This year, the festive atmosphere in Guanyun City is more lively than last year.
Firstly, there are more people in Guanyun City, and secondly, the pockets of ordinary people are getting fatter.
With more surplus money than in previous years, more goods than before, and even slightly lower prices of these goods, people will naturally buy more lavish New Year's goods.
The children got new clothes, and the unmarried girls bought two pieces of silk or two pieces of exquisite jewelry for themselves.
Men are quite casual. The cotton cloth on the market now is very good, thicker than the linen cloth in the past, and the price is not expensive. So they buy some cotton cloth to make new clothes for the adults in the family.
This is an ordinary people's home.
He Sandao's family is not an ordinary family. He used to be a small landlord in Linzi and is now the commander of the Second Army of the Army.
He Sandao's family has now come to Guanyun City, and He Sandao's father-in-law Zhong Xiangzhi and his family have also come to Guanyun City.
Last year, He Sandao and the sixth daughter of the Zhong family, Zhong Yu, got married under the auspices of the Emperor of Wu Dynasty. Naturally, the He family and the Zhong family became famous in Guanyun City, so the two families simply moved most of their industries to Wu Dynasty and settled down there.
At He Sandao's residence.
Zhong Yu glared at He Sandao. The Shu girl's temperament did not change at all because the husband in front of her was now a general. In front of the sixth lady of the Zhong family, He Sandao was still the gentle little lamb he used to be.
"Your Majesty is coming to our house for the New Year, why didn't you tell us earlier?"
"Have you become stupid from being a soldier? Today is the 29th day of your lunar year, and you're planning to treat His Majesty with pork and mutton? Yes, His Majesty is not picky about food, and you were once a small landowner in Linjiang, but don't you think about His Majesty's wives—the Empress and the Imperial Concubines—are they also satisfied with a plate of pork?"
As he said this, Zhong Yu gritted his teeth and stretched out a hand, accurately grasping He Sandao's ear and twisting it hard. He Sandao cried out "Ouch" and begged for mercy:
"My dear aunt, please be gentle, be gentle... The Queen and the Imperial Concubine are not that delicate. I am familiar with them. They are all casual people."
"Hmph! You're shameless, but I still have some! It's a great honor for our family to celebrate the New Year with us. We have to make this banquet a splendid occasion, no matter what!"
Zhong Yu released his hand. He Sandao rubbed his ear and quickly said with a smile, "Isn't this what His Majesty just mentioned when I entered the palace today? Oh, and that fellow Bai Yulian also has to bring his wife Wen Ruoxi along."
Zhong Yu glared at him, "He Sandao, you can't even make a fart with your three hundred sticks. Who else can you hit with it? Tell me who it is!"
He Sandao grinned, "And, there's Minister Zhuo Bieli, that kid Zhuo Donglai, Yun Xiyan, Zong Shiji, Wei Wubing..."
"Stop, stop. Write it down for me."
Zhong Yu seemed to have calmed down. She squinted at He Sandao and said softly, "Sandao, you have to think about it. The people you are going to host are all very prestigious. It's not like we can just casually hold a banquet in a small place like Linzi!"
"This concerns the impression our He Mansion leaves on others. We must not let others underestimate us. Besides... even though you've become a military commander, isn't it because His Majesty trusts you? You should understand the principle that a hero needs three helpers, right? You can't possibly trouble His Majesty for everything. You need to maintain good relations with the ministers in the court!"
"It's not that I'm reluctant to spend the money, but things like this take time to prepare. How can I prepare them in time now? I can only go to Sifanglou and order a few tables. Sigh... Remember this from now on. You can treat me, but let me know in advance. Although the food at Sifanglou is delicious, it doesn't mean the same as cooking it yourself for the guests!"
"Do you understand?"
He Sandao knows nothing!
He wrote down a list, thinking, "It's just a meal. We're all acquaintances, so why go to all that trouble?"
In He Sandao's opinion, as long as he stir-fries a few side dishes and has some wine, the job will be done.
But in Zhong Yu's opinion, such a banquet may not need to be too grand, but it must be warm - the so-called warmth, Zhong Yu believes that he has excellent cooking skills. If he personally prepares a table full of dishes for these guests and leaves a deep impression on them, it will bring honor to He Sandao.
"Go to Sifanglou now and order four tables of food. Have them delivered to your house at noon."
He Sandao was startled, "What about you?"
"Me? I have to prepare three dishes to support the feast."
"Hurry up, hurry up, I'm afraid it will be too late later, really!"
He Sandao grinned, slapped Zhong Yu on the butt, and happily rode out of the house in a carriage.
Zhong Yu walked out of the room and shouted at the top of his voice: "Yicui, Siqin, Hexiang... get to work!"
In a short while, the He Mansion became busy under the management of the hostess.
"Zhao Lizhu... take a few people and clean up the yard. Freshen up the main room and set up four tables... two for the women in the inner room. Light up the stove... and hang up the lanterns."
"Prepare the tea. Use the scented tea from our Shu region."
"Let's also set up two mahjong tables. When the Empress and the Imperial Concubines come, they can play mahjong to kill time."
“…”
The old landlord He Yifu stroked his long beard and looked on happily. Ever since his daughter-in-law came into the house, he had no business doing anything inside or outside the house.
The Sixth Miss of the Zhong Family was truly an exceptional daughter-in-law. Under her care, the He Family had opened a Shu embroidery shop in Guanyun City, hiring skilled embroiderers from Shu. Their exquisite craftsmanship was immediately noticed by the palace. Today, the He Family's Shu embroidery boasts a sign personally inscribed by the Empress, and was even awarded the title of "Second Best Embroidery in the World" by His Majesty!
I don’t know what the best embroidery in the world is. Could it be Suzhou embroidery?
With the favor of the royal family, the business is naturally booming. Zhong Yu bought another shop at the end of the year and said that he would open a branch next year. He also said that in the next three years, he would strive to have 50 stores.
He is very good at promoting friendship with the outside world and is also very good at managing the household.
Even though she was so busy, she still kept the house in order and was extremely filial to her parents-in-law.
On the contrary, it was his own son, this unreliable bastard who couldn't do anything. He was still the same as when he was in Linzi. Of course, this kid didn't dare to visit brothels now.
He was a military commander, and it was said that his monthly salary was more than twenty taels of silver. However, when he came back, he had nothing. Not only did he not buy his family a piece of yarn as a gift, he even asked Zhong Yu for money.
This daughter-in-law is really good. She didn't blame this bastard and actually gave him a hundred taels of silver notes. I'm afraid he spent it all again - what a spendthrift!
Oh, I'm bored, so I have to ask this bastard to take advantage of the day off and ask my daughter-in-law to give birth to a big fat grandson for me to hug as soon as possible.
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