Chapter 891: Extra 5: Marriage Proposal (End) Chapter 891: Extra 5: Marriage Proposal (End) “`
A bowl of braised meat settled in his stomach, and Jiang Feng immediately felt a lot more at ease.

What he didn’t know was that while he had become calm, Jiang Jiankang, who had been squatting secretly at the kitchen door watching Jiang Feng eat his portion of meat, was anything but.

As soon as Jiang Feng got off the plane, he asked Jiang Jiankang to buy him pork belly, and as soon as the pork belly was bought, he immediately sought a hotel kitchen to make braised meat. Jiang Jiankang had nothing better to do and thought that Feng was going to showcase his culinary talents in front of his future father-in-law, so he squatted at the kitchen door to observe closely.

Jiang Jiankang didn’t expect that what Jiang Feng made was not something delicious, but the plain water braised meat that made every Jiang Family member shiver at the mere thought.

Which iron-boned, over two-hundred-pound man of the Jiang Family didn’t go weak in the knees at the sight of braised meat? Jiang Jiankang, squatting at the kitchen door too far to catch the scent, was trembling just at the sight of the whole bowl of braised meat in Jiang Feng’s bowl.

Then he shivered as he watched Jiang Feng wolf down a pound of braised meat in one go, and after finishing, burped with an eagerly unsatisfied expression–pained yet satisfied, despairing yet joyful, so twisted it made him wonder if his son had lost his senses from being too nervous.

Jiang Jiankang slipped away, retreating to his room to discuss his son’s mental condition with Wang Xiulian.

Soon, thanks to Jiang Jiankang’s big mouth, the news that Jiang Feng had eaten a pound of braised meat for dinner spread. Not only did Wu Minqi and the two senior sirs know about it, but even Jiang Junqing and Jiang Junlian, who had just arrived at the hotel and hadn’t even finished unpacking their luggage, were aware of it.

Jiang Weiming was now a genuine centenarian, a man of over a hundred years old, and even he couldn’t help but be surprised when he heard about it, laughing as he said to Jiang Weiguo, “In these past two years, I thought Feng had become a lot steadier, but it seems he’s still as impulsive as ever. What’s he doing suddenly eating a pound of braised meat for?”

Jiang Weiming had never seen it, but he had heard about the power of braised meat.

“Who knows why he suddenly decided to eat braised meat.” Sir said, recalling out of the blue the braised meat he had faced when he first visited his in-laws.

That was truly one of the most frightening memories of his life.

The Jiang Family members were all curious, but the only one who actually voiced the question was Wu Minqi.

Wu Minqi hadn’t been home for half a year, and even though she was back for the engagement, the first thing she did when she got home was talk to her parents for most of the day. So after leaving the airport, the Jiang Family Members and the Wu Family Members actually took separate routes, and it was only close to dinner time that Wu Minqi came to the hotel to pick up the Jiang Family for dinner at her home.

Although tonight’s meal was said to be a casual one, with the formal engagement banquet scheduled for tomorrow, it was tonight’s dinner that was truly significant. Tonight’s dinner was the formal meeting of the in-laws, while tomorrow’s was the engagement banquet.

The Wu Family had many relatives, and aside from those who were so distant that it was hard to connect with them, it was really difficult to distinguish between the rest in terms of closeness. Even if some were closer than others or not much in contact, they all had to be treated equally for the engagement; everyone who should be invited had to be invited.

Tomorrow the Wu Family Restaurant would close for half a day just for Wu Minqi’s engagement banquet. Mrs. Wu had also reminded Wu Minqi and Jiang Feng beforehand that they didn’t need to do anything tomorrow except go around toasting and greeting people with polite small talk. She particularly cautioned Jiang Feng not to be too sincere when toasting, suggesting that acting hearty was sufficient and that he could take just sips while drinking, otherwise Jiang Feng might not be able to walk in a straight line out of Wu Family Restaurant.

Wu Minqi felt her mother was still overestimating Jiang Feng’s alcohol tolerance.

“Fengfeng, I heard you borrowed a hotel kitchen this afternoon to make a pound of braised meat and ate it all. What suddenly made you eat braised meat?” On the way to the Wu Family, Wu Minqi asked.

Jiang Feng hadn’t expected his meat-eating courage-boosting affair to be exposed so quickly. He earnestly replied, “To brace myself.”

Wu Minqi: ?

Jiang Feng began his performance, “Qiqi, you don’t know what braised meat means to us. This afternoon I ate a whole pound of it. What else is there for me to fear?”

Hearing Jiang Feng say this, Jiang Junlian, sitting in the passenger’s seat, nodded repeatedly and turned her head in agreement, “Little brother has a point. If you can eat braised meat, there’s nothing to be afraid of!”

“Little brother, don’t worry. We’ve got your back tonight, and we’ve memorized all your information thoroughly. There’s no way it’ll go wrong, so just relax,” Jiang Junqing also cheered Jiang Feng up.

“`
Hearing her two younger cousins say this, Jiang Feng felt a surge of confidence in her heart.

Jiang Junqing and Jiang Junlian made a special trip by plane to Shu for a reason other than just attending Jiang Feng’s engagement banquet as her cousins. They were on a mission, otherwise why would the Jiang family send them, of all people, besides the important family members?

Since they were little, Jiang Junqing and Jiang Junlian, the twin sisters, had one special talent, which was to ingratiate themselves with their elders. They were expert flatterers, telling people what they liked to hear and ghosts what they wanted to hear, and as twins with a telepathic bond, their coordinated bootlicking was more than the sum of its parts. In previous years, whenever Mrs. Jiang’s sisters came over to play mahjong during the New Year, they would always have something positive to say about how sensible and obedient the sisters were.

Jiang Junlian was particularly adept at reading people and was the main force in flattery, while Jiang Junqing played more of a supporting role, embellishing Junlian’s efforts at just the right moment.

In preparation for this engagement banquet, Jiang Feng had sent a document with all the relevant information he could think of to the sisters two weeks in advance. The information included Wu Hanxue’s and Sir Wu’s signature dishes over the years, the characteristics of those dishes, the awards they had won, the history of the Wu Family Restaurant, and a simple breakdown of the Wu family’s social relations. The sisters had spent the past two weeks cramming this information, more seriously than they had for any of their exams.

.

Soon, the group arrived at the Wu’s home.

The Wu Minqi family’s house was the same as it had been a few years ago; the furniture and layout had not changed. The only difference was that it was now so clean it was almost scary. The decades-old floorboards shone as if they had been waxed and buffed.

Tonight’s dinner was made by Wu Hanxue.

Old Sir Wu was there too but he didn’t cook; when the Jiang family members arrived, he was sitting on the living room sofa, drinking tea. There were three plates of fruit on the coffee table, all of which were neatly cut, washed, and artfully arranged, alongside small snacks like seeds and plum candies, a sign of the hosts’ seriousness.

As soon as the Jiang family arrived, Mrs. Wu began to offer tea to everyone, but Jiang Weiming declined with a smile, “No need for tea, let’s go straight to dinner, I see the dishes are already on the table.”

At this, Old Sir Wu put down his teacup, rose to his feet, and walked to the dining table, sitting to Jiang Weiming’s right.

Old Sir Wu, having aged, had stopped managing the restaurant business since last year and only visited occasionally. Now Wu Hanxue was in charge of the Wu Family Restaurant. Business had declined slightly but there had been no significant trouble.

“Old Wu, I heard you also retired,” said Jiang Weiming with a smile.

“Of course I retired at this age. Who do you think I am, being able to jump around in the kitchen at over ninety?” Old Sir Wu replied with a sigh, his tone unavoidably laced with envy and resentment.

“Not anymore, now I just visit the place occasionally and don’t even enter the kitchen.”

As they spoke, Wu Hanxue brought the last soup to the table, completing the evening’s menu.

Boiled fish, sweet and crispy duck, chicken slices with egg white, husband and wife lung slices, steamed green eel, eggplant in garlic sauce, stir-fried baby bok choy with soy sauce, and mutton soup.

None were particularly extravagant dishes; there were no abalone, shark fin, sea cucumber, or bird’s nest that would only be used to show off. There wasn’t even any soup made with a rich stock. As Mrs. Wu had said, it was a simple meal where the two families could gather and chat.

“Now that all the dishes are here, let’s eat. I remember there’s a bottle of good wine at home. I’ll open it for everyone,” Mrs. Wu said cheerfully, going into the room to fetch a bottle of wine and pouring a half glass for each male at the table.

Wu Hanxue and Old Sir Wu were both men of few words, and without Mrs. Wu to liven things up, the atmosphere around the dining table became terrifyingly silent for a moment.

Fortunately, Jiang Feng had brought her two younger cousins.

Realizing the mood, Jiang Junlian quickly picked up a piece of eggplant in garlic sauce with her chopsticks. After eating it, she sweetly said, “Mr. Wu, your eggplant is really delicious. My brother was right; he told me before that your eggplant in garlic sauce had a unique flavor.”

Hearing Jiang Junlian say this, a smile spread across Wu Hanxue’s face.

Jiang Feng was now a prominent figure, the highest ranked active famous chef in the country, destined to become a future grandmaster of the culinary world. The fact that he said Wu Hanxue’s fish-flavored eggplant had its own special charm wasn’t even directly from Jiang Feng’s mouth but was relayed by his cousin, which pleased Wu Hanxue even more.

“Really? How come I didn’t know about this,” Wu Hanxue said.

“Of course you didn’t know,” said Jiang Junlian. “Little brother told us several years ago when he was still studying at UAL University.” She then cued Jiang Junqing, “Right, Junqing?”

“That’s right,” although Jiang Junqing didn’t know what exactly her elder sister was playing at, she nodded in agreement. “Back then, my sister and I would go to Little Brother’s family restaurant to eat every Sunday when we had no classes.”

Now Wu Hanxue was somewhat puzzled, “Then how come he mentioned that my fish-flavored eggplant had its own special charm to you guys?”

“At that time, Qiqi and my little brother were participating in the Good Taste Cook-Off competition. I remember that he hadn’t confessed to Qiqi yet. You and Mrs. Wu came to Alan City to see Qiqi, and you saw how busy the restaurant was at noon and even helped cook in the kitchen,” Jiang Junlian artfully described the imposition as assistance. “I have loved eggplants since I was a child, and on that particular day, the best-selling dish in the restaurant was the fish-flavored eggplant you made.”

At this point, Jiang Junlian even sighed.

“Unfortunately, I was in class that day and didn’t get to eat your eggplant, but Little Brother did, and he even praised your fish-flavored eggplant specifically over the weekend. I don’t remember exactly what he said, but I remember at that time I really wanted to eat the fish-flavored eggplant made by you, as described by Little Brother, but unfortunately, he couldn’t make it himself.”

“I had almost forgotten about this incident, but after eating it just now, it all came back to me. Little Brother was right; your fish-flavored eggplant truly is exceptional, it tastes better than any other I’ve had before, and Little Brother couldn’t replicate this flavor,” Jiang Junlian said, reinforcing her claim by taking another two bites of the fish-flavored eggplant.

“Yeah, yeah, I have never had fish-flavored eggplant with this taste before either,” Jiang Junqing began to chime in.

Wu Hanxue was genuinely pleased by now, and even Old Sir Wu’s face broke into a larger smile.

“No problem, if you want to eat more, just stay here for a few more days. Let Qiqi take you around to have fun, and when mealtime comes, come to the restaurant, and your uncle will make fish-flavored eggplant for you,” Wu Hanxue said, feeling thoroughly relaxed and even seeing Jiang Feng in a much more favorable light.

In the past, he thought Jiang Feng was too honest, a good kid without faults, but not shrewd enough, which he feared could lead to disadvantages not just for himself but possibly for his daughter Qiqi.

Now, it seemed, being honest wasn’t such a bad thing after all. Look at Jiang Feng’s two cousins, both honest kids, so likable!

The honest kid, Jiang Junlian, revealed a sincere smile.

“Right, stay for a few more days and enjoy the area. If your uncle doesn’t have time to cook for you, Grandpa will make it,” Old Sir Wu said with a smile.

Jiang Feng watched with a stunned expression, silently giving Jiang Junlian a thumbs up in his heart, and deciding to add an extra portion of Buddha’s Jumping Over the Wall for her.

With Jiang Junlian’s witty interjection, the dinner table was instantly filled with a joyful atmosphere, brimming with peace and love. Wang Xiulian and Mrs. Wu, the two female figureheads, also opened up the conversation, cheerful and harmonious, with everything moving in a positive direction.

Wu Minqi also took this opportunity to quietly tell Mrs. Wu about how Jiang Feng ate a pound of braised meat to bolster his courage that afternoon.

After hearing the story, Mrs. Wu couldn’t help but chuckle and softly passed it on to Wu Hanxue, who was taken aback and began to reflect on whether his attitude toward Jiang Feng was really not very good.

To think he had frightened his future son-in-law to the extent that he needed to eat braised meat for courage.

Wu Hanxue found himself unexpectedly quite satisfied with Jiang Feng.

The meal was about done, and it was time for the toasting to begin.

It was also Jiang Feng’s turn to offer a toast.

The first toast was naturally directed to Wu Hanxue and Mrs. Wu.

“Mr. Wu, Mrs. Wu, I’d like to…” Jiang Feng had just raised his glass when Wu Hanxue interrupted him.

“Still calling me Mr. Wu?” Wu Hanxue tried to appear more amiable.

Jiang Feng paused, further solidifying his position as the honest son-in-law, then quickly caught on, overflowing with joy.

Braised Meat really works!

The pound of braised meat he had eaten that afternoon hadn’t been in vain!

“Dad, Mom, I toast to you!”

…

That night, Jiang Feng left by a very winding path.

Wu Minqi drove them home, while Mrs. Wu and Wu Hanxue stayed behind to clean up.

“Feng doesn’t seem to drink much normally, his tolerance really isn’t very good, is it? He didn’t even drink two glasses today, I think it was less than three in total.” Mrs. Wu felt that if Jiang Feng hadn’t been so determined not to succumb to drunkenness, he might not have walked home in zigzags but would have been carried back by Jiang Jiankang.

“Not drinking is good, chefs who like to drink are a problem, drinking can lead to mistakes.” Wu Hanxue rarely spoke well of Jiang Feng.

“Wow, the sun has really risen from the west today; I actually heard you say something nice about Feng.” Mrs. Wu said with a laugh.

Wu Hanxue was slightly embarrassed: “Look at the way you put it, as if I’m dissatisfied with Jiang Feng.”

Mrs. Wu just smiled and said nothing.

Once everything was tidied up, Mrs. Wu finally remembered something she needed to discuss with Wu Hanxue: “Right, I visited that housing complex we talked about with the in-laws for Qiqi and Feng to buy their wedding apartment in. Just above their block, there’s a small apartment that’s really nice, I’m thinking of going to see it in person in a while.”

“Why are you looking at houses?”

“What kind of question is that? I’m retiring soon, and we only have our daughter Qiqi. Why else would I be looking at houses? Of course, to buy one and move in to live with Qiqi! Otherwise, it will be just like now; barely seeing our daughter once or twice a year.” Mrs. Wu said.

Wu Hanxue frowned: “You may be retiring soon, but I’ve just taken over here; I probably won’t be able to retire for another decade or two.”

“That’s why I’m looking at a small apartment, it’s enough for me to move in by myself.”

Wu Hanxue: …

He felt that the good impression of Jiang Feng that had just started to form instantly vanished.

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