Chapter 36 The Snow Has Not Stopped Mother Wu lowered her head, remaining silent…
Wu Mama kept her head down and remained silent. Even when Cook Xu instructed her to take charge of the meals for the third-class maids and servants, she did not show the slightest smile on her face and remained completely wooden.
How could this be?
Even more bewildered than Wu's mother was Su Lan. A huge sense of panic overwhelmed her. As she watched Qiu Yue and the others rush forward to congratulate her, Su Lan's toes twitched, but she hesitated and stopped in place.
She has already recognized Wu's mother as her godmother.
Su Lan felt a dryness in her mouth, as if she had fallen into an ice cellar and was chilled to the bone.
How could this be?
Su Lan doesn't remember how she finished her work or how she left the main kitchen in a daze. She only remembers that she originally followed Wu Mama, wanting to say a few words, but she shrank back under Wu Mama's cold gaze and finally went home with a pale face.
"Sulan, you're back?"
“…Hmm.” Su Lan shook her straw hat, and the snowflakes accumulated on it fluttered down. She lowered her eyes, hesitant, carefully choosing her words, wanting to tell her mother what had happened in the main kitchen. But before she could speak, she heard her mother's joyful laughter: “Don't take off your oilcloth yet, take the money and go to the market to buy some good wine and food…”
"Your dad, your brother, and your sister-in-law are coming back."
"Huh?" Su Lan swallowed her words back, subconsciously saying, "Wasn't it supposed to be that you only come back after the winter solstice?"
Su Lan's mother didn't notice her daughter's expression and said happily, "Your father sent someone to deliver a message saying that the snow outside is too heavy, and even the rivers are frozen, so goods can't be transported in, let alone anything else."
"Our master is kind-hearted. He told them to go home and rest for two days before going back to work the day after tomorrow." Su Lan's mother was annoyed by the heavy snow this morning, but now she was filled with joy.
Su Lan swallowed her words. Her sister-in-law was petty and had given her a hard time because the family had spent money to send her to work as an apprentice under Aunt Wu. Her sister-in-law had been complaining about her spending money and had been encouraging her brother to argue with her mother.
If you knew that her mother was spending money to please Wu Mama again, she might cause a scene at home again. Looking at her mother's happy face, and then thinking of her father and brother who hadn't been back for quite some time, Su Lan swallowed her words, took the purse, and went out to buy things.
As Su Lan reached the door, she encountered Su Zhihan talking to Granny Wu, and a bitter feeling welled up inside her. Originally, Qiu Yue and she, or rather Qiu Yue and Han Jie'er, were somewhat entangled, but just now Qiu Yue was chatting and laughing with them, while she...
"Madam Su, I've heard about it."
“Mother Xu, you can just call me Han’er. Calling me Madam Su makes me feel awkward.” Su Zhihan smiled and interrupted Granny Xu. Out of the corner of her eye, she glanced at Su Lan, who was holding the edge of her straw hat, head down, and turning sideways as she left the mansion.
"That won't do."
"You are now a proper head cook!" Granny Xu was overjoyed, constantly offering her congratulations while also expressing some concern.
You should know that when I asked Su Zhihan for help last time, Su Zhihan was still cooking for third-class maids and servants. Now that she has taken over Zhang Mama's position, I wonder if Sister Han is willing to accept it...
Su Zhihan noticed Xu Pozi's worry and considerately changed the subject: "Speaking of which, Xu Pozi, you said last time you wanted me to cook two dishes for you, has the time been set yet?"
Granny Xu's eyes lit up, and she replied repeatedly, "It's confirmed, it's confirmed—it'll be in five days."
"So that's before the winter solstice?" Su Zhihan thought for a moment, then said to the anxious Granny Xu, "I don't have any plans right now. Just send the ingredients you need to my house the day before."
Granny Xu was overjoyed and thanked her repeatedly.
Finally, Su Zhihan asked her if anyone had come to inquire about her recently. Granny Xu shook her head, and after a while, she remembered something: "No one has inquired about you, but a lazy man came to ask me about stinky tofu."
"That idler, how dare he!" Granny Xu thought the man was sleazy and audacious, trying to get information from her with just a few dozen copper coins. She didn't even bother to say a word to him, and had her servants drive him far away.
Granny Xu had worked as a gatekeeper at the Marquis of Zhongyong's residence for decades, and she knew best what to say and what not to say, what to see and what not to see.
Upon hearing this, Su Zhihan knew that things were going well with Grandma Chen and Xiao Hong. She felt relieved, exchanged a few more words with Granny Xu, arranged to help with cooking the next day, then put on her straw hat and went home.
"The snow hasn't stopped yet."
“That’s right.” Su Zhihan patted the snowflakes off her oilcloth, hung it up high, and then snuggled up to the stove to warm her hands.
When Jiang Zhenniang heard about Su Zhihan's promotion, she originally wanted to go out to buy some food to celebrate. However, the sky was dark and the snow was falling heavier and heavier. In the end, Su Zhihan persuaded Zhang Mama that her daughter was still in a critical moment and it was not the time to celebrate, so she gave up the idea of going out to buy food.
Jiang Zhenniang thought for a moment, then went to get the jarred pork she had made earlier. Lifting the lid, she saw a layer of smooth, white lard, while the pork belly was secretly stored deep inside.
She used a large iron ladle to scoop out a few pieces of the braised pork. Jiang Zhenniang first heated the fire to heat the meat, waiting for the thick layer of lard on top to melt completely in the pot, before taking the pork belly out and slicing it into thin slices.
She also picked up some garlic scapes and bean sprouts, soaked the bean sprouts in water with a pinch of salt, and then cut the garlic scapes into sections and piled them on a plate.
Jiang Zhenniang heated the wok again, first adding scallions, ginger, garlic sprouts, and fermented bean paste. After they became fragrant, she added the sliced meat from the jar, stir-fried it a few times until the meat slices were thin and translucent, and the aroma of meat filled the air, then she scooped it all out onto a plate.
There's still a lot of lard left in the pot, so we can't waste it.
Jiang Zhenniang first drained the bean sprouts and set them aside. Then she added some scallions, ginger, and garlic to the pot and sautéed them until fragrant. She then cracked in two eggs and finally poured all the bean sprouts into the pot.
In no time, the stir-fried eggs with bean sprouts were ready.
Looking at the two dishes that looked and smelled delicious, Su Zhihan couldn't help but praise, "Mother, your cooking skills have improved a lot."
"Right? I didn't cook well before because we didn't have much money. We just used wild vegetables and stuff... Your mother can't cook anything good either."
"Now that we have such good ingredients, Mother's skills have naturally improved a lot." Jiang Zhenniang proudly puffed out her chest. She watched her daughter tinker with the food every day and had gained some experience. She happily served her daughter a large bowl of rice and then put two large pieces of meat on her plate: "Then try it quickly?"
"Hmm!" Su Zhihan looked down at the sliced meat. The sliced meat in the jar was fried until the edges were golden brown, the fat layer was almost transparent, and it emitted an irresistible aroma.
After eating and drinking their fill, the mother and daughter went to bed early.
When Su Zhihan woke up the next day, she found that the snow outside had not stopped and had once again piled up to block the door. It took a lot of effort to push it open.
The situation inside the Marquis's mansion was worse than expected. There were many flowers and plants on both sides of the road that had been crushed by the snow. The maids, servants and servants responsible for sweeping had been busy for a long time, cleaning again and again.
Su Zhihan spotted Yang Liu in the crowd. She was wearing a padded jacket issued by the manor and carrying a snow comb for sweeping snow. She was struggling through the snow and looked slightly thinner than she had been in the kitchen two months ago.
...
Just as the butcher had guessed, two days later someone from the Second Miss's courtyard came to the main kitchen to deliver a message, saying that from now on, Mama Zhang would stay in the Second Miss's courtyard to serve her and would no longer return to the main kitchen.
Originally, Su Zhihan was just temporarily filling in for the job, but she officially became the head cook who prepared food for the first and second-class maids and servants.
In just over two months, she made a remarkable leap, transforming from a lowly maidservant into a head cook.
This news spread, and countless people were filled with envy.
Cao Daya and Yinghong were overjoyed and insisted that Su Zhihan celebrate with them. Su Zhihan was so pestered that she finally agreed.
However, she was young, and apart from Cao Mama and the butcher who agreed to sit in her room, Xu, the cook, and several other cooks politely declined her invitation, telling the younger ones to go play together.
Su Zhihan smiled and agreed. Since she sent gifts to Madam Xu and Mama Zhang's room the day before yesterday, Madam Xu's attitude had become much kinder, and she even gave her some pointers on the account book.
Without further ado, Su Zhihan invited everyone to her house the next day, while also giving Qiu Yue a wink. Qiu Yue received the signal, glanced at the silent Su Lan out of the corner of her eye, and after everything was over, she followed her, saying, "Sister Su Lan."
"...Autumn Moon".
"How much gift money are you planning to bring when we go to Han'er's place later?" Qiu Yue asked casually, linking her arm with Su Lan's as affectionately as ever.
"What am I, what am I supposed to do?"
"Why aren't you going?" Qiuyue feigned confusion, looking at Sulan and complaining, "You've been acting strange these past few days. Are you jealous that Han'er has become the head cook?"
"No...no." Qiu Yue felt a lump in her throat. Of course, she was a little jealous. That day, her sister-in-law complained that she had been learning cooking for several years, but could only cook a few simple dishes.
Her mother felt sorry for her, but also feared her sister-in-law's complaints, so she didn't mention giving her money. But now that she had recognized Wu Mama as her godmother, how could she possibly go and visit Han Jie'er?
"What's wrong?"
“I’ve recognized Aunt Wu as my godmother, so don’t come looking for me again…” Su Lan hardened her heart and clenched her hand.
"You've recognized Aunt Wu as your godmother?" Qiu Yue was taken aback. "Doesn't Aunt Wu have her own daughter? Why are you recognizing her? Besides, with Aunt Wu's personality, she's taken our money for so long and hasn't even taught us how to cook..."
"Let me tell you, Chef Lin said she wants to take on an apprentice."
"That's because Han-jie is there, what does it have to do with us?" Su-lan smiled bitterly. If she had such talent, would she need to go out of her way to give money to Mama Wu?
"What if Chef Xu is also interested in taking Han'er as her apprentice?" Qiu Yue hesitated for a moment, then whispered a message.
This guess wasn't unfounded; it was brought up by Qiu Yue Niang. You see, Xu, the cook, and her husband had no children, and their relationship with her family was cold. She looked down on the nieces introduced by her family members, and had been picking and choosing in the mansion for many years without finding anyone she liked.
He had originally sent a message to his hometown saying that his niece would be coming to live with him next spring, but a couple of days ago he suddenly took the message back.
"My mother is still hoping that I can get on the good side of Chef Xu." Qiu Yue shrugged, looking very dejected.
When Qiuyue's mother came to ask, she suspected that Madam Xu might have taken a liking to someone. Qiuyue wasn't particularly clever, but by looking at the time, she realized that Chef Xu was after Han'er's intelligence and had developed feelings for her.
"I've only told you about this."
"What are you telling me...?"
“My dear Sulan, we’ve been together for so many years,” Qiuyue said earnestly. “Don’t you know what kind of person Aunt Wu is? She might still be holding a grudge against you.”
“You said you recognized her as your godmother, but Madam Wu didn’t even hold a banquet for her to accept her daughter.” Qiu Yue shook her head repeatedly when she saw Su Lan still hesitating. “She doesn’t expect you to support her in her old age, and she can manipulate you into serving her and her daughter. There are so many people in the mansion who have adopted goddaughters, but not many of them are truly sincere to their goddaughters.”
"We are all servants..."
"Why bother becoming a slave to a slave!"
"Look at Sister Han, how impressive and capable she is, stepping forward with her own skills! How proud she would be if she did that!"
Seeing that Su Lan remained silent, Qiu Yue simply let go of her hand and shook her head, saying, "Think about it again yourself."
After saying that, she turned and left.
However, Qiuyue had only taken a few steps when Sulan called out to her again: "Wait? Qiuyue, how much money are you... planning to give?"
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