Braised dishes, tea eggs, spicy/pickled cabbage/tomato beef (...

The adjutant also received Wu Huansheng's email.

Therefore, when Kuwano proposed to apply for a robot to help her with production, she readily agreed.

The base has a total of 5,700 robots. Although they are all called "household robots", one-third of them are armed and used for patrolling during the 24-star period. Their armed forces are comparable to a C-level sentinel.

Half of them are transport robots. From the beginning of the design, the hardness of the shell, resistance to extreme temperatures and gripping ability were emphasized. These are the most important batch of robots in the base, and also the part with the highest maintenance cost.

The last one remaining was the real housekeeping robot in front of Kuwano.

These are unactivated armed robots. When the attack systems in their modules are dormant, they assist humans in maintaining the base's operation, ensuring the supply of nutrient solutions, and providing basic medical and logistical support.

The adjutant could use her authority to bring in three more robots for "logistical support," but higher authority would require authorization from Wu Huansheng herself. However, she was far away at the snow mountain base and probably couldn't be of much help in the short term.

With the four "helpers" he already has, Kuwano is already quite satisfied.

Less than half an hour after the adjutant left, three robots came over on their own, reported to Kuwano, and then joined the noodle-making team.

Kuwano left the kitchen, intending to go back and rest for a while.

The sky, not yet completely dark, reflected the lush greenery of the small garden. Sangye paused, then ran over in disbelief.

The black soil, which was completely empty when Wu Jianing and the others arrived in the afternoon, is now covered with green seedlings, each one strong and healthy, clearly promising to bear large fruits.

The variables involved are not difficult to predict.

Wu Jia Ning's spiritual form is Dang Kang, and wherever the divine beast Dang Kang goes, there is a bountiful harvest.

They bring favorable weather and abundant harvests, and they also use their spiritual power to nourish the earth and crops.

So after Wu Jianing arrived with her spiritual form, the plants that Sangye planted grew rapidly.

Wu Jianing is young, and her spiritual body's level cannot even be determined yet, but she already possesses such power. A divine beast is indeed a divine beast.

Thinking that the field was planted with seasoning seeds, Sangye's thoughts turned to instant noodle flavors.

Actually, it wasn't just instant noodles; all the dishes she made before had very common flavors, and even when she added chili peppers, it was very limited, just to enhance the aroma.

But now she thinks she can try something more extreme.

Eating the same flavor all the time gets boring, and she's already prepared a lot of beef chunks for the next batch of instant noodle seasoning, so she might as well take this opportunity to develop a few more flavors.

This time, let's make spicy beef, pickled cabbage beef, and tomato beef brisket flavors.

Since we're making so many flavors, we might as well make a big pot of braising liquid this time. The braising liquid can be used repeatedly; we just need to filter out the spices that have been cooking for too long period of time and then add new spices.

Because of the large quantity, Sangye did not pay attention to the amount of spices this time. A large amount of Sichuan peppercorns, Sichuan peppercorns, chili peppers, cinnamon, star anise, jasmine, ginger, fennel seeds, dried tangerine peel, licorice, rock sugar, and salt were put into the pot and stir-fried until fragrant, and then the red oil was extracted.

These spices can also be washed and added directly to the braising liquid. Sautéing them first is just Sangye's personal preference; she feels that this makes the braising liquid more fragrant.

Then add oyster sauce, light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, and rock sugar, pour it into a giant pot that is half a person tall, add the previously added pork bone broth, and start simmering.

If you don't add this much water, the brine will taste bitter because there are too many ingredients.

As time went by, the aroma of the brine gradually rose, but Sangye could tell at a glance and a sniff that it was far from ready. The old brine was a deep, dark reddish-brown, and upon closer inspection, it was filled with the rich aroma of layers of spices mixed with the mellow fragrance of ingredients stewed at different times.

After the brine bubbled and boiled, Sangye skimmed off the foam floating on the surface. This task could be done by a robot in the future.

The maintenance of brine requires "boiling twice in spring and summer, boiling once in autumn and winter, and then refrigerating and letting it stand."

This means that the spices should be boiled twice a day in spring and summer, and once a day in autumn and winter, and the settled spice residue should be replaced.

This method preserves the essence of stewing while removing residues that could cause spoilage, ensuring the brine remains fresh and doesn't spoil.

Many restaurants' first step before opening is to develop a "secret recipe" for their braising liquid; otherwise, they won't attract customers and won't last long. Some restaurants claim to have "century-old braising liquid," but in reality, after all the changes, it's no longer the same pot as before.

Brine can be used to cook almost anything, but when stewing vegetables, it needs to be cooked in a separate pot. Brine is basically unable to preserve vegetables, especially bean products, after it has been used to braise them, and they will spoil very quickly.

When braising beef in brine, there's no need to caramelize sugar beforehand; the brine will quickly turn the beef a bright red color.

Sangye packed the blanched beef into several fine gauze bags and hung them one by one into the braising liquid, allowing the braising liquid to slowly submerge the beef and penetrate its muscle fibers.

Sangye also prepared dozens of chicken legs and chicken feet as accompaniments and hoisted them in as well.

The braising liquid is infused with the aroma of meat, resulting in a rich and lingering fragrance. This is also a unique braising method used in Sangye.

Even within Shifangwu, everyone has their own unique recipes, techniques, and even the order in which they prepare the braising broth. Each restaurant has its own distinctive style, which is why the braising broth tastes different in Shifangwu restaurants across different cities.

Sangye began preparing the other dishes.

All three flavors are easy to make, but each has a hidden secret.

For example, the most important ingredient in spicy beef sauce is the cilantro that is poured over after the oil and sauce have been sautéed. It brings out the original flavor of all the ingredients. With cilantro in the middle, you realize that refreshing and rich flavors can coexist.

For example, in pickled cabbage and beef sauce, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) usually uses Chinese cabbage for pickling, but Shifangwu uses a special variety they cultivated called "Ganbai" for pickling. It has long stalks and leaves, and when it stands upright, it's as tall as a person, with a very chewy texture. It doesn't taste good for anything else besides pickling cabbage.

Soak in salt water, roll it up in a jar, and pickle for a few days until it turns brownish-black and soft. Cut it into thin strips, and it's delicious whether stir-fried with beef or served with congee, with a tangy and salty flavor.

Because the first batch of pickled mustard greens was grown in winter, and it was also winter when it was served, the pickled mustard greens had a faint red glow when viewed against the backdrop of the snowy scenery outside the window, so it was called "snow cabbage" or "snow red".

For example, tomato beef brisket sauce doesn't require braised beef, which would cause the tomato to lose its sweet and sour flavor. The two flavors would clash and overpower each other, which would be a blow to tomato lovers.

Since the brine had already been made, it couldn't be wasted. Sangye scooped out two pots of brine, added tea leaves, and boiled them together, preparing to make several hundred tea eggs to send over.

The tea selected was Qianfushan Cui, a type of tea with a large yield, but it was disliked by people at the time because of its strong aroma. Those who admired tea culture regarded it as "inferior tea".

But when used to make tea eggs, that pervasive tea aroma is exactly what's needed. The problem with tea eggs is that they're not flavorful enough, otherwise they'll taste bland like plain boiled eggs. If they were sold at a street stall, people would probably throw a tasteless boiled egg at you and tell you to go home and braise it yourself before coming back.

Put about 50 eggs in a pot and cook for a few hours before adding another batch.

After cooking for a while, it was already past midnight before Kuangye put the last pot of sauce into the refrigerator to freeze.

She finally had a moment to rest and opened her terminal.

There are two messages from the bank.

A message indicates that account G000001 on the Black Tower Star base transferred 10,000.00 Star Coins to you at 20 Star Hours and 16 Star Minutes.

The following day's data showed: Imperial Court account A000002 had 10,000.00 Star Coins deducted at 20 Stars and 17 Stars, leaving a balance of 2,000.00 Star Coins. Note: Deduction for compensation.

Sanye:?

What? Was her account just used as a formality?

The money slipped away before she even saw it!

Sangye felt a little stifled.

But thinking about what the original owner had done, she sighed helplessly.

Those sentries were not innocent, but their crimes did not warrant mutilation or death.

As a growth-type guide, the original owner was not as stable as a fixed-type guide because there was room for breakthrough in mental power.

Sentinels who can directly enter the First Military Academy are all of noble birth, possess formidable strength, have grown up in a privileged environment, travel the stars with high-ranking officials and elders, and are greeted with smiles wherever they go.

The original owner was just unlucky; he happened to be assigned to the same class as them and was the only guide in that class.

The original owner was caught up in it, and because he was an orphan with no support behind him, he could only passively follow in their footsteps, compromising and feeling helpless at every turn.

But tiny frictions are like the mud and sand in an oyster; not all of them can turn into pearls. Over time, they can destroy the oyster that was originally diving freely.

After completing her studies, she preferred to remain in the military region as a guide with a relatively lower salary and was eager to break away from her former classmates. She applied for an internship before graduation and was successfully retained.

However, her "classmates" all had paths arranged by their families, and they wanted her to follow the garrison.

So they disregarded her wishes, sent someone to take her place, and forcibly included her in the garrison list.

They didn't care what the original owner wanted; they only felt that keeping her by their side was the "safest" thing to do.

Over the years, the accumulated silt and sand finally submerged the clam meat, breaking the shell from the inside.

This ultimately led to an unmanageable situation.

The original owner wasn't entirely without affection for her classmates. She wasn't without guilt, but she didn't regret it.

So now, Sangye stands on the land of Black Tower Star, and the original owner's soul is free.

It's really hard for Sangye to say who's right and who's wrong. As a passerby who came from another time, she shouldn't be making a judgment.

She could only keep moving forward.

This 10,000 star coins is clearly an "allocation" given to her by the base.

Sangye had studied the purchasing power of this world; an average family's annual income was around 100,000 to 150,000 star coins.

Sentinels and guides, due to their combat duties, earn significantly more on average than ordinary people, profiting greatly from the battlefield. Many nobles in the empire rose to prominence through their ancestors' service as sentinels/guides.

Therefore, as a B-rank colonel-level guide, Kuwano can earn a monthly salary of 15,000 stars. He also receives substantial bonuses and other benefits.

However, the Empire has clear regulations to protect civilian employment, and more than 80% of jobs that do not require mental power must be provided to civilians.

Therefore, there are also extremely wealthy people among ordinary people. The Empire's entertainment, commerce, and transportation industries are highly developed, especially interstellar trade, which has spawned countless conglomerates. Not all Sentinels/Guides join the military; merchants hire them to escort their interstellar voyages, often paying them more than the military.

Therefore, 10,000 star coins is a considerable income, especially considering that all of Sangye's raw materials are free, she and the robots provide the manpower, and the base provides the energy.

This is also why Shifangwu Restaurant could become so wealthy: it had zero operating costs, with daily expenses limited to the wear and tear of pots, pans, benches, tables, chairs, restaurant maintenance, and some hired labor. Furthermore, because it belonged to a cultivation sect, it was exempt from taxes levied by the mortal government.

I just don't know if this is a one-time thing, or if there will be more in the future.

Kuwano originally wanted to delete the bank information to avoid seeing it and getting annoyed, but somehow it stayed.

Then I'll look at other news.

The adjutant sent her an email explaining the source of the funds. Essentially, Wu Huansheng had applied to the base for logistical support funds, and the base was distributing the funds to Sangye based on the Snow Mountain Base's ten-day supply standard, with the funds arriving ahead of schedule.

Sangye's eyes lit up and then dimmed.

T was happy because the base was wealthy and didn't care about this expense, paying her off readily; but the dark side was that the money would be deducted from her account as soon as it arrived, which pained her greatly!

A note from the author:

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There's an update, you can watch it now! [hugs][hugs][hugs]

I'm going to get some sleep now, I'll update another chapter later tomorrow.

Fever, bad cold, lack of sleep, I feel so awful [hugs]