Tiger Owl

Chapter 164 A Woman's Mistakes
The day after receiving Zhuge Liang's letter, when Cai Mao was not in Xiangyang, Liu Qi seized the opportunity to write to his father, expressing his willingness to go and guard Jiangling.

At the same time, Liu Qi packed his valuables into ten large boxes and sent Deng Zhi to secretly present them to Madam Cai.

In the inner courtyard of the General Zhenguo's mansion, Madam Cai squinted at the gold, silver, jewels, and jade artifacts in the box, her eyes narrowing into slits with delight.

She never expected that her most hated eldest son would be so considerate, giving her so much wealth, which must be worth tens of thousands of strings of cash!

Throughout history, women have always valued money the most, as only money can bring them a great sense of security. This was especially true when Liu Biao's health was deteriorating, making Lady Cai even more concerned about money.

This is Zhuge Liang's strategy: to spend money to avoid disaster. By offering his family's wealth to Lady Cai, ostensibly out of filial piety towards his mother, he could openly offer money, and she could openly accept it, while truly resolving the problem.

"Tell me! What does he want? As long as it's not excessive, I can grant his request."

“Your Excellency, the eldest son wishes to bring his wife and children to guard Jiangling. I humbly request that Your Excellency put in a good word for him with the governor.”

"Do you intend to bring your wife and children with you to your new post?"

Madam Cai was very clever and immediately hit the nail on the head.

"That's right, we also hope to obtain military control of 30,000 troops."

"Alright! That's not a big problem. I can make the decision to let him bring his wife and children. I'll talk to his father about the military power issue later."

Even without Cai Mao's persuasion, that very evening, Lady Cai spoke a few words to Liu Biao, instructing Liu Qi to guard Jiangling to prevent his two sons from turning against each other.

Liu Biao had already tacitly agreed to Liu Cong's succession. He simply didn't have the energy to fight with the powerful families of Jingzhou anymore. For the sake of stability in Jingzhou, he had no choice but to sacrifice the interests of his eldest son.

Liu Biao hesitated for only a moment before agreeing. Lady Cai then drafted the appointment for Liu Biao, stamped it with Liu Biao's seal, and Liu Biao tremblingly signed Liu Qi's application.

The following morning, Prefect Liu Xian announced the governor's decree, appointing Liu Qi as the Defense Commissioner of Jiangling, in command of 30,000 troops in Jiangling. Lady Cai sent someone to hand over the tiger tally, which gave Liu Qi control of the military.

When Cai Mao received the news, it was too late. Liu Qi had already left Xiangyang with his wife and daughters, escorted by 500 of Liu Biao's guards, and was heading to Jiangling to take up his post.

Cai Mao was so angry he almost vomited blood. He did not object to Liu Qi going to Jiangling, but Liu Qi could only manage political affairs at most, not military affairs. Once Liu Qi took command of the army, there would be endless troubles in the future.

Unfortunately, his sister, for some inexplicable reason, secretly appointed Liu Qi as the Defense Commissioner of Jiangling, giving him control of 30,000 troops. Cai Mao was furious and berated the woman for ruining things, but there was nothing he could do. The Jiangling army was under Liu Biao's control, and he couldn't control it. Liu Biao had given the army to his eldest son, and he couldn't change the situation even if he wanted to.

The continuous autumn rain made it inconvenient to go out, and even Xiao Qiao, who liked to go out, became quiet and stayed in the mansion to study the art of tea.

Inside the living room, Da Qiao was still diligently practicing calligraphy. She had already finished studying Mencius and was currently reading Zhuangzi. Compared to Mencius, she preferred the imaginative and unrestrained Zhuangzi.

She has been studying for half a year, and her calligraphy has improved a lot compared to half a year ago. She has written a beautiful small character. Although she is not as good as Xu Wei, her husband has already praised her highly.

Beside her, Xu Wei sat at the table studying the Book of Changes, still using the three copper coins her master had given her to toss them six times and record the hexagrams on paper.

Xiao Qiao, on the other hand, was focused on making milk tea. She was fascinated by the tea ceremony. Gan Ning specially sent someone to invite Wu San Niang, the female owner of Wencha Zhai, to teach Xiao Qiao the tea ceremony. After teaching Xiao Qiao for a month, she gradually got the hang of it.

Gan Ning originally hoped that Xiao Qiao would brew tea for him every day, but unexpectedly, Xiao Qiao became obsessed with making milk tea and spent all day making milk tea of ​​various flavors.

"Hurry up! What do you think of the milk tea I made today?"

Xiao Qiao smiled and placed two cups of milk tea in front of Da Qiao and Xu Wei, "You two should try them while they're hot!"

Da Qiao put down her pen, picked up her teacup, took a small sip, and praised, "It tastes a little better than yesterday, why?"

"Yesterday it was goat's milk, today it's cow's milk, and today it's flavored with honey, while yesterday it was flavored with maltose. They're definitely different!"

Xiao Qiao said urgently, "Yun Qing, stop telling fortunes and try it quickly!"

"Okay, it'll be ready soon!"

Xu Wei muttered to herself as she tossed in the last three copper coins. She wrote them down, then put the coins down, picked up her teacup, and took a sip.

"It's really good. I've discovered that temperature is also very important. Yesterday, it was a little cold when I drank it, but today, the hot milk tea has a much richer aroma. This is the best I've ever had." Xiao Qiao said happily, "Great! I have to write down this recipe."

Da Qiao remembered something and said, "A Yu, my husband was complaining about you to me yesterday!"

Xiao Qiao was startled. "What are you complaining about me about?"

Da Qiao smiled and said, "My husband said he wanted you to learn the art of tea. You've been learning for a month, but you've never brewed tea for him even once. He's planning to find another maid to learn the art of tea."

"no, I'm fine!"

Xiao Qiao hurriedly said, "I'll brew him tea today, I guarantee he'll be satisfied."

Xu Wei laughed and said, "You make milk tea every day, you've probably forgotten how to brew tea."

"I haven't forgotten! I think the first step is to choose tea cakes. What was that rhyme again? Let me think... oh dear! I can't quite remember."

Da Qiao handed her a stack of papers with a hint of annoyance. "I've written down everything Wu San Niang taught you. I knew you were half-hearted and unwilling to write anything down. How could your silly brain possibly remember it all?"

Xiao Qiao was overjoyed and quickly took the lesson plan. She then hugged her sister's neck and gave her a big kiss on the cheek. "Sister is the best. Otherwise, I would have been doomed. I have forgotten everything that Wu San Niang taught me."

"Hurry up! My husband will be back soon."

Xiao Qiao then ran out to fetch tea cakes and teaware. Gan Ning's way of drinking tea was different from that of the people in the Han Dynasty. The people in the Han Dynasty drank tea in three ways: boiling, decocting, and soup. Wealthy families mainly drank tea by boiling, which involved adding a lot of seasonings. Soup was made by turning tea into a soup dish, and the tea leaves were drunk along with the soup.

Gan Ning preferred to brew tea by boiling. Under his influence, brewing tea became popular in Yuzhang County and several surrounding counties. He was also very particular about the water, insisting on using spring water.

The water they currently use in Chaisang is spring water from Mount Lu, which is clear, sweet, and perfect for brewing tea.

In the evening, Gan Ning returned to his residence and, as usual, sat down in his study.

Xiao Qiao came in carrying a tea tray, and Gan Ning laughed, "Oh! The sun must have risen in the west today, Xiao Qiao actually brewed tea for me."

"They like making milk tea! But you don't like drinking milk tea, otherwise I guarantee you'd be happy drinking it."

"Didn't your sister tell you? I get diarrhea from drinking milk."

"I think I mentioned it, but I've forgotten!"

Xiao Qiao sat in Gan Ning's lap, hugged his neck and said coquettishly, "From now on, I must brew all your tea. You are not allowed to learn from others."

"Alright! Alright! We'll drink the tea brewed by Madam Qiao."

"Gan Lang, you call me Madam?"

"You'll be my wife from now on, but for now, let's take a look ahead. You're still my little sister Qiao."

"When will Gan Lang take me into his room? I can't wait any longer!"

Gan Ning smiled and shook his head, "Once you're truly ready, I can share a room with you."

"How much longer do we have to wait?"

Gan Ning pinched her little cheek and smiled, "This is not my decision, but yours. You will know when you are truly ready, instead of just talking so fiercely."

Xiao Qiao took the initiative to kiss Gan Ning, and the two lingered passionately for a while before Xiao Qiao left, her face flushed. In fact, she knew that she was not ready.

After Xiao Qiao left, Gan Ning picked up his teacup and took a sip. He found it a bit astringent, far inferior to the tea brewed by Da Qiao.

(End of this chapter)