Concubine Xiao and Qing Le went back to the yard, and happened to set up a banquet, there were five big tables, and Mrs. Qin was busy making arrangements.
There are delicacies from mountains and seas on the table, as well as fresh melons and fruits, which are very rich.
"These dishes are all from Lanjiuxiang. I heard that Lanjiuxiang is very popular in Beijing, so I invited the cook from Lanjiuxiang. Don't be too polite, everyone, let's have a good taste of Lanjiuxiang's craftsmanship." Mrs. Qin greeted.
Xiao Concubine raised her eyes and saw that there was no place on the main table. Next to Qin Yun was Zhen Yan, and at the top was Mrs. Qin.
"Sister Xiao, princess, if you don't mind, there are two more places here." A girl called out softly.
Concubine Xiao smiled slightly, "Why do you dislike it? Where can I sit?"
"Yeah, I don't care about it either." Qing Le sat down casually, with a faint smile on her face, her mood was already much better.
Mrs. Qin glanced at the other end, a smile curled up at the corner of her mouth, pretending not to know, she turned her head and smiled, "The fragrance of wine is famous in the capital, and the dishes are first-rate, if Miss Zhen didn't come forward, I really wouldn't be able to invite her."
Qin Yun's complexion changed slightly, this banquet was clearly not a dish for wine, why did her mother mention this one
"Mother." Qin Yun whispered in Mrs. Qin's ear.
Mrs. Qin didn't take it seriously, she only knew that the young ladies heard that it was a feast of wine, so she gave the Qin family a high look, and that was enough.
Zhen Yan was even more confused, and then she thought that Mrs. Qin probably wanted to show off. She glanced at Xiao Concubine at the next table, and her face turned red.
"Aunt Qin, I don't..."
"Sister Zhen." Qin Yun interrupted Zhen Yan's words in time, and whispered, "My mother is a little busy these days, so she was confused for a while."
Zhen Yan understood, "Don't blame Aunt Qin, it's fine."
Mrs. Qin was extremely satisfied with Zhen Yan when she heard the words, she praised Zhen Yan a lot, and made no secret of her love for Zhen Yan.
Qingle propped his chin with one hand, glanced at Mrs. Qin, then at Xiao Concubine, moved her red lips and simply took a sip with chopsticks, with a strange expression on her face.
"Xiao Jiu, is this meal really made by Lan Jiuxiang?"
Concubine Xiao shook her head, and Qingle said again, "Isn't that a signboard for smashing Lanjiuxiang? How could Zhen Yan have anything to do with Lanjiuxiang?"
Concubine Xiao smiled mysteriously, and whispered something in Qingle's ear. Qingle almost couldn't laugh out loud when she heard the words, and she ate with her head down.
Concubine Xiao looked indifferent, but she couldn't stand the chatter of someone beside her.
"Miss Zhen invited the cook who is enjoying the fragrance of wine. Why didn't Miss Xiao Jiu invite her? Miss Xiao Jiu is Miss Qin's cousin."
"Besides, the fragrance of wine is the Zhao family's property, how could it have anything to do with the Zhen family?"
Several people muttered, Qin Yun's complexion changed, and before she could speak, she saw one of the women tasted the steamed pearl fish and said doubtfully, "Mrs. Restaurant?"
Before Qin Yun could stop her, Mrs. Qin nodded her head directly, "That's right, yes."
"But a few days ago, I went to Lanjiuxiang. This steamed pearl fish tastes far from the one in the store."
Mrs. Qin's face froze, "How could this be..."
"Yes, this emerald ice duck dish is greasy in the mouth, which is completely different from the fat but not greasy dish of Lanjiuxiang."
"And this soup with green bamboo shoots and hundreds of flowers, how can there be a shadow of hundreds of flowers?"
"Jiu Niang Osmanthus Balls are also sweet and greasy, completely different from what I ate at Lan Jiuxiang. Mrs. Qin must not have been deceived. How could Lan Jiuxiang make these dishes? Isn't this a signboard?"
One after another, the noble ladies put down their chopsticks and stood up to complain, and some serious ones spit out at the table.
Mrs. Qin's complexion changed immediately, and she tasted these meals one by one. They were simple and delicious, and there was nothing wrong with them.
Could it be that it is really much worse than Lanjiuxiang? Mrs. Qin also lost her sense of control for a while, and a good make-up feast turned out like this, Mrs. Qin wished she could bite her tongue off.
"Isn't this the cook invited by Miss Zhen? Could it be that she was deceived? Just find someone to pretend to be the cook of Lanjiuxiang. I remember that Lanjiuxiang never borrows a cook." One of the noble women was displeased road.
"This may be a misunderstanding, everyone, don't worry, I will let the villain go and see what's going on."
Qin Yun stood up and explained, but everyone remained silent.
"Lanjiuxiang's owner is Master Zhao, but it's a pity that Master Zhao is not in the capital recently." Zhen Yan sighed.
After a while, someone immediately said, "Didn't Master Zhao hand over the shop to Miss Xiao Jiu? Miss Xiao Jiu is also the master of the wine fragrance. Could it be that Miss Xiao Jiu instructed her to mess up Miss Qin on purpose?" I don't want Miss Zhen to be in the limelight."
"Miss Liu must have misunderstood." Qin Yun hurriedly explained that this matter was originally an oolong, so why did it involve Miss Xiao.
"Xiao Jiu." Mrs. Qin hurried over upon hearing the words, and held Xiao Concubine's hand affectionately, "You are young and ignorant, and you can't control the tricky and slippery servants, you should pay more attention to this matter in the future Ah, Auntie won't blame you for the accident this time."
Mrs. Qin kept winking at Concubine Xiao, and took advantage of this step to hurry down.
Everyone suddenly realized that seeing Xiao Yu's face changed, it must be Xiao Yu deliberately ordering the cook.
The Qin family is Xiao Concubine's maternal grandfather, so it's not easy to pursue it because it's in the way of face, it's too much!
There were more and more doubts, and Qin Yun stepped forward with a guilty face, never expecting that things would develop to this point.
Concubine Xiao raised her eyebrows, "Cousin also thinks I'm playing tricks?"
Qin Yun shook her head, but Mrs. Qin squeezed Qin Yun's arm, "It's not your fault, it's all the cook's fault, she lost her previous standard."
After a long time, Qin Yun said, "Xiao Jiu, how can I blame you, this matter is really a misunderstanding."
The corners of Miss Xiao's lips twitched, "Auntie, Xiao Jiu is really wronged, Lanjiuxiang is Zhaohou Lord's shop, and the people are invited by Miss Zhen, and the food is cooked in Qin's mansion. It had nothing to do with it at all, but all the responsibility was pushed to my head."
Mrs. Qin's complexion darkened, "Xiao Jiu, it's fine if you play around wildly at a young age, because your father dotes on Zhao Houye, even a small fragrance of wine is up to you."
Qin Yun wanted to say something, but slowly lowered her head under Mrs. Qin's gaze, Xiao Yu smiled and remained silent.
"Xiao Jiu, no one here blames you for anything. It's understandable for the cook to behave abnormally. You will learn a lot of wisdom if you suffer from it. Auntie believes that you will be able to manage the shop well in the future when you are older."
Mrs. Qin continued to mislead everyone with specious words, and shirked responsibility.
Qingle slammed down on the table with a cold face, "Since the cook was invited by Xinling County Lord, then please tell Xinling County Lord which cook is Lan Jiuxiang, so as not to be unclear." Chu, people are misunderstood."
Xiao Concubine glanced at Qingle, and the corners of her mouth curled up, but she was not angry at all.
Mrs. Qin froze for a moment, but Qin Yun raised her eyes to look at Qingle, frowned slightly, and displeasure flashed in her eyes.
"Princess..."
Qingle raised her eyebrows, "To be honest, my princess has nothing to do, and I have invested in some shares in Lanjiuxiang. My princess wants to see which cook is so bold and blatantly ruins the reputation of Lanjiuxiang. Since this person was invited by County Lord Xinling, County Lord Xinling should recognize him, right?"
Now everyone was confused, and looked at Zhen, Zhen Yan's mind was running fast.
"Why does the princess have to be so arrogant? Today is Sister Qin's make-up feast, why bother to be unhappy because of such a trivial matter. I heard that if the make-up feast is unlucky, the woman will have trouble in her in-law's house in the future."
Zhen Yan continued slowly, "This matter was my negligence, princess, Miss Xiao, and Aunt Qin, sister Qin, Zhen Yan apologizes to you all here."
Zhen Yan did not hide or dodge and generously took on the matter, her general knowledge and humiliation won a lot of goodwill, especially Mrs. Qin and Qin Yun.
At this stalemate, it was Zhen Yan who gave everyone a step.
Qingle raised her eyebrows, "Miss Zhen, what about the reputation that Lanjiuxiang has damaged? I remember that the Zhen family has opened many restaurants, not inferior to Lanjiuxiang. Everyone knows that Lanjiuxiang is not easy to please. The young lady invited Lanjiuxiang instead of her own restaurant, and besides, how could Lanjiuxiang make it difficult for herself just because of today."
Xiao Yu sneered, "It's not that Lanjiuxiang is too popular and blocked some people's way. After this incident, Lanjiuxiang's reputation may be ruined. Last time in Liufang Pavilion, a lunatic appeared for no reason. This time again It's the fragrance of wine, who can tell."
Zhen Yan's face changed slightly when she heard the two slandering the Zhen family.
Concubine Xiao pulled Qingle back, "I've always had a bad temper. I've been to Lanjiuxiang several times. As soon as this dish was served, I knew it wasn't a dish for Lanjiuxiang. You just want to stop me from making trouble. Come on, I have delayed Cousin Yun's make-up feast, but I don't know that sometimes troubles will come to you automatically."
Qingle was very moved. Xiao Concubine took the responsibility on himself and left her alone. As expected, Mrs. Qin looked at Xiao Concubine's expression more and more badly.
"Okay, okay, this matter is my blindness, I just listen to you and don't care about it."
Concubine Xiao smiled at Qingle, "It's a big deal. Later, I will pay for the fragrance of wine for you all, so that everyone can taste the real fragrance of wine."
After such a fuss, Qin Yun also felt somewhat embarrassed and guilty, "Xiao Jiu, why do you need to pay for this money? It's on my cousin."
Concubine Xiao covered her mouth with a smile, and nodded graciously, "Then Xiaojiu is not impolite, you sisters should pay attention next time you want to hire a cook, every cook in Lanjiuxiang has a number recorded in it , if it doesn’t match, it’s a fake, there are a lot of people impersonating these days, sisters, don’t be fooled.”
Xiao Concubine cleverly resolved the crisis with a few words, and dragged the Zhen family into the water by the way. The peers were very eye-catching, and if they didn't keep it together, it was because the Zhen family deliberately damaged the reputation of Lanjiuxiang.
If Zhen Yan wants to refute, she can tell the cook's number, but if she can't, it will make people think too much.
Xiao Concubine and Zhen Yan had a complete fight, Xiao Concubine was not afraid at all, what she said made people speechless, she was not a soft persimmon to be manipulated by others.
"Sisters, there's no need to spoil your spirits over these trivial matters. I'll let the princess treat you later, and congratulate Cousin Yun on adding makeup."
Concubine Xiao blinked at Qingle, Qingle smiled, and said to Qingfei, "Go and tell the shopkeeper Lanjiuxiang to arrange for some cooks to come over as soon as possible without delay."
The smile on Zhen Yan's face was almost unstoppable, all of them looked at her with contempt and puzzlement, and came to the Qin family, and within an hour, Zhen Yan was so angry that she was so angry. I was full, but I still had to hold on.
"Cousin, don't worry, Xiao Jiu will definitely not let anyone mess up my cousin's make-up feast. In the future, my cousin should live happily ever after."
Concubine Xiao was sincere. As for Qin Yun's silence just now, Concubine Xiao knew it well.
Qin Yun blushed with shame, "Hey, Xiao Jiu shouldn't take it to heart about a misunderstanding, it's all because of my cousin's confusion."
Xiao Yu smiled without saying a word.
After the table was removed, everyone drank tea and chatted, Qin Yun and Mrs. Qin kept comforting Zhen Yan, and Zhen Yan smiled generously, "It's okay, it's just that I said something wrong and everyone misunderstood Miss Xiao. "
Mrs. Qin curled her lips, looking at Concubine Xiao's figure unconsciously filled with disgust, she held her breath in her heart, "This child is spoiled by her father, no matter how old or young, she is used to contradicting her elders in public."
"Mother." Qin Yun glanced at Mrs. Qin, she didn't blame Concubine Xiao for this incident, but who could stand being dumped for no reason without explaining
Mrs. Qin didn't think so, anyway, she was also an elder, and Xiao Yu's words were aggressive at all, with sharp teeth and sharp mouth, it was annoying to watch.
Zhen Yan tactfully did not participate in the conversation between the mother and daughter, and stood aside with an elegant smile.
After a while, Duke Qin came in, followed by several men.
"I can smell the fragrance from a long distance, and I can't help but come and have a look."
Qin Guogong had just come down from court, when he passed by the courtyard, he was attracted by the scent, and happened to be there with several young masters, so he couldn't help but walk in, including Qin Yunting.
"grandfather."
"Grandfather." Xiao Concubine greeted her, and then asked people to prepare a few more tables. There were many people holding wine and scented belts, so the dishes were served quickly, and the dishes were exquisite and delicious, making people mouth watering.
"Grandfather, this is a delicious meal with wine. It was specially ordered by Xiao Jiu and the princess." Qin Yun was also very happy to see that her makeup banquet was so lively, and she would not let others take advantage of it and return disappointed Bar.
Qingle raised her eyes to look at Qin Yunting, but she saw that Qin Yunting's eyes were fixed on Zhen Yan who was standing aside with her head bowed. In an instant, Qingle's whole body was dimmed by three points.
Qin Guogong nodded, "I've got my heart, you don't have to hold back, let's go."
Qin Guogong left after a few instructions. Due to the defense of men and women, several people also left with Qin Guogong. Before leaving, Qin Yunting frowned slightly.
The make-up feast was very lively, and Mrs. Qin felt even more uncomfortable seeing the crowd eating like wolves and tigers.
After everyone dispersed, Mrs. Qin said displeasedly, "How can a guest steal the limelight from the master's house? It's too disgraceful. The child raised by this concubine just has no rules and doesn't know how to behave at all."
Qin Yun heard the words, "Mother, please don't say a few words, Xiao Jiu is not all for us, today's matter has nothing to do with her, why bother to involve Xiao Jiu."
Qin Yun felt ashamed when she thought of this, Mrs. Qin glanced at Qin Yun, "If she hadn't been so aggressive, she wouldn't have made a joke, besides, you are her cousin, holding the fragrance of wine in your hand but Don't say anything, if you helped the cook come over earlier, it would be even more impossible for today's incident to happen."
Qin Yun moved her lips, unable to refute Mrs. Qin, and hurried to see off the ladies of the official family.
Xiao Concubine accompanied Qing Le, and Zhen Yan happened to be right in front of her. I wonder if she was thinking about something, but Zhen Yan accidentally sprained her foot, and the next moment, a man rushed towards her.
Zhen Yan raised her eyes in a daze, and looked at the visitor with a confused and aggrieved expression.
"Are you okay?" Qin Yunting waited outside the door for a long time, knowing everything about what happened in the yard, and felt more and more distressed for this pure and kind girl.
"Thank you, Mr. Qin." Zhen Yan regained consciousness, stood up slowly and took a few steps back, keeping a distance.
Qin Yunting withdrew his hand in frustration, but kept his gaze fixed on Zhen Yan, "I have wronged you, and I apologize to you on behalf of my mother."
Zhen Yan smiled and shook her head, "It's okay, I was also at fault for this matter, Miss Xiao should not have been involved, so it didn't cause any serious mistakes."
Qin Yunting sighed, "I'll take you back."
"No, Mr. Qin is different from a man and a woman. Zhen Yan doesn't want to be misunderstood, so I ask Mr. Qin to think more about Zhen Yan's reputation."
Zhen Yan was like a frightened rabbit, with red eyes, somewhat panicked and embarrassed, but for some reason, it fell into Qin Yunting's eyes, and she only felt distressed.
"Miss Zhen, I will ask my mother to come to propose marriage in a few days, and I will definitely take good care of you in the future." Qin Yunting couldn't help but speak.