When Jiang Yanyi left the private room, he met Chu Shubao and her sister at the stairs leading to the third floor. They were sitting on the wooden stairs, eating a bowl of glutinous rice balls each.
Seeing Jiang Yanyi, Chu Shubao hurriedly called her: "Ayi, these dumplings are delicious, you should also scoop a bowl to try."
It was already past noon, and as there were still many guests having meals in the building, the waiters there were still busy. In order not to add burden to the kitchen, the Chu Shubao sisters ate some cakes and sweet soup to fill their stomachs when they were hungry.
Jiang Yanyi asked the kitchen to prepare two large buckets of sweet soup to be served throughout the day. One bucket was Tremella and Wolfberry soup, and the other bucket was soft and delicious small dumplings. Although they were cooked in a large pot, they tasted better than those cooked by some people's cooks at home.
Jiang Yanyi and Feng Shuo had just finished a hot pot meal and were not hungry yet, so he said, "You guys eat, I'll go downstairs and take a look."
Make something delicious for them.
Chu Jiabao suddenly asked, "Second sister, why did you stay in the private room of the Bamboo Shop for so long?"
From their position they could just see the Bamboo private room. The two sisters had already finished most of the bowl of glutinous rice balls here. They had to pass through here to get to the Bamboo private room. They didn't see Jiang Yanyi passing by, which meant that Jiang Yanyi had entered the room before they came here to eat the glutinous rice balls.
Jiang Yanyi was too embarrassed to say that it was Feng Shuo who came over, so he evaded the question by saying, "An old lady didn't know how to cook shabu-shabu meat, so I helped her cook it for a while."
Watching her go downstairs, Chu Shubao held the bowl in one hand, rested her elbow on her knee with the other hand, and dragged her face with her palm. She tilted her head and looked at Chu Jiabao and said, "Jiabao, I'll eat the pot later. Can you help me wash the meat?"
Chu Jiabao ate the sweet and soft glutinous rice balls and said without even looking up: "Make it yourself!"
Chu Shubao tilted her head and just happened to see the door of the Zhuzihao private room open. The man who came out was wearing a dark-colored fine brocade robe and a heavy fox fur cloak on his shoulders. Although only half of his profile could be seen, he was worthy of the description of "a face as handsome as a jade".
Chu Shubao was stunned. Is this the "old woman" that Jiang Yanyi mentioned
Before Feng Shuo came over, she quickly pulled Chu Jiabao up to the third floor: "Hurry up, hurry up."
"What's this for?" Chu Jiabao was confused and was dragged to the third floor by his cousin.
Chu Shubao and her cousin hid at the stairwell on the third floor, watching the man walk by from the second floor. A guard behind him lowered his voice and reported something to him: "Your Highness, the Marquis of Xing'an..."
The guard had just started to speak when the man in the cloak seemed to have noticed something and raised his hand to stop the guard from continuing. He raised his head and glanced towards the third floor. His eyes were deep and long. It was clearly just a glance, but the moment he was stared at, it felt like countless sharp blades were against the back of his neck.
Feng Shuo quickly withdrew his gaze and left with Xing Yao.
Chu Shubao and Chu Jiabao were so frightened that they collapsed on the railing of the wooden stairs to the third floor, with a chill running down their backs.
Chu Jiabao was still terrified and asked, "Who... who is this person?"
Chu Shubao's face turned pale: "How many princes are there in Xizhou City?"
Chu Jiabao shuddered.
Chu Shubao couldn't help but feel sorry for Jiang Yanyi when she thought of the time when Jiang Yanyi was with Feng Shuo. No wonder Jiang Yanyi refused to tell them the truth, maybe because he was afraid that they would worry. The look of this Liaonan King was so scary. If she stayed in the same room with him, she would faint.
For the sake of Jiang Yanyi's reputation, she did not tell Chu Jiabao about this.
Chu Jiabao shivered and said, "My second sister's Ruyi Tower opened, and the King of Liaonan came to show his support. The three of us sisters are all here, but why doesn't my second brother come?"
Chu Shubao thought about it carefully and it seemed to be true. Her dissatisfaction with Chu Chengmao outweighed her fear of Feng Shuo. She said, "Don't embroider purses for him this year!"
Chu Chengmao, who was being missed by Chu Shubao and her sister, was still drinking with others in the tavern. He was brought up by Chu Changping since he was a child and grew up in the military camp. He knew the morals of the military ruffians better than anyone else.
He knew that the Chu family was weak in Xizhou and needed to gain a foothold as soon as possible. On the way back to Xizhou, he tried his best to get along with the grassroots soldiers. So far, he has made the acquaintance of many small leaders.
The jar of Shaodaozi was empty. Chu Chengmao kicked the empty jar away, propped up the table and staggered to his feet. He pointed at the drunken soldiers and said, "You bastards lost. You have to go to Ruyi Tower for dinner tonight!"
The drunken soldiers didn't hear what he said and only responded vaguely: "Go, go."
Chu Chengmao also knew that he was drunk. He shook his head, picked up the teapot on the table, and poured a pot of cold water on his face before he sobered up a little.
He kicked a drunken little leader who fell to the ground and cursed: "How can you go to Ruyi Tower and play with me when you are so drunk?"
Seeing that he was still sober, the waiter came over with a big smile on his face to settle the bill with him: "Sir, the total price of the wine is five taels and seven cents. What do you think?"
Chu Chengmao rummaged through his waistband, took out a handful of silver, counted out six taels and handed them to the waiter.
Seeing that he was well-dressed and drunk, the waiter didn't bother to give him change, and said cheerfully, "Thank you, sir!"
He turned around with the silver in his pocket and tried to run, but someone grabbed him by the collar.
Chu Chengmao practiced martial arts. Although he was not a big man, he was over nine feet tall, with arms full of muscular muscles. He carried the waiter as if he were carrying a chicken.
The waiter was almost crying with fear: "Sir, what are you doing?"
Chu Chengmao stretched out his hand: "Change."
The waiter, with a sad face, gave Chu Chengmao three coins in change, and only then did Chu Chengmao loosen his collar.
A servant from the Chu family stumbled in at the door and said, "Master Chengmao, I finally found you!"
Several girls from the Chu family were doing business outside, and Old Madam Chu was worried, so she sent a servant to watch at the door of the store so that if anything happened, the family could be notified in time.
When several big men went to make trouble, the servant of the Chu family saw that the situation was not good, so he immediately ran back to the Chu family to report the news.
The Chu family is now managed by Xue, and Chu Changping is in the army, so she sent the Chu family's guards to Ruyi Tower and asked the servant to find Chu Chengmao.
However, just as the Chu family's security guards left the house, they heard that the dispute had already been resolved at Ruyi Tower, so they dropped the matter.
The servant who was sent to find Chu Chengmao did not withdraw. The servant ran to many places before he found out Chu Chengmao's whereabouts.
Chu Chengmao's eyes were red from the alcohol. He looked at the weeping boy and asked, "What do you want from me?"
The servant said, "Someone is causing trouble in the Second Miss's Ruyi Tower..."
Chu Chengmao rolled up his sleeves and was about to walk out.
The servant was so scared that he quickly hugged Chu Chengmao's calf and said, "Master Chengmao, please listen to me first. The troublemaker was punished by the Princess of Xing'an. The young lady is worried and wants you to go to Ruyi Tower to see the young ladies."
Chu Chengmao was seven parts drunk, and his mind was a little confused. He pinched his brows and said, "I'll go over now."
Seeing that Chu Chengmao could barely walk, the servant didn't dare to let him walk over there. He used himself as a human crutch and helped Chu Chengmao leave the tavern and stop the ox cart.
A drunken little leader in the tavern seemed to have heard the servant's words. He laughed twice and said like a drunkard, "Chu...Brother Chu, the short sissy you saved that day is...the county lady of Xing'an Marquis..."
***
The birthday banquet during the day went smoothly, except for the unlucky fact that Mrs. An broke a tooth outside her shop. The guests who came today praised Ruyi Tower's dishes and services.
Jiang Yanyi settled the bill for the banquet with Madam An Shao. Madam An Shao gave her an extra ten taels of silver to express her gratitude. Jiang Yanyi then asked the kitchen to pack a box of flower cakes suitable for the elderly and gave it to Madam An Shao to take back.
Many wealthy families thought that this birthday banquet was well organized, and six or seven of them came to inquire about the price. Some old customers who wanted to borrow the place to hold a banquet were much more efficient and gave a deposit directly. As a result, Ruyi Tower’s banquet business for the next three days was fully booked.
When Madam An was about to leave surrounded by the servants of the An Mansion, Jiang Yanyi hesitated again and again, but finally stopped her, "I just checked the accounts and found that there is a sum of money that has not been settled. Madam An, please follow me upstairs to recalculate it."
Madam An Shao heard that Jiang Yanyi wanted to talk to her alone, so she told the servants: "Put the birthday gifts for grandma on the carriage first."
After hearing the news, some guests did not go to the An Mansion, but came directly to Ruyi Tower. Naturally, the birthday gifts were also brought to Ruyi Tower.
A senior maid said sarcastically, "Young Madam, the Madam has fallen and the General is not at home. We all know that you are filial. It is almost past 5 p.m. now. You should go back to the mansion to see the Madam as soon as possible."
Madam An Shao looked a little embarrassed. This old woman was someone close to Madam An, and she was saying that she was being unfilial to Madam An if she didn't go back to serve her.
She said, "Mother Liu, I have sent someone to the Xizhou camp to inform the general. Mother cannot leave you alone. You should go back home first with the birthday gift for grandmother. I will be back soon."
It doesn't make sense for a servant to leave first and leave the master behind.
But the old woman was someone close to Madam An, and she knew exactly what Madam An's attitude was towards Young Madam An. She immediately said with a fake smile, "I am worried about you, Madam. Since Young Madam has said so, I will go back first."
The old woman left arrogantly with the servants of the An family, leaving only Madam An's personal maid waiting for her.
Seeing that Madam An's eyes were red, Jiang Yanyi sighed softly, said nothing, and took Madam An to a private room on the second floor.
"Miss Chu, what does you want to tell me?" After sitting down, Madam An Shao did not beat around the bush with Jiang Yanyi and asked directly.
As soon as Jiang Yanyi heard the way she addressed him, he knew that this Madam An Shao must also be aware of his current identity.
She poured a cup of tea for Madam An Shao, "Madam, don't be nervous. This is Junshan Yinzhen from before the New Year. Madam, please try it."
Madam An Shao held her handkerchief and said, "Thank you very much for your hospitality, Miss Chu. However, I am very crude and cannot taste the flavor of this good tea. I will not waste Miss Chu's tea."
Every word she said was to belittle herself, but her real purpose was not to touch the tea here. Jiang Yanyi admired her vigilance.
Jiang Yanyi didn't persuade her anymore. He took a sip and said, "Although it may be a bit presumptuous, I still want to ask Madam, do you know Lord Lu Linyuan?"
Madam An Shao's expression changed almost instantly. She stood up and said, "I have to go back."
Jiang Yanyi's voice was still calm and steady: "I know that there was a disagreement between you and General An because of Lord Lu. Madam, you just need to answer this question. I have a way to make peace between you and General An."
Madam An's nails had already scratched her palms. She looked at Jiang Yanyi with a wry smile and said, "He was the one who asked me to marry An Yongyuan!"
The author has something to say: Thank you to the little angels who voted for me or irrigated nutrient solution during 2021-01-10 23:15:08~2021-01-11 23:59:29~
Thanks to the little angel who threw the rocket launcher: pp 1;
Thanks to the little angels who cast mines: Habitual Toothache, Jinxi 1;
Thanks to the little angels who irrigated the nutrient solution: 20 bottles of "Zhi Zi Yu Gui", "Lemon Orange", and "Zhui Bai Girl"; 10 bottles of "Second Place of Blood Evidence", "Xun Huan", "Ling Er", and "Shang Shan Ruo Shui"; 9 bottles of "Xiao Hong Chen"; 8 bottles of "Shou Ye"; 5 bottles of "Qi Yan Le", "Yu Zai Er", and "Yu Yuan Yuan"; 4 bottles of "Gu Er"; 3 bottles of "Yun Shen Yi Meng"; 1 bottle of "Yi Duo Xiao Hua";
Thank you very much for your support, I will continue to work hard!