321. The Greedy Mrs. State Preceptor
321. The Greedy Mrs. State Preceptor
After this battle, Yan Ziyan and the rest were genuinely convinced by Xiao Baoshan’s talent. They believed that he was not a traitor and really wanted to work for the Great Qi Dynasty.
The Northern Qing Kingdom was defeated again. They heard that Xiao Baoshan was here. Their first reaction was that Xiao Baoshan was once their defeated opponent but then they remembered that Xiao Baoshan was once a warlord.
The Northern Qing Army couldn’t look down on him and sent someone called Jing Feng.
That year, Xiao Baoshan was defeated by Jing Feng.
Jing Feng, about the same age as Xiao Baoshan, was also a General with many military successes. He was good at military tactics and psychological tricks.
After Jing Feng arrived, he sent a small group of soldiers to shout in front of the city gate, "Xiao Baoshan, your brother Jing Feng is here to ask you. Do you remember him? Do you remember that crushing defeat back then?"
Someone reported this to Xiao Baoshan. Xiao Baoshan clenched his fists, but he had no response. He only said, "Let them shout, nobody shall move without my order."
Xiao Baoshan didn’t come out and didn’t respond, so Jing Feng let them change the words, "Xiao Baoshan, have you forgotten our agreement? We were a team, but just because you didn’t become the emperor’s son-in-law of our country, you wouldn’t recognize this? If you surrender now, you can still be the emperor’s son-in-law."
This was a provocation. The Northern Qing Kingdom wanted to provoke Xiao Baoshan by repeating the rumor that Xiao Baoshan had been wrongly accused as a traitor.
However, Xiao Baoshan remained unmoved and continued to study the map on the table, ready to launch the next round of attacks at any time.
…
At the imperial palace.
Ever since Xiao Baoshan went to support the North, good news came one by one.
Li Chengkun could be at ease again.
Even the ministers sighed in relief. This time, they didn’t need to worry that the Northern Qing Army would make their way down south and threaten their life.
Everyone was worried about their own safety except a few cared about Xiao Baoshan’s personal safety.
From time to time, Jin Xiaoyu would go out to inquire the servants of the State Preceptor’s residence about the situation in the North. She had stayed in the residence for a long time and was almost familiar with the people inside. Even the most serious guards with stern faces would occasionally talk to her.
After finding out about the situation in the North, Jin Xiaoyu would excitedly come back and tell Ye Xiaoxian, "Little Ye, have you heard about it? Armies in the North has been winning. I heard that no matter what method the Daqing country uses, they can’t beat your Baoshan. Your Baoshan is as reliable as Mount Everest."
Ye Xiaoxian smiled, "I know."
"How did you know?"
"I exchanged the recipe for the news with Zhang Deshui, and I know more details than you. Zhang Deshui is like a storyteller, and he described it to me in graphic detail."
Jin Xiaoyu was a little disappointed. "Ah, you already knew. If I knew that, I wouldn’t have gone out for the news this morning. Okay, then tell me what details Zhang Deshui told you?"
Ye Xiaoxian smiled, "Zhang Deshui told me that the Northern Qing Kingdom’s general is called Jing Feng, and he is particularly cunning. Sometimes, he spread the news in the camp that Baoshan was a traitor, and later he said that Baoshan once wanted to marry their princess. He wanted to provoke Baoshan, but Baoshan was not fooled."
"Well done, Baoshan!" Jin Xiaoyu could not help but shout, "Little Ye, don’t blame me for liking your man. Your man is good-looking, brave, and is good at fighting. Every woman likes that kind of man. Otherwise, in the tribe, I won’t keep advising you not to be so reserved or else other women would get him."
Ye Xiaoxian didn’t mind Jin Xiaoyu’s words. She smiled, "It’s impossible. He said that he only likes me."
"I’m jealous."
"That’s great."
…
Mrs. State Preceptor had been wandering in the backyard recently.
As she strolled around, she walked over to Ye Xiaoxian’s place.
Mrs. State Preceptor frowned when she heard the laughter coming from inside.
She asked the old maid by her side, "Is Madam Xiao living in here?"
"Yes, Madam Xiao and her friend, the one with good cooking skills."
"Her husband goes to war on the front line. Well, she’s not worried at all.
The old maid knew that Mrs. State Preceptor had high moral standards. She not only had strict requirements for herself but also was strict with others.
So the old maid said, "That’s right, if it were someone else, they should cry all day. They are really heartless."
Mrs. State Preceptor sighed, "That’s why people think women from the countryside are shallow. Ah, poor General Xiao, he is fighting for them!"
After saying that, Mrs. State Preceptor ordered the old maid, "By the way, isn’t Madam Xiao very good at cooking? You let her cook some food for me when she’s free, meat or vegetables. "
The old maid thought, ‘Didn’t you look down on her because she’s from the countryside? You just scolded her for being shallow and now want to eat her food. Isn’t this a contradiction?’
The old maid did not dare to say it out loud. Anyway, she would do whatever Mrs. State Preceptor ordered.
…
When the old maid arrived at Ye Xiaoxian’s yard, they were still chatting and laughing, so she coughed at the door.
An old woman serving Ye Xiaoxian came out and saw her, and quickly invited her in.
The old maid didn’t come in and said, "I won’t go in. I come here to deliver Mrs. State Preceptor’s order. It is said that Madam Xiao is good at cooking. Mrs. State Preceptor wants her to make a few dishes and send them to her yard. They can be meat or vegetables."
The old woman was embarrassed. "Well…"
State Preceptor had told her to serve Madam Xiao well and let her rest. Madam Xiao should not do any job unless she was willing to.
The old maid asked, "What, are you not listening to Mrs. State Preceptor’s words? Aren’t you too bold?"
The old woman could only say, "Yes!"
The old maid ordered again, "Also, remind Madam Xiao that her husband is currently fighting on the battlefield. It is a matter of life and death. If she gets time, let her pray for her man. She should abstain from eating meat, and recite more scriptures. Don’t play all day. A wife should focus on her husband."
The old woman thought, ‘How do you know that she isn’t worried about her husband? Even if she is worried about him, does she have to show a sad face every day?’
But she replied, "Yes, I will go and remind Madam Xiao right now."
…
In the house.
After the old woman told Ye Xiaoxian what the old maid said, Ye Xiaoxian and Jin Xiaoyu couldn’t help but laugh.
Ye Xiaoxian asked Jin Xiaoyu, "I can’t cry. What should I do?"
Jin Xiaoyu said, "We can do whatever we want. Does it have anything to do with her? That State Preceptor doesn’t prohibit us from crying or laughing, and now his wife wants to do so?"
Ye Xiaoxian agreed, "Well, next time she comes, tell us in advance that we won’t laugh."
Then, she went to prepare the ingredients.
Jin Xiaoyu asked, "What, do you really want to cook for her?"
"Of course, do I have the right to reject it?"
Ye Xiaoxian said, "We are living in her house. The hostess of this house asks me to cook some dishes. It’s simple. I can not reject her."
Ye Xiaoxian didn’t care if she would be tired or not. Anyway, she got plenty of time to kill. Sometimes, she could use the excuse of cooking for the hostess to get some precious ingredients so that she and Jin Xiaoyu could enjoy.
In addition to cooking, she also practised martial arts with Jin Xiaoyu in her spare time. Of course, she couldn’t be an expert in martial arts. She only learned some skills to defend herself, which could keep her weight from increasing rapidly.
Mrs. State Preceptor had been eating Ye Xiaoxian’s dishes for the past few days, like ginseng soup, fried shrimp balls, etc. They were all made of rare ingredients. Delicious food kept her in a good mood.
However, she had been pretending that she didn’t eat meat. Every time the old maid brought food over, she had to pretend to be angry, "Why are you eating meat again? Are we lacking that little money for meat? Do you have to get meat from other courtyards?"
The news quickly spread to State Preceptor, saying that Mrs. State Preceptor often asked Little Ye to cook for her and she only ate dishes cooked with good ingredients. Besides, she ate a lot of meat.
State Preceptor listened and only said one sentence, "Ugly people are often more contentious!"
Then he said, "Go and give orders to Madam, ask her not to bother Madam Xiao. Madam Xiao is now of great importance to our country. Also, isn’t the Madam believing in Buddhism? The smell of meat is not appropriate in her courtyard. And now there is a war in the North. As the wife of State Preceptor, she should pray for soldiers and recite scriptures more. She should stop eating meat and her servants can’t eat, too."
Mrs. State Preceptor was angry to death as soon as she heard the order.
She had always been vegetarian. It had just passed a few days since she started to eat some meat, and now State Preceptor asked her to stop. She was irritated.
She asked the old maid, "Who spread the news that I ate meat at my yard? Who is it?"
The old maid answered, "It must be that… that little bitch, Jin Xiaoyu. I had often seen her chatting with different people in the courtyard. It was only a matter of time for State Preceptor to know this. Madam, let’s forget about it. Don’t let Madam Xiao cook anymore. Even though Madam Xiao is a prisoner, Lord State Preceptor thinks she is of great use. If she is sick or something, Lord State Preceptor will punish you again."
Mrs. State Preceptor couldn’t do anything but take it.
Mrs. State Preceptor just ate the food Ye Xiaoxian cooked for a few days, but now she felt that something was missing in the dishes cooked by other chefs. It seemed that Ye Xiaoxian’s food was as intoxicating as Marijuana, and now she couldn’t quit.
…
Ye Xiaoxian didn’t need to cook for Mrs. State Preceptor and she was free and easy again.
She smiled and asked Jin Xiaoyu, "How do you spread the news of me cooking for Mrs. State Preceptor to State Preceptor?"
Jin Xiaoyu smiled, "That’s easy. There are many people in the residence. I just went out and talked to someone. One person knows, then State Preceptor will naturally know."
Even though it was not a difficult task for Little Ye to cook for Mrs. State Preceptor, Jin Xiaoyu was not willing to let her do that. What’s more, she believed Mrs. State Preceptor did not deserve to eat food made by Little Ye.