Transmigration: The Evil Mother-In-Law Is Actually Innocent!
Chapter 139 Snack_1

Chapter 139: Chapter 139 Snack_1

Zhou Shuren turned to his side, "Today I will give Zhao brother the advanced Silver Coin, and while at it, I’ll visit the Academy with him. I won’t be coming back for lunch."

Zhulan holding the shoes, "If you hadn’t mentioned, I would have forgotten to tell Lady Li about the three meals at home. If we cook an extra meal, we have to add more money for it."

Zhou Shuren, "Then add a hundred wen money."

Zhulan continued, "Ming Qing and Shu Mo are staying in the front courtyard. You should tell them to eat separately. The back courtyard is for the womenfolk, and whatever we eat, they eat too. Also, they should make their own fire, and wait until we buy more firewood to put in the front yard."

Zhou Shuren pulled up the quilt, preparing to lie down for a while longer, "Alright."

Zhulan had just left the main room when Lady Li came to knock on the door. Fortunately, Zhulan had guessed that Lady Li was about to arrive at the front courtyard; otherwise, she would not have heard her. She would speak with Zhou Shuren later, asking Ming Qing and Shu Mo to keep an eye on the front gate to avoid not knowing when visitors arrived.

Lady Li cleaned up the front yard table first. There wasn’t much left of the ten dishes, which would be a waste to throw away. Lady Li asked Zhulan, who then gave it all to her. Lady Li picked the meat with chopsticks, putting it into a bowl to take home later.

The breakfast was pickled vegetables served with rice porridge and plain buns, with steamed egg cake for the children.

The pickled vegetables were a small jar of radish Lady Li brought from home, to thank Zhulan for the meat, vegetables, and rice given to her the day before.

The crunchy pickled radish went well with rice porridge, making it a satisfying meal.

After breakfast, Zhulan explained the three-meal arrangement to Lady Li, "Cook an extra meal and add a hundred wen money to your monthly pay."

Lady Li had only worked for big families who ate three meals, but she didn’t expect this family to do the same. However, she didn’t ask any more questions; an extra meal meant more Silver Coin, and naturally, she was pleased.

After eating, Zhou Shuren took the Silver and left.

Zhulan also did not plan on staying home. After clarifying with Lady Li about nearby shops, she intended to take the children out and about. When Lady Li went home, Zhulan locked up the main room, came out, and locked the back courtyard gate. The advantage of having two courtyards was that the front and back were separated; with locked gates, the front could not access the back.

The purchased house was well-located; in this area, no one dared to cause trouble, and there were very few beggars. They first went to the general store, where the price of grains was the same as in the county, but some seasonings were a bit more expensive, though the difference was not significant.

There was no shortage of clothing shops nearby, and there were many snack shops too. One of the snack shops had a line of customers waiting.

As they approached, the aroma of the snacks was enticing.

Ming Teng held his aunt’s hand, his eyes fixed on the snack shop. His mouth gave a lick, but the education from Zhulan and Zhou Shuren was good; Ming Teng didn’t make a peep about wanting any.

Xue Han, with a free hand, felt her purse. She had brought along all the Silver she had saved, which was a little over one tael, and seeing Ming Teng’s pitiful look, she couldn’t bear it, "Mother, the snack shop ahead has a long queue. There must be a good reason for such a crowd. I’d like to buy some snacks to try."

Zhulan saw Ming Teng’s excited little face and took out a tael of broken Silver from her purse, "Go ahead and buy, you take Yushuang and Ming Teng, and stay behind me."

Xue Han felt a bit embarrassed. It wasn’t just Ming Teng who wanted to try; she did too. "Mother, I have Silver Coin."

Zhulan smiled, "How much Silver do you actually have? Keep it for yourself. I also plan to buy some for your father to try."

Xue Han loosened the strings of her purse. She knew that if she paid with Silver Coin, her father wouldn’t think she was being filial. She didn’t doubt for a second that he would find it bothersome.

As the line in front of Zhulan grew shorter, the scent of butter grew stronger. The pastry shop’s name wasn’t very creative, Ruyi Pastries, but the pastries themselves were interesting. Now she understood why Wang Ru had come to Pingzhou; she had brought with her the recipes for these pastries.

By the time Zhulan entered the pastry shop, there was an array of familiar pastries laid out row upon row: cookies, cream puffs, egg tarts, cupcakes, bread and more. There was quite the variety. If it weren’t for the fact that she was in ancient times, she might have thought she had returned to the modern era. The shop’s decor was very contemporary. She picked out pastries on her own while a shop assistant followed her, pointing out the prices. After making her selection, she headed to the counter to pay.

Zhulan chose six egg tarts, five cakes, and half a pound of cookies, totalling two hundred wen money. The pastries were expensive; in reality, the cost of production didn’t even amount to sixty wen.

If she were in Mister Shi’s position, she wouldn’t let Wang Ru off the hook either. However, Wang Ru was truly courting disaster. The more she took for herself, the less there was left for others. Once Wang Ru lost her value, there was no point in keeping her around.

When Ming Teng saw his grandmother carrying several paper bags, something he had never seen before, he rushed over as fast as he could, "Grandma, what kind of pastries did you buy? They smell so good!"

Zhulan didn’t take them out for her grandson. "It’s windy today. Eating outside can make your stomach hurt. Let’s wait until we’re home."

Ming Teng stretched out his chubby little hand. "Grandma, your hands must be cold from carrying those bags. I have more fat and don’t get cold as easily; let me carry the pastries for you."

Zhulan pinched the little guy’s chubby hand. "We’ll be home in no time; Grandma can carry them."

Ming Teng secretly regretted not being able to help with chores or to curry favor with Grandpa to get more pastries. Soon, his spirits lifted again. Coming to Pingzhou with Grandpa and Grandma was great—he could browse through shops and have delicious pastries. He couldn’t wait to go back and gloat to his brother!

As soon as they arrived home, Lady Li came over. There were corn pancakes and cabbage pork soup for lunch, along with stir-fried eggs. Lady Li didn’t stay for lunch; she took her share home to eat.

After lunch, Ming Teng wouldn’t leave the main room. Since it was mealtime when they returned, Zhulan gave him only one cookie. The little guy, with his sweet tooth unsatisfied, kept thinking about the cookies and didn’t want to leave.

Zhulan touched her grandson’s round belly. "Let’s wait until you’ve digested your food from waking up before you eat more."

Ming Teng’s eyes darted around. "I’ll sleep with Grandma. My body is nice and warm. Dad loves to hold me when we sleep; he says I’m like a little furnace."

Zhulan smiled with her eyes. "Alright, Ming Teng can nap with Grandma."

In Zhulan’s heart, she held her three grandsons dear. The eldest grandson was the firstborn and not particularly bright; the future of the senior branch depended on him. Thus, Zhou Shuren had tutored Mingyun for half a year. Mingyun acted like a little adult, and Zhulan didn’t even know what to say to get close to him.

Ming Teng wasn’t particularly smart, but he wasn’t dumb either. He had inherited Lady Li’s sociable nature, which made him lively and engaging, not to mention his knack for irritating his parents. Chubby and cute, she really adored him.

As for the youngest grandson, he was too young to express himself, so among the three grandsons, Zhulan and Zhou Shuren favored Ming Teng the most, as he was like a joyful pistachio.

As for the granddaughters, the eldest granddaughter was very beautiful and naturally endeared herself to everyone. The younger granddaughter was not very big, but her childish speech was also charming, though she couldn’t quite compare to her elder sister.

When Zhulan woke up, Ming Teng was still asleep, his chubby belly rising and falling with his breaths, sleeping like a little pig.

Zhou Shuren had returned at some point and was sitting by the kang. "You’re awake?"

Zhulan looked up. "When did you get back? Why didn’t you make a sound?"