With the gift from Xu Junying, Mei Niang had won back the favor of Old Lady Xu. She struck while the iron was hot and showed the patience and stickiness she had in her previous life when entertaining her grandparents. She played some tricks, serving tea and fruit, telling jokes and comedy stories, making the old lady laugh. Mei Niang still didn't dare to be careless. Her own grandparents really loved their granddaughter. They were happy from the bottom of their hearts no matter what they did. The old woman in front of her was different. Who knew if she was really happy or not? If it weren't for the two old mountain ginsengs, the ones entertaining her now would be Bai Jingyu and Zhuang Yulan. There would be no place for her to stand.
As usual, she served the old lady first. Mei Niang had the experience of serving breakfast last time, and she had asked Ning Rulan what the old lady liked and disliked to eat, and what her habits were, so she did it very smoothly. Bai Jingyu, who was standing on the other side, was not a pushover either. He was quick-eyed and quick-handed, and he served the old lady soup and dishes before her. Mei Niang had subscribed to a lot of fashion magazines in her previous life, including clothing, food, and beauty. Because there were many elderly people in her family, she paid great attention to the nutritional matching of these aspects. This was the perfect time to show off, and she gave gentle advice to the old lady on what to eat and what to pair, what good effects would be achieved, which food the elderly should not eat too much, and how to eat dinner. She spoke in an orderly and well-founded manner, and was very credible. The old lady nodded her head and really followed her, removing some dishes from the plate and adding some others. However, most of the dishes she removed were taken by Bai Jingyu, which made Bai Jingyu feel very uncomfortable.
Mei Niang did not neglect the young ladies of the Xu family and Zhuang Yulan. Unlike Bai Jingyu, she did not keep serving food to everyone. She just picked up a piece of food with chopsticks for each person, smiled, and seriously suggested different dishes to each person according to their complexion and physique, so as to supplement what they were lacking. As long as she talked about beauty, every girl would be attracted and listened very seriously.
Bai Jingyu was dissatisfied: "According to what Grandma said, is this how she usually eats? And I have never seen that Grandma is very healthy!"
What she meant was: How dare a person who has died of illness once talk about nutritional combinations and understand the essence of food
Qin Meiniang smiled slightly: "If conditions permit, I will eat like this! I was sick a while ago and held my breath, but even if I held my breath, my physique is still good, otherwise how could I run around as soon as I woke up? I may not be as strong as Second Madam, but my complexion and physique are not worse than yours. Second Madam, do you dare to compete with me? Let's go play in the snow and see who can resist the cold for a long time?"
Bai Jingyu's face was rouge-covered, and she looked a little pale. The quilted silk and cotton brocade robe she wore was puffy, and she must have been wearing a small cotton vest underneath. It was obvious that she was not doing well. Maybe her period had come suddenly, otherwise why did she come back without waiting for her great grandfather's funeral? It couldn't be because her eldest sister-in-law had resurrected and she wanted to come back to see him. If that was the case, she should have come back yesterday.
So she dared to bet that Bai Jingyu couldn't play in the snow. She herself was afraid of the cold and didn't have many clothes on her body. The outer layer was just a padded robe without any cotton padding in the middle, but she believed that she could outlast Bai Jingyu.
Bai Jingyu really kept silent. Playing in the snow? It would be better to kill her! She hurried back to Xu's house at noon and lay on the bed for a while. She didn't want to get up. She was tired, her lower abdomen was swollen and painful, and she felt so uncomfortable. She just hoped that the dinner would be over soon so that she could go back to her room, drink some hot rice porridge, and then lie down to have a good sleep.
There are four young ladies in the Xu family. The eldest daughter, Xu Xiaojuan, was born to the eldest wife, Madam Zheng, and has already married. At the dinner table, accompanying the old lady and Zhuang Yulan, were the second daughter, Xu Xiaorong, the third daughter, Xu Xiaowan, and the fourth daughter, Xu Xiaomin. They sat and watched the two sisters-in-law quarreling. Xu Xiaomin was young, lively and innocent. She clapped her hands and laughed:
"I would love to have a body like my sister-in-law. She can come back to life even after death! She looks much healthier than before, and she's interesting and fun!"
Xu Xiaowan quietly pulled her aside, and the old lady said, "In broad daylight, don't mention life or death anymore. Eat, eat! Mei Niang, Jing Yu, you guys should sit down and eat too. The soup and vegetables are getting cold. If you want to drink some hot soup, you have to simmer it on the small stove!"
Winter is not good like this. Once the meat and vegetables get cold, they will form lumps on the plate and are indeed not tasty. The girls all put down their chopsticks. Bai Jingyu had no appetite and refused to move. He just used chopsticks to stir the rice grains in the bowl.
Seeing this, Mei Niang said, "Grandma, this cold weather is perfect for hot pot. The soup is hot, the meat is fresh, and there are many dishes. I guarantee you will enjoy the meal!"
Old Mrs. Xu was startled: "What is hot pot?"
Mei Niang gestured: "Take a copper pot, place it on the stove, keep the soup boiling, put all kinds of meat and ingredients in to cook, the meat is delicious, the soup is rich and fragrant, you can put any vegetable you want in and blanch it, it will be cooked immediately, and it will be fresh and comfortable to eat..."
The old lady scolded, "Oh my, how can you eat like that? What will it look like if you put a big copper pot on my fine sandalwood dining table carved with precious lotus flowers? The smoke and fire will blacken my house, won't they? You, kid, have smoked my forest and I haven't settled the score with you yet! How come you feel better after being sick, but your brain is broken, and you keep giving me bad ideas!"
Mei Niang knew that people in this dynasty had not invented hot pot yet, so she apologized with a smile, "I'm sorry, grandma, the forest won't be damaged, and it will be fine next spring! The hot pot that granddaughter-in-law is talking about is not a big copper pot, but a small copper pot that is more delicately made. How can there be smoke and fire when burning charcoal in a small red clay stove? The word hot pot is not made up by granddaughter-in-law. The teacher of granddaughter-in-law's brother is an old scholar. When he was young, he lived in the north. The north is very cold, and people in the north are used to eating hot pot. The old teacher taught us to eat it this way. In the winter, the whole family sits around a table, and all kinds of meat and vegetables are washed and cut, and placed on the table. In the middle is a hot pot. No matter chicken, duck, beef or mutton, they are all put in to boil. The steam is steaming, and the aroma is fragrant. It is delicious to drink a mouthful of hot soup, not to mention the hot meat and vegetables! Eating hot pot is easy and convenient, and the taste is delicious. I guarantee that you will want to eat it again after trying it once!"
The old lady was so hungry after hearing her description: "I have lived for decades and have never eaten like that. It sounds really delicious!"
Mei Niang said: "Grandma, if you don't believe me, my granddaughter-in-law will prepare a table for you tomorrow!"
The old lady looked at the cold dishes on the table in front of her and said, "Why not prepare it now? The food tonight is a bit cold and hard. I couldn't even eat a few bites..."
Mother Ji and others around her couldn't help but feel uneasy. Didn't the old lady eat this much for dinner every day? After listening to the grandmother's words, she wanted to try something new.
Mei Niang also knew that the elderly should not eat too much for dinner. She was thinking about how to coax her when she suddenly saw a maid come in. She smiled at her and said to Bai Jingyu:
"The housekeeper in front reported: Grandma's mother's family - the Qin family's in-laws and uncle have arrived, rushing over from their hometown Yuezhou!"
Seeing everyone looking at her, Mei Niang finally realized: It turned out to be her own mother and brother!
Really, I just mentioned my brother and he’s here!
Mei Niang stood up and said shyly: "Grandmother: My granddaughter-in-law's mother and her brother have come all the way here..."
The old lady nodded in understanding, "They have been away from Beijing for some time to live in the countryside, but this time they came just for you. You go and entertain them well, don't be impolite. It's been snowing all the way, it's hard for them to travel day and night... You shouldn't have any good tea in Tsinghua Courtyard, Ruixue, take a pack of autumn tea that the old lady of the Wen family gave me the day before yesterday to the grandmother, and make a pot of hot water for the wife and the grandfather to eat. Also pack some of my preserved fruits, I'm sure the wife will like them. Jingyu asked the kitchen to prepare a good banquet. The old courtyard of the Qin family in Beijing has no one to take care of it. It's too deserted to live in. Let them stay tonight. There are not enough quilts, get a few new ones from the warehouse!"
Mei Niang kowtowed to thank the old lady, said goodbye to everyone, and lifted the warm curtain. A strong damp and cold wind blew, and she shivered. She heard the maids in the courtyard whispering about why the snow was suddenly so thick and heavy. Only then did she realize that it was dark. Large balls of snowflakes wrapped in broken ice fell from the sky, just like rain. If she ran back to Tsinghua Court like this, she would be as thin as an ice stick if she didn't freeze to death.
Mother Wang and Cuixi looked up at the sky anxiously. Cuixi said, "Grandma's robe is too thin. I'm wearing a cotton coat. Can I take off my coat to protect you from the wind and snow?"
Mei Niang stopped her: "I don't want you to fall ill, wait a moment, and think of a solution!"
Suddenly, two people emerged from the wind and snow. The one walking in front was Weiyuan Hou Xu Junying, still wearing his sable cloak. Behind him was a relatively thin young man wearing a moon-white brocade cloak, and his face looked somewhat like him.
Mother Wang and Cui Xi bowed and called out to the two men, "Master Hou, Master Liu!"
Mei Niang then realized that the man was the Sixth Master of the Xu Family, Xu Junying's half-brother, and the eldest son of the family, Xu Junxuan.
Xu Junxuan bowed to Mei Niang, called her sister-in-law, and looked at her with curiosity.
Mei Niang was helpless: If I were to travel through time again, I would never be reborn as a dead person in a coffin. She couldn't stand everyone looking at her like this, but they weren't aliens.
Xu Junying asked: "Why are you standing here?"
Mei Niang said: "My mother and brother are here and are about to go back. The snowstorm is so strong and it looks scary!"
Xu Junying said nothing. He met his sixth brother in the corridor. When he heard him say that he was going to Jinhua Hall to pay his respects to his grandmother, he went over with him. He didn't know that Mei Niang's mother and brother had arrived.
What Mei Niang was thinking was: Xu Junying, oh Xu Junying, if you come back with me to meet my family and give me this black leather coat of yours to protect me from the wind and snow, I will consider you a good husband!
Xu Junying didn't say anything, but Xu Junxuan on the side felt embarrassed and took off his cloak:
"The snowstorm is too strong, sister-in-law, please use this to block it, or you will fall ill again!"
The moon-white brocade cape, with the fresh scent of a man's clothes, was handed to Mei Niang. Just as Mei Niang was about to take it, Xu Junying came to his senses and stretched out his hand to block it:
"Sixth brother, won't you have to go back in the snow soon? You are weak and susceptible to colds, so stay here!"
He took off the black mink cloak and put it in Cuixi's hand: "Put it on grandma. The wind and snow are too strong. Walk slowly and don't fall..."
Mei Niang wanted to say something to him, but the maid in the corridor had already opened the warm curtain and announced loudly: "Master Hou and Master Liu are here!"
There was a burst of cheers in the room. It turned out that these two people were so popular!
Cui Xi smiled as she tied a thick and warm mink cloak on Mei Niang. Mei Niang sighed: He didn't go to see his mother and brother, but at least he gave the cloak to me. Isn't that a little bit of kindness? (To be continued)