Chapter 54 Little Treasure
It’s all gone so soon?
Su Ruojin looked at the food rack in surprise. After a while, all the pork, mutton, chicken and other meats that she had bought for several taels of silver were eaten up.
A few days ago, Madam Yang heard from her daughter that the Su family would have a barbecue during their spring outing. Every spring outing, whether it was at the Zhengguo Mansion or now that she was in charge, barbecue was always indispensable, so she didn't take it seriously.
Thanks to her youngest daughter, Mrs. Yang also got to taste the Su family's barbecue. The sauce was prepared by the gourmet Su Er Niang, and the taste was absolutely amazing. Seeing that the Su family had run out of meat, she quickly sent someone to deliver mutton and pork belly.
She joked, "Ajin, you don't mind if I come over and get a few skewers, right?"
"As long as Madam doesn't mind, you are welcome!"
There was meat to roast again, so Su Ruojin quickly came over to teach Xianggui and Maoya how to make the sauce and marinate it. It was just that the time was short, so it certainly wouldn't have much flavor, but it was better than nothing! She asked her eldest brother, Xue Wulang, Yang Dalang and others to come over to help, "Use small sticks to poke the meat so that it can be more flavorful."
A group of children from the neighborhood came over to pick the meat and marinate it. Mrs. Yang came over to join in the fun. Cheng Yingzhen and her husband came out of the tent to greet the neighbors, and stood in front of the barbecue, watching the children marinate the meat and chatting about family matters.
All of a sudden, both adults and children were laughing and seemed to be closer. This is the charm of barbecue, which can always quickly bring people closer together.
Xue nudged his wife and said, "You can come over and have a chat too."
Madam Xue glanced at the Su and Yang families. One had no foundation, and the other was a bastard's daughter. What was there to curry favor with? She looked away with disdain, "Go if you want."
Since the last time they had a conflict while playing with stones, Xue Liuniang hadn't played with Su Erniang and Yang Siniang for a long time. Seeing the bustle in front of the Su family's barbecue stall, she felt itchy and reached out to pull the corner of Mrs. Xue's clothes, "Mom, Fifth Brother is over there, I want to go too."
Xue was furious when he saw his wife didn't listen to him, and whispered in her ear, "My boss doesn't like me, so I just shamelessly went with him to pay my respects to Lord Fan. I finally got a chance to show off in front of Lord Fan. Since Mr. Su is favored by Lord Fan, I will definitely get to see Lord Fan more often in the future. Maybe I'll have a chance to get promoted."
Mrs. Xue spoke without leaving any room for negotiation, "If Mr. Su has this ability, why doesn't he promote himself to a higher position first?" She looked down on those who were so poor that they had to borrow their daughters' money to buy dowries and set up stalls to support their families.
Xue Zhushi worked in the Ministry of Industry and was away on business trips for most of the year, so he and his wife had a distant relationship and they would always quarrel after just three sentences. Today, he was outside and surrounded by people, so he couldn't lose his temper. He had to adjust his expression, took his daughter Xue Liuniang's hand, stood beside Su Yanli, and said with a smile, "What a lively scene!"
"Yes!" Su Yanli turned around and cupped his hands towards him. "When it's ready, Sir Xue should have a try. It tastes pretty good."
"Okay, then I won't be polite!" While talking to him, Chief Xue glanced around and didn't see Censor Yang. He thought, he was just a small official and was not the target of the supervisory censors for the time being, so he didn't ask where Censor Yang had gone.
At noon, the boys who had been playing were all tired and hid in the shade to rest. Fan Chengcan gave the skewers he had snatched to his uncle like a treasure and stuffed them into Fan Yanjia's mouth with a flattering look, "Uncle, it's delicious!"
Fan Yanjia was just about to ask what was delicious when he stuffed the mutton into his mouth. The meat was tender and juicy, spicy and fresh, and his tongue and teeth were salivating. He couldn't stop eating, so he simply took the skewers from his nephew and finished them in no time.
Hey, it tastes even better than the ones roasted in Fenglou. How can one skewer be satisfying? Fan Yanjia asked hurriedly, "Where did you get it from?"
Fan Chengcan was very proud. Seeing that his uncle was trying to grab some, he quickly ran to his grandparents and gave one string to his grandfather and one to his grandmother. "Okay, grandson. I haven't eaten this delicious food myself yet, so I wanted to let grandparents taste it."
The little guy didn't realize that his words were contradictory, which made Lord Fan and his wife both laugh with their heads raised.
Mr. Fan's eldest son blushed for his son and quickly stepped forward to hug his son, "You kid, you can't lie better."
"Father, how do you know I lied?" Fan Chengcan asked innocently, "Did you see it?"
Everyone was very happy. With this funny guy, it was a lot of fun to go out and have fun.
Mrs. Fan held her eldest grandson in her arms, calling him her darling. She would eat the mutton skewers he gave her and feed him instead, "If you like it, eat more."
Fan Chengcan was calculating quickly, knowing that his grandmother would definitely not be willing to give it to him. He was killing two birds with one stone, as he could show filial piety and get mutton skewers to eat, how great.
In spring, people feel sleepy, and in autumn, when the seasons change, Mr. Fan's appetite is not good. When he smelled the spicy aroma of the mutton skewers in his hand, he couldn't help but eat a piece. It was as if something triggered Mr. Fan's taste buds, and he couldn't stop eating like his youngest son. In a blink of an eye, he finished the skewers.
"Anything else?"
Lord Fan turned to look at his grandson.
Fan Chengcan looked at the skewer of mutton with three pieces left in his grandmother's hand. He was stunned for a moment, then quickly snatched it from his grandmother's hand, and finished the three pieces in one bite, then put them in his mouth and chewed them.
See how grandpa tries to snatch it!
Mr. Fan: ...
This grandson loves him, but not much!
Ha ha……
Mrs. Fan was so amused by the grandparents and grandchildren that she laughed until tears came out. It was so funny.
Master Fan looked away from his wife, his eyes full of resentment, "I haven't eaten well for several days. It's a rare day of rest, but I'm not satisfied."
"Okay, okay, I'll satisfy you." Mrs. Fan wiped away the tears from her laughter and asked her eldest grandson, "Can'er, whose family roasted these delicious lamb skewers?"
"It's the home of the little girl who always wants her father to hold her."
Mrs. Fan knew who it was as soon as she heard it.
Lord Fan didn't know: "Which young lady always wants to be held?"
Fan Yanjia snorted coldly and continued, "It's your handsome and elegant Su Yuzhi from Jiangnan."
"What do you mean mine, you little brat? Are you itching for trouble?" Lord Fan said as he stood up. Fan Yanjia thought his father was going to hit him, so he got up and ran away.
Lord Fan, however, pretended not to see anything, and walked towards the north with his hands behind his back. Lord Fan's eldest son Fan Hongjia hurriedly caught up with his father. The two chatted as they walked: "Father, the reason why the Prince of Jin came to see you just now was..."
Avoiding the crowd, Fan Hongjia began to ask about what happened half an hour ago.
Lord Fan did not hide anything from his eldest son, "Prince Jin wants to send his son to the Imperial Academy and wants Yan'er to study with him. He also asked me which teacher would be best to entrust him to."
"Father, I have always been lazy and not serious about my studies. It is not appropriate for me to be the companion of the Prince of Pingyang!"
Lord Fan did not respond to his eldest son's question, but instead asked, "Does the Prince of Pingyang need to take the imperial examination?"
Fan Hongjia was choked for a moment, "Then... which teacher does father want to recommend?"
(End of this chapter)
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