The news that Zhao Yiming passed the imperial examination and was hosting a buffet spread overnight, and the whole village was in an uproar.
"A three-day banquet! What a blast! We can eat for three days straight, not only saving three days' worth of food, but also leaving some extra food for my stomach!"
In order to make it easier for everyone to have the banquet, Mr. Han even gave the children three days off.
The buffet was set up in the village school. Early in the morning, the farmhands went to the school and began to work. The men carried tables, chairs, and benches, while the women arranged the ingredients and cleared the dishes.
This time the banquet was grand. In addition to their own tables and chairs, they also borrowed a lot of tables and chairs from the villagers and placed them outside the village school.
Tian Anjian's farm had a total of eighteen pigs. Five were slaughtered during the Chinese New Year, leaving thirteen.
On the first day of the buffet, Tian An ordered two of them to be slaughtered in one go.
Everyone waited for a whole day, and the day finally arrived. In the morning, after hearing the sound of slaughtering pigs, they cleaned up the house, locked the door, and happily took the whole family to the village school for the banquet.
When the person greeting guests outside the door saw the guests coming, he sent a message to the kitchen and asked them to start cooking.
The ingredients were all prepared. After the women set the table, the aroma of the food wafted out, making those sitting in the yard drool.
“This meat is so delicious.”
"Nonsense, how can meat not be delicious!"
"I heard two pigs squealing this morning, which means they slaughtered two pigs today. The banquet must be delicious."
"No, I have to go back with my wife to fetch my daughters and bring them over with their children to eat some meat. They are all as skinny as monkeys."
"Then I have to go too. My mother-in-law is so stingy that my daughter won't even have two meals of meat a year after marrying into their family."
The crowd was discussing excitedly, it was very lively.
After a while, several strong laborers came carrying large trays to serve the dishes, and everyone's attention was instantly attracted.
As soon as the dishes arrived, everyone exchanged a few polite words, picked up their bowls and chopsticks, and hurriedly lowered their heads to eat. They didn't stop until they had cleared the table clean and washed down three bowls of rice mixed with the vegetable juice and broth.
Farmers depend on the weather for their food. Even in a good year, they dare not eat too much. At most, they will eat until they are 70% full, leaving food for various situations.
It's so hard to get someone to host a banquet, and only a fool would not rush to eat his fill.
Once a buffet begins, it cannot be stopped. Fortunately, Tian An has many employees and Chen Qiang is the housekeeper. Tian An can then rest assured and entertain the guests with Zhao Yiming.
Tian An was forced by Grandma Qin to dress up today, and also put on the pearl flower that Zhao Yiming gave her. She looked bright and charming. Standing next to Zhao Yiming, she was praised by everyone as a golden boy and a jade girl, a match made in heaven.
Many young men and women who came to the banquet were envious when they saw the two of them.
On the men's side, several men of the same age gathered together to discuss.
"This man has passed the imperial examination and has achieved academic status. He is different from us peasants. His fiancée is beautiful and good at making money."
"Yes! Back then, he was just a poor boy from another village who didn't even have any land. Even the poorest families in the village were unwilling to marry their daughters to him. But who would have thought that he would become such an unattainable figure in the village."
"Oh! There's no comparison, no comparison!"
When a girl of fourteen or fifteen arrived, the tables were already full. She said goodbye to her parents and went to find some friends she knew, chatting while waiting for a table to become available. Everyone was busy with work on weekdays, and this was a rare opportunity to get together, so they started talking at once.
"When Tian An was being tortured by the Qian family, he couldn't even get enough food and clothes. He was dark and thin, and was even thrown into the back mountains to feed the wild beasts!"
"Yeah! But I didn't expect that in just one year, she has become a completely different person. Not only is her skin fair and beautiful, but she has also built a house and opened a shop."
"She's also got a fiancé who's a scholar. And since Zhao Daniu doesn't have any parents, he'll be able to be the head of the household after marriage, and he won't have to worry about his mother-in-law's mood. This is simply a match made in heaven!"
"It is said that her family eats meat every meal and wears silk and satin."
"She looks really nice in her outfit today, and the pearls on her head make her look just as good as the young ladies in the town."
"During the New Year period, people even saw her wearing leather boots, which even the girls in town didn't have!"
One girl became more and more jealous the more she thought about it. "Isn't it because Tian An is able to get to where he is today that he is entangled with Zhao Daniu? If I also... then wouldn't it be..."
The little sister next to her quickly pulled her away and said, "Shh...be quiet."
Tian An was chatting and laughing with some aunts in the village when he heard a scream of "Ah..." coming from Zhao Yiming's side.
Everyone turned around to look, only to find a girl lying in a spread-eagle position three feet in front of Zhao Yiming.
Tian An greeted a few aunts and went over to ask, "What's wrong? Brother Yiming, what happened?" He turned around and asked Deng Xue to help the girl up.
Unexpectedly, Deng Xue not only did not move, but also crossed her arms and said sarcastically: "Girl, don't bother with her, she deserves it."
Tian An: "...? What do you mean?"
"She was jealous of you and wanted to seduce your son-in-law. She deserves it!" Deng Xue said with disdain.
Deng Xue's voice was neither too loud nor too soft, just loud enough for the people around to hear clearly. Everyone pointed and whispered, and the news spread quickly.
Tian An knew his own girl well, so he believed what Deng Xue said without much thought. But before Tian An could say anything, the girl on the ground raised her face and denied it.
"I didn't, she's talking nonsense, I just sprained my ankle."
Deng Xue was about to expose her when Tian An stopped her. There was a banquet at home today, and she didn't want to be laughed at.
The corners of her mouth curled up, and her face suddenly became full of smiles. She squatted down with an ignorant look and looked at the girl in front of her, "Sister Xiaochun, why haven't you gotten up yet? Is it more comfortable to lie on the ground?"
Xiaochun was embarrassed and her face turned red instantly. She stammered for a long time and couldn't say a word.
At this time, a woman walked out of the crowd, looked at Xiaochun on the ground, and shouted exaggeratedly: "Girl, what's wrong with you? Did Tian An bully you?" She pointed at the people beside her and said, "Why don't you help me a little!"
Very good, it seems that her family knows about this, so it’s not just a child who is ignorant.
Tian An raised his hand and rubbed his eyes. His eyes instantly turned red and he said aggrievedly, "Aunt, what you said is unreasonable. I'm just curious why Sister Xiaochun has been lying on the ground and I didn't touch her! Why do you say I bullied her as soon as you came? I obviously didn't do anything." Then he raised his hand and rubbed his eyes again.
A perfect image of a weak little white flower.
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