Chapter 650 - 239: Entertaining Guests
Chapter 650: Chapter 239: Entertaining Guests
Chen Wanqing didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. "Mother, isn’t that too perfunctory?"
"Not at all. The more ordinary it is, the closer it shows we are," Xu Su Ying explained. "If you really spent a fortune on something expensive for them, your uncle and Mrs. Guo would only think you were treating them like outsiders. Qing’er, the Capital City is not like our hometown. Back home, heavy gifts show closeness. But here in the Capital City, the closer you are to someone, the less you should give them things that gold and Silver can buy. You must understand that sometimes, things made with your own hands carry far more sincerity."
Chen Wanqing took her mother’s teachings to heart. The mother and daughter chatted idly for a while before heading to the main courtyard to pay their respects to the old madam.
Two braziers were placed in the old madam’s room. The premium silver frost charcoal emanated a scarlet glow, making the room incredibly warm. It was impossible to wear heavy winter clothes inside; a casual set of spring garments was just right.
However, the high temperature had its drawbacks. One couldn’t go outside too frequently, as the sudden shift from hot to cold made it extremely easy to catch a cold. The old madam was well aware of this, but what else could she do? Her body was growing frail, and she dreaded the cold terribly. If the room was even slightly chilly, her bones would ache.
Especially today, despite the comforting warmth of the room, she still felt unwell.
"The weather is terrible," she complained. "It’s so overcast. The gloominess makes me feel stifled and uncomfortable."
"The servants say it’s going to snow today," Chen Wanqing offered.
"I reckon they’re spot on," the old madam agreed. "We haven’t had a single snowfall this winter. The air is incredibly dry, and far more servants in the manor have fallen ill compared to before. A snowfall will fix things. With a bit of moisture in the air, everyone will feel much better."
Mrs. Guo came over after finishing her administrative duties for the estate. Together with Chen Wanqing and Xu Su Ying, the three of them joined the old madam for a game of cards.
Normally, everyone would intentionally let the old madam win, but not Xu Su Ying. Not only did she peek at the old madam’s cards, she even bluffed her. "I bet you only have a straight left in your hand!"
Because of her meddling, the old madam ended up losing a hand she had originally been poised to win. Annoyed, the old madam reached out and swatted at her. "You little rascal. You were born just to make me angry."
Xu Su Ying paid no mind to the scolding. She grabbed a handful of silver coins from the pile in front of the old madam, giving a few to Chen Wanqing and a few to Mrs. Guo. She jokingly declared this was "overthrowing the local tyrant and distributing the Silver," which made the observing maids and older women burst into fits of laughter. Even the old madam doubled over in amusement.
After entertaining the old madam with their lively antics, the group took their leave, only to discover scattered icy pellets drifting down from the sky.
"Is it... snowing?"
It really was snowing.
"Mother mentioned to me just a couple of days ago," Mrs. Guo remarked, "that once it snows and the plum blossoms in the estate bloom, she wants to invite our relatives and friends over to admire them."
Whether it was admiring the plum blossoms, enjoying the snow, or adopting the elegant, classical tradition of brewing tea with melted snow, there was truly only one main objective: to formally introduce Xu Su Ying’s family to high society.
Xu Su Ying had long anticipated this move and wasn’t surprised. She simply said, "It will be even colder after the snow, and the ground will be slick and hard to walk on. Mother really just acts on whatever pops into her head. If she wanted to host a banquet, she should have done it earlier. Waiting until after the snowfall will only make things more inconvenient."
Mrs. Guo smiled and playfully pointed a finger at her, but didn’t say anything else.
During their brief chat, the snowfall grew heavier. It took a very, very short amount of time for the icy pellets to turn into swirling flakes, and finally into large, thick snow. By the time the three parted ways in front of Mrs. Guo’s courtyard, a faint blanket of white had already settled over the paths.
Chen Wanqing hadn’t crafted incense in quite a while. Suddenly struck by a burst of inspiration, she felt an intense urge to do so. The estate lacked no tools for incense making, and their assortment of spices and aromatics was incredibly complete. Chen Wanqing stepped into the prepared incense room and gathered the ingredients she needed. Seeing her daughter so deeply engrossed in her craft, Xu Su Ying didn’t bother her. She stood up briskly and left.
Chen Wanqing was called out to have lunch at noon. During the meal, she didn’t see Zhao Jing. He had once again gone to the Imperial College today. This time, he didn’t go with Xu Yanlin, but accompanied Xu Yanhe instead.
Xu Yanhe had many like-minded classmates at the Imperial College whose academic levels were comparable to his own. When they had briefly met Zhao Jing yesterday and exchanged a few words, they were left wanting more. Consequently, they specifically begged Xu Yanhe to invite Zhao Jing over again today.
With Zhao Jing absent, Chen Wanqing sped up her meal. Once she finished lunch, she returned straight to the incense room.
The maid serving Chen Wanqing was named Handan. Following Xu Su Ying’s instructions, she urged Chen Wanqing to take a short afternoon nap before getting back to work. However, Chen Wanqing’s mind was entirely consumed by incense ratios, rendering her completely deaf to the maid’s advice. Seeing this, the maid could only sigh and withdraw from the room.
Chen Wanqing stayed in the incense room for the entire afternoon. It wasn’t until the evening lanterns were first lit that the door to the room was pushed open from the outside, startling Chen Wanqing, who was still holding a piece of incense.