Chapter 220 Are you going to kill me to silence me?
Sheng An's joke eased the tense atmosphere in the room.
Fang Yuying gave Sheng An a grateful look, but knowing she was easily offended due to her low emotional intelligence, she quickly slipped into her room under the pretext of looking after the child.
Xu Cuilian, who entered the room a little later, was unaware of this little incident. She walked to the table, opened the porcelain pot, and greeted Sheng An and Xu Jinnian: "This is white fungus, goji berry, and snow pear soup. It was simmered for more than an hour this morning. It's perfect to drink this season."
Sheng An looked at the porcelain pot and saw that it was indeed stewed silver ear fungus that had become gelatinous. A hint of surprise flashed in his eyes.
White fungus is one of the eight delicacies, and only high-ranking officials and nobles could afford to eat it; it is simply not available on the market.
Xu Cuilian noticed Sheng An's confusion, pointed at Zhang Zhaodi, and smiled with unusual pride: "Thanks to Zhaodi, the silver ear fungus was delivered by Lord Hong's steward!"
Lord Hong was the local official of Qingzhou, and given his status and position, it was unlikely that he would have any dealings with Zhang Zhaodi.
Who could blame Zhang Zhaodi for having such skillful hands? The Heavenly Palace, which she had spent two years building, was bought by Lord Hong for a large sum of money as a birthday gift and sent all the way to the Emperor of Wei.
The current emperor has seen all sorts of wonderful things, yet he was still awestruck by the Heavenly Palace. He issued an edict praising Lord Hong and bestowing upon him generous rewards.
Lord Hong made a great appearance before the emperor, and naturally he was impressed by Zhang Zhaodi's superb craftsmanship. He generously presented her with a royal gift, which included five precious silver ear fungus.
After hearing the origin of the white fungus, Sheng An praised Zhang Zhaodi without reservation: "You are probably the number one person in the world who can turn ordinary bamboo into bamboo weaving that the current emperor likes!"
In front of so many people, Zhang Zhaodi was a little embarrassed by the praise: "It was just luck. The Heavenly Palace is my masterpiece. I may not be able to make a second one in the next few decades."
This is not modesty, it is the truth. When the Heavenly Palace was completed, even she herself could not believe that she had done it, let alone expect to receive praise from the king of a country.
During this period, the bamboo weaving products in the shop were selling like hotcakes. Customers would bid against each other on the spot to compete for an ordinary bamboo weaving.
Ultimately, the value of this bamboo craft tripled, selling for a price that ordinary people could only dream of.
The workshop's semi-finished products are now all pre-ordered. One customer ordered twenty bamboo weavings in one go, and this single order will keep the entire workshop busy until the end of the year.
Sheng An could imagine how booming the bamboo weaving business was, and she was genuinely happy for her good friend: "Bamboo weaving is in short supply, you'll need to recruit another batch of apprentices."
Zhang Zhaodi shook her head: "I am very satisfied with the bamboo weaving business. There are ten bamboo craftsmen in the workshop now, including my grandfather and me. Once this peak season is over, supplying our own shop will not be a problem."
Upon hearing this, Sheng An understood her best friend's plan: "This is your own business, you can decide for yourself."
Zhang Zhaodi breathed a sigh of relief and smiled, "I knew you would support me."
She has ambition, but not much. Her current annual income is enough to make her family live comfortably. If she continues to expand her bamboo weaving business, she will be very busy and tired, and the time she can spend with her husband and children will be greatly reduced.
That would be putting the cart before the horse.
The white fungus, goji berry, and snow pear soup was delicious; even though the couple wasn't hungry, they slowly finished it.
Xu Cuilian asked her nephew, "You didn't have a big celebration when you passed the county-level exam, but now that you're a provincial-level graduate, shouldn't you have a big celebration?"
Xu Jinnian nodded: "Father wants to hold a grand ceremony, but the auspicious date has not yet been set."
Xu Cuilian hurriedly said, "It should be a grand affair. Once the date is set, send someone to let us know, and we, the mother and daughter-in-law, will go over in advance to help!"
Sheng An: "My aunt is a guest. There's no reason to make a guest do the work. There are enough people in Sheng Garden."
Xu Cuilian didn't consider herself a guest at all, waving her hand and saying, "If there are many guests, we might not have enough staff. Anyway, I'll be there early that day."
Since her aunt had such a kind intention, Sheng An couldn't refuse and accepted the gesture with a smile.
The Zhang family father and son had to go to the countryside to buy pigs, and the others also had things to do, so the couple didn't stay at the Zhang family's house for long and left with the two pieces of silver ear fungus that Xu Cuilian had given them.
The couple deliberately chose a less crowded road and rode their horses side by side.
Xu Jinnian observed his wife's expression and, seeing that she was in a good mood, said, "We are still young, there's no rush for having children. If anyone speaks ill of you, you must tell me."
Upon hearing this, Sheng An asked curiously, "What would you do if I told you?"
Xu Jinnian said calmly, "Naturally, we should shut them up."
Sheng An looked terrified: "You're going to kill me to silence me?"
Xu Jinnian: "..."
Is he really that abnormal?
"Hahaha!"
Sheng An was amused by the man's speechless expression and comforted him in return: "Don't worry, I'm not as fragile as you think. If someone talks badly about me, I won't hold back."
She's not someone to be trifled with; she won't let anyone who tries to take advantage of her get away with it easily.
Besides, her husband is a top scholar in the imperial examinations, and his future is bright. Even the most tactless person wouldn't offend her to her face.
Seeing his wife like this, Xu Jinnian breathed a sigh of relief: "I'm relieved that you think this way."
Sheng An glanced at him twice, coughed lightly, and said, "At our age, we really should have a child. If you try harder at night, maybe we can have a baby next year."
According to Liu Huazhi's account and her dream, barring any unforeseen circumstances, she should be able to conceive by the end of the year.
Xu Jinnian gripped Sheng An's hand tightly with his large, well-defined knuckles, his gaze fixed intently on her eyes, his voice slightly dry as if he were suppressing something: "Okay."
Sheng An's cheeks flushed slightly under the man's direct gaze, and she quickly withdrew her hand and looked away: "It's improper to be pulling and tugging in broad daylight. It will set a bad example for the children on the street."
Xu Jinnian chuckled softly, his eyes still burning with passion.
True to his word, the man worked very "hard" that night, successfully keeping Sheng An asleep until late morning.
As Xu Chenglin said, people came to Xujiaba again the next day, and it was the clan chief's grandson again.
Upon seeing Xu Jinnian, the clan elder's grandson was noticeably reserved, but more so, excited.
From the moment Xu Jinnian passed the imperial examination, his status became vastly different from that of ordinary people.
Even if he doesn't look down on ordinary people, ordinary people will still feel awe towards him.
After calming down, the clan elder's grandson respectfully inquired, "The clan has temporarily set three auspicious days, depending on which day Brother Nian is free to return to the village to worship our ancestors."
Sheng An's mind raced, and she asked, "Xu Huaining also passed the imperial examination. Should we go to the ancestral worship ceremony together?"
The clan elder's grandson hurriedly said, "Brother Ning is still recuperating in Jinling and won't be back for a while. This time, we're opening the ancestral hall specifically for Brother Nian to worship our ancestors."
As expected of the clan chief's grandson, his words are always pleasing to the ear.
Xu Chenglin was very satisfied that his son did not have to worship ancestors with people who were born bad. After consulting his son, he said to the clan elder grandson, "The auspicious day chosen by the clan is very good. Let's set it for the middle day."
The clan chief's grandson completed his mission and left happily.
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