Splendid peasant girl busy farming

Chapter 11907

"Qing'er, the spatula is yours now. What are you planning to cook for Tang Yazi?" Wang Cuilian asked.

Yang Ruoqing turned around, thought for a moment, and said, "Auntie and Mother cooked braised pork and chicken, which are two hearty dishes. Plus, you all probably ate a lot of hearty dishes when you went to Huguang County for lunch, right?"

Wang Cuilian and Madam Sun, who came out of the kitchen, both nodded. "Of course! Old Madam Zuo and the others are too kind. They've been piling all sorts of delicacies into our bowls..."

Wang Cuilian joked, "To put it bluntly, the horses pulling the cart weren't very tired when we went there."

"When they came back, the horse was probably a little resentful, thinking, 'Why did this group of people suddenly become so heavy?'"

"Hahaha……"

The people around the stove couldn't help but burst out laughing.

Yang Ruoqing couldn't help but laugh, marveling at how humorous the older woman could be when she made a joke!

"Alright, I've made up my mind. Since you're all cooking elaborate dishes, I'll make a big, soupy stew to lighten things up!"

It's late at night, so eating something too hard isn't good. Something soft and easily digestible is a good alternative, at least for the stomachs of the elderly and children.

Yang Ruoqing took out half a pound of mung bean vermicelli and soaked it in warm water. Then she went to the vegetable garden behind the kitchen and cut a large cabbage.

I cut half a pound of pork belly with four parts fat and six parts lean, and after frying it in a pan to render the fat, I added the prepared millet peppers and minced garlic, and stir-fried it until it was fragrant.

Next, add the chopped Chinese cabbage, salt, soy sauce and other seasonings, then scoop two ladles of water to submerge it.

Cover the pot and bring it to a boil over high heat. Once boiling, add the soaked mung bean noodles, cover the pot again, and simmer.

Meanwhile, the rice in the big pot was also cooked, and Peony and Lily of the Valley stir-fried several other vegetables, such as shredded potatoes, lotus root, and minced meat and egg custard for the children.

"Dinner is ready. Can someone go to the front yard and tell them?" Yang Ruoqing said.

Wang Cuilian said, "I'll go!"

Sun asked, "Should the food be placed in the front yard, or in the dining hall in the back?"

Yang Ruoqing glanced at the dining hall and said, "Let's install the large round glass table in the dining hall later so everyone can turn around and pick up food."

Before long, a large group of men, young and old, from the front yard came to the back yard.

Yang Ruoqing discovered that Old Sun, Old Yang, and Yang Yongjin were all there.

Only then did they realize that they had caught Luo Fengtang returning home, so they all came to the Luo family to talk to him. Since they hadn't eaten dinner yet, the hospitable Luo family members naturally insisted that they stay and have dinner together in the backyard.

"Very good, very good," Yang Ruoqing said. "I was just wondering if I had made too much stew for tonight, but now everything is ready, enough to eat!"

She had been cooking a big pot of cabbage, vermicelli, and pork belly, and as it cooked, she noticed that the vegetables in the pot kept expanding!
She found two very large bowls to hold it all, and now there were three more people to eat together, it was perfect!
Luo the blacksmith invited everyone to sit down in the dining hall. Luo Fengtang noticed that Yang Ruoqing was not there, so he turned around and came to the stove by the door to help Yang Ruoqing serve the dishes.

When Ronggu and Shaoyao saw the general come in person, they were startled and hurriedly invited him to sit down.

But Luo Fengtang simply shook his head, his gaze fixed on the busy figure in front of the stove, and headed straight for her.

"Qing'er, I'll serve the dishes."

Yang Ruoqing was not surprised at all by his arrival.

"Okay, this bowl of food was specially prepared for you to come and get."

A huge bowl of stewed cabbage, pork belly, and glass noodles. Luo Fengtang's eyes lit up: "Did you make this stew?"

"That is required."

"My Qing'er is so smart, this dish is popular in the area north of the Huai River."

"Haha, you mentioned it in your last letter, and I remembered it. It just so happens that there's a chef at a restaurant in the county town who used to work up north, so I asked him for advice, and here I am, back after my apprenticeship!"

"Qing'er is amazing! This dish deserves three big bowls of rice to match the huge bowl of food!"

Yang Ruoqing said, "Hmm... there's no time today, but next time we'll steam buns to go with this dish! That will make it even more authentic and genuine!"

"Okay, then let me know when you're doing it again, and I'll help you with the firewood!"

"Okay!"

"Look, the food is a little hot, be careful not to eat it all at once!"

"Don't worry, you won't fall. I'll go over there first."

"Okay, I'll come over as soon as I'm done here. You don't need to run to the stove anymore. Those two little rascals are very naughty. You stay there and keep an eye on them."

Those two little ones naturally refer to Tuan Tuan and the round, yellow ones.

Children of this age love to be active and energetic, especially when there are many people in the family. Perhaps this is the desire for self-expression etched into human genes!

"I don't need to keep an eye on them. With their older sister around, they wouldn't dare to cause any trouble!"

Yang Ruoqing understood.

The bloodline suppression from my older sister really works.

At the dinner table, everyone mainly talked about the banquet for relatives and friends to be held the day after tomorrow.

Old Yang and Old Sun suggested holding the banquet at home, as it would be lively and festive.

Luo the blacksmith and Yang Huazhong suggested going to a restaurant in town, since they had just finished a big banquet a couple of days ago and everyone was still exhausted.

Moreover, if the event were held at home, the chefs from the town's restaurants might not be allowed to come, which would put a strain on the women in the household.

Not to mention the pots and pans, the sheer number of them is enormous, because the Luo family has so many relatives and friends. From the surrounding villages and towns, to the herb-gathering teams, the transport teams, and the managers and waiters of the restaurants in the town and county, as well as the shopkeepers who do business with the restaurants, they will all probably come to the Luo family to congratulate them on passing the imperial examination!

Then there are relatives of relatives. For example, Xiu Xiu's fiancé Wang Xiaowei and his family will definitely come, because Yang Yongjin and Cao Bamei have already spoken to Yang Ruoqing privately about it.

Moreover, the family of Xiu Hong's fiancé, Sixi, will also come to offer their congratulations...

Besides these, there are many, many more.

Therefore, we need to prepare at least 12 tables for the banquet the day after tomorrow, and possibly more!

"Regarding where to hold the banquet, we older generations have two different ideas." Old Yang took a sip of his wine, a hint of wine rising to his face.

"Ultimately, it's up to you, Tang Yazi and Qing'er, to decide what to do!"

Yang Ruoqing looked at Luo Fengtang: "What do you think?"

Luo Fengtang said, "Men are in charge of external affairs, and women are in charge of internal affairs. You decide these things!"

Yang Ruoqing's lips curled slightly. She turned to look at Dazhi and Xiao Qiao: "What about you two? I'd like to hear your opinions too."

Dazhi followed Luo Fengtang's example and looked at Xiao Qiao. Before he could speak, Xiao Qiao became a little embarrassed.

"Don't look at me like that. How would I know anything about this? Mom, you should make the arrangements. We'll just eat and drink along. We don't want to worry about it."

Yang Ruoqing was both amused and exasperated. "You're too honest, kid. If you don't worry about this now, you'll have to worry about it sooner or later."

Xiao Qiao said, "Now that I'm with my mother, she makes the arrangements. I watch and learn silently. When I can't avoid it in the future, I'll bite the bullet and face it."

“Okay!” Yang Ruoqing nodded in satisfaction, then turned to Luo Fengtang and said, “Let’s hold it at a restaurant in town. Let all our relatives and friends go there for the banquet. It’s not far from town, and everyone can easily get there from all directions.”

Towns are not like county towns. If we were to book a restaurant in the county town, it would be really inconvenient, and we would have to consider transportation.

But Yang Ruoqing would never bring all her relatives, young and old, to the county town restaurant; it would be too inconvenient.

The round trip is dozens of miles long, and even if you take a horse-drawn carriage, it's uncomfortable for people of all ages, especially since many of them are in poor health. When it comes to the three urgent needs of life, even holding in your urine can cause problems.

There is precedent for this kind of thing. Last time, when the fifth branch of the family celebrated the first birthday of their grandson, Jiang Guiling disregarded everyone's objections and insisted on holding the first birthday banquet at a restaurant in the county town.

As a result, the carriage sent to pick up relatives and friends ran into trouble, leading to a series of complications.

Her own niece, who was from her maternal family, developed a problem from holding in her urine on the way. She frequently had to urinate during the banquet, and it's said that after the banquet ended and she returned to the village, she spent a long time seeking medical treatment and taking medication...

Jiang Guiling's brother and sister-in-law were extremely unhappy with her. They would tell everyone that she was too proud to admit her faults and that they would drag people to the county town restaurant to "support" her, only to make them suffer!

"Let's go to the restaurant in town!" Luo Fengtang thought for a moment.

He wasn't someone who blindly followed his wife's arrangements; he was a man of great wisdom. Otherwise, how could he command thousands of troops?
How to become a pillar of the nation?

"It's not far for relatives and friends to go to the restaurant. Our family can provide horse-drawn carriages and mule carts to pick them up and drop them off. For those who have difficulty walking, are physically weak, or do not want to walk, they can take the cart."

"Those who wish to travel on their own, and who are strong and capable, may travel together in groups!"

“Yes, that’s what I think too,” Yang Ruoqing said.

"Besides, just going out for a meal isn't enough. I've also contacted the opera troupe from Liujia Village and invited them to perform for five days at the entrance of our village to make it a lively occasion!"

Luo Fengtang nodded: "That's excellent. The villagers in the surrounding area have been busy all year round. Now that it's the middle of winter and they have some free time from farming, watching a play will make them feel more fulfilled!"

Yang Huazhong and Luo the blacksmith both agreed. Luo the blacksmith said, "When the time comes, remember to go to town and invite some vendors selling candied hawthorns, sugar figurines, and fried dough sticks to come and join the fun!"

Yang Huazhong chuckled and said, "Brother Blacksmith, do you think we even need to call him?"

Old Sun said, "Those people are very well-informed. As soon as we set up the stage, they came over with their loads!"

When Tuan Tuan and Yuan Yuan heard that some vendors were coming to the village to sell delicious food, even though they had big chicken legs stuffed in their mouths, they couldn't help but excitedly shout, "We want to see a big show, and we want to eat sugar figurines!"

"Mom, I want to see acrobatics!" Tuantuan suddenly tugged at Yang Ruoqing's sleeve and said.

Yang Ruoqing laughed: "Oh, listen to this, she's even requesting a show for me?"

Sun asked, "Where can I find monkey shows?"

Wang Cuilian shook her head blankly.

Luo Wuyou said, "Today we're going to Zuojiazhuang. We passed through Huguang County, and there was a man leading a monkey, performing and begging for money on the street. They saw him."

Everyone understood.

Luo Fengtang glanced at his two young children and asked Yang Ruoqing, "Are there any acrobatic troupes in the county town?"

“Wanghai County… probably doesn’t have one, but Qing’an Prefecture definitely does,” Yang Ruoqing said.

Luo Fengtang nodded, "We need a team with a family tradition, a great show, and the ability to ensure safety. They can't be the kind of old-timers who have been around for a while."

Find a local team that you know well.

Yang Ruoqing snapped her fingers, and a guard appeared at the door.

Yang Ruoqing entrusted the task of finding the acrobatic troupe to the guard, and told him to go and do it.

In the canteen, Tuan Tuan and Yuan Yuan witnessed the whole process. The three-year-olds were very clever and understood everything.

The two of them cheered excitedly, forgetting to eat, eager to run into the village and share the good news with Jiang Lan and the other children!
That is: in a couple of days, there will be a big show in the village at night, and acrobatics during the day!

I'm so happy!

Yang Ruoqing stopped them from putting down their bowls and chopsticks and running out, telling them that it was dark now and their friends were washing their feet and getting ready for bed.

So I'll go talk to them during the day tomorrow and give them a surprise.

That's how they managed to persuade them to stop.

But then, the two little ones were overjoyed and kept fantasizing about the acrobatic troupe at the dinner table.

They imagined all sorts of things: talking monkeys, flying horses, dancing snakes... and the adults, listening to their childlike ramblings, were also infected by their joy and anticipation.

“Zhi’er, the house is so lively, with opera performances and acrobatics,” Wang Cuilian said, turning her gaze to Dazhi with a sincere tone and expectant eyes. “Could you and Xiao Qiao bring Nini to stay a few more days? To listen to operas and watch acrobatics?”

That's how elders are; when they finally catch a lively event, they think about having their children and grandchildren join in the fun.

Everyone else at the table stopped talking, and all eyes turned to Dazhi and Xiaoqiao, the young couple, pleading for them to stay.

Dazhi and Xiaoqiao exchanged glances, both understanding the good intentions of their elders.

There was even a loosening on Xiao Qiao's face.

Actually, she herself didn't really want to go back to Yangzhou...

Since her biological mother passed away, her maternal home in Yangzhou was no longer her home. She had a stepmother, and her biological father became her stepfather.

When she gave birth to Nini, none of her family members came. It wasn't until Nini's ninth-day celebration that her family finally arrived...

Would a biological mother do this? Absolutely not!

When her daughter Nini gives birth in the future, even if she can't rush over to be with her during labor, she will at least crawl over to encourage her daughter, calm her down, and ease her tension and fear in the two days before and after the due date.

So she has no family home, and there's no one there that she misses or that strongly attracts her to want her to go back to.

Only at the Luo family's house in Changping Village did Xiao Qiao feel at home.

However, not going back is not an option, since Dazhi has brothers and sisters over there.

Although Tai-Chi's relationship with his siblings was just so-so...