Flowery Hair: A Maidservant

Chapter 36 The Thinner Winter Melon

Meng Shu sniffed and smelled an indescribable odor. She wanted to escape, but Dong Gua grabbed her.

"What is this? It tastes weird."

It's likely that Mother An is already regretting taking Donggua as her apprentice. Donggua does have some talent in the art of cooking, but when it comes to innovation, she's rather reckless.

Ever since Meng Shu suggested making a new drink, Dong Gua racked his brains all night and came up with an apple drink.

I boiled fresh apple slices in water, added ginger slices, sesame candy, and, inspired by Meng Shu's chrysanthemum drink, added sun-dried chrysanthemums, goji berries, and, quite ingeniously, cardamom and dried tangerine peel. After boiling and cooling it, I gulped it down, finally managing to exhaust myself and stay in bed for three days.

After recovering from his illness, Donggua became thinner.

For this reason, quite a few plump maids and old women came to Donggua for advice. This story spread widely in Fu'anju, and even the old lady heard about it.

Suwen also rewarded the old lady with a pair of pearl flowers because the winter melon had made her happy all day.

After that, Donggua happily put on the beaded flower and became more and more determined. He then sought advice from Meng Shu, who suggested simplifying the drinks sold on the street.

The second young lady's favorite drink is perilla drink. In addition, agarwood drink, Er Chen drink, Xiangru drink, mint drink, and osmanthus drink are all popular drinks. These drinks are made with flowers, leaves, spices, and herbs, and the taste is very sweet after cooking. They are not like winter melon drinks that are just randomly added.

"This time I used an old winter melon."

Donggua led Meng Shu to his room and enthusiastically explained to her.

Meng Shu: ......

"The people in the small kitchen don't like to eat winter melon, but winter melon is so good! A whole cartload was sent from the village, and it would just go bad if we didn't eat it. So I took one, peeled and seeded it, crushed some sesame candy, and marinated it with diced winter melon flesh. After enough winter melon juice was released, I used an earthenware pot..."

"Pickled winter melon?" Meng Shu was stunned. She looked down at the drink on the table. Apart from being a bit dark in color and having a strange taste, it was alright. At least she couldn't see any winter melon flesh.

"Yes, we often pickle plums and things like that in the small kitchen. But when I tasted the pickled winter melon, the raw melon flavor was too strong, so I just put it in the pot to cook."

Donggua picked up the glass and took a sip. "It really tastes pretty good. You should try it. I cooked it, filtered it, and then brewed it with water."

Meng Shu reluctantly pursed her lips carefully, then her eyes lit up slightly.

It's not bad to drink; it even has a slightly sweet and fragrant flavor. Plus, winter melon is cooling in nature and has a mild taste, making it perfect for consumption during the hot and humid summer months. I never expected that winter melon could actually be used to make such a delicious drink.

"Adding some crushed ice would make it even more refreshing."

Donggua nodded, even happier to receive Meng Shu's approval. "I'll try this method to preserve other fruits later, like apples, pears, lychees, pomelos, pumpkins, cucumbers, and so on."

Meng Shu smiled and said, "As long as you're happy."

However, she still reminded them that it was best to have the imperial physician examine the food before giving it to the masters to ensure there were no problems.

When they returned to Yunyi Courtyard, the Second Miss was talking with the Fifth Miss on the second floor, with Mengzhu serving them upstairs. Ruizhu was discussing hairstyles with the Fifth Miss's maid on one side of the flower hall. When she saw Mengshu come in, she pulled her over to talk to her.

Meng Shu and the people around the Fifth Miss were also familiar with each other. They would wait together in the private room when they were at Muyunzhai. When the young ladies were studying, they would gather together to do embroidery to pass the time.

"Did you know that today I went with the Fifth Miss to pay my respects at Fu'an Residence? I heard that someone from the Marquis's Mansion is coming."

Ruizhu arrived at the Tang residence the earliest and immediately sounded the alarm, asking nervously, "Who is it? Is the second young lady of the Marquis's mansion coming again?"

The maid whispered, "We didn't hear clearly, but we vaguely heard that quite a few people were coming. Madam said she wanted to clean Yunxi Courtyard to receive guests."

Ruizhu dropped the comb in her hand with a "thud" to the ground. "Oh no, oh no! Yunxi Courtyard is usually a place to entertain distinguished guests. The second young lady of the Marquis's Mansion stayed there when she came last time."

Meng Shu was baffled. Was this young lady from the Marquis's mansion some kind of monster? Why was Ruizhu so frightened?

Seeing Meng Shu in a daze, Rui Zhu hurriedly grabbed her hand and launched into a long tirade of complaints.

It turns out that Ruizhu was only afraid of the maidservants around the young lady of the Marquis's mansion!

Meng Shu was speechless. What was so scary about someone with the same status as her? The Tang family in Lin'an was the master of the house. How could they be afraid of a stranger?

"The people from the Marquis's mansion are the most arrogant and domineering. They clearly don't have as much food or things as we do, but they still act all high and mighty. From the masters to the maids, they all have ambitions that are higher than the sky." The maidservant next to the Fifth Miss was also very dissatisfied with the people from the Marquis's mansion.

Ruizhu got up, picked up the comb, put it in her purse, and assumed a posture as if facing a formidable enemy.

"Meng Shu, we need to move all the valuables around the Second Miss to the storeroom. That half of the cloud-mist silk must be hidden well, because our Second Miss is very generous."

The fifth young lady's maid nodded vigorously, "The young lady of the Marquis's mansion even snatches our fifth young lady's things. Last time, the old lady gave our young lady a box of sea pearls, and she took half of it."

"Moreover, those maids from the Marquis's mansion often act like they're the masters in front of us, ordering us around. Sister Suwen even told us not to make a scene. It's really frustrating."

Meng Shu also overheard some gossip about the Marquis's mansion.

The Tang family branch in Lin'an is the third branch of the current Marquis of Huai'an's half-brother's family in the capital. The second young lady of the Marquis's family that Ruizhu mentioned is the Marquis of Huai'an's legitimate granddaughter, and her status is indeed noble.

However, the Marquis's family inherited the merit of being the "first to ascend" when the country was founded and had the blood of a military general. But for four generations afterward, they had been living off their past achievements and were already in debt. Therefore, this branch in Lin'an became closely connected after the head of the family, Tang Xian, became a wealthy merchant.

In terms of relationship, the current Marquis of Huai'an is Tang Xian's uncle, so the relationship should be considered relatively close. However, Tang Xian was born out of wedlock, and his branch of the family had already separated after his father (the Marquis of Huai'an's half-brother) passed away, so his relationship with the Marquis's mansion is actually quite distant.

However, by the time of the eldest son of the Tang family, he was studying at the Lushan Academy in the capital and was often taken care of by the Marquis's family. Therefore, the New Year's gifts sent from Lin'an to the capital every year were extremely generous.

The second young lady of the Marquis's mansion and the second young lady of the Tang family in Lin'an were about the same age and often saw each other when they were young. According to Ruizhu, "From childhood to adulthood, the good things that the second young lady of the Marquis's mansion has taken from us, openly and secretly, could fill a warehouse."

That evening, the second young lady also received the news. After finishing her meal, she was digesting her food in the garden, with Meng Shu and the other two following behind to serve her. The second young lady then mentioned her cousin from the Marquis's mansion.

“Ling’er is a bit arrogant, but that’s because her father is the eldest son of the Marquis’s family and the next Marquis of Huai’an. His status is what it is. You must not neglect him under any circumstances, especially Ruizhu. Last time, Ling’er’s personal maid had a fight with you. Regardless of who was right or wrong, you were the one who was punished in the end.”

Ruizhu twisted her handkerchief, not daring to utter a sound.

"They're just some objects. If she likes them, let her take them. What good things doesn't our Tang family have? My brother's career still depends on the Marquis's mansion. Do you think your master is stupid? Otherwise, I wouldn't have indulged her."

Meng Shu and the other two hurriedly nodded in agreement, but when they returned to the embroidery building, the second young lady stopped in her tracks and hurriedly instructed Mengzhu, "The rest is fine, but quickly put away the jade exquisite chess set that Father found for me a few days ago. For now, we'll use the white jade one instead."

Her cousin was terrible at chess, and if she lost, she would often throw a tantrum and overturn the chessboard, which gave her a real headache.