"You really don't want to sleep in another room?"
Jiang Miao looked at Pei Che, who was leaning on the couch by the window reading a book, and felt very puzzled.
"No one has slept in the other rooms for a long time, so there must be a lot of dust." Pei Che made up an excuse without even raising his head.
"Butler Wu will cry if you talk like that. I've seen him personally leading people to clean the place before." Jiang Miao rolled his eyes, "I don't know who said last time that the reason they had to squeeze into one room was because there were not enough rooms over there." There are enough rooms now, so four people can still squeeze into one, right
Pei Che pretended not to hear. The life experience he had accumulated during these days of getting along told him that if a man with a family wanted to make his life easier, he must learn to play deaf and dumb, which would avoid many conflicts.
Sure enough, he didn't refute, and Jiang Miao didn't bother to say anything more. It didn't matter where he slept. He made the bed, took out a thin blanket and a pillow from the cabinet, and put them on the small couch.
It's called a small couch, but it's actually two meters long and one meter and two meters wide, a bit like the bed in Jiang Miao's school dormitory. Sleeping on it is definitely not comfortable, at least Jiang Miao himself would not sleep in such a place when there is a spare room.
"Why haven't they come back yet?" Pei Che put down the book and looked outside. A full moon was hanging in the sky, and the watery moonlight was scattered on the ground, illuminating the surroundings.
"How should I know? Maybe he is playing in the garden." Jiang Miao guessed casually. He sat at the table, looking at the account book spread out on the table, and took a small charcoal pencil in his right hand to settle today's accounts.
Because this is the shop he runs himself and he is usually in the shop, Jiang Miao does not record every business transaction in the account book. He only counts the total income in the morning and noon every day, and then calculates the daily turnover based on the expenditure.
"I'll go out and take a look." Pei Che stood up and walked out, and returned to the house after a while.
Jiang Miao closed the account book and looked behind Pei Che. Seeing that the two children did not come in with him, he felt a little surprised: "Didn't you go out to look for someone? Where is the person?"
"They were catching fireflies in the garden, and Butler Wu and a few others were watching them."
"Well, the shower was in vain." Jiang Miao was a little helpless, "When they come back later, I have to get some water to wipe it off - eh? What's this on your hand?"
Jiang Miao just realized that Pei Che was holding a cloth bag. The things in the bag looked quite thin, but judging from the length, it didn't look like a book.
Pei Che smiled, walked over, put the things on the table, and then untied them.
The exposed part showed that it was a flat wooden box made of Torreya grandis, with some squares drawn on it, and a large cross-shaped square in the center at the top. Jiang Miao's breath was caught in his throat, and some guesses came to his mind.
He held his breath, tore off the cloth wrapping the outside, then opened the lock in the middle of the box and took a look. The red and black chess pieces each occupied one side, and the general and the commander sitting firmly in the central military tent were confronting each other. Just by seeing these words, Jiang Miao seemed to have recalled the fierce games he had played in the past.
"Why are you..." Jiang Miao held the folding chessboard, looked at Pei Che with sparkling eyes, and was somewhat speechless. He remembered that he only mentioned it to Pei Che once at the beginning.
"Do you like it?" Pei Che also looked at him. "I remember you said you were best at chess, so I wanted to give you a set. But I sent people to ask around, but found that no place sold the chess you mentioned." Because Pei Che inquired for a long time before deciding to draw the picture himself and have the craftsmen make it, it took several months before he got the chess.
"I like it!" Jiang Miao nodded vigorously, his face a little hot due to excitement. It felt so good that someone would take his words to heart!
Pei Che smiled even more gently and invited: "How about we play a game of hands?"
Jiang Miao nodded quickly. Speaking of which, he hadn't played chess with anyone for a long time, whether in ancient times or modern times. Before crossing over, Jiang Miao was busy with his life, and most of the gatherings with friends were just eating and drinking. Playing chess seemed to be only suitable for those who lived a leisurely life.
When they were in the Plum Garden, Jiang Miao not only drew the chessboard and chess pieces, but also introduced the rules. He was afraid that Pei Che would forget, so he repeated it. Pei Che actually remembered it very clearly, but he did not interrupt Jiang Miao, but listened attentively to Jiang Miao talking to him in a cheerful tone with a smile on his face.
"Haha, General!" Jiang Miao mounted the cannon behind the horse with a snap and looked at Pei Che proudly.
Pei Che watched for a long time, but found that no matter how he moved, he was powerless to save the situation. He could only sigh: "I am inferior to others in skills. I have to admit defeat."
Jiang Miao pretended to be modest and bowed his hands: "Thank you very much. It's your first time, and you can eat so many of my pieces. It's already very impressive."
Pei Che said: "Thank you for the compliment. I am indeed not very good at chess. I will practice more and then I will ask you for advice."
As soon as he said this, Jiang Miao felt a sense of crisis. If he was asked to practice more, could he still win? It wasn't that Jiang Miao was trying to boost others' morale and destroy his own prestige. It was just that this guy was too smart and could learn anything quickly.
"Then let's play a few more games today. It's still early!" Jiang Miao held Pei Che back, not letting him get up. He wanted to win a few more games before this guy got the hang of it.
By the third round, Xiao Shitou and Pei Mu came back. Butler Wu was still very reliable. He cleaned them and changed their clothes before sending them back.
"Brother, what are you doing?" asked Little Stone.
"Ah?" Pei Mu also spoke quickly. He had been making some unclear sounds recently, and he thought he would be able to speak clearly soon.
"We are playing chess, you guys go to sleep first." Jiang Miao stared at the chessboard. Pei Che pressed on step by step, so he had to be alert.
The two younger ones didn't want to, so they just stood by and watched them. Although they didn't understand much, it didn't stop them from watching with great interest.
After turning off the lights, Jiang Miao fell asleep with the joy of a winner, unlike the insomnia and dreaminess he had suffered in the past few days. Pei Che lay on the small couch, quietly listening to the three shallow breathing sounds, and fell asleep unknowingly.
Before daybreak, Pei Che returned to the Imperial College with the lunch box Jiang Miao had prepared for him. When he arrived at the Imperial College, it was time for everyone to have breakfast.
When Han Qin and his companions arrived at the Essence Garden, they found Pei Che was already there, with a food box on the table.
"Ache, so early?"
"A Miao was afraid that I would be late, so he asked me to get up as soon as the morning bell rang." Pei Che looked helpless, but his tone of voice hinted at boasting.
"You... live in the same room?" Han Qin winked at him, making his amorous peach blossom eyes look a little vulgar.
"Nonsense, can't you wake me up just because you live next door?" Pei Che said seriously.
Han Qin felt bored when he heard this. He sat down next to Pei Che and whispered, "Ah Che, are you... not very good at it?"
Pei Che said calmly: "If you say one more word, you won't be able to eat the breakfast I brought."
Han Qin quickly shut up. He turned around and saw that He Chen and Su Jin had already opened the food boxes and were taking things out, so he quickly joined the battle.
This food box has three layers. Jiang Miao prepared four portions of each of the things that are easy to carry in the store and put them in it. The novel and delicious breakfast won unanimous recognition from everyone. Everything in it is delicious. Although it is a little cold, it does not affect its taste at all.
"Ache, how do you think Brother Jiang came up with this idea and how can he make so many delicious things?" Many of the things here were things they had never eaten before, like three-in-one food, fried dough sticks, tea eggs and the like.
"It's just that we are ignorant, Miao said. Daliang is a vast country with rich resources. Every place has its own special food. What we think is novel may be commonplace to others. What we think is very common may be unheard of by others."
"Yes, just like the meat dumplings last time. People here have never eaten them before, but everyone in Li Siye's hometown eats them. I heard that he sent people to buy dumplings there last time. They really are delicious!"
"It's hard to leave one's hometown. I guess the rice dumplings aroused his homesickness."
After Pei Che finished speaking, Han Qin suddenly thought of something: "Li Siye likes to eat rice dumplings because he misses his hometown. Su Jin also likes it. Could it be that your ancestors also came from the South?"
Su Jin was concentrating on eating, and was suddenly mentioned. He was a little confused for a moment, but after reacting, he nodded. The elders of the Marquis' Mansion did come all the way from the South. In addition to him, everyone else also liked the food in the South.
"That's true." Han Qin said. The Han family members are all from the north, but his taste is more diverse. As long as it is delicious, he likes it.
It has been several days since Pei Che came back last time. These days, everyone in Jiang's house has been busy, especially housekeeper Wu, who has lost a lot of weight in just a few days. Because in five days, it will be the wedding date of Jiang Miao and Pei Che. The mansion will host a banquet for the guests who come to celebrate, so in order not to lose face at that time, they must always be in high spirits.
Jiang Miao went back to Jiangjiawan and took all the family members to the carriage. For such a big event, he couldn't just have his second uncle and second aunt around.
As for other people, like the clan leader and some people in the clan, Jiang Miao hesitated for a moment and still didn't invite them. Jiang's second uncle also agreed not to invite them. The words of the country folks were not pleasant to hear. If other people went back and said something nonsense, a good thing would turn into a bad thing.
Uncle Jiang and Aunt Jiang had been here last time and seemed calm. The other four opened their mouths wide as soon as they entered the door of Jiang's house, with surprise written all over their faces.
Jiang Yu did not go to the shop today, but stayed at Jiang's house to reunite with his family. Since he was able to earn money, Jiang Yu became more confident. Although he still couldn't speak, the smile on his face was brighter than before.
The three younger sisters at home looked at Jiang Yu with envy in their hearts, but they also knew that the reason why their elder sister was able to stay in Liangjing City to make money on her own was because their parents were worried that the villagers would say something unpleasant to her and make her sad.
Brother Miao had actually asked them before if they wanted to come to the city, but their father and mother wouldn’t let them, fearing that they would cause trouble for Brother Miao.
"Uncle and aunt, these are the rooms prepared for you and your sisters. As for Xin'er, she can sleep with Xiao Shitou, so she can keep you company." Jiang Miao took them to the back yard. It was quiet here and outsiders couldn't come in, so it was suitable for girls to live in. Jiang Yu also lived here.
"No need to prepare so much, just let them sleep together." Uncle Jiang said.
"Everything is cleaned, let the sisters move in. Some things have been prepared in the room, you can go and have a look. You must be tired from the journey, you can take a rest first, I will call you when it's time for dinner." Jiang Miao said.
Uncle Jiang and Aunt Jiang watched Jiang Miao's back go away, then turned around and taught the children not to touch things in the house, so as to avoid being looked down upon and bringing shame to Jiang Miao.
(End of this chapter)