si-mexico Chapter 13 Spring Banquet
Chapter 13 Spring Banquet
Opportunities always come to those who are prepared.
Shen Ruoyan only went to the side courtyard once, but he already knew what everyone was thinking.
Thanks to Lu Jing, Shen Ruoyan put a lot of thought into the preparations for the Spring Festival Banquet. The managers in this mansion are all old people and cannot be easily moved. Especially at this juncture, it is even more difficult to make changes.
But through this banquet, Shen Ruoyan roughly figured it out.
"Madam, Aunt Liu said that the dish is too complicated and she can't make it." Chunxi just handed over the menu prepared by the madam, but Aunt Liu in the kitchen kept making excuses. Sometimes she said there were not enough dishes, and sometimes she said she had never heard of it and couldn't make it.
Since he was planning to hold this Spring Banquet, Shen Ruoyan naturally put a lot of thought into it.
She did not prepare the delicacies from the palace, but instead followed the previous rules of the Marquis' Mansion and added a few innovative and pleasing dishes.
Although it is time-consuming, it is not impossible to do it.
Shen Ruoyan lowered her eyes slightly and gently brushed the petals blooming in front of her. These were picked for her by Qiu Ye from outside early in the morning, so that she could see the spring scenery all over the room as soon as she opened her eyes.
It is very easy to distinguish between intentional and unintentional.
"Tell her that if she can't make it, she should just rest at home tomorrow. Chef Yang from Fu Liu Ji is an excellent cook. If she really doesn't want to do it, she can ask Chef Yang to come over and take over."
The kitchen of the Marquis's Mansion was very well-fed. Especially Aunt Liu, who cooked every day and could bring the leftovers home. The whole family depended on the Marquis' Mansion for their livelihood. She had some relationship with Aunt Xue, and she was just pretending to be powerful!
Shen Ruoyan can't tolerate this kind of thing. There are many people who don't want to do it, but there are many who want to do it!
A cook wants to take advantage of her?
As soon as Chunxi went out, Qiuye followed in from outside. Compared with before, she was much more stable. But when she came in, she couldn't hold back her expression, her brows were so tight that they could pinch a fly to death!
"Madam, Steward Wang is here. He said there was a problem with the refreshments."
Tomorrow is the Spring Festival Banquet, and everything should be prepared now. Steward Wang lowered his head and said with a smile: "Madam, please forgive me, I am really in a hurry. There are more kinds of tea and snacks than before, and I am afraid that I will not be able to prepare them all tomorrow."
The tea and snacks were ordered early in the morning. Since there were many kinds of them, Shen Ruoyan left enough time from the beginning. Steward Wang was an old steward in the mansion. It was really wrong for him to say that they were not ready at the last minute.
However, he was promoted by the old lady, so they had a close relationship. Therefore, Shen Ruoyan remained calm and just asked, "So what have you prepared now?"
Steward Wang named a few kinds of pastries, which happened to be the ones that the mansion always had on hand. None of the ones that Shen Ruoyan had ordered were available.
She smiled slowly, "It's okay. The Marquis' Mansion has many affairs to attend to. I know that Steward Wang is busy and may not be able to take care of it. So I asked Deputy Steward Li to pay attention to it before. He just happened to find the missing items."
Steward Wang's heart skipped a beat, but he smiled and said, "That's great. Otherwise, I would be too embarrassed to see the mistress in the future."
"What are you talking about?" Shen Ruoyan smiled and didn't take it to heart. "Manager Wang has been in the Marquis' Mansion for so long. Although he is very good at all matters, people always make mistakes sometimes. It's normal."
She spoke slowly and comforted him, "Don't worry about it. We still have Deputy Manager Li here. He has a good memory and can help you."
Manager Wang didn't dare to say anything else, and nodded repeatedly. After leaving, his face was slightly gloomy.
I heard that in the evening, Manager Wang went to check the snacks for tomorrow's day in person, and only left after making sure there were no problems.
After this warning, the servants were much more obedient when the Spring Banquet began.
Chun Xi stared at the maids as they prepared the dishes, and she did not forget to tease them, laughing softly, "That Aunt Liu got up early in the morning and said that she suddenly had an impression and knew how to make those things, so there was no need to ask the chef from Fu Liu Ji to make trouble."
Qiu Ye also laughed when he heard this, "She's not afraid of people causing trouble, she's actually worried about being replaced by someone else!"
The two girls laughed so hard, but when they saw Shen Ruoyan, their expressions immediately returned to normal. After following Shen Ruoyan for so long, they had mastered the art of changing faces.
In the peach forest, there is a small bridge and flowing water. Everyone sits together, with exquisite snacks and fine wine in front of them, and there are also stringed instruments and bamboos around them, which makes people feel extremely relaxed as soon as they walk in.
Lu Jing came here with Shen Ruoyan, and seeing the atmosphere, he couldn't suppress the joy in his eyes.
Shen Ruoyan led him to sit down and said with a smile: "Are you satisfied, Lord?"
Lu Jing nodded, "Not bad, not bad."
Several concubines were sitting down, Zhuhong and Liulu looked at Lu Jing from time to time with affection in their eyes. Fang Rou was naturally not to be outdone, but her eyes were filled with more resentment, which always made Lu Jing look away.
"We are all family, there is no need to be restrained."
Shen Ruoyan and Lu Jing raised their glasses together, but she drank tea instead of wine, while in front of Lu Jing was the famous wine that she had specially collected.
After a drink, Lu Jing was even happier. "I heard you guys prepared something for me?" He looked at them with great interest. "Who's going first?"
Fang Rou held the cup tightly. She was so focused on stopping the party from starting that she had no time to prepare anything else.
Besides, she came from a poor family and had never learned any of the four arts, so she had nothing to show for herself.
"My Lord, I feel a little uncomfortable every time the season changes. I am afraid that I cannot meet your expectations. However, my two sisters have been preparing for a long time, and I think they will satisfy you."
Fang Rou had injured her foundation when she gave birth to Lu Ankang. Because of this, Lu Jing loved her especially much.
"You are not feeling well, just go with me to see the doctor, don't worry."
Shen Ruoyan took a sip of tea silently. It seemed that Fang Rou did have a different status in Lu Jing's heart.
"My Lord, let us sisters come first."
Zhuhong and Liulu came out slowly, one of them holding a zither and the other wearing a light gauze dance dress. After looking at each other, the clear sound of the zither could be heard, like pearls falling to the ground, and Liulu's cheerful dance steps could be heard at the same time.
Amid the joyful music of the piano, she was like an elf in the mountains, dancing happily under the blooming peach blossoms.
The smile on that face was full of the brilliance and vitality of spring. Not to mention Lu Jing, everyone present was mesmerized by it!
"Good! Good dancing!" Lu Jing stood up excitedly, with the only thing left in his mind was Liu Lu's dancing figure.
Zhuhong, however, silently retreated holding her zither. She actually played the zither very well, but for the sake of her sister, she was willing to be a supporting role.
Fang Rou was furious, but she knew that Lu Jing was in a rage at the moment, so she should not do anything. However, when she saw that Lu Jing's heart and eyes were full of Liu Lu, she still couldn't help herself!
Obviously, Lu Jing belongs to her alone! No one can take him away!
She covered her chest, her face suddenly turned pale, and even her breathing became rapid: "Oh no! Aunt Fang is having palpitations!"
When Shen Ruoyan looked over, Fang Rou slowly fell to the ground like a fallen leaf.
Oh?
Fainted?