"Aunt, what are you doing? I heard you chopping things outside the door." He put the backpack in the main room and ran to the kitchen. He saw his aunt chopping meat and said, "Let me help you."
"No, just take a rest. Auntie will make you some delicious food so you don't miss your parents and cry."
"You underestimate me. It would be Shufeng who would cry, not me." He smiled. "I forgot to tell you, this meat and fish were sent by the Pavilion Chief's family. They wanted to invite us to celebrate the New Year at home, but I said no, and kept the meat and fish. Auntie, Pavilion Chief Chen is such a nice guy. I've never seen such a nice official."
"How many officials have you met?" Chun Xiao nodded as he chopped the meat. "It's really good. Did you buy the cornmeal and eggs I asked you to buy? And the snacks and wine?"
"I bought them all. I brought them to you. I was planning to buy some meat, but since so much meat was delivered, I decided not to."
Although the meal was late, Shuwen had a blast eating meatballs, steamed fishballs, and tofuballs, all new to him. Chunxiao also made braised fish fillets, fried fish skin, stir-fried bamboo shoots with meat, and a radish and pork soup. The food was so delicious that Shuwen almost swallowed it all.
"Aunt, you really should cook more. Grandma is right. I have to learn how to cook from you. Your cooking is better than my mother's."
"If I come here all the time, you won't find it interesting. Let's just come here occasionally." She picked up a fish ball and put it in her mouth. The fish ball had egg white inside, and it was crispy and chewy. It was indeed delicious. "We still have a lot of fish balls. I'll pack some for the pavilion chief and others tomorrow so they can have a taste too."
Shuwen took a big sip of the soup. "They will definitely like it, Auntie. You made so many dishes for just the two of us."
"I took you so far away and let you spend the New Year alone. I have to give you some compensation, otherwise you will blame me for being a black-hearted aunt in your heart."
"Don't talk nonsense. I came out of my own free will. I'm very happy. Although there are fewer people during the New Year, I feel at ease working with you, Auntie. We can go back to celebrate the New Year next year."
"Yes, next year we can go back and celebrate the New Year once things are sorted out here. Come, it's just the two of us today. Auntie will serve you a bowl of soup instead of wine. I wish you a bright future and become a man chosen from thousands."
Shuwen's mouth was grinning from ear to ear. "Thank you, Auntie. I also wish you to become the richest landlady."
Well, although it sounded a little unpleasant, she still liked the idea of being rich, and the aunt and niece had a fairly happy New Year.
The next morning, they carried their things to the backyard of the township government.
Chief Fang and his family received them.
"Why are you so polite? You are from a foreign land. It is not easy to be away from home during the New Year holidays. You don't have to be so polite."
Chunxiao took out some wine and snacks. "I've been busy lately, so I've been a little rushed. Please bear with me, Chief Chen. I don't know how good this wine is, so just drink it." She then opened a food box and took out some meatballs and fish balls she had made. "These are some small dishes I made yesterday. I'll show them to you ladies."
"You're welcome, you're welcome." A woman took the food box and said, "Miss Yan, is this a specialty from your hometown?"
"Not really. Strictly speaking, it's a southern dish. I learned it from a book. Madam, please heat it up and see if it tastes good and suits your taste."
"Miss Yan is thoughtful. I didn't expect you to have studied."
Chunxiao took out another 10 taels of silver and said, "Captain Chen, you and the other officers have been very kind to me during this period. I don't have much to thank you for. This money is my subsidy for you. Please keep looking after me in the future."
"Miss Yan, you are so polite. We already had a lot of money when we bought the horse last time, and now you are giving us more money. There is no need to be so polite when we run errands. You will have many other places to spend money in the future, so you should take it back."
Chun Xiao still handed the silver back respectfully. "I know I need a lot of money to build the manor, and I will naturally find a way to pay for it. But what you have done for me is beyond your responsibility, so this compensation is well deserved. Those brothers have also worked hard, so just consider it a small token of my appreciation."
"In that case, I'll accept it for them. Miss Yan is a straightforward person, don't worry. As I said before, we will definitely help you in any way we can. Your carriage will be delivered to you in a few days. Two more masonry teams will arrive tomorrow, and another batch will come in a few days. The well diggers will also arrive after the New Year. If you are short of manpower, we will assign you two more people then."
"Thank you very much, Master." That's pretty much the meaning of giving gifts.
The next day, the new bricklaying team arrived as expected. Chunxiao showed them the blueprints and decided to use four bricklaying teams and 30 workers to build the main courtyard first.
The foundation will be laid tomorrow, and with four masonry teams, the courtyard will be complete in about ten days. Shuwen will be in charge of the main courtyard.
On the third day of the Lunar New Year, the well digging masters arrived. There were six of them first. Chunxiao asked them to look at the location in the yard first. Two shallow wells were to be dug in the yard. After looking at them, the masters decided to dig wells in the backyard and next to the kitchen. It happened that these two places were suitable, so the house was built and the well was dug at the same time.
On the fifth day of the first lunar month, the carriage she had been longing for arrived. Today was the day to welcome the God of Wealth. She felt that something good was going to happen when she went out early in the morning. Unexpectedly, not long after she started working, Chen Tingzhang personally delivered the carriage to her and told her some tips on raising horses. He said that if there was no suitable fodder in the early stage, she could go to the township government to get it.
This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
