Chapter 56: The meat of Braised Pork with Preserved Vegetables is bright red in color and the soup is thick.

Chuhuai River Estuary Pier.

A white egret skimmed across the river, its slender legs causing slight ripples on the water. Not to be outdone, a few colorful kingfishers swooped down to hunt.

"Have a safe journey, young lady." Liu Qianjin murmured in a low voice.

On the boat, the mast stood upright, the sails fluttered in the wind, and the boatmen, dressed in coarse cloth and wearing conical hats, skillfully steered the boat.

"Sir, won't your servants go to the capital with you?" the bold and mellow female scholar asked curiously.

"No, she wants to stay here to learn some business skills before returning to the north." Guizhier shook her head.

The system task progress has reached 98.6%.

This additional one percent was contributed by Liu Qianjin.

Before leaving, Liu Qianjin asked Guizhier to make a dish of braised pork with preserved plums, which was a delicacy that she could only eat during festivals when she was a child.

Of course, such a small matter would not faze her.

Guizhier first rinses the pickled mustard greens to remove sand and impurities, soaks them in cold water, and then takes out the carefully selected pork belly with skin.

The subcutaneous fat layer is as white as snow, while the lean meat is a tender pink.

There are layers of fat and lean meat, and the cinnamon twigs easily wash away the blood, so the braised pork with preserved vegetables is fat but not greasy.

"Are the steps I mentioned correct?" Guizhier asked while heating oil in a pan.

"That should be right. That's what my mom did when I was a child." Liu Qianjin looked expectant. The brown birthmark on her face became more obvious under the smoke of firewood.

She squatted aside, looking plain.

You can't tell at all that this is the "Golden Lady" who has been dancing in the theater in Taohuadang in recent days.

"Have you made up your mind? Do you really want to stay in Chu Huai?" Gui Zhier put the browned pork belly skin-side down into the pot.

The pork belly sizzles with oil and is fried until the surface is crispy.

"I don't plan to stay here forever." Liu Qianjin took a deep breath of the meaty aroma.

Chu Huai had countless novel gadgets, realistic illusions and magic tricks that blended the north and the south, all of which fascinated her.

"If I earn more money, I can set up a theatre troupe and become its owner myself."

Her eyes sparkled as she shared her grand plan with Guizhier.

There are still some prostitutes and waiters in the Yaoyue Tower in the northern border. Like her, they don't know what to do after being redeemed. She wants to absorb these people as well.

"Sisters, please rehearse some good plays and go to Beijing." Liu Qianjin raised her chin, full of pride.

"I have ambition." Guizhier smiled.

There is no need to mention the difficulties involved. It is always better to have dreams than to live in a muddle.

Serve!

The meat is bright red, the soup is thick, the pickled mustard greens are filled with a strong meaty aroma, and the braised pork is wrapped around the vegetables, making it soft, tender and fragrant.

Liu Qianjin couldn't wait to taste it.

"This..." She pondered for a moment, "It's delicious, but there's something different about it that I can't quite put my finger on."

The fat melts on the tip of the tongue, and the lean meat is firm but not dry.

Guizhier frowned, puzzled. Today's braised pork with preserved mustard greens was normal. Logically, home-cooked dishes should taste similar.

While Guizhi was looking through the ingredients to find out the reason, Liu Qianjin couldn't help but talk about the past.

"When I was a child, my mother made pickled mustard greens. She had to pile them up to dry, pickle them, and then dry them. It took half a month for them to be pickled." She spoke with nostalgia.

As soon as he opened his mouth, memories came flooding back.

"We grow rice at home, and I love playing in the threshing floor during the harvest," Liu Qianjin said with a smile. "My parents don't want me to use a sickle to harvest the rice."

Children in rural areas become independent early, and only a few of them are spoiled for their daughters.

"They always say, 'Xiao Liu'er, go home and get me a pot of water.'"

There is an old padlock hanging on the door handle of the wooden door at home.

Unless you are going far away, you don't need to lock your door. Everyone in the village knows each other, no one picks up things on the road, and no one locks their doors at night.

"Daddy measured my height and made a small door handle one foot off the ground to make it easier for me to push and pull." Liu Qianjin boasted.

Guizhier had a picture in her mind.

The little dumpling with a baby voice grabbed his own little door handle, went into the house, filled the gourd with water, and then ran back to the rice field happily.

If I hadn't fled the flood, I might have lived a happy and fulfilling life.

"Your hometown is not far from Hangzhou, so... what your mother was drying was not mustard greens?" Guizhi'er suddenly had an idea.

The raw materials for making pickled mustard greens are quite diverse, with mustard greens being the main one in the Jiangnan area.

In addition, radish seedlings, rapeseed, etc. can be used as raw materials.

"You said it tastes best during the Chinese New Year. It's very likely the pickled mustard greens in winter!" Guizhier clapped her hands.

The pickled Chinese mustard greens have no broken leaves, are golden in color, and have a fragrant aroma. After absorbing the oil from the pork belly, they are tender and glutinous when eaten.

Guizhier hurriedly prepared a new bowl of braised pork with preserved vegetables.

Liu Qianjin looked at her busy back, imagining that her mother was still alive, and tears couldn't stop falling.

The new dish is out and everything is back to normal.

The meat was cooked to perfection, with a caramelized color and a slightly wrinkled skin.

Liu Qianjin chewed gently, the delicate texture and rich flavor spreading across her tongue. She shoveled down a mouthful of rice and choked out, "This time it's right."

A home-cooked dish carries endless longing.

"Beep, system prompt: Mission progress 98.6%."

Guizhier sighed lovingly, filled with emotion. The dead are gone, but life must go on.

The scene returns to the boat at the river mouth dock.

The burly boatman was directing the boatmen to carry the tribute stones. He stood steadily, wearing hemp shoes and with his legs slightly apart.

The waves swayed, and he adjusted his center of gravity accordingly, his eyes determined.

The captain used his rough and powerful hands to direct the scene and keep everything in order.

"Helping the Grand Canal Transport Commissioner deliver the tribute stones is probably another deal that requires weighing the pros and cons." Guizhier stood on the deck, leaning against the railing, watching leisurely.

The world is bustling with people, all seeking profit.

If you are willing to promise enough benefits to the captain, there is probably no business that cannot be done.

But none of this has anything to do with her.

After completing the last leg of the journey and escorting the candidates from the northern border to the capital, Mr. Muxi, as the supervisor of education, completed his mission.

As for how to re-establish the "Guiji Braised Food Shop" brand in the capital, Gui Zhier already has a perfect candidate in mind.

"Lady, aren't you going to say goodbye to Young Master Xie?" The boatman came over with a stern face and asked stiffly.

"Please call me Mr. Muxi." Guizhier waved her hand with a smile, "The mountains remain unchanged, the water flows forever, and we will meet again if we are destined to."

Ever since the last time the two of them had a shady chat, the boat captain would come to test Guizhier's attitude from time to time.

Wasn’t it the current prefect who once killed the real “Liu Shanyuan”, Mr. Liu, on Chu Huai’s boat?

He then entered the northern border under a false identity, perhaps involving old events of the previous dynasty.

Is it worth eavesdropping again and again to try to figure out her attitude?

Guizhier sighed helplessly.

"I'm going to say something outrageous. The throne will be mine next year," she said, her eyes full of rebellion. "Whoever can bring peace and prosperity, whoever can ensure the people have enough food to eat, I will support him."

The captain stood there in a daze.

Having never heard such reckless remarks before, the towering figure froze in an instant. Surprise flashed across his eyes, and his broad shoulders seemed to slump.

It took him a while to come back to his senses, muttering something about "direct lineage" and "orthodoxy".

Guizhier had already walked away in a lazy manner.