Chapter 68 Chapter 68 Going Home to Calculate the Accounts
Fang Ying's anger hadn't completely subsided yet. If she went in like this, it would definitely show on her face. So she whispered to Ji Yanlang, "You go first."
Ji Yanlang came in, originally with something to report. He nodded, a smile on his face, and went to Li first, saying that their brothers' seats were set up in the pavilion next to them, and the two brothers had also invited several friends to discuss poetry and prose.
"That's hard for you. I'm afraid you can't even sit still." Mrs. Li laughed at her youngest son.
"My son couldn't sit still, so he came in to entertain his parents in colorful clothes." Ji Yanlang said with a smile.
Li smiled and waved her hand: "I don't need you here. If you can't sit still, just listen to me. It will cultivate your temperament."
Ji Yanlang responded with a smile and left.
Fang Ying then led the others forward and said with a smile, "I've just made some sweet osmanthus rice wine yogurt. Let's have a bowl to warm our stomachs."
She personally carried a bowl to Li, then walked over to Ji Si Niang, placed a light hand on her back, bent down and said with a smile, "Wait a moment, Sis. I've made you some tangyuan, and it'll be right there."
Ji Si Niang nodded gently: "Thank you, Sixth Sister-in-law."
An had noticed something was amiss since Liu Lang came in. She had been staring at Fang Ying the entire time, and even after eating her cheese, she raised her voice and asked, "What are these two sisters-in-law whispering about?"
"Nothing. Fourth sister wasn't feeling well after drinking milk, so I told her I made some tangyuan for her." Fang Ying replied calmly, then teased An with a smile, "What's up? Third sister-in-law is craving tangyuan too?"
An's eyes swept from her sister-in-law to her younger sister-in-law, and she said with a half-smile, "I'm really greedy. Bring me a bowl later."
"Did you hear that?" Fang Ying turned and instructed Lichun, "Tell them to bring a few more bowls."
Lichun went away in response, and Fang Ying took the opportunity to sit down next to Ji Si Niang. When An Shi stopped paying attention, she moved closer to explain, "I originally wanted to make sugar-water tofu pudding for you and your nieces, but the high platform was difficult to move, so they accidentally knocked it over while carrying it."
Ji Si Niang was not good at speaking, so she said, "It's okay." After that, she felt that it was insincere and seemed too arrogant, so she added, "Tangtuan is good."
It still seemed wrong, but I really didn't know what to say, so I could only look at Sixth Sister-in-law timidly.
Fang Ying saw that her sister-in-law was at a loss, so she smiled and held her hand, whispering, "I know you save trouble and don't pick on these things, but I still want you to know that Sixth Sister-in-law has no intention of being perfunctory."
"No... no kidding... the dumplings are really good, I really like them..."
"Okay, okay, I know you like it." Seeing that she was already stuttering a little, Fang Ying took over and coaxed her with a smile, "But don't eat too much. I asked them to make your favorite wild delicacy soup."
Ji Si Niang had a light palate and loved mushrooms. The so-called mountain treasure soup was a variety of mushrooms cooked in bone broth. She was grateful for her sister-in-law's kindness and said from the bottom of her heart, "Sixth sister-in-law, thank you for your trouble."
At this time, another maid came in with a food box. It was obvious that the dumplings were ready and were being served. Fang Ying smiled and patted her sister-in-law's hand: "It's a rare trip, so it's better to enjoy it to the fullest. Don't worry too much."
She was afraid that if she sat next to Ji Si Niang, she would feel uncomfortable eating, so she stood up and went to play with her nieces and nephews for a while.
When Yue Qing'e came back, she saw her daughter playing with the children with a smile on her face. She thought the matter should be over, so she took the opportunity to persuade her while she and Fang Ying went to change clothes together: "Remember to comfort Liu Lang when you go back, and don't let him have any grudges - it's really not his fault."
Fang Ying wanted to ask, "What's wrong with him?", but when the words reached her lips, she felt it was meaningless and swallowed them back, agreeing, "I know."
"I'm too busy today. I'll question Miss Tong when I have time tomorrow." Yue Qing'e said again.
Tong Niangzi is the kitchen manager of the Ji Mansion. She has been in charge of the kitchen for seven or eight years. She has a lot of experience and excellent cooking skills. She took over the job from her mother-in-law. Tong Niangzi's mother-in-law was also Li's dowry. Now she is retired at home, but she still comes to the mansion from time to time to pay her respects and has a say in front of Li.
Fang Ying knew very well that the accusations from her second sister-in-law were just a few scoldings at most.
But she didn't want to delve into it. In a family like the Ji family, many things are best resolved by making big things small and small things disappear.
After leaving the dressing room, it was almost time for the feast. Fang Ying ordered the dishes and wine to be served. She wanted to wait on Li for a while, but her mother-in-law stopped her, saying, "I don't need anyone to wait on me. Please sit down. You've been busy all day."
She even had her maid help Fang Ying to the table, and instructed, "Don't let her drink the wine. Pour her a cup of ginger tea instead."
So Fang Ying drank the whole cup of ginger tea, and not only did she not drink a drop of alcohol during the entire spring outing and banquet, she also joined in several rounds of drinking games.
By the time the banquet was over, the sisters-in-law were all a little tipsy. An grabbed Fang Ying and poked her lightly on the shoulder: "You got a good meal today. You'll have to pay me back for the wine I owe you next time."
"That won't do." Fang Ying refused. "We agreed today that I'm just here to make up the numbers. Let's keep things simple."
After saying that, she stuffed the person into the maid's hand and said with a smile: "Come back quickly, don't delay us to clean up." She didn't drink, so she stayed to clean up the aftermath.
Ji Yanlang also stayed behind to watch the servants dismantle the curtains, pack up the furniture and load the car. Then they got on a car and a sedan chair respectively, and went into the inner city to return home.
When the couple returned to their courtyard, the sun had already moved to the west, and the clouds in the sky were stained with a hint of crimson, floating slowly in the spring breeze.
Fang Ying exhaled slowly and stepped into the room.
"Are you tired?" Ji Yanlang asked.
Fang Ying just nodded - perhaps it was because she was home, and the fatigue accumulated throughout the day seemed to be pressed down at this moment, making her not want to say a word.
The two of them changed into casual clothes, washed their hands and faces, and sat down on the couch.
"Are you guys just drinking and not eating anything?" Fang Ying asked first.
"Yeah." Ji Yanlang touched his stomach, "Tell them to make some noodles. I feel a little empty."
Fang Ying sent someone to tell the kitchen to make a pot of noodle soup and send it over. "Tell them not to bother, just use whichever soup is ready."
When Ji Yanlang heard this, he recalled what happened during the day and couldn't help but snort, "You're still being considerate of them. You've messed up everything I specifically instructed you to do. If you continue to indulge them, will you still be able to control them in the future?"
"..." Before she could find a new topic to talk about, he brought it up first. Fang Ying raised her eyebrows, "I'm worried you can't wait. With the ready-made soup, the noodles can be delivered in a cup of tea. If you wait for them to make it, you might not be able to eat it until dark."
Ji Yanlang was speechless for a moment.
It seemed that he was still upset. Fang Ying sent the maid away and patiently apologized, "I was wrong during the day. I shouldn't have lost my temper with you..."
"How can you be blamed for this? It's that cook who's so hateful. Since you've explained everything, she should have told me the truth instead of being vague and just saying she has a bad stomach and can't drink. I thought Si Niang didn't drink because of her stomach, but who knew it was milk?"
In fact, in Fang Ying's opinion, the person who annoyed her the most was not the cook - servants would definitely shirk responsibility if something went wrong in their tasks. And there was another master with a higher status who was willing to take the lead, so how could they be willing to tell the truth?
What really irritated her was that Ji Yanlang knew nothing about it, yet acted on his own without even telling her. Even more infuriating was that he must have thought he was being considerate of her, doing it for her own good, and worrying that she would tire herself out.
This Ji Liulang seemed to think that to be good to his wife, he just had to let her do nothing and not worry about anything, and when he had free time, he could just take her out to play and coax her.
I'll have to get it back to him sooner or later, but not now.
"She has her faults, and I have mine." Fang Ying smiled faintly. "No matter what, I shouldn't have spoken to you like that in front of the servants. Besides, you were trying to share my burden. The more I thought about it, the more ashamed I felt..."
At that time, Ji Yanlang really felt that Fang Ying's anger at him in public was an insult to his dignity as a man. When he returned to the pavilion outside and drank with his brothers, he still felt uncomfortable - it was not a big deal, just a bowl of cheese, the banquet had not started yet, and it was not even a dish. Was it worth her getting angry?
But he was not a stubborn person after all, and the reasonable side of his heart was also muttering that Fang Ying was not just losing her temper - she could obviously make something else, but the cook was lazy and only served cheese, which was obviously disrespectful to Si Niang. When Si Niang saw the cheese brought to her, she would not think that the cook had made a mistake, but would only think that her brother and sister-in-law ignored her and did not take her seriously.
So when Fang Ying apologized, Ji Yanlang's discomfort immediately dissipated. He quickly reached out and pressed her fingertips, saying, "I'm the one who's ashamed. I didn't even know my own sister had dietary taboos, and I'm causing trouble for you."
Fang Ying hadn't expected him to change his mind so quickly. After a pause, she said, "Actually, I didn't know Fourth Sister couldn't eat milk. I just noticed she never touched anything made with milk, so I specifically asked her maid this time."
"No wonder you're so angry."
I specifically asked, and they still gave it to Su Ru. Si Niang is a clay figurine, and she still has some earthy qualities. How can I not take it to heart?
Ji Yanlang finally understood why Fang Ying was so anxious on the spot, "No, I must punish this cook so that she won't dare to do that again."
Fang Ying grabbed him and said, "Don't interfere. My second sister-in-law said she will question the cook tomorrow."
"Is it usually my second sister-in-law who manages the kitchen?"
"Um."
Ji Yanlang didn't say anything else. Seeing that his expression seemed to have calmed down, Fang Ying let go of his hand and drank half a cup of warm water.
Then the noodle soup was served. After eating the noodles, the two felt a little tired after a day out, so they packed up and went to bed early.
The next day, Yue Qing'e did what she said. She called Tong Niangzi in front of Fang Ying and asked her why she didn't report the spillage of tofu pudding.
As expected, the young lady claimed that she had reported it to Liu Lang, and that Liu Lang had also approved the use of the cheese without rice wine.
"Then how did you report this to Liu Lang?" Yue Qing'e asked, then added slowly, "I want to hear your original words."
The young lady rolled her eyes and stammered, "It was busy...busy at the time, so I might not remember it correctly. I vaguely heard that Si Niang couldn't drink alcohol, had a bad stomach, and couldn't... couldn't digest milk..."
"Did you really say that?" Yue Qing'e asked.
Before she answered, Tong Niangzi was unsure, but after she finished, she felt that this was what she said, so she said with certainty, "Yes."
"But Liu Lang said that you didn't say the latter sentence."
The young lady's expression changed. She glanced at Fang Ying, hardened her heart, and knelt on the ground: "Perhaps I remembered it wrongly. It's all my fault. I didn't keep a close eye on them and spilled the tofu pudding. Please punish me, ladies."
As expected, people who can manage the kitchen are quick-witted. She knelt down and admitted her mistake so directly, only saying that she was wrong for spilling the tofu pudding, without mentioning the cheese. It seemed as if she was making excuses for Ji Yanlang and taking the blame for the injustice.
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