My wife wants a divorce; if she ruins my life, I'll leave.

Meng Ruohua immediately chimed in, guessing, "There's a lot of food in the food box, so if you walk slowly, the food will naturally get cold. Maybe that's the reason."

There's a lot of stuff? Why is there so much stuff? And what extra stuff?

These questions instantly entered the Second Madam's mind, and she also thought of the daily expenses of Lianxiao Courtyard, which were much higher than those of Rongxi Courtyard.

"According to what the Second Young Mistress said, it's not impossible. The two maids from Lianxiao Courtyard carried twice as much stuff as the others."

Wang Gui's wife truthfully stated that she was actually unwilling to cook for Aunt Lü separately. Although she could make some extra money from it, it was too much work. Those meat dishes and stews would take at least an hour to prepare properly, and someone had to keep an eye on them.

These words made Lü Ningshuang's face flush slightly, as if she were being told how much she could eat.

It was clearly the second wife who wanted her to recover her health and have the energy to take care of the two children, so how did people say that she was gluttonous?

She suppressed her anger and said, "The food from the Second Young Mistress will definitely not be cold. After all, you have a small kitchen, so you may not be satisfied with the food from the main kitchen."

She couldn't expect everyone to follow Meng Ruohua's train of thought, so she deliberately brought up the small kitchen in Qingfeng Courtyard again.

"Aunt Lü is wrong. I think the meals prepared by the main kitchen every day are very good. They are a good mix of meat and vegetables and the seasoning is just right. I like them very much."

"You like me, so you even have a separate kitchenette?"

“I don’t have a small kitchen. I just make soup in the break room.” Meng Ruohua smiled. “Making soup doesn’t take up much space.”

Lu Ningshuang didn't believe it and pressed further: "If there's no small kitchen, then why did you hire a cook? Everyone knows you're always making food."

"Aunt Lü's memory isn't very good. The cook was given to me by my mother, and I dare not refuse a gift from an elder."

Lu Ningshuang choked. Was this a blatant admission that her family didn't have the money to make arrangements for her?

"Even so, you certainly don't have to worry about the food getting cold. If it does, you can easily reheat it in the small kitchen, unlike our tea room, which only has a small stove, and you have to wait forever to heat up your food."

She kept mentioning the small kitchen, and even the most clueless person could understand what she meant.

Song Chen'an interrupted their conversation, saying that continuing this argument wouldn't necessarily lead to anything. Besides, the issue to be resolved today was the food at Lianxiao Courtyard, not the kitchen at Qingfeng Courtyard.

He said to the second wife, "Whether it's the little maid who fetches the food or the head kitchen staff, they're not wrong. It's just that it's cold and the road is long, and they got chilled by the wind on the way."

Meng Ruohua wanted to argue, she knew why the food at Lianxiao Courtyard was cold, but she held back in the end.

The second wife understood her son's thoughts, but did not respond. She only gave Lü Ningshuang a few scrutinizing glances.

It seems that her son was instigated by Lü Ningshuang.

“But every winter, it’s cold for at least three months. If this continues, I’m afraid Xuan-ge and Yu-ge will be the first to not be able to stand it.”

While catching his breath, he first looked at his mother's expression. After noticing the disapproval on her face, he explained, "When Xuan-ge was little, it was understandable that he didn't eat much. But as he grows older, it's easy for him to get sick if he doesn't eat properly."

Meng Ruohua agreed, "Second Master is right."

Her words elicited different reactions from the three women. The second wife was annoyed by her interruption, Song Chen'an thanked her for agreeing, while Lü Ningshuang suspiciously guessed her purpose.

Meng Ruohua calmly accepted the gazes from all sides; she was simply going to speak her mind.

Encouraged, Song Chen'an felt more at ease. "Xuan-ge has been clever and quick-witted since he was a child. We can't let him suffer from poor nutrition. If he is healthy when he is young, he will have the strength to take the exam when he grows up."

Exams require physical strength. Once you enter the exam hall, it's for three days straight. Not to mention eating, drinking, and relieving yourself, the cold wind of early spring can make many people sick. How can you do it without good physical health?

Originally, Song Chen'an hadn't considered all this. Today, it was Meng Ruohua's reminder and encouragement that made him feel even more that he was a competent father, at least more competent than his father.

Meng Ruohua chimed in, "Second Master is right. So many candidates were helped out of the examination hall before they even finished their exams, and all their years of hard work went to waste." She then shook her head with great regret, as if she could empathize with the situation.

In fact, years of hard work won't be wasted because of one exam. If you don't do well this time, you can try again next time.

Of course, we won't talk about those poor families; everyone has their own hardships.

The second wife glared at Meng Ruohua with disdain, "You talk too much!"

Meng Ruohua looked at Song Chen'an without caring, her eyes full of encouragement.

If you can talk, then talk more!

She didn't care whether Lü Ningshuang's small kitchen could be built; she just wanted to see the disagreements among the group.

"Mother, just agree." Song Chen'an had even thought of a solution: "Reassign the existing cooks in the kitchen to different groups. If there's anything going on in the mansion, they can be transferred back to the main kitchen. They're all used to it, so there shouldn't be any problem."

The second wife glared at Song Chen'an angrily, thinking, "If only everything were as simple as you think."

Meng Ruohua, however, joined in the commotion, saying, "Second Master is the most thoughtful."

"Why don't you offer advice and comfort to your husband when he's having problems? Instead, you keep saying you support him!" the second wife questioned sharply.

Meng Ruohua shrugged, looking puzzled, and asked, "Didn't my wife teach me this? My husband is like heaven, and I should put him first in everything."

When they first got married, the second wife would teach her this whenever she had the chance, making her really believe that everything Song Chen'an did was right.

Now that she had asked that question in return, the second wife was speechless.

The second wife suddenly slammed her hand on the table, making the teacup bounce twice: "Then you should also see what's going on. Are you just going to ignore it and let him do whatever he wants?"

Meng Ruohua seemed oblivious to the other's anger, and smiled gently, "What my wife is saying, I think my husband is absolutely right!"

Song Chen'an, increasingly pleased with himself for being right, seemed to straighten his back considerably. He nodded approvingly at Meng Ruohua, his eyes filled with admiration, as if to say that they would be going to Qingfeng Courtyard later.

But pull it down!

Meng Ruohua seemed not to have seen it at all, turning her face away expressionlessly, not noticing Song Chen'an's embarrassment out of the corner of her eye.

The second wife knew that her son was clueless about household affairs and even less familiar with matters within the inner courtyard, so she didn't get angry with him. Instead, she scolded Lü Ningshuang, "All you do all day is think about these things. Isn't it enough that I cook so many meals for you every day? You still want a small kitchen? Can you afford to support one?"

There was nothing he could do; he couldn't argue with Meng Ruohua, and he couldn't bear to scold his own son, so he could only scold Lü Ningshuang.

Furthermore, Lianxiao Courtyard spends more on food every day than she does, and the Second Madam has long had complaints about it. Besides, Lü Ningshuang has already been recuperating for more than two months, and her complexion is rosy and her face has become much rounder, so there is really no need for her to continue taking supplements.

"All you care about is food and clothing. You should spend more time and effort on your child!"

Lu Ningshuang lowered her head without saying a word, looking extremely aggrieved.

Marry a man for food and clothing. Isn't marriage about having enough to eat and wear?

And what's wrong with her wanting to arrange a small kitchen? She's already had two children, why should she always have to be inferior to Meng Ruohua, just because she's a concubine?