Having a Baby Before Marrying a Wicked Husband - Chapter 87

That kid is very naughty, why would he be willing to come in person.

Madam Fu was speechless when asked, but she was unwilling to bow her head in front of her younger sister. When they were younger, she was the eldest and always received more love from the family. But who knew her sister would be so lucky and enter the palace, after which the sisters’ statuses began to differ drastically.

Their father also gradually paid more attention to her sister.

Her younger sister who used to be docile and seemingly gentle in front of her, gradually became proud, looking down on her completely.

However, now that she was only the wife of a high official, and the other was the Imperial Noble Consort, she could only fawn over her.

Therefore, even though Madam Fu felt aggrieved, she still did not dare to express it in her face. She could only swallow her anger silently, speak kindly to her sister, and finally promised to bring Yan Cai over in person.

For several days, Madam Fu tossed and turned in bed, unable to sleep, thinking of ways. This annoyed Jiang Nan, giving him a headache. In the middle of the night, he sat up and scolded Madam Fu harshly.

“You’re up every day, still not sleeping? I have to attend the early morning court session tomorrow, so don’t disturb me.”

Madam Fu also sat up, feeling very bad, her voice sharp and piercing.

“You’re yelling at me? What are you yelling at me for? Do you think I stay up every night for fun? I’m thinking of ways to find a good path for our son. That place is too poor, I can’t let my son suffer there.”

Madam Fu’s tone was not good. He was already tired enough, and being awakened disturbed his peace further.

“How miserable can it be? I’ve been to places like that before, endured it. You pamper your son every day. Look at what you’ve turned him into. He’s not used to any hardships. He’s a grown man, not a girl. Look at Manyue; only one month older than him and he’s already achieved something.”

As soon as Jiang Nan mentioned Jiang Manyue, Madam Fu exploded.

“Don’t mention him to me. He’s not a good person. And the man he married, he’s even worse, a despicable little wretch who doesn’t appreciate anything. I just asked him for a small favor, and he didn’t even bother to respond.”

“You asked him for help?” Jiang Nan’s voice rose several degrees. He didn’t know what Madam Fu had been up to these days, only that she was busy trying to pull strings for Jiang Mantian. “Why did you go to him for help?”

“What’s wrong with me looking for him?” Madam Fu didn’t understand why Jiang Nan suddenly acted as if he had eaten something bad. “Why can’t I look for him?”

“If I say it’s not allowed, then it’s not allowed. If you go looking for that little scoundrel, you’re disgracing our Jiang family.” Jiang Nan’s greatest hatred now was towards Yan Cai.

He despised Yan Cai’s low status and felt he wasn’t worthy of their Jiang family. Moreover, Yan Cai even encouraged his son to break away from the Jiang family.

“If it wasn’t for you saying Jiang Manyue needed to marry someone with a strong fate, our Jiang family wouldn’t have married a man like him.” Jiang Nan brought up old grievances, completely ignoring his own involvement and only blaming Madam Fu for the inappropriate decision.

Now that Jiang Manyue was appreciated by the Emperor, he was starting to regret it. But he wasn’t willing to admit he was wrong, so he shifted the blame to others. Madam Fu was one of the scapegoats, and Yan Cai was the second.

“I absolutely cannot bow down to him. It would disgrace me.”

Madam Fu felt he was being unreasonable, so she turned over and couldn’t be bothered to pay attention to him. Jiang Nan watched his wife’s silhouette, feeling a pang in his heart. He climbed out of bed and went to the study to sleep, seeking peace.

But Madam Fu didn’t need to dwell on it for too long because reality soon delivered a blow.

Yan Cai smoothed out every wrinkle in Jiang Manyue’s clothes from behind. The simple patterns and deep colors, even in a very understated garment, looked extremely elegant on Jiang Manyue.

After checking from every angle to ensure there were no flaws, Yan Cai escorted Jiang Manyue out.

“Are you really not coming to the banquet with me? They say the food tonight is excellent.”

“Forget it. I’ve heard these banquets serve cold food, and most people aren’t there for the food anyway. If I go, I will suffer.”

Yan Cai didn’t fall for Jiang Manyue’s persuasion. There were too many old scholars and feudal customs; he was worried about his behavior not conforming to etiquette and causing trouble.

Furthermore, the Emperor has invited him, with a specially crafted invitation. He has already politely declined, citing illness. If he were to appear, it would be like slapping the Emperor in the face.

“You go ahead, my son and I will wait for you at home.” With that, Yan Cai called out to Qingke, who was still digging into his bowl of custard.

Qingke perked up, turning his head with custard still on his mouth.

“Say goodbye to your father.”

“Goodbye, father.” Qingke reflexively raised his paw and waved, still holding a wooden spoon, then dove back into his food.

Father went out every day, and he was used to it.

With no one in the family trying to stop him, the head of the household felt a bit defeated. He took a few steps, contemplating the cold and icy banquet he didn’t want to attend, and decided it was better to have a simple meal at home.

Dragging his heavy steps slowly, he suddenly felt a weight on his leg. He looked down to find a chubby doll hanging there.

Jiang Manyue picked up the chubby doll hanging on his leg, rubbing its plump cheeks.

“Do you want to come with me?” He was reluctant to leave him behind.

Qingke decisively shook his head. Father said it wasn’t fun there, no good food, and bad guys might catch kids. It’s better for father to go alone.

“Here, father.” The little one grabbed a soft cloth pouch that Yan Cai usually tied around his waist to hold roasted beans. Today, it contained shrimp cakes, the little one’s teething snack, all donated to his father.

“Food might be slow, so have a couple of shrimp cakes to fill your stomach,” Yan Cai instructed.

With a pocketful of shrimp cakes, Jiang Manyue took his seat. His official position wasn’t high, and despite recent attention from the Emperor, it is still impossible for him to sit in the front seat on such an occasion.

But he didn’t mind. He found a secluded spot under a tree, where people were engaged in conversation. He naturally took out a handful of shrimp cakes, one after another, crunching away.

Lin Zhu, sitting beside him, blatantly reached out and grabbed a handful in front of Jiang Manyue.

He knew the food from Yan Cai’s place would be especially delicious. Just like the restaurant owned by Yan Cai and Lin Shu, it wasn’t just because of the chefs; it was also because the ingredients there were exceptional.

Under Lin Shu’s influence, Lin Zhu had become quite sensitive to the taste of food.

Jiang Manyue didn’t say anything or object, but he discreetly moved the remaining cakes away from Lin Zhu, keeping his distance.

Very petty-minded.

Jiang Manyue didn’t feel ashamed at all; logically speaking, what Yan Cai made for him, he wasn’t willing to share with others.

Actually, no, Yan Cai only provided the raw materials, including fresh shrimp nurtured by his abilities, spring onions and wheat grown with his abilities. He doesn’t cook.

The Third Prince is still absent; he hasn’t been released from his confinement yet. The palace is full of eyes and ears, and everyone knows that no one enters or exits the Third Prince’s palace, not even for daily meals, which are prepared only in his small kitchen. Every few days, some fresh vegetables are brought to him.

The Empress is ill. The Emperor visited her and saw how seriously ill she was, so he didn’t question it much. The Duke Chengguo visited his daughter; the old man seemed much healthier than the Empress, and he looked spirited at tonight’s banquet.

Without the Empress, the Noble Consort sat closest to the Emperor. She was dressed extremely lavishly, her exquisite headdress shining brightly, perhaps even heavier than her own head.

The First Prince’s mother, the Virtuous Consort, also did not attend due to her ill health.

The First Prince and the Fourth Prince sat next to each other, one simple-minded, the other arrogant.

The banquet was specifically to celebrate the successful harvest of potatoes, and not only that, there were other surprises that evening.

Unlike the usual singing and dancing, tonight’s program seemed both light and heavy. There were no flashy elements; instead, baskets and baskets of food were brought in by a famous farmer.

There were yellow-skinned potatoes, red and green chili peppers, bright red tomatoes… and some crops Yan Cai happened to find.

Just some simple crops, but they gave people a dizzying feeling. When they didn’t know it, so many unfamiliar vegetables appeared.

Well, some of them were actually familiar; it seemed they had eaten them in a restaurant in the city. But many of the officials present had never been in a kitchen and couldn’t quite connect the raw materials with the food already on their plates.

Emperor Taifeng was very proud of himself. To be able to achieve such political achievements even when he was old was a feat that would be passed down for thousands of years.

Originally, there wouldn’t have been so many accomplishments, all because… thinking of Yan Cai, Emperor Taifeng felt somewhat regretful. Yan Cai never wanted to attend such banquets, saying he didn’t want to kneel.

Only this child could straightforwardly say he didn’t want to kneel, which no one else dared to say.

In this case, Emperor Taifeng had no choice but to follow his wishes, but there would be no shortage of praise without naming him.

“The results achieved, adding more food to the people’s tables, make me very happy. This is thanks to one person, his contribution is significant, a great courtesy. Unfortunately, this child is very modest and dislikes taking credit. Nonetheless, I must commend him properly.” Emperor Taifeng couldn’t stop praising him.

He really didn’t expect Yan Cai to give him so many surprises.

After Yan Cai found the chili peppers here, he no longer limited himself to his original knowledge. Perhaps, this world is different from the original world, and some crops may have existed in this country’s land for a long time, just not yet discovered for their value.

For this reason, Yan Cai often searches for wild grasses and fruits, and indeed he has discovered some crops that should have originated from other places.

For example, corn! This kind of high-yield crop that can serve as a staple food to fill the stomach and doesn’t require good land is really timely!

There are many others, just not widely cultivated yet, but edible and tasty; This is their value.

Successful cultivation only takes time. even without his abilities, Yan Cai believes that with the farming experience of these farmers, they will eventually discover a scientific planting method.

Yan Cai firmly believes that their race has always been very good at farming from ancient times to the present.

Except for a few people at the banquet who guessed that the emperor was talking about Yan Cai, most people were confused, speculating about who it might be.

Moreover, it seemed that the Emperor was going to give a big reward. The officials were itching to know, Your Majesty, if you’re going to give rewards, please make it clear, what exactly are the rewards, they also want to know.

A group of gossipy bureaucrats absent-mindedly drank wine, sometimes guessing who the Emperor was thanking, sometimes guessing what the reward might be.

Both the officials present and those absent had been guessed by them, but no one could figure out who it really was.

It’s just that Yan Cai was too low-key before. Only Jiang Manyue smiled without saying a word, the smile at the corner of her mouth revealing pride and confidence.

His family’s Yan Cai is just that outstanding.

The Fourth Prince below had a faint guess. Could it be Yan Cai that the Emperor was talking about? He thought too deeply and accidentally spilled the wine, making a mess.

The Noble Consort looked at her son with disapproval and gestured to him. Why not say something nice to your father, toast to him? Look at the First Prince before, although simple-minded, his words were sweet, and he praised the Emperor.

When Xia Jing saw the look in his mother’s eyes, he quickly stood up and poured wine for the Emperor. The wine was from the Emperor’s table, and the cup was the one the Emperor had just used.

Xia Jing took a sip first and said some auspicious words.

“May Father Emperor be blessed as the East Sea and live longer than the Southern Mountain… Your son toasts.” Saying that, he drank a cup himself.

The Emperor still liked this son of his. At this moment, he was already in a very good mood, so he immediately picked up the wine glass and drank it all in one go.

But just as the wine was finished, before the Fourth Prince could return to his seat, the Emperor suddenly rolled his eyes, spit out blood, and fell back onto his seat.

Screams erupted, and the scene instantly descended into chaos.