The Country Maiden: Fields and Leisure
Chapter 795 - 794 Good Tea

Chapter 795: Chapter 794 Good Tea

Wang Yonggui, with a keen sense of the situation, apologized to Yang Zongbao: "Uncle, it’s all my fault for having such a loose tongue! Please, with your magnanimity, don’t hold it against your nephew! If I ever speak like this again, you can just kick me with your big foot—"

Yang Zongbao had traveled the martial world for many years and had encountered all kinds of people, including opportunists like Wang Yonggui. Naturally, he was no stranger to them.

Initially, he was emotionally stirred up because he knew who the owner of the silver was and was moved by the sincerity of Old Granny Zhang, Wang Yongzhu, and Song Chongjin. This made him subconsciously a bit restrained and cautious, wanting to show his best side in front of the Wang Family so as not to be looked down upon.

But everything that had happened just now was seen by Yang Zongbao, and looking at Old Granny Zhang’s attitude, what was there that he didn’t understand?

As the saying goes, every family has its own difficult scripture to read.

It seemed that this Wang Family, the newly recognized foster sister’s family, was not so peaceful either.

Having roamed the martial world for so many years, even though he still adhered to his principles in his conduct, treasuring every bit of kindness shown to him, deep down, he knew that his heart had long grown cold.

At this moment, he just silently nodded, sitting there without speaking, anyway, he would just play the mute.

Yang Zongbao’s silence didn’t really bother Wang Yonggui, his eyes were all glued to the feast on the table and the small jug of wine placed beside it.

Taking the initiative, he picked up the jug and poured Yang Zongbao a cup of wine, ready to pour one for himself as well, but he found that besides the cup in front of Yang Zongbao, there were no other cups on the table.

Seeing his mother’s dark expression and his two brothers’ disapproving eyes, he awkwardly put down the wine jug and sat down.

The atmosphere suddenly turned a bit awkward.

It was Wang Yongzhu who quickly got up and poured everyone a cup of tea, and Song Chongjin, with a keen sense, lifted his cup and stood up: "Uncle, since we’re all wearing mourning clothes, we can only replace wine with tea. Please understand! Once the mourning period is over, we’ll definitely accompany you for some drinks!"

Seeing Song Chongjin lift his cup of tea, the Wang Family Brothers quickly followed suit. Wang Yongfu stammered for a while before finally squeezing out: "Uncle, enjoy your meal and drink—"

Saying this, he tilted his head back and gulped down the cup of tea.

He drank the tea with the air of drinking wine in a tavern.

Yang Zongbao just nodded slightly, looking at Wang Yongzhu and Song Chongjin with a warm and soft gaze, and without hesitation, he swallowed the wine in his cup in one gulp. The hot wine burned down his throat, warming his once cold heart a bit.

Beside him, Wang Yonggui, with a keen sense, refilled Yang Zongbao’s cup and took the opportunity to sniff the aroma a couple of times. It had been several months since he had any wine, and his craving was unbearable; even just the smell was delightful!

Old Granny Zhang, however, couldn’t bear to look, shaking her head at such a display!

Yang Zongbao, on the other hand, had a hint of a smile in his eyes. It seemed that the Wang Family Brothers weren’t entirely without merit. Take Laosi for example, he was sincere; upon seeing his "uncle," he knocked his head three times with all his might, without any pretense.

Laosan might look cunning, but he had principles. From his craving for wine, it was clear he was a drunkard, yet he adhered to the mourning period, which was impressive compared to many others.

As for the Eldest Brother, clumsy and honest with little ingenuity, he might have had some small schemes, but in Yang Zongbao’s eyes, they were worth mentioning.

Instead, he found these small flaws quite genuine.

Compared to what he had encountered and witnessed in the past, these brothers could barely be considered genuinely good-natured, at least they weren’t evil.

Seeing that Yang Zongbao didn’t show any disdain, Old Granny Zhang felt much more relaxed and breathed a sigh of relief.

With Old Granny Zhang holding the fort and Song Chongjin’s stern face accompanying, even with a lively character like Wang Yonggui, this welcoming feast still ended up feeling like a farewell banquet.

Seeing the good food and wine laid out before him, only to watch others eat, Wang Yonggui felt increasingly uncomfortable as the atmosphere became more awkward despite the liveliness.

Reluctantly accompanying Yang Zongbao, he regretted it deeply. If he had known, he would have stayed at his own house and had his wife cook a bowl of egg noodles with extra eggs to satisfy his cravings!

Yang Zongbao wasn’t one to indulge in drink, but today, feeling relaxed, he had a couple more cups before stopping.

With steamed preserved meats and fried fish fillets, he ate two large bowls of rice and drank two bowls of fish ball soup, making Wang Yonggui envious beyond measure.

Finally, seeing Yang Zongbao finished, he found an excuse to leave for his room, planning to have Lady Jiang make him some noodles to satisfy his hunger.

Wang Yongfu and Wang Yongping, noting their mother’s expression, sensibly excused themselves to their rooms as well.

The courtyard suddenly fell silent.

Old Granny Zhang and Wang Yongzhu cleaned up the dishes and came out to find Song Chongjin and Yang Zongbao already tidying up the table, planning to make tea with the remaining tea leaves Zhang Yinbao had sent them.

Wang Yongzhu quickly said: "Wait, I happen to have a good tea I acquired recently, perfect timing with uncle here, who has traveled widely, to help me judge if this tea is any good."

Saying this, she went to wash her hands and headed back to her room, returning soon with a small brown paper packet.

The four of them sat around the table; Song Chongjin brought over the wind stove from the other yard along with a set of teaware and cleaned them.

Lighting the coal in the wind stove, a clay pot sat atop it.

Wang Yongzhu gently opened the brown paper packet, and a delightful tea fragrance immediately wafted out.

Just a hint of the fragrance lit up the eyes of Song Chongjin and Yang Zongbao.

Even Old Granny Zhang couldn’t help but say: "What’s that smell, it’s so pleasant!"

Wang Yongzhu proudly boasted: "Mom, you like it? This is the tea I managed to get this time, smells good, right?"

Upon hearing that it was her daughter’s effort, Old Granny Zhang was even more supportive: "Great! Better than any tea I’ve had!"

Though Wang Yongzhu thought her mother’s praise lacked any technical content, considering the older woman had grown up drinking what was essentially boiled water made from leaves gathered by peasants, clear brown in color and thirst-quenching, but lacking any tea aroma or flavor, she appreciated the gesture.

Recalling the tea leaves Zhang Yinbao had sent a while back, the old woman found it nice to smell but too bitter to drink, preferring not to touch it again.

Nevertheless, her affection was greatly appreciated.

So she accepted openly: "Of course! Once mom drinks this, she’ll surely like it!"

Next to them, Song Chongjin and Yang Zongbao, recognizing the quality, simply watched the tea leaves without speaking, enthralled.

Soon, the water in the clay pot came to a boil, bubbling away.

Wang Yongzhu delicately pinched a small handful of tea leaves and placed them in the teapot, pouring in the boiling water to wash the tea.

With the hot water through, the released aroma was even more enticing. As Wang Yongzhu was about to discard the wash water, both Song Chongjin and Yang Zongbao showed a look of regret.