Zhulan heard Li Shi’s voice. Li Shi was back from buying meat. Hence she couldn’t eavesdrop anymore. She opened the door, came out, greeted her, and went to the kitchen.

Li Shi put down the meat and when she saw her mother-in-law, she whispered excitedly: “Mom, is the hóufǔ gōngzi really here? My dear, this is the first time I have seen such a big carriage in the county!”

Zhulan Seeing that most of Li Shi’s body was wet, took a bowl and filled it with the ginger water she had boiled, “Drink the ginger soup first.”

Li Shi took it and drank it in a big gulp, then vomited it all out with a slurp, sticking out her tongue, “Spicy, spicy, spicy and choking.”

Zhulan silently looked at the small half bowl of ginger slices in the clay pot. She seemed to have put too much!

Zhao Shi lowered her head and looked at the shoe flowers. Well, her embroidery had improved again.

Li Shi caught the subtle expressions, her mother-in-law’s eyes revealing something. She knew her mother-in-law was behind this. Though she was pleased that her mother-in-law cared for her, she would rather not have this affection. She had always thought her mother-in-law’s cooking wasn’t tasty, but she never expected even a simple ginger soup wouldn’t be well-made, making her throat uncomfortable due to its spiciness.

Zhulan held the clay pot and said, “It’s too hard to boil. You should make ginger soup later. Don’t forget it.”

Li Shi took the pottery pot from her mother-in-law’s arms and poured the remaining ginger soup into a bowl. Inside, “Mom, I sweated just now, no need to drink anymore. Mom, the ginger soup you made is really powerful. My husband hasn’t drank it yet, so I’ll bring it to him.”

Zhulan, “.”

Great, the straightforward girl also developed some cleverness. She was planning to play a trick on her husband. She rubbed her chin, thinking this had a lot of potential!

Zhao Shi, “.”

Retribution, dàgē bullied dasao frequently, so this was revenge.

Zhulan didn’t have to wait for long. Boss Zhou rushed into the kitchen, holding a gourd ladle and drinking water like crazy. The spiciness made his eyes teary. Who would have thought that his silly wife had become clever, and she specifically set a trap for him? It moved him so much that his mother personally brewed ginger soup for him, and he drank every drop.

Boss Zhou looked up and saw his mother turning over the newly bought meat and nodding with satisfaction from time to time, twitching the corners of her mouth, “Stop pretending Mother, I saw you smiling.”

Li Shi quickly changed her clothes and came back. She was in a good mood and hummed a country tune. Not to mention it was very nice. Fat people were all good singers. It was not a lie. Zhulan really liked listening to it.

The lunch dishes were decided, and they were all home-cooked, including braised fish, braised pork, ribs stewed with potatoes, chicken stewed with mushrooms, spicy rabbit meat, stir-fried pork with peppers, sausages, and egg custard. Eight dishes were put together, and there were no tricks at all. These were dishes every family knew how to make.

Li Shi felt that eight dishes were beyond her capabilities. She had it all planned out: with just the fish, she could prepare several dishes. Naturally, the gōngzi from the Hóu family would expect the best. Unfortunately, with a single glance from her mother-in-law, she dared not object. She obediently prepared the dishes, hoping to achieve perfection with the ordinary ingredients.

Zhulan had been helping in the kitchen and did not go back to the house to change clothes until lunch was served. No one was in the main hall. Because Yao Zheyu wanted to know the teaching level of the clan school, Zhou Shuren took Yao Zheyu to Changzhi’s room.

There was no one in the main hall. Zhulan moved all the gift boxes back to her room. She counted eight boxes. From the packaging, she knew they were not cheap goods. Zhulan didn’t look at the gifts and went out to help Zhao Shi lay the table. The main hall was going to have just one table.

They all ate at a different table in the Second room. Compared to the eldest room, she liked the clean and simple second room very much. Li Shi was not a sloppy person, but there was something wrong with her. Li Shi was not willing to throw away anything, including the things in the house. There were so many of them, even if they were tidied up, the room looked messy. Ming Yun and Ming Teng moved out to live alone, still the Eldest room didn’t look spacious.

Xuehan and Yushuang were always in the second room. Because there were guards outside, they never dared to leave the room. They even went to the backyard to avoid people.

The guards brought by Yao Zheyu and Zhulan ate at a table in Ming Yun and Ming Teng’s room. Both were children, and children didn’t have many things, so there was no fear of things getting knocked over.

Today, Ming Yun still sat at the same table as Zhou Shuren. As the eldest grandson, Ming Yun would have significant responsibilities in the future, so it was good for him to gain exposure early. The opportunity today was indeed rare.

Because the guards were all martial arts practitioners who ate a lot, so to avoid running out of food, Zhulan specially asked Li Shi to cook more food.

In the main hall, Yao Zheyu didn’t dislike the food when he saw it. He was thrown out by his grandfather and trained hard. At the worst time, he only ate corn buns.

Zhou Shuren’s eyes flickered with satisfaction. He quite admired the male lead. Given the circumstances, one needed to be strategic. If Yao Zheyu couldn’t secure the position of heir, the only outcome would be death. It was a life-and-death struggle. However, admiration aside, Zhou Shuren didn’t want to get too involved. Their family had a thin foundation, lacked protection, and couldn’t withstand the intricacies of court politics. It was better to keep a distance from such matters. He hoped not to become collateral damage, especially not to be used as cannon fodder by the male lead instead of Wang Ru.

Zhou Shuren said, “Simple fare, not as exquisite as what a master chef could prepare. However, my eldest daughter-in-law’s cooking is quite good. Please, taste it and see if it suits your palate, Gōngzi.”

Yao Zheyu picked up the chopsticks and picked up the braised pork. It was red and bright, which made it look appetizing. His favorite dishes did not disappoint him. They tasted good and tasted good. “The cooking skills are as good as those of a great chef.”

Boss Zhou straightened his back. His wife really made the family proud and he forgave her for taking revenge on him.

Zhou Shuren smiled and said, “Gōngzi, please eat more if you like it.”

“Don’t just look at me eating, please move your chopsticks.”

Zhou Shuren had been hungry for a long time, and his mouth had not been idle all morning. He was tired from talking all the time, so he didn’t want to be polite anymore. When he started eating, Zhou Shuren moved his chopsticks, and all the sons of the Zhou family also started eating.

Rong Chuan’s position was close to the door. The rain outside had subsided and the light was sufficient. Yao Zheyu raised his head and took a look, and then took a closer look.

The look in Zhou Shuren’s eyes deepened, “Why do you, Gōngzi look at Rong Chuan like this?”

Yao Zheyu shifted his gaze away. “I just felt that Rong Chuan looked somewhat familiar, but I can’t recall who it reminds me of. Now, looking again, the familiarity is gone. Perhaps I’ve been reading too much recently, and my eyes are a bit tired.”

Yao Zheyu said it and stopped thinking about it. Zhou Xiucai’s son-in-law was eight or nine years old. He was just a little boy and nothing worthy of attention.

Zhou Shuren was a careful person, so he kept it in his heart. Well, now it seemed that Rong Chuan should also not see Yao Zheyu again in the future. Rong Chuan was his son-in-law, and he must not be implicated as cannon fodder by the male protagonist.

As they didn’t drink much, the gathering ended quickly. Having disrupted them for the whole morning, Yao Zheyu took his leave after the meal. However, he mentioned that he would stay in the county for a while. There was a prepared residence for him, and he would visit again in the future.

Zhulan and Zhou Shuren knew clearly that Yao Zheyu’s target was Wang Ru, and he would not be able to leave for a while. Zhulan and Zhou Shuren knew better that they had to be more cautious. Yao Zheyu was not Wang Ru. There was no comparison between the two. On the ground, they must be extremely vigilant and not let Yao Zheyu discover that there is something wrong with them.

After the carriage left, the entire Zhou family waited until it was far away before preparing to return to their courtyard. The bowls and chopsticks were already cleaned up. There was still a considerable amount of braised pork and chicken left in the pot. Zhu Lan served two large bowls and called the second son to take them to Xuemei.

Zhulan waited for the second child to leave. Zhulan was about to go back to the house to rest when Li Shi came in like a thief, “Mom, let me tell you something.”

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