Her gaze remained fixed on the food box, oblivious to the fleeting smugness on Meng Yuxiu's face. He himself was unaware of the pure joy in his voice: "Why don't you just open it and see?"
He said he sat down leisurely on the stone bench, the sun was setting, and the courtyard was peaceful and serene.
Chang Lili couldn't wait to open the food box. The aroma of meat wafted out, making it irresistible.
A whole roast goose, glistening with reddish-brown oil, lay obediently in a large food box, served on a clean white plate, still steaming hot.
Chang Lili's eyes widened, and she swallowed hard before asking, "Roast goose? Where did this roast goose come from? Is it for me?"
She couldn't take her eyes off her subject as she spoke, like a jackal or tiger eyeing its prey.
Meng Yuxiu smiled indulgently and said, "Wasn't it supposed to be delivered here to you? Wouldn't that be like sending a lamb to the slaughter? This was personally delivered by this general..."
He was only halfway through his sentence when Chang Lili suddenly put down the lid of the food box and ran away in a flash.
Meng Yuxiu turned his head unhappily, only to see her running into her mother-in-law's room. When she came out again, she was holding her mother-in-law's hand, and the two were chatting and laughing.
He raised an eyebrow, wondering when the entire General's Mansion had come to know about the cold war between his mother-in-law and Chang Lili.
The so-called cold war was actually just that the mother-in-law was unwilling to talk to Chang Lili. Others might not know, but Meng Yuxiu knew the reason.
But now it seems that the two have made up.
He had doubts, but it wasn't appropriate to ask them now.
"I don't want to eat! You all just enjoy yourselves. At my age, I shouldn't be eating so much meat and fish!" the mother-in-law said, pushing him away with a helpless smile on her face.
"No, no! You have to try it, otherwise it will be a great regret in your life! Hurry up, Grandma, if you dawdle any longer the roast goose will get cold and won't taste good!" Chang Lili didn't care what she said and dragged her to sit at the table.
“Mother-in-law,” Meng Yuxiu said respectfully as he stood up.
The mother-in-law nodded kindly and urged him to sit down quickly.
"Let's eat!" Chang Lili excitedly opened the food box.
The aroma of roast goose wafted out again, revealing its glossy and plump body. She pulled off a goose leg and handed it to her mother-in-law, then pulled off another goose leg and handed it to Meng Yuxiu.
The mother-in-law, however, was affectionate and wanted to hand the goose leg to Chang Lili: "This is for you. I'm so old, what haven't I eaten? This leg is for you."
Meng Yuxiu stopped her and handed the leg he was holding to Chang Lili: "You guys eat it, I don't need to eat goose leg."
“How can that be? Guests are guests…” the mother-in-law said, pushing him away.
Meng Yuxiu interrupted his mother-in-law, saying, "Mother-in-law, please don't stand on ceremony with me. I'm hardly a guest..."
Before he could speak, Chang Lili suddenly snatched the goose leg from his hand and bit off a piece of meat: "Since the General is so informal, then I won't be polite either!"
She glanced at Meng Yuxiu, a suspicious blush creeping onto her face, and began to eat with relish.
But then she saw Meng Yuxiu slowly take out a dagger. Chang Lili was stunned for a moment, thinking that there was no need to kill someone to silence them for a goose leg. Looking at the goose leg she had already gnawed on, she felt a little scared. But then she saw Meng Yuxiu gracefully cut a few slices on the roast goose and then pick up a piece to eat.
She was relieved, but then she saw Meng Yuxiu looking at her leisurely: "How does it taste?"
Chang Lili was focused on eating the goose leg, and paused for a moment when she heard her mother-in-law's smiling voice say, "This roast goose tastes really good. This is the first time I've ever eaten such a delicious roast goose at my age."
Then Chang Lili saw a satisfied smile on Meng Yuxiu's face, but he still looked at her with a questioning expression.
“Indeed,” she said honestly, as if to smooth out the tiger’s fur which was already a bit unkempt, “this roast goose is indeed delicious. I never expected that General Meng would not only be a military commander but also such a good cook. It’s truly impressive!”
The mother-in-law said in surprise, "Yuxiu did this himself? It's really good. Oh dear, how can we let you do these things? We should do them from now on."
As she spoke, she gave Chang Lili a slightly reproachful look.
After a moment of surprise, Meng Yuxiu was overjoyed.
He had assumed that Chang Lili had left so quickly that she must not have heard what he was saying, but now it seemed that she had heard his words and taken them to heart.
"It's alright, Mother-in-law. It's easy to feel tired after doing so much military work. Doing these things actually has a unique charm," he said with a sigh.
In the past, with constant warfare, his life was like licking blood from a knife's edge, struggling and teetering on the brink of life and death. When he lit firewood and did these things that were filled with the warmth of daily life, he would find a moment of peace in his heart.
“That’s right, Mother-in-law. Don’t let his status as a general fool you. He likes doing these things, and there’s nothing we can do about it. We can’t stop him from doing what he likes, can we?” Chang Lili said shamelessly.
The mother-in-law replied helplessly, "Yes, yes."
Meng Yuxiu felt that Chang Lili's words had a deeper meaning, and an idea came to mind, but he still needed to ask Chang Lili to clarify it.
The group chatted as they ate, the gentle rays of the setting sun caressing their smiling faces.
Meng Yuxiu felt a sense of peace. He had felt very uncomfortable before he came, and the sight of the box of fruit made him feel uneasy. But when his mother-in-law appeared at the table, he couldn't show his displeasure.
But at this moment, he felt no displeasure whatsoever. Looking at Chang Lili's smiling face so close to him, he felt that the servants in the mansion were right.
Chang Lili is in the General's Mansion, so he has the advantage of being close to her. He doesn't need to worry too much about anything else; he can just focus his attention on Chang Lili.
He suddenly realized that Xiao Lingshou, this noble young master in the deep palace, an obedient prince who needed everything to be taken care of by others, actually had quite good judgment.
Unfortunately, she already has an owner.
After they had almost finished eating the roast goose, the mother-in-law waved her hand and said she really couldn't eat anymore, so Chang Lili took her back to her room.
She and Meng Yuxiu tacitly cleaned up the mess together. After watching her mother-in-law close the door, Meng Yuxiu asked with a faint smile, "Have you made up?"
"Huh?" Chang Lili blinked blankly before realizing what Meng Yuxiu was talking about. The corners of her mouth couldn't help but turn up, as if she had found a priceless treasure. She lowered her voice and said mysteriously, "Grandma agreed!"
"What?" Now it was Meng Yuxiu's turn to be confused.
"The third test, she agreed to let me participate, didn't expect that, did she!" Chang Lili said, winking at Meng Yuxiu provocatively and smugly.
Seeing her so happy she was almost jumping for joy, Meng Yuxiu couldn't help but smile, but after a moment, the smile faded.
He sighed softly: "Have you thought it through? Have you made your decision?"
“My biggest worry before was my mother-in-law. Now that she has agreed, of course I’m going.” She said it very casually, as if it wasn’t a gamble about life and death.
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