Ah Qiao

Part 3

3

Lu Yan wasn't at home; his family said he had been summoned to the capital.
The journey to the capital was long, and no one knew what the Emperor had tasked him with, but he wouldn't be back for at least half a month.

"Ah Qiao, just wait another half a month, okay?"

I couldn't quite figure out why I didn't like Miss Yu Zhe.

After all, when she called me Sister Ah Qiao, she smiled so sweetly.

I usually loved hearing people praise my cooking, but her compliments left me unhappy:

"Sister Ah Qiao, your cooking is truly delicious. No wonder you've captured Brother Meng's heart so well."
Yet, aside from me, both Meng He Shu and Bai'er liked her very much.

Bai'er, who normally listened to me, pushed his bowl away for the first time.

Rice spilled everywhere, and the soup dripped down the edge of the table.

"I can't eat this. I want to go out with Sister to buy pastries!"

I couldn't stand seeing him waste food, so I scolded him a bit.

Bai'er wiped his tears with his hand but didn't admit his mistake.

Yu Zhe quickly stepped in to smooth things over:

"Sister Ah Qiao, children have their cravings—they can't always be expected to eat proper meals."

Bai'er, still wiping his eyes, glared at me with resentment:

"Why are you my mother? Why isn't the Fairy Sister my mother!"

That one sentence from Bai'er stunned Meng He Shu, who was standing outside the door. He lowered his eyes in sorrow.

It felt as if a piece of my heart had been forcibly torn away.

When I was pregnant with Bai'er, it had been difficult. The baby was in a breech position, and I had labored for a whole day and night before he was born.
Every time Bai'er was naughty, Meng He Shu would remind him how much I had suffered to bring him into the world.

Bai'er would hurriedly cover his father's mouth with his hands and point to his own chest:

"Father, don't say that! If Mother is in pain, Bai'er's heart will hurt too!"

The next day was my birthday.

I cooked a table full of dishes that Meng He Shu loved and went out to buy the pastries that Bai'er had wanted.

By the time night fell, and the food had been reheated for the third time, Meng He Shu finally returned with Bai'er.

I noticed that the silver hairpin Bai'er had meant to give me was now tucked into Miss Yu Zhe's hair.

When Meng He Shu saw my gaze fall on the hairpin, he suddenly remembered that today was my birthday.

He hurried to explain that because Miss Yu Zhe was feeling down, they had spent the entire day with her outside.

The hairpin was just something Bai'er had playfully put in her hair; it wasn't meant as a gift for her.

Yu Zhe patted Bai'er's head:

"Bai'er, be good. Let's give the hairpin to your mother, alright?"
Bai'er, hiding behind Yu Zhe, burst into loud sobs:

"Why should I give it to her?

"She doesn't look nearly as good with it as Fairy Sister!"

Meng He Shu's face darkened as he sternly scolded Bai'er, but Yu Zhe protected him like a doting mother.

I didn't know why.

But I felt like I had become someone mean and completely unnecessary.

The food in the kitchen had gone cold again, and I had no energy or appetite to reheat it.

I made myself a bowl of noodles.

Maybe I was too muddled from crying and accidentally added too much salt.

The overly salty, bitter bowl of noodles made me feel as if life had become unbearably difficult.

4

"Live a good life, Sister Ah Qiao!"

Chun Sheng cupped his hands and shouted as I disembarked from the boat.

I stood at the dock, waving back at him.

I wanted to count how much money I had left to see if it was enough to find a place to stay.

Only then did I realize that the two taels of silver I had given Chun Sheng had somehow been returned and tucked under the basket without me noticing.

The boat had already left, and I couldn't catch up to him.

Sigh, I'll just have to repay him another time.

For three days, I inquired around the taverns in Qingzhou, but it was either they didn't need help or they kept lowering the wages.

One tavern finally gave me a chance.

The tavern keeper said he wanted to try me out, so they had me cook for three days straight.

I don't know which household could eat so much—the amount of steamed rice alone would be enough to feed the Meng family for half a year.

I didn't dare be careless and worked myself to the bone.

Every time the mustachioed tavern keeper came by, he nodded and smiled.

I thought I had passed the test.

But on the third day, the tavern keeper suddenly turned hostile, throwing me and my bundle out the door:

"Your cooking skills aren't up to par! The guests got sick, and now we have to pay a fortune in compensation!"

Even if I was naïve, I could tell I'd been deceived.

I didn't cry. I just wiped my eyes, picked up my bundle, and dusted it off.

By the fifth day, I had run out of money. I stood at the entrance of a pawnshop, ready to pawn my hairpin.

But just as I was about to go in, a young scholar stopped me:

"Madam, please wait."

I didn't know him.

"Was it you who cooked the meals for our academy a few days ago?"

"No, a few days ago, I was cooking for Keyun Inn. I didn't cook for any academy."

"That must be it then—our academy had an order with Keyun Inn."

I remembered that the tavern keeper had mentioned guests getting sick, so I asked uneasily:

"Did you all get sick from the food?"

"No one got sick," the scholar smiled. "We thought the food was so good that we ordered two more days' worth. But after that, Keyun Inn's food never tasted as good again. We found out that the tavern keeper wasn't very honest."

So what now?

"Our academy is in need of a matron. It's a bit of hard work—besides cooking, there's laundry to do as well—but room and board are included. Madam, would you be willing to take the position?"

This was the renowned Guanhe Academy of Qingzhou, built near mountains and water.

I couldn't decipher the elegant calligraphy on the plaque or grasp any deeper meaning it might hold.

But I liked the idea of the two vegetable gardens behind the school and the possibility of raising some chickens.

The scholars here were fond of bamboo, so the academy had many bamboo groves.

I thought it wasn't a bad idea—young bamboo shoots could be stewed with salted pork, and old bamboo could be split to make trellises for beans.

I enjoyed growing vegetables and fruits, but Meng He Shu didn't.

He used to say that the courtyard should be filled with plum blossoms, as appreciating them in winter was the epitome of elegance.

I had happily transplanted a whole garden of red plum blossoms for him.

It was much later that I learned Miss Yu Zhe also liked plum blossoms.

Noticing my silence, the scholar hesitantly asked:

"Do you have any concerns, Madam? Is it the wages...?"

"Can I grow vegetables here?"

"Of course you can!"

I nodded.

"Alright, I'll take it."