Chapter 558: I Respect You
Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
Su Ling explained with a smile, “You didn’t hear wrongly. It’s indeed that spring. As for me, I’m the descendant of the family who was saved by the spring water!”
Li Xiaoran had a guess, so she asked, “Could it be that this Spring Water
Chicken is also a delicacy pa.s.sed down from your family?”
Su Ling briefly explained the origins of the Spring Water Chicken, “That’s right. The Spring Water Chicken has also been pa.s.sed down from our family. Back then, our ancestors were chefs who liked to eat and study cooking. After our ancestors received the spring water, they settled here and raised some chickens, ducks, and fish. After several generations of cultivation, we realized that the meat of chickens raised with spring water was very good, so we developed our own recipe for Spring Water Chicken.”
When Li Xiaoran heard this, she marveled at her luck.
They encountered the descendants of the Spring Water Chicken’s founder so easily.
Su Ling said, “Rest in this pavilion for a while! There are mosquito repellent gra.s.s planted outside, so the mosquitoes won’t bite you! I’ve already made a pot of good tea. Try it while I go make Spring Water Chicken for you now!”
Li Xiaoran said with a smile, “Thank you. There are a total of six of us. Sister Su, please prepare more delicious food for us!”
Su Ling nodded and went into the house to prepare.
Su Ling’s place was also used to receive guests in the capital, so she wasn’t troubled by Li Xiaoran’s request.
After Su Mao brought Shu Ruyue and the others over, he rolled up his sleeves and went into the kitchen to help.
Shu Ruyue said after coming in, “How did you find such a good place? The mountains and rivers here look so beautiful, and even this courtyard looks very unique. Just sitting in it makes people feel relaxed and happy!”
“As expected, great minds think alike!” Li Xiaoran looked at Shu Ruyue with approval.
wu Qingne couldn’t nelP Dut say wnen ne saw tne two women noldlng nanas happily, “Come on! Brother Luo Cheng and I are still here. Do you two have to be so mushy?”
“It’s none of your business!” Shu Ruyue made a face at Wu Qinghe before she went to the stream at the side with Li Xiaoran to play.
At this moment, the sun was setting in the west, so the courtyard looked very beautiful. Amidst the hot weather, Li Xiaoran also wanted to step on the stream to cool down.
While Li Xiaoran and Shu Ruyue were enjoying the cool breeze, Luo Cheng called Wu Qinghe to sit down and the two of them poured tea to drink.
After drinking a mouthful of tea, Wu Qinghe’s face was filled with surprise.
“These tea leaves are very ordinary! But why does this tea taste so good?”
Luo Cheng said, “Because the water is different!”
Wu Qinghe understood what Luo Cheng meant and didn’t ask anything else. He just focused on tasting the tea.
Luo Cheng thought of something and put down his teacup as he asked, “When we were in the capital, I remember asking you to divine the situation at home.
Why didn’t you tell us the outcome?”
Wu Qinghe fell silent when he heard Luo Cheng’s words.
“They thought that I wouldn’t be able to divine it. It’s hard to predict the outcome, and the outcome isn’t definite. It’s constantly changing!”
Luo Cheng already knew the answer.
“You haven’t told anyone about this, have you?”
Wu Qinghe shook his head and promised, “Brother Luo Cheng, you’re the first to know about this!”
Luo Cheng instructed, “Don’t tell anyone in the future. I’ll tell my wife!” Wu Qinghe nodded and changed the topic.
At the same time, Su Ling and Su Mao were cooking while chatting in the kitchen.
“Mother, I keep feeling that these people who came today aren’t as simple as they seem!” Su Mao thought of something and said, “Did I cause you trouble?” Su Ling smiled when she heard Su Mao’s words.
“What nonsense are you talking about? There’s no trouble. Don’t worry too much anout it. They’re just a few customers who came to eat Spring Water Chicken!”
Su Mao pursed his lips and complained, “Mother, don’t lie to me! Every time something happens at home, you refuse to tell me!”
Su Ling said, “I just want you to focus on your studies. Mao’er, you can’t rely on your intelligence to slack off. You have to know that there are many people in this world who are more capable than you. If those who are more capable than you work harder than you, don’t you think you should feel ashamed?”
Su Mao said, “Mother, don’t change the topic! Let me tell you, I’ve grown up now. I’m not someone you can fool so easily! You just act tough all the time just to protect yourself!”
Su Ling didn’t expect her son to have matured at some point in time.
“Are you slacking off on purpose? Are you thinking of quitting school and coming back to work for me?”
Su Mao didn’t say anything. He just added firewood to the stove with his head lowered.
“Mother!” The fire burned brightly, giving Su Mao’s face a warm glow. “I’ve thought about it for a long time. I like to study, but I don’t want to be an official! Mother, don’t force me to partic.i.p.ate in the examination! That man is heartless. No matter how outstanding I am, he won’t look at us again!”
The kitchen was silent.
After a while, Su Ling’s voice sounded.
“Mao’er, the reason I want you to partic.i.p.ate in the imperial examination isn’t to make your father feel regret, but to let you display your strength when you go to work for the commoners.”
“In the beginning, I did hate your father very much. I hated him for being so heartless as to abandon us for wealth and glory. But later on, when I calmed down and thought about it carefully, I realized that wasn’t I stupid too? From the moment your father appeared to the moment I became pregnant and had you, I believed him so foolishly that I didn’t even realize that the marriage contract was fake!”
When Su Mao heard his mother’s words, he wanted to comfort her, but he said something else in the end.
“I’m very glad that you and that man don’t have a marriage contract. This way, I won’t be that man’s son! He can forget about letting me call him Father! My surname is Su now and will be Su in the future! I’m your son, not someone else’s!”
Su Ling laughed when she heard her son’s words.
“Since you’ve said so, study hard in the school from tomorrow onwards. I won’t force you anymore. If you really don’t want to take the examination, you don’t have to partic.i.p.ate in it!”
When Su Mao heard that his mother had relented, he immediately cheered.
“Thank you, Mother! Mother, don’t worryu I’ll definitely study hard. I’ll go take the village examination, but I won’t take the general examination.. But when the time comes, with the t.i.tle of a scholar, I can help you collect some money!”