"How could it be unrelated? Don't you want an extra helper?" Yi Qing asked with a meaningful smile.
Xue Miao'er stared at her in surprise. "Are you trying to seek the tiger's skin?"
"It's too early to talk about this," Yi Qing squinted her eyes, a sly glint dancing in them. "Let me give it a try."
Xue Miao'er got excited. "Take me with you, take me!"
"Take you to ruin things? Stay put and wait for me." Yi Qing stood up.
"Just go like this?" Xue Miao'er stared blankly, completely stunned.
Yi Qing rolled her eyes. "I'm hungry. I feel like having Steamed Crab in Orange today. There are no crabs in the small kitchen. I'll go to the big kitchen to check."
She wasn't that stupid to go straight to Mrs. Lin. Who was she anyway?
By using silver to open the way in a place like the kitchen where people talked a lot, she was sure to get the information she wanted.
She had to go now, because after Mrs. Lin went back, after the brief chaos, she would surely pay more attention to her.
In other words, she had already "exposed" herself in front of Mrs. Lin.
Yi Qing unceremoniously opened Xue Miao'er's trunk and grabbed a handful of silver ingots, stuffing her purse full.
Xue Miao'er still said stupidly, "There are gold ingots in the box next to it. You can take some too."
Yi Qing didn't want to bother with her anymore. She walked out quickly, still hearing Xue Miao'er mumbling something behind her.
Yi Qing walked all the way to the big kitchen. The cooks and kitchen helpers inside were busy working.
When they saw Yi Qing coming, they still showed some respect.
— Although they looked down on Xue Miao'er's background, they couldn't help it because Xue Miao'er had a knife in her hand!
Who would dare to look down on a bandit? No, who would dare to let a bandit know that they looked down on her?
Wasn't that just asking for trouble?
So when they saw Yi Qing coming, a cook still smiled and asked, "Does the young lady need anything?"
Yi Qing took out a handful of silver ingots and handed them over. "The Second Young Mistress said that we'll trouble you all in the future. Take this to buy some wine. Just don't delay your work."
The cook was overjoyed when she saw the shiny silver ingots. She wiped her hands on her apron before reaching out to take them, thanking Yi Qing repeatedly.
When the others saw the silver, they all gathered around to say nice things.
Yi Qing smiled and said, "Go and get back to work quickly. Don't delay the masters' business. The Second Young Mistress said she wants to eat Steamed Crab in Orange. She sent me to see if there are any crabs. Just spare a few. Crabs are cold in nature. You can't eat too many of them anyway."
"Yes, yes, yes," the cook took the silver and was eager to please. She quickly said enthusiastically, "They're right here. I'll pick some fat ones for you."
Yi Qing looked at the water tank outside and said with a smile, "I'll pick them myself. Sister, just give me a hand. Our Second Young Mistress grew up in luxury since she was a child. She's very picky about food. Take this Steamed Crab in Orange for example. It takes a lot of time and effort. And no matter what ingredients you use, as long as there's something wrong with one of them, she can tell."
The cook's eyes showed a bit more surprise. She didn't dare to underestimate Xue Miao'er anymore.
— Such a precious master was not easy to serve. One had to be very careful.
Yi Qing followed her to the water tank in the yard to pick crabs.
Yi Qing herself was a foodie, so she knew very well what kind of crabs were fat. She easily picked out four very fat big crabs and said, "These will do. Thank you, sister."
She quietly stuffed another handful of silver ingots into the cook's hand. The latter understood immediately and quickly put them away without even pretending to decline. Her actions were very natural, obviously indicating that she was no stranger to taking bribes.
But after taking the extra silver, her attitude became even more enthusiastic.
"I'll find some ropes to tie them up for you to take back."
"Actually," Yi Qing said, "the Second Young Mistress thinks the pots in our small kitchen are no good. She insists that new pots don't cook food well. Can I use your stove here?"
"Of course you can. The Second Young Mistress is also a master in the mansion." the cook replied.
Only then did Yi Qing say casually, "I'm just afraid of delaying your work. After all, there are still the master, the mistress, the Eldest Young Master and the Eldest Young Mistress in the mansion. The Second Young Mistress is new here. We don't want others to find fault with her. Although the wedding was really a mess, as servants, we always have to be careful and remind our masters, right?"
The cook nodded repeatedly and flattered, "With a capable person like you by her side, the Second Young Mistress can save a lot of trouble. You don't have to worry about me. I know what I'm doing! The master and the Eldest Young Master are not at home. The mistress is a Buddhist and eats very little. Apart from the regular meals, the Second Young Mistress rarely asks for anything. It's just her maids who often come. So you can rest assured. There's nothing to do at this time."
Yi Qing pretended to heave a sigh of relief. "That's good. I hope it won't affect you. The master is busy with official business. Is the Eldest Young Master also on a mission outside?"
"Well, not exactly..." The cook became hesitant.
Yi Qing simply stuffed her purse into the cook's sleeve and lowered her voice. "Sister, I won't make things difficult for you. Just tell me something that everyone knows. I'm just new here with the Second Young Mistress. I'm completely in the dark. I just want to get a feel of the masters' personalities. I don't want to know any private secrets. I've heard a bit about the Eldest Young Master's affair with Miss Liu outside..."
Hearing this, the cook immediately felt relieved. She thought that these were indeed not secrets, and since the girl already knew about them, it couldn't be considered as a leak from her.
For the sake of the silver, she lowered her voice and said, "The Eldest Young Master had a big fight with the Eldest Young Mistress last time. He hasn't been back to the mansion for three months. He did come back on the wedding day, but he didn't stay."
So he only came back on the wedding day... It was too late to plant the seed now.
Not coming back for three months. That was great.
Yi Qing got the information she wanted. She was in a good mood. She pretended to be surprised and covered her mouth. "That's such a long time! Let's not talk about this anymore. We don't want someone with a bad intention to hear it and stir up trouble in front of the masters."
The cook was very satisfied with her discretion. She nodded and said, "That's right! You're such a sensible girl."
Yi Qing managed to get some more details. Then she rolled up her sleeves and started to cook the time-consuming Steamed Crab in Orange.
Her knife skills were sharp, and her cooking method was novel. It attracted all the cooks to stop their work and gather around to watch.
Yi Qing couldn't help but think proudly. If she wasn't using a scalpel, she was using a kitchen knife. And in a critical moment, she could even pick up a machete. She was really a talented person.
She was also generous. While cooking, she explained, "For this Steamed Crab in Orange, you must use live female crabs that weigh more than three taels and are full of crab roe..."
With a wave of her knife, in the blink of an eye, the crabs were ready to be steamed. It amazed everyone.
Someone joked, "You should cook more, so that we can also have a taste. Crabs are not that expensive. The masters don't eat much of them. It's us servants who eat them more often. I wonder if you would mind the trouble."
Yi Qing was delighted. Just what she wanted!