Chapter 15 Chicken Soup Wonton
"Has Second Madam been busy all this time?"
Yuan Hongqu glanced at the Western clock; it was already 7:30 PM.
Yuan Hongqu remembered that when she went to deliver snacks to Wang Xifeng at seven o'clock in the morning, Wang Xifeng was already in the courtyard, holding a morning meeting with the stewards of various departments.
Wang Xifeng's working hours are a bit too long.
Upon hearing Yuan Hongqu's words, Wang Xifeng's imposing aura vanished instantly, and she looked as exhausted as a lump of mud, about to slide onto the ground.
Ping'er quickly helped Wang Xifeng sit down.
"Granny Yuan, our grandmother is exhausted today."
“Sister Yuan,” Wang Xifeng leaned against Ping’er like she had no bones, “I’m hungry.”
"It's already this late, and your grandmother still hasn't eaten?" Yuan Hongqu was surprised. In the morning, Yuan Hongqu learned from the main kitchen that the masters of Rongguo Mansion usually had dinner around 5:30 pm. It turned out that Wang Xifeng hadn't even eaten yet.
Yuan Hongqu had invited Wang Xifeng over in the morning to have a special meal prepared for her that evening, but seeing that she hadn't come yet, Yuan Hongqu put away the things she had prepared for her.
With so many people around and so many eyes, it's not appropriate to take it out anymore.
Fortunately, there were other foods prepared in the kitchen of Ryougetsuin.
"Xiangtao, bring me the sesame paste first. We made some sesame paste tonight, so have something to eat first."
In the evening, thinking about making sesame-filled glutinous rice balls and black sesame lava buns the next morning, Yuan Hongqu had black sesame seeds roasted, ground into powder, and then mixed with lard and sugar to make sesame filling.
Because I had ground a lot of sesame powder, I added glutinous rice flour and cooked a pot of black sesame paste.
The black sesame seeds are ground extremely finely, resulting in a smooth, creamy, and rich black sesame paste.
I was thinking that this would be a great late-night snack after Daiyu came back.
Let's save Wang Xifeng, who just "got off work," first.
Wang Xifeng's eyes lit up when she saw sesame paste.
After finishing a bowl of hot sesame paste, Wang Xifeng finally regained some of her energy.
"What's going on? The housekeeper isn't even getting a meal?" Yuan Hongqu was really puzzled. Even if she was busy, there was no way she wouldn't have time to eat.
Seeing that Wang Xifeng was not in the mood to speak, Ping'er recounted what had happened after Wang Xifeng left Rongyue Courtyard.
Wang Xifeng told her today that she should treat Yuan Hongqu the same way she treats herself.
Ping'er saw her grandmother standing in front of Yuan Hongqu again, looking so relaxed, a sight she had never seen before.
Therefore, she couldn't help but tell Yuan Hongqu all the grievances Wang Xifeng had suffered that day.
"Granny Yuan, it's all because of the Xue family's affair. The Second Madam told our grandmother to find a way to settle it quickly, so as not to delay the Xue family's daughter's selection. Our grandmother didn't want to get involved in the Xue family's affairs... but she didn't want to anger the Second Madam either, so she was really in a dilemma. The Second Madam told our grandmother to think in the corridor of Rongxi Hall, and she could only leave when she came up with a solution. Fortunately, our Second Master arrived in time, and the Second Madam finally relented, saying that our grandmother could clean up Lixiang Courtyard so that the Xue family could stay there when they come..."
"So that's how it is. I heard about Second Madam's shrewish reputation back in Yangzhou. Where did your usual shrewdness go? You just stood there like an idiot waiting?"
Yuan Hongqu looked at Wang Xifeng with utter disappointment and frustration.
"Sister, about that matter..." Wang Xifeng looked aggrieved, hesitating to speak.
"Now even outside matters need your help?" Yuan Hongqu felt that this matter was strange.
"Sister, I'm not full yet. I'll tell you the details when I have more energy." Wang Xifeng put down her spoon, her voice still weak and feeble.
Yuan Hongqu sighed inwardly.
"Let's make chicken soup wontons, I remember... there's chicken soup in the kitchen."
Yuan Hongqu remembered a comment she'd received saying that her wontons weren't as good as her mother's, and that her mother's wontons were her favorite. Yuan Hongqu almost blurted it out, but Xiangtao and Ping'er were there, so she managed to cover it up.
Today, the two of them have been reunited after a long separation, so I'll cook her a bowl of wontons as a celebration of their reunion.
Since the kitchen in Rongyue Courtyard started cooking this afternoon, there has been a special stove that has been simmering soup continuously, and the chicken soup on it is now simmering perfectly.
With such good chicken soup, even a simple vegetable dish will taste incredibly delicious, let alone wontons.
Yuan Hongqu stayed with Wang Xifeng and asked Xiangtao to go to the kitchen to cook a bowl of chicken soup wontons for Wang Xifeng.
"How did you end up like this?" Yuan Hongqu felt a pang of sadness looking at Wang Xifeng.
Wang Xifeng arrived here earlier than I did. Although she was of noble status, there is always someone more powerful than her.
She had a stepmother-in-law, a biological aunt, and an ancestor named Grandmother Jia.
Of the three, only Grandmother Jia truly cared for her and understood her difficult situation.
However, since they are from different generations, Grandmother Jia couldn't interfere too much; that would be inappropriate.
The other two mountains are real and tangible.
That stepmother-in-law was obsessed with money; she didn't know how to distinguish between close and distant relatives, and she didn't know how to protect Wang Xifeng and her husband.
One of them was her own aunt, who let Wang Xifeng manage the inner courtyard of Rongguo Mansion in her place, but she didn't give Wang Xifeng any benefits. If there was any mistake, she would often take the blame on Wang Xifeng.
Wang Xifeng was caught in the middle and felt so bad that she often wanted to quit, but she couldn't bring herself to do it.
"Sister, you should know that I want to go back to...my parents' home." Wang Xifeng changed her mind at the last minute when she saw Ping'er was still beside her, looking aggrieved.
Hearing this, Ping'er felt a pang of sadness, and tears welled up in her eyes.
Their grandmother only had uncles and aunts on her maternal side in the capital. Her own parents were in Nanjing. Her grandmother hadn't been back for many years, and she was so aggrieved that she wanted to go back to her maternal home.
Since Granny Yuan had just come from the south, Grandma was treating Granny Yuan's place as her maternal home, barely managing to appease her homesickness.
"Miss Ping, you probably haven't had dinner yet, have you? Why don't you go over there and try our cook's cooking?" Yuan Hongqu sent a maid to lead Ping'er to the side hall for dinner.
At this moment, Xiangtao also brought out the chicken soup wontons.
"Take your time eating. If you want anything else to eat today, just tell me. Would you like some cake? And some jelly, I made some during the day, we still have some left."
"Sis, I want them all. I want sweets, lots of sweets!"
As soon as Xiangtao left, Wang Xifeng instantly transformed back into the young actress Wang Ying. She had been mindful of her image while eating sesame paste, but now she didn't care about her image at all, blowing air into her wontons as she ate.
So what if she's a young lady from a wealthy family, or a housekeeper? It's all just fluff.
"Take your time eating. There shouldn't be anything else tonight, so just relax and eat your fill before we talk."
Yuan Hongqu chuckled and comforted her.
Wang Xifeng nodded as she ate. The steaming hot wontons and the delicious chicken soup were topped with tiny green scallions.
With a sip of chicken soup and a bite of wonton, Wang Xifeng ate with great satisfaction.
Despite her small stature, she finished the entire bowl of chicken soup wontons, even drinking all the soup.
Xiangtao then brought out the cake and the pear jelly. When Wang Xifeng saw these two items, tears welled up in her eyes.
She's not an actress anymore, so she doesn't need to manage her figure. She just wants to eat cake and big jelly.
It would be even better if there was fried chicken, beer, and cola.
She had wanted to try it for a long time, but had never dared to.
Back then, she was lazy and didn't like exercising. She was afraid that if she gained weight, she wouldn't be photogenic and no one would want her to play a maid.
Wang Xifeng's mind was in turmoil as she held a silver fork and sipped the cake, her phoenix eyes slightly narrowed, clearly the sweet treat soothing her low spirits.
And it's true that this long-lost flavor is so touching.
“I remember, you weren’t the one who handled this matter with the Xue family,” Yuan Hongqu said slowly.
“This is a matter for the men outside, but I don’t know what’s wrong with our Second Madam today; she insists that I do it.” Wang Xifeng frowned. “It’s not usually like this; the inner and outer courtyards are usually kept very separate!”
“Since I know what’s going on with the Xue family, I can’t possibly take it on. That’s a murder case! I don’t have the guts to let the Xue family settle a murder case.”
Wang Xifeng spoke with righteous indignation.
"I hate this privileged class the most. Human life is like a game to them."
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