Chapter 72 Five-Finger Peach Chicken Soup for Nourishing and Strengthening the Body

When Lin Yao lifted the curtain, the steaming heat from the pot, along with the bustling sounds of people in the restaurant, rushed towards her, completely dispelling the chill around her.

Wu, the head镖师 (bodyguard/escort), and his group of镖师 occupied two large tables, eating until their foreheads were sweating: "Manager Lin! This hot pot of yours is spicy enough, even on such a cold day, it made me sweat all over!"

"This spicy hot pot is perfect for warming up on a cold day," Lin Yao replied, then casually mentioned the new dish, "but the chili is too hot, so it's not good to eat too much. In a few days, the restaurant will be launching a new nourishing medicinal hot pot, which strengthens bones and muscles and replenishes qi and blood, suitable for men, women, and children of all ages. Now is the perfect time for winter tonics, so the head镖师 (bodyguard/escort) should definitely come and support us."

Wu, the镖头 (bodyguard/escort), was always straightforward. He followed Lin Yao's words and said, "If there's such a good thing, then I must try it!"

One of them was intentionally promoting the soup and raising his voice, while the other had a naturally loud voice, so their conversation was clearly heard by all the diners in the restaurant. Immediately, a middle-aged man pulled Lin Yao aside and asked if the soup was suitable for postpartum women.

This question really hit the nail on the head for Lin Yao. "This gentleman has asked the right question," she said. "This soup is perfect for postpartum recovery. Women are depleted of qi and blood after childbirth, and drinking this soup can replenish their strength and restore their health. It will greatly benefit your recovery."

Hearing Lin Yao's words, the customer asked anxiously, "Manager Lin, is this true? My wife just gave birth and is very weak. How long will it take for her to recover after drinking this soup?" Several other diners behind him also gathered around, and one of them asked, "Manager Lin, do you know anything about medicine? Are you just trying to fool us?"

“How could I dare to deceive my customers? This restaurant needs to stay open for a long time.” Lin Yao explained calmly, “This is a medicinal dish that can help regulate the body. However, if Madam’s body is severely depleted, she will need to see a doctor. But dietary supplements and medicine do not conflict. There has been the saying of ‘dietary supplements’ since ancient times. The effect will be more significant when both are used together.”

Many guests, upon hearing about the soup's health benefits, became quite interested and bombarded Lin Yao with questions, which she managed to answer with great difficulty. The enthusiasm for medicinal cuisine was unexpected; it seemed she would have to prepare more ingredients for the official launch.

Back in the kitchen, Lin Yao untied the medicine packet, and a faint fragrance wafted out.

Wang Xiaoyu curiously picked one up and smelled it: "It smells so good!"

“This is Five-Finger Peach,” Lin Yao introduced to everyone. “It is both a medicinal herb and can be used to make soup. When stewed with chicken, it tastes sweet and can also nourish the body, strengthen the spleen and remove dampness. It also has the effects of healing injuries and promoting blood circulation. It is most effective in treating women’s postmenstrual blood deficiency, spleen deficiency and leukorrhea, as well as postpartum weakness.”

Upon hearing this, Zhao Niangzi and the others blushed. Although Zhao Niangzi usually respected Lin Yao, she scolded her as if she were her own younger sister, "How can you be so careless as to talk about a woman's period like that? What kind of image is that?"

"What's so unclean about this?" Lin Yao said dismissively. "The menstrual blood that comes out during menstruation is just the residue of blood in the body. New blood is generated and old blood is expelled. This is a natural law of the world, just as the moon waxes and wanes and the sea has tides."

She observed the expressions of these people and, seeing their confusion, pointed to the water vat in the corner as an example: "Just like a mountain spring constantly flowing into a water vat, when it's full, it will naturally overflow, so that the water in the vat can remain clean for a long time. This is the natural metabolic law of our women's bodies. The reason why our blood can eliminate the old and generate the new is because when the blood is full, it will overflow. Women have menstruation once a month, which is precisely to excrete the remaining blood, and it is also a unique self-repair mechanism of women."

After hearing the gist of the conversation, Wang Xiaoyu was the first to react: "Master, you mean that menstrual blood is discharged to make room for new blood?"

“Exactly.” Lin Yao nodded. “Menstruation is a unique characteristic of women, and like breathing and digestion, it is a normal bodily function. If it is considered ‘impure,’ then what about blood and sweat? Does blood become dirty just because we are women? If men also menstruated, would they be considered impure? Those who say this are probably just trying to belittle women.”

Wang Xiaoyu had never heard such a saying before. Yes, both involve bloodshed, so why is it that when a man bleeds, he is considered a true man, but when a woman bleeds, she is seen as unclean? She looked at Lin Yao with sparkling eyes, "Master knows so much!"

These words seemed too shocking to Su Niang and Zhao Niangzi, and the two were stunned for a long time. Lin Yao didn't say anything more, rolled up her sleeves and began to prepare the dishes.

Five-finger peach chicken soup is simple to make and lightly seasoned, but it requires fresh ingredients to bring out its natural flavor. She first soaked the five-finger peach in water, then prepared the chicken that had been delivered that morning, quickly cutting it into small pieces and rinsing it repeatedly in clean water until no blood remained. Wait...

The firewood in the stove burned brightly, and the water in the iron pot boiled, so the chicken was poured in to blanch and remove any unpleasant smell.

Blood foam quickly rose to the surface of the water. She carefully skimmed it off with a spoon, then poured the soaked five-finger peach along with the water into the pot, and added a few red dates and goji berries.

She covered the pot and simmered it over low heat. After more than an hour, the unique, coconut-like fragrance of five-finger peach wafted from the pot. Lin Yao lifted the lid and saw that the originally clear soup had turned golden, the chicken was tender, and the aroma of the herbs and the meat were perfectly blended. It was a success!

"Come and have a taste!" After a bowl of chicken soup, Lin Yao felt her pores relax and the sweet taste made her feel refreshed.

Su Niang took a small sip, and her eyes immediately lit up: "So fresh!"

After drinking it, Zhao Niangzi let out a comfortable sigh. Looking at the soft, mushy red dates at the bottom of the bowl, she exclaimed in amazement, "I never thought that chicken soup made with just these few simple ingredients could taste so delicious."

After drinking a bowl of chicken soup, Lin Yao lazily sat on a recliner, basking in the winter sun, which made her drowsy. But then she suddenly remembered something, quickly sat up, washed her face, and tried to wake herself up.

Since learning that war was highly likely, Lin Cheng insisted on continuing to set up his stall at the dock, saying that he wanted to earn as much as possible. However, as the weather grew colder, his flatbreads quickly went cold, which was nothing compared to the comfort of hot soup and noodles. Business worsened day by day, and Lin Cheng was so worried that he couldn't sleep well for several nights.

Lin Yao thought to herself that this couldn't go on, so she decided to sell oden at the dock, as the profit margin for that business was quite high!

The key to oden is the broth. Lin Yao prepared the ingredients, and Lin Cheng returned from the dock. He sat down with a worried look on his face. "We sold even less today. We only made a little over a hundred coins all noon."

Lin Yao poured him a cup of hot tea. "It's getting cold, so everyone naturally prefers to eat something warm. But don't worry, I've come up with a new dish that I guarantee will be a big hit!"

"What is it?" Upon hearing that there was a new trick, Lin Cheng no longer cared about drinking his tea.

“Oden is similar to hot pot, but the broth is different,” Lin Yao explained. “It’s made with apples, white radishes, carrots, mushrooms, and dried kelp, and then simply seasoned. You can cook any ingredients you want in it.” She paused, then added, “Authentic oden requires bonito flakes, which are made from dried bonito. Nowadays, bonito is a tribute item, and ordinary people like us can’t get our hands on it.”

Lin Cheng had never heard of Ringo being able to cook, and his face was full of doubt: "How can it taste good when so many things are cooked together?"

"The key is in the flavor of this broth." Lin Yao stood up and smoothed the wrinkles on her clothes. "The longer this broth simmers, the more fragrant it becomes. In winter, sitting by a bubbling pot, you can scoop up a string of steaming hot radishes, and when you bite into them, they're full of broth—it's warming and satisfying."

Lin Cheng couldn't sit still any longer. "Then what are we waiting for? Teach me quickly! If I learn, I can still make it to dinner this afternoon, and maybe even earn a few hundred coins!"

Lin Yao was both amused and exasperated: "Brother, there's no rush. Even if I teach you the soup base, you still need to prepare chicken meatballs and fish meatballs. There's no time to set up the stall today, so let's take a day off."

As she spoke, she began to prepare the soup base: she chopped apples, white radishes, and carrots into chunks, and put them into a pot along with soaked dried mushrooms and dried kelp. After bringing it to a boil over high heat, she added salt, soy sauce, and homemade MSG.

This MSG was made by her earlier by stir-frying seaweed, dried shrimp, and shiitake mushrooms until dry and grinding them into powder. It was one of the seasonings she was going to sell next, so she took this opportunity to test its effects.

Seeing his sister dump all the fruits and vegetables into the water to boil, Lin Cheng couldn't help but ask, "Is that all?"

Lin Yao didn't answer his question directly. Instead, she filled a bowl with soup and handed it to Lin Cheng: "Try it."

Lin Yao didn't answer, but simply ladled out a bowl of soup and handed it to him. Lin Cheng blew on it, drank it, and exclaimed in surprise, "How can this soup be so delicious!"

“Isn’t that right?” Lin Yao ladled herself a bowl and sipped it slowly. “The ingredients are simple, but the flavor is amazing. The broth is light and doesn’t overpower the ingredients, so it tastes good no matter what you cook in it.”

Besides vegetables, the most important thing in oden is various meatballs. Lin Yao plans to make more fish balls, pork balls, and chicken balls, but making meatballs is physically demanding and not everyone can do it.

She thought of the perfect candidate—Lin Yougong. When they were building the house before, he swung his sledgehammer with great skill, making him an excellent choice whether for making meatballs or for supervising the construction.

With that in mind, Lin Yao led her brother and sister in a donkey cart straight to the village head's house.

Upon hearing that Lin Yao wanted his help making meatballs, Lin Yougong readily agreed, "I'll do it! Of course I will!" He didn't even have time to ask for details about the recipe; he just felt that Lin Yao's offer was an opportunity. Didn't he see that Liu Dazhuang's family, who worked with Lin Yao, had all gained weight? Zhang Ping had even gotten married, and he heard that Zhang An's marriage was almost finalized. So many people were eyeing this cushy job! How could he possibly miss such a good opportunity?

Seeing that he readily agreed, Lin Yao stated her needs directly: "I will have to trouble my cousin to organize the able-bodied men in the village who are willing to work. You just need to take people to mince pork, chicken, and fish into minced meat and then transport it to the city. Right now, we need 20 catties of minced fish, 10 catties of minced pork, and 20 catties of minced chicken every day."

Lin Yougong patted his chest and guaranteed, "Leave this to me!"

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Author's Note: Lin Yougong: Finally, it's my turn! [Go for it!]