"Which eye of yours saw that she is my wife? Don't involve me in your matter." It was obvious that Zheng Yumei did not get her face back from Zheng Yusang, and a trace of embarrassment appeared on her face.
Huang Wanzhen soon paid the price for her counterattack.
After lowering her head for a while, Zheng Yumei went out.
When Zheng Ruqing and Zheng Liu came to have dinner, she followed them in.
Two or three maids and old women began to serve the dishes one after another, including braised fish, braised beef in soy sauce, stir-fried bamboo shoots, egg and black fungus, stir-fried lamb with green onions, dry-fried meatballs, stir-fried hemp tofu, steamed pork with rice flour, crispy beef patties, hot pot, and tomato and egg dumpling soup.
After a large table of food was set, a round-faced maid brought a plate of sesame cakes and pickles and placed them in front of Huang Wanzhen.
Zheng Yuli exclaimed, "Huh?" and said, "Xiaoyuan, isn't this the leftover sesame seed cake from this morning? What are you bringing it for?"
Zheng Yumei smiled amiably and said, "Nowadays, many people can't even afford to eat outside. It would be a waste if we don't eat these good white flour pancakes. My sister-in-law comes from a scholarly family and has excellent upbringing. She will definitely not waste food."
"If you ask me, it's really my parents who have good taste and know how to choose a wife. They picked such a good one for my second brother."
Huang Wanzhen almost applauded her. Such confusing right and wrong rhetoric was something that not everyone could come up with.
However, Huang Wanzhen didn't think there was anything wrong with eating leftover sesame cakes. They were just leftovers from the morning and they weren't rotten or smelly.
"Yes, there are so many people out there who don't have enough to eat. My grandfather taught me to recite 'Song of the Peasants' since I was a child. I wouldn't feel good if this was wasted. Besides, my aunt is very considerate and even had it heated up for me before serving it. I should be thanking you."
Huang Wanzhen's words helped Zheng Ruqing, whose face had turned gloomy, recover a little. "Yusang's wife comes from a family of scholars. My Zheng family is also a family of scholars. If we want to not waste food, I, as a counselor of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, should take the lead."
After saying that, he stood up and picked up a leftover pancake with chopsticks.
So, Zheng Yumei looked like she was choking.
Even Zheng Yusang, who had been silent the whole time, picked one up.
Zheng Yuli followed closely behind.
Zheng Liu glanced at her eldest daughter and said in a dispassionate voice, "Tomorrow is New Year's Eve. It's not the right time to spend the New Year at your parents' home. Yusang will send your sister back to her husband's home tomorrow."
Zheng Yusang put down his chopsticks and responded solemnly, "Hey!"
There were no other setbacks during the meal. After the meal, Huang Wanzhen listened to Zheng Liu's admonitions while drinking tea.
"Sang Ge has the habit of reading at night, which is very hard work. You are his wife, so you must take good care of him in terms of food, drink and living in the future."
"Remember to prepare a midnight snack for him tonight. If he gets too hungry and becomes skinny, I'll hold you accountable."
"Mom, does this mean that I have to prepare midnight snacks for the young master myself every night?" Huang Wanzhen put down the tea bowl, folded her hands, and pressed them against her abdomen properly.
"Well, Mother Liu knows Yusang's preferences best. You should learn more from her and get the hang of it as soon as possible. This is your duty as a daughter-in-law." Zheng Liu gently skimmed off the floating tea foam with the lid of the bowl and glanced at Huang Wanzhen out of the corner of her eye.
As soon as Huang Wanzhen showed signs of embarrassment on her face, she was caught red-handed.
"Bang—" The bowl landed heavily on the table. "Why, you don't want to?"
Huang Wanzhen waved her hands in panic, "No, it's just that the big kitchen is too far from Shuxiangyuan, and it's hard to walk on it at night. If I fell, it would be a small matter, but if you spilled the young master's midnight snack, it would be a big deal."
Zheng Liu rolled her eyes, revealing a hint of disdain. "I thought it was a big deal! Just have someone go to Shuxiangyuan to set up a small kitchen tomorrow."
Huang Wanzhen looked hesitant, but she was delighted in her heart. Considering how much Zheng Yusang hated her, she probably wouldn't be able to enjoy the convenience of the small kitchen very often, so she would be the biggest beneficiary.
"What? You're not good enough yet?" Zheng Liu looked at her impatiently.
"It's not that I can't do it. As the old saying goes, 'A good cook cannot cook without rice.' How can I cook without ingredients?" Huang Wanzhen stated the facts and made sense.
Zheng Liushi felt she was trying to shirk responsibility, and looked at her unhappily, saying, "Why don't you have any ingredients? The main kitchen has rice, flour, grain, and oil. I also have bird's nests and wild delicacies that the main kitchen doesn't have. Can't you prepare them in advance?"
Huang Wanzhen rubbed her handkerchief a few times with an uncertain look on her face, then, as if she had made up her mind, she looked up and met Zheng Liu's gaze, "Alright, your daughter-in-law will obey your mother's orders."
"Tomorrow night, I will cook a bowl of bird's nest for the young master. What do you think?"
Zheng Liu cast a suspicious look at Huang Wanzhen.
Huang Wanzhen said hurriedly: "Don't worry, I will only make one bowl, I won't eat it."
Zheng Liu thought to herself, you are sensible.
Because Huang Wanzhen said that it was cooked for her son, Zheng Liu gave her a whole box.
"Don't be stingy. Whenever Yusang wants to eat, just go and cook for him."
Huang Wanzhen rolled her eyes secretly, took the bird's nest, and returned to Shuxiangyuan.
Zheng Yusang was not there at all, but the door of the wardrobe in the bedroom was open and the men's clothes inside were gone.
Huang Wanzhen shrugged her shoulders, looking indifferent. She simply washed up and went to bed.
The next day, Yingtao came back to issue the orders from the Zheng family's master and mistress, and they still had dinner in the front hall in the evening.
Huang Wanzhen nodded to indicate that she understood and continued to read with her head down.
In the afternoon, the manager brought two people to set up the stove. Huang Wanzhen went out to take a look, and when she saw that she was not needed, she went back to the house to busy herself.
"Miss, would you like to cook bird's nest for the young master tonight? This stuff needs to be soaked in advance." Xiulan said, holding up the box she brought back last night.
Huang Wanzhen said without turning her head: "Well, cook."
After the stove was built, servants brought firewood to burn it, while someone came to paste Spring Festival couplets.
The constant coming and going disturbed Huang Wanzhen so much that she couldn't concentrate on reading, so she had to take out a pen and paper and continue writing her novel.
After a while, Xiulan came in with a piece of red paper, "Miss, I just asked them for a piece of red paper to make a red envelope for you. Remember to give it to the second young lady in the mansion as a New Year's gift."
Huang Wanzhen paused, looked up, and asked, "Do you still need to give Zheng Yuli a red envelope? What about me? Is there anyone who can give me one?"
Xiulan nodded as a matter of course, "In the first year after a new daughter-in-law comes home, she will kowtow to her parents-in-law and wish them a happy new year, and they will give them red envelopes."
Huang Wanzhen lowered her head and returned to writing her novel. "Well, how much do you think I should give Zheng Yuli?"
Xiulan: "At least one piece is enough. It's too little and doesn't look good."
Huang Wanzhen paused again, "Hey! Even if I don't go out, I still have to spend money. I hope the master and the mistress can make up for it for me."
Xiulan covered her mouth and laughed, "Of course I can make up for it. I had to kowtow in the first year, that's for sure."
Huang Wanzhen recalled it, but could not find any scene of kowtow in the original owner's memory. She couldn't help but ask, "Why didn't I kowtow before?"
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