Chapter 67 Go with Me
The question of whether the flower bun tastes good or not is not even considered, as the Zeng family has no shortage of food.
Besides, the purpose of giving a gift is to convey a message!
Zeng Xiaoyan was so happy that she hugged Xu Zhichun tightly, and was extremely surprised. "Sister Zhichun, what is the name of this noodle dish? I think this is very suitable. This is it."
Xu Zhichun smiled and said, "This is called a dough sculpture. When you give it to me as a birthday gift, I'll call it a birthday noodle gift. In that case, I'll make it. I'll make it a day in advance and you can come and pick it up."
"Well, how much flour do you need? I'll buy some and send it over. If you need any help, just tell me, Sister Zhichun."
It was obvious that this thing required handicraft, including the dyeing process. Zeng Xiaoyan understood it, so she was very tactful and did not ask any further questions, nor did she offer to help.
What kind of craftsmanship isn't a family tradition? How could it be easily learned by outsiders?
Xu Zhichun didn't think too much about it. He felt relieved when she said that. He nodded and smiled, "Don't worry. If I need help, I'll tell you."
That's impossible to say, after all, she also got it ready-made from the warehouse space at the harbor.
It takes skill to make this flower bun, and Xu Zhichun himself doesn't know how to make it.
It is not impossible to force yourself to learn, but it is very time-consuming and patient.
Xu Zhichun briefly described the shape of the birthday gift flower bun to Zeng Xiaoyan.
The pagoda-shaped structure is seven stories high, almost half a person's height. Each tier is decorated with beautifully shaped pastry items, such as gourds, lucky bags, wishful rolls, and gold ingots, representing good fortune, wealth, and prosperity. The exterior is adorned with beautiful, delicate flowers of various colors. The penultimate tier consists of small longevity peaches stacked together, and the top tier is a gigantic peach supported by smaller peaches.
The second layer of small longevity peaches has four in the middle of the front edge. Each one has a Chinese character glued on it with red-dyed dough, which together means "Live as long as the Southern Mountains".
In order to support this huge mountain of noodles, Xu Zhichun even asked Uncle Qi Tian to make a wooden base and a wooden box to cover it. This would make it easier to move it when the time comes.
Zeng Xiaoyan expressed her gratitude to Sister Zhichun for her thoughtful consideration.
The issue of the birthday gift was finally resolved. These past two days, her mother-in-law kept chasing her with a look that asked, "Have you thought about it yet?" She was so scared that she pretended not to see her and didn't dare to look up at home.
Now I can finally stand up straight and feel proud.
With this finale, everything else is easy. Tea, longevity noodles, eggs, brown sugar, etc., spending 300 wen is quite acceptable.
Anyway, with my family background, no matter how much I give, it won’t be enough for the Zeng family to take it seriously.
Why waste it?
Thinking of her stepmother and step-sister, Zeng Xiaoyan couldn't help but feel a headache again. Suddenly, an idea came to her mind. "Sister-in-law Zhichun, why don't you go too? Accompany us!"
Xu Zhichun was stunned: "How can this be possible!"
The more Zeng Xiaoyan thought about it, the more she felt that her idea was brilliant. She nodded quickly, "Of course, of course. It's a birthday party, the more people go, the better. I can bring a sister-in-law from my village, what's wrong with that? We'll just go for a meal and come back after dinner. That's what my parents-in-law planned too. I'm really annoyed with my eldest sister, and I'm afraid she'll scheme against me again. Sister Zhichun is here, and she can always remind me. Besides, with Sister Zhichun around, maybe they'll have some dignity and not cause trouble."
Anyway, they looked down on each other. She was just an insignificant concubine's daughter. Her family was poor, and she was embarrassed to stay overnight and cause trouble to her parents' family. Others would only say that she was sensible and that she was not obsessed with sucking blood from her parents' family to support her husband's family.
Xu Zhichun couldn't help but feel a little moved.
It’s not that she wanted to curry favor with the Zeng family. She had never seen such a lively scene in ancient times, so it seemed like a good idea to go and see the excitement.
Furthermore, she was doing business with Zeng Xiaoyan. If the business grew bigger in the future, she would have to deal with the Zeng family sooner or later, so it would be better to take a look from the side in advance.
Well, even if you are bullied and ridiculed and have a falling out, that's fine too. Then when you deal with each other again in the future, you can successfully occupy the moral high ground and say impolite words with a clear conscience.
“Is this really, really appropriate?”
"It's suitable, of course it's suitable!"
Zeng Xiaoyan was overjoyed: "Sister-in-law Zhichun, then it's settled."
"All right."
Xu Zhichun smiled and said, "I'll go see how lively it is and have a meal."
Zeng Xiaoyan quickly added, "If anyone says something unpleasant, don't worry about it. It's all directed at me, not you. Don't take it to heart."
"good."
Zeng Xiaoyan got Xu Zhichun's idea and was finally able to report to her mother-in-law when she returned home. She described the final birthday gift she had prepared.
Aunt Liang couldn't imagine how good the longevity noodle gift was, but it was so big, with so many different patterns and colors, it sounded festive and prestigious.
I think it must be a good thing.
More importantly, she had no idea what to give as a gift to a wealthy in-law like the Zeng family, and she didn't dare to make any rash decisions, fearing she would make a fool of herself. Her daughter-in-law was a member of the Zeng family, so she must know more than she did. Since she said it was okay and she seemed so satisfied with it, then it was definitely okay.
Aunt Liang was also relieved, and the more she listened, the happier she became. "Okay, okay, that's good to hear. Let's do it this way. Did Zhichun help with this? That's really troublesome for her. We should thank her very much. This requires flour, right? I'm not sure if we have enough at home. Let's buy some tomorrow."
Zeng Xiaoyan was also very happy: "Don't worry, Mom, I will buy the flour."
"Then you buy it first and tell me how much it cost. This is considered a public outlay, so you can't pay for it."
How could the daughter-in-law be asked to use her own money to pay for her father-in-law's birthday? The Liang family would never do such a thing.
Zeng Xiaoyan did not refuse and happily agreed.
She took the opportunity to mention that she had invited Xu Zhichun to go with them.
Aunt Liang was stunned.
Zeng Xiaoyan simply spoke frankly, "I'm a little scared. Mother probably doesn't know that my elder sister and I have a grudge against each other, and I'm afraid she'll cause me trouble. So, so I asked Sister Zhichun to accompany me to give me courage. If there's anything I can't think of, she's attentive and can remind me."
Aunt Liang smiled and said, "That's fine. We don't mind having too many people for birthday gifts. Just say it's our sister-in-law from the same village and family who has a good relationship with us."
"Um!"
Zeng Xiaoyan was overjoyed.
The next day, it finally stopped raining, although it was still a bit gloomy and looked like it might rain at any moment.
As usual, Xu Zhichun and his friends went into the city to set up stalls. Liang Mingxuan also went today. He was going to the county school to register for the children's exam.
At the end, Xu Zhichun felt a little nervous, "Mingxuan, do you really want to try? You are still young, you can wait another two years before going on stage."
The more Xu Zhichun learned about the Tongshi exam, the more worried he became. What if he didn't pass and his pride was hurt? This child would only be in fifth grade today. It seemed more appropriate to wait until he was at least in middle school.
Of course Liang Mingxuan refused, "Don't worry, sister-in-law, I can do it."
"Okay, that's fine too."
I can't say any more. If I say any more, it will really hurt his self-esteem.
(End of this chapter)
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