Chapter 28: The new "Shattered Gold Rice" restaurant opens, and a complimentary bowl of bean soup is included.
Lu Ji's iced cold dumplings sold well; by noon, only a few bowls were left.
Lu Qiong then served them all out and smiled as she gave one portion to Sister Yang: "Take these back and eat them, but we need to come earlier tonight so we can make the dumplings in advance."
There were still tiny ice crystals in the cold rice balls. Yang Jie'er's eyes sparkled as she responded with "Good!" and smiled as she held her hands against the bowl, feeling the coolness spread through them.
She had tasted the dumplings yesterday, but she couldn't bring herself to buy them herself, since one serving cost twenty coins, which was less than a bowl of mutton soup with flatbread. But Manager Lu was very generous, so she also drank the soup and ate the meat, and managed to save quite a bit of money each month.
Grateful, Sister Yang could only repay her by making even more pastries and soup dumplings. She didn't feel tired at all, even if she stayed in the shop all day, let alone come earlier!
The shop was closed as usual in the afternoon. Lu Qiong walked through the alley and saw a tall jujube tree next door. Its long branches were bent over the wall, and she could see tender yellow flowers blooming on them. Perhaps it would bear jujubes in a while.
Pushing open the door, Lu Xuan found Xue'er still fast asleep in the shade of the jujube tree, undisturbed by the noise. She ran over and patted its back.
Lu Qiong tidied up her newly bought clothes and placed them on the table beside her bed, intending to take them to the Bian River to wash at dusk. Fearing she might forget, she took out the soap pods beforehand and placed them in a conspicuous spot to remind herself.
Lu Qiong didn't have time to go to the market to buy meat today, and there weren't any suitable ingredients in the kitchen at home, so she planned to ask a freelancer to order dishes from a restaurant.
Fortunately, Tongjifang had idle men who ran errands. Just a few days after moving to Bianjing, an idle man came with a tea bottle to deliver tea. Whenever there was a need, whether it was to deliver messages or conduct business, one could ask them for help.
On ordinary days, idlers would wander around the alley with tea bottles in their hands, and Lu Qiong, standing by the door, would encounter them in no time.
Quickly stop the man and give him fifteen copper coins as payment: "I want two servings of the 'Broken Gold Rice' from the Red Mansion and one serving of crispy duck."
"Alright." The idler put the money into the money box, and then picked up the tea bottle, intending to pour her a cup of tea, but Lu Qiong waved her hand and refused.
Just as the idler left, Jinniang came over carrying a bowl, with thin steam rising from it.
"Is this mutton? Was it just bought?"
Lu Qiong couldn't help but swallow as she smelled the aroma of the stir-fried mutton. What's more, it looked delicious, golden brown and glistening with oil, sprinkled with sesame seeds. It must taste amazing.
Jinniang exclaimed, having rushed over under the scorching sun, a faint blush rising on her cheeks, somewhat embarrassed: "I didn't make much, so this is all I can give you to try."
Jinniang's family wasn't well-off either; they not only had to support Shuangjie'er but also send money to their family outside the city. Even her husband's family was struggling financially, but since her husband's parents had passed away early, they didn't have to worry about anything else.
Lu Qiong initially wanted to refuse her offer, but then she thought that Jin Niang must want to thank her for what happened today, so she smiled and accepted it: "If I had known you were coming, I wouldn't have worried about what to have for lunch."
Jinniang laughed even more heartily, her nervousness lessened: "Then this can be considered an extra meal for Sister Qiong."
The Red Mansion was nearby; within half an hour, a waiter from the restaurant brought over the food box. It was still warm when the lid was opened, indicating that it had been freshly made and delivered without delay.
Lu Xuan hurriedly took the dishes inside, and soon came out with empty bowls. After returning the restaurant's bowls and plates, Lu Qiong gave the idler two hundred coins.
Of the 190 coins, 20 coins were for the restaurant. A serving of "Small Gold Rice" cost 20 coins, and crispy duck cost 150 coins. The portion of crispy duck was quite large, enough for them to eat for several days. The Red Pavilion was considered the most cost-effective restaurant in Bianjing. Compared to other restaurants, the prices were lower and the portions were larger, but the taste was not as good.
The "Small Gold Rice" was quite tasty, but it was just fried rice with eggs. These days, it's popular to call egg yolks "Small Gold," since egg yolks are golden in color. After being chopped up and fried with rice, Lu Qiong thought calling it "Small Gold Rice" was really a good name.
On the octagonal table, the stir-fried mutton and crispy duck that Jinniang brought were placed together, each person had a bowl of broken rice, and there was also a plate of thawed cold dumplings next to them.
Lu Qiong had been craving this stir-fried mutton for a long time. Taking a bite, she found the outer skin to be crispy and the inside tender and smooth. It must have been marinated with seasonings first and then pan-fried in a pan for a while before being stir-fried over high heat. It was not only juicy but also salty and fragrant. Dipping the broken rice in the sauce made it even more delicious!
The craftsmanship is truly excellent. If I didn't already have a Yang Jie'er, I would really like to invite Jin Niang over...
After finishing a piece of mutton, Lu Xuan picked up a duck leg, gnawed off a piece of crispy, golden-brown skin, along with the tendons, but couldn't bite it open. She struggled with the duck leg, her face contorted, biting the meat while forcefully pulling off the leg, only relaxing her brow after finally putting it in her mouth.
This crispy duck is really chewy.
After lunch, a bowl of cold rice balls, icy and sweet, was like eating iced watermelon after a meal for Lu Qiong.
The Qixi Festival is just around the corner, and we'll be making Qiaoguo (a type of pastry) and dumplings then.
Qiaoguo is a deep-fried pasta dish that is not difficult to make. Dumplings, on the other hand, are different. According to custom, some dumplings contain copper coins, needles, and red dates. Finding a copper coin in a dumpling means you will get rich, finding a needle means you are skillful, and finding a date means you will get married early.
However, inserting a needle was too dangerous, so Lu Qiong removed that one and planned to only wrap copper coins and red dates.
Come to think of it, it's time to ask Du Zai to do some advertising.
*
Eggplant was stewing in the pot, and its salty aroma wafted around.
Seeing that there was still plenty of time, Du Zai couldn't resist taking out the wooden box he had hidden. When he opened it, he found glittering copper coins inside.
They all lay sprawled on the ground, and he lay down on the ground counting them one by one: "Five, ten... three hundred and twenty-four!"
"There are over three hundred coins!"
This is all money that Du Zai has recently saved, most of which was given to him by Lu Qiong. Whenever there is a new product to be released, Lu Qiong is the one who helps out.
But it was still far from enough. Du Zai scratched his head, not knowing what to do.
The poetry gathering at Yingtian Academy ended near noon. Du Yan wanted to find some oil paper, so he took a plate of snacks to the kitchen.
Just then, the headmaster came out of the kitchen. He didn't know what to do with the cakes he was holding, so he held them with both hands, bowed to the headmaster and greeted him. He could also vaguely smell a fragrance, which seemed to be beggar's chicken.
The headmaster nodded and smiled kindly: "Hengzhi, you've come to help in the kitchen again?"
"Yes, Master."
Du Yan entered the academy because of his intelligence, and buying paper and pens would cost a lot of money. Therefore, he would work in the kitchen on weekdays to exchange for a lunch, which was also permitted by the headmaster.
After chatting with the head of the hall, he asked the cook in the kitchen for some oil paper, stacked the two portions of Guanghan cake, one portion of lotus flower pastry, and two portions of pear blossom pastry on the plate, and wrapped them all in the oil paper.
Du Yan couldn't hide his smile on the way back. These pastries were not something he could usually eat. He was sure that Zai'er would be happy to see them when he brought them back.
Thinking this, he couldn't help but quicken his pace and soon saw the roof of his house.
"Brother, your elder brother is back!"
Their house had no yard; the kitchen was right inside the entrance, with tables and chairs next to the stove. There were wooden beds against the wall, one with neat bedding and the other in a mess.
As soon as Du Yan opened the door, he saw his younger brother lying on the floor, his buttocks sticking out, looking rather unsightly...
"What is Adi doing?"
Upon hearing the commotion, Du Zai quickly packed the copper coins into a wooden box and stuffed it into the pile of firewood.
He was a little stiff, but after standing up, he smiled and said, "I tripped by accident just now, it's nothing."
Then she changed the subject: "By the way, why are you back at noon today? You usually come back at dusk."
Du Yan didn't press further and recounted the events of the poetry gathering in detail, his smile never fading.
"By the way, try this pastry, it tastes amazing!"
There was only one lotus flower pastry, so Du Zai chose the pear blossom pastry, which looked better. He felt that the taste was familiar, but all pastries are from the same family, so it is normal for them to taste similar.
Seeing that he liked it, Du Yan introduced that the pastry was from Lu Ji.
Du Zai was genuinely surprised: "Lu Ji...pastries?"
Du Yanxian praised the pastries before saying, "The headmaster also said that this Manager Lu is not only skillful but also quite knowledgeable. You should learn from him; the imperial examinations are next February, so don't fall behind in your studies. Your brother is on leave today, which is perfect..."
Du Zai nodded. Yingtian Academy is not easily fooled. If this is true, the manager of Lu's shop is really capable. He will definitely make a lot of money in the future. He should try to build a good relationship with him.
I'll go find someone the day after tomorrow—no, tomorrow.
Seeing him deep in thought, Du Yan felt gratified. Zai'er had finally taken his words to heart; with his comprehension, he was sure to do well in next year's imperial examination.
*
As the morning mist gradually dissipated, all the food stalls on Zhouqiao Street lit their fires, filling the air with a medley of aromas: soup noodles, steamed buns, flatbreads, glutinous rice cakes, honey-roasted snacks...
Along with Lu Ji's, San Niang Tangbing Shop also opened. A wooden sign by the door read, "New store opening, free bean soup."
Sister Yang also knew about this. She saw that many passing diners were going to Third Sister's place, and they couldn't even make the dumplings properly, with one piece being too long and another too short.
Upon seeing this, Lu Qiong quickly reminded her and continued preparing the sauce for the cold noodles.
Seeing her so calm, Sister Yang was anxious: "Young lady, why aren't you worried? All the customers have run away! And the idea of giving away drinks at the opening was yours, how could she have stolen it?"
Lu Qiong put the dough with locust leaf juice into the pot of water, stirring it with a wooden spoon. A layer of steam rose up, obscuring her face: "My hands are my own, and I can't stop them from learning. Besides, it's normal for people to get tired of the old and crave the new. Who knows? Customers are all there to try something new. Whether I can keep them in the future depends on my skills."
"You just focus on kneading the dough and making the noodles. How the shop does is my responsibility. Otherwise, if the taste is not good today, more customers will leave."
It wasn't that Lu Qiong was putting pressure on Yang Jie'er; she knew Yang Jie'er meant well. She was just afraid that if Yang Jie'er became distracted, the situation would worsen.
In her past life, she had experienced many similar things. She could attract many diners with novel ideas, but to make it last, she needed real skills. After all, the soup noodles were delicious, and even in the most remote corners, people would always find their way there by the smell.
Knowing that she always had her own ideas, Sister Yang nodded and stopped asking questions, focusing intently on her work, and soon lost interest in thinking about anything else.
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