Grass and mustard reign supreme

Chapter 28 Welcome Reception
The welcoming banquet was held in a side room of Steward Li's courtyard.

Most of the stewards from the main branch of the Yu family came.

The outer courtyard manager, Niu Youde, was in charge of coordinating all affairs of the outer courtyard. The accountant, Li Damu, was in charge of the eldest son's money and cash inflows, contracts and documents, and land and property ledgers. The eldest son's purchasing agent, Zhao Hongyu, the granary manager, Ma Sanyuan, and the guard commander, Liu Yu, were also in charge.

The original commander of the guards was Cheng Dakuan, but now the former deputy commander, Liu Yu, has taken over.

As for Cheng Dakuan, he has had a persistent high fever since being rescued from the water prison and is currently recuperating.

As the eldest son's chief steward, Li Youcai enjoyed the privilege of cooking for his master in a special kitchen.

In aristocratic families, there was a strict class system, and the food, lodging, and other aspects of servants and servants were strictly differentiated and treated differently according to their rank.

Deacons, stewards, and accountants like Yang Can were senior managers of the family and enjoyed the privilege of receiving a "permit meal".

They shared the same kitchen as the host family but sat at different tables. The dishes were all prepared by the head chef of the mansion, but the portion sizes and standards of the dishes were lower than those of the host family.

Their daily dietary standard was actually equivalent to that of a low-ranking official in the imperial court.

The servants and maids below them received different food and drink treatments depending on the difficulty of their skills and their division of labor.

For example, a personal maid like Qingmei has snacks, eggs, braised meat, and other similar items in her daily meal plan.

Ordinary maids and servants only had millet and pickled vegetables every day, and could only eat meat once every ten days.

Today, Li Youcai hosted a banquet for Yang Can, claiming that his wife had arranged it, but in reality, he paid for it himself, and most of the dishes were prepared by the chef.

This was Yang Can's first formal meeting with the stewards of the eldest branch's outer residence in his capacity as the second steward of the eldest branch. Although Yang Can already knew some of them, Li Youcai still introduced them to him one by one.

Among them, Zhao Hongyu, the purchasing agent of the eldest son's family, and Ma Sanyuan, the granary manager, were newcomers. When Li Youcai introduced them, he subtly pointed this out to Yang Can. The implication was that these two were people arranged by the young mistress, Suo Chanzhi, meaning they were not one of their own.

Yang Can smiled and nodded, thinking to himself, "So those two are the ones on our side."

With the death of Prince Yu Chengye, the young mistress Suo Chanzhi took over the main branch of the family, which has now split into two factions: the young mistress's faction and the deceased prince's faction.

However, the two sides are currently on relatively good terms, as it is still uncertain whether the young mistress is pregnant.

If the young mistress does not become pregnant, it will only be a matter of time before the eldest son's family is dissolved.

At that time, these stewards from the original eldest son's family will be reassigned to other places, or they will be "relegated to the sidelines".

Therefore, before confirming whether the young mistress was pregnant, the two factions had nothing to conflict over; they were both waiting.

Even after it was confirmed that Suo Chanzhi was pregnant, the two sides still did not have a fierce conflict.

Because they have to wait another nine months to determine whether the young mistress is carrying a boy or a girl.

Before this, the Young Mistress faction and the Undead Prince faction, these two old and new factions, were already considered to be brothers in misfortune, sharing the same fate.

There will be competition between them, but they won't become irreconcilable enemies until things become clearer by the end of this year.

"What affairs will the Second Steward mainly handle for my eldest branch of the family in the future?" Accountant Mr. Li poured Yang Can a cup of wine and asked with a smile.

Yang Can replied with a smile, "The Grand Steward has been very kind to me. I am new here and the Grand Steward was worried that I would not be able to handle it, so he entrusted me with the management of the six estates and three ranches that Second Master handed over, so that there would be less trouble."

"Pfft!" Li Damu spat out a mouthful of wine. Luckily, he quickly turned his head away, otherwise he would have ruined a good banquet.

Less trouble?

With the six estates and three ranches that Second Master handed back, there will be fewer troubles.

This is a huge problem, okay?

All the managers present were shrewd people. Upon hearing this, they all looked at Li Youcai, thinking, "Head Steward, you're not being fair."

Li Youcai blushed. He didn't know if Yang Can was really stupid or pretending. He could only raise his glass to cover his embarrassment and said loudly, "The estate and ranch have long had certain rules. If you follow them step by step, there will be no problems."

Therefore, I thought it best to start with Steward Yang, familiarizing him with the affairs of the eldest branch of the family, beginning with the estate and pastures. Our Yu family's foundation is agriculture; as long as Steward Yang doesn't make any mistakes, it will be easier for him to rise in the ranks.”

Yang Can raised his glass with a grateful expression and said, "Thank you for your care, Grand Steward. I am deeply grateful."

Li Youcai chuckled and said, "I'm getting old and don't have much ambition to climb the ranks anymore. I sincerely hope that all the managers of our eldest branch are doing well."

I've been giving you all a lot of attention today. When you all achieve great things in the future, don't forget this kindness you've shown me. Come, come, let's have a drink!

After Li Youcai finished speaking, he raised his glass and drank the wine in one gulp, and everyone else naturally raised their glasses in response.

If you see through something but don't say it, that's what makes a good friend.

The welcome banquet with my good friend lasted until almost midnight before it ended. Some of the stewards who couldn't hold their liquor were already staggering as they walked.

Li Youcai loved alcohol, and he would get so drunk that he would lie face down on the table and fall fast asleep like a dead pig.

The two servants, Lai Xi and Wang Cai, were waiting in the side room, and had already fallen asleep.

Yang Can woke them up, lit lanterns, and saw the guests out. Madam Pan heard the commotion and came over as well.

Just as Yang Can was about to pull Li Youcai up, Li Youcai was so drunk that he was unconscious and limp, and could not be pulled at all.

Pan Xiaowan said irritably, "This damn guy has drunk so much again. Just ignore him and let him sleep here for the night."

Yang Can said, "It's not appropriate to leave Brother Li here. Don't worry, sister-in-law, I can take care of it."

Upon seeing this, Pan Xiaowan went around to the other side of Li Youcai, and she and Yang Can each grabbed one of Li Youcai's arms and put it on their shoulders before pulling him up.

It took the two of them quite a bit of effort to carry Li Youcai into the main room, around the screen, and into the bedroom. "Sister-in-law, let go, I'll carry my brother to the bed."

As Yang Can spoke, he wrapped his arm around Li Youcai's shoulder, intending to change his position, support Li Youcai under his armpits, and place him on the couch.

Unexpectedly, Madam Pan was a little too late in letting go, and Yang Can's outstretched hand accidentally brushed against a soft mass.

"Hiss~," Yang Can was startled and quickly withdrew his hand. It really wasn't that Pan Xiaowan was trying to take advantage of him; she instinctively let go as well after being touched. With both of them letting go at the same time, there was no one to control Deacon Li.

With a blank, silly grin on his face, Deacon Li swayed in place, then fell forward, his forehead slamming heavily against the edge of the bed with a "bang."

Yang Can was startled; the impact was too severe.

However, under the influence of alcohol, Li Youcai felt no pain at all.

He slid limply down the bed, using the footstool as a pillow, and fell asleep peacefully, his forehead covered in bruises.

"Grand Steward, wake up, go to bed on the couch..."

Yang Can wanted to drag him onto the bed, but Pan Xiaowan said impatiently, "Alright, alright, ignore him. He's like a man who can be roused by thunder after being given two catties of horse urine."

As Pan Xiaowan spoke, she pulled Yang Can up, her alluring eyes instantly welling up with a moist mist: "Uncle, are you satisfied with the food and wine we had tonight?"

Uncle? Although Pan Xiaowan's way of addressing him wasn't wrong, the way she called him that sounded a bit strange.

Yang Can forced a smile and said, "The food is extremely delicious."

Pan Xiaowan asked, "Then...which dish would you like best, Uncle?"

"Uh... they're all... they're all pretty delicious..."

Madam Pan said softly, "That Qiang stew and ghee were made by my sister-in-law, I don't know..."

"Good, very good, delicious. That Qiang-style spicy and fragrant stew is the most appetizing."

Especially that ghee; drinking a bowl of it after getting drunk is soothing and refreshing—it's excellent, excellent!

"Qiangzhu" is a dish that was developed after the Xianbei and Qiang ethnic groups' cuisines merged.

As for "醍醐", it is yogurt made with refined milk fat.

Not all yogurt is called "Tigo". Only yogurt made with the best ingredients and with the best taste is called Tigo.

Pan Xiaowan chuckled, raised her hand to smooth a strand of hair by her temple, and said with a seductive look in her eyes, "Uncle likes to eat it, so just tell your sister-in-law when you want to eat it."

There was still someone lying on the ground, and Yang Can felt uneasy: "Oh, okay, okay, then thank you, sister-in-law. My brother..."

"Never mind him, he'll be comfortable sleeping in the yard."

As if to prove her point, Pan Xiaowan kicked Li Youcai in the butt. Li Youcai groaned twice but continued to sleep soundly.

Yang Can chuckled dryly and said, "In that case, I'll take my leave."

Yang Can turned and left, but Pan Xiaowan followed him like a shadow.

Upon reaching the corridor, Yang Can quickly turned around and said, "Sister-in-law, please go back."

Pan Xiaowan glanced at Yang Can with her watery eyes: "I just finished cleaning up your house this afternoon. You don't even know where everything is. Why don't I come over and help you... look for it together?"

"No need, no need. I only have a little bit of stuff. It's getting late, sister-in-law, please go back."

Pan Xiaowan said, "Actually, my sister-in-law can also make a milk pastry, which tastes even better than that custard. Uncle, would you like to try some?"

With her hands behind her back, she spoke sweetly while puffing out her chest, practically telling Yang Can where the milk tortillas came from.

"Hehe, no, no, I'm already full. No, I can't hold my liquor."

"Hehe, today is your uncle's first day in office. That old man hosted a welcome dinner for you, so your sister-in-law will give you a proper welcome dinner too."

"No, no, another day, another day!" Yang Can said, and then fled in a panic.

Good heavens! Deacon Li married such a lovely young wife, but doesn't he satisfy her? How can she be so thirsty, like a she-wolf?
Seeing Yang Can escape in a flash, Pan Xiaowan couldn't help but chuckle, her face still alluring, but her eyes gradually turned cold.

"The Suo family is really willing to go all out. In order to extend their reach into the Yu family, they even gave up one of the 'Three Beauties of the Suo Family'."

The "Three Beauties of the Suo Family" was a title bestowed upon the three most beautiful girls in the Suo family by the impetuous young men from a prominent family in Longshang.

The three beautiful girls are: Suo Xianxiang, Suo Zuigu, and Suo Chanzhi.

Pan Xiaowan suddenly chuckled again: "It's a pity that Yu Chengye was killed by his second uncle. If Suo Chanzhi is unable to conceive, the Suo family's efforts will likely be in vain."

"Hey……"

Pan Xiaowan sighed softly, looking up at the bright moon in the sky: "If the eldest branch is abolished, I'm afraid I... will also become a useless pawn."

　I'd like to report to all my fellow readers:
　　Our book is now 80,000 words long and it's already ranked third on the new book chart.

　　Please support us with your monthly tickets, recommendation tickets, and comments.

　　Go to the next level!

　　Thank you!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)