Chapter 99

Chapter 99

As soon as Sun Anyuan entered, he saw the room was filled to the brim with people and couldn't help but smile. He greeted Tutor Duan, "Looks like your business has been thriving."

Tutor Duan, knowing that Lin Chunyan had a good relationship with Sun Anyuan, accorded him extra courtesy. He first asked whether Sun Anyuan had come by himself or brought the brothers from the escort agency along.

Sun Anyuan smiled, "Of course we came together. We won’t sit inside; we’ll stay in the outdoor pavilion where it's cooler."

After looking around and not seeing Lin Chunyan, he asked, "Where’s the boss?"

"She’s in the kitchen. Do you need anything?"

Sun Anyuan nodded, and Tutor Duan called out to Zhao Liu, "Six, go inside and call our boss."

Zhao Liu quickly responded and hurried to the kitchen.

Sun Anyuan first took his ticket and asked for double portions of each dish, filling up the table. He also ordered several large bowls of noodles, planning to eat once everyone had arrived.

They had endured a tough journey, and though the pickled vegetables and dried tofu they brought helped, it wasn’t as satisfying as eating at this establishment.

Mr. Song happily came over and asked, "Would you like something to drink? We have not only plain tea but also iced jasmine-flavored soy milk and bamboo leaf tea..."

Sun Anyuan wasn’t particularly fond of these drinks and instead asked if there was any wine.

Few knew that Lin Chunyan made wine. Just as Mr. Song shook his head, Lin Chunyan hurried out from the kitchen.

"Do you want to drink wine?"

Sun Anyuan smiled when he saw her and spoke without formality, "Yes, Miss Lin, it's been a while."

Lin Chunyan greeted him with a smile, "There isn’t much wine. I was going to send it to Officer Sun, but you get it first."

Sun Anyuan laughed heartily, and Lin Chunyan instructed Zhao Liu to bring over a few jars of wine.

Sun Anyuan brought the seeds he had brought from the city, "I'm not sure if you need any of these."

He had originally intended to bring back some melons and fruits, but it was too hot to keep them fresh, so he had to abandon the idea.

Lin Chunyan happily accepted them and stored them away without checking what was inside.

Seeing that Dazhuang and the others hadn’t arrived yet, Lin Chunyan sat at another table and, without beating around the bush, asked, "Did you deliver something to Miss Wang’s cousin on this trip?"

It was against the rules of the escort agency to discuss such matters. However, Sun Anyuan knew Lin Chunyan wasn’t the type to pry. Fearing something might be wrong, he asked, "Is there a problem?"

Lin Chunyan nodded, "Do you know what happened to Miss Wang’s cousin? Is she doing well now?"

Sun Anyuan shook his head, "Our job is just to deliver the goods. We don’t know the details. However, during a meal, I heard some interesting things."

Seeing that Lin Chunyan was listening attentively, he casually shared, "It’s said that the cousin is marrying the second young master of the Earl’s mansion. They’ve known each other since childhood, and the marriage was being rushed. However, the cousin suddenly fell ill and reportedly can’t even get out of bed."

Lin Chunyan pondered this in her mind. Pretending to be ill wasn’t a very clever move and could only delay things temporarily. She wondered what Zhou Wanniang knew and what the current situation was.

Sun Anyuan, seeing her deep in thought, suggested, "If you want to find out more, I can ask my brothers to help."

Lin Chunyan thanked him, saying, "Thank you. I appreciate it."

While she couldn’t do much, knowing their situation eased her mind.

Zhou Wanniang had Jimming pour the medicine under the tree's roots. She didn’t trust anyone at all in the mansion. Since discovering that Zhao Xinghua was her twin and that her mother had known but kept it from her, a chill of desolation rose from her feet.

Never had she imagined that the twin brother was a fabrication, and that she actually had a twin sister who looked exactly like her, and even ended up going to Zhao Wang's estate in her place.

At the mere thought of Zhao Wang, Zhou Wanniang felt her teeth chattering with hatred, wishing she could tear him apart if he were in front of her.

After pouring the medicine, Jiming opened the window to let the odor disperse. Seeing Zhou Wanniang's pale face, Jiming felt a pang of sadness, hoping that the young lady would recover soon and marry safely into the Earl's mansion.

Since she was unhappy at home, she hoped that the second young master of the Earl’s mansion would treat Zhou Wanniang well.

When Zhou Madam entered, Jiming immediately smiled and greeted her respectfully.

"It's been so many days. The Earl's mansion is waiting for us to confirm the engagement. Why is the young lady still so unwell? Are you all not serving her properly?"

After scolding the maids, Zhou Madam entered the room and saw Zhou Wanniang's pale face, which troubled her as well.

"My dear, why must you torment yourself so? Since we already know the truth, why not abide by their wishes and marry into the Earl’s mansion?"

Zhou Wanniang pushed her hand away and couldn't help but sneer, "And then after some time, they'll say I've fallen ill and died, only to be carried to Zhao Wang's estate?"

Zhou Madam parted her lips and sighed after a long while, "I know you don't want to go. I don't want you to go either. We’ve already lost one sister to that place. I didn't even know she existed all these years, and now she's suffering like this. How can my heart bear it?"

Zhou Wanniang refused to be deceived again, "Even if your heart aches, you still act as the executioner!" Sending both of us to Zhao Wang's estate—whose path to success are you paving?"

Zhou Madam was frightened by Zhou Wanniang's blunt words and looked around to make sure no outsiders were present before she could breathe a sigh of relief.

Seeing her like this, lacking any semblance of dignity, only added to the sorrow in her heart.

She had never expected that her grandmother's words had come true. Even after so many years of being unloved, her mother still only cared for her father.

Even if she sold both of them, her mother would be willing to go to any lengths to please their father.

Zhou Wanniang turned away, not wanting to look at Zhou Madam anymore.

"Mother wouldn't harm you. Listen to me, if you enter Zhao Wang's estate, you can help your sister. It's better for both of you than being alone and miserable."

After pleading earnestly for a while with many backward glances, Zhou Madam left.

Zhou Wanniang found it all absurd. She absolutely could not go to Zhao Wang's estate. It wasn't for her own sake anymore, but because going there would mean both she and Zhao Xinghua would perish.

At some point, she had bitten her lower lip so hard that it bled, tasting the metallic sweetness in her mouth. But she continued to clench her teeth, ignoring the pain.

Why should her life be so meticulously arranged by these men? What about childhood sweethearts or father-daughter bonds? In the face of power and interests, they were lighter than a piece of paper.

All these men were heartless and ungrateful, and sadly, even her mother was an accomplice.

Da Zhuang and the others soon arrived, and seeing the table full of various dishes, they immediately dug in without any regard for manners, devouring the food as if they wanted to eat everything on the table.

They had been craving this for so long and ate ravenously. In no time, all the dishes and bowls of noodles were gone, along with every last drop of wine from the several jars, leaving Mr. Song dumbfounded.

"Are you all reincarnated starving ghosts or something? You were just on an escort mission; how did you get this hungry?"

With his belly full, Da Zhuang felt less ravenous and joked, "You think escorting is easy? Let me tell you, countless eyes were watching us along the way. In our town, it's fine, and we don't usually get robbed. But in other places, entire villages band together to commit crimes, and even if you report to the authorities, no one cares. Where can one seek justice?"

Fortunately, they were all armed with large sabers, and when danger arose, they charged in, allowing them to deliver the goods safely.

Mr. Song shook his head, "It's hard to make a living these days."

"Indeed, we're living on the edge of our blades, but at least we can eat and drink our fill. Along the way, we saw many displaced people who had lost their humanity."

Mr. Song sighed in agreement. In the past, he and Mrs. Song would stay cooped up at home, feeling they were the most unfortunate souls on earth, waiting for death, helpless and resigned.

But now, having seen more of the world and met more people, the former sense of indignation, the urge to rail against fate, had dissipated.

He then mentioned Feng Auntie from their escort agency, "Her nephew was getting engaged, and they held a grand celebration in our shop. It was incredibly lively and festive."

That day, Mr. Song was astonished, never having seen so many people gathered in one place. Luckily, his shop was spacious enough, or else it would have been even more crowded.

Da Zhuang and Hu Zi sprang up, "Why did we miss out on such a great event again?"

Last time, when Old Qin’s son got married, we were on a job. And now this happens again.

"We should make a proper prayer before we set out next time."

After Da Zhuang finished, he turned to Sun Anyuan, "Brother Yuan, what do you think? Should we consult Granny Dong?"

Hu Zi interjected, "Maybe not, every time before we head out, we pay our respects to General Guan. Granny Dong’s place is for the Bodhisattva. What if it causes a clash?"

Da Zhuang looked troubled, "So what should we do?"

Sun Anyuan snorted, "We don’t need to go to Granny Dong. Just pay respects to the Kitchen God."

Not aware of the sarcasm in Sun Anyuan’s tone, Da Zhuang nodded seriously, "Yes, we should pay respects to the Kitchen God! He oversees food!"

Sun Anyuan: ...

Mr. Song laughed heartily for a few moments before going off to attend to other guests.

Upon returning, Lin Chunyan sorted out those seeds and found some varieties they lacked. She was so happy she could barely contain her smile.

"What kind of seeds are these? Can they be planted now?" Lin Taohong came over to ask.

"These are yam seeds. It’s a bit late to plant them now, but it’s still worth trying," Lin Chunyan replied.

Lin Chunyan took a small portion to the field and, after returning, washed the green plums.

Fresh green plums produce the best wine. These plums had been picked a few days ago, and Lin Chunyan regretted her procrastination as she discarded the bad ones.

She should have started brewing the wine earlier.

The stems of the plums had to be removed, which required patience. Lin Chunyan worked slowly, not in a rush.

When Lin Taohong came to help, Lin Chunyan asked her to salt the plums to remove the bitterness.

"In two days, when they’re properly salted, mix them with sugar and ginger, add some perilla, and you’ll have plum ginger."

Lin Taohong’s eyes lit up, "Could we make plum sauce?"

Lin Chunyan nodded, "If we have any left over, we’ll make plum sauce."

Seeing the green plums made Lin Chunyan realize that spring was about to pass.

Summer had already arrived.

She couldn’t help but sigh, wondering how time had flown so quickly. It felt like just a few days ago they were eating fresh wild vegetables, and now those vegetables had already become tough.

Thinking of the water celery growing by the river, after brewing the plum wine, Lin Chunyan went to pick some, intending to savor the last taste of spring.

Mrs. Zhang saw her and said those water celery were already too old, "Even the leeks in our field aren’t tasty anymore. Don’t bother with them."

Although the chives were still growing, the taste was different from that of spring, always making one feel that something was missing.

It was likely that what was missing was the freshness of spring.

After washing the water celery, Lin Chunyan carefully removed the fibers one by one and cut them into small pieces.

Seeing this, Mrs. Zhang stopped saying that the water celery couldn’t be eaten, but she still found it strange. “Why go to so much trouble? There are plenty of fresh vegetables in the field ready to be picked.”

Lin Chunyan, however, continued to remove the fibers from the water celery, blanching it briefly before stir-frying it with slivers of bacon.

This way, the water celery indeed lost its bitterness and became crisp and refreshing.

Having gone to all that trouble for this dish, Lin Chunyan thought it was completely worth it.

She smiled contentedly, “This is the flavor, and if we want to taste it again, we’ll have to wait until next year.”

Lin Taohong pointed to those dried vegetables in the cellar, “Those can also be eaten; we can chop them up and make fragrant dumplings.”

Lin Chunyan smiled and nodded, “You’re right. Even if we can’t eat them in spring, there will always be another spring.”

Summer also offers many seasonal delicacies, and it’s best to embrace what’s in season.

Lin Chunyan took a basket and planned to check the vegetable garden.

She could see the vegetables growing in the backyard every day, and that newly cultivated plot was mainly tended by Mrs. Zhang.

Upon inspection, she found the bitter melons had grown large and the garlic were all lying flat on the ground.