Chapter 808 Secret Photography

It failed before it even came out of the pot, so was it because of the marinade she used or because she added the wrong seasoning? For a moment, Ji Qingzhi fell into deep thought, but even if the task progress failed, the braised food still needed to continue.

After the old brine boiled, the aroma of the brine filled the entire kitchen. It was the same taste as when she was a child. Ji Qingzhi was immediately looking forward to the finished product.

The store remained quiet until the braised food was out of the pot. Ji Qingzhi was used to it. After all, there were many breakfast shops around, and she had no intention of selling breakfast. But Aunt Liu, who had nothing to do, felt a little embarrassed. Ji Qingzhi couldn't help but smile and shake her head. It seemed that she had found the right person this time. She waved to Aunt Liu: "Aunt, come here."

"Boss, what do you want me to do?" Aunt Liu asked quickly.

"Auntie, just call me by my name. Try the braised food and see if there's anything that needs improvement." Ji Qingzhi said as he picked up a few items for her and put them on a plate before handing it to her.

Aunt Liu used to work in other restaurants, and it was common for her to ask employees to taste the food, but she rarely saw them so generous, so she didn't refuse.

After handing the plate to Aunt Liu, Ji Qingzhi took the gloves next to her and the braised chicken feet and started to eat them. She almost cried when she took the first bite. It was still the familiar taste, followed by a soft and glutinous texture. It fell off the bone with a light sip. The only drawback was probably that it was a bit salty. Did she not control the amount well and put too much salt?

But if the taste is not strong, it is not called braised food. After eating a chicken foot, she began to seriously think about the reason for the failure. Was it because she added too much salt? Or is it because using old brine is considered cheating?

While Ji Qingzhi was thinking, he did not forget to leave a portion of the braised food for Nie Yuanyuan, and put the rest here first. If they could not be sold today, he would distribute them to other neighbors in the evening.

Braised food is different from egg custard, so she can't experiment again and again, but she can start with the braising liquid. She remembered that Old Ji once said that there was an ancestral recipe for braised food. The old braising liquid has been preserved until now, and something is added every time according to the recipe. She was really unlucky today, so it was normal for her to fail.

Ji Qingzhi sent a photo of the reserved braised food to Nie Yuanyuan, and then sent her a message, asking her to pick it up when she was free. There was no immediate reply from the other end, probably because she was still sleeping. After all, weekends are a time for students to catch up on sleep.

She glanced at Aunt Liu who was handling the garbage at the door and asked casually, "Aunt Liu, how do you think the stewed food tasted?"

"I think the saltiness is a bit too strong, and the color of the braised food is a bit darker, which is not attractive enough." After Aunt Liu said this, she looked at Ji Qingzhi carefully, and only breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that there was no change on her face.

"Okay, I got it." The color problem was indeed her fault. She also added some dark soy sauce, so was that related to the failure?

Taking advantage of the fact that no one was around, she went to the study next to Old Ji's room. There was a drawer at the bottom of the bookcase. Although the notebook in the drawer was a bit old, it was well protected. Ji Qingzhi flipped through it for a long time before finding the recipe for the braised food. She wrote down the spices needed on the memo, then placed an order on her mobile phone. She took a picture of the required weight and would try the new marinade according to the recipe later.

After finishing all this, she put the notebook back into the drawer, then stood up and left the study, returning to the restaurant in the front yard. Just then, someone pushed the door open. Two college students from nearby came in. They rode their bikes to the area and came in after smelling the aroma of the stewed food. When they heard Aunt Liu's question, the tall Li Jian spoke first, "Aunt, is your stewed food fresh out of the pot?"

"Yes, yes, yes. It's just been out of the pot half an hour ago and it's still hot." Aunt Liu was very enthusiastic because it was the first customer of the day.

Li Jian and his companion Zhou Jun looked at each other. It seemed that they had found the right place, so Li Jian continued, "Then can you give us some?"

"Then you can choose here. Do you want a platter or individual dishes?" Aunt Liu led them to the glass cabinet where the braised food was kept.

It was then that the two noticed Ji Qingzhi standing behind the glass cabinet. Li Jian nudged Zhou Jun with his elbow and signaled him to look at Ji Qingzhi over there. The two did not expect to meet such a beauty in such a small shop. The two pushed and shoved for a while, and finally Li Jun stepped forward and asked, "How much are these for?"

Hearing the voice, Ji Qingzhi looked away from her phone. Well, she hadn't really thought about the price at first. After a pause, she spoke: "It's a big sale for the store anniversary. The platter is 38 per serving, or you can weigh it separately for 45 per pound."

She remembered that this was the price she heard when she came back two years ago. The price has not increased in the past two years. She will study the price carefully tonight.

"Are all categories weighed at the same price?" Li Jian asked.

"Well, for now." The braised dishes that Ji Qingzhi prepared today include chicken feet, chicken wings, duck feet, and duck wings, so they can be priced uniformly.

"Then give us a pound." This price can be said to be very cost-effective.

"Okay, how about a little of everything?" While asking, Ji Qingzhi had already put on his mask and picked up the steel clamp.

"Take a little of everything." Being stared at by Ji Qingzhi like this, Li Jian felt the tips of his ears turn red. He lowered his head in embarrassment, and then he cursed himself for being useless in his heart.

While Ji Qingzhi was picking up some food, Zhou Jun, who was standing next to him, quietly turned on the camera on his phone and took a photo. Ji Qingzhi was very sensitive to the camera and couldn't help but look up. Zhou Jun originally wanted to take another photo, but suddenly met Ji Qingzhi's eyes in the camera and retreated in a panic.

Glancing at his flustered look, Ji Qingzhi was confused. She thought they recognized her and was too lazy to ask them to delete the photos. After all, it was not a secret in the first place.

Ji Qingzhi completed the actions of weighing and bagging in one go. Li Jian scanned the QR code next to him to pay. He caught a glimpse of Ji Qingzhi opposite him out of the corner of his eye. He didn't know if it was his illusion, but her attitude towards them seemed a lot colder than before.

He looked down at the name of the payee that popped up on the mobile phone page, and became more certain of his guess that it was probably a college student who came back from the holidays to help his family.

Ever since Ji Qingzhi noticed that he was taking pictures, Zhou Jun didn't dare to look at her anymore. When he saw Li Jian paying the money, he hurriedly urged, "Let's go, we're going back first."

After leaving the store, Li Jian turned around and asked Zhou Jun: "What are you doing? Why are you in such a hurry?"

"She caught me taking pictures just now." Zhou Jun still felt embarrassed when he thought of that look just now.

"Damn, you're still brave." Li Jian gave him a thumbs up after saying that. At the same time, he also realized that it was not his illusion just now. She suddenly became cold probably because she discovered Zhou Jun taking pictures secretly.

"She probably thinks I'm a pervert." Zhou Jun couldn't help but cover his face. Who doesn't want to leave a good impression on a beautiful woman?

"It's okay, it's okay. By the way, where are the photos? Let me see them." Li Jian asked him to open his phone and take a look at them quickly. Anyway, things had come to this point and there was no point in worrying about them.

"I didn't capture her face." Zhou Jun's tone was a little annoyed. Originally, he just wanted to share the braised food beauty he encountered with other people in the dormitory.

"Okay." Li Jian's tone also contained regret.

"Let's go back first." The two of them rode here early in the morning. Their destination was Qingjun Mountain ahead, but when they smelled the aroma of braised food, they got off the bike halfway.

"Let's find a place to eat two before going back?" Li Jian took a look at the braised food in his hand, it was indeed delicious.

"Okay." Zhou Jun was also shaking. He had already had breakfast in the morning, but now he felt hungry again.

Unfortunately, the two of them pushed their bicycles and searched for a long time but couldn't find a suitable place. Today was the weekend and there were people everywhere, and they didn't have the courage to eat anywhere.

"Let's go back to school. The two grandsons asked us to bring breakfast." Zhou Jun was also afraid of meeting Ji Qingzhi later, so it would be safer to go back to school.

"Okay." It's about an hour's ride from here to the school.

The two of them smelled the aroma of braised food all the way and finally rode back to school. They brought fried noodles to their two roommates at the school gate. Not to mention, with the comparison with the braised food, the stir-fried dishes they usually liked had no appeal at this moment.

Back in the dormitory, Yang Li got out of bed and was playing games. When he heard the door open, he asked directly, "Did you bring breakfast?"

"Fuck, you bought some braised food, they smell so good!" Yang Li looked up while his teammates were excitedly expressing their feelings, and sure enough, in addition to the fried noodles, the two of them had another bag in their hands.

"Yeah." Li Jian couldn't wait to open the disposable gloves in the bag and put them on. God knows, he had been craving for it all the way. He took a bite of the duck wing, which was full of braised aroma and tender meat. It was much better than the braised food near the school, and it was much better than the takeaway he ordered last night.

"Don't even wait for me." Zhou Jun said as he started to gnaw on the chicken feet.

Yang Li, who was still playing games, smelled the aroma and stared at the screen while shouting to them, "Don't finish it, save some for daddy."

It was the first time that Zhou Jun experienced the chewiness of chicken feet. Even the chicken bones had a fragrance. He spit out the bones and said lazily, "Call me daddy. If daddy is in a good mood, I'll save some for you."

"Damn it, hurry up, damn it." Yang Li couldn't help but blurt out to his teammates in the game through the microphone.

Another roommate, Xu Yu'an, came back from washing up and saw the two eating braised food. He was a little surprised: "Eating braised food so early in the morning?"

"I brought back your fried noodles." Li Jian pointed to his table.

"Okay." Xu Yu'an put down his food and went to his table to eat fried noodles. Before eating, he did not forget to pick up a chicken wing with chopsticks. He originally thought it was bought nearby, but after the first bite, he knew it was not something nearby. He couldn't help but look up: "Where did you buy this? It tastes good."

Li Jian got excited when he mentioned this, and mocked Zhou Jun for secretly filming. Zhou Jun was not convinced: "You said it as if you didn't see it straight at first."

"Is she really that beautiful?" Xu Yu'an said as he finished the chicken wings on the lunch box in a few bites. He liked the taste more than whether the other person was a beauty.

"Of course not. Junzi took a picture. Although he didn't capture her from the front, he could tell she was a beauty. Damn, Xu Yu'an, you give me the last chicken wing." Li Jian said as he hurriedly picked through the remaining items in the bag.

"It is better to strike first than to gain the upper hand. Leave me one of the duck feet. Why don't you take the duck heart?" Xu Yu'an felt that it would be perfect if there was a duck heart.

"You're picky when there's food to eat." Zhou Jun glared at him.

"Remember to leave some for me, Dad's game will be over soon." Yang Li hurriedly quickened his movements.

None of the three of them spoke anymore, because they had nothing to say. Zhou Jun said with some regret: "I forgot to buy some beer when I just came back."

"That's right." Li Jian agreed.

"I didn't expect the young lady to be so pretty and the food in her shop is so delicious." Li Jian was full of emotion.

Yang Li, who had been keeping an eye on them all the time, stopped playing games when he saw that there was only one duck foot left in the bag. He stretched out his long legs and reached over to grab the last duck foot.

"Damn, Yang Dali, you're quick." Zhou Jun was a step slower.

"Damn it, if I don't move quickly, I won't be able to eat any." Yang Li took a bite of the duck's foot. The smell of the braised duck and the bone was very similar. He regretted that he had grabbed all the ducks.

Eating duck feet wasted time, so he picked up his phone with his other hand and planned to continue playing the game, but he accidentally pressed the public button. For a moment, the entire dormitory was filled with insults from his teammates.

*

Ji Qingzhi didn't know that this "failed" braised food would lead to a "war of words". At this moment, she was counting the spices that were sent to her, and then began to mix them according to the amounts in Old Ji's notes. It was at this time that she realized that each different spice had a different function.

For example, some are for removing odor and fishy smell, some are for adding flavor, and some are for better bone removal. Each marinade has its own function.

After preparing the necessary spices and adding the chili peppers, peppercorns and other condiments prepared in advance, she began to stir-fry the ingredients. After a while, the kitchen was filled with the aroma of the ingredients. Just as she added water, the light screen appeared again, and she even heard the ding-dong sound of the red cross appearing.

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