CHAPTER 55: CHAPTER 55: SWORN SISTERS

Mr. Wang coughed awkwardly twice. Mrs. Qian glanced over, "What? Do you have any opinions?"

Mr. Wang shook his head like a rattle drum, "No opinions, no opinions, I just had an itchy throat earlier. Madam, don’t just drink, come, eat some food, eat some food. Dahe’s mother, you too, eat, eat. Forgive us for not being hospitable enough."

It was his oversight; why didn’t he stop Hong Xing from bringing out the wine?

Now it’s out; he didn’t know where to hide his face.

Mr. Wang looked at Zhao Dahe for help, luckily the student knew his mistress’s nature, and would ask Dahe to explain properly to his mother later.

Even though his wife said that, he was a gentleman with no improper thoughts.

Meng Yao also found it hard to decide whether to laugh or cry; Mrs. Qian was the kind who wouldn’t stop until she achieved her goal.

"I’ll rely on you to look after me in the future, sister." Meng Yao said.

"Alright, alright, after drinking this cup, we are sisters, we’ll share fortune and misfortune together in the future." Mrs. Qian said boldly.

Meng Yao thought, Mrs. Qian must have read many novels, inside her lived a heroine who wanted to roam the martial world.

"Hong Xing, hurry and make a sobering soup for madam, and prepare some refreshing side dishes." Mr. Wang instructed.

"Who needs sobering soup? Who said I’m drunk? I’m not drunk, sister, come on, let’s have another drink." Mrs. Qian said, reaching for the wine jug to pour more.

Meng Yao, with quick eyes and hands, picked up the wine jug first, mimicked pouring it, and said, "Sister, there’s no more wine."

"Hong Xing, Hong Xing, bring the wine." Mrs. Qian called out.

"Sister, Hong Xing went to the kitchen, I’ll go find her to get the wine." Meng Yao quickly offered.

"Alright, alright." Mrs. Qian agreed repeatedly.

Meng Yao took the wine jug to the kitchen and filled it with warm water.

After bringing it back, she poured a cup for Mrs. Qian. Mrs. Qian drank it all and said, "Good wine, good wine."

Hong Xing brought back the sobering soup, and Meng Yao coaxed her into drinking a cup of warm water along with a spoon of soup. By the time the jug of warm water was empty, Mrs. Qian was sober too.

"Why am I so full, sister Meng, you eat first, I’ll be right back." Mrs. Qian said as she felt a sudden urge to use the restroom, leaving hurriedly.

"Dahe’s mother, thank goodness for you. If she drank any more, who knows what chaos would ensue!" Mr. Wang said gratefully.

"Just causing a fuss at home isn’t a big deal." Meng Yao replied.

"Luckily she knows her limits and never drinks outside." Mr. Wang said with relief.

When Mrs. Qian returned, her face was a bit flushed. Her drinking missteps had already been reported to her by Hong Xing. The sworn sisterhood wasn’t an issue, she did take quite a liking to Dahe’s mother. But saying that ’my man is your man’, that was not quite appropriate.

Dahe’s mother has been widowed for years.

Her this...

Ah!

"Sister, I was drunk earlier. If I said anything inappropriate, please forgive me." Mrs. Qian said embarrassed.

"Sister is so straightforward, I quite like that." Meng Yao said sincerely.

"Really?" Mrs. Qian was pleasantly surprised.

"Of course, really." Meng Yao assured.

"I knew it, I felt like I got along so well with sister the moment we met. I really like your personality, sister." Mrs. Qian said happily, "Alright, it’s agreed then, we’ll call each other sisters from now on!"

"Nothing would make me happier." Meng Yao replied.

"Good, good, to celebrate our bond as sworn sisters, sister, I think we should have a drink to liven things up, husband, don’t you think?" Mrs. Qian said excitedly.

"Absolutely not."

"No need."

Both Mr. Wang and Meng Yao spoke in unison.

"Sister, I can’t handle alcohol, how about we use tea instead of wine?" Meng Yao suggested calmly.

"Is that so~" Mrs. Qian was a bit disappointed, "Alright then, just listen to sister, we’ll use tea instead. But sister, listen to me, women should learn to drink some wine. When there’s something to celebrate, it feels like something’s missing without it."

"Sister is right, but learning to drink isn’t something you can do in a day." Meng Yao replied.

"Sister is right, how about this, when sister leaves, I’ll pack a few jars of wine for her to take home and learn slowly." Mrs. Qian thought for a moment, "Hong Xing, how much Peach Blossom Brew do I have left?"

"Madam, there are sixteen jars left." Hong Xing responded.

"Pack half of them for Madam Zhao." Mrs. Qian generously decided.

"Madam, isn’t half a bit too few? After all these years, it’s rare to see you click with someone. Let’s let Dahe’s mother practice well so you’ll have someone to accompany you for a drink. With only eight jars, she might not learn." Mr. Wang said earnestly.

Mrs. Qian thought about it, "How about ten jars?"

Leaving six jars for herself to enjoy occasionally.

"How about giving all of them to Dahe’s mother? Anyway, we can soon make Plum Blossom Brew again, and I’ll accompany madam in making it. Once winter passes and the apricot and peach blossoms bloom, we can make Apricot Blossom Brew and Peach Blossom Brew as well." Mr. Wang said, "It’s been a long time since I accompanied madam in brewing wine."

Mrs. Qian blushed a little, glared at Mr. Wang, and playfully scolded, "Sister is still here."

Which meant she didn’t mind giving all the wine to Meng Yao.

Mr. Wang quickly instructed Hong Xing, "Pack all the wine for Madam Zhao."

Meng Yao thanked them with a smile; she very much liked the taste of Peach Blossom Brew.

After the meal, Mrs. Qian chatted with Meng Yao, while the two little ones were sent off to Zhao Dahe.

Meng Yao seized the opportunity to subtly inquire about Hong Xing’s situation.

"Hong Xing, that girl has been with me since she was little. Originally, she was a playmate for my daughter. But my daughter, alas..." Mrs. Qian sighed, "She was wild from a young age, insisted on learning martial arts when she was ten, and we couldn’t stop her. We had to let her be. Now it’s even worse, she’s wilder, hardly comes home, and in the past eight years, she’s only been back a handful of times. Hong Xing wasn’t interested in martial arts, so I kept her by my side."

Meng Yao: It’s hard to see that Mrs. Qian was troubled by her daughter’s affairs.

Mrs. Qian was probably happy at heart, her daughter had realized her dreams.

"Sister, why do you ask about Hong Xing?" Mrs. Qian felt puzzled after speaking.

"Have you thought about what Hong Xing will do in the future? Will you keep her by your side or marry her off?" Meng Yao asked.

"It depends on Hong Xing. I half-raised her as my daughter! When she reached adulthood, I asked her, and she said she wanted to stay by my side a few more years and didn’t want to marry so early." Mrs. Qian responded.

Meng Yao didn’t think Hong Xing had been interested in Zhao Dahe for two years.

Zhao Dahe was only twelve back then, just a little kid.

Even now, Meng Yao thought he was a kid.

But people matured early back then, and Zhao Dahe was tall, so he barely looked like an adult.

"And have you asked Hong Xing recently if she likes anyone?" Meng Yao inquired.

Mrs. Qian shook her head, "Do you mean you know who Hong Xing likes?"

"I’m not too sure." Meng Yao replied.

"Who is it?" Mrs. Qian pressed on.