Yan Qiushu returned to her room feeling a little disappointed.

But after a short time, she started counting the finances again.

Because of being rescued by Xiao Huai Ting, all the property that was robbed by the bandits was returned. The original owner was a concubine's daughter and did not have much money, but in such an ancient world, the money she had could not be said to be rich, but for an ordinary person, it was actually no problem to have enough food and drink.

If Xiao Huaiting rejected her, she would stay in Wucheng.

Anyway, there are beautiful mountains and rivers here, as well as river shrimps. I heard that it’s not far from the sea either, so I can still eat some seafood occasionally. I can also buy a nice yard, grow some vegetables, raise chickens and ducks, and be self-sufficient!

As she was thinking, there was a knock on the door.

As soon as the door opened, Yan Qiushu's eyes widened with joy: "General Xiao!"

Xiao Huai Ting nodded: "I can take you back to the Xiao Mansion, but your identity cannot be revealed. You will enter the mansion as my adopted sister, is that ok?"

This is obviously for her own good.

If she just went there like that, not only would her reputation be damaged, but her status in the Xiao family would also be awkward.

Xiao Waiting’s stepsister is different.

But in ancient times, if one really wanted to recognize a sister, a special recognition banquet was required, so she was not a real sister. But even so, based on his words, Yan Qiushu entered the Xiao family and was no longer an ordinary servant.

Although Yan Qiushu didn't really want to serve others, she just knew there were gains and losses. However, she didn't expect Xiao Waiting to be so easy to talk to. Instead, she couldn't accept it with peace of mind: "Then what can I do for the general? No merit, no reward, not to mention that the general saved my life."

Xiao Waiting did not evade the question and said directly: "I need your cooking skills."

Yan Qiushu felt relieved and nodded decisively: "Okay!"

Xiao Huaiting was satisfied and handed her an agreement and asked her to sign it and put her fingerprints on it. In case she turned against them in the future and the Yan family made trouble for her, this thing would serve as evidence.

Yan Qiushu signed it and collected one copy for each of them. Then Xiao Huaiting said:

"We will set off tomorrow. We have been delayed for several days by bandits on the road. We will have to ride faster from now on. Be prepared."

Yan Qiushu immediately took the money and went out to buy things.

I'm going to eat and drink as much as I want tonight, and besides that, I also need to buy some daily necessities, like facial cleansers and the like.

Xiao Huaiting was delayed these few days because of the bandit suppression. Not only did he have to deal with the bandits, but he also had to properly handle what the bandits had done. In addition to Yan Qiushu and the other four women, there were also other women who had been bullied by the bandits in the past.

Each situation was different, but he didn't have time to deal with them, so he stayed one more day to make arrangements for the local government office.

That night, Yan Qiushu prepared another sumptuous seafood feast and invited Yan Xiang and some of his friends to eat together as a celebration.

Xiao Wai-ting's is a separate copy.

After all, he is your boss now, you have to treat him well!

Apart from the spicy crab, the group of people were still not full. Finally, Yan Qiushu used the remaining soup to cook noodles, which made the group of old men blush. One of them muttered that he couldn't drink alcohol, which was really uncomfortable!

After Yan Qiushu finished all this, she went back to her room early to rest.

In the past few days, the troops set out very early to catch up.

Sure enough, just after 5 o'clock the next day, everyone was called to set off. Taking into account that the woman would need a long time, she was called a quarter of an hour earlier.

By the time Yan Qiushu left, everyone had already packed up and were ready to go.

In the following days, we were also on the road. Except for stopping occasionally to eat, we were mostly on the road.

Just like that, seven days later, we arrived near the capital.

As usual, a large number of troops remained in the military camps near the capital, and Xiao Huaiting led a small team into the city.

Although the scale of this battle was not large, it lasted for half a year and forced the enemy to ask for peace. Therefore, when he returned to the court after the great victory, the people welcomed him wholeheartedly.

Yan Qiushu sat in the carriage, far behind the army, and used her own eyes to observe this place that was familiar to the original owner.

She lifted the curtain very slightly because she was afraid that others might see her. Although the original owner was not a celebrity, everyone in the Yan family knew her.

Once she saw it, she couldn't bear to look away.

The clothing and housing are not as backward as imagined. The various ancient buildings have their own charm, and various plaques and couplets are written in beautiful calligraphy. People of all ages, tall, short, fat, thin, old and young are all looking here, because they have caught up with the triumphant army and can face the most enthusiastic people directly.

Many of the girls who were dressed a little better threw sachets of perfume at them.

However, Yan Qiushu's carriage was at the very back, no different from an ordinary carriage, so when she passed by, the people had already resumed their normal shopping. When she looked, a man carrying candied haws and straw passed by the window and his stroke hit Yan Qiushu's face.

So she never lifted the curtain to look again.

Above the crowd, at a restaurant window with an excellent view, a man and a woman were looking at Xiao Waiting's returning army together. They watched until the army left their sight. Suddenly, the woman seemed to see something, and her eyes fell on an inconspicuous carriage in the middle of the team, her eyes slightly narrowed.

Why does the profile of the woman who appeared when I opened the curtain and threw back the sachet just now feel familiar?

The people were mainly concentrated on the road leading into the city.

When they got into the city, there were fewer people. Yan Xiang, who was responsible for driving Yan Qiushu, changed direction and the carriage went into the residential alleys, turned several turns, and finally arrived at Luming Lane in the north of the city.

The south of the city is where civil officials live, and the north of the city is where military officials live. The area is larger and more spacious, and relatively less crowded. The Zhou Dynasty valued civil officials over military officials, and this has always been the case.

The Xiao family lived in Luming Lane in the north of the city, very close to the imperial city.

Yan Qiushu thought that when the carriage arrived, she could just go in through the side door.

Who would have thought that when I got off the carriage, I found a woman standing at the gate of Xiao's house. She looked to be about 30 years old, with delicate features, dignified manners, and a smile on her face. She looked very approachable. When she met Yan Qiushu's eyes, she immediately took two steps forward with a smile: "Is this the Miss Yan mentioned in Lao Liu's letter? She is really pretty. Lao Liu went to see His Majesty and wrote to me to take care of her temporarily. Miss, please come in quickly."

Yan Qiushu's eyebrows jumped. She really didn't expect Xiao Huaiting to be so responsible.

Because the woman in front of him was none other than the eldest daughter-in-law of the Xiao family and the legitimate daughter of the Changzhou governor, Xie Qingyun.

The book does not mention the details about the Xiao family, as they are all the original owner's memories.

After all, she is a concubine of the Xie family, so she would remember some of the in-laws in the rich and powerful families so that she would not be rude when she met them when she got married in the future, otherwise it would be a disgrace to the entire Yan family.

But in fact, the original owner had never seen these people. As a concubine's daughter, she had very little chance of going out because of the suppression of her stepmother. Even if she went out, she had to wear a mask on her face because her mother was an aunt.

In this era, the distinction between legitimate and illegitimate children was extremely important. Legitimate daughters could go out openly, but illegitimate daughters had to cover their faces when meeting outsiders in private, unless they married and became the mistress of the family. After marriage, they were not allowed to meet outsiders at all.

In addition, although the original owner was beautiful, all her aunt taught her were skills to coax men. Men like weak ones, so she had willow-shaped eyebrows and a slender waist all day long.

But Yan Qiushu is not like that. She even modified her eyebrows with an eyebrow pencil to make her look more heroic. Her behavior is also very different from the original owner. Unless you are very close to her, it is difficult to recognize her.

She gave an embarrassed smile, showing the timidity of an ordinary woman meeting a lady from a high family for the first time, and knelt down to greet: "I am a commoner, meeting the young lady."

"You are Lao Liu's adopted sister, so you are naturally a member of my Xiao family. We are family, so you don't have to be polite."

Xie Qingyun had a cheerful and shrewd look, and was quietly observing the other party. Seeing that the girl looked innocent, he showed a little more fondness in his eyes. He went up to her, took her hand, and led her into the mansion: "Your yard has been prepared a long time ago, but we don't know your living habits. If you feel uncomfortable, just tell the maid."

"Thank you, Madam." Yan Qiushu nodded and followed her pace.

The Xiao family is wealthy and powerful, and the people are all good. Not to mention that Yan Qiushu was brought back by Xiao Huaiting, so they valued her very much and let her live in a separate courtyard. The courtyard was equipped with maids and servants, as well as some things she would need.

The maids Shuiyu and Shulu were specially introduced. It was said that they were arranged by Madam Xiao herself. They were both well-behaved maids, but Madam Xiao was ill and could not come out to greet guests.

For this, Xie Qingyun even apologized to her specially.

Yan Qiushu felt unworthy of it, she just wanted a safe place to live, so she took Xiao Waiting into consideration, and then the two of them signed an agreement, which could be regarded as a labor contract, each getting what they needed. She didn't expect that this labor contract brought so many conveniences, and she hadn't done anything yet!

Therefore, Yan Qiushu could only express her gratitude again and again.

Both sides were very polite, and the meeting was about to end.

As the person who currently controls the family's financial support, Xie Qingyun has a lot to do, especially since Xiao Wai-ting has just returned from a great victory and there are always many people coming and going, so after sitting for a while, she left.

After seeing the owner off, Yan Qiushu returned to the yard and looked at the yard that looked like a single house, and smiled happily.

Her choice turned out to be the right one!

This job benefit is awesome!

At this time, the head maid Shui Yu stepped forward and said softly, "Miss, you have traveled a long way. I have prepared hot water and new clothes. Do you want to wash up now?"

Yan Qiushu readily agreed, and the other party went to prepare. After a while, she was sitting in the bathtub, soaking in the hot bath. If she hadn't refused to be served, Shui Yu would have helped to rub her back.

After taking a bath, it was already the evening hour. Shui Yu helped her dry her hair while asking, "Miss, it's time for dinner. Should we take it directly from the big kitchen or make it in the small kitchen?"

"Small kitchen?" Yan Qiushu was surprised.

The young lady of the Xiao family didn't tell her that there was a small kitchen.

Shui Yu smiled and said, "The Sixth Young Master specifically instructed the housekeeper to build a small kitchen for your yard, with the expenses being the same as the big kitchen, and he also sent a cook who can cook over here."

Finally, she said jokingly, "I have never seen the Sixth Young Master be so attentive before~"

Yan Qiushu:?

What does this have to do with Xiao Wai-ting?

But seeing Shui Yu's eyes blinking, with an expression that said "I understand, you understand, and everyone understands", she understood what he meant. She was embarrassed and quickly explained: "General Xiao took me in out of kindness. He is a good man."

Shui Yu didn't understand the nice guy card she was giving out, and nodded vigorously, like a little fangirl: "Yes! The Sixth Young Master is a good man. I heard that he even fought bandits on his way back this time. Many people praised him!"

Yan Qiushu: ...

She stopped thinking about it and went straight to the kitchen. The world is big, but eating is the most important thing!

Before going there, Yan Qiushu thought that it would be just a simple kitchen. However, when she arrived at the kitchen, she felt satisfied after just one look.

Although the kitchen is not big, it has everything. There is a big shelf next to it, which is clean and tidy. Some dry goods and a small amount of fresh ingredients are placed in baskets. Basic condiments such as oil, salt, sauce and vinegar are available on the table, as well as cornelian cherry. However, medicinal condiments such as bay leaves and cinnamon are not available.

Until now, these ingredients have not been on the table.

But it’s okay, she doesn’t want to eat anything too heavy right now.

After Yan Qiushu inspected the kitchen, she had already thought about what she wanted to eat. Because she had just arrived, there were not many ingredients in the kitchen, only some cabbage and a little meat simply marinated with soy sauce.

These meats are coated with soy sauce so that they can be stored for two more days without becoming as dense as pickled meat.

When faced with such ingredients, she subconsciously thought of lean meat porridge.

Yan Qiushu rolled up her sleeves and did it herself, which shocked Shui Yu and the kitchen maid Xu Ma, who hurriedly said, "What do you want to do, young lady? We can do it!"

"It's okay, I can do it myself." Yan Qiushu waved her hands and refused their help.

The main reason was that it was too simple. She deftly took the knife and cut off a palm-sized piece of lean meat. The lean meat needed to be chopped into minced meat, so the sound of "dong dong dong..." of cutting vegetables soon filled the kitchen.

Shui Yu and Nanny Xu stood aside, at a loss as to what to do.

The girl brought back by the Sixth Young Master assumed the status of the mistress as soon as she entered the mansion. Although she was called the adopted sister, they all felt that it was a cover-up by the Sixth Young Master and estimated that she was the Sixth Young Master's future wife.

Furthermore, the girl's behavior doesn't seem like she is from an ordinary family. She must be a naughty young lady from some family.

So even though there was a small kitchen, they never thought that she would be the one to cook it!

But Yan Qiushu's movements were so skillful. When she was standing in front of the stove chopping meat, it made people feel that this was her territory and no one else could get in. Nanny Xu looked at Shui Yu for help in panic.

Shui Xuan also shook his head in confusion. Forget it, they should just do whatever the master says. It won’t be wrong.

Yan Qiushu also noticed the tension between the two. She suddenly realized it, thought for a moment, and said, "Madam Xu, please light the fire, fetch some water, and help wash the rice."

"Okay!" Having received the task, they both breathed a sigh of relief and started to get busy.

After a while, the rice was washed and put into the pot, and the fire was lit, lighting up the kitchen red. Yan Qiushu had chopped the meat, and since she had nothing to do for the time being, she walked around in the yard and relaxed for a while.

In order to hurry on her way, she had been sitting in the carriage for so many days that her bones were almost falling apart.

After taking a short walk, Yan Qiushu returned to the kitchen on time. The rice had just boiled and the delicate white porridge was already oily. She put the minced meat in it, added salt to enhance the flavor, and stirred it to allow the minced meat to be thoroughly absorbed into the porridge. After half a cup of tea, she added the chopped vegetables.

At this time, the pot was already filled with a sweet rice aroma with a slight salty taste. This rich flavor was mixed with a hint of meat aroma, making the taste refreshing and not greasy, but rather subtly tempting.