Ling Yunzhou had just met with his colleagues in the court when he saw his two sons standing timidly outside the living room. He frowned, thinking that their petty behavior was too unpresentable.

"Are you done training? What are you doing standing here?" Ling Yunche asked with a stern face.

"Father, we want to go home," Ling Dahu said, forcing himself to speak. "We've been here for five days, and Mother must be very worried about us. We want to go back." These few words seemed to have exhausted all of Ling Dahu's strength. After speaking, he avoided looking at Ling Yunzhou.

"And you?" Ling Yunzhou asked Ling Dapeng, who was hiding behind Ling Dahu.

“I miss my mother too. I want to go back. Xiaoyun is pregnant, and it’s not comfortable for her here,” Ling Dapeng said quickly, but like Ling Dahu, he didn’t dare to look directly at Ling Yunzhou.

"Look up at me!" Ling Yunzhou said sternly. "Men of the Ling family, is this how you behave?"

"Father, we don't want this kind of life. We're used to listening to Mother. You can enjoy all this wealth and luxury all by yourself," Ling Dahu said, feigning courage.

“Yes, we’re from the countryside. We used to farm, but now we work with our mothers. I think being a waiter is a good job,” Ling Dapeng added.

Veins bulged on Ling Yunzhou's forehead; his two sons...

“If you just leave like this, your mother will see that your skills are beyond what I, the General’s Mansion, can teach you. You can leave, but you must learn everything you are supposed to know!” Ling Yunzhou said with a stern face.

"Father, you...you're bullying me!" Ling Dahu said angrily. "Mother will be furious if she finds out."

"Heh, I don't think so," Ling Yunzhou said bluntly. "She's probably having a great time eating, drinking, and playing. After all, without you good-for-nothings, there's no one to hold her back."

"You're talking nonsense!" Ling Dahu and Ling Dapeng both glared angrily at Ling Yunzhou.

"You're all fathers now, yet you panic at the slightest provocation. How are you going to raise your children if you act like this? Enough with the nonsense, get to training!" Ling Yunzhou shouted sternly. With that, Qian Feng and the others, who had been watching from the sidelines, stepped forward and dragged the Ling brothers away.

"Father, let us go back! We're not staying here anymore!" Ling Dapeng's wailing voice echoed throughout the General's Mansion.

"What are you looking at, young mistress? Whether you stay here or go back to the former madam's place, the principles of dealing with people are the same," the head maid said to Wang Hongyu with a stern face, stopping Wang Hongyu's onlookers from watching the spectacle.

"Grandma, I'm just a simple countrywoman, I really can't do this," Wang Hongyu said with a bitter face.

"Young Madam, then tell me, what do you want to do in the future?" the head maid asked sternly.

"I've learned a lot about cooking from my mother. If I have the chance in the future, I hope I can help her in the kitchen. And after that, wouldn't it be great if I could become a chef myself?" Wang Hongyu felt that becoming a cook was her biggest goal.

The head maid was shocked. The general's eldest daughter-in-law actually aspired to be a cook!

Seeing the head maid's appearance, Wang Hongyu had something to say.

"The chef is no ordinary person, especially someone with Mother's culinary skills. Not only does your General like to eat her dishes, but Prince Rui and his heir also enjoy them."

"Moreover, Mother will be opening a grand restaurant in the future, and the people she'll be dealing with will definitely be either rich or noble. To be able to satisfy the palates of these people, her culinary skills must be truly exceptional. If you don't believe me, just ask Master Qian Feng of your household."

The head maid remained expressionless, but said in a serious tone, "Young Madam's ambition is admirable, but this old servant has been entrusted by the General to ensure that Young Madam can hold her own in public. This must begin with her demeanor. Young Madam, you are the wife of the eldest son of the General's Mansion. In the future, you may associate with other noble ladies or wives of noble families. First and foremost, you cannot lose your composure..."

Wang Hongyu felt a throbbing sensation in her forehead; these words sounded like chanting, which was quite irritating.

When Xiao Yi came to offer New Year's greetings, it happened just as the Ling brothers were being dragged away. He was dumbfounded and quite surprised.

"General Ling, what's going on here!"

"Jade must be carved to become a gem. Since they've been staying with me for the past few days, I can't just ignore them," Ling Yunzhou said seriously.

Xiao Yi presented the New Year's gift and then asked curiously, "Where's Sister Tao? She wouldn't have come over too, would she?"

"She didn't come over; she sent her son, daughter-in-law, and several children over instead." Ling Yunzhou was in a bad mood when he said this.

This aligns with Sister Tao's style of doing things, Xiao Yi thought, and just smiled without saying anything.

The relationship between Prince Rui's Mansion and the General's Mansion has always been low-key. He and Ling Yunzhou have a very close personal relationship, and they naturally visit each other during the New Year. Because of Tao Wanniang, the two of them had more to talk about.

After leaving the General's Mansion, Xiao Yi was quite excited.

"Cheng Feng, do you think if we go to Sister Tao's place now, will we see her all alone, feeling sad, or happy?" Xiao Yi asked Cheng Feng.

“I hope Sister Tao won’t be upset. I haven’t seen her upset at all,” Cheng Feng replied. “However, Your Highness, isn’t it a bit inappropriate to go like this?”

"Let's just go around and take a look, it won't hurt," Xiao Yi said with a smile, and then he had Cheng Feng drive the carriage toward the Tao family.

"Doesn't it smell delicious? I've been craving this whole roasted lamb for ages. Just look at how it's sizzling and dripping with oil, it's making my mouth water!"

At this moment, Tao Wanniang and her companions were sitting around in the front yard, roasting a lamb over a fire.

With cumin, chili powder, and various spices sprinkled on top, the aroma wafts far and wide.

"Big sister, I don't even know what you can't do." Bai Yumei drank the hot mutton soup and now stared at the sizzling mutton.

“When we were fleeing famine, we encountered a lone wolf. Do you think we could let such meat, delivered right to our doorstep, go?” Tao Wanniang said with great interest. “Back then, we didn’t have as many sauces, and the wolf was skinny, but it still ate to its heart’s content!”

“In the dead of winter, eating mutton can ward off the cold, as can mutton soup. Yu Mei, you don’t eat coriander, but if you sprinkle some coriander on it, it will taste even better!” Tao Wan’s mother chuckled. Coriander is cilantro, but Bai Yu Mei just doesn’t eat cilantro.

"Big sister, after following you, I realized I've been eating pig swill for the past thirty years. Big sister, is it ready yet? I think it's about to burn." Zhang Liang rubbed his hands. His hands and feet were freezing cold that day, but after a bowl of mutton soup, he felt warm inside.

"Bang bang bang!" The knocking sounded at the door, and Tao Wan's mother immediately became alert. Could it be that her sons had returned? This whole roasted lamb couldn't withstand so many people eating it.

"Big sister, I'll go answer the door!" Zhang Liang said, standing up.

"Cheng Feng, can you smell it? It smells so good." Xiao Yi couldn't help but feel his mouth watering at the aroma of meat wafting in the air.

"Could it be that Sister Tao is cooking at home?" Cheng Feng swallowed hard, and thinking of Tao Wan's mother's cooking skills, Cheng Feng suddenly felt hungry.