At the hour of Chen (7-9 AM), Song Anxin's entire family sat in the main hall for breakfast. Since Granny Zheng came, their family's breakfast standards had improved dramatically. Early in the morning, there was water chestnut porridge, tofu and lily soup, bamboo shoot and fern wontons, and delicate little steamed buns... Granny Zheng had put a lot of thought into every dish.
At the dinner table, everyone chatted as usual.
"Mom, I've almost finished preparing all the New Year's goods for our family. Is there anything else we need to buy?"
Song Mei had almost finished eating, so she put down her spoon and asked.
Song Anxin replied with a smile, "You and Granny Sun can handle things at home. I can't think of anything for now. But remember to send someone to send some New Year's goods to Uncle Bai. Uncle Bai and Ah Si are two big men, so I guess they can take care of these things."
Uncle Bai and Ah Si weren't at the dinner table. They hadn't eaten there since the weather turned cold; Song Anxin's family always sent someone to deliver a portion to Uncle Bai's place.
Song Mei said, "Mother, don't worry, I already prepared a copy and sent it over."
Song Anxin nodded. Meizi was a meticulous person, and with Granny Sun assisting her, she didn't need to worry about many things at home.
After gulping down another bowl of porridge, Lin Fengnian put down the bowl and said, "Grandma, Mom, Uncle, I'm done eating. You can continue eating. I'm going to the workshop."
Lin Fengshou quickly finished the last bite of his wonton and said, "Big brother, I'm done too. Let's go together."
"Remember to wear warm clothes when you go out in this cold weather. You should also come back early. It's almost Chinese New Year, so there's no rush," Song Anxin instructed.
The two obediently agreed, and Song Mei got up to see them off. Although the workshop had stopped working and the supply of mushrooms had also stopped, Lin Fengnian's harvest showed no signs of stopping. Every day, he led Anfu and Anshou to cultivate new strains of mushrooms. Her sons were very diligent. Oh, and there was one exception.
"Mom, everything is delicious. Grandma Zheng's cooking is simply amazing. I have to go to the kitchen to praise Grandma Zheng and bring some for Da Xiaocao, Xiao Cao, Dongzi, Da Xi, and Er Xi. I'm off now. Mom, Grandma, Uncle, you can enjoy your meal."
After Lin Fengyao finished speaking, he was about to run away. During his time at home, every time he ate to his heart's content, he would go to the kitchen to flatter Granny Zheng, making her overjoyed every time.
Song Anxin said with a smile, "Actually, you just want to go out and play, right? Have you done your homework today? Don't forget everything your teacher taught you as soon as you get home."
Lin Fengyao stuck out his tongue and said, "Mom, don't worry, I finished a long time ago." He added with a hint of grievance, "Third Brother dragged me out of bed to study before dawn. Third Brother, can you please not wake me up so early in the future? I haven't even finished my sweet dream yet."
After finishing the last bite of soup, Lin Fengshou put down his chopsticks and said, "Fourth brother, if I don't urge you, you won't even think about doing your homework. Besides, it was already late when I called you. Your uncle gets up to study at dawn. We should all learn from your uncle."
Grandma Song said, "Forget it, it would be so boring if everyone were like your uncle. Fengyao is the age to have fun." She smiled indulgently at Lin Fengyao and said, "Fengyao, go out and play. You can study anytime."
"Hehe, Grandma still loves me the most. I'm off!" Lin Fengyao happily ran out.
Song Anbang had finished eating and was wiping his mouth. He didn't pay attention to his mother's words. He said with a refined expression, "Mother, elder sister, I'm done eating. You can continue eating. Fenghe, let's go to the study."
Lin Fenghe responded, "Grandma, Mom, you two take your time eating. I'm going to study."
The two left the dining table and the main hall, heading to the study. Even on the way, they continued to discuss the knowledge they had learned in the books.
Grandma Song shook her head and smiled helplessly, saying, "Fenghe and Anbang are becoming more and more alike, Xin'er. No wonder there's an old saying that a nephew resembles his uncle."
Song Anxin agreed. "Oh well, it's fine as it is. Having two good students in the family is enough."
After breakfast, Granny Sun brought people to clear the table. They didn't like anyone waiting around when they ate, so the servants ate at the same time and then came to clear the table when it was time.
After finishing her breakfast, Song Anxin, along with Meizi, Granny Wei, and Granny Sun, went to the kitchen.
Granny Zheng was happily humming a little tune as she tidied up with Granny Lu. It was obvious that she was thoroughly pleased by Lin Fengyao's flattery, and she was completely unaware that Song Anxin had arrived. It was Granny Lu who noticed first.
She quickly bowed and said, "Greetings, Madam. Greetings, Young Mistress."
Only then did Granny Zheng realize that you had arrived. She quickly bowed and said, "Greetings, Madam. Madam, please forgive me, I was so careless that I didn't know you and Madam had come."
Song Anxin smiled and indicated that she didn't mind.
Granny Wei teased Song Anxin, saying, "Granny Zheng, you seem so happy. You must have been praised by the young master again. No wonder the young master is always thinking of different ways to cook when he's at home."
Granny Zheng smiled sheepishly. She felt that it was incredibly lucky for her to be able to come to Hui Ru's house. She was much happier here than in other wealthy families. Hui Ru's family didn't have picky eaters, and every meal they prepared was completely devoured.
The young master would often come to the kitchen to praise her cooking skills, which made her feel incredibly satisfied. She then put even more effort into creating different dishes. Sometimes, when she made a new dish, the lady would give her feedback and suggestions for improvement. Moreover, the lady's cooking skills were exceptional; she knew many recipes that she had never heard of before, and Lady Hui taught them to her without reservation. Her cooking skills improved even further while she was there.
She asked, "Madam, have you thought of making some new dishes?"
Song Anxin nodded and said, "The New Year is coming soon, and we need to visit each other to exchange New Year's greetings. I was thinking of making something different as a New Year's gift for our family."
The old woman's eyes lit up with excitement: "What kind of food has Madam come up with this time? I'll help you make it."
Song Anxin smiled at her eager appearance. This Granny Zheng really loved cooking. Since she came, she didn't need to do much to prepare any dishes she wanted. Granny Zheng would take care of most things. Song Anxin mainly helped out and gave some reminders.
This time she wanted to make book cakes and cupcakes. It just so happened that Uncle Lin's cow recently gave birth to a calf, and Uncle Lin said that the mother cow had plenty of milk.
She had previously shared some of the snacks she made with the children in the village. She casually mentioned to Lin Songzi and Hua Zi that the snacks would taste even better if they had milk. Unexpectedly, Hua Zi and Songzi remembered and told Aunt Cuiying that as soon as the cow produced milk, Uncle Lin would squeeze a small bucket of milk and bring it to her house.
With the milk cake base ready, we could start making it. We stirred the oil and milk until emulsified, then added the flour and stirred in a Z-shape until there was no dry powder. Then we added the egg yolks... In addition, we also had to whip the cream... She had Granny Zheng make the cake base, Granny Sun and Granny Lu take turns whipping the cream, while she, Meizi, and Granny Wei started preparing the cloud cake.
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