Chapter 50: The Young Guests Pay Their Respects
Fortunately, the notebook was thick, and after stamping out the sparks, only the edges were charred black.
This was Aunt Cao’s notebook, which Pear Moon had seen before.
Aunt Cao was meticulous in her work. Whenever she prepared a formal banquet, she would jot down the names of the dishes.
For dishes with complex cooking methods, she would also note down the key steps, gradually compiling a thick recipe book.
She had left Phoenix Ripple Courtyard in a hurry, and Pear Moon hadn’t had the chance to see her off, nor had she thought to look for this recipe book.
Granny Zhao assigned duties, giving Aunt Cao’s room in the servants’ quarters to Granny Fan to live in, and the remaining belongings were handed over to her.
Needles, threads, clothes, and shoes—Granny Fan kept them all for herself.
She was illiterate, so a stack of papers was useless to her, and she brought them to the kitchen to use as kindling.
“What is this, anyway? Is it valuable or not?” Granny Fan hurriedly asked.
Pear Moon didn’t know how to answer, so she simply said, “This has the names of dishes written on it. Wouldn’t Granny Fan like to take a look?”
“We eat fat chickens and ducks every day. What’s the use of writing fancy dish names?”
Granny Fan usually prepared meals for the servants. Not to mention formal banquet dishes, she rarely even cooked for Shen Shi.
She was illiterate and lazy, unwilling to put in the effort. She waved her hand dismissively.
“Why aren’t you watching the fire in the tea room? What are you doing back here? If the main chamber calls for tea, you’ll get scolded again!”
Pear Moon was only too happy to take the notebook and run back to the Small Tea Room.
Ningguo Mansion was preparing for a three-day grand banquet, but Shen Shi was avoiding the commotion and staying indoors, so there weren’t many guests.
With nothing to do in the tea room, Autumn Abundance was embroidering shoe patterns, while Huan Huan was lazily dozing off.
Pear Moon leaned against the tea stove, flipping through Aunt Cao’s recipe book.
Judging from the records inside, these were likely the banquet dishes served in Phoenix Ripple Courtyard after Shen Shi married into the family.
It included methods for roasting the five main meats: chicken, duck, goose, lamb, and pork.
There were also twelve lamb dishes, eight pork dishes, twenty-four poultry dishes, and ten crab and seafood dishes.
The notes were very brief, and others wouldn’t be able to cook from them.
But Pear Moon had six years of kitchen experience and already had the skills—she just lacked some guidance. This was more than enough for her.
The more she read, the more excited she became, wishing she had some good ingredients to showcase her skills.
The courtyard was quiet when suddenly, a crisp voice called out from the main gate.
“Is the stewardess here? Is the young mistress feeling better? The eldest young lady has brought guests to pay their respects!”
Pear Moon set down the recipe book, lifted the curtain, and went out to look. Miaotong stood smiling at the courtyard gate.
Only then did she remember that Miss Ning and Miss Tan had agreed to come and spend the day at the mansion today.
Granny Zhao hurried out of her room, plastering a thick, insincere smile on her face as she tried to decline.
“Greetings, Miss Miaotong! The young mistress isn’t feeling well, and we’re afraid she might pass her illness to the guests. Please convey our apologies and ask the eldest young lady to entertain the guests instead!”
Miaotong tilted her head and smiled toward the courtyard. “Granny, Miss Tan is not like other guests. Her brother, General Tan, is the young duke’s deputy general—they’re like brothers-in-arms. The distinguished guest from earlier, Eunuch Lu of the Directorate of Ceremonial, is this Miss Tan’s godfather. Last time, during the Spring Day Banquet, she came to pay her respects, but the young mistress didn’t see her. Today, no matter what, she must receive her—that’s the proper etiquette of our household.”
Seeing that she couldn’t refuse, Granny Zhao returned to the Main Chamber to report to Shen Shi.
Shen Shi was sitting in the Warm Pavilion, holding an embroidery hoop, but she hadn’t made a single stitch in a long while.
As a young lady from a noble family, she didn’t pride herself on needlework or embroidery—there was no need for her to do such things herself.
But now, even if she were to practice calligraphy, write poetry, prepare incense, or play the zither, she had no mood for any of it.
Yesterday, she had been publicly punished by kneeling in Brocade Prosperity Hall, witnessed by all the women and servants of the household.
When her husband received the imperial decree to inherit the title, the ancestral hall ceremony proceeded without her summons—her position lacked both legitimacy and recognition.
Within the vast expanse of Ningguo Mansion, there was not a single soul with whom she could speak freely.
“Please wash up and change, Madam. The young miss has brought Miss Tan to pay their respects.”
Granny Zhao had reinstated the household rules: all servants in the courtyard must address her according to her marital status, calling her “Madam” without exception, and were no longer permitted to use her maiden title of “Miss.”
Shen Shi was deeply displeased at heart, yet she could no longer afford to put on airs. With no recourse, she remained silent.
At this moment, her eyes reddened as she tossed her embroidery onto the bed, covering her face and weeping.
Yesterday, while she was being punished with kneeling, Miss Ning had gone to pay respects to her mother.
Supported by her maid, she walked along the corridor, passing by as if she hadn’t seen anyone, her steps light and indifferent.
That unwavering gaze surely concealed inner mockery and silent laughter.
“Yesterday, I suffered such humiliation, and she acted as if she hadn’t seen it. Today, she brings some unwelcome guest to our door—is she deliberately trying to provoke me?”
Seeing her mistress succumb to grievance once more, Granny Zhao’s heart grew increasingly cold.
Shen Shi came from a scholarly family, her father holding a first-rank official position, her mother exceptionally capable. In her maiden home, relying on the doting affection of her parents and elder brother, she had been spoiled into having no sense of propriety.
After marrying into her husband’s family, where she was pampered and indulged for years, she grew increasingly presumptuous and unrestrained.
There was nothing she wouldn’t say, nothing she wouldn’t do, yet she was all talk and no action, daring to act but unwilling to take responsibility.
Had she been in a modest household, she would likely have been worn down long ago—what parents-in-law would tolerate such constant complaining and blaming of fate?
Suppressing her frustration, Granny Zhao approached, frowning and clicking her tongue.
“Madam, what happened yesterday is in the past. You mustn’t keep dwelling on it. Hiding in your room pretending to be ill is no long-term solution. It’s better to gather your spirits early. Now that the Young Master has inherited the title and become the Duke, you are the esteemed Duchess. All the ladies in the capital will come to our courtyard to curry favor. This Miss Tan’s brother is the Deputy General under the Young Lord and also the adopted son of Eunuch Lu. Whether she befriends the young miss or not, why must you act on impulse?”
Granny Zhao’s words always leaned toward the husband’s family, something Shen Shi had never liked.
But considering her as her wet nurse, and that her mother trusted her deeply, she had no choice but to swallow her displeasure.
“Nanny, you are illiterate and don’t understand the ways of officialdom. Military officers have always been considered inferior to civil officials, and General Tan is also the adopted son of a eunuch—his standing is even more unsightly. If I receive his sister, I would be lowering the status of the Shen family’s daughter. That eldest girl is young and ignorant, blindly befriending her. Sooner or later, she’ll suffer for it!”
Seeing her still putting on airs with pretentious rhetoric, Granny Zhao felt a throbbing pain in her temples.
“Madam, whoever you say is good or bad, this old servant doesn’t understand. I only know what the mistress of your maiden family said: ‘One does not strike a smiling face.’ Since they have come with good intentions to pay respects, you should receive them properly and treat them kindly. Madam looks down on Miss Tan for being Eunuch Lu’s goddaughter, but perhaps you don’t know that today, a grand opera banquet is being held in the front courtyard, specifically to entertain Eunuch Lu alone? Could it be that while the Young Lord warmly receives guests, Madam intends to pour cold water on his efforts?”
Hearing this, Shen Shi grew anxious and explained, “Nanny, how foolish you are! Don’t you know that today, when he invited Eunuch Lu, he originally intended to ask my father to accompany him? My father is a proper scholar and refused to associate with eunuchs, which is why he declined and didn’t come. Since even my father avoided it, how can you expect me to entertain Eunuch Lu’s goddaughter? Wouldn’t that bring shame to the Shen family?”
Granny Zhao’s eyes blazed with anger as she shot Shen Shi a glance, unable to suppress her fury as she snorted coldly.
“So that’s how it is! This old servant thought it was because the mistress made a fool of herself yesterday that her father felt too ashamed to see the son-in-law!”
These words struck like a slap across the face. Shen Shi looked up, startled.
If the Ning family bullied her, she could still endure it. But now even her own wet nurse, Granny Zhao, dared to insult her to her face!
“You…”
Granny Zhao no longer spoke kindly, only saying coldly, “If today’s guests are not received, this old servant will send them away, and no more guests will come in the future. The mistress will have her wish—to live as a widow from now on!”