TGDW – Chapter 30 Crisis during lunch

The General's Delicious Wife Chapter 030: Crisis during lunch

Xue Ping as a lady who has married out to another family and bringing the family's son-in-law back to her maternal home, this is the first time everyone in the Xue family has gathered ever since Xue Zhuang has returned. So it is natural that they will be having a meal together.

Madam Sheng calls Xia Yue Chu directly and instructs her. "Are you not very capable in cooking, today's lunch will be your responsibility, let the second's wife be your kitchen help."

"Mother, how many dishes should we have for lunch?" Xia Yue Chu asks.

"Your brother-in-law seldom makes a trip back here, no matter what a few more dishes are a must, cook a chicken, make something with meat."

Madam Sheng is calculating in her heart, she knows that Madam Wu has brought over two chickens when she has visited the last time, they have eaten one that day, leaving one more which Xia Yue Chu has left untouched since. That's why at this moment, she remembers and schemes against it.

Xia Yue Chu nods her head. "Then should we kill that flower patterned chicken or that white feathered chicken?"

Madam Sheng chokes at her words, the family is dependent on these two chickens for chicken eggs, how will she be willing to kill them.

"Don't you have a slaughtered and defeathered chicken at your side?" Madam Sheng clenches her jaws and asks her back.

Without any hesitation, Xia Yue Chu replies. "That is what my mother has brought over, it is meant for Da Zhuang to replenish his nutrition."

Her words of complaint have already gathered at her mouth, but Madam Sheng suddenly hears Feng Yong Yuan speaking outside to the old man at home. Afraid to be heard by her son-in-law, she can only clench her jaws and replies. "Catch a rooster and stew it, for the rest you see to it on your own. Tell your father what you are making and make him go buy what you need!"

"Mother, I understand!" Xia Yue Chu chirps her agreement in her bright voice and exits the room.

Madam Sheng leans back against her blanket and cushions, lifts her hand and points at the door telling Xue Ping. "You see, we have yet to split the house here, if we do split in the future would we still be able to trust her for anything!"

According to the Xue family's financial status, to be able to kill a chicken and purchase a piece of meat is already following the practise of the New Year celebrations. This is all due to Madam Sheng being considerate to gain the favour of Feng Yong Yuan, that she would become so generous this once. She is holding high expectations for her son-in-law to pass the primary imperial examinations to be a scholar and then pass again to be the imperial talent. With that, she can also share the glory as a mother-in-law of a Sir who is an imperial talent.

Xue Liang Ping buys back a cut of meat, and, having no idea from which family did he buy from, twenty tails of baby carps.

That piece of meat, which is not too big, has been portioned into four different dishes by Xia Yue Chu. The baby carps are dipped into a batter and fried until golden and crisp.

Grabbing a rooster which has hatched last year in the house and slaughtering it. Adding potato, white cabbage, dried tofu, and the whatnots, following the procedures of cooking chicken stew, there is a substantial amount, filling up more than half of the pot.

Before the chicken is cooked through, the fragrance has already escaped from the seam of the lid. Making Big Ni Er and Second Ni Er who are waiting by the side of the stove hungry and constantly swallowing their saliva which has been filling their mouths without stopping.

The kitchen is right behind the central hall for receiving guest, the aroma naturally drifts into the living room.

Feng Yong Yuan has an early breakfast that day due to the rushing of their trip, now that the food has been completely digested, his stomach is being stirred up by the fragrance to the point that he can feel his stomach tingling in hunger, his craving for food wiggles out like worms.

However, he has always pride himself with his self-discipline. Despite there being a wild havoc inside his stomach, he cannot put down his ego to open his mouth and ask about it, only to swallow his own saliva discreetly.

But Xue Li and Xue Yong, these two brothers are without this manner of backbone.

Xue Li voices out loudly. "Mother, what is cooking for lunch, it smells so good. I wasn't feeling hungry at all initially, but smelling this now, my stomach is grumbling all the sudden."

"Sister-in-law is stewing chicken right now!" Madam Sun who enters the room to take something answers him. "Isn't it strange to say so, with the same ingredients, being handled by Sister-in-law's hands ends up much more delicious than what other people cooked."

"Sister-in-law has such a talent?" Xue Yong comments without much thought. "Then why do we not see her cooking in the past!"

After being kicked by Xia Yue Chu in the crotch previously, Xue Li has been recuperating for a long time before he has gotten better.

That is his family jewels, a man's root of life, he cannot wait to find a chance so that he can get back at her for once.

However, recently Xia Yue Chu seems to be on guard against him, she is seldom alone whenever she comes in or goes out. Even when she gets out of the house, she would call Qin Zheng with her, making him totally unable to find a gap to make a move.

Hence, he has been frustrated these few days. Exceptionally despising Xia Yue Chu, after being notified that these dishes are made by Xia Yue Chu, he instantly snorts in scorn. But his nose reacts honestly to the human nature as he takes two more deep breaths of that amazing fragrance.

Madam Sun sees her husband's attitude and dares not say anything more, taking what she needs and goes back into the kitchen quickly.

The remaining dishes are almost completed. This alluring dish of stewed chicken is also finally served out from the wok.

Xia Yue Chu informs Madam Sun to set up the table in the rooms and proceeds to split the stewed chicken from the wok into two equal portions of serving basins.

Madam Sun comes back after setting the bowls and chopsticks, she looks and exclaims. "Sister-in-law, the way you serve is wrong."

Xia Yue Chu stops the ladle in her hand, being puzzled. "How is it wrong?"

"Aiya, the chicken meat cannot be served like this." Madam Sun cannot explain herself clearly, so she takes over the ladle and picks on the initially equally divided portion of chicken stew from the two basins, splitting them separately into two portions.

Chicken drumsticks, chicken wings, chicken breasts, all these good cuts of meat are gathered into one basin.

The other basin contains the remaining chicken neck, chicken feet, chicken bones and so forth.

Xia Yue Chu understands what she is seeing. During the meal, the men should be seated at one table and the women bringing their kids along should be seated at another table. The good portions should be served immediately to the men's table.

She is annoyed in her heart, but she understands that it is not Madam Sun's fault. Madam Sun has grown up in such an environment, so having such way of thinking is normal.

But when Madam Sun goes back into the room after portioning out the chicken, Xia Yue Chu takes one of the drumsticks over and hides it beneath the other ingredients. She sincerely does not want to indulge the men of such unpleasant habits.

Xia Yue Chu makes two cold dishes and eight warm dishes, a total of ten dishes today. Although the ingredients are unavoidably white cabbage, potato, dried eggplants, tofu, these kinds of ingredients, in a single glance, half of all the dishes are with meat. This is considerably a feast prepared with careful attention.

Madam Sheng sees all the dishes that is set on the table, her inner fire is set blazed rapidly. There is a limit to the money that Xue Liang Ping takes from her, to have actually buy so much meat back.

Nevertheless, in front of her daughter, it is not appropriate to say much, after all she brings their son-in-law back to her maternal home, how the dishes are presented is a matter of their daughter's value and recognition.

If she expresses herself negatively right now and picks on these details, don't mention what their son-in-law will think, even their daughter will become distanced with resentment.

Feng Yong Yuan has always treated the meals at the Xue family with contempt, coming all the way to Seng Head Village is solely for the sake of Xue Ping.

In the past, every time he is here, despite Madam Sheng has also slaughtered a chicken and stewed meat to welcome him, those dishes have always been greasy and unappetising, turning down any of his appetite.

But every single dish here today is tempting in their smell, and they are plated beautifully, in fact, it is comparable to the dishes which are made in the restaurants from the town.

This has made Feng Yuan Yong exceptionally happy, thinking that at last, he does not need to go back to the city being hungry today.

Seeing the rare smile on her son-in-law's face, Madam Sheng feels gratified, yet looking at the dishes on the table again, her heart is also overwhelmed with pain.

Right at this moment, she sees Xue Liang Ping coming back from getting some alcohol and she quickly drags the person outside. Scolding him in a whisper. "How much meat did you buy? Can we still pass our days like this!"

"What is it!"

Xue Liang Ping has gone into the room just now, sweeping a glance upon the dishes on the table, he is surprised as well. He has only bought a cut of pork belly, and Xia Yue Chu has actually come up with so many meat dishes?

"I only bought a cut of pork belly that is two fingers wide and bought some baby carps, are you not aware of how much money you have given me?"

Madam Sheng thinks so too, Xue Liang Ping does not have extra money in his hands, after that she is then able to relax and enters the room with a smile. "Son-in-law makes a rare trip here, there isn't anything good we can offer to you at home, please don't mind it if our welcome is lacking. Let her father and her few brothers accompany you over a few more cups."

According to common practice, the men have their table set in the central hall, and the women bringing their children along will eat inside the room on the brick bed.

Xue Ping is surprised to see the feast, she has never imagined that Xia Yue Chu can be so competent, to have prepared such a table of food within less than two hours.

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The food is not just presentable but also smells enticing, she thinks to herself that at long last, she has a chance to present a decent imagine to her husband. She is somewhat happy, but when she remembers how Madam Sheng has cried out her grievances just now, she holds back the lifting corners of her mouth and sinks her smile.

At this moment, the men in the central hall have already poured their cups to the brim with wine. They cheer by drinking a cup of wine before they slowly start to eat.

Xue Liang Ping sits beside Xue Zhuang, and right in front of them is that yellow stewed chicken dish, so he picks a drumstick with his chopsticks and places it into his son's bowl.

When he is planning to search for the other drumstick to give it to his son-in-law, he then realises that there is only one drumstick inside this basin of the yellow stewed chicken.

Xue Liang Ping looks towards Xue Zhuang subconsciously and sees that he has already taken a big bite from the drumstick in his bowl.

Of course, even if it has not been bitten into, it is not possible to pick it up with his chopsticks again to give it to Feng Yong Yuan.

Xue Liang Ping is suddenly trapped in an awkward position, so he can only pick a piece of chicken wing with the attached drumlet and places it into Feng Yong Yuan's bowl.

"Let us fill this cup again, wishing Brother-in-law in advance that you will soar high with your outspread wings, to be able to fly across ten thousand mile like a roc bird*." Xue Zhuang who observes that Feng Yong Yuan's expression is turning sour, cannot bear to watch Xue Liang Ping being troubled by such awkwardness, so he lifts his cup up and helps Xue Liang Ping his resolve this stiff situation.

The chicken wing just barely implicit the saying of "soaring high with outspread wings and the roc flying across ten thousand miles", and these words are spoken right into the worries of Feng Yong Yuan's heart.

His face immediately changes from gloomy to brightly lit, raising his cup in return. "Father-in-law and Big Brother have been too courteous."

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Translator Notes:

*The roc bird flying across ten thousand miles, is what the Chinese will say as well wishes to one's brilliant prospects and long success. The roc bird is a mythical giant bird.

Translated by Yellow. Sep 2022.