Yunling quickly covered her forehead, unable to bear the sight. These two really had no sense at all. Since she was going on a long journey, Zhang Shi would naturally see her off. It had always been like this before. How could they be so clueless?
Zhang also heard someone call her "Grandma". Curious, she raised the curtain to see who could be addressed in such a way, but before she could see, a voice called out, "Auntie".
This made Zhang's heart flutter, and she immediately forgot about the "auntie" from earlier. Seeing Chen Jie and Gangzi, two familiar faces, she felt extremely warm and welcome.
"I heard from Ling'er that Gangzi went to Bianjing with her?"
Gangzi's mouth stretched even wider than before as he laughed and said:
"Yes, Aunt, I will definitely protect Ling-ge'er and bring him back safely."
Chen Jie, not wanting to lose face in front of Zhang, continued:
"Don't worry, Aunt. In a couple of days, I will take the Lu family's ships to Bianjing. We will look after each other on the way. We will come back the same way we went."
These were all the nice things Zhang wanted to hear, but knowing that her trip was urgent, she simply nodded and didn't continue the pleasantries.
With Gangzi on the side, the group headed to the next two towns. Yunling was initially a little uneasy, but when she met Chengbo at the dock, she immediately felt relieved and all her worries and bad moods vanished.
"Lord Cheng!"
Chengbo paused, his hand holding chopsticks still. He looked at Yunling and the people alighting from the carriage, and sighed:
"There are so many people."
Zhang took a food box out of the carriage and walked with a smile toward her father-in-law, who was squatting on the stone steps, the man Yunling had greeted earlier.
"Uncle Cheng, these are pastries I made myself. I hope you will accept them. This is Ling'er's first time going to Bianjing. I hope you will take good care of him."
Chengbo didn't take it, but simply placed his chopsticks down in response:
"There's no question of favors or benefits. He paid me for the boat fare, so I gave him a ride. It's just a normal thing."
Zhang usually stays at home, doing chores like washing clothes and buying rapeseed oil. She rarely interacts with others, so she is not as kind as Old Lady Yun when it comes to such tasks.
However, she always knew the saying "He who eats another's food is bound to him, and he who takes another's gift is bound to him," so for Yunling's sake, she had to grit her teeth and give the gift away.
Zhang opened the lid of the food box, revealing the pastries inside, and explained:
"Ling-ge told me that Uncle Cheng had been selling fruit for decades, so he must have a deep affection for fruit. I'm not very good at it, so I just made a few pastries that look like fruit..."
Hearing Zhang's words, Chengbo craned his neck to look into the food box, his eyes immediately lighting up as he exclaimed in surprise:
"Did you make this? You didn't put real fruit in there, did you?"
Seeing that Uncle Cheng was paying attention to her, Zhang's face naturally lit up with a smile, and she explained:
“This is one I made. Why don’t you take one out and try it, Uncle Cheng? Take this red date that’s close to the edge and taste it. You’ll then know whether I put a real fruit inside or not.”
Chengbo quickly handed the chopsticks to his left hand, wiped his clothes with his right hand, and then reached in to pick up the "red dates" inside.
He picked it up, and if it weren't for the slight difference in texture, how could one tell with the naked eye whether it was a red date or a red date pastry?
"Chengbo, give it a try quickly."
Okay.
He brought the "red date" to his mouth, took a bite, and the aroma of the red date instantly filled his mouth. It was so fragrant, so similar, so incredibly similar! He had never seen anyone in the world with such skill.
"tasty."
Seeing that he was enjoying his meal, Zhang felt more inclined to explain things to him.
"Others use sappanwood to boil eggs to make red eggs, but I use sappanwood to boil water, mix it with flour, knead it into this 'red date' skin, and then use real red dates to remove the pits, pound them up and add them to the filling. This way, it can taste like real red dates."
Chengbo admired Zhang's openness even more. He ate the remaining half of the "red date" and looked into the food box again. He saw that there were also bananas, apples, white peaches, oranges and persimmons inside.
When Chengbo saw the plump persimmons, the thought of eating them, skin and all, made his heart itch. He couldn't resist the temptation, so he had no choice but to accept the food box and sincerely thank Zhang.
"My wife is very skillful, thank you very much."
Seeing that Uncle Cheng accepted the food box, Zhang was naturally pleased. She had originally planned to buy some pastries in town as a token of her respect, but then she remembered that Yunling had mentioned that this father-in-law was similar to Old Man Yun.
She thought that as she got older, she might not be able to digest those pastries from outside, so she decided to make them herself. Firstly, she could make them softer, and secondly, she could show her sincerity.
After the bundles and bedding were unloaded from the carriage, Yunling, along with Gangzi and Tangling, stepped forward, looked at Uncle Cheng, and clasped their hands in greeting:
"Uncle Cheng, the three of us are going to Bianjing this time. Please check how much the boat fare is so we can settle the bill with you in copper coins first."
"Fifty coins per person, one hundred and fifty coins for three people. It was just a ride along the way, but since we're including your meals, we should take the money."
"Cheng Bo is benevolent and righteous."
Yunling reached into her pocket, but Zhang pressed her hand down.
“Come here, Mother. I have 180 coins in my pocket. Keep your money for yourself.”
After speaking, Zhang took out a small string of copper coins from her sleeve, quickly counted them, confirmed there were one hundred and eighty, and then handed them directly to Uncle Cheng, saying with a smile:
"The extra thirty can be used as a treat for them; the children are still young and growing..."
Seeing this, Chengbo didn't feel awkward. The thirty coins would only amount to ten coins more per person if spread among the three of them. He could just add a few more steamed buns later. There was no need to keep refusing and wasting time.
As the ship was about to depart, Gangzi took Yunling's belongings and went with Chengbo to the ship to find a cabin to stay in, while Tangling accompanied Yunling to the dock to say goodbye to Zhang.
Zhang had a lot to say, but she felt a pang of sadness when she tried to speak. Looking at Yunling, her eyes welled up with tears, but then she remembered what her mother had told her not to cry at the farewell, so she quickly stopped crying.
"Mother, don't worry, I will come back safely. The head镖师 and the others will set off in a couple of days, and they will accompany me along the way. With extra protection, you can rest assured."
Zhang wanted to reply, but her throat was already choked with sobs. She could only hug Yunling tightly, and holding her in her arms, she felt a surge of tenderness.
“You must write a letter home, send it to the Fu family business, and have your father receive it.”
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