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It wasn’t due to exam stress but rather the hard bed and not being able to sleep with his wife.
Well, he had to endure it for now.
Song Jingyun had no choice but to hug his blanket and close his eyes slightly.
Because of this, on the second day of the exam, Song Jingyun yawned a few times.
To prevent himself from oversleeping during a nap, he finished writing his essay and poem in the morning. After lunch, he comfortably lay down for a while.
However, sleeping on his stomach either made his arms numb or left his face aching, resulting in somewhat restless sleep. By the evening, Song Jingyun was yawning non-stop as he left the exam venue.
“Didn’t sleep well?” Jiang Mixia, seeing her husband in this state, felt a pang of sympathy.
“In a place like this, it’s natural not to sleep well.” Song Jingyun yawned again, leaning on Jiang Mixia’s shoulder in the carriage and even rubbing his cheek against hers.
Still, being close to his wife was comforting.
“Then hurry home, freshen up, and go to bed,” Jiang Mixia said, placing the neatly packed food box aside as she spoke.
Anticipating that her husband would complain of hunger after the exam, Jiang Mixia, aware of her limited cooking skills, had bought a few pastries from a nearby shop to serve as a temporary snack.
However, to her surprise, Song Jingyun was now complaining about being extremely tired.
It seemed only Master Zhou could defeat his appetite.
“That won’t do.” Song Jingyun quickly sat up straight, shaking his head vigorously as if playing a drum, “I haven’t eaten yet.”
Jiang Mixia, “…”
A food lover never disappoints!
“I knew you were thinking about this.” Jiang Mixia handed him the food box with a hint of annoyance, “Here, eat quickly.”
“I knew you were thinking about me.” Song Jingyun, seeing the food, immediately crossed his legs, cradling the food box carefully in his arms and opening it.
Almond pastries, egg yolk pastries, minced meat cake, chive dumplings…
Moreover, the last two items seemed freshly bought, emitting a gentle warmth that made them just right when consumed. For Song Jingyun, who had been eating bland food in the exam hall for two days, these snacks could only be considered appetizers at best, definitely not a full meal.
After devouring a minced meat cake, two chive dumplings, an egg yolk pastry, and an almond pastry, Song Jingyun licked his lips, “Wife, let’s have braised pork ribs for dinner.”
Jiang Mixia, “…”
Was her huband’s stomach a bottomless pit?
Was he like a cow, possessing multiple stomachs to compartmentalize different foods?
Jiang Mixia even pondered whether she needed to find ways to earn more money; otherwise, she might not be able to feed her husband enough.
For dinner, Song Jingyun wanted braised pork ribs, in a large portion, along with two additional vegetable dishes and a sizable winter melon shrimp soup.
The flavor of the braised pork ribs was delightful. Jiang Mixia found herself eating half a bowl of rice more than usual, all the while watching in amazement as Song Jingyun devoured the large serving of braised pork ribs, braised eggplant, and Kung Pao tofu.
Even the server who came to settle the bill couldn’t help but glance at Song Jingyun and Jiang Mixia in surprise.
The two slender figures…
Indeed, looks can be deceiving when it comes to appetite!
Fully satiated, able to embrace his wife while sleeping, Song Jingyun was content. He slept soundly, so much so that he slept in until mid-morning the next day.
They were so content that they skipped breakfast, quickly tidied up, made a simple lunch of noodle soup, and after packing up, they set off from the county town towards Jiang Family Village.
The provincial exam had just concluded, and they would have to wait about half a month for the results.
With the Mid-Autumn Festival approaching, they needed to return home to celebrate on the fifteenth day of the eighth lunar month.
Additionally, Song Jingyun wanted to spend a few more days at the academy.
Master Meng and Master Zhang were knowledgeable and easy-going, treating Song Jingyun well, which he greatly appreciated.
Liu shi and Jiang Youcheng were delighted about their daughter and son-in-law’s return and the upcoming festivities at home. Since their return, the hearth in the family kitchen had hardly gone cold.
As for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, they were routine meals, but apart from those, Liu would come up with various other dishes.
One day, she might decide to make crispy fried oil puffs, the next day, she would plan to steam sesame leaf tofu dumplings, and the day after, she would be busy preparing crispy and fragrant sesame leaf treats to enjoy…
In essence, each day’s snacks were almost always unique.
This variety of treats delighted Song Jingyun, boosting his daily sense of happiness. He was especially excited about the upcoming Mid-Autumn Festival, anticipating the various mooncakes he would get to savor.
In the meantime, Jiang Mixia was occupied with checking on the conditions of the bamboo workshop and the porcelain kiln, ensuring everything was running smoothly and looking for areas that needed improvement. She also introduced some innovative designs to the porcelain kiln.
Furthermore, she contemplated what she would do upon returning to the county town after some time.
Even though she still needed to provide some puppet designs to Qiu’s place, considering that their collection of patterns had reached a relatively rich stage, the pace of introducing new products was not as demanding.
Simply creating a few designs, requiring only two to three days per month, left her with plenty of leisure time.
Driven by the belief that idleness could lead to problems and the necessity of earning more money to meet various needs, as well as noticing that her husband’s appetite seemed to be increasing, Jiang Mixia felt it was time to explore a new business venture.
However, the business needed to be manageable in the county town, not overly strenuous, and capable of ensuring a steady income…
After pondering over this for several days, Zheng Yuanhe paid a visit.
The reason for his visit was to arrange some items for the upcoming Mid-Autumn Festival. He brought along common nourishing herbs and a variety of mooncakes that surpassed the flavors of typical pastry shops.
There were familiar Northern flavors like five-nut, red date paste, and bean paste, as well as Southern lotus seed and salted egg yolk mooncakes, and even flaky pastry with fresh meat mooncakes popular in the Jiangsu and Zhejiang regions.
“I’ve come to discuss matters regarding the restaurant with Madam Jiang,” Zheng Yuanhe smiled. “Upon following Madam Jiang’s advice previously, I proposed the idea of opening a restaurant specializing in medicinal cuisine to my parents. They loved the idea and subsequently established an Eight Treasures Pavilion restaurant at Tai Song Mansion.”
“Ever since the restaurant opened, business has been thriving, earning a substantial income each month. Seeing the potential in medicinal cuisine, I discussed with my parents and decided to seize the opportunity. We’ve already found a suitable location in town, purchased it, and plan to start renovations after the festival. By October, we should be ready to open for business.”