She Became A Downfall Noble Lady
Chapter 342 - 341 Dress More Solemnly

Chapter 342: Chapter 341 Dress More Solemnly

Guan He indeed didn’t disappoint him, speaking with an offhand tone, "Aside from not having had yam stir-fried with wood ear mushrooms, I’ve had all the other dishes." His pride and show-off were not concealed in the slightest.

Everyone’s eyes shifted to Guan He. With this guy’s personality, if he weren’t exceptionally skilled in martial arts, wouldn’t he have been beaten to death already?

Wong Qiao followed Ye Xinyan’s instructions, keeping his head down and focusing on his meal, paying no mind to anyone else. Just like Ye Zi said, when immortals fight, carelessness spells disaster for the lesser spirits, so reducing one’s presence was never wrong.

Moreover, although he had occasionally had these dishes before, it was just one dish paired with an elaborate meal, nothing like the concentrated experience of today. And the food served today was obviously prepared with more care, tasting exceptionally good.

Wong Qiao, while eating, glanced at the people around the room. Isn’t indulging in the delicious food more enjoyable? Why distract oneself with argumentative banter?

Jinrong couldn’t help but laugh at Guan He’s expression, although he couldn’t wait to gather some people and give him a good thrashing, he couldn’t lose his composure and could only give him a two-word assessment, "show-off."

Guan He immediately refuted, "Sixth Master, you see, that’s not right. How can this be showing off? Yam can be used as a medicine; it’s beneficial, and when prepared as food, one must consider the medicinal properties, so it’s natural to not pursue flavor too much. Thus, it doesn’t count as a dish with good taste. Just like you, Sixth Master, with your esteemed status, you naturally lose out on many things and can’t act as freely as a common man. This has nothing to do with being a show-off at all."

Jinrong was stunned, then glanced at Jiang Yifan, speaking incredulously, "You, I didn’t see it coming. You’re actually this sly, waiting here for me."

Jiang Yifan, seemingly reminded of something, hurriedly waved his hands, "Don’t look at me, it has nothing to do with me, nothing at all. I’ve been busy eating, not knowing what you’re talking about."

"Look at you, no ambition," Guan He gave him a glare, then turned back and focused his attention on the dining table, speaking to Jinrong in a much more gentle tone, "Speaking of which, it’s a good thing that Lady Qi likes to fuss over things. Otherwise, where would Sixth Master’s good business come from, and where would these fresh flavors of food?"

Then he added a spare rib to his plate and continued talking to himself, "Compared to cheese roasted fish, I still prefer sweet and sour spare ribs. They have that fried crispy flavor but the sweet and sour taste cuts through the greasiness, making it satisfying to eat."

Jiang Yifan swallowed his roasted fish and joined the conversation, "I actually think this roasted fish is good, with a unique flavor and delicious taste. It seems that cheese can indeed become an important ingredient."

While everyone was diverting the topic, Jinrong, feeling helpless, ended up pouring several cups of wine for Guan He, putting the issue aside.

As the people at the table ate and talked, also sipping on wine, when the frequency of picking up chopsticks slowed down, Nanny Liu called the maids over, bringing out two pots of sour soup noodles and wontons.

Nanny Liu directed the maids to serve the men, while reporting at the side, "The kitchen also has pan-fried buns and silver thread rolls ready. If the masters require, they can be steamed right away and will be ready in no time."

Qi Younian looked towards Jinrong.

Jinrong smiled and said, "No need, the flavors of the dishes today have been fresh and I’m already too full, I couldn’t eat anymore."

Even so, just the dish of soybeans and the subsequently served soy beef, cold beef tendon salad, and saltwater peanuts on the table were enough to keep the group drinking until the Late Zi Hour before they packed up and each went to wash up and rest.

The next day was New Year’s Eve, and the Qi family’s courtyard and house were newly built, so the sweeping before the New Year did not take much time. However, setting up decorations and changing the bed curtains and window cutouts took Nanny Liu and others a lot of effort. By the early morning of New Year’s Eve, other than pasting the Spring Festival couplets, everything else had entered into the mode of celebrating the New Year.

Ye Xinyan went to bed early the night before. The hot dishes for the outer court’s table were not yet all served, but Ye Xinyan and Qi Jiaer had already finished their dinner. The two, one big and one small, laughed and chatted for a while, having a go at disassembling the Nine-Linked Rings before heading off to their respective rooms to rest.

When Ye Xinyan woke up in the morning and finished washing up, she heard that the group of old masters in the outer court had made a late night of it, and everyone, except for Guan He, was still fast asleep with their heads under the covers.

Guan He didn’t sleep in? Ye Xinyan instantly thought of Qi Jia and asked Nanny Jin, who was busy in the room, "What about Qi Jia? It’s New Year’s, and there are still lessons during the New Year?"

Nanny Jin replied, "Indeed, Brother Jia is so sensible. Ever since Master Guan started teaching him, he hasn’t missed a single day, getting up early every morning. Ah, Brother Jia is so young, and it pains me to see him work so hard."

Ye Xinyan looked at Nanny Jin with discomfort. Her heart was also in knots, but if a young child like Qi Jia could get up early to practice without complaints, could she stop the child’s diligence and instead indulge his laziness?

"This is actually good," Ye Xinyan persuaded, "our family’s days are getting better. If we indulged him just because Nanny and I feel sorry for him and raised Qi Jia, who is a good kid, into a useless dandy, that would be truly harming him. It’s good for him to run around with Sanshun, not only is it good for his health, but he also won’t be disadvantaged in conflicts with others in the future. Since it’s all benefits, Nanny shouldn’t be so troubled."

"That does make sense, ah well, let them be."

Nanny Jin nodded, settling the matter of Qi Jia getting up early. Then she turned, took out the New Year’s clothes prepared for Ye Xinyan from the cabinet, "Today is already New Year’s Eve, we still have to go to the old mansion for lunch later, you need to dress more formally, let’s wear this outfit."

Ye Xinyan looked at the fine fabric dress with a water-red base and a dark red embroidery that Nanny Jin took out one after another. Considering their current family status, it was suitable to dress this way—it was neither too shabby nor ostentatious.

Although this outfit was considered superior in Clear Water Village, Nanny Jin and Nanny Liu, who prepared the clothes, chose this fine fabric outfit to be less conspicuous in this mountain village, deliberately being low key. Since they couldn’t use too dazzling materials, they had to put effort into the craftsmanship, so the hidden patterns and handiwork on this fabric were extremely exquisite.

But... Ye Xinyan pointed at the outfit and said, "How about we choose again and mix and match? Wearing all red like this is too conspicuous, isn’t it?"

Nanny Jin took out a jewelry box from the cabinet and said, "This is for the New Year, different from other days. Young ladies and young women all dress festively; it wouldn’t be appropriate for you alone to dress plainly. Moreover, with Sixth Master and Lord Jiang staying at home, it’s not good for you to be too casual on New Year’s. You should pick a couple of pieces of jewelry to wear at least to fit the occasion."

"Ah?" I have to wear jewelry? Ye Xinyan subconsciously touched her hair.

When she awoke in this era, although she was in the extremely affluent Duke An’s Mansion, she had been lying in bed. By the time she got up, she was already planning to escape, so she had never experienced a splendid life surrounded by jewels. To this day, she still couldn’t accept having to wear several pieces of hair accessories and still go about her daily activities normally.

Seeing her touch her hair, Nanny Jin thought Ye Zi was considering whether her hairdo matched the jewelry and explained, "This hairstyle won’t do, Ye Zi. Pick out some jewelry first and later let Bi Ning comb your hair again."