My Fantastic Chef Wife

358. She Is Resting Here?

Translator: ChowvanLee

Ye Xiaoxian and other people in the manor knelt to greet Empress Dowager. Empress Dowager came out elegantly from the sedan and was surrounded by a group of servants to the main hall of Ye Xiaoxian’s house.

A bunch of etiquettes followed. Ye Xiaoxian served tea to Empress Dowager. Empress Dowager took a sip of hot tea before starting to observe the house.

“Are you used to the life here?” Empress Dowager asked.

Ye Xiaoxian said, “Thanks for your concern, Empress Dowager. Everything here is good.”

Empress Dowager smiled. “Right, this is your home after all. It’s better than in my place.”

Ye Xiaoxian thought, ‘You’re just saying polite greetings. There is no standard to decide whether this place is good or your place is good.’ Therefore, she kept her mouth shut.

Besides, Empress Dowager came here to restore her public image, so it didn’t matter if Ye Xiaoxian was quiet.

Empress Dowager then asked Ye Xiaoxian, “What are the trees in your yard?”

Ye Xiaoxian said, “Wintersweet. I just planted them. I won’t be able to see them bloom this year.”

Empress Dowager said, “In fact, you can see the bloom this year.”

Ye Xiaoxian was confused. “I just planted them. Isn’t it that fast?”

Empress Dowager took another sip of tea, then put the cup on the table beside her. “I’ll send a florist later to move the blooming trees in your yard. Then you can see the flowers.”

Ye Xiaoxian took a deep breath and thought, ‘Empress Dowager got a big wallet.’

‘But Empress Dowager might just saying that out of politeness. She would not take it seriously. She will probably forget this when she left the house.’

It suddenly became dull. Empress Dowager was silent, and so was Ye Xiaoxian.

Ye Xiaoxian thought Empress Dowager was here for a publicity stunt. She was not good at acting, so she didn’t take the initiative to speak and she looked outside.

Empress Dowager asked, “It has been cold recently. Do you get enough coal here? Do you have sufficient winter clothes and quilts?”

“Thanks for your concern, Empress Dowager. I’ve gotten enough of them.” Ye Xiaoxian said.

After she finished, she asked Empress Dowager, “How are you recently, Empress Dowager?”

Empress Dowager just took a sip of tea. When she heard Ye Xiaoxian’s words, she suddenly coughed and was about to spit out the tea. Then she started coughing violently.

Ye Xiaoxian felt surprised. She didn’t know why Empress Dowager, who had always been elegant, started coughing all of sudden. She didn’t look elegant at the moment.

Empress Dowager’s maid immediately patted Empress Dowager on the back.

After a while, Empress Dowager’s face turned red because of the cough. When she finally stopped, she turned to Ye Xiaoxian and asked, “You just asked how I am… You’re worrying about me?”

Ye Xiaoxian asked, “Aren’t you who asked me first, Empress Dowager?”

She just asked it back. It was a give-and-take in social life.

Empress Dowager smiled, looking bitter.

‘That’s right. I asked her first. How would my daughter care about me since I treated her badly before?’

‘She might even wish me to die.’

Empress Dowager sat for a while longer and asked some other questions, such as whether Xiao Baoshan had gone to the Ministry of War or where Ye Xiaoxian usually hung out. Ye Xiaoxian told her that she didn’t go out and just stayed at home.

Empress Dowager even advised her to go out for a walk. She told Ye Xiaoxian although State Preceptor’s people were watching them, nothing would happen as long as they didn’t leave the capital city.

Ye Xiaoxian was confused again.

‘Is Empress Dowager trying to be kind? Or is she deliberately setting me up?’

However, before Ye Xiaoxian could think more, she heard Empress Dowager yawn and say, “I’m tired. I want to take a nap here. Where is the guest room?”

‘She is resting here?’

Ye Xiaoxian had always thought that Empress Dowager was just here for a while and she would leave in two hours at most. She never thought that Empress Dowager would rest here.

The guest room was tidied up but she didn’t know if Empress Dowager was used to it.

Ye Xiaoxian thought, ‘Who cares? She asks to sleep here and that’s what Xiao Manor is. If she feels uncomfortable, she will naturally leave.’

So, Ye Xiaoxian brought Empress Dowager to the guest room. After Empress Dowager entered the room, she told Ye Xiaoxian, “Wake me up in the evening, and I shall leave after dinner.”

Ye Xiaoxian was stunned. ‘You even want to have dinner?’

…

In the evening, Xiao Baoshan was back too.

The food was ready. This time, Ye Xiaoxian cooked the dinner with her own hands. Because Empress Dowager was here, she prepared six dishes and one soup.

Xiao Baoshan was confused, too. He asked Ye Xiaoxian as he took off his official uniform, “Empress Dowager hasn’t left yet?”

Ye Xiaoxian said, “Not yet. She is resting in the guest room and will stay for dinner. I don’t know what she is up to.”

“Didn’t she mention anything during the day?”

“No, she went to bed in a moment.”

“…”

As they spoke, Empress Dowager’s voice suddenly came from the door, “Assistant Minister Xiao is back?”

They didn’t know when Empress Dowager had gotten up. She just took a nap in the afternoon, but now she changed clothes and even brushed her hair over again.

Xiao Baoshan and Ye Xiaoxian bowed respectfully to Empress Dowager. Empress Dowager asked them to relax and then sat down at the table.

It looked as if Empress Dowager hadn’t eaten for a long time. After she sat down, she started eating as if no one was around.

Xiao Baoshan and Ye Xiaoxian had to eat with her.

Empress Dowager asked Xiao Baoshan about the situation in the Ministry of War, specifically what he was doing, and if he was happy.

After dinner, Empress Dowager left with a group of servants.

…

After Empress Dowager left, Ye Xiaoxian and Xiao Baoshan were drinking milk tea in their room.

Ye Xiaoxian specially boiled some to drink this night. In Tianshan tribe, they had developed the habit of drinking milk tea.

Xiao Baoshan asked Ye Xiaoxian what Empress Dowager had done and what they specifically talked about. Ye Xiaoxian said, “Actually, we didn’t have much conversation. She said she was tired and went to bed. After that, we had dinner together.”

Xiao Baoshan looked at Ye Xiaoxian, “I don’t have much contact with Empress Dowager. She doesn’t seem… to be very bad to you.”

Ye Xiaoxian said, “This only happened after I became a princess. You don’t know that she used to be… Let’s not talk about it. Empress Dowager is as ruthless as State Preceptor. When they need you, they’re very nice to you. When you’re useless to them, they will cut off your fingers at any time. I won’t be deceived by her current performance.”

Xiao Baoshan stared at Ye Xiaoxian’s face for two seconds, then he said calmly, “Well, it’s better to be cautious in the capital city.”

…

After Empress Dowager came to Ye Xiaoxian’s house once, more people came to visit her.

They were all officials’ wives Ye Xiaoxian had met during the hunt, such as Madam Wang, Madam Li, Madam Huang etc.

Although these wives usually had to manage a big family, it was important for them to interact with others.

The news that Empress Dowager had gone to Ye Xiaoxian’s house spread throughout the city and Ye Xiaoxian became more popular in the city. Even though they didn’t know what Empress Dowager meant, at least now, they had to fawn on Ye Xiaoxian.

No matter who came to her house, Ye Xiaoxian welcomed her generously. She served them her handmade dessert as well as a pot of milk tea. They kept refilling their cups while chatting.

In this way, Ye Xiaoxian knew a lot of gossips of various families, such as this young master was snobbery, and that lady was picky about choosing husband; this family had a new concubine, and that family’s mistress was fighting with concubines.

Of course, there was some good news, such as an official was a dutiful son. He made chicken soup for his mother on a snowy day because his mother only drank the soup made by his son.

Not only did Ye Xiaoxian kill the time, but she also knew lots of stories even more brilliant than ones in scripts.

Ye Xiaoxian originally thought that the visit of these wives was a mere formality.

She didn’t expect that some of them liked to visit her twice every three days. And once they arrived, they would ask for dessert and milk tea.

It was only then that Ye Xiaoxian found out that they had fallen for her dessert and milk tea.

She made this milk tea with chewy bubbles. It was the same as modern bubble tea. Every woman would like it.

…

Ye Xiaoxian got constant visitors. Soon after, Mrs. State Preceptor came too.

After Mrs. State Preceptor arrived, she looked tense and didn’t take a good poke at Ye Xiaoxian.

Ye Xiaoxian thought, ‘This is my place, so Mrs. State Preceptor couldn’t do anything to me.’ Therefore, she treated Mrs. State Preceptor like she was treating others.

She boiled milk tea, took some dessert out, and then said to Mrs. State Preceptor, “Mrs. State Preceptor, I made the tea and dessert. Please have a taste.”

Mrs. State Preceptor had long known that Ye Xiaoxian was good at making food. She took a sip of milk tea and her face suddenly look softened.

She took a bite of the dessert and it even soothed her brow.

However, Mrs. State Preceptor still had a bad impression of Ye Xiaoxian. She put down the milk tea and dessert, then said to Ye Xiaoxian in a strange voice, “You are progressing quite quickly. When I first saw you, you were just a prisoner in my house. Now you have become a princess and lives in such a big house.”

Ye Xiaoxian sneered, “Mrs. State Preceptor, aren’t you too awful to talk about me as a prisoner? No matter what, I am also the wife of a general. My husband had fought hard on the battlefield, so what if he is distributed a big house? As for the title of princess, it was bestowed by Empress Dowager. If Mrs. State Preceptor feels unsatisfied, you could go to Empress Dowager’s Palace to stay with her for some time. She might let you be a princess, too.”

“You…” Ye Xiaoxian was clever and eloquent. Mrs. State Preceptor did not know how to refute.

Therefore, Mrs. State Preceptor stared at Ye Xiaoxian’s face for a while, then said, “Well, you’re becoming more and more like her now. Do you really have something to do Empress Dowager?”

“How could I? Could I be her daughter or some distant niece?” Ye Xiaoxian replied,” If that’s the case, would I need to live in your residence at that time?”

Mrs. State Preceptor got two purposes this time. Firstly, she wanted to probe Ye Xiaoxian. Secondly, she wanted to sound out the relationship between Empress Dowager and Ye Xiaoxian, but she failed both.

Thankfully, the milk tea and dessert were delicious.

Mrs. State Preceptor thought that she could not come here in vain, so she ate and drink as much as she could. Otherwise, she wouldn’t be able to drink such tasty milk tea anywhere else.