She rummaged through her makeup box and finally pulled out a gold bracelet.
Seeing that Old Man Yun was sleeping soundly, Mrs. Gu put away the makeup box and went to the door of the west wing room.
Just as Zhao Guihua was getting up for a night visit, she pushed the door open and saw Mrs. Gu standing outside. She was startled.
"Mom? What are you doing standing here?" Zhao Guihua asked.
Mrs. Gu tucked her hands into her sleeves and smiled slightly, "Mom wants to talk to you..."
Zhao Guihua said "oh," turned back, closed the door, and followed Mrs. Gu to the kitchen.
There were still flames in the stove, and the kitchen was warm, not cold at all.
"What do you want to say, Mom?" Zhao Guihua yawned.
Mrs. Gu picked up the stove hook and stirred the ashes in the stove, "Guihua, do you think Mom is biased?"
Zhao Guihua was slightly stunned. Why would her mother suddenly ask this question...
Even if she was biased, she shouldn't say it out loud. How would their mother-in-law and daughter-in-law get along in the future?
Zhao Guihua shook her head, "No, no, Mom always treats everyone fairly at home. No one says you're biased!"
"Is that so?" Mrs. Gu put down the stove hook and looked back at her, "Do you really think so?"
Zhao Guihua nodded, clutching her sleeves tightly...
"Guihua, don't force yourself. If you have any grievances, tell Mom. It's uncomfortable to keep them bottled up!" Mrs. Gu put her hands back into her sleeves and said lightly, "You and Cui Rong were the first to marry into our Old Yun family. You've been through so many hard years together. Mom truly thinks you are a good daughter-in-law, capable and sensible. Daman is also fortunate to have married such a virtuous wife."
"In the past, our family was poor, and we encountered a famine, fleeing to Dashui Village. Even feeding the family was a problem, let alone buying gold and silver jewelry. Now, the family's life is slowly improving, but we're not rich enough to wear gold and silver..."
"Mom knows you've always wanted to open a small restaurant in the county town. You have the skills, so don't let them go to waste. Your father and I both support you. But now, Jinhe is studying out of town, and Jinshan is also studying in the county town. How much money do we need for the family's daily expenses?"
"It's not impossible to open a restaurant, but can't you wait a little longer? Do you know how much money Jinhe needs for his studies each year? How much money does it cost for everyone in the family to make a cotton-padded jacket? Without any income throughout the winter, and with so many people, how much grain and rice do we need to get through?"
"Shanshan married Erman and didn't ask for anything from us, dedicating herself to living with Erman. What's wrong with Mom buying her a set of jewelry?"
Because when Zhao Guihua married Daman, the Old Yun family had given two taels of silver as a betrothal gift...
Du Tieshan asked for nothing, and received nothing. It was not too much to buy her a set of jewelry.
Zhao Guihua was scolded until her eyes were teary. She lowered her head and said, "Mom, your daughter-in-law was ignorant. Please, please don't say anymore!"
Sometimes her mind just couldn't grasp it, and she always thought her parents were biased and didn't care about her.
After Mrs. Gu's words today, she realized how important she was in her parents' hearts...
"Mom knows you've had a hard time all these years, fleeing with us, and giving birth to Jinshan and Xiaozhuzi. You've worked hard!"
As Mrs. Gu spoke, she took out the gold bracelet from her sleeve and put it into Zhao Guihua's hand, "Here, take it. This is from Mom!"
She had wanted to give this bracelet to Guihua long ago, but when Liu Cuirong was still in the house, Mrs. Gu was afraid she would be jealous and quarrel with Guihua...
"Mom, I, I, I can't accept it!" Zhao Guihua panicked instantly and dared not accept it no matter what.
Mom had just scolded her, and she felt very upset. How could she dare to accept Mom's gold bracelet?
Besides, Mom had never worn this bracelet before, and she was giving it to her. How could she be so shameless...
"Take it if I give it to you!" Mrs. Gu pushed the bracelet back to her, "You deserve it!"
Zhao Guihua cried even harder, "Wuwuwu, Mom, Mom, wuwu, your daughter-in-law feels guilty, wuwu!"
As she cried, she threw herself into Mrs. Gu's arms, her eyes red with tears...
"Don't say Mom is biased anymore, understand?" Mrs. Gu patted her back and smiled slightly.
Zhao Guihua was amused. She wiped away her tears, "Mom, wait for me. When your daughter-in-law opens a restaurant and makes money, I'll buy you the best-looking clothes, the most beautiful hairpins, and then I'll bring you and Dad to the county town to live in a spacious house, and serve you good wine and meat every day..."
Mrs. Gu heard this and pushed her, "You're treating me and your dad like ancestors!"
Zhao Guihua chuckled and saw that there were still some charcoal embers in the stove. She took a few potatoes, "Mom, since I can't sleep anyway, let me roast two potatoes for you!"
Mrs. Gu smiled and nodded, "Okay, don't burn them!"
So, the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law started roasting potatoes in the kitchen...
Xiao Xinling, who had already fallen asleep, smelled the aroma and got up quickly. She put on a cloak and ran to the kitchen.
"Wow, what are you roasting? It smells so good!" Xiao Xinling leaned in front of the stove and sniffed.
Mrs. Gu couldn't help but laugh, "The potatoes aren't ready yet, Miss Xiao. Please wait!"
Xiao Xinling grinned foolishly, "Okay!"
She brought over a stool, sat in front of the stove, and rubbed her hands, "Auntie, why hasn't Siman come back yet?"
It was already midnight. Even a hundred pigs should have been bought by now...
Mrs. Gu was also puzzled and murmured, "Who knows?"
Actually, Yun Siman had returned long ago and was now lying on the warm kang, fast asleep.
He was afraid that if he met Xiao Xinling, this brat would cry and make noise, disturbing everyone's sleep.
The next morning, Xiao Xitian and the others arrived at a small county town.
The streets were bustling with people, extremely lively.
Small vendors pushed their one-wheeled carts or carried shoulder poles, shouting in the streets and alleys...
The aroma of wine and dishes wafted from the major restaurants.
"Little Village Child, are you hungry?" Xiao Jinheng had drunk a lot of milk along the way. His little face was rosy, and his throat no longer felt uncomfortable.
"I want to eat pork knuckle!" Xiao Xitian said crisply.
Xiao Jinheng couldn't help but laugh, "Little glutton!"
It was exactly noon, and it was time for lunch...
Besides, His Majesty's foot had already stopped swelling, and he needed to get out of the carriage to stroll around.
"Commander Kong, find a restaurant!" Xiao Jinheng ordered.
"Alright!"
Although this county town was not large, the restaurants were all excellent.
After Xiao Ying and Xiao Jun settled the carriage, everyone walked into the restaurant's main hall...
It was crowded, with no empty seats, and several guests were queuing at the counter.
The waiter smiled and greeted them, "Oh, esteemed guests, I'm sorry, but our restaurant is full. If you want to wait, please wait a moment. If you can't wait, go to another place!"
Yun Sanman asked, "Do you have any private rooms or anything?"
"Yes, we do, but you can't use them!" the waiter said decisively.
Xiao Jinheng frowned upon hearing this.
What did he mean by "can't use them"?