Chapter 31 Eight Treasure Rice

After getting busy, the days flew by. When Qiao Mianmian reached the alley entrance and saw the Wang family moving things, she realized that the second son of the Wang family had already married into the family.

"It's Mianmian and you guys! Where have you been? I haven't seen you around lately." Widow Wang chuckled and wiped her hands on her apron. "The old bed at home was patched up again and again, but now that Erzhu has moved away, I bought a new one. You have a large family, and I see your business is doing very well. When are you planning to move to a bigger house?"

After being poor for so many years, Widow Wang suddenly had money and would secretly boast to others, wanting to hear people praise her good fortune.

Qiao Mianmian pretended to be clueless, acting as if she didn't understand Widow Wang's true intentions, "There will always be a time for change. You go ahead with your work, I'm going home."

"Oh my, you're such a diligent girl, always wanting to go home and work." Widow Wang wanted to talk about the changes in her family, but Qiao Mianmian went to the other side.

The two children of the Xu family were sitting on the stone slab at the door of their house. Their parents had gone out to work and had not yet returned, so Xu Dahu and his younger brother were waiting at the door.

Qiao Mianmian handed them two tangerines and asked, "Dahu, where are your parents?"

"They went to the river to wash their hands and pull the cart. They told my brother and me to come back first. Thank you, Sister Mianmian. I only need one, but I'll give it to my brother." Xu Dahu is seven years old. Because his parents help empty chamber pots for others, the neighborhood children say they smell bad, so few of them play with them.

Qiao Mianmian remembered that the two children always sat at the door of the house. She had no impression of the Xu family. She had just heard three-year-old Xu Erlong say that he was hungry and wanted to get rid of Widow Wang, so she came over to deliver tangerines.

"It's okay, you can take them all." Qiao Mianmian saw that Xu Erlong was chubby and had cute, dark eyes. She reached out and touched him. The little boy was shy and smiled, hiding in his brother's arms.

When Qiao Mianmian returned home, her parents were already back.

Smelling the aroma of food wafting from the kitchen, Qiao Mianmian had a bad feeling and turned to look at her grandmother.

Zhang sighed helplessly, "Your mother said you've been working hard on the road and don't want you to be too tired, so she's in charge of cooking today. I think she's right, so I didn't try to persuade her. We should eat our fill, whether we can eat it or not, and not waste food."

Even though her granddaughter cooks well, she's not a slave in the house. We can't expect her to cook every time she comes home after dark.

"Fourth sister, you all go and rest for a while. I'll go see what Mother has made." Qiao Mianmian was still worried, so she went to the kitchen anyway. "Mother, I'm back."

"It's good that you're back. How was your day at the Wang family's? Were they easy to talk to?" Lin said, stirring the noodles in the pot. When she saw her youngest daughter coming over to look, she snorted, "Are you worried that I didn't cook well, so you came to see what I'm cooking?"

Qiao Mianmian chuckled, "How could you think of me like that? I'm back, and I wanted to let you know. Oh, we're having noodles tonight."

"Yes, I know my cooking skills very well. Several people came to order food today, but I didn't dare to accept them. I could only say that the chef was not here." Lin ladled out the blanched noodles, put a piece of lard at the bottom of the bowl, poured on the broth from the braised meat, stirred it, and it was ready to eat. "Take it out. I'll also make an egg drop soup. You must be very busy these days. Just eat something simple at home."

She gently patted her youngest daughter's arm before going to find the eggs.

"Thank you, Mom, you've worked so hard." Qiao Mianmian said with a smile as she carried the noodles out.

Mrs. Lin felt a warm glow in her heart, marveling at how much more sensible her youngest daughter had become after her brush with death.

Thinking that the Wang family was very satisfied with the dishes her youngest daughter had made, Madam Lin felt proud. Her daughter was truly capable.

Dinner was simple: a bowl of noodles with braised broth, paired with a refreshing egg drop soup—a simple meal indeed.

For the next two days, Qiao Mianmian and her siblings went out at dawn and even ate breakfast at the Wang family's house.

After accepting Lu Zhao's rice, Lin would call Lu Zhao and Qingjiu over for breakfast every day.

However, Qingjiu would mutter to herself, "Madam Qiao is warm and easy to get along with, but her cooking skills are far inferior to those of Miss Qiao Wu. The past two days, the sweet potato peels weren't cleaned properly, and the pickled cabbage was too salty. I really miss Miss Qiao Wu's cooking."

He asked Mrs. Qiao, and she said it would be another three days. Those days felt incredibly long.

"Even if it's not good, it's still better than what you did." Lu Zhao finished complaining and walked away a little faster, but in his heart, he was also hoping that the days would pass quickly, as his mouth had become a bit too full.

Time flew by for Qiao Mianmian. She was busy preparing dishes from morning till night for two days, and then she had to prepare the main banquet on the last day.

The first seven dishes have all been served, and only the last dish, eight-treasure rice, is left.

The moment the steamer is opened, the heat and aroma rush out. After the bowl is turned upside down, the glutinous rice slides into the plate like crystals, showing a brownish-red, sugary sheen.

Red dates, longan, and lotus seeds are neatly arranged in three circles, the aroma of glutinous rice wrapped in the simple sweetness of dried fruit, mixed with the richness of lard, and finally drizzled with a light layer of osmanthus honey.

Qiao Mianmian tasted it with a spoon. The glutinous rice was sticky and stringy, and the sweetness of the honey was accompanied by the fragrance of osmanthus. It was not greasy and left only a slight sweetness on the tip of her tongue.

The aroma of the nuts bursts forth in the oil, and as you slowly chew them, the fragrance spreads across your tongue, making you want to keep eating.

"It's ready." As soon as Qiao Mianmian finished speaking, Lin Xiahe and Qiao Jiawang, the two brothers, were able to lift the steamer in tacit agreement, turn the bowl upside down, and pour on the osmanthus honey.

The four of them were only responsible for cooking in the kitchen; others would wash the vegetables, and the Wang family would hire people to serve the dishes.

When the last dish of eight-treasure rice was sent out of the kitchen, the person serving it had been craving it for a long time.

"Where did the Wang family find this chef? He's so young, I've never seen him before."

"I don't know either, but the dishes today smell really good. And just like in a big restaurant, they also have carved side dishes. They look delicious and look great."

“I just glanced at the kitchen and everyone there is very young. I suppose the oldest young man is the head chef. The other two girls are too young to have that kind of skill.”

"I think so too. Let's hurry up and deliver the vegetables. After we're done, we can taste them too."

...

The people serving the dishes were all hungry, but the people eating at the banquet were very satisfied and stuffed.

Today is the main feast, and all those present are Wang's relatives and friends, as well as Wang Chuang's classmates.

They ate at the Wang family's banquet and all praised it highly.

It just so happens that the Wang family and the Yu family are acquaintances, and Mrs. Yu has brought her daughter to dine today.

After finishing the last dish, eight-treasure rice, the Wang family set up a stage in the garden and hired performers. Taking advantage of this time, Madam Yu came to inquire with Madam Wang, "Congratulations! You've finally made it! Today's feast is even more beautiful and delicious than any restaurant's. You must have hired a very famous chef, right?"

Madam Wang glanced at the graceful young woman standing behind Madam Yu, knowing that Madam Yu was looking for a husband for Yu Shuiqing. At first, she thought Madam Yu had taken a liking to her youngest son and was trying to strike up a conversation. After thinking it over, she smiled and said, "The chef I hired isn't very famous yet, but since you've eaten here, I imagine he'll become quite famous soon."

"With such culinary skills, things will definitely get better in the future. I wonder which restaurant's head chef he is; I'll definitely patronize his restaurant sometime," said Madam Yu.

"It wasn't the head chef of the restaurant, but Miss Qiao Wu from Qiao's Food Shop in the market. My fourth son loves Qiao's braised dishes and has eaten there time and time again. After she brought some for me to try, I thought it was good, so I invited Miss Qiao Wu to take charge of the cooking. Today proves that I made the right choice. You don't know how many people have come to ask me who's in charge of the cooking." Madam Wang smiled broadly. The banquet was well-organized, which gave her face, and she would be happy to talk about it in the future.

Madam Yu had never heard of Qiao's Restaurant before. Learning that it had only recently opened, she made a mental note of it and planned to visit it later. If possible, she hoped to invite Miss Qiao the Fifth to cook when her daughter got married.

At this time, Madam Yu assumed that Miss Qiao must be quite old to have such excellent culinary skills. When she later went to Qiao's Restaurant to look for her, she was shocked to see Qiao Mianmian, who was not yet of marriageable age.

After inquiring about the matter, Madam Yu left, which surprised Madam Wang.

In the past few days, three matchmakers have come to propose marriage.

The Wang family is wealthy and has a large family. Now, Wang Chuang has passed the imperial examination and become a scholar. Regardless of whether he can advance further in the future, even with his current circumstances, he is a highly sought-after marriage partner.

Madam Wang had already planned to find a husband for her youngest son after the provincial examination, and she wouldn't delay any longer, regardless of whether he passed the county-level examination or not.

Her family already has three daughters-in-law. The eldest daughter-in-law is proper and follows the rules, the second daughter-in-law is cunning, and the third daughter-in-law is simple but lazy. Each daughter-in-law has her advantages and disadvantages.

Having had three daughters-in-law, Madam Wang knew how to choose one. The most important thing was good character and a harmonious and progressive family. It wasn't enough for just the daughter-in-law herself to be good; if her family wasn't good, she would always be a burden and cause trouble everywhere.

Now that her son has passed the imperial examination and become a scholar, Madam Wang has more options. She plans to carefully select a suitable wife for her youngest son.

After the youngest son gets married, they can separate the family property. Otherwise, with all four sons living together, resentment is bound to build up over time. Madam Wang is open-minded; money and wealth are never the most important things. A harmonious and happy family is what matters most.

Originally, the Yu family was a good choice, but since Madam Yu didn't mention it, Madam Wang didn't bring it up either; she wasn't in a hurry.

“Eldest brother, take this package to Miss Qiao Wu. I gave her an extra five taels of silver. I’ve seen how well they’ve handled things these past few days; they’ve done their best and deserve this reward.”

Madam Wang said, "There's an extra table of food. Let them pick four dishes to take home. They've been working hard for so many days, they should take some food back for their families to enjoy together."

"You are always the most generous and kind-hearted. It's a pleasure to have such a good customer like you. Everyone who works here is overjoyed." Zhou took the sealed package to the kitchen, relayed her mother-in-law's words, and then took out two taels of silver herself. "The guests who came today all praised the banquet to me. Whenever someone asked, I told them that it was Qiao's Restaurant in the market that invited them."

"It is a great joy for our family that my fourth brother has passed the imperial examination. As the eldest sister-in-law, I should do my part to show my appreciation. You have worked hard these past few days. This little bit of money is for you to have some tea."

Zhou placed the money in Qiao Mianmian's hand, "There's nothing else this afternoon, you can go back first, we can handle the rest."

Qiao Mianmian sighed inwardly, thinking that Zhou Shi truly had the demeanor of a matriarch; no wonder the other two sisters-in-law of the Wang family rarely showed up. With Zhou Shi being so eloquent and intelligent, the others could just sit back and relax; there was no need to worry about them.

"Thank you so much. I'm happy as long as you're satisfied." Qiao Mianmian smiled and accepted the money. Of course, she would accept any extra reward; it was an affirmation of her abilities.

Qiao Mianmian chose four dishes: eight-treasure rice, braised pork, garlic ribs, and stewed chicken soup. She chose these four because they would not affect the taste after being heated at home, and the three meat dishes were more expensive. She also wanted her parents to try the eight-treasure rice, which was complicated to make.

Before going home, Qiao Mianmian took her older brother and sister to say goodbye to Madam Wang. Having received a reward from her, they felt they had to thank her in person.

"You've come at the right time. This is Mrs. Jiang. I was just talking to her about you," Mrs. Wang warmly introduced Qiao Mianmian.

When Madam Jiang learned that Qiao Mianmian was in charge of cooking today, she was stunned for a while. "I thought it was an elderly chef. Your control of the heat is better than that of chefs with decades of experience. You are truly a force to be reckoned with. I am from the Jiang family in Tongluo Lane. My family will be having a banquet in a few days. Can we invite you to be the chef then?"

"Of course." Qiao Mianmian's eyes crinkled with joy, her heart brimming with happiness. She had achieved her goal.

Madam Jiang said she would send someone to the Qiao family in a few days, so Qiao Mianmian took her leave, eager to go home and share the delicious food with her family.

She was unaware that the relative of the prefect that Aunt Wu wanted to get to know had already been introduced to by her. She would only learn the next day, when she saw Luo Da, that the prefect's surname was also Jiang.