Chapter 58 The Search in Progress

Chapter 58 The Search in Progress

The Chen family peeked inside and found the food box full of peanuts, red dates, dried apricots, dried pears, fried dough twists, small twisted dough sticks, candied winter melon, and candied ginger slices.

The abundance was beyond the Chen family's expectations, causing them all to lose control of their facial expressions.

Their family not only owned seventy acres of fertile land in Lingshan Town, but also ran a cosmetics shop. Although the shop was small, it was enough to ensure they had enough to eat and drink.

Even so, they were reluctant to prepare such a lavish feast for their guests.

Not to mention that Jiang Yuan, who scooped out a whole plate of frozen pears from a large basin in the corner of the room and put them on the table for them to help themselves.

The Chen family sensed Hao Yu's emphasis on this marriage and also gained some understanding of what Matchmaker Liu had said before: Hao Yu's family was well-off.

With the help of the food and drinks, the two sides successfully started a conversation under the matchmaker Liu's guidance. Hao Yu and Chen Zhao were mainly responsible for dealing with Miss Chen's father and brother, while Wang Xiaozhi was responsible for entertaining Miss Chen, her mother, and her sister-in-law.

As for Xie Wanniang and Jiang Yuan, one was not good at speaking, and the other considered himself a temporary tenant, so it was not appropriate for him to take the lead. Therefore, they simply sat quietly on the side.

Xiao Yang was even more well-behaved. The little girl sat next to Xie Wan Niang, her little hands clutching her clothes, her big eyes blinking, extremely quiet and obedient.

Of course, this was also related to the fact that the Chen family members were not difficult to deal with. They did not ask any sharp questions, but after chatting about everyday things, they confirmed with Hao Yu in person whether he really did not mind Miss Chen's reputation as a "husband-killer".

When Hao Yu answered the question, his attitude remained unchanged. His expression was frank, his tone was calm, and his eyes did not dart around. This made the Chen family members, who were staring at him subconsciously, especially Miss Chen, who was the person involved, all breathe a sigh of relief.

With the issue that the Chen family, or rather, Miss Chen herself, cared about most resolved, and given that Hao Yu was indeed sincere, had ample financial resources, and was also handsome and upright, the Chen family was quite satisfied with him.

With both sides willing and eager, they naturally found themselves getting along better and better as they chatted. Seeing this, Xie Wanniang knew that the Chen family would definitely stay for lunch, so she signaled Xiaoyang to invite Deng Xiaoyan, the second daughter-in-law of Chen Lizheng next door.

Yesterday, the two families agreed that if the Chen family stayed for lunch today, Xie Wan's mother would invite Deng Xiaoyan over to help.

Xie Wanniang was still in charge of cooking, but since Wang Xiaozhi needed to accompany the women of the Chen family, it was necessary for her to find another assistant.

She originally planned to give Deng Xiaoyan two catties of pork as a reward, but Deng Xiaoyan said that she wanted a bowl of meat cooked by Xie Wanniang.

Good heavens! The opportunity was finally presented to her, and she was determined to treat herself and her man to a good meal!

Xie Wanniang was amused by her drooling expression and said, "Okay."

Deng Xiaoyan, who had been looking forward to this meal, arrived very quickly, and she didn't come empty-handed.

Deng Xiaoyan placed the neatly dried firewood that her husband had prepared next to the woodpile, rolled up her sleeves, and asked, "Shouldn't we wash and chop the vegetables first?"

Xie Wanniang nodded, "Thank you for washing that pile of things for me, sister-in-law."

It was described as a pile, but it was actually just five or six carrots, three white radishes, two large cabbages, and a medium-sized squash.

Vegetables are limited in winter, but fortunately, Hao Yu's family has plenty of meat and vegetables, which are more popular.

After taking stock of the available ingredients, Xie Wanniang plans to make braised chicken with dried mushrooms, rabbit and radish stew, steamed squash with black bean spare ribs, braised pork, braised pork knuckle, braised fish balls with cabbage, minced meat and tofu, and stir-fried mung bean vermicelli with pickled cabbage.

She plans to make white rice as her staple food; it's easy to cook and then just scoop it out, which is popular and saves time.

Rice water is also a good thing; it's nutritious and delicious, and a sip warms you from your stomach to your heart.

In addition, Jiang Yuan bought the most expensive and best wine from the tavern in Baihe Town, which was currently sitting on the table.

A fragrant aroma wafted from the kitchen, enticing the Chen family members and Matchmaker Liu, who were being led around by Hao Yu, Wang Xiaozhi, and Chen Zhao, to frequently turn their gazes toward the direction from which the aroma was coming.

Seeing this, Hao Yu simply invited the person back to the main room.

Jiang Yuan, who had broken away from the group, was setting out bowls and chopsticks on two tables, one inside and one outside the house. When he saw everyone return, he nodded slightly to them as a greeting, and then ran off to the kitchen to help with chores.

The Chen family and the matchmaker Liu were all surprised. They never expected that Jiang Yuan, such a cold-faced young man, would do these kinds of jobs that ordinary men would never bother with.

Hao Yu noticed their confusion and shock, but he didn't want to explain anything.

Like Jiang Yuan, he didn't believe that all the housework should be left to women.

But he also knew very well that the vast majority of people in the world, including women, believed that housework should be done by women.

The group sat down again in the main room, talking absentmindedly while waiting for the food to be served.

Xie Wanniang was already quick and efficient, not to mention that she had prepared many things a day in advance with the help of others.

With Xiao Yang helping to start the fire, Deng Xiaoyan helping to wash and chop vegetables, wash rice and cook rice, and Jiang Yuan helping to deliver things, fetch water and carry firewood, Xie Wanniang finished cooking the meal in less than half an hour and put it into a large plate that had been prepared in advance.

She plated the dishes one by one, while Jiang Yuan carried them into the main room one by one.

Soon, eight fragrant dishes, not only identical in style but also in portion size, were placed on the two tables in the main hall and Hao Yu's room.

After Jiang Yuan delivered the wooden basin of rice to the main room, Xie Wanniang then packed the braised pork, cabbage stewed with fish balls, minced meat tofu, and white rice that she had set aside into a basket and handed it to Deng Xiaoyan, saying, "Thank you for your hard work, sister-in-law. Go home and eat now."

Deng Xiaoyan felt very embarrassed because Xie Wanniang gave her two bowls of braised pork, and Xie Wanniang also gave her a bowl of braised cabbage with fish balls, a bowl of minced meat and tofu, and two bowls of white rice.

She took the basket and said, "I'll come back later to help wash the dishes."

This was something they had agreed upon long ago, so Xie Wanniang simply nodded slightly upon hearing it, "Okay."

Deng Xiaoyan happily carried her basket home to share the delicious food with her husband, while Xie Wanniang took Xiaoyang and carried rice soup to the main room.

Inside the main room, Wang Xiaozhi had already invited Matchmaker Liu, Mother Chen, Sister-in-law Chen, and Miss Chen to sit down at the dining table. Hearing footsteps, she immediately smiled and waved to Xie Wanniang and Xiao Yang, "We've been waiting for you two, come and sit down."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Yuan, who was inside the house, felt relieved and began to eat and chat with Chen's father, elder brother Chen, Hao Yu, and Chen Zhao.