Ziwan's mother lifted the curtain and warmly greeted everyone.
Yun Duoduo looked at Ziwan's mother with delight, [What a warm and welcoming mother-in-law!]
"Mother, where is my father?"
As Ziwan walked into the house, she asked her mother.
"He's right inside. He just went up the mountain to hunt rabbits. Come on in."
Ziwan's mother nodded to Yun Yishu and patted Yun Duoduo on the shoulder, "This girl is really pretty!"
Yun Duoduo's little face turned red.
"Oh, no wonder it's so lively, Ziwan is back!"
Ziwan's father was sitting on a bench smoking a pipe.
He wore a straw hat, had dark skin, rosy cheeks, and looked very energetic. He had a little stubble on his lips, and his brown eyes were deep in their sockets.
The group entered the house, which was not large. In the center was a brown wooden table and several benches. Straw hats and hunting rifles hung on the wall. With several people in, the house seemed a bit crowded.
"Please make yourselves at home. I'll go tidy up the house in the backyard."
As Ziwan spoke, she pushed open the back door, pointed to the backyard, and went out.
The backyard is a large, clean and tidy courtyard, surrounded by houses with gray walls, each with small flowers and grasses of various colors planted in front of it.
Sweet potato chips, chili peppers, crabapples, and some sausages were neatly stacked on the window frames and eaves.
In the open space in the middle of the courtyard, there were several wooden frames with winnowing baskets, straw baskets and some farm tools on them.
Yun Yishu, Shitou, and Chu Dunshi sat on a bench chatting with Ziwan's parents, while two guards went to tether the horses and feed them grass.
"Uncle and Aunt, I'm Xiao Chu. We've come to Shengze to look at business. We're sorry to bother you."
Chu Dunshi had a respectful and humble expression on his face.
"Not at all, you've come to visit! It'll make things lively for us old folks."
"Otherwise, the old man goes hunting in the mountains, or he plays cards with the neighbors. I, the old woman, am very bored."
Hahahaha.
"Hey, are you all Ziwan's friends in the capital?"
"Yes, that's right."
"Alright, alright, you can have a drink with me tonight."
Ziwan's father nodded in satisfaction.
"The house is all ready. Our yard is big and we have a lot of rooms, so this time each person can have their own room."
Ziwan pushed open the back door and entered the room. Chu Dunshi handed her a cup of tea, which she drank in one gulp.
"No need, Ziwan. Each of us can have our own room. It will be troublesome for your uncle and aunt to clean up after we leave. It's fine for us men to stay in one room."
"Yes, Ziwan."
"Alright."
"Please sit down first. Ziwan's father just brought back a rabbit, and we also have a chicken at home. We'll stew them all for you. They'll smell delicious!" Ziwan's mother turned and walked towards the kitchen in the backyard.
"Thank you, Auntie."
The group chatted casually with Ziwan's father, talking about their experiences on their journey to Jiangnan and their lives in the capital.
After a while, Yun Duoduo smelled the aroma of burnt sesame cakes. She turned to look at the back door and saw Ziwan's mother carrying a large wooden board with two steaming dishes on it.
"Ziwan, come and serve the dishes!"
Yun Yishu and Chu Dunshi were about to get up to help when Ziwan's father stopped them.
"Come and try this. It's my wife's specialty: minced meat sesame flatbread and roasted pheasant."
Ziwan's father arranged the dishes and invited everyone to taste them, while Ziwan's mother turned around and went back to the kitchen to continue cooking.
Next, they served stir-fried chicken with shiitake mushrooms, stir-fried sweet potato roots, shredded chicken with white fungus, bamboo shoots and bracken, and a large bowl of rich corn and pork bone soup.
"Auntie, that's enough food, don't cook anymore! Come and eat with us!"
Yun Yishu shouted towards the door.
"It'll be ready soon, you guys eat more!"
"Spicy rabbit meat is here!"
"This rabbit was caught by the old man on the mountain today; it's so tender."
Ziwan's mother placed the sizzling, spicy rabbit pieces on the table.
"Eat quickly, have some hot soup first."
As he spoke, he ladled a bowl of fragrant corn and pork bone soup for Yun Duoduo and sat down next to her.
As everyone ate, they all praised Auntie's excellent cooking skills and how tender the wild rabbit Uncle had caught was.
“My mother always says I’m clumsy and can’t cook a single dish well.”
Ziwan said something a little embarrassed.
"It's not difficult, I can cook a lot of dishes."
Chu Dunshi said softly, "I like cooking."
Chu Dunshi continued, glancing at Zi Wan.
Yun Duoduo secretly chuckled to herself, wondering when to break the ice. Since they had already come to Ziwan's hometown and visited her parents, why not find an opportunity to discuss the marriage?
"Oh, it's raining outside!"
Hearing the pattering rain, Ziwan's mother looked out the window and quickly put down her chopsticks and ran to the backyard, shouting, "My dried sweet potatoes!" Liao Ziwan, Chu Dunshi, and Shitou also put down their chopsticks and went out to help.
After collecting the dried fruit, the group came in and patted themselves dry.
“I’ve told you, it rains a lot here, but your mother just won’t listen. She’s always drying sweet potatoes and crabapples.”
Ziwan's father said nonchalantly, while Ziwan's mother rolled her eyes at him.
After dinner, Ziwan brewed a pot of Lapsang Souchong black tea. "Tonight, you can stay here comfortably. The house has been prepared for you."
"Thank you so much, Ziwan. Thank you, Uncle and Aunt."
"Oh, no need to thank me. Ziwan already told me that her younger brother Ziling is in the capital. It's all thanks to you for taking care of him."
"Ziwan said you two are doing business together, what kind of business was it again?"
Ziwan's father asked curiously.
"We want to do silk business."
"If you want to make silk, you can go to Suzhou to take a look."
"The silkworm industry, silkworm breeding, seed production, cocoon production, silk, silk fabric, and dyeing in Suzhou are all taking shape. As for real silk, Shengze is really famous, and Huzhou's silk is also quite good."
Ziwan's father said, puffing on his pipe.
Upon hearing this, Yun Yishu realized that Ziwan's father was quite knowledgeable and must have some connections in this area, so he asked Ziwan's father.
"Uncle, we'd like to get into the silk business. Do you know anyone in the industry who could share their experience with us?"
"Well, if you're talking about buying and selling and market conditions, you can ask the experts in our town."
Ziwan's father paused, looked out the window and saw that it was already completely dark, and continued, "It's getting late today. Tomorrow morning, you and I will go to town together to ask."
...
Two days later, through the introduction of Liao Ziwan's family, a suitable source of goods was quickly found and the price was agreed upon.
Once they returned to the capital and prepared the silk shops, they could arrange for the shipment of the silk to be transported to the capital by waterway.
It's been quite some time since Yun Duoduo and Yun Yishu left the palace.
"Brother, shouldn't we go back tomorrow?"
That evening, Yun Duoduo went to find Yun Yishu. Seeing that there was no one else around, they used their usual way of addressing each other.
Yun Yishu nodded: "I've already spoken with Ziwan's parents; we'll leave first thing tomorrow morning."
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