The journey of the only child of a peasant family to take the imperial examination

Chapter 408: Returning Home (Part 1)

Qian Youyi didn't know what her mother-in-law was thinking, but even if she knew, she wouldn't take the initiative to make it clear.

She was a very intelligent woman and had never thought about having a real mother-daughter relationship with her mother-in-law.

Because that would require huge compromises and concessions.

After all, there is a big gap in their family backgrounds, and their lifestyles and habits will definitely be very different. She was mentally prepared before getting engaged.

In any relationship, there will always be someone who takes the dominant position. She will not be a bad daughter-in-law, but she will not compromise herself and lower her standards just to please her in-laws.

Her family was already very well-off, and her parents had prepared a wedding for her that was ten miles long. Even if there were dozens more people, it wouldn't be a problem. She really didn't think it was necessary.

So everyone just needs to save face and avoid making mistakes in terms of etiquette.

After finishing the meal and paying respects to Zhang Laoer and the others, Qian Youyi returned to her room with her maids and servants.

The weather was cold, so Zhang Laoer and Xu didn't stay long and went back to their rooms.

Zhang Ping'an went to the study. He was a newlywed and the state school had approved him for three days of leave in advance. He didn't have to go to class today. He could wait until he accompanied his wife for three days before going to class.

There was a good charcoal fire in the study, it was warm and there was no smell of smoke at all.

Zhang Ping'an took off his windproof cloak as soon as he entered the room.

He said that this was the only downside to living in a big house. It was that one had to walk a long way back to the room, and if one did not wear a cloak or cape, the cold wind would blow up to the neck, chilling one to the bone.

The study is very spacious and has a large collection of books. After the wedding yesterday, the ancient books in the dowry brought by my daughter-in-law were sorted out by the housekeeper and placed on the bookshelf.

Now the entire bookshelf against the wall is about 70% full, which is a considerable fortune in this era.

In winter, the cold wind is howling outside, but the study is warm and cozy, forming a sharp contrast.

It is a very pleasant thing to read comfortably in such a study.

Zhang Ping'an forgot about time as he watched. It was not until almost noon when a servant came to tell him that it was time to prepare for lunch that he realized how quickly time had passed. The whole morning had passed without him noticing.

When I went out, the cold wind was stronger than in the morning.

Zhang Ping'an looked up at the sky and estimated that it would snow in about ten days!

Lunch was as sumptuous as breakfast, with all kinds of meat and vegetables.

The butler also placed an exquisite brass pot in the middle of the table. There was a chimney-like structure in the middle, with a charcoal fire inside. White fish and tofu were rolling in the soup around it. Green leaves were also placed on the soup to remove the oil. It smelled very fragrant!

The combination of white and green looks refreshing and delicious.

It's mind-blowing.

Isn’t this the old hot pot? Zhang Pingan was quite surprised. Although he had eaten hot pot a few times in this era, this was the first time he saw such an exquisite style that was close to the new hot pot!

In the past, the most common ones were somewhat similar to small tripods or iron pots, and were not as exquisite as this one.

Zhang Laoer had never eaten this kind of hot pot before, so he couldn't help but ask, "What is this?"

The housekeeper bowed and replied, "Master, this is the antique soup. It gets its name from the gurgling sound it makes when food is put into boiling water. It was your wife's dowry. It's cold in winter, and food gets cold easily, so your wife asked me to take out the antique soup and use it."

"It smells so good. A lot of spices must have been added!" Zhang Ping'an asked with a smile, and then used the serving chopsticks to pick up a piece of fish and put it into Zhang Laoer's bowl.

"Dad, please try it!"

"Indeed, I added some spices shipped from the Western Regions. They are very effective in removing fishy smells. They are all my dowry. Dad, mom, and husband, you all should try them. If you find them edible, you can make them more often in the future," Qian Youyi said with a smile.

Zhang Ping'an served food to everyone.

After tasting it, Zhang Laoer and Xu felt that their taste buds were shocked. It was so delicious!

Even though I don't usually pay attention to my appetite, I still ate a lot more at noon.

The lunch was quite harmonious!

Qian Youyi didn't eat much at every meal, just a few sips of food.

Occasionally he would cough lightly while eating, and looked very frail.

Mrs. Xu felt that she ate too little, how could her body be healthy?

But thinking about what my mother-in-law Zhang had repeatedly told me, I hesitated several times and finally gave up!

In the end, he didn't say anything.

Forget it, since I can’t control it, I’d better just ignore it!

She and Zhang Laoer felt very uncomfortable living here. They couldn't sleep well every night because the bed was too soft and there were too many maids and servants. They always felt like they were being watched. Sometimes they couldn't even pick their teeth for fear of making a fool of themselves.

After thinking it over, the old couple discussed it and decided to wait until Sanchao returned home before moving back to their old house.

Anyway, it’s so close that a mule cart can get there in less than a quarter of an hour.

I will just wait a few days before formally mentioning it to my son and daughter-in-law.

No nest is as good as your own!

No matter how Zhang Pingan tried to persuade him, it was useless. The gap in family background was an unavoidable fact that could only be bridged by time.

Qian Youyi is very afraid of the cold and basically never goes out. Sometimes he goes to the study to read with Zhang Pingan. He has a wide range of knowledge in the Four Books and Five Classics and is a very good book friend.

And considerate!

When the two sides chatted, they never acted superior. They always communicated on an equal footing, which made people feel very comfortable.

The two of them get along very well!

Two days passed in a flash, and it was time to go back home on the third day.