Chapter 128: This Cold Noodles Are Truly Delicious

The old madam also reached over the bowl, "Give me some, I'll have a taste too."

Qiao Mai added a little for her; the old lady tasted it, nodded, "Everyone has their own taste, I think it's pretty good."

The children slurped while earnestly battling the cold noodles.

"Mother, this food smells so good, it's a bit spicy, but we can handle this kind of spiciness."

"As long as you like it, when there's nothing else I'll have the kitchen cook a meal for you; by summer I'll teach them sweet‑sour cold noodles, hot dry noodles, and things like glutinous rice balls."

Just mentioning that, everyone's saliva started to overflow again.

While they were talking, Shopkeeper Lu arrived, carrying a lot of cold noodles; Qiao Mai pointed at a bowl, and she understood what it meant.

"Eat up, this is the recipe I gave your daughter; as a mother, they've run a shop this long and probably never tasted it, right?"

Shopkeeper Lu was eating, then paused, "Is this the recipe you gave her?"

"Yes!"

Seeing her agree so readily, Mr. Wang said leisurely, "Servant Wang Jiaru's Wang Jiaru's Servant Girl, going there costs a lot of silver."

The old lady added, "She also brought the Feng Family; on the first day of the New Year she went to my place, and the second time she crossed the river with her mother."

If the Feng Family were competent, they wouldn't open their mouths to ask for the recipe, let alone urge their daughter to go to the Wang Family.

Hmm, then it's not valuable; rarity makes things precious, after all good stuff shouldn't be given away entirely.

"I've been to her shop; a day like this, those bowls could sell a thousand of them, twenty Wen each. Wouldn't that be profitable?"

Everyone sat inside drinking hot soup; Shopkeeper Lu felt uneasy, got up, said his goodbyes, and left.

"Old lady, what did Jiaru go off to do?"

For this grassland, she rode a winter jujube to Fucheng, where she bought a few young stallions and a few young mares, all just year‑old horses.

It carried Qiao Mai across the grassland for a whole hour before finally calming down.

"I don't know about that; the old madam doesn't live at your place, you could ask her."

They, like the winter jujube, saw such a fine environment and air, and inside they bounced around as if gone mad.

"Enough, I forgot you sell many recipes each year."

Fine, if not here then go back; she rode the winter jujube, bought nothing, and returned home early.

Guard Brother saw it was her and immediately bowed, saying.

"The cost of this isn't high, is it?"

Think about it: a Ferghana Horse can fetch several tens of thousands, even a hundred‑plus thousand taels of silver; what if the entire grassland were like that?

"Then why not make more money?"

Starting from the twentieth day of the first month, the Qiao Family was quiet; Yuan Jiaqi focused on studying. The children, besides morning lessons, practiced sparring with Qiao Mai at dawn, napped at noon, helped clean the house and tend the livestock in the afternoon, sometimes helped harvest vegetables in the fields, and only then went to the Playground to play with Ling'er for a while.

It really makes her furious; if it weren't already a done deal, she'd want to rush to the Feng Family and have a big argument with them.

After buying, she looked for a place with no one around and threw everything into the void.

Shopkeeper Lu looked at the cold noodles, ate a bite with resentment, "The Feng Family is insatiably greedy; we gave them such a profitable trade, they take the cheap deal and act obedient, yet still want the recipe, bah!"

Meals were also delivered straight to his Yuanzi, and no one disturbed him.

"Before the year ended, my Qiao Ji Snack Puzi earned seven thousand taels a month; after costs, it still made five thousand taels. Is that enough?"

"This snack is surprisingly tasty; no wonder you said it's so profitable."

Arriving at the Wangfu gate, she looked at the guards at the entrance.

"I'll leave my Xianggong's affairs to the old gentleman."

For this little test, the twenty‑three‑year‑old Yuan Jiaqi found it too easy; she didn't need to worry.

"Alright, eat first; this isn't a big deal. It's not that she's bad; it's your short‑sightedness for picking such a match. The child was fine, but they turned them into this."

As for why he was sent to Fenglin Shuyuan, Mr. Wang explained.

Everyone knows Yuan Jiaqi has to take the Imperial Examination for children; when returning home everyone is quiet, no one speaks loudly.

"Did you go to Fucheng to see her?" The old lady smiled and poured her a cup of tea.

"Money is both good and bad; too much draws attention, too little isn't enough. Yet money is never fully earned. I have land, a Zhai, a shop; it's enough for the family's expenses. No need to overwork myself. To put it simply, I enjoy a comfortable, peaceful life."

Qiao Mai patted its head, "You like it here, right? I'll bring you in to play often. By the way, I'll find you a mate; later you'll have a herd of foals. No, inbreeding's bad, so I'll bring in several stallions and mares, plus a few deer, turning the grassland into your realm. Then Deer Antler and Musk will be endless, and Ferghana Horses will be as many as needed."

All she has to do each day is her regular duties; at night she just keeps planting, planting, planting.

In Qiao Mai's view, the Imperial Examination for children is like primary‑to‑middle school promotion, the Imperial Examination for youths is middle‑to‑high school, the Imperial Examination for adults is high‑school‑to‑university, the Imperial Examination for graduates is university‑to‑graduate school, and the Academic Examination is graduate‑to‑post‑doctoral.

Qiao Mai pursed her lips, ignored them, and let them go.

When Mr. Wang returned, the next day he added extra lessons for Yuan Jiaqi; the children still had only a morning session, but he taught both morning and afternoon.

"Where did you go?"

"Guard Brother, please go in and tell Miss Wang, saying Qiao Niang has come to see her."

Yuan Jiaqi studied with him alone, hearing only his perspective. Fenglin Shuyuan is a place where talent gathers; each can express themselves, and there one can hear different people's views on current affairs and various matters, helping broaden his horizons.

"It's made with white flour paste; would you say that's high?"

Upon arriving home, she threw the winter jujube into the void and sent it to the old madam.

"Haha, I think it's fine!"

This trip to Fucheng, besides buying these small animals, was to see Miss Wang; for such a long time, the little servant girl hasn't shown up—either busy or has something going on.

Shopkeeper Lu took a deep breath, "Wang Jiaru's Wang Jiaru's Servant Girl, you did right; from now on I won't recognize her as a disciple. As a mother figure, I've fulfilled my benevolent duty to her. Let her do whatever she wants; we'll mind our own business."

This matter will probably be another blow to her.

"Let her do whatever she wants later; don't say you're angry—I was angry too. That day when she left, she said she wanted to look behind the shop, and it made me so furious I lost my temper."

This cold noodles are really delicious; besides Shopkeeper Lu, everyone else had two bowls, and the room was warm, otherwise the cold noodles would indeed be a bit chilly.

Even if you want to go, you should first inform Qiao Mai.

"Don't worry, I'm more concerned than you. A tiny child scholar can't even pass; it'd be strange if I didn't beat him up."

Lu Shopkeeper suddenly felt the cold skin was no longer fragrant, "Sorry, old lady, it's my fault for not teaching her well."

"Yes, I gave your young lady a formula like this; if prepared properly it can earn over a hundred thousand taels of silver in a year. If you don't work hard, you just think of getting the formula from me."

Ah, geez, she's so aggrieved.

"Got it! Everyone has their own aspirations; we won't force it."

Winter Jujube was placed by her into the space; upon seeing the endless grassland, it lifted its front leg in delight, let out a long cry toward the sky, spread its tail and began to frolic on the prairie.

Qiao Mai, hearing that, said without hesitation, "Here you go!"

"Lady Qiao, my young miss has gone on a long journey; she may not return for about a month."

"She also went when the fire broke out, but Shopkeeper Niu didn't let the two of them in."

"I have many ways to make money; selling formulas is just one of them."

She also bought several deer and a few forest musk deer; when she saw the big parrots at the pet shop, she bought a few as well. They are all herbivorous little animals that find their own food and are easy to keep.

Qiao Mai sat beside her, took a sip, and said, "I just returned home from Fucheng."

"She, you see, is busy with her own wedding arrangements."

"Oh? She's getting married; that's truly delightful and worth celebrating."

The old lady rolled her eyes, "Isn't it because she herself provoked it? Otherwise she could still marry here, stay with the family, stay with you and enjoy more blessings?"

(End of chapter)