Chapter 394 A Close Call
"What's the big deal? If we don't have enough, we'll just buy more. My tavern gets its meat and vegetables from where we usually do, so I'll just have someone go and buy some."
Yao Man didn't think it was a big deal after hearing Song Chunxue's words.
"Let's take more than thirty people. If we don't have time to cook the meat, we'll buy cooked meat. But fish is expensive, so let's buy less. Anyway, it's quite close by here."
Song Chunxue nodded, "Then let's do it this way for now. I'll give He Chuan the money and have him go with your people to buy it."
"Okay, Haitang and I are peeling garlic. Call me if you need anything." Yao Man is now very approachable and down-to-earth. She rolled up her sleeves and went into the kitchen.
She went to her room, opened the chest, took out twenty taels of silver, and handed it to He Chuan.
"Go with Yao Man's waiter to buy groceries. Yesterday's estimate of customers might have been too low. Buy enough for forty more people, and twenty fish. Also buy some garlic, scallions, and other seasonings, and get extra soy sauce and condiments as well, since it will take time to buy more."
He Chuan glanced at Song Chunxue and then at the cloth bag in his hand. "You don't need so much silver to buy vegetables and meat. Ten taels is enough."
"Oh right, we also need to buy some alcohol."
"That's at most fifteen taels. Even the most expensive ones won't cost more than that. With this much, Mother can buy a courtyard." As she spoke, He Chuan handed half of it back to her. "Take good care of the key. After all, there are many people around, so Mother should be careful."
As they were talking, He Chuan had already walked away.
Song Chunxue smiled helplessly; she was really generous now.
However, who could possibly rely on He Chuan?
If the fourth brother had any self-respect, she wouldn't find He Chuan so agreeable.
As the hour of Chen (7-9 AM) drew closer, the sound of suona horns grew louder, and everyone gathered at the door to greet them.
Logically, on such a joyous occasion, a master of ceremonies should be invited to guide all matters. However, Song Chunxue felt that she didn't know anyone here, so she simply let her own family watch Sanwa marry Xia Mulan, keeping it simple.
Who knew that as soon as her wedding procession arrived, Sanwa carried the bride off the carriage, and more and more people outside the door watched the bride step over the fire basin.
Then, Lord Xie came over and said, "Sister Song, shouldn't you sit down and receive the greeting?"
As the number of dark heads grew larger and larger, Song Chunxue panicked.
Why are there so many people? Didn't Sanwa say that none of his classmates knew about this?
"Didn't Sister Song arrange for a master of ceremonies?"
Song Chunxue's eyes were blank. "Are you talking about the person who called for Li Cheng? He was originally supposed to be my second brother, but I don't know where he is now."
"Then I'll take care of it. You go and sit down first." Lord Xie smiled. "Don't panic. The Taoist priest knows you're not well-prepared and is flustered. Leave the rest to him. He won't let anyone who comes to the wedding feast go hungry. If all else fails, we'll call a few more cooks and set up a fire pit to cook the dishes."
"Can……"
"Fifth brother, don't just stand there, go sit down, the wedding ceremony is about to begin."
According to the old custom, shouldn't the bride linger in the room for a while after being brought back? Why are they already having a wedding ceremony?
Why don't you go to the outhouse to pee?
This feeling of being out of control left Song Chunxue completely bewildered, and she could only follow orders.
After they sat down, the room was packed with people who had come to watch the ceremony.
Sanwa and Xia Mulan, dressed in bright red wedding attire, stood before her, holding red silk flowers in their hands.
Song Chunxue thought to herself, "Luckily, I made a beautiful wedding dress for Mulan. Otherwise, they wouldn't look good together with so many people watching."
And she felt that there were more people in the courtyard.
Lord Xie stood on the right and shouted:
"First bow to Heaven and Earth."
"Bowing to the parents twice."
"Husband and wife bow to each other."
The ceremony is complete.
"Send them into the bridal chamber."
Everyone in the room then went to the east room.
Although the Taoist priest said that it is best for a couple to live in the northwest corner, as it is conducive to their harmony, the northwest corner of this fortress is a small house, and the house has not been cleaned up.
If the Taoist priest had spoken earlier, she wouldn't have bothered tidying up the east room and would have connected the northwest corner room with the west room.
“Mother, all my classmates have come to the wedding banquet, and there are some I don’t recognize. They say they are people who bought talismans, the people you rescued from the bandits that day. They’ve brought their families,” Sanwa said, pinching Song Chunxue’s forearm. “Mother, are you listening to me?”
“Yes,” Song Chunxue nodded. “The Taoist priest didn’t lie to me. There will be at least a hundred people. When He Chuan arrives, I’ll have him go again… No, that’s too slow. There aren’t enough tables. Even if we set up a table in each room, it won’t be enough. We can’t set up the feast in the backyard. Although it looks clean, there’s a donkey pen there. We can only set it up outside the gate.”
"You go about your business. This matter must be left to your second uncle. Let him handle it. You just help me greet the guests." Song Chunxue patted his back. "You, Lao Si, and your fourth aunt will greet the guests at the door."
Sanwa calmed himself down and said, "Okay."
Song Chunxue approached Yao Man and asked, "Do you think this method is feasible? We can find a few restaurants or eateries to prepare the dishes according to our menu, have them bring the food in food containers, and then we can serve them."
Yao Man suddenly realized, "Yes, how could I forget about this great idea? Of course it works. I know which restaurants are good. I'll close for business today and have the cooks and waiters run errands. Finding four restaurants will be more than enough."
She excitedly patted Song Chunxue on the shoulder, "Don't worry, Sister Song, you don't need to worry about this. Go and greet the guests."
The Taoist priest walked over and said, "Junior brother's method is still the best. The tables in the courtyard are already full of people. Let the kitchen serve the dishes first. The tables outside the door are already being set up."
“Liang Xiao will also be coming, so there will be about 150 or 160 people. Just keep that in mind. There are so many of us. My second brother and I have already made arrangements. Our own family members are all helping out. You can go sit down at the table with the new bride’s family and keep an eye on things.”
Song Chunxue nodded, "Then I'll leave it to you."
The Taoist priest nodded and turned around, saying, "You're too kind."
Thus, the seemingly orderly but actually chaotic marriage was successfully completed without any major incidents.
She never expected that the people who bought her talismans, the patients who had been saved by Lei Yun and the Taoist priest, and even Hu Wanyu, who came to the wedding with her maid, would tell her about how she had forced Xiaozao's parents to burn several mountains of gold and silver for Xiaozao.
Mei Yang ran around serving dishes, while her wife held the child and brought her cousin, whom she had saved, along with a special thank-you gift.
Liang Xiao, along with his subordinates from the county government, sat down at a table with Lord Xie in the courtyard. They drank and chatted enthusiastically until dusk, when they had thoroughly enjoyed themselves before leaving.
Song Chunxue didn't know how many people she had greeted and exchanged pleasantries with. By the end of the day, her face was almost stiff from smiling. It was the first time she had ever spoken so much, and her throat was parched.
As the guests gradually left, she lay down on the kang (a heated brick bed) to rest for a while.
I'm so tired.
Fortunately, everyone who came ate a meal, and it wasn't stingy at all; the people who came yesterday were treated very well.
However, she quickly perked up again. Ren Haitang, Yao Manmei, and Yang would definitely be leaving that night. She had helped them so much today, so she should personally see them off.
"Mother, let's go eat." The fourth son ran in. "You haven't had dinner yet. Sit down and join us. This last table is from Zuiyunlou. The taste is just different."
"Where are your Aunt Haitang and the others?" Song Chunxue slowly got up. "I'm just having a drink of water."
"We've already seen them off?"
Song Chunxue panicked for a moment, "Who were you with? Did you drink with them?"
"Of course, each family received two small jars of pear blossom white wine. That's quite generous. He Chuan had a cartload delivered by the Taoist priest. The Taoist priest, Lord Xie, my second uncle, and I personally delivered it. Don't worry, there was absolutely no neglect."
"..."
P.S.: I felt quite flustered as I personally organized the banquet for Sanwa.
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