Chapter 152 Ginseng Chicken Soup

"Sister Yuanyang, did the old lady ask me to come over? Why did you have to come all the way here? You could have just asked someone to call me over."

Baoyu stepped forward a few paces, about to take Yuanyang's hand, but Yuanyang stepped back, curtsied, and said solemnly.

"Greetings to Second Master. Second Master, the Old Madam sent me to inquire whether your jade piece is still there?"

Baoyu was taken aback. In the past, the maids and older sisters in the house had never been so formal with him. Yuanyang was the old lady's head maid, and he had always been very respectful to her, never having to greet her or bow. Why was she being so distant with him now?

As for what Yuanyang said, he seemed not to have heard it, only feeling as if something inside him had collapsed...

"Young Master Bao, where is that piece of jade you used to always carry?" Yuanyang asked again when she saw that Baoyu seemed to be in a daze.

The old lady instructed that the men in the family were all grown up and used to play around without any respect for elders. From now on, rules should be established so that any relatives who come from outside won't be scared away by the messy rules in the house.

As the old lady's most trusted servant, Yuanyang naturally obeyed her every command.

Seeing that Baoyu hadn't spoken, Mingyan quickly said, "Ever since Second Master moved out, we haven't seen that jade anywhere."

"Mingyan, are you telling the truth? If there's even a hint of falsehood, you'll be in for a world of hurt." As the head maid, Yuanyang still held a certain degree of authority.

Upon hearing Yuanyang's words, Mingyan hurriedly said, "I dare not deceive Sister Yuanyang. I have searched inside and out several times, but I still haven't found it. And Second Master forbids me from making a fuss."

"Alright, if the old lady investigates thoroughly and then traces it back to you, there will be no leniency!"

"Sister Yuanyang, if I have uttered a single falsehood, may I be struck by lightning." Mingyan knelt down and swore an oath. This matter really couldn't be blamed on him. Originally, he wasn't the one who kept the jade. After the Second Master came out, although he served him daily, he had never seen the jade.

At first, Mingyan thought that the Second Madam was afraid that the magical jade would be lost outside, so she took it off and didn't let her wear it.

Later, when Baoyu went to look for it, Mingyan learned that the Second Madam had not taken the jade.

Mingyan immediately wanted to report to the Second Madam, but Baoyu stopped her, saying that if he lost it, he would lose it too. Everyone else didn't have it, but he did. Now that he had it, he would be no more and would be just like everyone else.

After Baoyu said this, Mingyan had a vague feeling that perhaps the Second Master Bao had thrown away the magical jade himself?

After receiving the message, Yuanyang went to report it to Grandmother Jia.

Grandmother Jia secretly ordered people to search for it, as this item could not fall into the hands of others. If someone else got their hands on it, it would inevitably cause trouble. It was best to keep it and deal with it ourselves.

Amidst the crackling of firecrackers, the old year departs, and the warm spring breeze brings new life to every household. The sun shines brightly on every door and window, as new peachwood charms replace the old.

The Spring Festival in the capital is completely different from that in Yangzhou. Although the Lin family cannot celebrate the New Year in a grand manner, their simple celebration is already far beyond what ordinary families can achieve.

Last night, Daiyu and her maids stayed up until midnight in Jiaoyun Garden to celebrate the New Year. After the firecrackers and fireworks were set off, she wanted to stay up a little longer, but Yuan Hongqu told her to go to sleep, saying that there would be dragon dance teams and many other exciting things to see on the streets on the first day of the Lunar New Year. She said she would take her to see them after she had slept well, otherwise she would not be allowed to go.

This was the first time in her life that she had participated in something like staying up all night. Last year, her body couldn't handle staying up all night! As soon as the New Year was over this year, she couldn't wait to measure her height and found that she had grown more than two or three inches taller than last year. She felt that her previously thin arms and legs had become much stronger.

Therefore, when the maids were discussing how to stay up all night on New Year's Eve, Daiyu insisted on joining them.

Yuan Hongqu thought that no child could stay up all night on New Year's Eve; they would just play for a while and then get sleepy.

To everyone's surprise, Daiyu was unusually excited and stayed up until midnight.

"Granny, why are we having ginseng chicken soup on the first day of the Lunar New Year? It's so nourishing, I'll have to practice my boxing several times later!" Daiyu giggled.

"I didn't fall asleep until midnight last night, so I'm having ginseng chicken soup today to replenish my energy."

Last night, after Daiyu went to bed, Yuan Hongqu started simmering ginseng chicken soup.

A three-year-old hen, with firm skin and meat, along with a few red dates, a handful of goji berries, and a whole ginseng root, was put into a soup pot. Spring water brought back from the mountains outside the city was poured in, and then it was steamed until this morning. When it was done, only simple seasoning was added.

Yuan Hongqu firmly believed in the saying that good ingredients only require the simplest cooking. Sure enough, this pot of chicken soup was incredibly delicious. Daiyu drank a small bowl and immediately felt all the fatigue from staying up all night disappear.

She glanced at the soup pot unintentionally and exclaimed in surprise,

"Granny, is this the ginseng that the old lady gave you? Did you put the whole one in there?"

The ginseng in the soup pot was very thick, and Daiyu immediately thought of it as the five-hundred-year-old ginseng.

That's something that could save lives, and it's a real shame that we only made one pot of chicken soup.

"How could that be!" Yuan Hongqu presented the ginseng to Daiyu.

"This is fresh ginseng, not dried, so it appears quite large."

Daiyu looked at it carefully, but she couldn't tell the difference.

“These were sent by my friend overseas, and there are quite a lot of them.”

Upon hearing Yuan Hongqu's words, Daiyu immediately recalled the dream she had the previous night. In the dream, the courtyard was filled with plants topped with red beans, which seemed to resemble the ginseng beans she had seen in picture books.

Could those all be ginseng?

Before Daiyu could think further, she heard Yuan Hongqu say,

"Daiyu, would you like to go out for a stroll now, or perhaps in the afternoon? There are temple fairs in many places today, and it's quite lively. If you want to go out, you must stay with Lansu, and absolutely do not get out of the carriage. We can just look around from inside the carriage."

Yuan Hongqu's worries were not unfounded. After all, there was Xiangling by her side, who was also a girl from a wealthy family. She was kidnapped by a flower seller while watching the excitement.

Yuan Hongqu repeatedly emphasized to Daiyu that even after getting off the carriage, she must never leave the adults' sight; if she encountered danger, she should do everything she could to cause damage, even if it meant smashing the house to attract attention, as the Lin family was rich and could afford to pay for it! Of course, this was just a possibility, and in reality, Daiyu was very cautious, so such a situation was unlikely to occur.

Daiyu thought that Granny Yuan was making a mountain out of a molehill. There weren't that many bad people outside! Besides, with Lan Su, a martial arts expert, with them, who would be so blind as to rush forward?

However, when Lan Su pulled out a few kidnappers carrying sleeping pills from the crowd, Daiyu dared not doubt them anymore. She obediently sat next to Yuan Hongqu and watched the lively scene outside through the carriage window.