"Brother Yan, do you think this will work?" Zhang Hong said, looking over at Wang Mei.
Wang Mei shyly lowered her head, staring at her slender fingers that were constantly twisting her blue cloth dress.
Yan Zhen Guo said directly, "This is simple, I remember Xiao Mei is in the performing arts troupe... doesn't the troupe have male members?"
This hit the point, causing Zhang Hong to stutter, "There are, but those guys with their high-pitched nasal voices, how can they compare to you, Brother Yan, with your proper training?"
The words were stuttered, clearly just thought up.
Gu Fuqiao chuckled inwardly while raising her eyes to glance at the bashful Wang Mei.
Although Wang Mei was a bit shy at the moment, she still occasionally looked up at Yan Zhen Guo, then quickly lowered her head again.
She thought, since Brother Yan didn't directly address this, it meant that he also doesn't want her to date someone.
Brother Yan must have good feelings towards her, thinking this, Wang Mei felt a burst of joy. As she raised her head again to look at the man beside her, she saw Gu Fuqiao watching her with smiling eyes.
The bashful smile on her lips diminished considerably, and she hurriedly lowered her head.
Gu Fuqiao had written about many 'white lotus' characters, she knew exactly what Wang Mei was thinking.
But to show such young girlish feelings so openly in front of someone's wife.
This 'white lotus' can't be too skilled then.
"So, after thinking it over, asking for Brother Yan's help in matchmaking is the best," Zhang Hong said with a few dry laughs.
After Zhang Hong finished speaking, Yan Zhen Guo didn't respond immediately. As he raised his wine glass, his eyes accidentally glanced at Gu Fuqiao beside him.
Gu Fuqiao had no idea what Yan Zhen Guo was pondering, but whether or not he liked Wang Mei had nothing to do with her, because Yan Zhen Guo was definitely not going to be Wang Mei's.
With this thought, she found it uninteresting and decisively started eating zongzi.
Luckily, the zongzi was sweet and sticky, and she quite liked it.
Zhang Hong noticed the couple wasn't speaking, felt inwardly worried, thinking their relationship might be too good for her test, and wondered if she was wrong.
But that's not right... Everyone in the family compound knew this couple didn't have a good relationship!
Yan Zhen Guo's expression, as usual, was cold and indifferent, giving no clue of what was going on.
Gu Fuqiao, however, was eating her zongzi, looking like an oblivious big sister, seemingly unaware of the test.
It seems the saying is true, reading too much makes you naive!
Thinking this, Zhang Hong smiled and asked Gu Fuqiao, "Sister Gu, what do you think?"
Gu Fuqiao didn't expect Zhang Hong to directly ask this question.
She glanced at the people at the table, although she didn't like Sister-in-law Wang, she wasn't sure about Yan Zhen Guo and Wang Zongbing's relationship.
Offending Wang Zongbing wouldn't be a good thing.
Only the person who tied the bell on the tiger can take it off.
"After all, I've only been married to Zhen Guo a short while, I'm not very clear about these things." Gu Fuqiao passed this hot potato back to Yan Zhen Guo.
Hearing this, Yan Zhen Guo set down his wine glass and looked at Zhang Hong, "Sister, this matter is easy to solve."
"How?" Seeing Yan Zhen Guo speak, Zhang Hong looked up and asked.
Yan Zhen Guo said to Wang Zongbing, "Brother Wang, remember we have a social event with the performing arts troupe for the Dragon Boat Festival?"
Wang Zongbing, hearing this, nodded in realization, then turned to frown at Zhang Hong with a slightly reproachful tone, "It's my fault I forgot to tell you, there's a social event on Dragon Boat Festival where Xiao Mei will attend as well. Xiao Mei hasn't received the notice yet, right? The notification should come the day after tomorrow."
"Yes... I didn't know..." Wang Mei replied somewhat dejectedly.
After speaking, Wang Mei looked sadly at Yan Zhen Guo, hoping he would avoid or deflect the question as before, but she didn't expect him to say this...
"It's fine, now that you know. Zongbing, you didn't mention it earlier." Zhang Hong didn't expect this outcome, awkwardly laughed twice and said, "Everyone eat... eat..."
Unhappy with the result, Zhang Hong continued her meal, feeling increasingly uncomfortable.
Having no other choice, she lowered her head and ate.
Wang Mei took a couple of bites of food tastelessly and then suddenly said with a smile, "Sister-in-law, your cooking is getting more delicious."
"Really?" Zhang Hong, who was eating quietly, was taken aback by Wang Mei's sudden remark.
She was momentarily bewildered.
Wang Mei nodded, then looked to Gu Fuqiao and said, "Sister-in-law Gu, I heard you rarely cook, but Brother Yan is so tired usually, isn't it good if he can't have a hot meal at home? Why not take some time to learn from my sister-in-law?"
Wang Mei appeared to be considering her well-being, and anyone would think she's understanding.
But why would a 'white lotus' care for her 'rival'?
Her words were obviously meant to show how virtuous she is while subtly reminding Yan Zhen Guo, and telling others that Gu Fuqiao can't even cook!
"Heard?" Gu Fuqiao raised her eyebrows a bit, holding a zongzi with her chopsticks, "Who did you hear that from? Hearing is deceptive! I can cook quite a variety, and I cook daily."
"Oh..." Wang Mei didn't expect Gu Fuqiao to respond like that, she distinctly remembered her sister-in-law mentioning that Gu Fuqiao never handled household chores!
"Yes, I can do braised chicken, duck, fish, and meat." Besides writing novels, cooking was indeed one of Gu Fuqiao's specialties.
Perhaps there were ways to let her embarrass herself with other matters.
But using this one... it's definitely a misstep!
"I couldn't tell sister-in-law was so skilled... Did Sister-in-law Gu learn cooking before marriage?" Wang Mei asked, still somewhat reluctant.
Gu Fuqiao stated the facts plainly, "It's simple, I learned from recipes and some articles on cooking methods."
This time Gu Fuqiao didn't think much of it, but across from her, Wang Mei felt uncomfortable.
As a female soldier in the performing arts troupe, she of course could read, but the books she read couldn't compare to those from an intellectual family background like Gu Fuqiao's.
Although Gu Fuqiao wasn't from a good background, Wang Mei felt she was being mocked for being uneducated!
"Sister-in-law is really skilled..." Wang Mei kept her smile as she spoke, but internally, she made a mental note of Gu Fuqiao!