Chapter 17 Candied Sweet Potatoes: A Failed Attempt to Steal a Chicken Backfires

"This is utter nonsense! Why take family matters to court? We can resolve them behind closed doors. You're such an insensible child!" Seeing that this tactic wasn't working, Madam Hu immediately changed to a pained expression. She raised her hand to her chest. "Ayao, why can't you understand your aunt's good intentions? If this outburst gets out, we'll be a laughingstock. Where will we put our family's reputation then?"

“This is no small matter. Who knows what tricks my aunt will use to oppress us behind closed doors? She’s probably determined to completely block our livelihood, making it impossible for us to even make a living by setting up a stall!” Lin Yao refused to back down. “We must clarify things at the government office today and clear our names.”

Aunt Li chimed in, "Yes, we can't let this go like this. We must let the government uphold justice!"

Xu Zhiheng had been watching the scene for a long time, and his angle was perfect, allowing him to clearly see Lin Yao pinching his thigh hard. He spoke leisurely, "If Miss Lin wishes to report this to the authorities, I can write the complaint for you. I only hope that, in consideration of this relationship, you will give me some discounts on food prices in the future, as a token of my gratitude for your writing."

Seeing that everyone seemed genuinely going to take her to see the magistrate, Madam Hu became anxious, her face flushing and paling in turns, her eyes darting around uncertainly. "This... how can we rashly alarm the government? It's all a misunderstanding. It's just that the younger generation in my family are ignorant and dare not trouble the magistrate. I will go home now and tell the elders in my family the whole story, so they can make a decision. There's no need to trouble outsiders."

After saying that, Hu left without looking back, nearly twisting her ankle in her haste.

Watching Hu's retreating figure, Lin Yao's tense nerves finally relaxed, and she breathed a long sigh of relief.

With gratitude in her eyes, she looked around and bowed to the villagers present. "Today, thank you all for speaking up for us. If it weren't for your help, my siblings and I would not have been able to get justice. To express our gratitude, tomorrow, all the food on our stall will be discounted by one penny! In the future, we hope you will come and patronize our stall often and give us your support."

The uncle who had just stepped forward to speak up for her smiled broadly, "It's truly rare to see such generosity from a young lady like you!"

As the crowd gradually dispersed, Lin Yao turned to face Xu Zhiheng and bowed solemnly. She then bowed to Xu Zhiheng, saying, "Today, thanks to your help, young master, although we were ultimately unable to go to the government office, my siblings and I will always remember your kindness and generosity. From now on, whenever you patronize our stall, we will give you a 20% discount on all food. We hope you will not refuse, as this is our way of expressing our gratitude."

For small vendors like them who already operate on thin margins, offering a 20% discount truly demonstrates their sincerity. "Young lady, you are indeed generous and magnanimous! My name is Xu Zhiheng. I am a regular customer and I can be considered half a regular. If you don't mind, you can call me Brother Xu from now on."

Lin Yao inherited the original owner's memories, including many of the rules governing the separation of men and women.

Although I've met this young master Xu a few times, we can't really call each other acquaintances.

Although she was grateful for Xu Zhiheng's help, she still had a feeling that there were too many mysteries surrounding him. She just wanted to make money quietly and didn't want to get involved in any trouble.

She feigned ignorance and said, "No, no, Mother said that we should address scholars as 'young masters,' because scholars are learned and very capable. We are just country bumpkins, and we should have respect for scholars."

Xu Zhiheng quietly enjoyed her pretentious act, without forcing her to change her mind. "It's alright, it's just a form of address. Call me whatever you like, young lady."

Inside the carriage, Jin Yu asked with some confusion, "Why did you help that young lady today, sir?"

"Do you remember why we went to the dock today?" Xu Zhiheng asked, taking a nap with his eyes closed.

“Since that person from the capital has arrived, we have no choice but to deliberately expose our presence in order to ensure that we are not detected elsewhere,” Jin Yu replied.

"So, in your eyes, what kind of person is your husband?" Xu Zhiheng continued to ask, unhurriedly.

"A good-for-nothing," Jin Yu said truthfully.

Xu Zhiheng opened his eyes. "There are too many people at the dock. I deliberately helped that young lady in front of everyone, and even chatted with her at the end, just to make him think that I was just a playboy who acted on impulse and was lustful at first sight."

Jin Yu suddenly realized, "My lord is very thoughtful; it is I who am dull-witted."

Xu Zhiheng couldn't help but pat his head with his folding fan, "When are you going to learn to be smarter?"

Jin Yu felt a little wronged, picked up the fruit on the small table and started eating. "My lord knows that I'm only good at martial arts. Usually, I have Mantang by my side to give me advice. As long as I can protect my lord, I've done my duty."

Xu Zhiheng shook his head and closed his eyes again.

In the largest inn in Qingquan Town, two middle-aged men sat facing each other, playing chess, while a bodyguard dressed in black waited beside the chessboard.

Zhao Li bowed slightly, a contemptuous smile on his face, and said to Wu Shen beside him, "Lord Wu, you may not know this, but that Xu family brat is notorious incompetent in the capital. He only knows how to be greedy and lecherous, and his behavior is no different from that of a commoner. Look at him today, he even stood up for a few lowly people. In my opinion, General Xu sent him back to his ancestral home, probably to keep him out of sight and avoid embarrassing the Xu family."

Wu Shen placed a piece on the chessboard, slightly raised his eyes, and looked at Zhao Li with a hint of caution. He spoke slowly and deliberately, “Lord Zhao is quite familiar with the Xu family. He probably knows that Madam Xu dotes on her youngest son, treating him like a precious gem. General Xu, on the other hand, is always as meek as a lamb in front of his wife, and his reputation for being henpecked is well-known in the capital. Under such circumstances, it seems illogical to send him back to his ancestral home just because he caused such a trouble in the capital. In my opinion, there must be another reason behind this.”

Zhao Li, unconcerned, put down his chess piece. "In my opinion," he said, "this young man spends a fortune to win the favor of the courtesan, a common occurrence in the marketplace. However, his actions—arguing with the Third Prince in court and even resorting to violence over that woman—are a disgrace to the imperial dignity. General Xu's decision to send him back to his ancestral home and order him to reflect on his actions is ultimately out of consideration for their father-son relationship, to protect him from making an irreparable mistake and losing his life in the capital due to a moment of impulsiveness."

Wu Shen picked up his teacup, his gaze drifting out the window, and said nothing more.

~

Lin Yao decided to make candied sweet potatoes to comfort the frightened Lin Song and also to cheer herself up, since sweets are the most comforting thing.

"Ayao, we still have some white rice at home. Let your older brother keep these sweet potatoes and take them with him when he goes hunting in the mountains." Lin Cheng felt sorry for his younger siblings who had been bullied today and didn't want them to eat coarse grains.

"I'm making a new dish for my brother and sister today. Sweet potatoes are absolutely delicious when prepared differently," Lin Yao said enthusiastically.

Sweet potatoes are a good thing. They are highly adaptable, drought-resistant, and tolerant of poor soil. They are not demanding in terms of soil and can grow almost anywhere. In years with poor harvests or when taxes increase, sweet potatoes can replace staple foods, so they were a very common food in ancient times.

Lin Cheng had eaten plenty of sweet potatoes since he was a child and was already numb to them. However, after this period of time, he had unconditionally trusted his sister's cooking skills and let her do whatever she wanted.

Lin Cheng was full of energy. The fried rice was selling well, so he needed to cook a lot more rice so he could earn more coins tomorrow.

Lin Yao washed the sweet potatoes and cut them into evenly sized chunks.

Next, she put a little lard into the iron pot, added firewood to the stove, and waited quietly for the oil to heat up.

Soon, the oil in the pot began to smoke slightly, and the oil temperature rose. Lin Yao carefully put the sweet potato pieces into the pot one by one.

Sweet potato chunks are dropped into hot oil, releasing a subtle aroma.

She gently turned the sweet potatoes with chopsticks, letting them coat them with a thin layer of oil in the oil pan.

In no time, the sweet potato chunks turned an enticing golden color and the skin became crispy. Lin Yao took the fried sweet potatoes out and placed them in a ceramic bowl on the side for later use.

During the Song Dynasty, the production and use of white sugar had already been promoted and developed. Lin Yao remembered that she had once seen that during the Northern Song Dynasty, white sugar was among the local products that "Fuzhou, one of the twelve cities in Jiangnan East Circuit" paid tribute to. In that era, white sugar was probably something that only royalty and nobles could afford.

Fortunately, she had tried making candied sweet potatoes with maltose when filming the sweet potato special.

Leave a little oil in the pan, then Lin Yao adds a large spoonful of maltose and patiently begins to caramelize the sugar.

Her eyes were fixed on the maltose in the pot.

The maltose melted slowly under low heat.

It first turns into a light yellow syrup, then gradually deepens in color to amber, and emits a sweet aroma.

Lin Yao quickly poured the fried sweet potato chunks into the pot and stir-fried them rapidly, ensuring that each piece of sweet potato was evenly coated with syrup.

As the sweet potatoes are stir-fried, the syrup gradually turns into strands of sugar under the heat, tightly wrapping around them.

Lin Yao's movements were skillful, and in no time, a plate of delicious candied sweet potatoes was ready.

She placed the candied sweet potatoes on a plate, brought it to the table, and also prepared a bowl of cold water next to it.

"Is Second Sister thirsty? Song'er will pour you some hot tea. Brother said that autumn is coming soon, and you shouldn't be too fond of cold things," Lin Song said earnestly from the side.

Lin Yao handed a bowl full of rice to Lin Cheng, saying, "Second sister made a new dish today, and this cold water is to eat with it."

As she spoke, Linlin picked up a piece of candied sweet potato and gently shook it in the air. The thin sugar strands shimmered like golden threads.

She quickly dipped the sweet potato into cold water, and the sugar strands solidified instantly upon contact with the cold.

Lin Yao fed the sweet potato to Lin Song's mouth, and Lin Song reflexively bit into it. He was surprised by the unfamiliar taste the moment it entered his mouth. He had eaten sweet potatoes before, but the sweet potato in his mouth was crunchy, and the sugar coating on the outside was crunchy.

Seeing him eating with such satisfaction, Lin Yao picked up a piece of candied sweet potato herself: "Brother, try some too. This is called candied sweet potato. When you pick up the sweet potato, the sugar strands will stretch out. Dip it in cold water and the sugar strands will become even crispier. It tastes crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, and sweet."

Lin Cheng picked up a piece of sweet potato, carefully examining the golden-brown sweet potato wrapped in sugar strands. He put it in his mouth and chewed, feeling the soft and glutinous texture of the sweet potato and the crispness of the sugar coating collide on his tongue. After swallowing, he smiled and nodded in praise: "This candied sweet potato is sweet but not greasy. I have never eaten such a delicious sweet potato before!"

As Lin Cheng ate the sweet potato, his frustration gradually dissipated.

When his father passed away, he was entrusted with taking care of his mother, younger brother, and younger sister. Now that his mother is gone, he has even greater responsibility to take good care of his younger brother and sister. Currently, the family's income depends entirely on his younger sister, and he can only help her with some physical labor.

Recalling Hu's ugly face today, Lin Cheng felt that they were still too weak. Anyone could bully them. Only by earning enough copper coins would these people not dare to treat the three siblings casually.

Lin Yao ate until she was stuffed. "Brother, we can sell these sweet potatoes tomorrow too. But candied sweet potatoes need to be made in an iron pot right away, which is inconvenient to do at the stall. I plan to make sweet potato pancakes instead."

Lin Cheng snapped out of his thoughts, "I'll do whatever A-Yao says."

A note from the author:

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① Quoted from Baidu

② Quoted from Baidu