Foster son and husband

Chapter 7 BBQ
Under the window, several noble ladies were sitting together, talking about something, with lazy smiles on their faces, seeing Qin Meiniang approaching, one of them held her back:
"Where have you been for so long? We couldn't hear your melodious laughter, but we were so bored!"

Mei Niang spent two hours among the noble ladies, basically able to recognize everyone and figure out each person's temperament, no blame for her snobbishness, she only picked out those wives whose husbands and sons-in-law are noble and of high rank Work hard, since ancient times, if you want to get things done, you usually have to take that shortcut, although she doesn't want to, the modern society has taught her too many lessons, life is not easy, why bother to write on her face and ask for trouble?

Instead, she held the hand of Mrs. Ding Guogong, who was in her thirties with exquisite makeup, and said with a smile: "My good sister, your hands are so warm and soft, look at the firm and delicate skin, so white and tender that you can pinch water! What kind of balm did you use? It’s so fragrant and elegant! Knowing that my sister is a master of perfume, please teach me, I’m just stupid, I can’t make it myself, so I can only use ready-made ones, and the fragrance effect is very mediocre!”

Mrs. Dingguo was praised in public, so she was very happy in her heart. She laughed so hard that she shook her arms and said, "Look at this little mouth! It looks like it's been coated with honey, and it's good at coaxing people. Why do you need to learn from me? Marquis Weiyuan loves you so much, how could he be willing to work for you to mix the fragrance by yourself? Even if you buy ready-made, I will definitely buy you the best and most expensive good balm... Let me take a closer look at your hand, let's compare Compare!"

Mei Niang hurriedly smiled and hid behind Madam Xing'an Hou: "Don't dare! I was nursing a few pots of flowers and plants in the yard a while ago, and the leather on my hands was rough. I'm afraid you will make fun of me, so I don't compare them!"

Madam Changle Hou's eyes lit up, and she said, "Does Madam Weiyuan Hou also like to grow flowers? Like me! I also like to tend flowers and plants in my spare time. Please come to my house some other day and see the flowers I plant in the greenhouse!"

Mei Niang said: "I must go! It's just that the flowers I planted are not worth seeing now... But there is a plum tree in the Jinhua Hall, and the plum tree was given to our old lady by the Empress Dowager! Red, pink, and jade, in full bloom. The half-opened ones contain flower buds, so beautiful!"

Immediately, many young ladies came over: "Oh, white snow and red plums, the scenery must be beautiful!"

Mei Niang smiled and said: "Bai Xuehongmei, really beautiful! If there are many beauties to enjoy in the plum forest together, colorful, people are more beautiful than flowers, wouldn't it be more beautiful? It's a pity that we can't, it's snowing outside, it's time for dinner again , it's time to invite all the ladies to the flower hall to be seated!"

Mrs. Changle Hou said: "I'm not hungry. If I can enjoy the plum blossoms, I don't need to eat!"

Everyone agreed: "Yes, yes, it's not too late to enjoy the plum blossoms first, and then eat!"

Mei Niang was in a dilemma, Mrs. Dingguo patted her on the shoulder: "What's the matter? Can't bear to let us reward your plum grove? There are many good gardens in the capital, and yours is not the only one that has plum groves, but other people's gardens are not open. It’s open, and I won’t be allowed to enjoy the plum grove today, so I won’t eat!”

Mei Niang rubbed her shoulders and said with a bitter face: "My good sister, it hurts so much! Aren't you embarrassing my sister?"

Seeing how funny she looked, everyone giggled. Mrs. Dingguo liked her very much, and said while rubbing her shoulders:
"Then follow my sister's instructions and enjoy the plum blossoms first, okay?"

"But I'm afraid that you will starve all the ladies! Ladies are all beautiful and beautiful. If I go home today and be found to be light-hearted, wouldn't it be my fault?"

A lady pointed at her and scolded with a smile: "Okay, how dare you take this opportunity to laugh at us for being fat!"

Mei Niang covered her mouth and laughed, and pushed and shoved with everyone for a while, Fang said: "It's not that we are not allowed to go and enjoy, but the forest is really good, I am afraid that if you are excited about the game, you will miss the meal, and the food will be cold when you come back." It's..."

She pondered for a while, then suddenly said with great interest: "There are curved corridors and water pavilions beside the plum forest, why don't we also learn to hunt people and try wild life - set up a large pile of charcoal fires by the edge of the forest under the corridor, and move the fine wine and fruit there , personally cut fresh beef and roasted it on the fire, while admiring the white snow and red plums, when poetry comes up, you can also recite poems and couplets... that taste is probably much more interesting than sitting around a banquet and eating in a daze!"

"Don't be funny, I agree!" Madam Changxing clapped her hands.

"Great!"

Mrs. Dingguo was about to slap her with her palm again, but Mei Niang quickly dodged it. Mrs. Dingguo laughed and annoyed, and dragged her over:

"This idea is very suitable for me! I participated in a hunting in the early years and did something like this: eat raw cut beef in the wild and roast it. It tastes really good! The ladies who came today are all old except me. Gently, no one should be taboo, right? Let’s all go to eat barbecue together, eat barbecue with snow plum forest, how many times can we encounter such elegant things in a lifetime! Would you like it?”

"Willing, I will sit and listen to people's service every day, and today I will do it myself to see if I can feed myself!"

The noble ladies laughed and followed Mrs. Dingguo and Meiniang out of Jinhua Hall in a swarm, talking as they walked, heading towards Meilin over there.

After a snowstorm, the Jinhuatang plum grove really bloomed beautifully and proudly. Under the meticulous care of the gardeners, several rare varieties of green plums also bloomed with scattered flower buds. The tree is no different, the most rare thing is those petals, green and transparent, like emerald carvings, one by one are inlaid on the brown plum branches, very delicate and beautiful, most of the ladies have never seen such delicate flowers The rare green plums were surrounded by crowds, amazed, and some people who had seen them stood up, showing off and showing off, and introduced the causes of green plums and the complicated cultivation techniques to everyone, and also talked about its beauty. The medicinal value is even more valuable to everyone.

While no one was paying attention, Ning Rulan's personal maid, Hong Ye, came over and secretly said to Mei Niang: "Third Mistress, please tell Grandma: Two tables of banquets are prepared in the flower hall for old ladies, wives and older wives." No, Grandma just needs to take good care of these young ladies!"

Under the curved corridor, Mama Cai brought servants and maids according to Mei Niang's instructions, and prepared a set of utensils. A dozen or so small round tables were filled with fruits, melon seeds, peanuts, fine wine and hot tea, and various exquisite snacks. Dozens of soft embroidered pier, countless small red clay stoves, the charcoal fire is burning vigorously, and there are also several piles of red charcoal fires in the purple leaf forest under the corridor, and three or five cooks wear plain aprons The servant woman made a string of sliced ​​fresh beef, various vegetables and squid slices soaked in hot water, put them in a bamboo tray, and placed them in a fixed place one by one.

The sky is beautiful, there is no wind, and pieces of snowflakes are falling, but they are not big and dense, but scattered, just like a goddess scattered flowers. This kind of scenery is suitable for playing in the courtyard forest.

Mei Niang's secret worries are superfluous. Ladies usually pamper themselves. Once they get such an opportunity, they will be fresh and curious, and their childlike innocence will be full of playfulness. Eat sweet potatoes, bake them and give them to each other. I persuade people around me to eat the taste I made. Everyone thinks that the seasoning I made is good. In the outdoor yard, it is not as restrained as in the house. Everyone is free to eat and eat. Drink, play to your heart's content, laugh from the heart, laughing and joking, very carefree.

I just feel sorry for the old lady's beloved purple-leaf forest, which was crushed by a heavy snow and smoked by fireworks. Putting a vase at home, Pian Mei Niang is also drunk, she will give to anyone who asks, and she will respond to every request. The newly opened plum branches are almost broken, and only the unopened flower buds can survive on the branches.

More than [-] catties of fresh beef, including the maids of the noble ladies, there are forty or fifty women in total, there is nothing left to eat, all the vegetables and snacks are also roasted, and they are all eaten away, and ten jars of fine wine Eight altars were opened, and the remaining two altars were opened. Mrs. Dingguo asked to open them. Everyone took advantage of their drunkenness and divided into groups to guess the number.

The female guests went home drunk, only then did the old lady know what happened in the purple leaf forest and plum forest in the courtyard, she was furious, but unfortunately Meiniang was already drunk, and Ning Rulan arranged for her to be carried back to Tsinghua University in a soft sedan chair Courtyard, did not hear her reprimand.

(End of this chapter)