"Brother Zhang, what a rare guest! You actually still remember Jiu Niang."

Zhang Fangyuan raised his eyes and glanced at the gorgeous woman twisting her waist like a water snake, loosened his arms and did not argue with her. He just said, "I brought you something good."

Yin Jiuniang looked suspicious, but still stepped forward with a smile: "I wonder what Brother Zhang wants to give me."

Zhang Fangyuan said nothing more, but took out a bottle of perfume from his waist and handed it over.

She was already wondering why Zhang Fangyuan would come to see her alone, and now he gave her Xianglu. Yin Jiuniang was a little confused about what this man was up to.

She held the small bottle of perfume in her jade fingers. The lid was not opened yet, but one could faintly smell the faint fragrance of roses. Women have always loved fragrance, especially those who were attracted by music and beauty.

But after a moment, Yin Jiuniang, who had seen some of the world, couldn't let go of the fragrant dew in her hand. It was rich near and faint from afar. Whether it was placed in the house or used in a bath, it was much better than flower petals.

She looked around carefully. Although she had tried all the fragrances in the city, she had no idea where this fragrance came from.

"As expected, what Brother Zhang gave me is a good thing, but I don't know why Brother Zhang is so kind all of a sudden." Yin Jiuniang said as she moved closer: "How do you want me to repay you? Will you give me your body?"

Zhang Fangyuan pushed the man away and said, "Come on, stop giving me that crap. If someone who's looking for the fragrance asks where this fragrance comes from, you should know what to say."

Yin Jiuniang's eyebrows moved slightly: "I thought it was just for Jiuniang, but I didn't expect Brother Zhang to start a spice business."

"I'm just doing something for someone else. I'll give you this bottle of perfumed dew as a reward." After saying that, Zhang Fangyuan didn't stay any longer: "I'm going back."

When he reached the door, Zhang Fangyuan ran into An Saner who was furious.

"When did Brother Zhang come? Why didn't anyone come to call me? It was useless for me to wait."

An Saner suppressed his arrogance and put on his usual playful expression again.

"I'm not here to see you."

As soon as Zhang Fangyuan finished speaking, Yin Jiuniang leaned over the railing in the distance and said, "Brother Zhang is here to see me."

An San'er was slightly surprised, but he didn't say much. He just followed Zhang Fangyuan with a smile and whispered, "Brother Zhang, can I take that thing back?"

Zhang Fangyuan waved his hand. Not to mention that the money at home had not been used up yet, it would be difficult to report if he took it back today.

An Saner responded with a smile and was about to send Zhang Fangyuan out, but then he remembered what had irritated him before and asked, "Brother Zhang, do you know a man called Ao Er?"

"Um?"

"He came to the building to drink and prostitutes last night. He got so drunk that no one noticed him and he fell asleep under the table. When I was cleaning this morning, I wanted to wake him up and ask him to leave. He was so drunk that he refused to get up."

Zhang Fangyuan said, "If you are a noble, you can ask your family to come and pick you up. But if you are just an ordinary ruffian, you can just let them carry you out of the house. Do you still need to ask me?"

"The key is that the boy said he knew Brother Zhang and that he is your younger brother."

Zhang Fangyuan frowned and followed An Saner to the main hall. He took one look at the drunk lying on the ground. There were always such people in brothels, and Zhang Fangyuan was already used to it.

"Hey, time to wake up."

Zhang Fangyuan walked over and kicked the person sleeping on the ground: "Where are you from?"

The man muttered, "I am Zhang Fangyuan's younger brother. How dare you disturb my sleep?"

As soon as he finished speaking, a basin of cold water fresh from the well was poured on the back of his head. The drunk man shuddered immediately, and his body, which had been stuck to the ground like a mangy dog, suddenly jumped up and sat on the ground, shouting "It's raining!" It took a long while for his eyes to clear up, and he saw the fierce and tall man in front of him, so scared that he stepped back.

Yin Jiuniang couldn't help but cover her mouth and chuckle when she saw this.

"Who are you? When did you become my little brother?"

The man then realized that the person he was calling for had arrived. Seeing the people from Yunliang Pavilion staring at him covetously, he quickly crawled over and hugged Zhang Fangyuan's feet: "Brother Zhang, I am Ao Er from the village. The villagers used to call me Goudan'er."

Zhang Fangyuan raised his eyebrows and looked at the man's face, which seemed familiar to him. After a while, he said to An Saner beside him, "He seems to be from the same village as me."

An Saner said, "Since we are from the same village as Brother Zhang, let's just forget about it today."

Zhang Fangyuan broke free from the man's hold on his legs: "Why don't you go back quickly? Why are you clinging to me here?"

"Yes, yes." The man was relieved. He jumped up and ran out.

Zhang Fangyuan saw this and said: "Then I will go back too."

Yin Jiuniang walked to the door and said to the man's tall and handsome back, "Brother Zhang, come again next time~"

Ao Er, who was running far away, heard the voice of the courtesan and couldn't help but look back, feeling quite envious.

Zhang Fangyuan went back and watched over the shop for the whole afternoon, and from then on he just waited for people to come and ask for the goods.

There was not much business later in the evening, so he closed his stall early and went to the material shop in the city. He bought a small jar of old sauce and vinegar at a low price and brought it back to the tea stall. Firstly, they are needed at home, and secondly, these seasonings are commonly bought by households in nearby villages. Buying some so that the villagers can buy them directly at their tea stalls saves them the trouble of going to the city for such a small matter.

In addition, he also went to the wine shop to discuss business and took the wine back to the tea stall to store it, the same as the sauces. Ordering wine is easier than ordering sauces. First, get drunk often and get to know many restaurants. You will know the expensive ones, the cheap ones, the good ones and the bad ones.

After finishing all these work, the cart they returned with was full of things, even more than when they came earlier.

They were all things that were easy to bump into, so he went back and drove the horse slowly. When he arrived at the tea shed, the sun had already set, leaving only a day's heat on the ground.

“So many were brought back!”

Xu He heard the sound of wheels on the official road and guessed that it was Zhang Fangyuan who had returned. The official road was very quiet at night, with few sounds of carriages and horses, but there were many people rushing home.

He put down the tablecloth and went over to help carry the sauces and drinks down to the tea stall.

Zhang Fangyuan smelled the aroma coming out of the kitchen and asked, "What are we having for dinner tonight?"

“Stir-fried pork with dried tofu.”

Xu He held the wine jar carefully and walked in while saying, "I sold several pieces of the dried tofu I made yesterday, and there are still two pieces left. If I keep them for any longer, they will go bad tomorrow. I just happened to have some meat left, so I might as well stir-fry it."

Zhang Fangyuan knew that the dried tofu made by Xu He and Zhang Shiyue was about the size of his palm and as thick as his little finger. If it was cut thinly with a slanting knife, one piece could fill a whole plate. It was delicious whether stir-fried or served cold.

It costs five or six cents a piece in the city, but Xu He said that they only sell it for five cents a piece in their tea stall. Beans are not expensive, as farmers usually have them at home. However, making tofu, tofu pudding, and dried tofu is complicated and time-consuming, so the price is naturally higher than that of ordinary fruits and vegetables.

Occasionally, villagers nearby would buy some to cook when they return home.

The teahouse had good business today, and Xu He was in a good mood. Every day, the teahouse would change the dishes that could be bought back home, such as tofu and braised dishes, which were bought by villagers: "Today, the servant of the landlord in Zaojiao Village came and bought two kilograms of braised meat to take back."

"That's good."

The two men packed up and put all the things in the cart into the cellar of the tea shed. Zhang Fangyuan hung a small square sign with the word "wine" on it at the door, indicating that there was wine for sale in the tea shed. It is strange to say, many people cannot read, but they often go to the restaurant to buy wine and look at such a sign from time to time. When they see such a sign, they cannot recognize the words on it, but they all know that wine is sold there.

After he hung up the sign, the kitchen was already filled with the aroma of stir-fried dishes. There was a sliver of smoke rising above the kitchen. Passersby smelled the aroma, became hungry, and quickened their pace to go home.

Zhang Fangyuan went into the kitchen and watched Xu He cooking. After his wife got him a piece of meat, he took a pair of bowls and chopsticks and opened the black pottery kimchi jar at the corner of the stove. A refreshing sour aroma wafted out.

The peppers in the big-bellied kimchi jar were bright red, the cowpeas were raw, and the young ginger was tender yellow. Xu He managed the kimchi jar very well, and there was not a single flower growing in the water.

"The vegetables in the second jar were put in today, so don't take the wrong ones. Take the ones in the third jar, I pickled radishes two days ago, they are just the right amount of sour and crisp."

"Aren't there radishes in the first jar? There are also pickled cabbages, and the cabbage stems are over there."

Xu He said: "It has been soaked for quite a while. Just eat the sour taste and save it for cooking and stewing."

"Okay then." Zhang Fangyuan reopened the third jar and took out some of his favorite pickled ginger radish, which was just right for eating with porridge at this time of year.

There are other benefits to their family opening a teahouse, but the fact is that they now have a lot of choices for dinner, often with porridge or dry rice, as well as many dishes that can only be bought in the city and are not often cooked by farmers. Of course, what to eat depends mainly on what ingredients are left over that day.

After the meal was ready, the family of four decided to eat at the table outside the teahouse, where it was cool and bright outside.

"Brother Zhang, are you ready to eat?"

Zhang Fangyuan heard the voice, and it turned out to be Ao Er whom he met in the city today: "Why are you here? Are you willing to go back to the village?"

"I have to thank Brother Zhang for his generosity today." Ao Er laughed and said, "I just wanted to come here to try my luck and see if there is any wine to fight with."

Zhang Fangyuan snorted: "You just woke up from your drunken stupor and you're already thinking about it again."

"Yes, there happened to be guests at home, and my mother asked me to come over to see them and entertain them."

Zhang Fangyuan didn't say anything after hearing this. He took his wine pot and went into the house to get him some wine. He also warned him, "If you continue to use my name to fool around in the city, I won't be so polite to you."

Ao Er scratched his head and said, "I won't dare to do it again."

After ordering the wine, Zhang Fangyuan took fifteen cents. Looking at the people who were enjoying the aroma of the food and were reluctant to leave, he did not ask them to stay for dinner. Seeing the person walking away, he shook his head helplessly. No wonder the people in the village disliked him before. He was really a mess and very annoying.

"Do you know him?" Xu He couldn't help but ask as he saw him staring at someone.

"How can you not recognize someone from our village?" Zhang Fangyuan urged, "Let's eat. After dinner, I still have to decorate the tea shed. Now there are so many things, it's definitely not enough to just lock the door. I have to use the hunting tools to prevent thieves. In addition, someone has to guard it. The two of us and Second Aunt can take turns to guard the tea shed."

Xu He agreed. The villages around them were actually very stable villages. There were no vicious criminals. However, it was common for people to steal. And with the Guang family incident, it was best to be on guard. It is better to be prepared.

After some time, Zhang Fangyuan continued to run his small business in an orderly manner and was not in a hurry to find out whether the rose water had become famous.

However, early in the morning of this day, not long after he set up his stall, a young man from Yunliang Pavilion came to him, rubbing his hands, nodding and bowing, to inquire about the fragrant dew.