In the prince's manor!
Zhao Jiaqi looked up at the sky. It wasn't even past the first lunar month, and the weather was warming up too quickly!
The sun hung steadily in the sky, with not a single dark cloud on the horizon. Lately, she had been acting strangely, constantly gazing at the sky for no reason!
"Enough, stop looking. The more you look, the less likely it is to rain. We've done all the preparations we could. The rest is up to fate!" Fan Zehao sat beside her, trying to comfort her.
Worrying wouldn't help. If worry could prevent all this from happening, they would all join in. But that wasn't the case.
If she could make it rain by looking, she'd be a goddess!
As spring arrived, wild vegetables grew furiously in the mountains. The wild vegetable processing plant they had established was also frantically collecting various wild vegetables for further processing.
This entire process was proceeding in an orderly fashion!
Fang Mingjiang watched the salt being used up rapidly, his heart aching with every grain. Salt was much more expensive than wild vegetables. How many silver taels would these wild dishes have to sell for to break even?
On the last day of the first lunar month, the weather was favorable, and it finally rained. Although it didn't thoroughly soak the land, it brought hope to many people!
Zhao Jiaqi was delighted and decided that day to have dumplings with wild vegetable filling, to let everyone know that wild vegetables could also be made into delicious dishes!
For wild vegetables like "huang gua xiang" (cucumber fragrance), they had to be seasoned with lard to make them flavorful. That evening, Zhao Jiaqi specifically invited Fang Mingjiang and Song Fei over. These two were now the managers of the workshop. If they didn't taste it, they wouldn't be able to introduce it to the customers who came to buy wild vegetables.
In the evening, there were no other dishes on the table, only freshly prepared wild vegetables.
Stir-fried wild vegetables, cold-dressed wild vegetables, and wild vegetable dumplings – everything was green!
"Please don't be polite. Give me your feedback after you've eaten!"
The princess consort was indeed the princess consort, always doing unexpected things. Although Fang Mingjiang had never eaten wild vegetables before, he knew they were usually eaten by those in dire poverty. How good could they be?
To save face for the princess consort, he took a bite. It was fresh and delicious. The wild vegetable taste wasn't bitter, and it even had a hint of cucumber's freshness!
Fang Mingjiang's eyes widened in disbelief. How could this dish be called "wild"? It was clearly fragrant!
"Delicious, absolutely delicious! Princess consort, this shouldn't be called wild vegetables. Let's change its name to 'xiang cai' (fragrant vegetable) from now on. It's too fragrant!"
Zhao Jiaqi smiled faintly. If "huang gua xiang" was called "xiang cai," what would "xiang cai" itself be called?
"Our workshop is now collecting a large quantity of wild vegetables. After processing, they can be sold in twenty days!"
However, before selling them, she would first have them made into specialty dishes at restaurants and sold for a period. After being popularized, these processed dishes would then become known to the public!
Song Fei looked at the lush green vegetables and asked, "Princess consort, why do we process these wild vegetables? What is the purpose of processing? Aren't wild vegetables the freshest when picked from the mountain?"
"Processing is to preserve the wild vegetables for a longer time. After processing, the inherent astringency and bitterness are removed, making them more palatable!"
Song Fei understood. In other words, the wild vegetables available in spring could be eaten in autumn after such processing!
He now admired the princess consort's intelligence even more. She could think of such a method!
Speaking of restaurants, it reminded Zhao Jiaqi of Murong Sheng.
Years ago, his daughter had tried to climb the social ladder by taking a shortcut. Since then, Brother Sheng had felt too ashamed to appear before them and had rarely interacted. Occasionally, he would send a few letters.
After washing up that evening, Zhao Jiaqi specifically spoke to him about Murong Sheng.
"Brother Sheng must be aware of the situation in the inner city. I'm not sure what his choice will be. Tomorrow, you should invite a few brothers to ask them. If they want to return to their hometown, send people to escort them back. I will take over the restaurants here and ensure they don't suffer any losses!"
She paused, "If they wish to settle here, we can also send people to bring their relatives and friends here!"
Fan Zehao shook his head. If things were as simple as his wife said, that would be great.
The next day, it was barely dawn.
As the couple got up, a wet nurse from Zhang Cuihua's side instructed them to have breakfast at Songzhu Courtyard.
The couple exchanged surprised glances. Their mother rarely invited them to eat together, especially in the morning!
"Husband, Mother asked us to go over. Is there something she wants to say?" Zhao Jiaqi's mind was filled with questions.
He also didn't know why his mother had called them over so early in the morning, but it was definitely not just for a meal.
"Alright, stop overthinking. You'll know when we get there!" Even as he said this, he had no certainty in his heart.
It was better to go and find out than to guess aimlessly.
In the side hall of Songzhu Courtyard.
The old lady usually had breakfast here. When they arrived, they found their eldest brother and sister-in-law were also there.
Except for the children, the entire family was present. Zhao Jiaqi and Fan Zehao sat down, and the servants began to serve the meal.
Zhang Cuihua's face was grim, and she looked at the sumptuous breakfast on the table with no appetite, merely staring at it.
Zhao Jiaqi glanced at her father, eldest brother, and sister-in-law. Seeing that they all looked like they wished they were dead, she became even more confused.
Being forthright by nature, she took the initiative to ask, "Mother, you don't look well. Has something happened?"
"Yes, there are some rather troublesome matters. I've called you and Hao'er here to discuss them together."
Zhao Jiaqi: "Mother, please tell me!"
Zhang Cuihua saw her reply so readily, without any hesitation. She took a deep breath and slowly said, "It's hard to leave our homeland. Now we have to leave. Hao'er, I'll ask you, what should we do about your father's grave?"
A grave?
At that moment, Zhao Jiaqi was shocked. She finally realized that she had forgotten such an important matter!
However, Fan Zehao had not forgotten. He said, "A few days ago, I found a geomancer who found a good spot. It's currently being renovated. Once it's done, I will go back and move Father's grave there."
After he finished speaking, a faint look of satisfaction appeared on Zhang Cuihua's face.
Zhao Jiaqi glanced sideways at her husband. She hadn't known about such a big matter.
Seeing his wife's reproachful gaze, Fan Zehao squeezed her hand, intending to explain to her later.
It wasn't that his wife was unfilial, but rather that she wasn't from their region and wouldn't remember things about ancestral graves. He could understand that.
Fan Zehao looked at his sister-in-law's distressed expression and proactively approached her: "Sister-in-law, my wife and I will be returning to our hometown in a few days. Why don't you and Eldest Brother come along? Go back and ask your parents' wishes. If they are willing to move their entire family here, I would welcome them with open arms. If not, we won't stop them. Whatever you and Eldest Brother choose, I have no objections and will support you as always."
Wang Zhaodi began to cry. At first, she suppressed it, but then she couldn't control herself and burst into tears, eventually sobbing heartbrokenly.
Such a difficult choice was truly agonizing!
Her crying made Zhao Jiaqi feel uncomfortable as well.