Chapter 240: The Kitchen God Ritual

Chapter 240: The Kitchen God Ritual

The couple headed to the main house, where Old Lady Mo had indeed set up the altar for the Kitchen God, with the portrait of the deity that Brother Five had painted hanging on the wall.

At this time, the sisters-in-law also came to call He Zhiran. They had already prepared all the ingredients and were waiting for her to take charge of the cooking.

Although they had always lived together as a large family, for the Mo family, such a formal celebration of a festival was the first since He Zhiran's transmigration.

She wasn't very familiar with some of the local customs here, but she embraced the attitude of "when in Rome, do as the Romans do," and made an effort to integrate herself into the family.

Today's ingredients were still those that He Zhiran had purchased, not to mention the wild game that Liang Hao and the others had hunted in the mountains.

There were so many dishes to prepare that even though the sisters-in-law had already prepared all the ingredients in advance, He Zhiran was busy for almost an hour.

Once all the dishes were cooked, the sisters-in-law picked out some of them in perfect harmony to offer to the Kitchen God.

Meanwhile, Mo Jiuye fetched the Wuliangye that his wife had repackaged, poured a cup, and placed it in front of the Kitchen God's portrait.

With everything ready, led by Old Lady Mo, the family began to sincerely burn incense, hoping that the Kitchen God would bless their Mo family with peace and safety in the future.

By the time the Kitchen God ritual ended, it was already evening.

Everyone thought that they would start eating once Mo Chuhan returned from his official duties at the government office.

Not long after, Mo Chuhan returned, and unexpectedly, Meng Huaining was with him.

Meng Huaining wasn't alone; he had brought many officials with him.

After days of sorting out the case, the matter involving Cui Wen had been settled.

Cui Wen's crimes were heinous, and he was directly sentenced to immediate execution. His family members and the clansmen involved also received the punishment they deserved.

The reason the case took so long to handle was mainly because Cui Wen and his clan had committed too many crimes. It took nearly ten days just to organize the case files.

Meng Huaining's main purpose for coming to Xiling Village today was twofold: one, to join the Mo family in celebrating the Minor New Year, and two, to distribute the confiscated fines from the Cui family to the victims of the Zhao and Zhou families according to a certain ratio.

That wasn't all; the land that the Cui family had fraudulently obtained from the Zhao and Zhou families over the years must be returned in full.

This action caused another round of wailing and howling from the Cui family.

They had sold their farmland and barely managed to pay the fines, and now they had to compensate the Zhao and Zhou families with a large amount of farmland.

Wouldn't this instantly turn them into penniless paupers, leaving them without any means of living in the future?

However, the law would not sympathize with those who had done evil in the past. If you did something wrong, you had to pay the price you deserved.

The clansmen of the Zhao and Zhou families never expected that they could receive compensation.

They thought that it was already good enough that the powerful backing of the Cui family had fallen and that they no longer had to suffer under the oppression of the Cui family. Who knew that the magistrate was so wise and powerful, actually helping them obtain compensation.

After receiving the compensation, the clansmen of the Zhao and Zhou families came to the courtyard outside the Mo family's home, bowing repeatedly to Meng Huaining.

Meng Huaining hurriedly instructed Meng An to pacify those people. He could already smell the food, and he didn't want to deal with these commoners at this time.

Meng Huaining was invited into the main house by the three brothers of the Mo family. After taking their seats, the women of the family began to serve the dishes one after another.

Without a doubt, with such excellent ingredients and He Zhiran's superb culinary skills, everyone ate heartily during this meal.

And that fragrant Wuliangye, Meng Huaining found it incredibly delicious. If he could eat such food and drink every day, he wouldn't trade it for being a god.

The women of the Mo family didn't know that Meng Huaining would come today. Not only did he come alone, but he also brought so many officials.

The wine and dishes prepared at home weren't enough for so many people to eat. Fortunately, the sisters-in-law had prepared dumplings in advance, which could be used to entertain those officials.

Regardless of what they had done before, they were currently under Mo Chuhan's command, and moreover, today was the Minor New Year. It wouldn't be right to let them leave hungry when they came to the house.

Now that Mo Chuhan was the head of these officials and the magistrate was present at the Mo family today, even if the Mo family didn't entertain them, they wouldn't dare to say anything.

Unexpectedly, they could also enjoy a delicious meal of dumplings here.

Not only that, but the taste of the Mo family's dumplings was simply fantastic, surpassing even the famous restaurants in the city.

The officials ate to their hearts' content, yet their hearts were filled with mixed feelings, especially those few who had previously helped Cui Wen plan to make things difficult for the Mo family. They felt particularly guilty.

No matter what, the deed was done, and their regret now couldn't change anything. In the future, they would loyally serve Head Constable大人 and make up for their past mistakes.

It wasn't until the hour of Dog that the Minor New Year feast began to clear the table. Everyone thought that it was so late, Meng Huaining would propose to take his leave.

Who knew that he was attracted by a single sentence from Mo Hanyue.

The surprise in Mo Hanyue's voice couldn't be contained.

"Ninth Sister-in-Law, come and see quickly, my long-eared rabbit has given birth..."

He Zhiran was in the kitchen with the sisters-in-law cleaning up the dishes when she heard her younger sister-in-law's voice and hurriedly ran out.

"Hanyue, I'm coming."

When the other sisters-in-law heard that the long-eared rabbit had given birth, they also put down their chores and followed He Zhiran to check.

The long-eared rabbit was much larger than an ordinary rabbit and had an appearance that was extremely endearing. If it weren't for the fact that Mo Hanyue was reluctant to part with it, they would have wanted to ask her for one to raise long ago.

Now that the long-eared rabbit had finally given birth, it meant that they could also have their own little pets.

Meng Huaining wasn't usually the type to love joining in the fun, but today was somewhat unusual.

He was inexplicably drawn to Mo Hanyue the first time he saw her. This young girl was fresh and lively, and her personality wasn't as affected as those of the young ladies from wealthy households.

His elders at home had once asked him what kind of wife he wanted in the future.

He had replied straightforwardly at the time that he wanted to find someone who was pleasing to his eye and didn't have the airs of a spoiled lady.

While his criteria weren't particularly high, there were few people who could meet both conditions simultaneously.

The Meng family, since the passing of their grandfather, had declined significantly compared to its former glory, but it was still a true family of scholars. There were not no standards when it came to choosing a wife.

If they were commoners' daughters, even if Meng Huaining himself was willing, it would likely be impossible to get past the objections of the elders in the family.

Mo Hanyue, on the other hand, was different. Although the Mo family had been exiled by the imperial court, Mo Hanyue had grown up in a wealthy household, receiving an education far superior to that of common folk.

Especially the matriarch of the Mo family, who herself came from a distinguished background. How could a daughter personally tutored by her not be outstanding?

Moreover, these women of the Mo family appeared cultured and well-mannered. Even when faced with the hardship of their husbands dying in battle and the family being exiled, they maintained an optimistic and positive attitude.

One must ask, how could a girl raised in such an environment not be optimistic and positive?