Chapter 620 - 622: Could she eat you up?
Right up until they left the Government Office and boarded the horse carriage, Bai Yihong felt a chill running down his spine, as if he had been touched by frostbite. His daughter had finally arranged for him to do something and he had completely messed it up.
Bai Ruozhu understood her father’s feelings and held his arm, saying: "Dad, there are so many scammers these days. I once received some dried fish, then thought about reselling it to the rich for a profit. Guess what happened?"
Bai Yihong was drawn in by her words, perking up from his previous despondency.
"What happened?" He quickly asked.
"That man took my dried fish and gave me a one-hundred tael silver banknote. I told him I couldn’t break the note, so he said he’d go into his house and find me some broken silver. But after waiting a long time, he never came out again." Actually, this story was made up by Bai Ruozhu, adapted from her previous life’s experience of selling goods. But it was not entirely fictitious.
"What? Why didn’t you tell us? We could have helped get it back!" Bai Yihong said furiously, he had no idea his daughter had been slighted in this way.
Bai Ruozhu laughed, "They couldn’t pick on me that easily. I pounded in front of their door, made so much noise that their neighbours knew about it. In the end, they had no choice but to return my dried fish. Even then, I found out after I got home that two pieces were missing. I was too lazy to argue with them, and eventually, those dried fish ended up on the banquet table at our eldest brother’s wedding."
"It’s not easy for a girl like you to sell things all by yourself. Next time, call me and your elder and second brothers. No one dares to bully you then." Bai Yihong said indignantly.
Bai Ruozhu nodded vigorously, "Yes, I’ll remember that next time."
Bai Yihong didn’t seem as upset, Bai Ruozhu then added: "Dad, it’s not often that land purchases go smoothly on the first try. Maybe if we save more money, we can buy even better land later on."
"Yes, I’ll be more careful next time and directly arrange to meet them at the Government Office to complete the paperwork." Bai Yihong reassured.
Lin Pingr was listening on the side without interrupting. She knew her daughter was trying to pacify her father. After hearing the story, she felt the same heartache for her daughter. Her daughter had run around tirelessly to provide for the family, enduring hardships they were unaware of.
When they finally arrived home, Bai Ruozhu got off the carriage and thanked the Tu siblings: "Thank you, Brother Tu, and Tu Ying, for your help today. Otherwise we would have been beaten. Don’t leave at noon, I’ll make some good dishes, and treat you both well."
Tu Bai’s eyes lit up with excitement. He had previously heard from his classmates about the wonderful meals they had had at the Bai family’s place. He was sceptical but was curious enough to seize this opportunity to see if his classmates’ stories were true.
Tu Ying was also excited, she rolled up her sleeves and said: "Ruozhu, let me help you."
Tu Bai couldn’t help but laugh, "You cook? Don’t destroy their kitchen."
Offended, Tu Ying swung her fists at him, "Brother, didn’t you get a good enough beating earlier? Want to go a round with me?"
"Hey, hey, we are guests, so we have to act with some restraint." Tu Bai said while he retreated behind Bai Zepei. It was clear his actions didn’t match his words, he was just afraid of being hit.
The Tu siblings made everyone in the Bai family laugh, Bai Ruozhu, too was laughing and now went into the kitchen. There she noticed that Guizhi was washing vegetables with a somewhat somber expression. Bai Ruozhu wanted to comfort her, but didn’t know what to say. She had been pretending not to know about Guizhi’s feelings for their second brother.
After thinking for a while, she playfully patted Guizhi’s shoulder and said: "Guizhi, you have no idea how thrilling our day was. We encountered a scammer while buying land, and he even hired goons to surround us. They were all wielding sickles and hoes. I was scared to death!"
"What?" Guizhi was startled, "What happened?"
As Bai Ruozhu busied herself with preparing the meal, she narrated the story about their land buying experience in a dramatic fashion. Soon she had drawn Guizhi’s full attention. So engrossed was Guizhi in the tale, she even forgot to prepare the vegetables in her hand. She stared, wide-eyed, as if she feared the bandits would hurt Bai Ruozhu and the others if she blinked.
It wasn’t until she heard that the thug, Li Mazi, and his cronies were in prison that Guizhi finally breathed a sigh of relief, saying with a sense of bewilderment: "We were really lucky to have had the Tu siblings with us today."
Bai Ruozhu just hummed faintly, and secretly observed Guizhi’s reaction. Upon mention of the Tu siblings, the feeling was more of gratitude.
Guizhi was a kind-hearted girl. Even if she disliked Tu Ying because of Bai Zepei, she would still feel genuinely grateful to Tu Ying for assisting the Bai family.
Bai Ruozhu kept herself busy cooking, not wanting to comfort Guizhi any further. She believed that Guizhi would come to a realization on her own. Breaking the current status quo would make things more awkward for Guizhi.
The Bai family’s lunch was a little late today, as Bai Ruozhu cooked plenty of dishes and sent Wa San out to buy good quality wine.
Due to the number of guests, they set up two tables. When the banquet started, the Tu siblings and the Bai family sat at the main table. They didn’t follow any gender-segregation rules, instead, they raised their glasses in a toast, creating a lively atmosphere.
Looking at the table full of dishes, Tu Ying clapped her hands and exclaimed: "No wonder even the owner of the Welcome Inn asked you for your recipes. Your dishes are even better than the ones at Welcome Inn. They look so delicious I’m salivating just by looking at them!"
Bai Ruozhu winked at her, "Wait until you’ve tasted them! You’ll be drooling even more."
"Alright, everyone dig in, thank Tu Bai and Tu Ying for today, make sure you eat a lot!" Bai Yihong said with a smile.
"Okay, thank you, Uncle Bai." Tu Bai and Tu Ying said with a smile.
Everyone started eating. As the son of a military family, Tu Bai didn’t observe any etiquette like the scholars did. Once he started eating, he threw caution to the wind and started gulping down food. While eating, he couldn’t but say: "The guys in the Academy were not wrong, the food is indeed delicious!"
Bai Ruozhu was elated to see her guests enjoying the food. Even Guizhi was no longer downcast and even chatted a bit with Tu Ying.
After the meal ended and some pleasant conversation, the Tu siblings apologized for leaving. As she left, Tu Ying couldn’t help but steal glances at Bai Zepei, who was maintaining a cold demeanor and pretending not to see.
Having had some wine, Tu Bai threw a punch at Bai Zepei and demanded, "Where has your courtesy gone? Even if she is just an ordinary friend, you shouldn’t be pulling such a long face. What, is she going to eat you?"
Fearing her brother might hurt Bai Zepei, Tu Ying quickly dragged her brother away, "Brother, you’re drunk, let’s go home quickly. If mom finds out, she will surely beat you up."
Tu Bai shrank back, as though truly afraid of his mother. He stopped bothering with Bai Zepei and allowed his sister to walk him away. Tu Ying turned around and smiled apologetically at Bai Zepei and Bai Ruozhu.
Once the Tu siblings had left, Lin Pingr grabbed Bai Zepei and pulled him into their room for a "thorough interrogation".