Chef Hua

She had not slept well all night and had barely made it until dawn when Hua Xiaomai settled little Walnut and bid Meng’s mother a quick hello. Then, with dark circles under her eyes, she hurried to Daoxiang Garden.

At this hour, the clerks had just taken down the door planks. The greasy air that had been trapped inside the lobby all night seeped out, certainly not pleasant. Chun Xi, covering her nose, instructed Qing You and the others to hurry and tidy up. She turned around, saw Hua Xiaomai, and said with a smile, "Yo, how come you’re so diligent today? Here I thought you’d forget about the shop now that you have a child, thoroughly addicted to tossing the responsibility to someone else, never bothering with this end of things!"

Wang Zhanrui, who usually arrived early each day, also came over to say a few words when he saw her.

"About the Eight Treasures Conference, I think you need to decide sooner rather than later. If you decide to go, we should quickly find out what this year’s theme is, to better prepare, right?"

Hua Xiaomai was not in the mood for small talk, and she nodded absentmindedly before turning around and signaling to Ji Xiang.

"Run an errand to Lianshun Escort Agency for me." She pondered and instructed, "Go see if Yuhuai is there and what the situation is; tell him I have something important to discuss with him, and I’m waiting at home. Tell him to make time to come back today. When you speak, do it away from others, not loudly in front of everyone. Pull him aside and speak quietly, remember?"

Meng Yuhuai was not the type to be irresponsible or ignore his family. If he hadn’t come home last night, either Han Hu hadn’t relayed the message, or more likely, he had been tied up with something and couldn’t disengage for the moment. Therefore, she was more anxious than annoyed.

The matter from yesterday didn’t seem to need urgent attention after all; Han Hu and the others hadn’t departed for Lizhou yet, everything was still manageable. But keeping those two unpredictable powder kegs close within the Escort Agency still made it impossible for her to feel at ease.

"Alright." Ji Xiang nodded heartily, "And if he’s not there, should I just come back?"

"If he’s not there..."

Hua Xiaomai pondered for a moment: "There’s a Han in the Escort Agency; do you recognize him? Yes, he has been to our Daoxiang Garden several times, I reckon you must remember him. If Yuhuai isn’t there, go find that Brother Han, inquire about the situation, and ask him when they are setting off."

Ji Xiang did not know her purpose, but seeing her somber expression, he realized this was no joking matter and turned to run toward the west end of the village.