Chapter 334: The Chef Encounters a Mishap
By the time Bai Ruozhu and the others arrived at the small courtyard in Mountain Village, they found that the yard was even cleaner than before, adorned with big red happiness characters and bright red lanterns were hung.
"If I had been responsible for cleaning, it definitely wouldn’t look this neat and tidy." Lin Ping’er sincerely praised, "Zeji’s mother is truly competent!"
"Look, even the chipped paint on that table has been fixed. This... is a bit too much." Bai Yihong, skilled in carpentry, immediately noticed the changes to the table.
Zeji’s father was named Bai Yizhong and was two years younger than Bai Yihong. Just like his name implied, he was genuine and simple-minded. However, he bore a resemblance to Bai Yihong in one way - his dexterity. The lanterns in the yard were handmade by him, and he was the one who repaired the paint on the table. The repair was so smooth it was like it had never been damaged.
"Zeji’s mother, you guys are too good at tidying up, I don’t know how to thank you." Lin Ping’er went over to Zeji’s mother, took her arm, and began to express her gratitude.
"It’s nothing, just helping out while we have some free time," Zeji’s mother said with a grin.
After that, the two families sat down for dinner and discussed plans for their busy day ahead. Bai Yizhong’s family originally planned to return to Fengye Village for the night and free up the house for Bai Yihong’s family. However, realizing there was too much preparation needed, they decided to stay and help, suggesting that both families could squeeze in a bit for the night.
After discussing it, the families agreed that the men would squeeze into the main hall while the women would sleep in Bai Zepei’s room for the night. Bai Ruozhu, on the other hand, had the best outcome, as she got to sleep in her own room with her baby.
Bai Ruozhu wanted to help out in the evening, but Lin Ping’er and Bai Zeji’s mother, Madam Bai Jin, wouldn’t let her. They insisted that she should rest early as she would be busier the next day preparing the banquet. It was important for her to conserve her energy.
Bai Ruozhu didn’t insist. She took Dengdeng back to their room to rest, as she had to get up early the next morning. Although they hired a head chef for the banquet, there were still a few key dishes that she needed to cook herself. This was going to take an entire day.
The night passed uneventfully. Before dawn the following day, Bai Ruozhu had already started to get busy. She made bone soup and began preparing dishes that required long simmering times. Time flew by with her busyness, and before she knew it, it was already bright outside.
"Why hasn’t the head chef arrived yet? Yihong, you go to the entrance of the village and see if he’s lost," Lin Ping’er, standing in the doorway, stared out for a while before deciding to send Bai Yihong to check.
Bai Ruozhu frowned. Weren’t they clear on the times? This was quite a while after the time they agreed. Wasn’t this person said to be trustworthy?
"Dad, if you can’t find him, take the carriage to his place in town to check. Regardless of the situation, come back as soon as possible." Bai Ruozhu added, for some reason, something was telling her that the head chef might not turn up at all.
Bai Yihong paused mid-step and turned back, saying, "Alright, I’ll go and see. You all should also start looking for help. Even if things don’t go as planned, we shouldn’t be caught off guard."
Just as Bai Yihong finished speaking, people started to arrive outside the house. To their surprise, Bai Lu was the first to arrive with his family. He immediately instructed Lin Ping’er, "Let your siblings help you out. Tell them what needs to be done and don’t hesitate to delegate tasks. After all, we’re all family here, there’s no need to be polite."
Two women walked out smiling. One of them, more lively, said, "Are you preparing the vegetables? I can help with that. I can also help to clean the fish."
The woman who spoke was Li, the wife of Bai Lu’s second son, Bai Yixiao. The other woman, who spoke less and smiled shyly, was Liu, the wife of Bai Lu’s third son, Bai Yixing.
Lin Ping’er held both women’s hands gratefully and led them towards the kitchen.
Seeing Bai Yihong about to head out, Bai Lu asked about the situation. Bai Yihong started to explain, but he was quickly interrupted by Bai Lu, "Just give the address. Let your son Yixing run the errands. Today, your oldest son gets married. You wouldn’t want to delay the auspicious time. What will people think if they see the father-in-law not at home? They may think you’re not satisfied with your son’s bride’s family."
Hearing this, Bai Yixing immediately said, "I can go. I’m quick on my feet and I will be back soon."
Bai Yihong gratefully thanked them, then described what the chef looked like and told Bai Yixing the address. Bai Yixing quickly rushed out of the door after hearing the instructions.
In the kitchen, Bai Ruozhu called for the two women they referred to as ’aunties’ and assigned them tasks. Seeing the two of them working diligently and uncomplainingly, she felt even more grateful towards Bai Lu’s family.
When Bai Lu said he would arrange for two of his daughters-in-law to help, Bai Ruozhu didn’t think too much of it. But now that she thought about it, Bai Lu only had three daughters-in-law, and two of them including Jin had come to help out at her house.
At this moment, a young girl approached, giggling as she said, "Mom, I’m here. Quickly assign me a task."
Jin turned around and smiled at her, then introduced her to Bai Ruozhu, "This is my eldest daughter, Lianhua. She has been learning sewing from her aunt recently, so we didn’t bring her with us. That’s why she came with the family today."
Bai Ruozhu hardly heard anything after that, as she was shocked by the name "Lianhua". If her family name were also Bai, wouldn’t that make her name Bai Lianhua? What a coincidence!
Bai Lianhua giggled as she approached Bai Ruozhu, saying, "Cousin RuoZhu, I’ll help you to prepare the vegetables."
Bai Ruozhu was a bit embarrassed. Too many people from the Bai Lu family were already helping out.
"Ruozhu, you can assign some tasks to her. This child of mine is always up to something. If she doesn’t work, she’ll run around creating trouble." Jin reproached Bai Lianhua and said.
Bai Lianhua wrinkled her nose, playfully sticking out her tongue, then looked toward Bai Ruozhu, saying, "Cousin, don’t be too polite with me. I work around the house every day, my hands and feet are nimble."
Li, the aunt who taught Bai Lianhua sewing, looked at her lovingly and laughed, "Who calls themselves diligent? You really have no shame."
Bai Lianhua giggled but did not show any signs of embarrassment.
Bai Ruozhu had no choice but to assign Bai Lianhua the task of preparing the vegetables. With added help, she was suddenly much more relieved. The women worked while chatting.
Bai Ruozhu found that the relationships amongst the Bai family’s wives were harmonious. Although she was not sure if they were just not showing their disagreements externally, Li’s affection for Bai Lianhua was evident. While Bai Lianhua did have an interesting name, she was vibrant and straightforward, easily winning others’ affection.
Time flew by swiftly. Before they knew it, Bai Yixing returned, steaming with anger, "The Wang family really lacks integrity!"
Hearing the commotion, Bai Ruozhu emerged from the kitchen. She had already had a rough guess about what happened. It was probably her negligence. She should have considered that the head chef’s last name was also Wang.
"The head chef is a distant relative of the Wang family. The Wang family learned of the banquet and invited him to the celebration and got him to not help our cousin’s family." Bai Yixing’s angry voice echoed across the courtyard.
The head chef, Wang, denied agreeing to this, saying that he was worried it would ruin his reputation and his livelihood, but the Wang family..."