These days, eating meat is a luxury. Being able to eat meaty soup is much better than that of ordinary wealthy households.
"The radish stew is almost ready. Brother Wei, give it a try and see if it's salty."
There were strong fireworks on the stove. Wei Tu moved the matza under his buttocks, took a few steps back, and stopped adding firewood.
At this time, the cook Xinghua looked at Wei Tu with a smile on her face, scooped out a bowl of vegetables with a wooden ladle, and handed it to Wei Tu.
There is a way.
If the cook does not steal, the grain will not be harvested.
The cook wanted to eat secretly but couldn't stop herself. When Xinghua secretly ate, the Li family's mistress also turned a blind eye.
You can't steal much food from left to right.
"Okay." Looking at the pieces of cooked pork at the bottom of the bowl, Wei Tu's throat rolled a few times. He quickly glanced out the window and swallowed when he saw no one.
Just a few moments.
Wei Tu licked all the radish and meat at the bottom of the bowl.
"What day is it today? Why are you eating radish stew?" Wei Tu put the bowl on the table and curiously asked the cook Xinghua.
Mr. Li’s family doesn’t eat much meat, only twice a day, that is, once every five days.
It has only been two days since Xinghua last cooked meat.
It's not that the Li family doesn't have the money to eat meat all day long, but doing such a thing would ruin the family fortune for the rich, and they would be scolded by their ancestors after their death.
It only took about a hundred years for the Li family to become rich. The family business was accumulated step by step by the Li family's ancestors as traveling merchants.
"The eldest young master has returned from a study tour in Fucheng. Grandma was very happy and asked me to go to the butcher shop to cut two kilograms of meat yesterday."
Cook Xinghua replied.
"Young Master?" Wei Tu's heart moved as he thought of his young playmate.
pity.
Times have changed.
The difference between master and servant gradually became clear.
Even though there was a friendship in the past, when he saw the eldest young master, he still had to call him young master to distinguish himself from master and servant.
"You can help me get a leave for grandma later. I'll go out for something."
After Wei Tu added some firewood, he stood up, patted the cigarette ashes falling on his body, and said.
Although the eldest lady of the Li family is strictly prohibited from running the house, as long as she completes her duties, it is not a big deal to take a break from her busy schedule.
Wei Tu said he was asking for leave, but he was just saying hello to his master.
"No problem..." the cook Xinghua responded, holding an iron spoon and starting to fry the next dish.
But as soon as she finished speaking, she said "Ouch", her face flushed, and she glared at Wei Tu who was walking out of the kitchen.
Just then, Wei Tu pinched her butt.
Country people don't have any sense of etiquette and shame. She and Wei Tu had been flirting with each other a few years ago, and they were just waiting for the eldest grandma to be lenient and then get married and start a family.
…
After leaving Li's house, Wei Tu did not go directly to Li's house in a hurry. Instead, he took out the wages he had saved over the years and ran to the rouge shop.
In the first few years after her second aunt Wei Xin married into the Huang family, she stayed close to his family and came back to visit her every once in a while.
But in the past ten years, I have moved less and less. After my grandparents passed away four years ago, I only went back to the Wei family twice.
One of them was a funeral.
This time I asked my second aunt Wei Xin to do something. Wei Tu didn't want to be looked down upon, so it was better to go with a gift than go empty-handed.
There is no shortage of rice, grain, cloth and yellow houses.
The only thing he could give was rouge and gouache for women.
"Shop, what are the cheap rouge and gouache..."
After hesitating for a moment, Wei Tu gritted his teeth and walked into the rouge shop and asked about the price.
Rouge gouache has always been of high value, and with the money he had in hand, he would not even dare to touch high-end rouge.
"Cheap?" The store owner took a look at Wei Tu and saw that Wei Tu was wearing a mended coarse cloth and gray clothes, and he immediately had an idea.
He took out a brocade box from the locker and said, "This is Jinyanzhi. A box costs five yuan, which is enough for two months."
"If I plan to give a gift, this Jin Yanzhi is more suitable."
The store owner paused and added: "Our store also has cheaper rouge, such as purple cloud rouge, which costs three yuan per box, but giving rouge as a gift is inevitably inappropriate..."
"Let's choose Jin Yanzhi." Wei Tu thought for a moment, nodded, took out five large coins worth "a thousand coins" and put them on the counter.
The second aunt, Wei Ying, was a noble lady of the Huang family. She went to the rouge shop much more often than he did. If he gave Ziyunzhi as a gift, Wei Ying would not be happy even if she didn't say it openly.
Only when etiquette is important, affection is important!
In addition, since Ziyunzhi is the cheapest rouge in the rouge shop, given Wei Xun's status, the probability of applying this rouge will be very low.
The Ziyunzhi given as a gift will also be shelved in a high cabinet.
As for bargaining...
We are all fellow villagers. If the rouge shop deceives customers, the business will not last long.
Coming to this ancient time, the only thing that made Wei Tu feel good was the reputation environment in ancient times. Except for despicable foreigners, local people rarely committed fraud.
Such large stores rarely allow customers to negotiate prices, and prices are clearly marked.
Wei Tu was short of money, but he didn't want to waste time for a few coppers.
"I'll pack it for you now," the store owner said with a smile.
Shao Qing and Wei Tu carried the gift box and came to a street lined with official residences.
Compared with Li Zhai, Mr. Huang of Huang Zhai has greater financial resources and is richer. Shengyefang where he is located is the residence of dignitaries in Qingmu County.
After finding the mansion with "Yellow" on the plaque, Wei Tu knocked on the side door and explained his purpose of visit.
"Second Grandma's family? Wait in the sedan hall first. I'll call the maid in the inner courtyard."
Menzi made way for Wei Tu to sit in the sedan hall, and then started walking toward the inner courtyard of Huang Mansion.
The sedan hall is the place where wealthy families leave their sedan chairs, and is located in the front yard.
Wei Tu waited for a while, and was led by a maid named "Qing He" to a wing in the front yard to wait for his second aunt, Wei Tu.
The rules of a wealthy family are strict and outsiders, especially men, are not allowed to enter the inner courtyard.
After waiting for about half a quarter of an hour, a beautiful woman with a gorgeous appearance and skin like suet opened the wooden door of the wing and walked in.
Behind him were two maids, one of whom was "Qing He" who led the way earlier.
"Wei Tu, why did you come to see your second aunt? But something happened at home?" Wei Xin sat on the stool next to the table in the side room, took a sip of the tea poured by the maid, and said with a smile.
"Nothing happened at home." Wei Tu stood up, stopped sitting, bowed slightly and said, "I came to see my second aunt this time because I have something to ask my second aunt."
Although he was sold to Li Zhai by Wei Bao, his contact with his family was not severed.
Wei Bao had no choice but to sell him.
Six years ago, when Chilong was overturned, there was a severe drought in Qingfeng Mansion, and there was almost no harvest. It was better to go to Li's house to beg for food than to starve to death at home.
Wei Xin stopped smiling, put the tea cup on the table, and looked at Wei Tu with sharp eyes. Although he didn't say anything serious, his attitude said everything.
When something happens to Wei Bao, she, as a younger sister, can still help and take care of the brother-sister relationship.
But a nephew...
"This is the rouge my nephew bought. I ask my second aunt to accept it..."
Wei Tu took out the gift box, placed it on the Eight Immortals table, and pushed it in the direction of Wei Xin.
Seeing the gift, Wei Xin's face looked better, knowing that Wei Tu was not a person without shame or etiquette.
After marrying into the Huang family for many years, she is already the wife of the Huang family, not the Wei family.
"What's the matter?"
"If I can help you, my second aunt will try my best to help you. If I can't help you..."