Madam Qian despised Madam Zeng profoundly now, the old tricks no longer had any effect on her.
She looked directly at Madam Zeng and said, "As a widowed woman raising three fatherless children, I owe it to the clan’s protection to maintain my household. Are you asking me to stop mourning for the Second Old Master, frequently associating like close brothers with my separated elder and younger brother-in-laws?"
Madam Zeng hadn’t expected the usually meek Madam Qian to confront her like this and was instantly furious, ready to lash out at Madam Qian.
Song Jiyun observed the situation and gently coughed from the side.
Madam Zeng’s face turned abruptly red, but she remained silent for a long moment.
Song Jiyun said indifferently, "Let’s all disperse!"
She was blatantly rushing them away!
All three Zengs were stunned.
Song Jiyun signaled Nanny Zheng and greeted the Great Madam, then walked towards the hall, her arm around Madam Qian’s shoulder.
Nanny Zheng, on the other hand, led the people in escorting Madam Zeng and the Third Madam out of the second house’s courtyard very politely but firmly.
Hearing the loud cursing behind her, Madam Qian shook her head and said, "The face has been torn indeed!"
Song Jiyun smiled and said, "Mother, you didn’t think we could go on as before, did you? If their family has a ceremonial event, sending an invitation to our home, attending as a formality shows character. But on regular days, it’s best that everyone enters their own home and eats their own rice without associating with each other."
Madam Qian knew that Song Jiyun was right, yet she felt quite emotional about it. 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺
Song Jiyun then spent some time talking with her to soothe her feelings, before finally returning to her small workshop to start preparing the eighth kiln firing—the Alum-Red for Prince Huai’s Mansion had already been prepared and sent to Shangrao. She promised Yuan Yunzhong to fire the Hexagonal Box, managing thirteen pieces, hoping to reach a lucky number.
But her hands itched.
While firing the Hexagonal Box for Yuan Yunzhong, she fired a few Three Talents Cups. That batch, only one Hexagonal Box for Yuan Yunzhong turned out right, but all the Three Talents Cups she put in were flawless.
She simply fired a few more Exquisite Cups for herself, planning to assemble a tea set.
That batch of kiln also successfully fired all Exquisite Cups in one go.
Yet not a single Hexagonal Box for Yuan Yunzhong succeeded!!!
Song Jiyun thought about it and sighed in her heart.
Yuan Yunzhong and her Alum-Red were simply at odds.
The tea set was still missing a Fairness Cup.
She decided to fire another kiln.
If it still didn’t turn out well this time, she would give up.
Always doing one thing could indeed be quite boring.
For the next few days, Song Jiyun didn’t go to the Kiln Factory and devoted herself entirely to her small workshop.
Still, dense smoke from the kiln occasionally drifted with the wind into the courtyard of Yinyu Hall, bringing a slight dusting of soot.
Sitting in the courtyard and drinking tea, Shao Qing watched the black particles floating on the golden tea soup and couldn’t help but sigh, "When is there an end to these days! I heard Miss Song has already fired seven kilns; I hope this one doesn’t fail again."
As he spoke, he brought his hands together towards the west and mimicked a woman’s gesture, bowing and chanting "Amitabha," and said, "I pray to the great compassionate Guanyin Bodhisattva to bless Miss Song to achieve her wishes soon! Otherwise, we will suffer too."
Anyone sitting in the courtyard could not avoid being dusted with soot.
Shao Qing, reluctant to give up his fine Qimen Black Tea, thought for a moment and carefully picked out the soot from the tea with a bamboo stick.
Only then did he realize the courtyard was eerily quiet, the silence almost frightening.
Shao Qing couldn’t help but look up at Yuan Yunzhong, who was sitting opposite him.
Yuan Yunzhong leaned back in the Taishi Chair, looking at him with a cold gaze.
That look could freeze a person to death.
It reminded him of when Yuan Yunzhong had just returned to the Yuan Family, and Magistrate Jiang, unknowingly courting trouble, named his servant boy "Xiao Si" and kept calling him that all day long; Yuan Yunzhong looked at Magistrate Jiang just like that back then.
Later, Magistrate Jiang was inexplicably chased and scratched by a group of stray cats all summer long!
He shivered and asked hurriedly, "What, what’s the matter?"
Could it be that they disliked him for even drinking tea covered in dust?
He looked at the bamboo stick in his hand and explained, "This tea is so good! It only produces four or five jin a year. If it weren’t for a stroke of luck, we wouldn’t have known about such delicious Qimen Black Tea!"
As Yuan Yunzhong listened, his gaze toward him grew colder and colder.
So what exactly did he dislike?
Shao Qing stiffened his neck and fearlessly said, "I didn’t say anything! Such good tea, it would be a pity to spill it. Even in the Capital City, you might not be able to taste such delicious tea!"
Yuan Yunzhong’s forehead veins throbbed as he said, "If you dislike the dust in the courtyard, then go back inside."
When had he ever disliked the dust in the courtyard?
He was just distressed over the tea.
But could he say that?
Shao Qing prudently closed his mouth.
During this time, he felt that Yuan Yunzhong was acting oddly, as if there was a fire brewing inside him, ready to explode at any moment.
He bowed his head to sip tea and eat pastries.
The cook from the Song Family was truly excellent; today, they made peach heart crisps.
They fried them at a low temperature after making the pastry dough, then briefly fried them at a high temperature.
The pastry layers were like blooming peach blossoms.
Shao Qing ate with great satisfaction.
He decided to continue teaching the cook from the Song Family how to make Suzhou-style pastries.
Despite his efforts, Yuan Yunzhong was still not satisfied and suddenly said to him, "Go and see if Miss Song has encountered any trouble."
Shao Qing almost choked.
He swallowed the pastry in his mouth quickly and said, "What trouble could Miss Song encounter? She hasn’t even gone out. The business at the Song Family Kiln Factory is booming. Madam Qian and the two Miss Songs spend their days chanting sutras and worshipping. Even Steward Wu has nothing to do but hang around the kitchen to snack while drinking tea."
Yuan Yunzhong stroked his forehead, his voice severe as he questioned him, "Don’t you know Miss Song has already fired eight kilns?"
"Yes, of course!" Shao Qing said nonchalantly, "Otherwise, why would there always be dust floating around our courtyard?"
As he spoke, he suddenly realized and exclaimed involuntarily, "I know! I understand now! You were actually worried about Miss Song!"
But Yuan Yunzhong’s expression seemed even uglier.
Shao Qing thought, that must be because he had guessed correctly.
He thought Yuan Yunzhong was worrying over nothing and said, "Who is Miss Song? The Dragon Kiln could be successfully fired in one go! Even if there is some issue, it would be with the kiln. We don’t understand these matters; worrying won’t help at all! We might as well keep an eye on Miss Song’s home or the Kiln Factory to prevent anyone from causing trouble!"
Shao Qing felt his words were very reasonable, but Yuan Yunzhong seemed to be provoked by them, looking very unsatisfied, and scoffed coldly, "Are you going or not?"
"Going!" Shao Qing, recognizing the urgency of acting wisely, immediately stood up and hurried to Song Jiyun’s small workshop, asking Song Jiyun, "Is there anything I can help with?"
Song Jiyun, thinking it might be because she had been firing porcelain at home lately that Shao Qing was concerned about her, hurriedly smiled and said, "No, there’s no issue, I’m just trying to fire new alum-red porcelain."
She even offered him some pastries.
Thinking of Yuan Yunzhong’s unpredictable moods lately, Shao Qing decided to stay a bit longer at Song Jiyun’s place.
He could also chat with Miss Song.
Conversations with Miss Song were always interesting.
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