Chapter 1: Longjin Bridge Food Street, Wonderful!

Located twenty miles from Bianjing, Shangyuan Village is surrounded by mountains and water. The mountains are shrouded in mist, the streams are crystal clear and flow gently, and the fruit trees are lush and laden with mulberries and plums...

As the morning mist gradually dissipated, wisps of smoke rose from chimneys, adding a touch of warmth and life to the village.

Near the riverbank close to the back mountain, there is a simple wooden bridge, which villagers use to travel between the fields and their homes.

There was a house by the bridge with a thick thatched roof, a plot of land in front of the yard for growing vegetables, and two chickens kept in the backyard.

Amidst the sounds of roosters crowing and dogs barking, the wooden door opened, revealing a figure carrying a bamboo basket. Inside were freshly picked green plums, which, due to the low night temperature, had been covered in frost, now glistening with dewdrops.

Plop—all the green plums were poured into the water. Lu Qiong rubbed coarse salt on the surface of the green plums and scrubbed them clean in the water.

Today is Grain in Ear (芒种). In addition to offering sacrifices to the seedlings and sending off the Flower Goddess, people also brew wine with green plums.

Lu Qiong doesn't drink alcohol; she only plans to make crispy plums! They can be eaten raw or used as a side dish. She removes the stems from the green plums, washes them, drains them, and brings them into the house.

She didn't have many belongings; under the wall was only a cabinet with a hipped roof and rounded corners, and on the square table was a yellowed bronze mirror, which she had later had craftsmen polish.

After placing the green plums on the table, Lu Qiong used a knife to make slits in each one, sprinkled them with coarse salt, mixed them thoroughly, and then covered them with a basin. By the afternoon, the juice would have been extracted.

After finishing all this, it was already Chen Shi (7-9 AM). Lu Xuan came out of the bedroom, her eyes not fully open, and carried a basin to the yard to wash up.

The two had been giving each other the cold shoulder for several days because of the trip to Bianjing, but Lu Qiong still stopped her: "The tooth powder has been replaced, it's placed by the well."

Seeing that she did not respond, he simply sighed and went to the kitchen to start a fire, intending to steam buns.

Several earthenware jars were placed in the wooden cabinet next to the stove. Half a jar of rendered lard was still left. It was a snow-white paste that smelled very fragrant and would last for a long time.

First, mix the new dough, then pinch off a piece of the previously fermented old dough and knead it together. This way, the dough will rise properly.

The filling is made of ground pork, three parts fat and seven parts lean, minced into a paste, then mixed with scallion and ginger water to remove any unpleasant smell, seasonings, chopped scallions, and lard, releasing a fragrant aroma. The filling is then shaped into palm-sized pieces, placed one by one on a steamer, and soon put into the pot to steam.

The stove was made of three stone slabs, and some dry firewood was piled up next to it. Lu Qiong put a few pieces of firewood into the stove opening, stuffed in a small bundle of straw, struck a flint and sparks, and the straw was lit.

As the firewood in the stove burned down, she smelled the aroma of meat buns, which immediately whetted her appetite.

I wet my fingers a little and couldn’t wait to lift the lid of the pot. A burst of hot steam hit me and I almost got burned. But the bun skin was very thin, and some of the buns even had red oil seeping out.

I made about ten in total, and I can still save some for lunch.

Lu Qiong picked up a piece with her chopsticks, took a big bite, and the oil inside sizzled out, making her mouth a little hot. She couldn't help but breathe out to warm it.

The pork filling was steamed until very soft, with a perfect balance of saltiness and savory flavor. She finished it off in just a few bites, along with the thin bun wrapper.

Just then, Lu Xuan returned from watering the fields. She washed her hands, sat down by the stove, grabbed a meat bun, and stuffed it into her mouth, eating it with great relish.

After having breakfast, Lu Qiong went to the yard to collect the dried summer privet grass, filling two baskets, and placed them in the corner of the wall.

There were quite a few carriages going into the city, and the fare was ten coins per trip. Lu Qiong paid it readily, but Lu Xuan was reluctant to spend the money.

Seeing this, Lu Qiong comforted her: "This money is necessary and cannot be saved. When you set up a stall in the city, you will still need to spend twenty coins every day."

It would have been better if she hadn't said those words. The explanation made Lu Xuan even more distressed. The thought of spending money on the road every day made her feel bad, but she couldn't resist her older sister's determination to go to the city.

After driving along the country road for a while, you'll see the high city walls. The South Gate is completely surrounded. The drivers have stopped their oxcarts outside the city to wait for people to unload their goods, and the women have also jumped off the carts.

Lu Qiong only learned this time when she went out that ordinary people had to apply for a "public certificate" from the government to cross prefectures and cities, and merchants had to pay taxes when transporting goods. Ordinary people like her could freely enter and leave the outer city, which is why everyone said it was good to go into the city.

They then joined the queue at the city gate. The gatekeeper conducted a routine inspection, and Lu Qiong explained the purpose of entering the city to him and paid the "passage tax," after which they could pass through the city gate.

Lu Qiong knew he was worldly-wise, but after spending so much time in Shangyuan Village, he was still amazed by the bustling prosperity of Bianjing.

Lu Xuan, needless to say, stared wide-eyed, her face filled with shock, and she could barely speak: "Sister, this is too big... This house is so tall, and that bridge is wider than our yard."

She wasn't exaggerating. The bridge was lined with stalls on both sides, and there was a wide avenue in the middle, allowing even convoys to pass through without any obstruction.

Bianjing was densely populated, with convenient water transportation, highly developed handicrafts and agriculture, and countless businesses within the city, including fruit shops, yarn shops, bookstores, jade shops, lacquer shops, spice shops, and so on.

The various stalls had attracted a lot of people. If Lu Qiong hadn't been selling medicinal herbs, she would have stopped to join in the fun.

Upon reaching the North Alley, one sees an imposing building with a large plaque hanging above the tall golden camphor wood gate, inscribed with the three characters "Jishetang" in bold lacquer.

Unlike its exterior, the interior is simple and elegant. Upon entering, one can smell a rich herbal fragrance. There is a long cabinet carved from sandalwood, and an apprentice dressed in blue is fiddling with an abacus and recording accounts. Meanwhile, a doctor sits at the consultation table on the right, taking the pulse of a patient.

"The right cun pulse is thin and weak, indicating severe deficiency of Qi in the Lung Meridian..."

Lu Qiong went straight to the apprentice and asked him about the price of Prunella vulgaris.

The apprentice put down his pen, walked over and fiddled with the selfheal in the basket, took out a stalk to examine its quality: "Young lady, this selfheal looks really good today, I can give you an extra ten percent."

In the end, the apprentice at Jishetang offered eleven coins per catty. Lu Qiong's bamboo basket contained about eight catties, and Lu Xuan's basket contained more than six catties. They sold for a total of one hundred and sixty-five coins.

It wasn't much, considering that people in Bianjing could earn nearly a hundred coins a day, and they had been collecting these herbs for several days. However, it was enough to start their stall.

Thinking this way, she felt a little happy, thinking that maybe the matter of taking over the shop would be settled soon.

The most popular beverage in town is perilla drink. Even a new stall can attract many customers, since drinking perilla in the summer is a trend. If it tastes good, it can keep many customers coming back.

Lu Qiong also planned to sell perilla drink first, since there was readily available perilla at the foot of the mountain, which would save a lot of money. The rest, such as sugar frosting, licorice, dried tangerine peel, and citron, would have to be bought from the shop, and he could buy them all in Bianjing today.

After leaving Jishetang, she asked around for pharmacies with lower prices, hid the remaining money pouch in her inner garment, and then followed Lu Xuan through the alleys.

The pharmacy was rather small, sandwiched between two clothing shops. The old wooden signboard read "Xinglin Pharmacy." Inside, there was only one counter where an old man sat holding a book. He had silver eyebrows and white hair, but was still very energetic.

When people arrived, he acted very arrogantly, not even raising his head.

Lu Qiong thought he couldn't hear: "Please trouble the old man to give me four ounces of dried tangerine peel and six ounces of licorice root."

A tael of dried tangerine peel is worth a tael of gold; the older it is, the more valuable it becomes. However, she only buys ordinary dried tangerine peel, which costs no more than three coins per tael, and licorice root costs only one coin. Pharmacies usually buy medicine by the pound, and after deducting processing fees, they still make a considerable profit.

The old man then put down his book, skillfully pulled out a drawer from the medicine cabinet, grabbed a handful of dark-colored dried tangerine peel with his left hand, and weighed it on a scale. He was quick and precise, grabbing exactly four ounces at a time.

Lu Qiong was full of praise in her heart. She hadn't even seen the medicine clearly before the old man had already prepared it. His skills were too good. It would definitely take more than ten years to catch up with his skills.

Zhuque Gate leads west to Xinmen Wazi, and after crossing Longjin Bridge, you reach the center of the streets and alleys. Although it cannot compare to Zhouqiao Night Market, which is located in the center of the city, it is now crowded with people.

The aromas of Zhao's gourd soup shop, Qian's honey cake shop, Sun's dried fruit shop, and Li's bean soup shop wafted from both sides of the street.

Lu Xuan also began to worry. Her older sister couldn't resist visiting the shops and would spend dozens of coins on fragrant drinks. If she bought another pound of frosting sugar, they would soon be broke.

But every household item like firewood, rice, oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, and tea costs money. If my sister continues to act recklessly like this, we'll be starving one day.

Lu Qiong had already entered the general store, which was filled with a dazzling array of goods, from bowls and plates to grains and cereals.

Sugar-making technology was already mature during the Song Dynasty, but sugar was still not cheap. You didn't know how much sugar you needed to boil a pot of water. Nowadays, with less money, you naturally can't buy a lot.

Lu Qiong still had over a hundred coins in his hand, enough to cover his return journey, and the remainder to buy sugar and citron.

It was quite a task to find "icing sugar," which is similar to white sugar, but contains impurities; it would be more appropriate to call it "rustic white sugar." There are also blocks of "rock sugar," which are more expensive than icing sugar. They are made by adding several processes to icing sugar, resulting in a thicker, sweeter texture.

Perilla drink should ideally be made with rock sugar. If she made money, she would like to replace the frosting with rock sugar, but for now, she can only make do with what she has.

Lu Qiong then asked the shopkeeper, "How's the price?"

The shopkeeper put down his abacus and smiled, "Thirty coins a pound, young lady, would you like a pound?"

Lu Xuan heard this as soon as she entered the door, and she stumbled. That's thirty coins! It must be gold! She steadied herself and wanted to interject, but her older sister spoke first.

"How much does honey cost per pound?"

The shopkeeper said, "It costs twenty coins. Although it's cheaper than icing sugar, it doesn't taste as good..."

Lu Xuan breathed a sigh of relief. It turned out that her older sister was also thrifty and hardworking. With the previous comparison, twenty coins was barely acceptable.

Lu Qiong, who was thrifty and hardworking, did hesitate. Honey was indeed cheaper, and it wouldn't be a bad idea to replace the frosting with honey, but honey would turn sour when heated, and the taste would definitely be worse.

She looked up and made the final decision: "Okay, I'll take a pound of icing sugar."

The shopkeeper tried to persuade him further: "This honey won't do... What? Frosting! Alright, I'll pack it in a clay pot for you right away. The pots come together, and it's free."

In comparison, the soft sighs behind him seemed almost inaudible.

After leaving the general store, Lu Qiong felt much lighter. But spending money really does bring joy; later, she even went to the fruit shop and spent five coins to buy three or five citrons.

Citron is similar to lemon, except that citron has less pulp and tastes more sour. It is not very tasty to eat directly and is often used in medicine. Adding a little to perilla drink can add some sourness, which she thinks is still worthwhile.

Walking back to Longjin Bridge, the streets were lined with food stalls selling roasted meat, dried meat, Yitang melons, sugar-coated mung beans, crystal dumplings, cold yellow dumplings, and various kinds of sweet dumplings...

If only I could set up a stall here, customers could go to another stall to buy pancakes when they're hungry, and come to her stall to buy a bowl of perilla drink when they're thirsty. It's sweet and sour and delicious. Just thinking about it makes me feel wonderful!

Seeing another stall selling mung bean soup ahead, Lu Qiong led Lu Xuan forward to inquire about the business of selling boiled mung bean soup.

A note from the author:

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