Chapter 145: Chillis (2)

Chu Lian couldn’t quite make out what they were saying, but she could recognise her eldest brother-in-law’s voice, so she was a little curious. Thus, she sent Wenqing off to ask about what was going on.
In a short moment, He Changqi walked over with his manservant, Kangshou.
Chu Lian quickly stood up to greet him.
“Third Sister-in-Law, how did you come to be here in the middle of the day?”
Chu Lian smiled. “Replying to Eldest Brother-in-Law, I ate too much in the afternoon, so I’m taking a walk in the gardens to digest my meal. I walked all the way here without realising and happened to notice Eldest Brother-in-Law’s voice outside, so I sent my maidservant over to check. Eldest Brother-in-Law, where did you go? Have you taken your midday meal?”
Chu Lian looked sweet and pretty. Adding on to the fact that she had been quiet and obedient after marrying into the estate, as well as having earned a good reputation for herself at the Dingyuan Estate, He Changqi had a very positive impression of this newlywed sister-in-law of his.
He was so used to being the eldest sibling that he would dote on the younger members of the family even more. Although he looked a little fierce on the outside, he had a kind heart. Chu Lian was his little brother’s wife; with He Changqi’s character, of course he treated her like his own younger sister.
“I’ve already had my lunch. I went over to Honglu Temple this morning to meet some outsider friends. Third Sister-in-Law, did you know? Those outsiders really do have red hair and green eyes!”
He Changqi spoke in such an interesting manner that Chu Lian’s eyes brightened with interest.
“Eldest Brother-in-Law, did you eat the food the outsiders made?”
“Of course!”
“Is their food very different from what we eat in our Great Wu Dynasty?”
After hearing Chu Lian’s questions, a constipated expression came over He Changqi’s face. Combined with the tan of his skin and his large build,, he looked exactly like a pouting bear. It was very funny, but Chu Lian and her maidservants managed to hold back their laughter, thanks to their status.
“That meal… Ay… Let’s not talk about it…”
It tasted so bad that he wanted to tear up. After eating that strange meal, He Changqi had started to pity those outsiders. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have spent tens of taels to buy that carriage of useless ‘chillis’.
He recalled what those outsiders had said, that those ‘chillis’ were a type of food. However, after he and Kangshou had a bite, their mouths were on fire! They had to gulp down two whole cups of tea to even come close to calming the burning of their tongues.
Casting a look over the curious and sparkly-eyed sister-in-law of his, He Changqi had a sudden idea.
“That’s right, I bought something from those outsiders today — they told me it was a type of food. Does Third Sister-in-Law want to take a look?”
Chu Lian happened to be super curious about it, so how could she reject the offer?
Thus, she followed He Changqi through the entrance to the outer court.
He Changqi waved his hand at the two manservants moving some goods out of the carriage. He Changqi lead her over, and when they got close enough, he personally took up one of the cloth sacks and opened it up for her.
Chu Lian peeked in, only to see that the bag was full of dried chillis. Their skins were red and shiny, and they had teeny tips. Cute!
Chu Lian tried to stay calm, but she couldn’t help but get excited at the sight. “Eldest Brother-in-Law, what are these?”
He Changqi seemed to feel that these goods weren’t useful at all. He simply twisted the sack closed before tossing it back onto the carriage. “The outsiders who sold this to me told me they’re called chillis.”
Chu Lian had to gulp down the saliva that had unconsciously begun to pool in her mouth . “Umm, I wonder… if Eldest Brother-in-Law could give me some of these chillis? I want to use them as ingredients to cook with.”
To cook with?
When Chu Lian mentioned food, He Changqi remembered the snacks that she had made over the past few days. These chillis were useless to him anyway, so why not give them to Chu Lian?
“Third Sister-in-Law, if you want them, you can have them all. These things are useless to me.”
Chu Lian hadn’t expected her eldest brother-in-law to give her the whole lot just like that, so she was a little shocked. She wanted to reject the offer, but He Changqi’s manservant spoke up, “Third Young Madam, these chillis aren’t worth much; they’re just some goods that a young outsider brought into the capital. He wanted to sell it for a good price, but he didn’t expect that no one even wanted to buy them. He was in a rush to go home, so he came to Heir Jing’an looking for help. Heir Jing’an took pity on him and gave him some taels so he could go home. This carriage of chillis just happened to be something extra. If you don’t want these, the steward is most likely going to toss everything away!”