The lotus pods in the pond were plump and full. After asking Madam Hou for her opinion, Aunt Sun invited the ladies and young women from the neighborhood who had come to escape the summer heat to a lotus-viewing banquet.
This banquet was held by a stream in the mountains. Although it wasn't as exquisite and elegant as the lotus pond at home, it had its own unique rustic charm.
Exhausted, Wang Yan placed the food she was carrying into the makeshift kitchen shed and grabbed a large lotus leaf fan to cool herself down.
Lady Hou and a lady from the next-door neighbor's house sat on two suitable stones and set up a low table to play chess.
Miss Yun and several other young ladies were playing the zither a little distance away, the spring water gurgling and the zither music melodious.
Next to them, there was another table with a bowl of fruit on it: ice-cold fruit bowl, peeled water chestnuts, sliced Weizhou white peaches, halved Xiaoyao plums, tender white lychees, and Yitang melons (hamburgers) cut into individual buds.
After finishing a game of chess, nothing beats a bite of sweet, icy fruit.
The woods offer shade and respite from the heat, while sitting by the stream brings a refreshing coolness.
The maid didn't even need to use a fan; who would have thought it was the sweltering heat of July?
Wang Yan helped Aunt Xia prepare some side dishes and snacks for later, while Aunt Sun brought Fu Ling to prepare a "big dish".
The appetizers prepared for today's banquet include sliced red lotus root, wasabi cucumber, and eggplant with garlic flowers.
Aunt Su also made a dish of Jade Well Rice and a dish of fried lotus flowers.
Yujing Rice is made with fresh lotus seeds and lotus roots picked in the morning. The lotus roots are cut into chunks, and the bitter cores of the fresh lotus seeds are removed and put into a clay pot to cook with the rice.
The Compendium of Materia Medica records that "Lotus seeds are sweet in taste, warm in nature and astringent in character, and possess a pure and fragrant aroma." This dish has the benefits of warming and nourishing the spleen and stomach, and clearing heat and relieving summer heat.
Miss Yun loved sweets. As soon as the rice was steamed, she summoned Kouqi, who was serving her, to make a bowl of Jade Well Ice Rice and send it over.
Aunt Xia brought a white porcelain bowl and spread the steamed rice all over the bottom. She then took out some ice chips from the ice chest she had brought and placed them on top of the rice.
Then place some white peach slices, grapes, and raw lotus seeds on top, and drizzle with honey.
She then took a few small bowls and placed them together with the white porcelain bowl, asking Kouqi to take them away so that the young ladies could share some with them.
After seeing Kouqi off, Aunt Su turned around and made a dish of fried lotus flowers, soaking the lotus petals in water for 15 minutes.
Mix flour, eggs, salt, pepper, and hazelnut powder to make a batter. Coat the dough with the batter and deep-fry until crispy.
Both dishes are quite interesting, but not difficult to prepare. They've already finished theirs, while Fuling is still stuffing the fish paste into her dish.
Grandma Sun made lotus seedpod fish dumplings. She took out the tender lotus seedpods that had not yet opened from the lotus flowers, cut the bottom flat, and hollowed out the inner pulp and lotus seeds.
Select a plump mandarin fish, fillet the fish, remove the skin and cut the fish meat into small cubes the size of mung beans. Mince the fish meat and add wine, soy sauce, pepper and other spices and egg white. Mix well.
Stuff the lotus pods with minced fish meat, place lotus leaves of the same size at the bottom of the pot, and steam the tender lotus pods for half an hour.
Use fresh water chestnuts, lotus seeds, and chrysanthemums that were stored and soaked last year. Crush them with garlic, add water, and simmer. Filter the broth through cheesecloth.
This soup is called "Fisherman's Three Delicacies," and it is served with steamed lotus seedpod fish dumplings.
The rich aroma of lotus seeds overwhelms the flavor of the mandarin fish seasoning, resulting in a delicate and smooth texture. Combined with the broth, the dish is even more flavorful and fragrant. This lotus seed bun with fish filling was a truly delightful meal for everyone.
After the meal, have a bowl of chilled cheese and a glass of white wine.
The mountain breeze was cool and refreshing. After lunch, the group of people were reluctant to leave and stayed in the mountains to play and have some more time.
As dusk fell, the group packed their bags, crossed the bridge and stream, and went home, bringing their first gathering of the summer to a successful close.
After arriving at the mansion and arranging the kitchen utensils, Wang Yan went out to fetch water to wash up, by which time it was already completely dark.
It's clear that we spent quite a bit of time sightseeing today. After washing up, Fuling and I went straight back to our room, and as soon as our heads hit the pillows, we fell into a deep sleep.
In the capital, Granny Lu and her entourage entered the Marquis's residence under the cover of night.
Upon learning that Yang had been delivered, Old Madam Hou closed her eyes and nodded, her hands moving the prayer beads one by one.
The next day, Scarface, the head thug and second-in-command of the South City gambling den, didn't show up for the entire morning.
The group of people at the gambling den found it strange. Although Scarface didn't spend all his time in the gambling den, he would come over every morning.
Perhaps something was wrong? The gambling den owner's eyelids twitched. By the afternoon, he couldn't sit still any longer, so he tidied himself up and went to Scarface's house.
It was completely empty, there was nothing there, it looked like they'd run off with all the money.
Something's not right. Why is he running away? The casino owner was full of questions.
Could it be that this old bastard stole money from his gambling den? Thinking this, oh dear, this is terrible! He scrambled back to the gambling den to check the accounts.
This is just a small gambling den, unlike those big casinos backed by powerful figures.
That bastard really dared to steal the money and run away. Let's see if he'll kill Scarface!
But when they checked the accounts, not a single penny was missing. They searched for half a month, but eventually gave up because they couldn't find it.
In truth, he wasn't really stupid; he'd seen all sorts of people in this line of work.
He vanished without a trace. The gambling den owner turned the abacus beads and sighed, "May Scarface have his own good fortune!"
…………………………………………………………
When Granny Lu's son went out for a while, he returned home and ended her vacation to go back to Ronghua Garden.
After hearing this, the old lady chanted a Buddhist prayer, "Go and buy some paper money and offerings, and burn them for the lonely and wandering ghosts in the suburban cemetery at night!"
Granny Lu responded with a "yes," then turned and instructed her son to buy some incense, candles, and paper oil to burn, as instructed by the old lady.
The Lu family's son had only been resting in the house for half an hour, and without even changing his outer robe, he stood up and went out again.
The gambling house owner was unaware of Scarface and the Second Master's partnership, thus escaping a disaster.
Otherwise, he'd be in the cemetery with Scarface by now, so he'd better pray for good luck!
……………………………………………………
Uncle Yang was unaware that his younger sister had been sent to the estate. Right now, he was at home, squinting and drinking with dried radish.
My health has recovered quite well after this period of rest. That bitch Jiang!
If Gu Xiao and Aunt Yang hadn't told him not to divorce his wife, they would have kicked this crazy woman out long ago!
He took a sip of wine, feeling depressed, and thought to himself that he couldn't let all the suffering he had endured go to waste!
No, I have to visit my sister again in a couple of days.
I wonder how much he'll get back this time? Anyway, Aunt Yang can't give him less money this time, at least twenty taels of silver! He won't stand for less!
Logically speaking, over the years he had run errands for Gu Xiao and the others, he had earned quite a bit of money, several hundred taels of silver. However, Uncle Yang had also become addicted to gambling, and all the money he earned was thrown into gambling dens in the south of the city.
However, one "good" thing is that although he doesn't bring money home, he doesn't take the money that Yang Mei, Yang Liu, and Jiang Lanling earn. If he doesn't have enough money, he just goes to Aunt Yang.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com