Chapter Seventeen Delicious

  In the late afternoon, Cao Gong returned to the Weaving Mansion.

  Wei Xin went home for vacation, and was detained for several days. Before he left, Cao Yun gave him a silver ticket worth 1,000 taels and instructed him to keep it confidential. The 10,000 taels of silver were used to buy servants, and spreading the news would be too showy. Even if Wei Xin didn't mention it, he wouldn't say that the silver was in his own hands. If he said anything, his parents would still take it away from him.

  Cao Song returned to the Western Mansion, and Gu Na returned to his Dian Shi Zhai. Although he considered himself a study companion, everyone in the Cao family treated him as if he were their own young master. Cao Yin arranged for him to have a quiet courtyard and also selected two honest book boys to serve him.

  Cao Gong did not go back to his own residence but instead went to the Xuan Rui Hall in the backyard where the elderly lady lived.

  The old lady was already seventy-two years old, slightly more prosperous than in previous years. When Cao Guang arrived, the old lady was sitting on the soft couch at the west side of the kang, listening to Li Shi's report about the recent arrangements within the mansion. The imperial carriage would arrive in Jiangning on March 28th, leaving less than ten days, and there was still much to be done.

  Zao Yin's brother's wife, Zhao Jia Shi, sat in the chair beside Li Shi. These days she came over every day to help her sister-in-law with things. Apart from Li Shi and Zhao Jia Shi, Zao Yin's concubines were all present. The Cao family had received guests many times in recent years, so everyone was experienced and calm, following the established routine of previous years. Under Li Shi's arrangement, each person brought a servant to take charge of one area, and everything was handled properly.

  When Cao Yun came in, the old lady's face showed a few more happy expressions. Cao Yun first greeted the old lady, then saw her mother and aunt, and finally saw several aunts. After the aunts returned the courtesy and left, Liu Li walked out last, looking at Cao Yun with some thought. Cao Yun saw that her belly was slightly bulging, and he couldn't express his feelings, thinking that he would have to add an younger half-brother or half-sister, feeling like swallowing a fly. This is the little third who has entered the house, thinking of these things, he felt more sympathetic towards his mother Li Shi. As the first wife, not only can't be jealous, but also have to treat the children born out of wedlock with generosity and tolerance, isn't this stabbing a knife in people's hearts?

  The old lady pulled Cao Ge to sit on the kang, and smiled: "Today Lin Xiaozhai sent nine turns of morning dew, the color is good, the name is also good, it tastes good too! My precious grandson has worked hard!"

  Cao Cong hastily said, "Cong'er dare not take credit, it's all thanks to the two masters Yu and Tian. As long as the ancestors eat well, giving a few more silver coins is enough." This was an era of "gentlemen avoiding the kitchen", if it were to spread that he liked to show off his cooking skills, it wouldn't be a good reputation.

  The old lady was wise and understood her grandson's thoughts. Seeing him being humble and mature, she felt relieved and happy.

  Zhao Jia said with a flattering tone: "Old ancestor, nowadays Linxiazhai is really hard to get in, many dignitaries want to book a table but can't. The other day, the wife of Cui Fu's house came to your daughter-in-law's place to pay respects, wanting to book a table at Linxiazhai soon to entertain General Ha!" While speaking, he deliberately glanced at Cao Yun with a mixture of intention and unintention.

  Cao Gong sat beside the old lady, picked up a piece of dried peach from the fruit plate on the kang table, and put it in his mouth, with an expression as if he hadn't noticed.

  Linxiaozhai was set up by Cao Fu in February of the previous year, before Old Lady's 70th birthday. He used 8,000 taels of silver from pawnbroking to buy a private mansion of an official returning to Beijing, and opened Linxiaozhai after decorating it. To be frank, Linxiaozhai was just a private restaurant. However, due to its novelty and uniqueness, with new dishes introduced every month, one table reserved inside and two tables for takeaway every day, many people couldn't get in, thus making it very famous.

  Going to Linxiaozhai for a meal has become a long-standing comparison of face among the powerful families in Jiangning City. It's worth noting that Cao Guang, the boss behind Linxiaozhai, believes in "not seeking the best, but seeking the most expensive". Linxiaozhai does not receive walk-in customers, and those who want to dine there need to make a reservation in advance. Moreover, they only serve one table of guests per day, and the meal cost is 199 taels of silver, which must be paid in advance, excluding tips.

  Zhao Jia saw that Cao Gong did not respond, and although he was unhappy in his heart, he did not dare to be presumptuous in front of the old lady, so he smiled and changed the subject.

  Cao Fu accompanied the old lady and chatted with her for a while. The old lady knew he had just returned and hadn't eaten dinner, so she ordered someone to serve him and change his outer clothes, then called someone to bring up the food that was left for him.

  Li had other things to attend to, and Zhao Jia also arrived at the time of returning to the mansion, so they left together.

  After finishing dinner, Cao Gong left Xuan Rui Hall and was stopped by two maids as soon as he came out of the old lady's courtyard. They were Nong Shu and Pin Hua, who served beside Cao Yan.

  "Old man, you're finally out! Our girl has been waiting for you for a good while!" Nangong Yu said with a smile.

  "Is my sister looking for me?" Cao Gong had some unexpectedness, Cao Yan's personality was slightly cold and clear, Cao Gong rarely took the initiative to get close to his family members except for Old Lady and Cao Yu, and the two siblings didn't have a very close relationship.

  Listening to Cao Cong's questions, Nong Yu and Pin Hua both nodded vigorously.

  Outside the Yunyongzhai, a small maid stood outside the door and saw Cao Guang coming from afar. She quickly turned around to the doorway and reported: "Qin sister, Master is here!"

  The maid inside the door asked Qīn, who had a happy face, walked to the desk and said to Cáo Yán: "Miss can rest assured, Master is a humble person, as long as Miss speaks up, where would he not agree?"

  Cao Yan's face showed a hint of loss, and she said in a low voice: "My brother used up his years' worth of lucky money to set up Linxiaozhai, and as his sister, I haven't done my part. Every month, I get five points of dividend for nothing, which is already shameful. Now I'm making things difficult for him again, it's really not right. If it weren't for the reunion with the sisters from Jizhu Society, I wouldn't have to worry about this."

  Ji Zhuan Society, founded by Cao Yan a few years ago, consists of more than ten members who are all daughters from influential families in Jiangning. Each month, the young ladies take turns hosting gatherings where they recite poetry and paint. It's indeed a elegant pastime. However, good times don't last long. Next year is the year of the imperial examination for women, so many young ladies from official families have been confined at home to learn etiquette by their elders. Cao Yan is no exception, except on the birthdays of the members, there's really no excuse for them to gather together.

  Cao Yan's birthday was on March 30th, which coincided with the Emperor's stay in Jiangning. The Weaving Bureau would become a "Grand Imperial Palace", so it was out of the question to invite young ladies from various families to form a poetry club, let alone celebrate her birthday as usual. Therefore, Cao Yan thought of asking her younger brother Cao Song to arrange a banquet at Linxiazhai in advance to celebrate her birthday early. However, it was well-known that banquets at Linxiazhai were extremely popular, and anyone who wanted to host a dinner party there usually had to make reservations one or even two months in advance.

  Yunyongzhai's main house has three rooms. The middle room is a hall, the west room is a bedroom and the east room is a study.

  Cao Gong knew that his sister was buried in books all day long, and without anyone telling him, he walked to the eastern room.

  Although I was reluctant to take care of a 14-year-old little girl and call her sister, what could I do? Who let Cao Yun's body be only eleven years old.

  Cao Yan wore a lotus-colored shirt and skirt, with her black hair tied in a ponytail that hung casually behind her head, except for a pair of pearl earrings, there were no other accessories.

  "Sister!" Cao Gong bowed his head in greeting.

  "What an honored guest has arrived! Ask Qin to quickly take the glass cup from the hundred treasures box and serve Master a cup of pre-rain Longjing tea!" Cao Yan put away the loss in her eyes, smiled and invited Cao Yun to sit down.

  After all, it's a family affair. Thinking that this little girl in front of him would be getting married next year, Cao Kun's heart softened and he couldn't help but start worrying about her. At the age of 15, she was going to become a princess and manage a large household. Fortunately, Emperor Kangxi took into consideration Cao Yun's face and did not arrange for Cao Yan to marry one of his sons. The Cao family were servants in the imperial palace and didn't have the qualifications to be the official wife of an imperial prince, at most she could only be a concubine.

  Qin sent up tea, and Cao Yan was very embarrassed to say what he had entrusted. Cao Yun slightly frowned and did not respond immediately.

  Cao Yan's heart sank, yes, where can a younger brother's words be easily agreed to? The reservations for Linxiaozhai have been pushed back to one or two months later. Those who can spend thousands of silver coins on a meal are few in number and without status. Only the Cao family knows that the boss behind Linxiaozhai is Cao Gong, but outsiders think the boss is just Cao Fang, a member of the Cao family. How can he directly offend these guests?

  "It's really troublesome, never mind, just don't forget to give your sister a big gift for her birthday!" Cao Yan said with a smile after taking a sip of tea.

  Cao Cong replied, "Indeed, it's a bit inconvenient. Sister wants to use Linxia's banquet to entertain the ladies from various families, which isn't a big deal, but the servants there are all maids and young men, no chambermaids. At that time, sister will have to arrange for enough people to go over and serve."

  Cao Yan had already lost hope, but after hearing this, her eyes lit up, and she couldn't help but add a few more worries: "Younger brother, won't it be too troublesome? If no one is willing to cancel their subscription, don't force it, don't ruin the reputation of Linxiazhai. Sister will find another place to entertain guests."

  "There's nothing, tomorrow I'll go to Linxiazhai to discuss with Cao Fang, at the latest in five or six days. Sister, don't worry, just prepare for the banquet." Cao Yun replied casually, but was actually very relieved. Fortunately, he had foreseen this and hadn't forgotten that whether it's ancient or modern China, it's a country that values relationships. The catering service at Linxiazhai is closed every five days to deal with various relationship clients, of course, those who value relationships have to save face and have strong connections, and the catering fee can't be reduced by even a single cent. Cao Yan was lucky, as his sister had spoken up, and he had to agree in order to make his little sister happy. As for the Zhao Jia side, it's their own store, how could they allow others to use it to curry favor? Cao Yun, being a lazy person, would never do something that wouldn't bring him benefits."

  Xī Fǔ returned to the mansion, looking displeased. Even her youngest son, Cáo Yīn, trying to act cute, couldn't get her attention, and she told the nanny to take him away to calm down.

  Cao Juan returned to the house and saw his wife like this, he was very puzzled and asked: "Why didn't you fight back, did the old lady beat you again?"

  Zhao Jia's wife snorted and complained, "The old lady is really biased, with only her eldest grandson in her eyes, she can't see anyone else. It's not even worth talking about!"

  Cao Juan and Lao Tai Jun were not close relatives, but they respected each other in their hearts and did not want to discuss her right or wrong, so they didn't respond.

  Zhao Jia's heart was not satisfied: "Lin Xiuzhi has three shares of the five shares, I have acknowledged it, after all, she is the benefactor who saved Rong'er's life, and also entered our family tree. But what about that little scoundrel Gu? He also got a share, treating enemies and benefactors equally, does he think he's a Bodhisattva? Foolish!" Seeing her husband still not speaking up, she continued: "Since everyone has a share, why do we only have Ying'er and Song'er in the Western Mansion, but none of the three brothers Shuo'er?"

  Ever since Cao Ying and Cao Song started giving her 500-600 taels of silver as dividend every month from Linxiazhai, Zhao's wife had been nagging about this. Cao Guan hadn't heard it less than ten times, or more than eight times, and didn't mind, but seeing his wife bring up the old topic again, he was a bit curious: "Why did you think of mentioning this? Isn't it not yet the day to receive the dividend?"

  Zhao Jia sighed: "Is it Mrs. Cui, the wife of the governor, who wants to set up a banquet in Linxia Temple? I told Old Lady about it, but your nephew pretended not to hear, and didn't even consider me as his aunt. It's really... Ying'er and Song'er have a 10% stake in Linxia Temple, making them small shareholders there. What's the big deal if Linxia Temple squeezes out one day for the Cui family?"

  Cao Quan looked at Zhao Jia Shi and said with a hint of a smile: "I don't know if Rong Er is a Bodhisattva, but he's definitely not an idiot. Whoever said that Ying Er and Song Er have shares in Linxia Zhai, don't forget that what they mentioned was dividends, just giving some brothers and sisters pocket money, never mentioning whether there are shares or not!"

  Zhao Jia's eyes widened: "Can it be so?"

  Cao Guan nodded: "Moreover, there is a deadline, until the marriage of Ying and the others. As brothers, it's only natural that they wouldn't give money to their married sisters and brothers."

  Zhao Jia said with a snort, "I didn't think that Yan Xiaozi still had such a mind. What's the point of that? Now that we haven't divided the family property yet, even if you make more money, it's still Cao's family business. It should all be shared equally in the end."

  "It's the Cao family's business, but it's also Yan'er's own business!" Cao Zhuang said: "Our nephew is not ordinary, such a big stall, all of them were pawned with their own jewelry and antiques to set up, without using any public funds. They even pretended to make some snacks for Old Lady, making a profit on both sides. Neither Big Brother nor I, as his uncle, would dare to take advantage of Lin Xiaozhai, who wants to save face!"

  Zhao Jia furrowed his brow: "The monthly dividend of 5% is just five or six hundred taels of silver, and the total dividend is around ten thousand. In a year, it's twelve million that can't be stopped. One store is worth more than ten other shops outside, and yet Yu Xiaozi got it so cheaply."

  Cao Juan looked at his wife and said seriously: "Yong'er is a person with a sense of propriety, you respect him and he will naturally respect you as an aunt. He is the eldest grandson of the Cao family and has the demeanor of an older brother. In the future, our younger sons will all rely on this older brother to lead them. Don't be blinded by a few pieces of silver and lose sight of what's important."

  Zhao Jia's husband spoke seriously and nodded in agreement. A smile spread across his face as the couple removed their outer garments and settled in.