Chapter 9 Chapter 9 Birthday Banquet Lin Qiuran didn't care, originally...

Lin Qiuran felt that preparing banquets was relatively easy, although it was more tiring than cooking fish and the profit was not that much now, but it was a long-term business, and he would definitely make more money when he could organize bigger banquets.

It is definitely not possible to sell fish for a long time. If there are no fish in the river one day, or the weather is bad, wouldn’t it be dumbfounded? But Lin Qiuran does not plan to stop selling fish after doing banquets. Fish and banquets are not available every day. If they can be done together, he can sell food instead of taking banquets. This way he will definitely earn more.

The Yu family is quite satisfied this time, but who knows, someone might come to visit them in the near future.

It would be best to be in the county town. In the village, you can get three taels of silver for a feast, which is more laborious than selling fish, but if you go to the county town, you can probably make double that. In the long run, you will definitely be more respected than doing business.

Among the four classes of people, scholars, farmers, artisans and merchants, merchants are at the bottom.

Sun nodded, "Okay, but you still have to take care of yourself and don't tire yourself out."

Lin Qiuran: "Don't worry, I know what's going on."

Lin Qiuran discussed with Sun what to say if someone came to ask, and most importantly, she should not forget to mention that she was a widow, as some families were taboo about this. If someone really ordered a banquet, she should accept it directly and ask what kind of banquet it would be, how many people, and how many tables.

Sun took note of it carefully, and asked Lin Qiuran several times about what she didn't understand. Finally, she nodded and said, "Mother has remembered it all, don't worry."

In the evening, Sun made her scrambled eggs with chives, a plate full of golden savory dishes, but she and Xiao Dashi still ate thin porridge. Lin Qiuran picked up a large piece for each of them, but Sun thought it was too much and took half back for Lin Qiuran.

Lin Qiuran had no choice. He probably only touched meat when the table was full of meat and there were no pickles. Yes, scrambled eggs were considered meat in this era.

After dinner, Lin Qiuran didn't have to wash the dishes. She went to the backyard to pick up vegetable leaves to feed the chickens while Xiao Dashi went to catch insects. This way, the vegetables would grow well, and the chickens would eat the insects and lay larger egg yolks. Lin Qiuran didn't dare touch the insects, so much so that she would retreat at the sight of them. Only Xiao Dashi could do this.

She dug some garlic and peeled it so she could use it tomorrow. She could do more of the little things so tomorrow would be easier.

Today, Xiao Dashi caught more than 30 crucian carps, which were still alive and kicking in the bucket. She planned to make garlic-flavored crucian carp tomorrow and keep one for lunch. She was preparing a banquet today, and the Yu family had garlic-flavored crucian carp, which made her a little greedy.

As it got dark, Lin Qiuran put the garlic cloves in a bowl and asked Sun to boil some water. Normally, she didn't cook so many dishes, so she didn't feel that hot. But today it was so hot that even with a headscarf wrapped around her head, she felt greasy.

Taking a shower at home wasn't very convenient, but if Lin Qiuran didn't take a shower today, she was afraid she wouldn't be able to sleep all night. Sun then boiled a large pot of water, brought it in, and changed the water twice. Finally, Lin Qiuran was clean.

I wrung my hair dry before going to bed.

The next morning, Xiao Dashi went to the river again at dawn, but he only caught two fish today and his bucket was empty.

These days, he would catch fish the day before and sell them the next day, ensuring that he would have fish to cook and make money every day. However, he didn't catch any today and it took so long. Xiao Dashi blamed himself and kept his head down and sighed when he got home.

Xiao Dashi: "We only caught two today, definitely not enough to sell."

Lin Qiuran consoled him, "Dad, it might rain tomorrow, so we won't be able to sell any fish. Two fish will be enough for our family. Besides, I've been working for several days, so a day off is perfect."

Xiao Dashi knew that Lin Qiuran was comforting him, saying that his daughter-in-law was capable and it was his fault that he was not good enough.

Lin Qiuran didn't care. He didn't think the fish selling business would last long. If the weather was bad or there were no fish to catch, the business would stop.

She cooked the crucian carp she caught yesterday into a garlic-flavored sauce and put it in a wooden barrel. Sun and Xiao Dashi then loaded it into the car. "You don't need to buy meat today. Buy some tofu. Let's have fish for a change."

She saved a crucian carp for lunch and planned to steam some rice and mix it with the garlic-infused broth. It was sure to taste good. Today, Xiao Dashi caught a carp and a crucian carp. He would keep the crucian carp for soup tonight. The carp weighed four or five pounds and would be eaten for lunch tomorrow. Sun and Xiao Dashi had worked hard these past few days.

Lin Qiuran thought he could make a big fish pancake. There was still oil at home, and more oil could make the pancake golden and crispy.

Xiao Dashi felt a little relieved after being comforted. He said to Sun, "Qiu Ran is such a good child and thinks things through. If you don't want to buy meat when you get home, buy some fruit. I think we've run out of fruit at home."

Sun said, "I'll buy some honeydew melon. I see Qiuran likes sweet things, and grapes are sour and he doesn't like melon as much."

Xiao Dashi nodded heavily. "Tomorrow I'll go fishing first, then go look in the woods. I might find something there that I can sell for money."

The two went to the county town and returned to the same stall from the day before. They had been there several times before, and the Xiao family's stall now had repeat customers.

As soon as the car stopped, people came over. The first customer bought two and asked, "Why didn't you come yesterday?"

As Sun was weighing the fish, she said, "My daughter-in-law is in charge of the banquet. Yesterday, someone had an errand and went over to help, so she didn't have time to cook the fish for sale."

The man nodded and said, "So you are a master chef, no wonder the food is so delicious."

Sun smiled, remembering Lin Qiuran's words, "If you need help at home, you can ask my daughter-in-law for help. Her cooking skills are excellent."

The guest nodded, took the fish and left, and Sun took six cents.

Several guests came over, but they were just asking around; no one was planning a banquet. In fact, hiring a chef to prepare a banquet was rare. In the village, families would ask their sisters-in-law and their wives' families for help, and a few meat dishes would be enough. Only wealthy families like the Yu family would hire a chef to cook.

The city was probably better than the village, but there were decent banquet chefs there, well-known far and wide, and every family that held a banquet would invite them. Lin Qiuran had just arrived, and it wasn't easy for him to do it.

After selling all the fish, the two packed up and prepared to go buy fruit and tofu. Fruit was plentiful at this time of year, so Sun picked out a fresh, oval-stemmed honeydew melon. After paying, she heard someone call out to her from behind, "Grandma."

However, since she was unfamiliar with the county town, Sun didn't think he was calling her and walked forward for a while. The man caught up with her and patted her on the shoulder, "Auntie, your legs are really good. It's your daughter-in-law who is preparing the feast, right?"

Sun nodded quickly, "Yes, yes! I didn't think you were calling me just now. My daughter-in-law can prepare the feast."

"Auntie, there are too many people here. Why don't we go somewhere else to talk?" The girl looked only about fifteen or sixteen years old. Sun nodded and found a quiet alley.

Mrs. Sun said, "My daughter-in-law can do it, but I don't know what you are doing. My son died a few days ago, and my daughter-in-law is pregnant. I'm afraid you might be afraid of this."

Take getting married, for example. Not only would the banquet be prepared, but even the dowry and quilts would be made by looking for a perfect match. A perfect match is one with a happy couple and two children. Lin Qiuran was a new widow with a child in her belly, so most families were unwilling to accept her.

However, Sun felt that this was not a big deal. When Lin Qiuran and Xiao Xun got married, they also found a happy man. But Xiao Xun was also pregnant. However, there were some taboos, so these things had to be made clear. Otherwise, after cooking, if they found out that Lin Qiuran was a widow, they would not only have to pay money but also offend others.

The little girl nodded and said, "It's okay. I'm a maid in the Wang Zhubu family. My old lady is celebrating her 60th birthday in a few days. If it's convenient, come over tomorrow to try the food. If it works, we'll finalize the deal."

You definitely have to try the food. Unless you are a famous chef, who knows if the food you cook will suit your taste. What others say is good may not necessarily suit your taste.

The birthday banquet will be held in seven days, and the family is planning to hold a grand one. However, they are unsure whether this woman's daughter-in-law can prepare it, and how it will turn out.

Sun said, "So this is Wang Zhubu's house. Can we come over tomorrow morning?"

The little maid said, "Okay."

This really proves what Lin Qiuran said. Maybe it will rain tomorrow and something will happen. This is still a good thing.

Sun and Xiao Dashi asked some questions, and after they had asked everything they needed to, they hurried to buy things and go home. This delayed them for a while, and they got home a little late.

Lin Qiuran was getting a little anxious waiting. While helping to move things into the house, he asked, "Why are you back so late today? Is it because the sales are not going well?"

Sun smiled. "No, the fish were selling well. Something else delayed us. Guess what? Your father and I packed up our stall and left. The maid from the county clerk's house caught up with us and asked if we were in charge of the banquet. She said her old lady was having her sixtieth birthday and she wanted to go and try out the food tomorrow. It's such a coincidence. Your father didn't catch any fish this morning. I thought he'd have nothing to do tomorrow."

Sun said, "I agreed to it because she asked me. Why don't you go and take a look tomorrow?"

Lin Qiuran would definitely go if he had the chance. "Go, then Mom, come with me. Dad can rest at home for a day."

It was just a matter of going out, so there was no need for all the family members to come over. Besides, Lin Qiuran was also afraid that someone in the village would look for her and that there would be no one at home.

Sun thought it was a good idea. "That's it. And look at this melon, is it good? Cut it up and eat it later. I sold it for 203 coins today. I also bought some melon and tofu, and had dinner with your father. I still have 184 coins left."

Lin Qiuran still took the lion's share, leaving the rest for Sun. Money was always needed when traveling, and besides, they both helped sell fish, which was hard work.

After putting the copper coins away, Lin Qiuran began to think about what to cook for the tasting tomorrow.

The last time he went to Yujiazhuang, Lin Qiuran had made a simple vegetarian dish, but it was delicious. A good vegetarian dish could show off a chef's culinary skills. Furthermore, the village had limited financial resources, so even if they could prepare a feast, they wouldn't necessarily be able to serve it.

But it was different in the county town. Since it was the chief clerk's family, they had to have some money, so they had to have meat dishes. The chief clerk's family... they were definitely more picky and knowledgeable, so they probably wouldn't look down on ordinary dishes.

She asked Sun: "Mother, did they tell her why they were looking for me?"

Is it because of cooking fish or going to Yujiazhuang for a banquet?

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Cub: I need money!