Old Madam couldn't contain her impatience and immediately asked before entering the private room.
With the flattery of the Head Shopkeeper, he should have responded immediately.
But he kept turning his head to glance at the private room on the third floor, hesitating and struggling to speak. "Um... It should be... there's... none..."
Old Madam's face darkened.
She straightened her spine and fiercely pounded her ruyi scepter on the wooden steps of the second floor.
Jiang Sheng, who had just walked nearby, was frightened and instinctively shrank his neck. Fortunately, the Master Chef came over and pulled her under the wooden stairs for temporary shelter.
Jiang Sheng was about to ask about the matter of the cowpeas when the Master Chef gestured for her to be silent.
Instantly, it became quiet under the wooden stairs.
A burly man in his thirties with a strong build and a sweat towel around his neck, and a little girl with a round bun hairstyle around ten years old, both wore the same silent expression, both with their necks shrunk, listening stealthily.
Above their heads, the Head Shopkeeper was also frightened and knelt on the ground with weak knees. "Old Madam, please calm down. This old servant knows his mistake. This old servant has sent a message to all the Elegant Residence establishments to search for the young miss, but there has been no news."
Old Madam remained silent with a darkened expression. She only glanced at the guests coming and going in Elegant Residence, seeming unwilling to ask questions in such a public place.
But the Head Shopkeeper didn't grasp the situation and hurriedly explained, "The young master and young miss are both in the private room just now. This old servant was afraid... afraid..."
Afraid of what? It wasn't made clear.
But it was enough to make Old Madam's expression grow even darker, and the entire Elegant Residence became quiet for a few moments.
The young waiter at the door saw the unfavorable situation and quickly served the last two tables of guests before closing the door of Elegant Residence.
Even Wang Xiaosong was asked to leave. Jiang Sheng, because she was hiding under the wooden steps with the Master Chef, ended up staying there in a daze.
"Old Madam, this old servant..." The Head Shopkeeper wanted to say something more.
The door of the private room on the third floor opened, and Jiang Chengyuan, with a furrowed brow, walked out, followed by Jiang Chenghua with red-rimmed eyes and a personal maid.
"Greetings, Grandmother." The two of them descended to the second floor and greeted in unison.
Old Madam's face remained unyielding, landing on Jiang Chenghua's red-rimmed eyes, and she coldly laughed, "Even your own younger sister is missing without a trace, yet you hide in Elegant Residence's private room to comfort this fake one, Jiang Chengyuan, is this how an elder brother should be?"
The words carried a strong sense of hostility, causing Jiang Sheng's neck to tighten even more under the wooden steps.
On the wooden steps, Jiang Chenghua suppressed her sobbing.
Jiang Chengyuan felt both heartache and helplessness. "Grandmother, even if Chenghua is not a direct blood relative, can these more than ten years of affection be considered fake?"
He couldn't understand why his grandmother couldn't tolerate Jiang Chenghua.
If it weren't for his grandmother's overt and covert attempts to drive away Chenghua, causing his sister to panic and feel at a loss, he wouldn't resist so much in finding his blood-related younger sister.
"Grandmother, please don't send Chenghua away. I will do my best to find our younger sister. Let our Jiang family have two daughters, treating them fairly and equally. Isn't that good?" Jiang Chengyuan sincerely pleaded.
It could be seen that he genuinely wanted to live in peace, to regain the bond of blood relations, and also to keep the companionship of more than ten years.
But, is it really possible?
The Old Madam looked at her beloved grandson, realizing suddenly that he had been raised to be too naive and innocent.
"Even the two legitimate children of the family struggle to get along, let alone two children with such identities. You always think about fairness, but is there really fairness in this world?" she spoke gently, "Do you think it's fair for me to drive away Jiang Chenghuan and refuse to find your legitimate sister? Is that fairness?"
Her words were firm and powerful, resonating through the air.
Without waiting for Jiang Chengyuan to feel ashamed, she descended the stairs, leaning on her walking stick.
The waiter who had been instructed to close the door hurriedly approached, offering support.
The Old Madam glanced at him approvingly, paused at the entrance of the Grand Residence, and said, "Chengyuan, you are a good child, but you shouldn't be too filial. Your mother's words... shouldn't always be taken to heart."
With that, the doors of the Grand Residence swung open, and the Old Madam boarded the horse-drawn carriage, calmly departing.
The entire inn returned to calmness, an eerie calmness.
Jiang Sheng finally raised her head, her neck sore from being hunched down. Just as she was about to speak, there was a commotion overhead.
Jiang Chenghuan, who had been silently shedding tears, finally sobbed, "Brother, don't let the discord between our grandmother and my sister, who has no blood ties, cause any rift between us. I've long been accustomed to it with my mother. Grandmother has never liked us."
Jiang Chengyuan's wavering heart instantly grew resolute.
Yes, their grandmother and mother didn't get along. Their grandmother didn't pay much attention to their mother's most beloved sister either. Sometimes, their mother didn't want to do something, but their grandmother insisted on doing it and reprimanded their mother.
Jiang Chengyuan had grown accustomed to it over the years, but he still felt sorry for his mother.
He comforted his sister in a low voice and even took out all his money, saying, "Chenghuan, don't cry. Brother will take you out to play."
Yet he had forgotten that if their grandmother truly disliked their mother, it was only right that she never found her legitimate granddaughter again.
As the Grand Residence opened its doors to welcome guests, the siblings finally left.
Jiang Sheng rubbed her sore neck and felt delighted to have witnessed such a lively drama.
Back in Xieyang County, only the very wealthy families could watch such dramas. If Jiang Sheng hadn't sneaked in to steal a few chicken feet, she wouldn't have had the chance to see it.
She was as excited as a cat that had caught a mouse. She turned her head, but her excitement froze as she met the plump face of the Master Chef.
"Master Chef..." the young girl nervously fidgeted with her hands behind her back, "I didn't mean to eavesdrop, I..."
She was about to apologize.
The Master Chef suddenly made a "shh" sound, wiping the sweat from his forehead with a towel. His voice was as soft as a mosquito, "Don't tell anyone about what happened just now. We didn't hear or know anything."
Jiang Sheng understood his meaning and nodded vigorously, laughing in sync with the Master Chef.
Suddenly, the voice of the Head Shopkeeper came from behind them. "What don't you know?"
Jiang Sheng nearly jumped out of her skin.
She wanted to tell the Head Shopkeeper not to startle people by speaking suddenly from behind, as it could easily scare someone, didn't he know?
But she felt guilty about her secretive behavior earlier and couldn't speak up.
Fortunately, the Master Chef stepped forward and said, "You were talking to the young girl, right? It seems she has brought something else. Isn't that right, young girl?"
Jiang Sheng remembered the dried green beans she had brought in her cart and quickly replied, "I have a cart full of dried green beans brought from Anshui Prefecture. Does Your Grace Residence want them?"
In Fengjing, there's no shortage of green beans. Why would they need them from Anshui Prefecture?
The Head Shopkeeper snorted disdainfully and shook his head.
Jiang Sheng had grown accustomed to the arrogance of Your Grace Residence, so she didn't mind. She calmly turned around, ready to leave.
But it touched the Master Chef's heart a little. "How should we eat the dried green beans that were transported from afar?"
