After Transmigration, Her Whole Family Are Villains

That day.

There was no clinking of glasses.

No wild abandon.

Just a very formal birthday celebration.

Unexpectedly so.

The invited guests came reluctantly, holding their noses.

Lord He also received an invitation. Upon learning that Commander Jiang's eldest son was born in the Year of the Rat, he pooled public funds with his own money and specially commissioned a life-sized solid gold rat from a jewelry store as a gift.

Because it was a life-sized golden rat, and solid gold at that, Lord He had truly put in great effort and expense. Though some was reimbursed from public funds, he also paid out of pocket, and the manufacturing costs alone were not insignificant.

So when presenting the gift, he didn't even use a box to cover it, but simply tied it with a colorful ribbon.

When it was announced - "Lord He presents one solid gold rat!"

It was quite impressive indeed.

The handsome Commander Jiang graciously smiled and shook his hand, exchanging a few words.

Money truly can make people smile.

Commander Jiang smiled and said, "We're so grateful to Lord He for all his hard work in helping us settle here in the Provincial Capital, and now this precious gift on top of that. We can't thank you enough."

Lord He straightened up considerably from his slight bow.

"You're too kind, it's only right. I wish the young master Jiang long life and good health." After saying it, Lord He felt a bit awkward.

It was the first time he'd wished someone's son long life in front of their father. Something about it felt off.

Then he heard Commander Jiang say, "Next month is little Xu's birthday too. Lord He must come then as well - we're all family here."

Lord He: ...

He wiped the sweat from his brow with one hand. Surely next month's gift could be expensed too, right? This was all part of building relationships, wasn't it?

"I understand completely. Then I shall present another life-sized solid gold rat, to make a matching pair."

But Commander Jiang shook his head repeatedly.

"No, no, no. Little Xu was born in the Year of the Ox." (Note 1)

Lord He's eyes rolled back and he nearly fainted...

...

Meng Shaoxia, born in the Year of the Ox, suddenly felt his ears itching.

Someone must be talking about him behind his back.

Could it be his parents missing him?

It's possible.

Come to think of it, it had been a long time since he'd gone home. Should he go back for a visit and let his parents and grandmother meet little Yu'er?

They would surely be delighted.

...

The crowd pinched their noses and pretended to be happy as they came to deliver birthday gifts.

But then they saw that Zi Wenxin and Gong Qichi had actually come.

The atmosphere suddenly became much more serious.

After all, when Zi Lu led troops into the city, it had left quite an impression on everyone.

Zi Wenxin had done something that made everyone's heads smoke.

When the rebels entered the city, a group of scholars cursed at them.

He held a banquet, inviting both famous and unknown scholars, and set up a debate with two teams.

The topic: Should the current Emperor's rule continue to exist or not?

The winners would get luxurious chariots and horses, and positions in the rebel ranks. The losers would be beheaded.

But the problem was, the winning team's stance was "The current Emperor's rule should exist and has superiority."

This was rather sudden and unpredictable.

Zi Wenxin's view was that the stance didn't matter - what mattered was winning. Win first, worry about the rest later.

In any case, this Zi Wenxin was also one of the Provincial Capital's celebrities.

Gong Qichi needed no introduction - he was rebel Zi Lu's number one henchman.

He'd strike wherever pointed, despite being a top scholar, more vicious than a wild dog.

The nobles who came all put aside their arrogance and reluctance, becoming much more docile, with sweeter smiles.

Just drink some tea and eat a little, treat it like attending a tea party, chat idly, build some relationships - thinking of it this way, the gifts given didn't seem like such a loss.

It's just that the food and drink at this banquet seemed rather plain.

Not like a wealthy household or upper-class gathering, with tables piled high and plates overflowing.

The way the dishes were arranged seemed to say, "I'll consider it my loss if you starve to death."

Each dish was very small and delicate.

There was even a bowl with just three vegetable leaves floating in it. For a table of twelve people, this was a bit much. How to divide it?

Three leaves to kill twelve men?

This meager fare was looking down on them.

Did they think the gifts brought weren't generous enough?

When they saw servants in white clothes and white hats approaching with knives, they were even more startled.

Surely they weren't going to butcher anyone? It shouldn't come to that - they had brought gifts, and generous ones at that.

But then they saw the servants use the knives to scoop out those three leaves, cut each leaf into three, turning them into four strips, then ladle out a bowl of soup for each person, adding one small strip of leaf.

Under the smiling gaze of the knife-wielding men in white clothes and hats,

Everyone gave face and picked up their bowls to drink the soup.

"Son of a—!"

"By the gods!"

"Bloody hell!"

As soon as the soup touched their throats,

Curses floated out.

When something is truly delicious, there's no time for composing poetry or praise or finding literary allusions. The most instinctive reaction is an honest expletive.

The soup was so savory it made them think of their mothers, their first loves, their cousins, the neighbor's wife, that incorruptible official who sold his body but not his integrity, the golden days of childhood.

In short, it was unforgettable.

And it was just one sip of soup.

Then they ate that strip of vegetable leaf.

Surprisingly, it was full of the soup's savory flavor plus the leaf's own sweetness. The leaf was cooked just right, neither mushy nor tough, with a crisp freshness that was still friendly to the teeth.

It fully considered that many people might have dental issues.

One leaf. No, just a strip of one leaf.

And this was only the first course.

It left people savoring every bite, their eyes red with emotion.

It was a bit over-dramatic.

The composed Zi Wenxin watched everyone, thinking the officials and nobles of the Provincial Capital were getting better at acting.

Was all this really necessary, over a bowl of soup?

It was practically a mime performance.

How touching.

They never showed such emotion when his godfather was around.

He calmly took a sip of the soup.

Then he silently drank the soup.

Silently ate the vegetables.

Silently ate the meat.

Silently ate the wild onions he used to dislike.

Silently drank more soup.

Silence is the best expression - talking means missing out on food.

...

Of course, one must check their phone while eating. Oh wait, no - watch the song and dance performance.

At this point, the Jiang Manor's musical performance began.

"Boom!"

Everyone's spirits were lifted!

...

...

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