Chapter 211 Being tricked

Even though Xia Chunyu proposed a number of conditions that gave him a headache, he would agree to any condition as long as it could repair the relationship. As the saying goes, there is a long way to go.

In the Marquis of Jing'an's Mansion, although Ye Jiayao handed the important task of preparing the New Year's Eve dinner to Jiang Yue, and Jiang Yue herself was quite confident, Ye Jiayao was still a little worried and watched over it personally in the kitchen. She started making various braised dishes yesterday, including the marquis's favorite braised beef in soy sauce, the madam's favorite smoked fish and braised spare ribs, etc., and even slaughtered chickens and sheep early this morning, making the kitchen the busiest place in the entire mansion.

However, Ye Jiayao was very happy to be busy, and she liked the strong flavor of the New Year. No matter if they were rich or poor, they all regarded the New Year as a top priority and treated it with great ceremony. They put up door gods, Spring Festival couplets, hung red lanterns, cut rice cakes, wore new clothes, had New Year dinners, and stayed up all night... These traditional customs that have been gradually forgotten by modern people reflect the Chinese nation's emphasis on family culture for thousands of years, and reflect the cohesion of the family. It is such a blessing for the whole family to share the family life. I feel very satisfied when I can cook a sumptuous meal for my family and watch everyone eat it with relish.

Therefore, Ye Jiayao couldn't help but do it herself. Others couldn't help themselves when they saw something delicious, but she couldn't help herself when she saw something delicious was prepared.

Jiang Yue complained, "Second Young Madam, you said you would let me do all the work, and you come and grab the job again."

Ye Jiayao smiled and said, "I'll just make a few dishes, and you can still play the leading role."

"Hey...is the sweet and sour lotus root steamed?" Ye Jiayao asked.

A cook replied: "It's almost done, you can serve it now."

"Well, wait until it cools down, then chill it with ice and drizzle it with osmanthus honey." Ye Jiayao instructed, kneading the dough made of glutinous rice flour in her hands and stuffing them into the red dates one by one.

Zhou Xingjia saw this and smiled, "Second Young Madam is so ingenious that she can even make so many different kinds of red dates."

Ye Jiayao smiled. This dish of glutinous rice and red dates is a common cold dish in modern times. It is also very popular in Tianshangjuli and is suitable for both young and old.

"Yaoyao." Ye Jiayao heard Chunyu's voice and thought she had misheard. Why did Chunyu come to the kitchen? She looked up and saw that it was indeed Chunyu.

Ye Jiayao handed the work at hand to the cook: "Just stuff it in like this."

He wiped his hands and walked forward: "What are you doing here? It's a mess here."

Chunyu's face was solemn: "Come out with me for a moment."

Ye Jiayao was puzzled. What happened? It was Chinese New Year. Who was so ignorant?
Following Chunyu out of the kitchen, Chunyu said, "Someone just came from the palace."

"Looking for me?" Ye Jiayao said jokingly.

Unexpectedly, Chunyu nodded and said, "Today is the New Year's Eve dinner. The Queen Mother wants to eat the Buddha Jumps Over the Wall that you made. Yaoyao... you see..."

Ye Jiayao's smile froze for a moment. She couldn't tell what she felt in her heart. Today was New Year's Eve. The Queen Mother summoned her to the palace to cook at this time. Was it just because she was greedy?

"How can I not go when the Queen Mother summons me? I'll go back and change my clothes." Ye Jiayao smiled helplessly. She had a premonition that she would not be able to have the reunion dinner tonight.

Xia Chunyu said: "I will accompany you to the palace."

He was also extremely unhappy. After Yaoyao married into the Marquis' Mansion, the Emperor had said several times that he wanted to eat Yaoyao's cooking, but he never summoned Yaoyao to cook. After all, Yaoyao's identity was different now. She was the second young lady of the Marquis' Mansion. How could she be summoned casually? But the Queen Mother was so tactless today. She chose the right time. She didn't let people enjoy the first reunion dinner after entering the house. One had to suspect that the Queen Mother had ulterior motives.

But he had to go when the Queen Mother summoned him, so all he could do was to accompany her.

Ye Jiayao said with a smile: "What are you going to do? Help me, you don't know how to do it, so you'd better stay at home. In case I can't make it back in time, mother will give out New Year's gifts, and you have to keep them for me."

Xia Chunyu still insisted, not wanting Yaoyao to be wronged alone: ​​"How can our New Year's gift be missing? Without you, this reunion dinner is boring."

"Stop messing around. It's no big deal if I'm not here. But if you're not here, it will affect everyone's mood. If you feel sorry for me and really want to do this for my own good, then just stay home and spend time with your parents." Ye Jiayao advised kindly.

She understood Chunyu's thoughts, but if Chunyu didn't even eat the reunion dinner at home in order to accompany her, Youshi would definitely be unhappy. It's fine for a son to love his wife, but if he ignores his family because of his wife, both parents will be unhappy.

Ye Jiayao changed her clothes and was about to go out when Mother Sun came over and told her what the mistress had said, asking her to try to come back for the New Year's Eve dinner. If she couldn't come back, she shouldn't worry as they could have a midnight snack together.

Ye Jiayao was touched. It was good enough that Youshi could consider her feelings.

"Well, Mother Sun, please tell Madam that she doesn't have to wait for me for the New Year's Eve dinner. I hope everyone will be happy." Ye Jiayao smiled.

Sun Madam went to reply. Yu Shi was silent after hearing what she said. The second daughter-in-law was a sensible person, but the Queen Mother's action was really a bit unkind. Did she really think that the second young lady of her mansion was a cook? She was always available when she was called?

Liuli was dressing up carefully, wearing the most popular pink satin jacket with gold-thread butterflies and white fox fur around the collar and cuffs, and a crepe skirt with emerald flowers, which set off her bright eyes, white teeth, snow-white skin, and graceful figure.

Xiaoya came in and saw the princess's attire. She praised, "The princess looks like a fairy from heaven when she's dressed up like this."

Liuli sneered: "Will I not look good if I don't dress up?"

Xiaoya said hurriedly, "Princess, you are naturally beautiful. You look great even without dressing up. Didn't you see that the Third Young Master is always staring at you and can't take his eyes off you?" Liuli gave her a shy look and said, "I see that you are getting bolder and bolder."

Xiaoya smiled and whispered, "The Second Young Madam has entered the palace."

Liuli picked up a hairpin from her dressing box and handed it to Xiaoya: "Put it on for me."

Xiaoya measured on the princess's bun, chose a suitable position, and inserted it steadily.

Liuli looked at herself in the diamond-shaped mirror with satisfaction and said in a gentle voice, "Finally I got rid of this annoying person. I can have a comfortable New Year's Eve dinner."

As soon as Ye Jiayao entered the palace, she was taken to the imperial kitchen.

When Lu Yiming saw her, he shyly handed her a menu: "These are all made by the Queen Mother and asked the Second Young Madam to make them."

Ye Jiayao took it and looked at it. Damn, there were thirty-six dishes, and each one was a big dish with complicated procedures. Didn't they say they were just going to make Buddha Jumps Over the Wall? It seemed that the Queen Mother had made up her mind to keep her here tonight.

This damn old woman always does disgusting things.

No matter how depressed she was, this was an imperial banquet, so Ye Jiayao still had to concentrate on cooking. If she did a good job, she would get no credit, but if she didn't, it would be a sin. She couldn't let the old woman catch her doing anything wrong.

Lu Yiming called two young cooks and said, "The ingredients have been prepared. They will help you. If you need anything, just tell them."

Ye Jiayao smiled and said, "Okay, thank you for troubling Chef Lu."

Lu Yiming also went to work. Ye Jiayao later found out that the royal family reunion dinner tonight had a total of 1,088 dishes, and everyone in the imperial kitchen was busy.

As the banquet was drawing to a close, a dish of Buddha Jumps Over the Wall was served. When the emperor tasted it, he couldn't help but ask, "Who made this?"

Eunuch Wei whispered, "The Queen Mother summoned the Second Young Mistress of the Marquis of Jing'an's Mansion to do it."

The emperor frowned. Today was New Year's Eve. How could the queen mother ask Ye Jinxuan to cook? Wasn't she trying to annoy people? What would the people in Jing'an Marquis' Mansion think?
But everyone had already arrived, and the banquet was almost over, so the emperor had no choice but to tell Eunuch Wei: "Prepare a generous reward, and you will send someone to send her back in person later."

Ye Jiayao left the palace with a lot of rewards, and saw Song Qi waiting at the palace gate in a carriage.

"Second Young Madam, the Young Master ordered me to come and fetch you. The Young Master originally wanted to come by himself, but was dragged by the Marquis to do something else." Song Qi stepped forward and took the things from the eunuch's hand.

Ye Jiayao couldn't help but sneer: "My Lord is also playing double knocks?"

"Yes, it was the eldest young master who suggested it. The Marquis learned it very quickly and is having a great time."

Ye Jiayao asked again: "What about Madam and the others?"

"Madam also wanted to play double knock, but the third young lady didn't know how to play, so everyone had to play mahjong. The third lady was good at playing cards and won a lot of money."

Ye Jiayao seemed to see Zhou's small eyes glowing green, and she was holding piles of silver in her arms. She suddenly felt eager to go home. She hadn't played these games for a long time. In modern times, after the New Year's Eve dinner, the family would sit around and play cards and mahjong. The Spring Festival Gala was on TV, but Dad didn't play. He made tea for this one and brought food to that one. The family was having a great time.

In Youshi's room, four women were sitting around playing mahjong. Youshi was already waiting for a hand and wanted six-nine-sou, but Zhou, who was playing in the first place, kept playing ten-thousand, and Qiao, who was on the opposite side, kept playing five-eight-sou and just wouldn't play six-nine-sou. Youshi was so anxious that she kicked Qiao under the table. Qiao thought about it and thought that maybe her mother-in-law wanted six-nine-sou. She had three six-sou in her hand and was already waiting for a hand, but her mother-in-law wanted it and she couldn't refuse. Her mother-in-law had lost badly tonight, so she gritted her teeth and played the six-sou.

You was delighted and was about to say she had won, but Zhou, who had won the game, laughed out loud: "You have good luck today. You can win even if you just listen to the six-suo. Come on, give me money, give me two times..."

Qiao was depressed. Damn it, she had to double the bet and her flesh ached from losing.

Youshi silently closed the cards in her hand and gritted her teeth. This was the fifth time that Zhou had stopped her from winning. This nemesis.

Liuli paid the money readily and said with a smile: "Aunt San is lucky and her card skills are even better. She is the only winner tonight!"

"No, no, it's a rare opportunity for me to play as well." Zhou was still humble enough to say a few words, but she was already very happy in her heart.

"The Second Young Madam is back." said the maid outside.

You Shi hurriedly stood up and said, "Second daughter-in-law, come and fight for me and take the spotlight."

Ye Jiayao took off her cloak and handed it to the maid: "Mother, you guys should play it. I'm not very good at this."

Zhou hated Ye Jiayao and wished she could get more money from her. When she heard that she was not very good at playing, she said, "It's just for family members to play. If your mother-in-law wants you to play, then come on!"

(End of this chapter)