Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 178 Reward
Wang Yan not only provided her with medical care and medicine, but also gave her a small pagoda.

A return gift is indeed appropriate, and it shouldn't be just any random gift.

Zhang said, "I was thinking that since the two gentlemen cannot return home on New Year's Day, it would be better to send them some homemade snacks, but I'm afraid that would be too simple."

“Our family is not like those large families that have privately brewed fine wines. In the autumn, we have some fruit wines, but those are just for the clansmen to taste casually, and they are far inferior to the official wines.”

Xie Yuyan thought carefully: "I noticed that we bought some candied fruit at home."

“Yes,” Zhang said with a smile, “this year’s preparations are exceptionally complete.”

"Mother, bring the green plums here, and see if we have any perilla," Xie Yuyan said. "How about we make steamed pork ribs with plums and perilla, and also have a jar of fragrant rice cakes?"

Zhang had never heard of such a way of eating before, and besides...

What is Xiangchengyuan?

Xie Yuyan forgot, and probably hasn't heard of this name since.

"It involves washing the kumquats and simmering them in sugar, but not for too long. The peel should be soft yet still crisp, so that each bite is full of fragrance."

"Also, I had someone prepare a pot beforehand, so I brought it along with some fresh meat and vegetables. These are things you can't find anywhere else, and it's a token of our appreciation."

"Later, have Yang Jiang and Qin Ge take Xiao Shan on a trip."

Zhang breathed a sigh of relief. She had been thinking about it for so long, but Xie Yuyan resolved it in just a few words.

"I'll go find some candied fruit now, but you'll have to watch me make it."

Xie Yuyan nodded. She didn't know how to cook it herself, but she had heard the cook explain how to make it. She simply repeated the instructions verbatim. Whether it tasted good or not, and whether it would suit He Tan and Wang Yan's tastes, was beyond her control.

Seeing that Zhang had prepared everything, Xie Yuyan also began to miss the taste of this dish.

"Mother, why don't you make more so that everyone can have a taste?"

Zhang happily agreed. She couldn't help with anything on ordinary days, but now that the family was gathered together for New Year's Day, she finally had a chance to lend a hand.

"What else would you like to eat? Mom will make it for you."

Perhaps because he had recovered from his illness, Xie Yuyan had regained his appetite and there were indeed dishes he wanted to eat.

Xie Yuyan said, "Rabbit paste."

Zhang felt that the names of these dishes were all...strange.

"How was that done?"

"All I need is rabbit meat, noodles, and radishes."

Xie Yuyan recognized all these vegetables, but she had the idea of ​​how to cook them into a dish, though she didn't have the skill.

Xie Yuyan said, "I can help Mother cook noodles in a little while."

When Yang Qin returned from Mr. Tong's place, he smelled a fragrance in the courtyard. He followed the scent to the kitchen and heard Xie Yuyan's voice before he even entered.

"Mother, hurry, hurry..."

Zhang said, "Don't worry, it can still be used."

Yang Qin immediately lifted the curtain and saw his mother and sister-in-law standing in front of the pot. His mother was hurriedly scooping something out of the pot.

"What is this?" Yang Qin had never seen it before.

Moreover, next to these things, there were several similar clumps of objects, only even more charred.

Zhang said, "These are noodles your sister-in-law made."

After saying this, Xie Yuyan and Zhang Shi looked at each other and couldn't help but burst out laughing.

Zhang laughed until tears streamed down her face.

Xie Yuyan started working with great enthusiasm, but each attempt was worse than the last.

No, this last time it wasn't completely black, it looks... still usable.

Xie Yuyan even felt it was very good. At this moment, she forgot what the plate of rabbit paste looked like at the palace banquet.

"Can it be used?" Xie Yuyan looked at Zhang Shi seriously.

After thinking for a while, Zhang nodded: "Use it!" Compared to Xie Yuyan making other things, this lump of noodles was just for lining the bottom and wouldn't be eaten anyway. Otherwise, after making it for so long, it would be disappointing for Xie Yuyan to just throw it all away.

As for Lord Wang... Zhang Shi was also open-minded. With so many delicious foods available, Lord Wang wouldn't be so foolish as to insist on trying these noodles.

Xie Yuyan looked at Yang Qin: "When we're ready in a little while, you and Jiang Ge'er go to the patrol office and give these dishes to Patrol Inspector He or Registrar Wang."

Yang Qin loved doing this, especially after he heard that Registrar Wang was a member of the Wang family.

Last time, when Clerk Wang brought the imperial physician to his home, he secretly kept an eye on him and felt that Clerk Wang seemed quite extraordinary. However, his sister-in-law was ill at the time, and he didn't have the heart to talk to Clerk Wang much. This time, he should at least thank Clerk Wang.

……

As darkness fell, He Tan finally returned to the second hall.

He had been so busy all day that he had almost forgotten that today was New Year's Day.

Looking at Wang Yan, who was still writing official documents, He Tan asked, "What exactly did you go to do after leaving Daming Prefecture the day before yesterday?"

Wang Yan didn't look up: "Go to the other courtyard and get some things."

He Tan knew that the Wang family had a courtyard in Xingzhou, so it turned out that Wang Yan had gone there: "What's in such a hurry?"

Wang Yan said indifferently, "It's just some trivial trinket."

No way, would Wang Hechun really set off for Xingzhou on his own because of such a small item? He came back so quickly, he probably didn't even stay in Xingzhou.

"Where are the things?" He Tan walked over.

Wang Yan said, "It's been given away."

This is even stranger.

“He Chun,” He Tan said, “this is not right…who did you give it to? Is this a New Year’s gift for someone?”

"It's not a New Year's gift, it's just..."

Seeing He Tan getting closer and closer, Wang Yan stopped talking. Then he saw a strong curiosity in He Tan's eyes. He couldn't continue talking, otherwise it would never end.

Even if he admits to giving it to Madam Xie, He Tan's next question will change from who he gave it to to why he gave it to her.
Wang Yan refused to continue, but He Tan was not about to give up easily. Just as he was thinking about how to get the truth out of him, his stomach started rumbling.

The two brothers' eyes met, and He Tan reached out and patted Wang Yan on the shoulder: "If this were at home, it would be so lively." His expression was quite nostalgic for the past.

Wang Yan didn't care: "It's better that they're not in the clan; it saves a lot of trouble."

He Tan knew that what Wang Yan hated most was the clan's rules and etiquette. Every time he returned to the Wang clan, he would either have to worship his ancestors in the ancestral hall or be dragged to do all sorts of things. In short, the rules and etiquette were endless.

“Let’s go,” He Tan said, “Let’s go to the other courtyard and have the cook prepare some food. Even though we’re not at home, I can’t let you go hungry on New Year’s Day.”

Wang Yan put down the official documents in his hand, stood up and was about to leave with He Tan when Chen Ju walked in.

“My lords,” Chen Ju said, “the two young men from the Yang family have arrived and brought you some food.”

He Tan was taken aback. He hadn't expected the Yang family to have such thoughts. It was truly rare. He looked at Wang Yan and said, "It seems that someone knows we have nowhere to go."

He then looked at Chen Ju and said, "Please invite him in."

A moment later, Yang Qin and Yang Jiang walked in.

The two men carried food boxes, and a servant followed behind them carrying a strange pot.

He Tan's gaze was drawn to the pot: "What is this?"

Before Yang Qin could speak, Wang Yan said, "Offer the rosy clouds."

The name originated from the market on Yuyingqian Street, where people from Yong'anfang sold this, only the pot was much bigger.

He Tan asked, "Why is it called that?"

"When it boils, the soup in the pot will simmer, and the rising steam will look like clouds, hence the name." Wang Yan knew the origin of the name, but he also guessed that it did not come from Yong'anfang, but from Xie Yuyan.

Yang Qin nodded proudly: "There are a few more dishes with nice names, all chosen by my sister-in-law."

Wang Yan watched as Yang Qin opened the food box. If he hadn't delivered it to the wooden pagoda last night, there might not have been this food, so he couldn't wait for her to think of it first.

Yang Qin took out the dishes one by one.

When Wang Yan finally mentioned "rabbit paste," his gaze fell on the lump at the bottom, and for some reason, a smile appeared on his lips.