Li Xin looked at the sweets on the plate, "These are mung bean cakes. Aren't they supposed to be seasonal in spring? How can we have them now?"
Mrs. Lu had told Li Xin many tis before that mung bean cakes were a spring delicacy in the Capital City, describing their delicate texture and sweet flavor as the seasonal treat of spring.
"Go on and try them," seeing Li Xin's familiarity with mung bean cakes. Old Madam Lu knew Mrs. Lu must have talked to her about it.
Li Xin took a bite and found the taste as delightful as Mrs. Lu had described. It was rather warm in Old Madam Lu's room with the charcoal brazier lit, making the mung bean cakes a perfect treat.
"I have a dowry manor with hot springs, and the steward had sheds built by the springs to grow off-season vegetables in winter. The mung beans just arrived this morning," Old Madam Lu explained with a smile. She had specifically instructed the kitchen to make the cakes, knowing Li Xin might have never tried them before.
"Hot springs can grow vegetables," Li Xin marveled at the farrs' ingenuity.
"The Capital City isn't as warm as the south, but winters aren't too cold for fresh produce. Our farrs have their ways of growing vegetables in winter, be it for their own consumption or selling at markets."
"That's right, the hardest thing to get used to in the Capital City is the lack of fresh vegetables in winter apart from radishes and cabbages," Li Xin remarked, not noticing Old Madam Lu's expression change slightly.
Li Xin went on about how winters were shorter in the southern region where Li Ming was stationed. There were wild vegetables available that ti of year. When they had ti, Mrs. Lu would take them out to the suburbs to forage for wild greens.
Li Xin's stories about celebrating the new year away from ho amused Old Madam Lu trendously, until Lu Madam and Young Madam Lu returned with their ladies-in-waiting. Li Xin then took her leave, with Old Madam Lu having a box of mung bean cakes packed for her to take ho.
When Li Xia returned to her room, Qiu Ju was already waiting for her. Li Xia knew Auntie i was still upset. Without much ado, she changed into simpler attire and sat at the desk.
Qiu Kui had prepared the ink, and Li Xia started writing large characters with the brush. After each page, Qiu Ling would take it away and set it aside, keeping count. At the hundredth page, "Miss, that's a hundred large character pages."
Qiu Kui took the brush from Li Xia, who massaged her wrist. She wiggled her feet too—writing large characters in the cold made her hands and feet ache. Qiu Shui and Qiu Chan then brought dinner to serve Li Xia.
Qiu Ju carried the hundred pages of large characters to Auntie i's room. Auntie i was expecting her and asked as soon as Qiu Ju entered, "How's Xia doing?" Auntie i felt sorry for punishing Li Xia with writing large characters.
"Miss ca back and started writing before dinner," Qiu Ju had barely finished when Auntie i asked, "Did her hands hurt?" The last ti Mrs. Lu punished Li Xia with copying texts, her hands hurt afterwards, and Auntie i had to massage them for a long ti.
"Not just her hands, Miss. It's cold, and sitting still to write made her feet uncomfortable too," Qiu Ju set down the pages. "Auntie, look how well the Miss wrote these characters."
Auntie i had no mind for the characters now, only concerned about Li Xia's pained hands and feet, "Last ti Xia's wrists hurt, I rubbed so dicated wine on them, and she felt better. I rember bringing that dicine to the Capital City." She started searching for the dicated wine.
Seeing Auntie i regretting the punishnt despite doling it out, Qiu Ju couldn't help but plead for Li Xia, "Auntie, I think the Miss has learned her lesson. Can we stop the punishnt now?"
Auntie i found the dicated wine and handed it to Qiu Ju, "No, she needs to write for two more days, and we'll stop the day after tomorrow."
Qiu Ju took the dicated wine to Li Xia's room. Li Xia had finished eating and was about to rest when Qiu Ju entered. "Auntie Qiu, does Auntie have any instructions?"
"Auntie asked to bring this dicated wine. And you only need to write a hundred more pages tomorrow, then you can stop," Li Xia accepted the wine. "Thank you, Auntie Qiu, for speaking up for ."
Li Xia's obedience made Qiu Ju laugh out loud before composing herself, "Miss, let say sothing perhaps overstepping. You really upset Auntie this ti. Don't ever do that again."
Li Xia understood, "Rest assured, Auntie Qiu, I won't." She would be more careful from then on, so Auntie i would never find out.
Reassured by Li Xia's promise, Qiu Ju left feeling at ease.
Early on the third day of the new year, a basket of fresh vegetables arrived at the back gate of the Li manor, sent by Old Madam Lu.
In fact, before the new year, Old Madam Lu had already worried that Li Xin and Li Hui might not have access to fresh greens and instructed her servants to deliver vegetables to Osmanthus Alley. But Lu Madam had intervened and kept Old Madam Lu in the dark. Li Xin was unaware of this matter and had made that remark the previous day, alerting Old Madam Lu.
Old Madam Lu didn't say much but personally arranged for people close to her to send vegetables to Osmanthus Alley.
The fresh greens on the table stimulated everyone's appetite, and they ate more than usual.
As Li Xia savored the fresh vegetables, she thought of wild greens again. Freshly foraged wild vegetables, whether stir-fried, cooked in soup, or served as a salad, tasted wonderful. She suggested, "Elder Brother, Sister, let's go to the suburbs and see if we can dig up so wild greens."
Li Xin was also tempted and turned to Li Hui, "Brother, shall we go for a walk?"
Li Hui didn't refuse, but he had already sent out the visiting card to the Lin Manor, having arranged to et Master Lin on the fourth day of the new year. "Let's go to the suburbs on the fifth."
Knowing Li Hui's affairs took priority, Li Xin and Li Xia didn't rush for those one or two days. After Li Hui's visit with Master Lin, Auntie i prepared their travel necessities.
Li Xin and Li Xia sat in the carriage, watching Li Hui ride his horse. "I wish I could ride too."
Hearing Li Xia's words and seeing Li Hui riding freely outside, Li Xin nodded in agreent, "When we get there, let's ask Brother to lend us his horses for a little while."
Li Xia concurred but then looked at their attire, "We don't have proper riding clothes."
"Oh right, we forgot about that. Never mind, we won't ride this ti. Let's go riding after the Imperial Examination in Spring is over," Li Xin noticed their clothes were unsuitable for horseback riding.
"I'll ask Qiu Ling to keep an eye out. If we find suitable ones, let's buy our own horses so we don't have to borrow Brother's," Li Xia wanted to own her horse to ride whenever she pleased.
"Good idea. Sister Yu is knowledgeable about this. Let's have her advise us when we buy a pair of horses," Li Xin agreed with Li Xia's plan.
"Sister, what color horse do you prefer? I want a black one," Li Xia recalled encountering a herd of mutant horses during a mission in her previous life, with the lead horse being a striking black with a white blaze on its forehead, running like Lighting.
"I'd like a chestnut one," Li Xin said, reminiscing about the chestnut horse Sister Yu had taught them to ride.
"Then let's get one black horse and one reddish-brown horse. Mine will be called Lighting."
"Mine will be called Carefree," Li Xin thought of her carefree and happy mood while riding a horse, forgetting everything else.
Outside the carriage, Li Hui overheard the two young ladies picking nas for their horses. He cleared his throat forcefully. Li Xin and Li Xia looked towards Li Hui.
"There's no such big place to keep horses in Osmanthus Alley," Li Hui's words made their expressions freeze for a mont.
However, Li Xin quickly recovered, "Brother, let's work hard to earn money and buy a manor. I heard that the Beining Marquis Manor has a horse riding ground outside the city." Li Xin's tone was full of envy.
Reviews
All reviews (0)