Cute Wife Gourmet

Chapter 83 An Unlucky Guy

Two quarters of an hour later, Helian Jing sent Ye Jiayao and Xia You out of the house.

When they parted, Ye Jiayao bowed and said to Xia Youshi, "Thank you, Madam, for your kind words for me just now."

Xia Youshi just said to Helian Jing: "Xiao Jing, come over to play when you are free. Chunfeng went back home yesterday."

Ye Jiayao pulled the corner of her mouth awkwardly. De'er, she was ignored, and she was just being sentimental for once.

Helian Jing was pleasantly surprised: "Really? Didn't you say you would return with the Marquis at the end of the year?"

"Over there, the sky is filled with yellow sand. He won't be used to it. Only your uncle would be happy to stay in such a place." Xia Youshi spoke in a sarcastic tone, but there was a hint of resentment in her smile.

"Okay, I'll go find him tomorrow." Helian Jing smiled and sent Xia Youshi to the carriage.

Ye Jiayao said: "Then I'll leave too. I'll come back to you if I have any questions!"

Helian Jing smiled and said, "I will come to Tianshangju for dinner tomorrow. Please save a table for me and some iced drinks. Please invite Xia Chunfeng, Chunyu's younger brother. He is one year older than me. We used to play together when we were young."

Oh, Ye Jiayao nodded. Xia Chunfeng, I wonder if he looks like his brother.

"Also, I want to invite someone else." Helian Jing said mysteriously.

Ye Jiayao didn't care who he invited, as long as she was busy.

"Okay, no matter who you want to invite or how many people you want, I'll keep them for you at Fuqiu Pavilion." Ye Jiayao waved and left.

Helian Jing watched her go away, silently...The person I want to invite is you.

Song Qi was waiting for Ye Jiayao at the corner of the street: "Brother Yao, is it done?"

Ye Jiayao smiled in a secretive manner: "Thanks to your wife for her help."

Now she somewhat understood why Xia Youshi helped her. Most likely, she was competing with Princess Yi De, which was a good thing for her as an outsider.

Song Qi said: "I just saw my wife coming out from inside, and I was a little worried."

Ye Jiayao sneered: "What are you worried about? Are you worried that I'll be eaten by your wife?"

Song Qi said awkwardly: "It feels a bit abrupt that you two have met each other now."

Ye Jiayao lowered her eyebrows and smiled. It was indeed abrupt and she herself was surprised.

"Come on, accompany me to the place where bronze artifacts are sold." Ye Jiayao said.

"A place that sells copperware? Brother Yao, you want to buy copperware? What are you going to use it for? A cast copper pot? A copper kettle?" Song Qi wondered, aren't cooking utensils generally made of iron?

"Ice jar." Ye Jiayao said simply and succinctly, but the ice jar she wanted was not the existing bulky, heavy and complicated ice jar. She wanted a simple ice jar to be used to store ice cream mooncakes. She wanted it sold together with the ice jar, so that they could be stored for about three to five days. Otherwise, the ice cream would melt and the ice cream mooncakes would be worthless.

The place where bronze is cast and the blacksmith shop are both on the same street. The name of the place is easy to remember, it is called Blacksmith Alley. People here make a living by blacksmithing or other industries derived from iron. Before you even enter the alley, you can hear the sound of blacksmithing, clanging and clanging, it is very lively.

Ye Jiayao walked from one end of the alley to the other and found that there was only one shop for casting copperware. She had no choice but to choose. At least there was only this one. She hoped that the master here could make what she wanted.

Ye Jiayao took out the blueprint and discussed with the master for a long time. In short, this simple ice jar is divided into two layers, with ice cubes in the middle and food on the inner layer. It is required to be light and beautiful.

The master thought for a long time before saying, "I'll try it first and come back to see the product in three days. However, if I can't make it, you won't be able to find another one in Jinling City."

"Okay, thank you for your help, Master." Ye Jiayao paid the deposit.

It was almost dusk when the two men came out of the blacksmith alley.

Song Qi suggested: "Brother Yao, you are not going back to Tianshangju. How about we go to Xiangyilou for dinner tonight?"

Ye Jiayao thought for a moment and said, "Okay, I'm also planning to try Chef Niu's dishes."

The birthday banquet is important, but the cooking competition cannot be neglected. I heard that the rules of the competition will be released in mid-July.

Song Qi thought that it would take some effort to complete the task assigned by the prince, but Miss Ye agreed after just one mention.

Arriving at Xiangyilou, Ye Jiayao observed the surroundings and knew why Xiangyilou was so profitable. There were many chambers of commerce, escort agencies and silver shops nearby, so there was no need to worry about the source of customers, and the people who came and went were all wealthy. They could hold a meeting together and discuss business, and then have a meal to celebrate after the deal was done. It was very convenient.

Song Qi directly asked for the best private room. Ye Jiayao originally thought it was a bit of a waste as there was no point in asking for a private room for just the two of them. But then she thought that if they sat in the lobby they wouldn't be able to eat the dishes made by Chef Niu, which would be a waste of time. So, it didn't matter if it was a little more expensive. When she made a lot of money, she would treat Song Qi to more meals.

After ordering the food, Ye Jiayao went to the toilet.

Although this ancient toilet is simple, it has one advantage: there is only one toilet, and it is not divided by gender. Ye Jiayao does not have to worry about choosing between the men's and women's toilets, and it does not leak privacy, so she can use it with confidence. Just be careful not to step into the pit.

The sign on the toilet door showed that it was occupied. Ye Jiayao waited for a long time and became a little anxious, so she asked, "Is there anyone inside?"

No sound. Ye Jiayao asked again: "Is there anyone here? If not, I can go in."

The person inside then said hurriedly, "Someone is there."

Ye Jiayao cursed inwardly, "Why don't you say anything when someone comes? How long have you been squatting here? The baby is about to be born, are you suffering from hemorrhoids and constipation?"
Ye Jiayao kept her curse words to herself and continued to wait politely. After a while, the man inside asked weakly, "Hey, buddy outside, can you lend me a piece of paper?"

Ye Jiayao stared at the word "Busy" on the door with a bloodshot face. Damn, you didn't bring toilet paper and got trapped inside. I really admire you. Why didn't you tell me earlier that you didn't have toilet paper? This is not a shameful thing. I almost got sick from holding it in.

Ye Jiayao took out a piece of paper and was about to put it in when the man said, "Maybe I can pay for it. How about ten copper coins for a piece of paper?"

Ye Jiayao thought this guy was really generous. He could buy a whole stack of them with two copper coins, so she joked, "I don't even have enough for myself, unless you pay me five taels of silver."

Unexpectedly, the man agreed: "Okay, five taels is five taels."

With a bang, a silver ingot was thrown out from inside.

Ye Jiayao laughed wildly in her heart. It was such a blessing that she could earn five taels of silver just by going to the toilet. The guy inside must be a rich prodigal.

Ye Jiayao never feels burdened when making money from rich people.

"Okay, then I'll give them up with reluctance. I have two pieces of toilet paper in total, and they're all yours." Ye Jiayao stuffed two pieces of paper in from below, then took the silver and slipped back to the lobby.

The guy inside definitely doesn't want to be seen trapped in the toilet, and she doesn't want to be found out that she is the one who is extorting money, so neither of them feels embarrassed.

Not long after, a man in light blue silk clothes came from the toilet with his head lowered and went straight upstairs.

Ye Jiayao then wandered off to the toilet.

When she returned to the private room, she unexpectedly found that Song Qi had turned into Xia Chunyu.

"Why are you here? Where's Song Qi?"

"What took you so long? I thought you fell in."

They both said in unison, then looked at each other, waiting for the other's answer.

Ye Jiayao complained in her heart: You are the one who fell into the toilet, your whole family has fallen into the toilet, so that little Jingjing won’t be alone.

Xia Chunyu was the first to break the silence: "Didn't you say yesterday that I would come?"

Although there have been a lot of things going on recently and there have been a lot of troubles, Ye Jiayao was confident that she still had some memory. He definitely did not say that he wanted to have dinner with her yesterday. However, she was too lazy to argue with him, and there would be no benefit even if she won the argument.

Xia Chunyu told the waiter to serve the dishes and he was no longer needed to serve here.

"I heard that you accepted the old princess' birthday banquet?"

"Yes!" Ye Jiayao poured herself some tea and said lightly.

Xia Chunyu handed over the teacup and motioned Ye Jiayao to pour him one as well.

Ye Jiayao reluctantly gave him another drink.

"I also heard that you met my mother today?"

"Yes!" Ye Jiayao replied with two words and then stopped talking.

Seeing her indifferent and aloof look, Xia Chunyu felt a little uneasy. Could it be that he kissed her last night and she was unhappy? However, what made him most nervous now was that his mother had already met Yaoyao, which completely disrupted his plan.

"Did my mother give you any trouble?" Xia Chunyu asked calmly, his deep black eyes fixed on her face, not missing any subtle changes in her expression.

Ye Jiayao raised her eyelids, glanced at him indifferently, and said with a self-deprecating smile: "In your mother's eyes, I am just a little chef. I am not cooking your family's banquet. I have nothing to do with her. Why should she embarrass me?"

Xia Chunyu thought about it and realized that what she said was true. His mother was always the kind of person who would not give up an inch of her life when things did not concern her, but would not give up an inch of her life when things concerned her. Yaoyao accepted the birthday banquet of the Helian family, which really had nothing to do with her.

Thinking of this, his slightly frowned brows gradually relaxed, and the corners of his mouth raised a curve, saying: "Today we are going to eat at Xiangyilou, where do you want to eat tomorrow? Qilin Pavilion or Vegetarian Restaurant?"

Ye Jiayao looked at him suspiciously: "Why are you inviting me to dinner?"

Xia Chunyu said casually: "The food at home is not delicious. Helian Xuan has been busy recently and no one has dinner with me, so I came to you."

Ye Jiayao sneered: "Will you not be able to find someone to eat with you? If you stand on the street and shout casually, there will be plenty of people to accompany you."

Xia Chunyu frowned and said, "Eating is not just about the food being delicious, the mood is also important, you know? Who you eat with determines your mood. I think it's not bad to eat with you. First, your taste in food is similar to mine, so we have something in common. Second, looking at you, although you're not as pretty as a feast to the eyes, you're definitely not off-putting, and it helps to focus on the meal..."

Ye Jiayao glared at him fiercely. "Stupid ass, what can help you concentrate on eating? Are you mocking me for having a face that is easy to ignore? I was going to say that I lose my appetite just by looking at you!"

(End of this chapter)