At midnight, firecrackers went off. Tao Wanniang saw the commotion outside through the window, so she simply turned over and thought, "Life is beautiful, and there's plenty of time in the future. Sleeping is the most important thing."
Compared to Tao Wanniang's carefree attitude, Ling Yunzhou was quite melancholy in the General's Mansion.
The affairs of the manor were naturally taken care of, but he felt empty inside. He had a wife, but they were divorced; he had children and grandchildren, but they were not together. He was truly alone!
His former comrades, those with families, had all gone home, and the few bachelors were all drunk. Ling Yunzhou felt that he had no one to talk to.
At midnight, the people keeping vigil in the manor began to set off firecrackers. Ling Yunzhou looked at the sky illuminated by fireworks and sighed heavily. This life was not as good as when he had amnesia!
On the first day of the Lunar New Year, the Tao family was also very lively, putting up door gods and Spring Festival couplets. Children from the neighborhood also visited each other. The Ling brothers gave out several copper coins, but they were a little reluctant to part with them.
The carefree Taowan woman tended the brazier, cracked melon seeds, and sipped tea, surrounded by Bai Yumei and Xiao Qiao'er, chatting away. Wasn't this the epitome of a carefree life?
"Ah, that feels good!" Tao Wanniang stretched and then looked at what Xiao Qiao'er had written, offering a few pointers.
"Recipes are just for fooling laymen. Cooking is all about experience and intuition. But it's good that you have the will."
“Big sister, Xiao Qiao’er is a real person. Do you think everyone can hold so much in their head like you?” Bai Yumei laughed. “There’s a saying that goes, no matter how good your memory is, it’s not as good as writing it down.”
"A bad pen is worse than a good memory," Tao Wanniang added. "Qiao'er, write if you want, ask if you don't understand. Anyway, everyone's free now."
"Mother, are we really going to open a restaurant in the future?" Xiao Qiao'er asked curiously.
“Yes, I haven’t told you about this. It’s because the Prince Rui’s Mansion wants to open a restaurant with me. They must value my cooking skills,” Tao Wanniang said confidently. “We are still relatively new, which is why we burned down the small restaurant before. If we have the Prince Rui’s Mansion as our backer, probably no one will dare to burn it down.”
"Elder sister, in that case, will the choice of who to employ depend on the Prince Rui's wishes?" Bai Yumei asked worriedly. With her disfigured face and being a woman, could she still work as an accountant?
"Don't worry about that, I'll talk to them," Tao Wanniang said confidently. "If we're going to open a restaurant, it will naturally be my restaurant. I'm not short of money or manpower. In fact, even without the Prince Rui's mansion, I could still open a restaurant."
"Then why don't you drive it yourself?" Xiao Qiao asked curiously. In her eyes, Tao Wan Niang was omnipotent.
"Of course we can't refuse someone's good intentions," Tao Wanniang said with a smile. "There's no rush. Just wait. Even if the restaurant is ready, we still need to make some preparations before reopening." She would go to Prince Rui's mansion to discuss it properly after the New Year.
"Mother, Mother, we have a guest!" Ling Dahu rushed over to say. Although Tao Wanniang had been looking after them, there was nothing they could do. "Mother, it's Father. Father insists on seeing you."
"Heh, does Ling Yunzhou have nothing better to do?" Tao Wanniang sneered. "Yu Mei, you play with Xiao Qiao'er first, I'm going to meet this fellow!"
Bai Yumei looked somewhat embarrassed; those words...
After a night of planning, Ling Yunzhou finally came up with a plan. He suppressed his urge to come early that morning and dawdled for a while before finally coming alone.
“Tao, I see that there are no rules in your family. My Ling family descendants may not follow me to the army, but they should know what they should know,” Ling Yunzhou said to Tao Wanniang in a serious tone.
Tao Wanniang blinked and spread her hands.
"Stop beating around the bush, just say what you mean."
“There are certain etiquette rules for the New Year. Before, when you were in Lingjia Village, no one cared, but now that you're in the capital, if you don't know anything, people will laugh at you in the future,” Ling Yunzhou said earnestly.
"I was thinking of taking him to stay for a few days and having the housekeeper teach him properly."
Ling Yunzhou, fearing that Tao Wanniang would disagree, immediately added, "Jade must be carved to become a useful object. Since the children call me father, I cannot abandon them."
"Oh, okay then, you can talk to them yourself." Tao Wan's mother thought it was good; the father had finally remembered to discipline his son. "However, you wouldn't want to separate a young couple, would you? And with several children, don't even think about leaving them to me. I don't have any housekeepers at home to take care of the kids."
"Why don't you bring your son, daughter-in-law, and grandchildren with you?"
Ling Yunzhou raised an eyebrow. Why did he feel that Tao Wanniang was impatient to get rid of him?
"What about you? It's the New Year, and it'll be lonely at home with no one around. Why don't you..."
"No, who said it was deserted? I have a daughter, Yumei is here, and there are two guests staying here. This is my home, how could I, as the host, not be here?"
Tao Wan's mother smiled kindly, "Go, go, hurry up. My sons won't see much of the world if they come with me. It's a good opportunity to visit your General's Mansion."
Ling Yunzhou saw a smile on Tao Wanniang's face, and his heart sank. He felt as if he had shot himself in the foot.
"Are you sure?"
"Don't worry, of course you can rest assured. You're my own father. Wouldn't the General's Mansion be lonely without family members? With you, your son, daughter-in-law, grandson, and granddaughter will all be lively and bustling, won't they?" Tao Wanniang spoke from the heart.
“But you…” Ling Yunzhou thought that if Tao Wanniang was reluctant to leave her son and grandson, she could go with them! Even if they divorced, he wouldn’t mind.
"I'm fine, not at all helpless. My sons are all grown up, and I've wanted them to start their own households for a long time. Sigh, what can I do? I'm just a woman who didn't raise my sons to be successful. If you're so capable, then you go ahead and do it!"
Tao Wanniang said, and then loudly called her son and daughter-in-law over.
The Ling brothers, who were already waiting outside the living room, immediately responded and went inside.
"Your father wants to take you and your husband and children to stay at the General's Mansion for a while. Our family doesn't have any relatives visiting, but your father is different. He associates with important officials of the court. This will also teach you some social etiquette. Call your wives and children, pack your things, and go quickly!"
Tao Wan's mother spoke crisply and decisively, even urging him on, leaving her two sons dumbfounded.
"Mother, please don't send us away. We'll stay with you," Ling Dahu said with a bitter face, which made Ling Yunzhou's face darken immediately.
“Yes, Mom, we’re doing just fine here, we’re not moving over there,” Ling Dapeng immediately added.
"Stop! What are you saying? Your father took you over to teach you how to do things, but you'll have to come back. You'll still be in charge of all the big and small affairs of this family in the future, understand? Hurry up, lest your father change his mind." Tao Wan's mother interrupted her two sons' disheartening words and said seriously.
"General, don't you think so?"
"I won't go back on my word!" Ling Yunzhou gritted his teeth. This woman... is ruthless!
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