Whose little lady is so crazy?

Chapter 701 Ignore
"Should we prepare their dinner for tonight?" the cook asked cautiously again.

The man gave him a disdainful look and said impatiently, "Even though you're doing menial work in our Water Conservancy Bureau and don't need to use your brain too much, you can't be as stupid as you."
Are you blind? Didn't you see the clothes and the air of wealth on those people?
It's not far from the city, and even a fool would know they wouldn't stay here for dinner.

I prepared their portion for lunch, but they didn't come back to eat it, so I have to eat the leftovers for dinner.

Upon hearing this, the cook quickly responded and went out.

Logically speaking, the Water Conservancy Department is a very lucrative position. By deducting a cut from the funds allocated by the imperial court and making some small changes to the accounts when building dikes and canals, the money would be easily in hand.
But these people who were in charge of the work were all honest and upright, and they managed to turn the Water Conservancy Bureau into a clean and efficient government office, carefully managing its daily expenses.

The group that Envoy Yu brought today consists of ten people of all ages, so the food expenses have increased. No wonder the powerful man is nagging!

In the afternoon, while the kitchen staff were gathering firewood nearby, they saw one of the men from the group the prince consort had led that morning riding a horse with a boy, heading towards Luohua Prefecture.

As the sun was setting, the two, one big and one small, returned, driving two horse-drawn carriages, followed by a donkey that wasn't tied up, as if they weren't worried about it running away.

After returning, they started working nearby, unloading the truck.

"Sir, they're setting up tents. Are they planning to stay here?" someone reported to the lord as they entered the courtyard.

Looking at the drawing on the table in front of him, which had been revised countless times, the man waved his hand impatiently and said, "I know."

After the person who reported left, Pang Daren said to his other colleagues at the table, "When Commissioner Yu returns, I will tell him that it is fine for these people to stay here. Let them take care of their own meals. This is the Water Conservancy Department, not a place to entertain irrelevant people."

"Ahem, sir, I think you don't need to be the bad guy and say that. Tell the kitchen not to deliberately prepare bad food, but to treat them to the same standard we usually eat. Just watch, they'll find it hard to swallow and will leave on their own." An official advised in a low voice.

The others nodded in agreement, thinking that the prince consort must have had no choice but to endure the trouble. They felt that out of respect for their colleague, they should at least consider his difficulties and not embarrass him too much.

"I don't see anything wrong with Envoy Yu," the powerful official said indignantly.

Although Director Yu is the current emperor's son-in-law and a true member of the imperial family, he is genuinely capable and did not rely on the princess's connections to gain prestige and accumulate merit at the Water Conservancy Bureau.

Moreover, despite working with him for many years, he never put on airs like a prince consort.

When the princess occasionally came over, he would always have those few young princes greet the officials in the department.

Yu Sishi said that here, his children are the younger generation of his colleagues.

Alas, even such a good envoy like Yu Si has his unavoidable moments!
"Sir, they're actually building their own stove; it seems they're planning to cook for themselves," the first one reported as he entered.

The powerful official grew even more impatient: "Let them do whatever they want, just don't bother our people. Stop reporting their trivial matters; I'm too busy with important business to handle anything else."

"Yes, I understand," the man replied in a low voice and withdrew.

As dusk approached, the adults who had come out of their rooms to stretch and prepare for dinner noticed several tents that had appeared not far from the fence.

I couldn't help but admire them; they must have both money and free time. Even from this distance, the tent looked very sturdy and decent.

Just then, they heard someone outside shout that Yu Si had brought them back.

The adults looked towards the gate and, sure enough, saw Envoy Yu, Xiao, Meng, and the young lady Hong, along with another young lady and six children, almost all of them carrying something. "Over here, over here!" came a child's loud call from the newly erected tent.

So the young woman, carrying the six children and their belongings, headed straight for the tent.

Hmph, it's better that we didn't come in here. It's so noisy and disorderly, what kind of place is this?

Outside the gate, there were only Commissioner Yu, Lords Xiao and Meng, their two attendants, and Lady Hong.

After a moment's hesitation, the man walked over, and the others followed.

"Young Lady Hong, have these soil and stone samples been put in?" Lord Meng asked from nearby.

"Keep these things with me," Hong Xiaoduo said, turning and leaving without even glancing at the people inside the fence.

"This young lady is really too rude. Didn't she see that we've all come over? She didn't even say hello." An adult said in a low voice when he saw the giant's expression change.

Pang Daren thought so too. He thought to himself that someone who could be related to the Prince Yi’s mansion and whose clothes looked to be made of the finest materials must not be from an ordinary family. His elders must have taught him well!
Even if it was because those adults hadn't treated her warmly in the morning, she shouldn't have been so direct as to ignore them and leave without even bothering to say hello.

"Old Xiao, Meng Sheng, what good stuff did you bring back so late? Did you buy some local specialties for her from the villagers?" One of them asked curiously, his attention drawn to the things the group was carrying.

"No, no, I'll explain in detail to you when I get back, sir." After saying that, Meng Sheng quickly followed in the direction Hong Xiaoduo had left. Yu Rui's two attendants glanced at their master and, upon receiving the signal, quickly carried their things over as well.

"What's all this secrecy about?" The others joked, though they were tempted to go and see what was going on. But after glancing at the enormous man beside them, they immediately suppressed their curiosity.

Upon hearing this, Pang Daren looked at Yu Rui and said, "Commissioner Yu, you've had a hard day. Are you going again tomorrow? If so, just have someone accompany you. You don't need to come along yourself."

"Thank you for your understanding, sir. But I haven't finished today. I still need to go tomorrow. Actually..." Yu Rui was about to tell Lord Pang what he had done today.

The intention was to let the powerful man know that Miss Hong's actions were not the work of an amateur.

But before he could finish speaking, he was interrupted: "Fine, since Commander Yu is willing, then I'll just consider it me meddling in other people's business."

After saying that, the giant turned and left.

Yu Rui watched the huge man's retreating figure and sighed helplessly.

Seeing this, the others wanted to say something to comfort Yu Rui, but Meng Sheng returned and said to Yu Rui, "Minister Yu, Miss Hong said she wants us to eat at their place tonight, and she cooked our share. Let's go. Lord Xiao and your two men are already waiting there."

what?
On his way back, Yu Rui learned from the children's conversation that they had cooked for themselves that evening and thought they might invite him to eat with them. However, he did not expect that the other two adults who had gone with him in the afternoon, as well as his two attendants, would also be included!
Hong Xiaoniangzi's side already has ten people, big and small. If we send five more from our side, can we even cook for that many people?

Just then, two more small figures ran over hand in hand.

Upon closer inspection, it became clear that they were two girls of similar age, one of whom was the young princess of the Yu Sishi family.

"Father, why aren't we going over there yet?" Yao Guang asked in a clear, crisp voice.

"Father, Father?" The other officials present looked at the prince consort in surprise. What was going on? Didn't the Minister Yu and the princess only have one daughter, a county princess...?