."

The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law cooked breakfast together. After everyone ate, those who needed to go to the food stall went there, as life had to go on.

May has ended, and June and July have passed in the blink of an eye, and now it's the golden autumn of August.

That afternoon, after the food stall had run out of customers, Madam Lin called Qiao Mianmian over and said, "Come with me to the Luo family."

"Mom, have you raised enough money?" Qiao Mianmian looked at her mother with joy.

"Yes, we've finally saved enough money." Madam Lin sighed. "We could have paid it back earlier, but your second brother's wedding cost a lot of money, so it's been delayed until now."

Seeing his eldest son arrive, he called him over, and the three of them went to the Luo family together.

Luo Da greeted the Qiao family at the door and, upon learning that they had saved enough money, praised them, saying, "Your family is truly remarkable. With so many things going on at home, you still managed to save this much money. Madam happens to be home; I'll take you there."

Qiao Mianmian and Qiao Jiawang were carrying pastries from Songhelou. When they entered the main courtyard and saw Madam Luo, they greeted her together.

Madam Lin took out a banknote with two hundred taels of silver. "I've always kept this in mind. I've finally saved enough money so I can rest easy now. Thank you for your kindness in helping my family through this difficult time."

Two hundred taels of silver was nothing to the Luo family, and Madam Luo never took it to heart. She asked her maid to find the IOU and had tea served. "I'm only being kind to your family because they are easy to get along with. I wouldn't be so kind to others. My Ping'an has been eating the medicinal dishes you make, and his complexion has improved a lot. I have to thank you."

To express her gratitude, Qiao Mianmian had been making medicinal meals for Young Master Luo. She was happy to hear that Young Master Luo was feeling better, and said, "You can continue to ask me to make them for you in the future."

"Of course, only your cooking can make Ping An eat more." Madam Luo looked Qiao Mianmian up and down. The girl was becoming more and more beautiful as she grew up, with bright eyes and a graceful demeanor. She quite enjoyed being with Qiao Mianmian. "Speaking of which, isn't Fifth Miss Qiao about to come of age?"

Lin said that it's time after the Mid-Autumn Festival.

"The coming-of-age ceremony is a big day, you must invite me to attend." Madam Luo was willing to give the Qiao family face again, and the Qiao family knew how to behave appropriately, so she got along very well with them. Initially, it was only her son who suggested borrowing money, but now she felt that the Qiao family might have a very good future.

"We would certainly welcome you if you could come." Lin smiled broadly as she said this.

As she left the Luo family, Madam Lin let out a long sigh of relief. "Without owing any money, I feel like I can breathe much easier."

Qiao Mianmian felt the same way. "You have to remember, you said you would pay us our wages. Are you planning to pay us more?"

She had been thinking about this for a long time. Having money in hand makes things easier, and she had already figured out how to spend her first sum of money.

"I asked Manager Sun, and he said that the head chef at Chunxi Restaurant earns one or two taels of silver as an apprentice, and those who can cook start at five taels of silver. The waiters and other waiters all earn around two taels of silver."

Lin specifically asked Manager Sun about it, "But he also said that the wages for some chefs who have been working for a long time, or those who were specially recruited, are definitely different. But how much, he couldn't say, that's their secret. But that's how it is in the market, not much difference."

As the three walked, Lin Shi spoke, and seeing someone selling green tangerines by the roadside, she generously went over and bought five catties. "Your father and I have thought it over and over. You eat and live at home, and as for your wages, we just finished paying back the money we owed, so we don't have any money left. Jiawang and the others will be paid two taels of silver, and Mianmian, since you're the head chef, we'll pay five taels. But I'll give you two taels first, and I'll save the remaining three taels for you. I'll give them to you when you get married."

"No, please give it to me all at once. I don't waste money," Qiao Mianmian said.

"You won't spend money recklessly?" Madam Lin laughed. "You know what you're doing. Anyway, you're just a young girl, you don't have that many places to spend money. Of course, if you have a legitimate reason to come to me, I'll definitely give it to you."

Qiao Mianmian was dejected. What legitimate reason could she have? Of course, she would just eat and drink after receiving the money.

Qiao Jiawang was very happy and comforted her, "Mianmian, cheer up, your mother has already been very generous."

"Yes, that's very generous." But Qiao Mianmian wanted more.

She peeled a green orange, its sweet and sour taste instantly clearing her mind and giving her energy. She decided to save it for a year or two, then use it to buy land and fields—that would be a legitimate reason, and her mother would surely agree.

If you save thirty-six taels of silver a year, you can buy six acres of land!

Qiao Mianmian thought of the land Lu Zhao bought. She wondered if the price had gone up. Once the family had more money, she would have to coax her mother into buying the land.

On the way to the food stall, Qiao Mianmian dragged her mother to Songhelou again. She planned to give the pastries she had just bought to the Luo family, since they themselves wouldn't have any to eat.

Fortunately, her mother was in a good mood today and bought her whatever she wanted to eat.

Back at the food stall, Lin was discussing wages. Qiao Mianmian started eating some pastries first. "Second sister-in-law, you should have some too. This lotus seed paste pastry is Songhelou's signature dish. The lotus seed paste inside is sweet but not greasy, and the outer layer of snow skin is thin and crispy. It's especially delicious."

She not only ate it herself, but also fed it to others. "And this salted egg yolk pastry, the salted egg yolk inside is so fragrant, I can't bear to swallow it in one bite, I hold it in my mouth and savor it slowly."

“That’s enough, that’s enough,” Cao Yuan said, listening to her mother-in-law. She said she didn’t need to be paid. “I should be doing chores for the family anyway. Everyone has been doing it for so long, I should do more.”

“Take it all. If you can’t treat everyone equally, resentment will build up over time. Take what’s yours. This is your wages, your own money. You can spend it however you want.” Lin had been a daughter-in-law herself and knew how tough it was to be without money. Sometimes when she went back to her parents’ home and wanted to buy something, she had to ask her mother-in-law for money, which was so embarrassing.

"Also, from now on, we'll have one day off every ten days of the month. This is Mianmian's request. She said people aren't cattle or horses; even cattle and horses have days to rest, so we should have our time to rest too." Lin thought for a moment; with so many people in the family, it wouldn't matter if one person was missing one day, so she agreed. "So, do you have any objections?"

Qiao Jiawang and Cao Yuan both said no, but Qiao Jiaxing's eyes darted around. "Mother, if I don't rest, will you get extra pay?"

Lin glanced over and said, "No, just consider it as you being considerate of your mother and doing an extra day of work."

Qiao Mancang patted his second son's head. "You wish! Save some snacks for your grandmother and the others later."

They now cook braised food at the food stall, instead of at home, so they don't have to go out of their way to bring it over.

With dinner time fast approaching, Qiao Mianmian took one last piece of mung bean cake, but before she could even put it in her mouth, her mother pulled her upstairs.

"Oh dear, you're a grown woman now, why are you eating with your mouth all over your face?" Madam Lin patted the crumbs off her daughter's mouth. "Today, Madam Luo mentioned your coming-of-age ceremony, and I was thinking that after your ceremony, I'd like to help you find a husband. Now that we're all alone, tell me what's on your mind, what kind of husband do you want?"

Fearing her daughter might be shy, she encouraged her, "Don't be embarrassed. We're mother and daughter, so let's talk things out. That way, I can help you find a suitable husband."

“I’m not embarrassed. I’m just thinking about what type I want. First of all, he has to be handsome. That’s the primary condition.”

Qiao Mianmian swallowed the last bite of mung bean cake, then held up one finger. "Our family has no debts now, the food shop is doing very well, and you even prepared furniture as part of my dowry. To be honest, our family's financial situation is quite good for the city. I don't need my in-laws to be super rich; something similar to ours, enough to eat and wear, is fine. Another important point is that our family is harmonious, and I want a good in-law family too. Otherwise, if I marry into a shady family, I'll be fighting with people every day. And..."

After listening to her daughter's long explanation, Mrs. Lin realized that she was overthinking things. Her daughter wasn't shy at all, and she agreed with everything else except for one point: "A man's good looks can't put food on the table. It's enough for him to have average looks. You shouldn't just look at appearances; you should look at his inner qualities!"

"How could he be useless? He's so handsome, I can eat an extra bowl of rice just looking at a good-looking man. Anyway, I won't marry an ugly man. I'd rather not marry at all and live off you for the rest of my life as an old maid." Qiao Mianmian loves living with handsome men. She's been given a second chance at life, and she has her own skills. She doesn't need a man to support her, so why should she feel wronged and marry a man she doesn't like?

"Pah, pah, pah! Don't say such unlucky things."

Lin reluctantly conceded, "In this respect, I really don't understand who you take after?"

Qiao Mianmian chuckled and said, "You look like my dad. I heard that back then, my grandmother took my dad to meet several men, but he didn't want any of them. However, he agreed to date you the moment he saw you. My dad was attracted to your beauty, and I'm just like him; I like good-looking people."

Lin blushed. "Where did you hear all this from?"

"Don't worry about that, everyone knows anyway." Qiao Mianmian patted her mouth to make sure there were no crumbs when she heard guests coming downstairs. "Remember what I said, don't rush, take your time choosing. I want to stay at home for another two years. Since guests are here, I'll go cook some dishes first."

Qiao Mianmian rushed downstairs and saw that the guest was Lu Zhao. She went over familiarly and asked, "Lord Lu, what would you like to eat today?"

Accompanying Lu Zhao was a middle-aged man, whom Qiao Mianmian was meeting for the first time. The man spoke first, "According to what my nephew Lu usually likes, Qingjiu told me that they often come here to eat and that I must come and try it."

Qiao Mianmian went to see Lu Zhao and Qingjiu. Seeing Lu Zhao nod, she said, "Then let's have braised pork, Mapo tofu, and a sauerkraut fish, okay?"

"Okay, okay, hurry up and get ready." The man urged Qiao Mianmian to cook, then turned to look at Lu Zhao, "It's been almost a year since we last saw each other after you left Bianjing. You don't know, my Yingying cries whenever she mentions you. Knowing that I'm going south this time, she specially asked me to come to Lin'an to see you."

Yingying? Upon hearing these two words, Qiao Mianmian's heart immediately ignited with gossip. Could it be that Lord Lu has a childhood sweetheart in Bianjing?