Transmigration: The Little Chef Calls The Shots-Chapter 1335 - 186. Is it enough? (Second update)_2

"She! She’s actually so close with that little wretch?" Cheng Yuexiu slammed the carriage door hard, trembling with rage. She had gone to such lengths to get close to Ma Xiaonan, even going so far as to ingratiate herself, and yet she had never managed to make Ma Xiaonan be as affectionate with her. Look, what has Lin Yuan done? She managed to make her as happy as if she had seen her own sister-in-law!

Sister-in-law?

Cheng Yuexiu was horrified by her own thoughts. Yes, the intimate way those two were acting, wasn’t it just like that of sisters-in-law?

Biting her lip hard, Cheng Yuexiu decided she no longer had the heart to watch the scene before her. Flinging the carriage curtain aside, she plonked down in the carriage, her resolve to have both Ma Junying and Ma Xiaonan in her grasp growing even stronger.

The banquet lasted almost three time periods, and it was only in the late afternoon that guests began to leave one after another.

Of course, in order to retain the many distinguished guests of the day, Lin Yuan had come up with a shrewd little trick, which was to present each guest with a signature pastry from Dong Tian as they left. These pastries were the same ones she had sold back in Zhuma Town, Rice Flower Fragrance. Because there were so many pastry shops in the Capital city, and because Lin Yuan was now too busy to tend to another shop, she moved the pastries into Dong Tian.

The pastries given out today were small portions, with only six pieces in each little box, but each had a different flavor. There were the most common mung bean cakes, red bean crisps, and osmanthus cakes, as well as rose cakes and chestnut almond crisps exclusively sold at Rice Flower Fragrance, and even glutinous rice cakes shaped like the twelve zodiac animals.

With the delicious food they had enjoyed and free pastries to take away, the guests who had come to the banquet were absolutely delighted.

Watching everyone leave joyfully with boxes marked with Dong Tian’s logo, Lin Yuan imagined the scene of these guests coming back to Dong Tian with silver in hand, which made her smile from ear to ear.

"What’s making you so happy?" ƒrēewebnoѵёl.cσm

A warm voice suddenly sounded beside her, and Lin Yuan was taken aback, her smile not yet faded.

It was Ma Junying.

"Oh, Young Master Ma topping the Imperial Examination and bringing glory to Zhuma Town, of course, I’m happy."

Although she smiled, Lin Yuan’s words sounded very much against her true feelings, as if she really had been happy about Ma Junying becoming the First Scholar.

However, whether true or not, in Ma Junying’s eyes, her words were heartfelt.

"Yuanyuan, there’s something I’ve always wanted to tell you, today I..."

"Wow! Isn’t this our First Scholar? Ah, how is it? Are you satisfied with the food at Dong Tian?"

Xia Zheng’s teasing voice suddenly interrupted from behind, startling Ma Junying into nearly jumping.

Lin Yuan’s face immediately filled with exasperation; Xia Zheng’s timing couldn’t have been more perfect. Although it was funny, she felt a sweetness in her heart.

Seeing Ma Junying stiff as a block of ice, Xia Zheng very unkindly cracked a smile, his shiny white teeth particularly dazzling.

Casually wrapping his arm around Lin Yuan, Xia Zheng wisely avoided any sensitive areas to prevent another slap to the face.

After a glance at Lin Yuan, Xia Zheng added, "Congratulations on your achievement, First Scholar. You’re truly the center of attention today!"

Before Ma Junying could offer a modest reply, Xia Zheng’s cheerful voice cut him off again: "Look, most of the guests have already left, so it’s time to settle the bill, isn’t it?"

Cough cough. Ma Junying’s throat spasmodically twitched, and he couldn’t help but cough, muffled. This guy had just been flattering him, so why did he suddenly turn around to demand payment? Could it be that he, a distinguished First Scholar, would owe someone silver?

Lin Yuan also felt a bit embarrassed and quickly tried to smooth things over: "Young Master Ma, don’t be angry, there’s no hurry with the bill. Oh, wait, how could I say that? We’re from the same town, and we were good friends back in Zhuma Town. Now that you’ve succeeded, I can’t wait to curry favor with you! How about this, consider today’s meal a congratulatory gift from a fellow townsperson to the First Scholar. I hope for your continued support in the future!"

As she spoke, she nudged a frowning Xia Zheng with her elbow, gesturing emphatically with her eyes; this was the First Scholar, after all, a powerful ally for her big brother in the future. She couldn’t afford to offend him.

Already not fond of Ma Junying, Xia Zheng rolled his eyes in silence, but soon laughed and went along with her, nodding and saying, "Exactly! Yuanyuan is absolutely right!"

Finally catching on, Lin Yuan laughed and nodded, but before she could even nod fully, Xia Zheng’s next words utterly defeated her.

"I said the same thing to her before, but who is Young Master Ma? He is the exalted First Scholar with unlimited glory! How could the First Scholar accept our modest kindness? A government official should love the people as his own children, and since we are all the First Scholar’s children, how could he have the heart to eat our food for free? Right, First Scholar? Surely you can’t eat for free? Hm?"

Ma Junying’s mouth twitched, and seeing Xia Zheng’s scheming, fox-like grin, he felt so frustrated he almost fainted.

"Young Master Xia is right." Ma Junying managed to squeeze out a few words and pulled a stack of silver notes from his bosom, slamming them down on the counter in front of Xia Zheng: "One thousand silver, that should be enough, right?"

"Enough..."

Lin Yuan was about to reach for it when Xia Zheng firmly caught her hand: "One thousand silver? Hmm, First Scholar, you might want to check the bill before asking."