Chapter 114: The Day of the Autumn Examination. (First update)...
The third sister recalled the gradual rift between her and her husband in her previous life, and finally stopped arguing and obediently agreed to book a room for ten days.
But as soon as she entered the house, she couldn't help but frown and complain: "This room is full of boxes and cages, there's no place to even put down..."
"Look at this bedding, it smells musty."
"Oh my, there are insect corpses in this corner!"
Mr. Guo listened to her endless chatter and finally couldn't help but say, "Go find some candles. I want to read."
"I see," Third Sister agreed, but the boxes were so tightly packed that she couldn't find anything. She thought for a moment, then had the servants carry the boxes to the next room, spread them out on the bed, and searched. After a long while, she returned with a candle, lit it for Mr. Guo, and ground some ink.
When Mr. Guo started reading, she also took out her needlework and started working with her head down.
Mr. Guo glanced at it out of the corner of his eye, breathed a sigh of relief, and calmed down to concentrate on reading.
The couple, absorbed in their own affairs, looked blissfully happy. But this harmonious scene only lasted half a day. As night fell, the noise outside grew louder, and the aroma of meat seeped in through the window.
"What time is it? And still so noisy?" Mr. Guo grew increasingly annoyed as he listened. He couldn't help but slam his book on the table, leapt up, and flung open the window. He wanted to yell, but when he looked outside, he was stunned: "How could this happen?"
The third sister also stood up to look, and her expression changed as well. She saw that the streets, which were empty and very quiet in the afternoon, were now filled with night market stalls on both sides. The market was crowded with people, and the sound of laughter and chattering was endless.
"How long will this go on?" The third sister didn't wait for the servants to ask, she went downstairs to ask the innkeeper herself.
"There is no curfew in our city of Bianjing, so the stalls are open until three o'clock in the morning." The boss replied with a smile.
"What? You, why didn't you tell me earlier?"
"My wife didn't ask." The innkeeper smiled and explained kindly, "Our city of Bianjing has never had a curfew. It has always been like this."
The third sister asked someone to go to the street market to ask, and the people who came back said that the night market would indeed last until three o'clock in the morning.
What’s even more annoying is that the breakfast shop has to open again at dawn, so there’s only about an hour of quiet time in between.
When Mr. Guo heard the news, he immediately felt regretful. If he had known that there was a night market next to this place, he would never have lived here.
But even after paying, they still struggled to find a place to stay at night. The couple could only grit their teeth and endure, tossing and turning in bed until the next morning. They both sent people out early in the morning: one had the maid inquire about the whereabouts of the people from Liang Bo's residence, while the other had the servant ask if there were any other quiet and secure inns for rent nearby.
Soon, two pieces of news reached the couple. The good news was that the maid had found Mao'er Hutong after asking around for a while and had even delivered a message to the people inside. The bad news was that the servant had searched all morning but had not been able to find the inn room that met Mr. Guo's request.
The couple really couldn't stand the noise last night, and even Mr. Guo had the idea of going to his brother-in-law for help.
When the third sister heard this, she immediately prepared to go to the boss to get her money back, but Mr. Guo stopped her and said, "Let's go to the fourth sister and her brother-in-law first. What if his family is in chaos and it's hard to stay, then we won't even have a place to stay."
"But this house is small and noisy. Why don't we find somewhere else to live? Why waste time here?" The third sister had long disliked this place, and she quickly retorted when she heard this.
"I asked someone and there's no good place to stay around here." Mr. Guo said in a deep voice.
"We can't suffer here! Even if we can't rent a place in an inn, can't we ask people to rent a place in a private house?"
The third sister ignored the advice and went straight to the boss to ask for a refund. The boss initially refused, but after she kept pestering him, he finally deducted two days' rent and returned the rest to her.
The third sister was still feeling the pain. While packing up the boxes, she was still complaining about how generous Mr. Guo had been with the money yesterday, wasting two days' money.
Mr. Guo frowned and said nothing. He packed his boxes with a sullen face and went to Maoer Hutong with his servants and maids.
But when they arrived, they found that the newly moved courtyard of Liang Bo's mansion was small and crowded. The servants could only sleep on the floor in the woodshed. How could there be room for them?
The fourth sister looked tired and said awkwardly, "Third sister, it's not that I don't want to help, it's just, it's just that this situation..."
The third sister was dumbfounded, and Mr. Guo's face was not looking good either, so he could only take his people back. Along the way, he went to the pawnshop to inquire about empty houses, hoping to find a yard to rent for a month.
The agents looked at them and shook their heads. Where could they find a house for a short-term rental for a month?
After a whole day of trouble, the couple finally returned to the original inn.
But when I got there and asked, the boss just smiled and waved his hand: "Sorry, the room we had yesterday is already booked. There's another room next door, but the price is double, one guan per night."
"What? It was only 500 wen yesterday, and it's doubled today?" The third sister raised her voice in shock.
"My wife knows that the Autumn Examination is approaching, and the number of people staying at the hotel is increasing day by day, so the price will naturally increase." The boss said calmly, "If you don't want it, the price may increase again later."
"If you're not happy, go out and ask again."
"Ours is the cheapest. The house next door used to cost 300 wen a night, but now it's only 1 guan."
"We paid for three days' stay this morning!"
"Madam, that was the fee you charged this morning for breach of contract, not the room fee..."
While the third sister and the innkeeper argued endlessly over money, Mr. Guo was growing annoyed. He felt the tingling sensation rising from the soles of his feet, glanced at the weary servants behind him, and then at the boxes piled at his feet. They were all exhausted and couldn't afford to waste any more time on the road.
"Book it for nine days."
"Sir!" The third sister felt sorry for the money, but she had no other choice but to watch Mr. Guo pay the money.
After entering the house, looking at the boxes and cages that were still piled high with things, and listening to the faint sounds of the night market preparations coming from outside, the third sister felt aggrieved and Mr. Guo was worried.
It is not easy to prepare for the autumn examination like this.
Mr. Guo walked into the examination room with dark circles under his eyes. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of the young man sitting next to him. He was wearing a plain, unembroidered brocade robe and a small windproof hat. He was busy unloading items from the examination basket. Some of his features looked familiar, while others were not.
Sitting next to Mr. Guo was Chen Yan. He took out the candle and candlestick, as well as the wormwood powder insect repellent incense and mint mosquito repellent water, and smiled foolishly.
Both of these things were made by Sister Zhi!
Chen Yan continued to sort things out. The more he turned downwards, the more things there were. There were pickles that Zhi Jieer made to go with rice, meat jerky and dried fruits, as well as pheasant cakes, chicken powder, lard and braised pork cakes that could be turned into soup when boiled in hot water, and even fried cooked noodles.
Chen Yan was delighted. Lin Zhi, who was far away in the shop, was also talking about these things with Lin Sen and his wife. She sighed as she spoke: "After I made those things for Yan'er, I found that not only merchants have this demand, but also students coming to Bianjing to take the imperial examinations! After three days and three nights in the examination hall, students want to eat something hot, not dry cakes."
"I should have made a joint set with Zhuangyuan Cake earlier. It's guaranteed to be a hit!"
Lin Sen also felt very sorry: "That's true, but don't worry, there will be opportunities next year."
Lin Zhi felt regretful for three breaths, but soon calmly let the matter go: "Well, that's right. I'll send some to Madam Lu later. It's not easy for her to go out, and these things will also make her comfortable on the journey."
"I think it's good." Song Jiaoniang nodded, "Madam Lu's life is getting better now."
"It's because I'm getting better that I have to be more careful." Lin Sen shook his head and explained the problem in detail. The Hu Ji Spice Shop's factory is in Lingnan, and Madam Lu needs to check it frequently. But her husband died early, and her two elders are old. She has to take care of it alone until the child grows up.
"Fortunately, Madam Lu is resilient."
"That's right. I definitely can't do it." Song Jiaoniang was very self-aware. Madam Lu was able to keep the business steady because of this drive. Even though there were many people who criticized her, there were probably only a few who could do it.
"It's not just Madam Lu who needs to be careful, we all need to be careful too," Lin Zhi reminded with a smile, "There are a lot of people watching our shop right now."
On the other hand, after the New Year, the attitudes of the neighbors in the market began to change slightly. In Linzhi's words, the gap was so wide that it was impossible to catch up, and the jealousy actually decreased.
Nowadays, people who come to Dali Temple Front Street would never compare Linzhiji with ordinary small shops. If they were to compare, they would rather compare it with Dongji Restaurant and Furongzhuang.
However, the previous experience of Xie Da Mutton Restaurant was in front of them, and the owners of the two shops were at least very nice to Lin Zhi.
As he was speaking, someone came in from outside: "Is Chef Lin here?"
Soon, a waiter came to report: "Chef Lin, Chef Wei from Haoweizhai is here."
Lin Zhi raised her eyebrows and stood up to greet him.
She walked to the front hall and saw Chef Wei half-bent over, concentrating on the pheasant soup cakes on the counter: "Chef Wei."
Chef Wei stood up, turned around calmly and said with a smile, "Chef Lin, why aren't these pheasant soup cakes sold together with the champion cakes?"
"I didn't think of it before, but later my friend said he was going out for three days and complained about the poor food, so I came up with it." Linzhi smiled. She was not surprised that Chef Wei knew about the pheasant soup cake. This thing was not her original creation, but had existed since ancient times. It was said that the army also used it as supplies in case of emergency.
"I see."
"What do you want to talk to me about?" Lin Zhi asked. Since the Lantern Festival banquet, Chef Wei has often come to her house. Sometimes he invites her to participate in festival activities, and sometimes he comes to discuss the use of various new spices. The two of them are quite familiar with each other. She didn't bother to say polite words and asked directly.
"I want to ask, Chef Lin, what do you think about this year's selection of the deputy bank chief?" Chef Wei said frankly.
Lin Zhi thought for a moment, "I remember that the deputy guild leader was chosen by the government first, and then voted on by the guild members. I'm a newcomer, so even if I'm chosen by the government, it would be difficult for me to pass the latter part."
Chef Wei was stunned for a moment, then burst out laughing. "Chef Lin... you don't understand your position at all! Let me put it this way, if you didn't own the shop yourself, you'd probably have people knocking on your doorstep trying to poach you. There are plenty of restaurants willing to hire you as head chef."
What's more, the majority of the catering industry is made up of ordinary foot shops and restaurants. For someone like Linzhi, who started out as a foot shop and surpassed many famous families, it is no exaggeration to say that he is a hero.
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