Chapter 182: Guests from the Capital
Two friends?
Wen Yao and Wen Xiuyi exchanged a quick look before turning their eyes toward Wen Jun. Wen Jun gave a subtle, microscopic nod.
It seemed their suspicions were correct. These were the two individuals who had traveled all the way from the capital specifically to eat duck. As for their backgrounds, even Wen Jun was entirely in the dark.
Old Madam Luo, however, was somewhat taken aback. To start bringing friends straight to their house like this—they truly didn’t treat themselves as outsiders in the slightest.
Of course, the Wen family hadn’t treated them as outsiders either.
“Alright, I understand. We’ll prepare properly tomorrow. Second’s wife, go to the duck pen in a bit and catch two ducks to bring back. Make sure they’re fat. Yao’er, have your second uncle stoke the fire for you tomorrow morning to roast them and entertain the guests.
“Uncle Lu, fetch a few larger fish from the fish pond tomorrow, and see what else needs to be bought. Oh dear, the house is out of wine. Yao’er, do you still have any wine hidden away?” As Old Madam Luo distributed the tasks, she directed her gaze toward Wen Yao.
Uncle Lu hurriedly voiced his agreement.
Wen Yao also responded in a rush, “Grandmother, yes, yes, I still have some.” Ai, time to take another financial hit.
With these arrangements set, Old Madam Luo dismissed everyone to get moving straight away. Since guests were arriving tomorrow, they needed to tidy up the entire house, and make sure they spruced themselves up decently as well, so as not to lose face for Manager Qiu and Divine Doctor Jin.
The crowd scrambled to answer. In this household, no one dared to disobey the old lady’s words.
The next day, despite Datou’s desperate pleading, he and the other two hopes of the family were still packed off and sent to the academy.
Since they didn’t know exactly when Divine Doctor Jin and Manager Qiu would arrive, the entire Wen family household began preparing early in the morning. Even Old Man Wen changed out of the old, worn clothes he wore daily during this period and put on a fresh set of garments.
As noon approached, a horse-drawn carriage entered Gutong Village, and someone immediately ran over to deliver the news to the Wen family.
“Auntie Wen, come look! Is that carriage heading toward your house?”
Old Madam Luo led the group outside, and who else could the carriage driver be but Hong Hai?
“The guests have arrived,” Old Madam Luo called out toward the courtyard. Except for Wen Xiuzhu, who was guarding the roasting oven, the entire Wen family rushed outside.
“Grandmother Wen, Eldest Uncle Wen, Third Uncle Wen.” Hong Hai brought the carriage to a steady halt, hopped down, and began greeting everyone one by one.
Immediately following him, Manager Qiu and Divine Doctor Jin stepped down one after the other, exchanging greetings with Old Madam Luo and the others.
Wen Yao and Wen Xiuyi stood at the very back, both staring intently at the carriage, waiting for the two mysterious guests to alight.
Hong Hai stood beside the carriage, carefully pinning the curtain aside. Very quickly, a middle-aged man climbed out of the carriage.
This person was slightly plump with a mild, humble countenance. However, Wen Yao and Wen Xiuyi spotted an undeniable aura of nobility radiating from him. This wasn’t a presence an ordinary person could possess, even though he was grinning from ear to ear upon stepping down from the carriage.
After him, a young master around twelve or thirteen years old jumped straight down from the vehicle. Dressed in a crescent-moon-colored long robe, his dark eyes darted around curiously in every direction. Spotting Manager Qiu and the others, he scurried over with a light jog and stood beside the middle-aged man with a beaming smile.
“Brother Wen, Sister-in-law, this is a good friend of Old Jin and mine, Li Fu. This is his son, Li Yi. We’ll be imposing on your household today,” Manager Qiu introduced.
Li Fu smiled like a Maitreya Buddha, clasping his hands toward the two elders. “Forgive the intrusion, forgive the intrusion.”
Facing Li Fu’s festive smile, Old Madam Luo relaxed by a few degrees. After all, who wouldn’t like a person whose smile brought such a joyous atmosphere?
“We are all one family. Mr. Qiu and Divine Doctor Jin’s friends are the friends of our Wen family. Don’t just stand at the entrance, let’s head inside first. We can talk once we’re inside.” Seeing that everyone was assembled, Old Madam Luo spoke up in a hurry.
By now, Old Madam Luo had even met the County Magistrate, so she was more or less immune when facing two guests dressed in such noble attire.
They had already mentally prepared themselves yesterday. Given Divine Doctor Jin and Manager Qiu’s backgrounds, how could the status of their friends be lacking? Just as Wen Xiuyi had said, as long as the other party didn’t declare their own identity, they could just treat them with ordinary composure.
“Brother Li, after you.” Manager Qiu and Divine Doctor Jin took a step back, yielding the leading position to Li Fu.
Wen Yao and Wen Xiuyi exchanged a silent glance.
Wen Yao: Li Fu?
Wen Xiuyi: Quick, think if there’s any grand figure surnamed Li.
Wen Yao nearly rolled her eyes. There were far too many people surnamed Li in the original book, but she had never heard of anyone named Li Fu. Could this be another character completely overlooked by the original author?
Forget it, they would take things one step at a time.
The large group swarmed back into the house. Facing the guests, the Wen family members felt more or less constrained and formal, until that Maitreya Buddha twitched his nose and let out a startled exclamation: “How fragrant! Is this the scent of Yunwu Roast Duck?”
Manager Qiu burst into laughter upon hearing this. “Hahaha, it just had to be Brother Li’s nose to recognize it at a single sniff. Yes, that is exactly the scent of Yunwu Roast Duck. However, what you eat in the shops might not be as authentic as what’s found here.”
“Oh? Could there be a story behind this?” At the mention of food, Li Fu’s spirits instantly rallied.
Manager Qiu smiled and waved his hand toward Wen Yao. “Yao’er, come over here.”
Standing beside her, Wen Xiuyi also received the collective gaze of the crowd. Flashing his trademark signature smile, he stealthily pushed his daughter forward. Wen Yao could only step forward with an awkward smile, executing a perfectly disciplined bow to the group.
“That roast duck you’ve been constantly pining for came entirely from this young girl’s hands.” Manager Qiu introduced Wen Yao with considerable pride, as if he were introducing his own daughter.
Wen Yao immediately executed a thoroughly proper, quiet, and elegant bow to Li Fu. “Greetings, Mr. Li.”
The refined tone of that voice felt so forced even to her own ears.
Li Fu looked at the young girl before him, who was barely ten years old, with utter disbelief.
“You don’t believe it? Then today you must truly witness the culinary skills of our widely renowned young head chef.” Manager Qiu let out two hearty laughs and said to Wen Yao, “Yao’er, there’s no need to be nervous. This friend of your Uncle Qiu has no other vices; his sole passion in this life is eating.
“Otherwise, he wouldn’t have traveled all the way from the capital just to catch a taste of your duck. It’s a pity that the skills of the chefs in the roast duck shop still lack a bit of heat and precision compared to yours, which is why I shamelessly brought him over.”
Wen Yao offered a sweet smile. “Uncle Qiu, you’re being far too polite. If you want to eat duck, you only need to let Yao’er know. Then, Uncle Qiu, please take a seat first while I go check on the ducks.”
Manager Qiu nodded. “They’re already roasting? No wonder we could smell the fragrance the moment we stepped inside. Go ahead and get busy then, I’ll lead them around for a stroll.”
“Mhm.” Wen Yao caught the opportunity and slipped away immediately. Because external men were present, Wen Di didn’t come out. Wen Ying had already stolen a glance at the guests; seeing that these people from the capital didn’t have two extra noses or eyes compared to them, she instantly lost interest and followed her into the kitchen to help.
Old Madam Luo also led her two daughters-in-law and Auntie Lu into the kitchen to prepare the ingredients. For a moment, the only ones left in the courtyard were a few grown men and Wen Jun, the young lad who didn’t have to work today.
“Xiao Jun, lead Young Master Li around for a stroll, don’t wander too far.” Wen Xiuyi shot Wen Jun a meaningful look, delegating a task to him.
Wen Jun wanted to say he didn’t particularly desire to go, but since that young master was already looking at him, he could only harden his resolve, step forward, and lead the boy out to wander around the village.
Manager Qiu and Divine Doctor Jin exchanged a glance before stepping forward to strike up a casual chat with Wen Xiuyi. As they chatted, the conversation naturally drifted toward those potatoes and sweet potatoes.
